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Lesson Plan
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National Endowment for the Humanities

Theme Analysis in A Christmas Carol

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
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...
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Lesson Plan
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National Endowment for the Humanities

Scrooge as He is Revealed during the Ghostly Experiences

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
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...
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Lesson Plan
1
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National Endowment for the Humanities

Language Analysis Based on Stave 1

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
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...
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Lesson Plan
Academy of American Poets

Teach This Poem: “As I Walk These Broad Majestic Days” by Walt Whitman

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Walt Whitman's poem "As I Walk These Broad Majestic Days" offers scholars an opportunity to practice their noticing skills. They first examine a postcard of the Newport News Shipyard listing things they notice about the image and how...
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Lesson Plan
Academy of American Poets

Teach This Poem: "Violin" by Nikki Wallschlaeger

For Teachers 3rd - 12th Standards
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...
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Lesson Plan
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Teaching Tolerance

Where We Stand

For Teachers 3rd - 8th Standards
Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. Academics learn strategies to share their opinions and agree or disagree with others in a respectful manner. The resource provides scenarios to help individuals form opinions and share them with...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

What Gives Stories Their Power?

For Teachers 7th Standards
Read to me! Scholars get lost in a picture book read aloud of The People Could Fly. They discuss text-dependent questions and talk with partners about the meaning of the story. They then study an image in the book to determine the power...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Introducing the Narrative Arc: The Last Day of Slavery

For Teachers 7th Standards
Fix your mistakes. Scholars look over their end-of-unit assessments while the teacher focuses on common mistakes made among the class. Learners then make predictions about their next text, Frederick Douglass: The Last Day of Slavery, by...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Coda: What Gives My Story Power? Celebrating Student Work

For Teachers 7th Standards
It's time for a celebration! Scholars go on a gallery walk around the classroom to view their peers' completed illustrated children's stories. Using sticky notes, pupils provide feedback about the powerful elements they find in their...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Coda: What Gives This Story Power? Re-Examining Powerful Stories

For Teachers 7th Standards
Writers consider what makes a story powerful as they listen to a short story about Frederick Douglass. Once finished, small groups complete a worksheet to analyze what makes the story so enduring.
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Scaffolding to Essay: Using Details to Support a Claim

For Teachers 7th Standards
Show me the evidence. Writers analyze the Command of Evidence row of the rubric for A Long Walk to Water essay. Pupils work in pairs to determine how the writer of a model essay meets the demands of the rubric. They then use a Forming...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Considering Author’s Purpose: Comparing Fictional and Historical Experiences of the Second Sudanese Civil War (Chapters 14 and 15, Plus Rereading “Time Trip,” Continued)

For Teachers 7th Standards
Is that a true story? Readers work to gather evidence for comparing the historical and fictional text Time Trip: Sudan’s Civil War and A Long Walk to Water. Scholars identify the use of real people and experiences versus the use of...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Introducing the Concept of Theme: Survival in A Long Walk to Water (Chapters 1–5)

For Teachers 7th Standards
Teach the class how to survive! Scholars work together to learn the meaning of theme and determine the message  in A Long Walk to Water. After the class discusses possible ideas, they work to identify one central theme for the text. The...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

End of Unit 2 Assessment, Part 1b: Writing Introduction and Conclusion

For Teachers 7th Standards
Writers continue looking at the rubric for their A Long Walk to Water essays. This time, they analyze the demands for the introduction and conclusion paragraphs. Pupils compare the rubric to the opening and closing of the model essay,...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

End of Unit 2 Assessment, Part 1a: Writing Body Paragraphs

For Teachers 7th Standards
It is not what you say but how you say it. Class members prepare for writing their A Long Walk to Water essays by analyzing row four in the writing rubric. Learners discuss the words used and talk about the importance of correct grammar...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Scaffolding for Essay: Planning Body Paragraphs for Survival Factors in A Long Walk to Water

For Teachers 7th Standards
Some things are complicated. Scholars continue to look at the model essay and rubric related to A Long Walk to Water. This time, they focus only on row three of the rubric because it is a more complicated portion. Writers think about the...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Introducing Essay Prompt: Factors for Survival in A Long Walk to Water

For Teachers 7th Standards
An important part of any essay writing is to fully understand the prompt. Readers spend time stating the prompt for A Long Walk to Water essay in their own words, making a list of points to put in their essays, and discussing what the...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

World Café to Analyze Theme and Character in A Long Walk to Water (Chapters 16–18)

For Teachers 7th Standards
Here comes a surprise ending! Readers discuss their thoughts about the ending of A Long Walk to Water by answering probing questions. They participate in a World Café where they work in triads to complete a chart and a prompt during...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Comparing Historical and Fictional Accounts: Second Sudanese Civil War (Chapters 14 and 15, Plus Rereading “Time Trip”)

For Teachers 7th Standards
Let's compare! One pair of scholars adds to the Salva/Nya anchor chart by gathering evidence about the characters from chapters 14 and 15 of A Long Walk to Water. The rest of the class pairs work on adding to the Survival anchor chart....
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Establishing Routines for Discussing A Long Walk to Water (Chapter 6)

For Teachers 7th Standards
Middle schoolers use a reader's dictionary to locate words they do not know in chapter 6 of A Long Walk to Water. They then turn attention to gist and work on a Salva/Nya anchor chart to record what happens to the characters. Finally,...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Mid-Unit 3 Assessment and Planning the TwoVoice Poem

For Teachers 7th Standards
Class members prepare to write a two-voice poem that compares and contrasts two characters from Linda Sue Park's novel, A Long Walk to Water. Pupils also complete the mid-unit assessment, answering questions about juxtaposition from the...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Inferring about Character: Analyzing and Discussing Points of View (Chapter 2)

For Teachers 7th Standards
Welcome to the World Café! Readers discuss A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park. They circulate throughout the classroom, stopping at different tables to answer a discussion prompt with their classmates and record their ideas on a chart.
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Practicing Structures for Reading: Gathering Evidence about Salva’s and Nya’s Points of View (Reread Chapter 3)

For Teachers 7th Standards
How does an author develop and contrast character points of view in a work of literature? Using a graphic organizer, readers continue gathering evidence about character point of view from Linda Sue Park's A Long Walk to Water. Next,...
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Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Establishing Structures for Reading: Gathering Evidence about Salva’s and Nya’s Points of View (Reread Chapters 1 and 2)

For Teachers 7th Standards
Readers practice gathering textual evidence to support their understanding of character point of view in A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park. Working with partners, they complete a Gathering Evidence graphic organizer and engage in...