Curated OER
Literary Analysis - Young Goodman Brown
Why is literary analysis so important? Readers explore writing a literary analysis by reviewing literary elements such as character, metaphor, plot, setting, simile, personification, and style. They read "Young Goodman Brown" by...
College Board
2009 AP® English Literature and Composition Free-Response Questions
Scholars select a novel or play and craft an essay to discuss what the symbol reveals about the characters or theme. Writers also analyze a passage and a poem to determine how the authors use literary elements to relay their messages.
EngageNY
Grade 11 ELA Module 1: Unit 2, Lesson 25
Revenge, mortality, madness—what are the central ideas from Shakespeare's Hamlet? Scholars answer the question by writing multi-paragraph responses. They also identify and discuss literary devices from the play.
EngageNY
Grade 10 ELA Module 1: Unit 3, Lesson 14
A thorough unit on literary analysis and character development culminates in a final writing assessment. Prompted to compare the parent-child relationships in Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club and H.G. Bissinger's Friday Night Lights, high...
Maryland Department of Education
The Concept of Diversity in World Literature Lesson 4: Proverbs
"Eneke the bird says since men have learnt to shoot without missing, he has learnt to fly without perching." As part of their study of Things Fall Apart, class members read Paul Hernadi and Francis Steen's essay, "The Tropical Landscapes...
EngageNY
Grade 9 ELA Module 1, Unit 2, Lesson 4
As a mid-unit assessment, class members demonstrate their understanding of the concepts covered so far by crafting a formal, multi-paragraph essay in which they analyze how Rainer Maria Rilke's word choices develop the meaning and tone...
Literacy Design Collaborative
The House on Mango Street
After reading Sandra Cisneros' The House on Mango Street, class members craft an essay in which they use evidence from a variety of vignettes to demonstrate how Cisneros develops Esperanza's character.
Curated OER
The Argument
After brainstorming, middle schoolers write an expository essay for a writing project. They focus on supporting points, organization, and writing conventions to develop a well-integrated paper. In addition, they revise, proofread and...
Curated OER
How to Write the Thesis Statement
A thesis statement is one of the most important aspects in a paper; make sure your class can create solid, concise statements for each of their large essays, particularly analytical essays. This presentation is extremely thorough, and it...
Curated OER
Generating Topic Sentences
A great look at topic sentences is presented here. First, the function of a topic sentence is explained and common errors are listed. Then, you will walk your class through the five example topic sentences to discuss their quality.
Cliffs Notes
Don Quixote: Study Help Essay Topics and Review Questions
In this literature learning exercise, students respond to 26 short answer and essay questions about Cervantes's Don Quixote. Students may also link to an online interactive quiz on the novel at the bottom of the page.
Curated OER
Introducing the Essay: Twain, Douglass, and American Non-Fiction
Students analyze American essayists Mark Twain and Frederick Douglass in an introduction to American literary non-fiction writing. In this essay history lesson, students identify methods for writing essays. Students read and analyze...
University of North Carolina
Literature (Fiction)
An informative installment of the Writing for Specific Fields series helps readers learn how to interpret and write about fiction. The website details nine easy steps for writing a literary analysis—a useful method for all readers!
EngageNY
Examples from Life Today
Does that happen in real life? Scholars look at their Themes of Adversity graphic organizers and think of examples in today's world for each type of adversity. They determine if today's world has the same struggles as those in the Middle...
Curated OER
Essay on Themes
Students read the book THE CALL OF THE WILD by Jack London and discuss the different elements in the book. They then write an essay on a theme providing examples backing up their main point of their essay.
Curated OER
World Literature: The Inferno Essay
In this literature analysis worksheet, studnets read Dante's Inferno and write an introduction with a thesis statement. Students give a synopsis of the comedy and then write an essay. Students select from the five options to complete the...
Curated OER
Comparison and Contrast - D. H. Lawrence
Read The Horse Dealer's Daughter and The Rocking Horse Winner by D. H. Lawrence, then write an essay comparing and contrasting the two stories. Learners choose some aspect to write about, such as themes, characters, setting, or plot.
Curated OER
Modernism in Poetry, Painting, and Music
Are you teaching Modernism to your class? Connect different areas of artistic expression in the Modernist Era. Learners read T.S. Eliot, view art by Pablo Picasso, and listen to a Modernist musical composition. This final assignment is...
Curated OER
Extreme Poetry Vocabulary
Challenge your class with this comprehensive list of literary vocabulary words. Learners take a pre-test, look up definitions, come up with an example, and then take a post-test. You might use this prior to a unit about poetic devices in...
Curated OER
Around the Room Short Story
Collective story writing is a great way to reinforce the concept of story elements and collaborative learning. Young writers discuss story elements such as, setting, character, action, climax, conclusion, foreshadowing, dialogue, and...
EngageNY
Grade 10 ELA Module 1: Unit 1, Lesson 7
Can three works of literature work together to establish and develop a common central idea? Put your thoughts into writing with a final assessment focused on a unit-long analysis of Christopher Marlowe's "The Passionate Shepard to His...
EngageNY
Grade 9 ELA Module 2: Unit 1, Lesson 8
Rid yourself of unsupported analytic writing forever with a mid-unit assessment focused on Edgar Allan Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart." As ninth graders formulate an essay based on evidence from the first seven lessons in the unit, they...
College Board
2009 AP® English Literature and Composition Free-Response Questions Form B
Do you have a political agenda? Some authors do. Scholars analyze a piece of work and determine how the author deals with a political or social issue. Responding to two other essay questions, writers create essays exploring how authors...
College Board
2008 AP® English Literature and Composition Free-Response Questions
Scholars are challenged to create essays comparing two poems in which the authors discuss fears and concerns about dying and life passing by too quickly. Two other essay questions ask writers to analyze literary elements and characters...