California Education Partners
Women
Alice Walker's poem "Women" provides ninth graders the opportunity to demonstrate their ability to identify how a writer's choice of syntax and diction contribute to the development of the theme of the work.
Curated OER
Constructing Narrative from the Migrant Experience in Literature
Excerpts from John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath and from John Fante's Ask the Dust, as well as a variety of primary source documents provide the background for an examination of the migrant experience from 1920-1945.
Star Wars in the Classroom
"Shakespeare and Star Wars": Lesson Plan Days 13 and 14
How important are sound effects in films? In stage plays? In radio programs? To gain an understanding of the impact of these special effects, class members watch a short video spoof of the sound in a scene from Star Wars: A New...
Reed Novel Studies
The Great Gatsby: Novel Study
Some people believe that no matter how hard a man works, the American dream will always remain out of reach. A study guide for The Great Gatsby explores the themes, such as the illusory American dream, and elements of F. Scott...
Reed Novel Studies
Of Mice and Men: Novel Study
Why is personification such a popular literary device for many authors? Learners answer the question as they engage in activities from the novel study for the classic Of Mice and Men. They also scan the novel to find examples of the...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Tales of the Supernatural
Scary stuff! Whether approached as the first horror story or a "serious imaginative exploration of the human condition," Frankenstein continues to engage readers. Here's a packet of activities that uses Mary Shelley's gothic novel to...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Animal Farm: Allegory and the Art of Persuasion
Introduce your class members to allegory and propaganda with a series of activities designed to accompany a study of George Orwell's Animal Farm. Readers examine the text as an allegory, consider the parallels to collective farms and the...
ELA Common Core Lesson Plans
American Romanticism
Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Rappaccini's Daughter" provides the text for an activity that asks readers to select specific passages from the story, identify the aspect of American Romanticism the passage exemplifies, and then provide an...
Reed Novel Studies
Journey To The Centre of The Earth: Novel Study
Traveling where no man has traveled before, Journey to the Centre of the Earth contains a secret code right to the middle of Earth! Scholars match 10 new vocabulary words, answer comprehension questions, create literary devices, and...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Faulkner's As I Lay Dying: Burying Addie's Voice
High schoolers explore the use of voice and title in William Faulkner's, "As I Lay Dying". They identify and discuss the use of image, symbols and narrative voice in the story.
Curated OER
De-Mystifying Poetry: Understanding Narrative Poetry
Tenth graders explore narrative poetry. They analyze sections of a poem and present to groups. They compose their own narrative poems using pictures as prompts. They exchange their poems and analyze their classmate's poem.
Austin Independent School District
Visual Discovery Note Taking Sheets
Step into history and step out with a new understanding of events. These strategies bring a new level of understanding of key events by asking viewers to engage in and respond to projected images. Complete directions for the activity, a...
Novelinks
The Color of Water: Concept Analysis
Considering using James McBride's autobiography/memoir The Color of Water with your class? Check out this seven-page informational packet that includes background information on McBride, the organization pattern of the book, and issues...
Curated OER
Children's Book Creations
Students create a children's book version of the Japanese folk story "Momotaro Boy of the Peach" and present the story to elementary students. In this children's book lesson, students design their book to explain Japanese culture to...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Family Voices In As I Lay Dying
Learners analyze William Faulkner's 'As I Lay Dying' and his use of multiple voices. In this William Faulkner lesson plan, students analyze Faulkner's use of multiple voices in narration. Learners examine the Bundren family through the...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Faulkner's As I Lay Dying: Images of Faulkner and the South
Learners research one aspect of the life of Faulkner and the culture of the South. In this As I Lay Dying instructional activity, learners explore a webpage on Faulkner and write a summary. Learners analyze the images and consider the...
Curated OER
Focus On Figurative Language in Prose
Students examine the use of literary prose in the story, "Dark They Were, and Golden-Eyed." In this literary prose lesson, students investigate the use of imagery, metaphor, and simile in the story. They tell how author's purpose is...
Curated OER
Japanese Poetry: Tanka? You're Welcome!
Students analyze Japanese tanka poetry. In this Japanese poetry lesson, students identify analyze the structure of tanka poetry. Students complete the activities at the given links for the lesson and compose two tanka poems.