Curated OER
Literature: Yoshiko Uchida Unit
Sixth graders read the books, The Invisible Thread: An Autobiography by Yoshiko Uchida and Baseball Saved Us by Ken Mochizuki about Japanese Americans during World War II. They hold discussions, take quizzes, and write essays about the...
Louisiana Department of Education
How to Write a Memoir
Who are we and what shapes our identities? Seventh graders work to answer this question as they learn how to write a memoir. Full of non-print resources and supplemental texts that range from fiction to non-fiction, scholars write their...
Curated OER
Focusing on Imagery through your Senses
Students enrich their writing of an original scene by incorporating imagery, visual pictures and scenes painted in the readers mind by using one of their senses as a unique writing tool.
Reed Novel Studies
Fever 1793: Novel Study
There is no escaping fever in 1793. Mattie, a main character, soon learns that a disease outbreak has taken over much more than her hometown. Scholars discover how Mattie responds to her circumstances by learning new vocabulary and...
Curated OER
poem "Smart" by Shel Silverstein from "Where the Sidewalk Ends"
Students explore unit rate and ratio and discuss the relationship.
Curated OER
Barn Owls and Owl Pellet Dissection
Students explore birds of prey and food chains. In this ecosystems and birds of prey cross curriculum science and literacy lesson plan, students brainstorm characteristics of birds after viewing photographs. Students view a video and...
Crafting Freedom
F.E.W. Harper: Uplifted from the Shadows
Young historians discover the life of an incredible African American woman who, as an anti-slavery lecturer prior to the Civil War, defied stereotypes of what women could accomplish. Pupils explore the concept of stereotyping, read...
Reed Novel Studies
Snow Treasure: Novel Study
What does it mean to be courageous? With the study guide for Marie McSwigan's novel, Snow Treasure, scholars answer questions about the text and practice new vocabulary. They also write quatrain poems about courage or another theme from...
Reed Novel Studies
To Kill a Mockingbird: Novel Study
Edgar Rice Burroughs was an American fiction writer whose biggest claim to fame was the creation of Tarzan. Using the novel study for Harper Lee's beloved novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, pupils research and list facts about him or another...
Curated OER
Exploring War Themes in Art and Poetry
What is war? High schoolers discuss the ethical dilemma of war by viewing Picasso's painting entitled "Guernica" and write down everything they see in the painting. Then they choose one emotion that best summarizes their emotional...
Curated OER
Express Yourself Lesson Seed 5
Building on the previous activity in this series of lesson seeds, this plan focuses on the use of dialect in Theodore Taylor's novel, The Cay. Class members examine specific lines of text, use their reading journals to respond to the...
Reed Novel Studies
Lion: A Long Way Home: Novel Study
Home is where the heart is. Saroo, a main character in Lion: A Long Way Home, desperately wants to be home. However, he is lost in a train station and has no way to contact family or get back to his home. Scholars learn new vocabulary,...
Reed Novel Studies
The Wednesday Wars: Novel Study
Teacher's pet or enemy? Holling, a character in The Wednesday Wars, feels his teacher is out to get him. However, he has to remain on his best behavior to ensure his father's business does not suffer. How will he ever survive 7th grade?...
Reed Novel Studies
Paperboy: Novel Study
Little Man, in Vince Vawter's Paperboy, is a great baseball player, but due to stuttering he'd rather not speak to a soul. Scholars read how Little Man deals with his fears as they use vocabulary words to complete sentences, answer seven...
Reed Novel Studies
Nim's Island: Novel Study
A deserted island, a sea lion, and a volcanic eruption ... adventure awaits! Using a helpful novel study, scholars complete a brief vocabulary exercise and answer 10 reading comprehension questions about Nim's Island. Next, they write...
Reed Novel Studies
Where The Mountain Meets The Moon: Novel Study
Does good fortune lie within the man in the moon? Minli, a young girl in Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, sure hopes it does, so she sets out to find the Old Man of the Moon for answers. Along the way, Minli meets several magical...
Curated OER
Analyzing Sonnets
Model for your class how to craft an analysis of a sonnet by examining the literary techniques used, the background of the poet, and critical reviews of the poem. As guided practice, learners are assigned a sonnet, complete a preliminary...
Curated OER
The Influence of Musical Folk Traditions in the Poetry of Langston Hughes and Nicolás Guillén
Students listen and explore how African-American culture relates to learning Spanish as a foreign language. Poetry, music, and history are utilized while learning about Langston Hughes and Nicolas Guillen.
Curated OER
Cesar Chavez Biopoem
Learners demonstrate their learning about Cesar Chavez and the United Farm Workers Union by writing a biopoem. They word process the poem.
Curated OER
Borrowed Inspiration: Writing Social Commentary
Students read poems with social themes. In this poetry analysis lesson, students read poems selected by their instructors and complete the provided social commentary chart to determine how the poems speak out against social ills....
Curated OER
Somewhere Under the Rainbow--The Romantic Period in British Literature
Students create 2-3 poems, a children's story, or a two or three dimensional piece of art. In this Romantic Period lesson, students discuss the historical background of the Romantic Period and relevant literary terms. Students analyze...
Curated OER
Similes and Metaphors
Use the Civil War and important figures from that period to help your class write poetry. You'll need to create a list of similes and metaphors, but you could also consider having your learners create this the day prior. They will use...
Curated OER
6 Room Image Poem (adapted from Georgia Heard’s Awakening the Heart)
Young scholars explore emotions and memories in preparation for poetry writing. In this poetry lesson students use a graphic organizer and prompts to begin to describe a specific memory which they will turned into a poem.
Curated OER
Poetry Anthology of Basic Forms
Students explore the format of the following poetic forms: acrostic, haiku, cinquain, diamente, and free-verse.They create a handbook or anthology of these poetic forms, with at least one sample of original work in each format.