ReadWriteThink
Writing Free Verse in the "Voice" of Cesar Chavez
Introduce middle schoolers to free verse poetry with a lesson that has young poets read two free verse poems and list the common characteristics of the form. They then read a passage from Cesar Chavez's biography and a free verse poem...
Curated OER
Out of the Dust: Background notes about the novel, The Great Depression, and The Dust Bowl
If your class is reading the historical fiction novel, Out of the Dust, then you are in luck. Here are a few slides that will help you provide historical context for the book, as well as define main characters, setting, symbolism, and...
Smarter Balanced
Poetry
How does poetry differ from other forms of writing? Class members view two writing samples, decide which one is a poem, and then identify the criteria they used to distinguish between the two samples.
Curated OER
Out of the Dust: Narrative Essay
To conclude their study of Out of the Dust, the 1998 Newbery Medal winning verse novel, individuals craft a narrative essay based on one of the themes in Karen Hesse's novel.
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...
Curated OER
Poetry Notes
Break this presentation into two or three days so as not to overwhelm your kids. Fifty-four slides is a lot of slides, but the PowerShow is well-organized, and terms are defined clearly and illustrated in examples provided. A general...
Brigham Young University
Out of the Dust: Anticipation Guide
To prepare for a reading of Out of the Dust, Karen Hesse’s 1998 Newbery Medal winning verse novel, class members complete an anticipation guide that focuses attention on themes readers will encounter in the novel.
Curated OER
Out of the Dust: Biopoem
As part of their study of Out of the Dust, readers create a biopoem for one of the characters in Karen Hesse's 1998 Newbery Medal winning verse novel.
Brigham Young University
Out of the Dust: Guided Imagery
A guided imagery exercise is a great way to get readers thinking about writing. As part of their study of Out of the Dust, Karen Hesse’s 1998 Newbery Medal winning verse novel, class members listen to a reading of one of the poems from...
Brigham Young University
Out of the Dust: KWHL Strategy
A K-W-H-L chart is a great way to scaffold prior knowledge. As class members begin their reading of Out of the Dust, Karen Hesse’s 1998 Newbery Medal winning verse novel, they chart what they already know about the Great Depression and...
Anti-Defamation League
Social Justice Poetry
Learners gain insight into how songs and poems express feelings of injustice. They also learn about literary devices and types of poems and make a personal connection when they write their own free verse poems about injustice.
Great Books Foundation
State of Affairs
Good verses evil. Scholars make inferences after taking a close look at the short story, State of Affairs, in which Daniel Defoe goes back and forth comparing good and evil thoughts through his writing. After reading the text, there are...
Star Wars in the Classroom
"Shakespeare and Star Wars": Lesson Plan Day 2
Ta DUM, ta DUM, ta DUM, ta DUM, ta DUM. The force will be strong in the hearts of your young Jedi as they use their lightsabers to strike the accentted syllables in lines from Ian Doescher's William Shakespeare's Star Wars: Verily, A New...
Houston Teachers Institute
Alice in Wonderland: Nonsense and Logic in Literature
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is known for its fantastical imagery and nonsense verse. This unit plan offers a basic exploration into nonsense verse through poetry and teacher read-alouds. It incorporates activities involving poetry...
Curated OER
Poem in Your Pocket Day: Ideas for Celebrating
First instituted in New York City in 2002 and recognized nationwide in 2009, "Poem in Your Pocket Day" is part of National Poetry Month (April) and celebrates poetry in everyday life. A brief news story includes 9 ideas about how to...
Star Wars in the Classroom
"Shakespeare and Star Wars": Lesson Plan Day 3
To make the point that there are many forms of language, each with its own purpose, class members select 10 lines from Doescher's play, translate these lines first into contemporary English and then into "SMS/Tweet."
Annenberg Foundation
Masculine Heroes
What were the driving forces behind American expansion in the nineteenth century, and what were its effects? Scholars watch a video, read biographies, engage in discussion, write journals and poetry, draw, and create a multimedia...
Core Knowledge Foundation
Sixth Grade Poetry
Study some of the most prominent poets and works of poetry in history with a language arts poetry unit. From Virgil to Shakespeare to Dickinson to Angelou, the resources present biographies and examples of poetic elements to the sixth...
Academy of American Poets
Teach This Poem: “As I Walk These Broad Majestic Days” by Walt Whitman
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...
Curated OER
Ballad
Young balladeers analyze examples of ballads and generate a list of common traits (story, quatrains, rhyme schemes, refrains, etc.), then identify these traits in Robert W. Service's "The Cremation of Sam McGee" and a ballad written by...
Curated OER
Reading: If, A Poem
In this poetry learning exercise, learners read If by Rudyard Kipling and study the verse by verse paraphrasing. Students answer 2 comprehension multiple choice questions about the poem.
Curated OER
Blooming the Gospel According to Holden
Use Bloom's Taxonomy to establish protocols in your classroom so that all readers make personal connections to the literature they are studying.
Crafting Freedom
Frances Ellen Watkins Harper: Lover of Literacy
This, the sixth in a series of 10 related resources, examines the life and works of Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, an African American author, born in 1825, who advocated literacy for both free and enslaved African Americans.
Association for Library Service to Children
Summer Reading List Grades 6-8
What better activity is there for summer than reading? Provide your pupils with 25 book ideas for their summer reading pursuits. A variety of different genres are represented on this list, and each book is paired with publication...
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