Virginia Department of Education
Identifying the Main Idea in Fiction
Discovering the main idea in fiction is like uncovering buried treasure; one must persevere to locate it, and the reward is priceless. Scholars delve deep into leveled stories using three questions to aid in identifying the main idea.
Curated OER
Comparing Two Stories
Compare new and old versions of the classic story Alice in Wonderland in this comprehensive activity packet. Learners read an excerpt from the original, answering several analysis questions. They do the same for a more modern version,...
Curated OER
Descriptive Writing Using the Book Rumpelstiltskin
Use the fairy tale Rumpelstiltskin to teach your third grade class about descriptive writing. Following a teacher read-aloud of the story, the class brainstorms a list of adjectives describing the main character. Students use this list...
EdHelper
George Washington's Socks by Elvira Woodruff
A solid, straightforward book report form is an excellent addition to your literature unit. Class members note the main characters, point of view, plot elements, and other important details from a story, adding their favorite part from...
Curriculum Corner
Fiction Graphic Organizers
Get an in-depth look into a narrative text with a three-page worksheet that examines a story's character—actions, sayings, thoughts, and appearance—setting, and challenges scholars to write a brief summary about what they've read.
Teacher's Corner
Compare and Contrast Dr. Seuss
Celebrate Read Across America Day and Dr. Seuss' birthday with this compare and contrast graphic organizer in which three stories are examined for their setting, characters, problems, events, and solution.
Curated OER
Charlotte's Web
In this literature worksheet, students, after reading Charlotte's Web, fill in the blanks inside of a pig that spell out five of the main characters from the novel and then color the pig.
Curated OER
Reading Activities Using Bloom's Taxonomy
This short, yet effective, presentation gives pupils many great tips on increasing their enjoyment of what they read and improving their comprehension. The categories of tips include analyzing, remembering, understanding, applying,...
Mr. Mansour
Ralph S. Mouse by Beverly Cleary
Take an in-depth look into Beverly Cleary's story, Ralph S. Mouse, with a 10-question worksheet that focuses on story elements. Scholars describe the main character, point of view, conflict resolution, and more! Then, conclude with a...
McGraw Hill
Study Guide for Island of the Blue Dolphins
Dive your class into a reading of Island of the Blue Dolphins with this in-depth study guide. Breaking the novel into three parts, the resource begins each section with a focus activity that identifies a specific theme or question to be...
Roald Dahl
Matilda - The Weekly Test
Readers take the main characters in Matilda and individually describe them through a mnemonic. To get there, group members create an acrostic poem describing the character they were given, and choose one of the words from the acrostic...
Penguin Books
An Educator's Guide to Counting by 7s
Everyone takes a different journey through grief. A series of lesson plans for the novel Counting by 7s introduces readers to the main character who loses her parents in a car crash. Discussion questions and writing prompts combine...
Curated OER
Dear Diary
Work on narrative writing with this lesson, in which middle schoolers analyze the characters from a selected piece of literature and write narrative diary pieces as the character. They work to understand the point of view of the...
Read Works
Cats in the Catacombs
Fourth graders read a short story and then answer questions based on what they read. Learners are asked to support their answers with evidence from the text.
Curated OER
fantastic Characters
Learners study stories. In this writing lesson, students discuss the three aspects of a story, read stories focusing on the characters, write a story as a class about a character made up by the class, and write a story with an exciting...
Teacher's Corner
Is There a Wocket in my Pocket?
Accompany Dr. Seuss' Is There a Wocket in my Pocket? with this graphic organizer. Young readers make inferences about why the main character has certain feelings towards the creatures found in the story.
Curated OER
Language Practice
The simple instructional techniques described in this plan will help young readers learn and practice basic reading skills and strategies. Before reading, introduce your readers to the meaning of main character, setting, and plot. Then...
Curated OER
Because of Winn-Dixie Scrapbook
Here is a fun resource that your kids will love. While reading the book Because of Winn-Dixie, they analyze the story's main characters by creating an online scrapbook. The purpose is to have them identify character traits and use...
Curated OER
James and the Giant Peach Character Study
Every book has a few great characters, but James and the Giant Peach is the only one whose characters travel in a piece of fruit. The class creates T-charts for the main characters of the novel, while reading the book. They write actions...
Harper Collins
Beverly Cleary Memory Game
Where is Henry Huggins? Class members craft playing cards for a memory game. One side features a description or an illustration of a memorable scene, the title of the book and the names of major characters, or a description about the...
Mary Pope Osborne, Classroom Adventures Program
The Backpack Travel Journals
Strap on those backpacks, it's time to travel through history with this literature unit based on the first four books of The Magic Tree House series. While reading through these fun stories, children create story maps, record interesting...
Reed Novel Studies
The Indian In The Cupboard: Novel Study
Don't judge a book—or a toy—by its cover. Omri, a main character in The Indian in the Cupboard, quickly judged his plastic toy figures as boring. However, once placed in the cupboard, Omri's toys became something he never imagined....
Reed Novel Studies
Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher: Novel Study
Don't count your eggs before they hatch—unless they are dragon eggs. Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher follows the main character as he finds himself hatching dragon eggs. Scholars work through the resource and read how Jeremy tries to...
Reed Novel Studies
The Lions of Little Rock: Novel Study
A true friend sticks with you through thick and thin. Marlee and Liz, main characters in The Lions of Little Rock, have that type of friendship. Scholars learn vocabulary and answer comprehension questions as they read how the two girls...