Curated OER
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee: Vocabulary
In this vocabulary skills worksheet, students review the listed terms and figures related to Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird. Students may also access an online quiz on the selection using the link at the bottom of the page.
Curated OER
You've Got to be Taught to Hate and Fear
Young scholars explore themes of prejudice and acceptance. In this character education lesson, students listen and respond to several fiction books, poems, and lyrics with a similar theme. Young scholars locate articles with the main...
Curated OER
Connotation: Three Lessons for Effective Word Choice
Over the course of three days, middle schoolers explore the concept of connotation. They differentiate between the connotative and denotative meanings of sports team names, develop their own team names, logos, and text, and revise a news...
Curated OER
Who Wrote That?
Pupils explore the Project Gutenberg website and conduct a webquest to answer questions about well known literature and authors.
Curated OER
Who Am I?
Middle schoolers use a graphic organizer to brainstorm information about their lives. They utilize brainstorming techniques in a writing exercise, and create a graphic organizer describing their lives. They set personal goals for the...
Curated OER
Lesson Plan 2: Good Novel, Bad Novel
What are the characteristics of a good piece of writing? What makes a story interesting? Give your pupils a chance to define the qualities of good novels and what they see as the qualities of bad novels. Class members record these...
Scholastic
Ask the Author
Here is a quick activity that could help your kids with their reading comprehension. They practice a classic strategy that gets them to start asking questions about what they are reading, while they are reading it. They write out...
Curated OER
Lily's Crossing
Learners listen to a story, "Lily's Crossing," about life during a World War. After completing worksheets, they compare and contrast characters in the story. Using math skills, students develop a time line of the war, calculate the...
Curated OER
Nightjohn: K-W-H-L Strategy
Prior to reading Nightjohn by Gary Paulsen, present your class with a KWHL. Although the actual chart isn't included here, you can easily find or create one on your own. Give your class a specific topic and start by brainstorming...
Curated OER
Peter and the Starcatchers: K-W-H-L Strategy
Bookend your study of Peter and the Starcatchers with a KWHL centered around treasure and power. Pupils work in small groups to compile knowledge and questions and then revisit this chart after reading and research.
Novelinks
The Wednesday Wars: KWHL
What do you know about the Vietnam War? What do you want to find out? How to do you plan on finding this information? To gain an understanding of the backdrop of The Wednesday Wars, class members create a KWHL chart and then begin...
Curated OER
"All About Me" Webpage
Young scholars conduct interviews and write about the interview. The information from these interviews is used to create a webpage on Netscape Composer. Students cite Internet sources for any images downloaded from the web. Young...
Curated OER
Knowledge Rating Scale Vocabulary Activity #2 Bud, Not Buddy
As your kids read chapters nine through eleven, present them with this vocabulary chart. Nine vocabulary words are shown, and pupils must decide if they know it well, have heard it, or have no clue what it means. Consider re-creating...
Curated OER
Biopoem
Reinforce the actions, emotions, and characteristics that determine what a character is like by having your middle schoolers create a biopoem using the model presented here. You could engage them first by having them write a poem about...
Curated OER
Journey to Topaz: KWHL Strategy
Japanese Internment and World war II are the focus of a KWHL strategy used to scaffold for a reading of Journey to Topaz, Yoshiko Uchida's story of 11-year-old Yuki Sakane and her family. Complete directions for the activity...
Curated OER
Homecoming Quiz
Learners respond to 25 multiple choice questions about the Cynthia Voigt novel, Homecoming. Quizes can be submitted for grading or printed for as a hardcopy for use in classrooms with out computer access.
Curated OER
Jacob Have I Loved: Semantic Feature Analysis Chart
Do not allow your pupils to ignore the connections among the characters in Katherine Paterson’s Newbery Medal winning novel, Jacob Have I Loved. Instead, provide them a semantic feature analysis chart that asks them to note things Louise...
Appalachian State University
Literacy Genres
Expand on eager bookworms' independent reading by engaging them to define various genres of literature. Readers collaborate and use technology to find what goes into their assigned or previously read genres. Time is given for independent...
Curated OER
Understanding Poetry
Students search the Internet to find a poem to research, analyze and present their interpretation of the poem to the class. They develop their interpretation in Microsoft Word and PowerPoint.
Curated OER
Living Together as One
The ultra-glamorous Muppet, Miss Piggy, launches a study of discrimination and ways to develop a more inclusive community. A series of videos and activities raise awareness of discrimination and journal prompts asks participants to...
Minnesota Literacy Council
Regular Verbs Simple Present and Simple Past Tenses
Class members listen as the instructor reads pairs of sentences that contain the simple present and simple past tense of the same verbs.
Curated OER
War Story Documentary
Students research and create an aspect of a war. They practice on writing a bibliography and essays.
Curated OER
What's In a Noun: Grammar and Usage
Nine lessons in a grammar and usage unit provide endless opportunities for drill and practice. Topics include the four types of sentences, subject and predicates, nouns, verbs, adjectives, pronouns, adverbs and prepositions, conjunctions...
Curated OER
Tru Confessions
Young scholars view the movie "Tru Confessions" about the life of teenagers. They participate in activities in which they analyze themselves. They record their thoughts and feelings to be analyzed at a later date.