Using Prominent Personalities and Social Causes to Stimulate Writing

“An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge,” Ambrose Bierce’s short story, is used to model how structural moves, the decisions an author makes about setting, point of view, time order, etc., can be examined to reveal an author’s purpose. Groups...

Only a thorough understanding of history can save us from repeating it. Practice close reading skills with an eighth grade unit that focuses on 19th century America, including European immigration into Ellis Island and Frederick...

Master a well-organized thesis statement with a short activity for a persuasive writing unit. Young writers read five different introductory paragraphs about various topics, find the main ideas addressed in each thesis statement, and jot...

Encourage kids to think deeply about what they are reading with five thought-provoking questions about one passage. After choosing a passage that is intriguing or confusing to them, learners write a summary, explain what they like or...

Boo! Whether you're easily scared or enjoy a good fright, a reading passage on haunted house attractions is a great addition to a Halloween-themed unit. Learners read a short informational passage before answering multiple choice,...

In this reading comprehension worksheet, students explore and analyze test taking techniques, read a short story and then answer eight comprehension questions.

Introduce your class to Edgar Allan Poe with a series of mostly self-guided tasks and assignments. Class members follow the list of tasks, starting by watching a video with background information and ending with a compare-and-contrast...

This activity may have writers evaluate short compositions, but their subjects are quite tall: great Americans. Pupils read one another's compositions and closely examine how specific phrases and diction contribute to shaping American...

Get your class thinking about climate change as a scientific theory. Guided by a handout, emerging earth scientists read articles and take notes about glaciers and sea ice. To conclude, they write an evaluation of the evidence for...

Silly journal and essay prompts may be fun to write, but they don't model the kind of writing needed for college papers and standardized tests. The 15th part in a series of 24 covers the concept of reading to write—during and after...