Curated OER
Maniac McGee
Students read and analyze the novel, Maniac McGee. They answer discussion questions, read the short story "Thank You, M'am," by Langston Hughes, and conduct Internet research on genealogical websites to analyze their first and last names.
Curated OER
Cheerful Hearts and Willing Feet
Students explore characterization in Little Women. In this literature lesson, students participate in written analysis and research in order to explore Alcott's characterization in the novel.
Curated OER
Quilt Squares-Literature Reporting
Differentiate instruction with this crafty approach to demonstrating comprehension. Learners choose a fictional book at their reading level, and afterward create a quilt square. The square is "decorated" with words, illustrations, and...
Curated OER
The Outsiders
Are you working on an Outsiders unit? Use this list of activities to deepen your middle schoolers' understanding of the novel. After reading S.E. Hinton's novel, young readers work on three required activities, including participating in...
Curated OER
Finding Problems In A Story
Students categorize information into a problem/solving chart and examine the value of using a diary. In this problem solving and diary activity, students read portions of Dear Mr. Henshaw, while they investigate the importance of keeping...
Curated OER
How Advertisers Persuade
This plan centers around the article "How Advertisers Persuade," although it is not included in the instructional activity itself. Get your class thinking about advertising, appeals, and techniques that companies use to get their...
Curated OER
Salinger and the Vocabulary of the Vernacular
Writers explore vocabulary and expressions used in the English language. They use visual word maps to become aware of the different uses of words which will allow them to more readily interpret texts. Then they listen to/read excerpts...
Scholastic
Holes Match 'Em Up Challenge
Upper graders read the book Holes as a class or by themselves. In groups, they identify symbols and discuss how they are connected among the many plots in the story. They create a timeline in which they sequence the main events to end...
EngageNY
Mid-Unit Assessment: On-Demand Note-taking and Text-Dependent Questions
Flex those brain muscles! Scholars take a mid-unit assessment, conducting research to take notes about how a particular invention helped meet society's needs. To complete the test, they work on draft sketches for their graphic novelettes.
Utah Education Network (UEN)
Lessons Learned in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
To conclude a study of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, class members create illustrated newsletters about Huck's lessons as he journeys down the Mississippi River. Using Microsoft Publisher, pairs copy, save, and import illustrations...
Curated OER
Coming of Age During Japanese Occupation: Richard E. Kim's Lost Names: Scenes from a Korean Boyhood
Explore the implications of the Japanese occupation of Korea during World War II. Learners read Lost Names: Scenes from a Korean Boyhood, participate in classroom discussions about the novel and keep journals in which they respond to...
Curated OER
Plot and Conflict
Students review the literary elements of plot and conflict. In this plot and conflict lesson plan, students read a story and answer questions about the plot and conflict within. Students create a concept map for the novel to identify the...
Curated OER
Made for the Movies
Young scholars create a movie flyer to advertise the novel that the class has just finished reading in small groups. They search the Internet, format their flyer, select a slogan for their film, write a brief plot summary, without giving...
Curated OER
"The Five Orange Pips" Lesson
Seventh graders read sections of a Sherlock Holmes novel. They identify references to hate groups that are the criminals in the story. They discuss the symbols found in the story.
Curated OER
Comparing Themes Across Texts
Read various texts to compare the themes across each text. Learners write a journal entry describing the most beautiful scenery they've seen and use a map of the United States to locate the Sequoia National Park and Muir Woods. They then...
Curated OER
Bud, Not Buddy: Anticipation Guide
Hoover flags? Hoover blankets? Hoovervilles? Drawing upon prior knowledge of the Great Depression class members respond to the prompts on an anticipation guide for Bud, Not Buddy, Christopher Paul Curtis’s tale of Bud Caldwell’s quest to...
Curated OER
Great Expectations By Charles Dickens: A Classic, Or Just a Novel?
Seventh graders read the novel Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. They consult Media Center and online sources as they conduct research needed to write an essay that answers the question, "Is Great Expectations a classic, or just a...
Curated OER
Lesson Plan for Day Five Part One of Unit on Bless Me, Ultima
Tenth graders participate in literature circles to discuss the novel, Bless Me, Ultima. They formulate questions based on their reading and answer them in small discussion groups.
Curated OER
A Creative Presentation
Learners read chapter books by Gary Paulsen. In groups, they identify imagery presented in the book. Students locate 10 quotes, categorize each quote into one of the five senses, and then organize it and create a display of their three...
Curated OER
Breaking Down Books
Learners practice their reading comprehension by analyzing and discussing books with their classmates. They record their responses to comprehension, evaluation, and interpretation questions provided on a worksheet that is referenced but...
Curated OER
Analyzing Literature via Literature Circles
Introduce literature circles with Roland Smith's novels. Your seventh graders will see the activity modeled as you read The Three Little Pigs together and apply the format to a Roland Smith novel of their choice. The lesson includes...
Curated OER
Literary Elements in Of Mice and Men
Ninth graders review an exercise, after reading most of the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. They demonstrate a range of literary elements such as conflict, symbolism, setting, and foreshadowing. Students also are able to provide...
Curated OER
The Tale of Genji
Did you know that the world's first novel was written by a woman? Murasaki Shikibu's The Tale of Genji, was published in 1021. Class members research Eastern and Western cultures in the 10th and 11th centuries, view modern adaptations of...
Curated OER
Reader Response
Fifth graders reflect upon different concepts of Language Arts while reading literature. In the novel Tuck Everlasting, by Natalie Babbitt, the characters discover a spring of eternal youth. After reading the first several chapters of...