Explore a flashback in a story with readers. They will read a story, identify the flashback in the story, then evaluate how the flashback is used. Using the NoteFolio, students analyze the meaning and merit of a flashback in a story....

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech, "I Have a Dream," is one of the most famous in United States history, but why was it so effective? Ask your class to determine the answer to this question. While the resource includes a description of...

Students discuss different literary devices and use them to write summaries of New York Times articles dealing with international news. They reflect on the effectiveness and appropriateness of sports metaphors in the political arena.

Zora Neal Hurston, Toni Morrison, and Maya Angelou are featured in a guided inquiry unit. High schoolers research the lives and works of these and other Black women writers and craft an argument, using evidence from their research, to...

Use this writing and photography lesson plan in your descriptive writing unit. Elementary and middle schoolers write and create a story line incorporating photos from Inspiration or their own personal photos. They experiment with...

In our increasingly visual society, it is often difficult for some readers to create a mental picture of a picture created only with words. An image-rich text like F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby can therefore, present a real...

Writing can become one-dimensional if authors don't involve all their senses. First, scholars observe a strange object which, ideally, they can touch and even smell. Without using certain words (you can create a list or have the class...

Now that your class has read all of Esperanza Rising, take the time to tackle big metaphors and themes. Pupils will participate in an activity called Chalk Talk, in which they circulate around the room in small groups and add...

Engage further in Esperanza Rising with a focus on close reading and metaphor. Class members zero in on the tenth chapter, examining characters and big ideas. Pupils discuss the text in small groups and as a whole class, and...

Upper graders read the book Holes as a class or by themselves. In groups, they identify symbols and discuss how they are connected  among the many plots in the story. They create a timeline in which they sequence the main...

Explore point of view and more with a Common Core-designed instructional activity. Learners experience different points of view by representing one of two characters from Esperanza Rising during a partner discussion. They must use...

Get artsy with this WWII group activity, starting with a whole-class assignment. Create a map of Europe, Northern Africa, and the Pacific using geometric shapes cut from construction paper and placed on the floor. Consider splitting the...

Emerging writers identify allusion in poetry by listening to recorded poems, like Anyone Lived in a Pretty How Town. They also discuss what makes writing satirical and how writers use allusions to make satirical points.  

As a way to combine language arts and science, try this lesson on writing cloud poetry. Begin by showing a PowerPoint presentation and images of cloud types. Take meteorology masters outdoors to explore the sky using the provided "Cloud...

An exciting twist on the study of the classical hero and the heroic quest! Using film to explore modern-day tales of heroes, the resource contains complete, ready-to-use lesson plans for as many as twelve days of instruction. Throughout...

Explore concepts of audience, purpose and symbols in this lesson from Media Smarts that asks students to consider all the functions of music. Through a series of discussions and activities, your class will brainstorm possible functions...

Learners gain an understanding of various literary devices and strengthen their vocabulary. In this Miss Alaineus lesson plan, students read the vocabulary tale, discuss the use of literary devices and choose from 4 possible culminating...

Students explore the life of Harriet Tubman. They examine a painting of Harriet Tubman and consider the tools used to communicate information about her. Sudents describe how the color of a painting explains the mood of the illustrator....

Send your high schoolers on a scavenger hunt through popular culture (music, television, video games, movies) to find allusions to Shakespeare. They must each provide three to share with the class, and the one they present cannot have...

One of the most important skills in orienteering is being able to read a topographical map. Understanding the contour lines and symbols and the scale of the map will make planning your route so much better. In this lesson, partners get...

Students discover the significange of a synagogue that was destroyed during World War II. As a class, they identify and describe Jewish symbols and are introduced to Croatian Jewry. They review the characteristics of a minority and read...

Before reading Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" in your class, walk learners through this scavenger hunt that teaches them about Poe's life and works. Though the lesson is designed for 15:1 special education class, it could work in any...

Students respond to works of art. In this art interpretation lesson plan, students examine images of art while using concepts they learned as they read literary pieces. They detail the setting, characters, and the mood and theme of the...

Students identify color schemes in paintings and discuss the ways in which color is used to convey a mood or tone in a work of art.