Curated OER
Was the Wolf Really Guilty?
Students read plays, short stories, or novels which revolve around trials, and write essays explaining or defending the assigned role in a mock fairy tale trial.
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Teaching Kindness across the Curriculum: Kindness for a Day, a Week, a Month, a Year
Students investigate the concept of character kindness in literature. In this human character lesson plan, students read about kindness and write about their understanding of it.
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The Hurricane
Students analyze three different ways a story is told, determine truth and fiction in each story, and discover and apply techniques to narrate a good story.
Students listen to Bob Dylan's "The Hurricane" and watch the "R" rated movie,...
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A Family History
Students investigate their family history through pictures and writing. In this family history activity, students research family, culture, food, music, religion, and clothing. Students gather pictures of their family and events....
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Heaven or Ground Hog Day?
Students discover the ideas of enlightenment by reading historical poetry. For this philosophical lesson, students read poems by Sir Walter Scott and Sergeant Joyce Kilmer while discussing the themes of the writing with classmates....
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Comparing Themes and Plots: "Young Goodman Brown" and "The Minister's Black Veil"
Learners read two stories by Nathaniel Hawthorne and write an essay comparing plots and themes. In this Nathaniel Hawthorne short stories lesson plan, students read "Young Goodman Brown" and "The Minister's Black Veil." After a class...
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Photography Narratives
Students write a narrative corresponding to a photo. They create a background story based on the person in their picture and share it with the class.
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First Set of Essay Questions on The Hobbit
Students read The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien and choose two essays to write about the first six chapters. In this reading comprehension lesson, students read the first six chapters of the novel and use a worksheet to take notes as they...
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Theatre: Meaningful Monologues
Students perform dramatic monologues. In this drama lesson, students write their own monologue and perform it in front of their peers.
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Pinckney Benedict's "The Sutton Pie Safe" from Town Smokes
Students read Pinckney Benedict's "The Sutton Pie Safe" to learn about family symbols and social commentary. In this close reading lesson, students read four journal prompts for the story and answer the listed questions for each section.
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Lessons of the Indian Epics: The Ramayana
Students read a version of Ramayana and explore the elements of the epic hero cycle. In this Ramayana analysis lesson, students retell the basic narrative of the Ramayana and identify the main characters. Students identify elements of...
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News in Spanish
Pupils write stories, take photographs, and put together two newspapers-?Que Tal? in Spanish for Spanish I and II students and ?Para Ninos? in English for first through fourth graders.
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I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
Young scholars identify the use of characterization in Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. In this characterization lesson, students define characterization and write descriptive paragraphs about Maya Angelou's grandmother....
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Henry Luce: Turn Me Luce
High schoolers research the life of Henry Luce, Time Magazine's founder, and examine the impact his magazine has had on the way American's see the world. They create a photo-essay, magazine or video to present their research.
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All About Me
Learners examine their own personality traits and preferences. They use this information to write an autobiography.
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Guess the Author-Using Pseudonyms
Students study about descriptive writing. They write a descriptive paragraph about themselves without revealing their physical description and sign their writing with a pseudonym.
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Young Goodman Brown - Themes
Students read "Young Goodman Brown" by Nathaniel Hawthorne and write an essay about the theme. In this theme analysis lesson, students read and discuss themes. Students then write their essay about the theme in the text.
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Electronic Media
Young scholars compare forms of electronic media. They watch a news broadcast and take notes on the content being conveyed. After viewing the broadcast, they read newspaper articles or news magazines to locate articles with similar...
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iPod Reporters
Students develop a topic for a class newspaper article and set up an interview with someone involved in the issue. They record the interview using an iPod with a voice recorder then use direct quotes for their article. As a whole...
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Where I'm From: Personal and Cherokee
Students write a poem about the land they are from. They research the previous inhabitants of the same land - the Cherokee Indians - and write a poem about the land from a Cherokee perspective.
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Photojournalism
Learners choose a historical or present-day event to portray through photographs. They narrate this event with photographs and text to communicate its significance in history or our current daily lives.
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Capturing the Reader With Vivid Images
Students examine the use of imagery to hold a reader's attention in an excerpt from John Deever's memoir "Mr. John and the Day of Knowledge". They are introduced to background information about the Ukraine and create original imagery.
Lesson Planet
New Books for Black History Month
Suggested books to help students better understand African American history.
Curated OER
A New Look at Romeo and Juliet
Students explore life and language development in the Elizabethan Age. In this English lesson students complete web-quests and other activities surrounding Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.