College Board
2003 AP® English Literature and Composition Free-Response Questions Form B
Ever felt stuck in the middle? Some characters do. Scholars choose a novel or play and write essays describing how a character is stuck between cultures. Writers also analyze the techniques used in a passage from We Were the Mulvaneys...
EngageNY
How Does the Author Convey Themes in Bud, Not Buddy?
After reading up to chapter 12 of Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis, scholars read chapter 13 and take part in a grand conversation about the author's writing techniques. Pupils discuss how his writing conveyed literary themes...
College Board
2001 AP® English Literature and Composition Free-Response Questions
Do 100 years make a difference? Scholars compare two poems written 100 years apart. They also analyze characterization used in a passage from Tom Jones by Henry Fielding. A final essay question allows writers to choose a piece of work...
Curated OER
Monster: Guided Imagery
How would you feel if you were on trial for murder—and you were only 16 years old? Put yourself in Steve Harmon's shoes before reading Monster by Walter Dean Myers. Kids listen to music that fits the theme of the book before listening to...
Curated OER
My Antonia: Magic Squares (Vocabulary Strategy)
Help your pupils discover the power of context clues by teaching the this vocabulary strategy. Designed to go with words from Willa Cather's My Antonia, this exercise focuses on having individuals use their own words to define new...
Annenberg Foundation
The Search for Identity
Discover how writers express identity in their writing. Learners explore how issues of identity surface in the literature of minority writers. Scholars watch a video, read and discuss biographies, conduct research, engage in creative...
Curated OER
Writings on a River
Students identify words that can be used to describe Mark Twain's character Tom Sawyer. Students explore stage production of "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" by reading and discussing "An Older (and Calmer) Tom Sawyer". They develop their...
Bantam Books
The Tempest: Chalk Talk
Discussion doesn't always need to be spoken. Before you begin The Tempest by William Shakespeare, have kids connect their ideas and experiences to central questions of the play with a silent discussion activity. Once they have...
Novelinks
The Winter’s Tale: Sonnet Strategy
Combine poetry and reading comprehension with an engaging writing assignment. Readers of The Winter's Tale craft a sonnet in the voice of one of the characters in Shakespeare's play.
Curated OER
Making the Old New Again
How does a new version of a Shakespearean play change in the adaptation process? Use this New York Times' Learning Network lesson to consider texts that have been produced in different media. Middle schoolers examine the latest version...
Novelinks
The Giver: Vocabulary Bingo!
Bingo! Combine the thrill of bingo with Lois Lowry's The Giver in a fun vocabulary lesson. Kids write selected vocabulary words from the novel onto a bingo chart, and then listen for the correct definitions in order to mark off their words.
Novelinks
The Tempest: A-Z Book Project
Create a picture dictionary for one of William Shakespeare's most famous plays. After readers finish The Tempest, they assign each letter of the alphabet to a concept or character, and add a description and evidence from the text to the...
Curated OER
Flowers for Algernon: RAFT
Should Charlie undergo an operation to increase his intelligence? A mini-instructional activity for a unit on Daniel Keyes novel Flowers for Algernon uses a RAFT activity, which prompts young scholars to write a letter to Charlie's...
Curated OER
Maniac Magee: Magic Number Strategy
Take a break from reading to find the magic number with this vocabulary game using words drawn from Jerry Spinelli's Maniac Magee. Participants match the definition to the word in each numbered square of the puzzle, then add the number...
Annenberg Foundation
Becoming Visible
The television and interstate highways both came of age in 1950s America. Scholars use film, text, and discussion to explore how these and other cultural icons shaped the literature of the time. Pupils also create a family history...
Annenberg Foundation
Slavery and Freedom
How do nineteenth-century texts by African American and Native American writers contribute to the country's ideals of freedom and individuality? Learners explore the topic by watching and discussing a video, reading biographies, writing...
Annenberg Foundation
Spirit of Nationalism
What were the virtues and values that helped form America? Pupils watch and discuss a video, read biographies of early Americans, chart the differences between early American religious movements, write journals and letters, draw, and...
Annenberg Foundation
Poetry of Liberation
How do writers use words to protest injustice, challenge the status quo, and shape their own identities? Individuals watch and discuss a video, read author biographies, write poetry and journals, develop a slideshow, and complete a...
Curated OER
Roll With the Punches: Oprah's On!
Sixth graders prepare questions for an Oprah Winfrey talk show featuring the characters from Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, the amazing novel by Mildred D. Taylor. Selected students role-play the characters and answer questions Oprah...
Curated OER
Learning to Give
Students study philanthropy and point of view while reading the novel Gentle Annie. In this point of view instructional activity, the learner writes a persuasive letter from a character in the novel. Students work in small groups to act...
Curated OER
Analytical Essay
What is an analytical essay? Introduce this type of thinking to your young writers. First, discuss what it means to analyze something. Then, identify the different components of an essay and what details are embedded in each component....
Oxford University Press
The Jungle Book
Most every teacher dreams of a ready-to-teach and print book study. Well, here it is! The Jungle Book novel resource includes 12 complete lessons studying poetry, author's craft, themes, characters, and more. Scholars role play, research...
Curated OER
Lesson: Urs Fischer: Your Choice: Reality or Illusion?
Young analysts write a comparative essay, but about what? They compose a paper based on several critical discussion about reality and illusion, and how both are blurred in art. They analyze several theatre pieces that exemplify Brechtian...
Reed Novel Studies
The Little Prince: Novel Study
Do our eyes play tricks on us? The Little Prince narrator begins with a discussion of the difference in what grown-ups and children see. Scholars read how he puts this to the test using a drawing and find synonyms to vocabulary words,...