Dream of a Nation
Writing Interdisciplinary Essay
The Grapes of Wrath. The Jungle. Native Son. The Things They Carried. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian. To address a current social, political, economic, or environmental issue, class groups pair the reading of a classic...
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Writing the Essay
Relate the structure of the essay to the structure of a building. The class compares an essay to a building, with the writer being the architect, the introduction being the foundation, and so on. They use the visual representation of a...
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Analytical Essay
What is an analytical essay? Introduce this type of thinking to your young writers. First, discuss what it means to analyze something. Then, identify the different components of an essay and what details are embedded in each component....
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Writing an Analytical Essay From a Supreme Court Case
Critical thinkers read a summary of a United States Supreme Court case, including important background information and the court's final decision. They form an opinion in agreement or disagreement regarding the case and then write an...
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How to Write A+ Essays!
This lesson, which promises to improve the essays of your middle schoolers, contains a list of characteristics an essay should include. It breaks it down into the introduction, thesis statement, body, etc. There's also a list of things...
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Arti-Factual Evidence
Practice responding to controversial information with the New York Times lesson provided here. Middle schoolers watch a video interview with the director of The Lost Tomb of Jesus. After reading a companion article, they identify the...
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Exploring Careers
The world is full of possibilities for your ELLs. Help them explore their career options with a lesson that incorporates Internet research and expository writing. Not only will they learn more about their careers of choice, but both...
Media Smarts
Selling Tobacco
Take a look at tobacco advertising techniques through the decades. Learners analyze the differences in strategies, and write an essay on the advertising history of one brand of tobacco, how tobacco advertising has changed over time, or...
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What Is Courage?
Students brainstorm definitions of the word "courage." They work in cooperative groups to complete tasks related to critical lense statements. Students write an essay of critical analysis. They write a first draft, and peer edit . Essays...
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Introducing the Essay: Twain, Douglass, and American Non-Fiction
Students analyze American essayists Mark Twain and Frederick Douglass in an introduction to American literary non-fiction writing. In this essay history lesson, students identify methods for writing essays. Students read and analyze...
One Pot Learning
Reading Comprehension Worksheet
Three annotated passages from Ralph Waldo Emerson's essay on "Nature" provide young philosophers a chance to improve their reading comprehension skills as they gain insight into Emerson's ideas.
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Tracking Down the Real Billy the Kid
Students analyze the role that gunfighters played in the settlement of the West and distinguish between their factual and fictional accounts. Using internet research, students explore the life of Billy the Kid. They write an essay on...
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Environmental Harmony
Students use information from a variety of media to evaluate different artists' views on the human relationship to nature. From these sources, class discussion, and personal experience, students will synthesize a thoughtful,...
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Effective Literary Analyses
Twelfth graders discuss a fictional text that they are given, they identify passages, which highlight the author's style, language naances and textual ambiguities. Pupils brainstorm possible topics for an analytical essay, they are...
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The Editing Process
Students edit and critique essays. In this editing and critiquing lesson plan, students examine a sample essay and edit it. Students read the essay aloud to determine the areas that need to be revised. Students then write their own essay...
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Land is the Basis of All Independence
Young scholars develop debating and analytical thinking skills. They take a position in the Back-to-Africa discussion, based upon any readings and the two opposing essays they read. In groups, they discuss an issue from two different...
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The Editing Process
Students read a sample essay and evaluate them in groups. They write their own essay on a topic of their choice and use peer editing. They share their essays with the class.
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Bringing Up Baby
Students explore why a government might want to influence its citizens with regards to decreasing or increasing the birthrate. They draft laws and write analytical essays.
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What's in a Picture Book?
Students analyze Appalachian folktale picture books. They read and analyze various Appalachian picture books, answer discussion questions, and in small groups complete a handout, and write an essay analyzing the text and illustrations of...
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A Look at U.S. and Canadian Approaches to Individual Liberties
Students compare and contrast Canadian and U.S. policies regarding social issues. In this sociology lesson, students research social and governance policies in the countries and write personal essays using their findings.
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Art or Artifact?
Students analyze and discuss illustrations of the New World by John White. They examine the images, answer questions about each one, and write an essay.
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Viewpoint of the Native American
Students compare how Native Americans were treated long ago to how they are treated today. They write an essay from the perspective of a Native American from their time period explaining their side with details supporting their views.
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Mark Twain and the American West
Young scholars analyze Mark Twain's "Western" voice. In this literature instructional activity, students read Roughing It by Twain and watch "The West." Young scholars examine Twain's history and compare it to the history of America's...
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All Rights Reserved?
Students explore, through discussion, research, dramatic skits, and writing, the debate over genetic ownership of biological products and evaluate the economic viewpoints of the countries and companies involved.