IPA Productions
A Christmas Carol - The Story
Thirty-six pages familiarize scholars with the story and vocabulary of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. After reading and listening to an abbreviated version of the holiday tale learners show what they know about the sequence of...
Echoes & Reflections
The "Final Solution"
Nazi policies shifted from deportation and imprisonment to extermination of the Jewish people in death camps in the "Final Solution." Learners examine photos of artifacts, read poetry written by survivors, analyze testimony from...
Echoes & Reflections
Survivors and Liberators
The end was just the beginning. The period immediately after the end of World War II and the Holocaust is often called "The Return to Life" as survivors looked to reunite and recreate broken families and shattered lives. A two-lesson...
Echoes & Reflections
The Ghettos
Young historians examine primary sources, including diaries, poems, and photographs, to consider the conditions in the ghettos and how they fit into the escalation of the Third Reich's plot against the Jewish people.
Annenberg Foundation
Rhythms in Poetry
Rhyme, rhythm, free verse, imagery: Do these words describe poetry, or jazz music? The answer is both! A resource explores these similarities as scholars watch a video, engage in discussion, read author biographies, write poetry and...
Scholastic
A Reading Guide to A Wrinkle in Time
Accompany a reading of Madeleine L'Engle's classic tale, A Wrinkle in Time, with a detailed guide equipped with 15 informative and useful chapters. Scholars discover who the author is, why she wrote the book, and crucial story elements...
Dr. Seuss Enterprises
Dr. Seuss in the Classroom
Explore the works of Dr. Seuss, such as Horton Hears a Who, Horton Hatches and Egg, The Sneetches and Other Stories, The Lorax, The Butter Battle Book, and Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories. Each story lesson includes reading...
Illinois State Board of Education
Common Core Teaching and Learning Strategies
Here's a resource that deserves a place in your curriculum library, whether or not your school has adopted the Common Core. Designed for middle and high school language arts classes, the packet is packed with teaching tips, materials,...
Curated OER
"I Can” Common Core! 6th Grade Reading
It is much easier for kids to know they have reached a goal when that goal is clearly defined. By providing sixth graders with a checklist of Common Core reading standards written in "I can" format, each child can keep track of his own...
Curated OER
Genre: Short Story
Discover the genre of short stories with sixth graders. They discuss the characteristics of short stories from the book America Street. Then, they compare and contrast movies and television shows and chart story characteristics. Various...
Curated OER
What is a mystery?
What is a mystery? Learners complete an anagram worksheet to discover the mystery genre. First, they listen as the teacher reads from All About Mysteries and notes defining words on the board. Then they read a mystery and examine it for...
Penguin Books
A Guide to the Works of Jacqueline Woodson
The works of Jacqueline Woodson introduce readers to diverse characters and themes. A guide covers many of the author's best-known books such as Brown Girl Dreaming and Locomotion. Dive & Discuss and Explore & Extend activities...
Penguin Books
Educator's Guide: The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code is filled with secrets. Help readers find the clues, solve the riddles and puzzles, and unwrap the mysteries with a six-page guide that includes before, during, and after reading discussion questions and...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Theme Analysis in A Christmas Carol
Why does Charles Dickens have Ebenezer go from scrooge to light-hearted and generous? From "Bah, humbug!" to "God Bless Us, Every One!" After rereading Dickens' preface to A Christmas Carol, learners analyze quotations from the tale that...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Scrooge as He is Revealed during the Ghostly Experiences
Readers learn how to use both direct and indirect characterization clues provided by Charles Dickens to understand the complexity of Ebenezer Scrooge's character. Scholars collect evidence of comments Scrooge hears, how he responds to...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Language Analysis Based on Stave 1
Class members meet the original scrooge, the Dickens character whose name has become synonymous with a cold-hearted, tight-fisted, miser. Using the provided worksheet, readers closely examine context clues to determine the meanings of...
Academy of American Poets
Teach This Poem: "Violin" by Nikki Wallschlaeger
Nikki Wallschlaeger's Violin is the featured poem in a lesson plan that uses music and multiple readings to delve deep into its analysis. After a writing warm-up, learners watch and listen to a video that showcases Regina Carter...
EngageNY
Analyzing Point of View and Figurative Language: Noah’s Point of View of Lice Peeking
Read along with me. Two learners read the parts of Noah and Lice in Flush as the rest of the class follows along. Readers look for unfamiliar words and the use of figurative language in the text. They complete graphic organizers and...
EngageNY
Analyzing Plot Development across Flush
The end. Scholars discuss how the end of the text in Flush contributes to the plot development of the story. They then write book reviews to share their thoughts about the story. After finishing their book reviews, learners share them...
EngageNY
Mid-Unit Assessment: Analyzing Point of View and Plot Development in Flush
It's the halfway point—there's no turning back now. Scholars work on the mid unit assessment for Flush. For the assessment, learners analyze the point of view and plot development by annotating the text using sticky notes and underlining...
EngageNY
Analyzing Point of View and Figurative Language: Noah’s Point of View of Florida
Fishing for words. Scholars search for unfamiliar words in pages 27-29 of Flush, place them in their word catchers, and complete part of Noah’s Point of View graphic organizer. After identifying figurative language, learners analyze tone...
EngageNY
Analyzing Point of View and Figurative Language: Noah’s Point of View of the Coral Queen and Dusty Muleman
Literally, what's the meaning? Scholars read pages seven through nine of Flush and discuss literal and nonliteral meaning with figurative language. Learners work in triads to identify and define unfamiliar words. They then complete a...
EngageNY
Analyzing Point of View and Figurative Language: Chapter 3
Get to the point ... the point of view, that is! Pupils analyze Laurence Yep's Dragonwings for tone, figurative language, and point of view by completing graphic organizers. Scholars also read an excerpt from the novel and record the...
EngageNY
Analyzing Point of View and Figurative Language: Chapter 2
Just get to the gist. Scholars work in pairs to find the gist of an excerpt from Laurence Yep's Dragonwings. Pupils also complete graphic organizers to analyze the text for tone, point of view, and figurative language.