Ponyboy, What's a Theme?

Family and friendship are two very important themes of the historical fiction novel The Orphan of Ellis Island by Elvira Woodruff. From video clips and writing prompts to reader's theater and family interviews, this resource provides...

Explore the folklore of Asia and the South Pacific with this language arts lesson series. Complementing a reading of Catching the Sun: Tales from Asia by Jan M. Mike, this resource supports learners with understanding cause and effect...

Foster a healthy and kind classroom community with a series of literary lessons focused on the habits of mind. Each lesson plan features a picture book that shares a literary theme with one or more of the habits of mind.

Your class reaches the end of the novel Eagle Song as young readers focus on determining the theme of this story. Similar to previous lessons in the unit, the teacher begins with a read aloud of the first few pages of chapter 8, before...

Support a class reading of the novel Song of the Trees by Mildred D. Taylor with this series of discussion questions. Covering a variety of topics from character and setting to historical accuracy and symbolism, these questions challenge...

The children's book Officer Buckle and Gloria by Peggy Rathmann is a great story for teaching young learners about teamwork and the importance of following rules. In a detailed, read-aloud instructional activity, children learn to use...

Design your unit on The View From Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg with a concept and vocabulary analysis resource. It outlines the plot, literary elements, vocabulary issues, and any possible considerations for planning a differentiated...

Bring your traditional lesson on folk tales to the next level by combining it with a review of the five themes of geography! Pupils practice analyzing a story from a foreign country, apply their knowledge of the five themes, draw a map...

Summarizing text is a balancing act between being brief but thorough. You need to be short and to the point, but also cover all the important details, a task that presents a challenge for many young learners. In this lesson based on the...

Readers of all ages can work together in groups to create original poetry on the theme of "Imagine," inspired by John Lennon's classic song. They also create a mural to illustrate their poetry. A beautiful lesson, inspired by a beautiful...