Curated OER
The Called Themselves the K.K.K.; The Birth of an American Terrorist Group
How did Ku Klux Klan develop and flourish in the US? How did the government respond to acts of terrorism conducted by the KKK following the Civil War? How does the government respond to acts of terrorism today? This resource launches a...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Practical Criticism
As an introduction to literary criticism, class members recreate I.A. Richards' close reading experiment. Individuals select a poem, paraphrase the story, focus on the imagery used, consider what the imagery adds to the tale, and...
Penguin Books
An Educator’s Guide to Gayle Forman
Sometimes a novel is the best way to tackle a tough topic. A helpful educator's guide for the novels of Gayle Forman discuss tough topics such as teenage suicide. Discussion questions and writing activities encourage readers to think...
Orlando Shakes
Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some!): Study Guide
What do Ebenezer Scrooge, the Grinch, and Frosty the Snowman have in common? They're all characters from beloved holiday movies that viewers revisit in the play Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some!). Scholars conduct research...
National Park Service
Petrified Forest National Park
Poetry Soup, a reading and writing unit constructed by the Petrified Forest National Park, will have scholars hungry to learn about nature. The cross-content unit contains topics related to history, science, and language arts. Content...
Maryland Department of Education
The Concept of Diversity in World Literature Lesson 6: Culture Clash
To prepare for a Quickwrite on the question, "How do different points of view create cultural conflicts?" class groups draw examples of religious, cultural, and political conflicts from Things Fall Apart and The Poisonwood Bible to use...
Maine Content Literacy Project
Understanding Theme
The ninth in a fourteen-lesson plan series, this plan marks a sort of midpoint in a unit devoted to the study of short stories. Pupils learn about theme and work on their short story projects by adding to their blogs, checking in with...
Walters Art Museum
The Symbolism of Allegorical Art
Introduce learners to allegorical art with four bronze sculptures by Francesco Bertos. After modeling how to recognize bias and allegory in Bertos' Africa, class groups examine the other three sculptures in the series before creating...
Polk Bros Foundation
I Can Identify a Nonfiction Writer's Main Idea and Supporting Examples
Use this page to quickly identify the central idea of a text and organize ideas for writing an informational or explanatory text. The worksheet is split into two parts. In the first part, pupils note down the main idea and supporting...
Curated OER
Centers of the Storm: The Lyceum and the Circle at the University of Mississippi
Greek Revival architecture and the Civil Rights Movement? Sure! Examine how the Lyceum and Circle, two historic buildings located on the campus of the University of Mississippi, relate to integration and the 1962 riot on the university...
Edgate
Discovering New Resources
What is a natural resource, and what resources did the Lewis and Clark expedition seek? After reading an article on the mapping of the west, learners get into small groups to discuss the important natural resources of the period. They...
Curated OER
How to Write an Essay: Secondary ed.
Whether introducing the structure of expository essays or reviewing the format with your high schoolers, take the time to check out this resource. Examples of seven common forms of introductory paragraphs and six types of conclusions, as...
Curated OER
How to Integrate Quotations
Quotations add validity to an argument or an analysis, but how do you integrate them into your writing? Several examples are provided, and your emerging writers will surely benefit from looking at different ways to add quotations....
SUNY Empire State College
Empire State College: Shaping Information: Ordering Information and Outlining
Discusses finding a logical order for the ideas you wish to present in your essay. Uses samples to show how changing the position of the topic sentence changes the emphasis. Briefly touches on transitions. Then discusses the outline as...
Boise State University
Paradigm Online Writing Assistant
This online writing assistance offers help in the writing process, grammar and mechanics, usage, and four different types of essays, as well as help on deciding what and how to document.
Buck Institute
Pbl Works: Presentation Rubric Grades 9 12 (Non Ccss)
[Free Registration/Login Required] This rubric helps teachers guide students in grades 9-12 in making effective presentations in a project, and it can be used to assess their performance. Alignment with CCSS is not noted. It describes an...
Buck Institute
Pbl Works: 9 12 Presentation Rubric (Ccss Aligned)
[Free Registration/Login Required] This rubric helps teachers guide students in grades 9-12 in making effective presentations in a project, and it can be used to assess their performance. Alignment with CC ELA standards for Speaking and...
Other
Bucks County Community College: Visual Organizers
This site walks you through the benefits of visual organizers, and focuses on a variety of types: tables, charts, graphs, timelines, flowcharts, diagrams, and webs.
Other
Reading Quest: Strategies for Reading Comp.: History Frames: Story Maps
This activity will help you teach students chronological order as well as identifying key people and events. Printable worksheets.
ReadWriteThink
Read Write Think: Venn Diagram, 2 Circles
A printable Venn diagram to use when comparing and contrasting two things or topics. Directions on how to use this graphic organizer as well as lists of teaching ideas and related resources are also provided.
SUNY Empire State College
Empire State College: Thesis and Shaping Information
This tutorial on writing essays contains several sections pertaining to the thesis. These include thesis definition, characteristics, analysis of thesis to gather and shape information, and topic sentences. Many examples given. W.9-10.2...
University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina: Constructing Thesis Statements
Readable, but thorough handout on the thesis statement. Covers what it is, why it's important, how to come up with one, examples, and how to evaluate. Bibliography included. W.9-10.2a Intro/org/graphics
Georgia Department of Education
Ga Virtual Learning: Types of Writing: Expository and Persuasive
This lesson introduces two types of writing: expository and persuasive. It defines and provides examples of each kind. It offers links to MLA Formatting and Style Guide and sample papers of opinion and exository essays.
Sophia Learning
Sophia: Descriptive Papers: Organization
This slideshow lesson discusses the organization of descriptive papers. It reviews descriptive papers, lists the three most common organizational patterns: least to greatest, greatest to least, and chronological. Determining which order...