Playing team sports is about more than just scoring the most goals or winning the most games. Read this passage with your class and learn how athletes build character as members of a team. When finished, individuals identify the main...

Be proactive. Begin with the end in mind. Synergize. These are just a few strategies outlined in Sean Covey's ground-breaking best-seller, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens. With a series of five character development workshops...

"A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly." The second lesson in an 11-part unit that accompanies The Twits by Roald Dahl uses poetry to encourage positive character traits. Mrs. Twit has ugly thoughts, but those...

Scholars continue making connections between the article "Sudanese Tribes Confront Modern War" and A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park. They talk with partners to discuss how the article helps them understand a character's point of...

Use a vocabulary asssignment as a quick activity between reading chapters of Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech. Young readers choose their favorite words from the vocabulary word list to describe Sal, Phoebe, or any other character from...

What are some of life's most tried-and-true lessons? Pupils listen to examples from the book Live and Learn and Pass It On by H. Jackson Brown, Jr. They write down their own life lessons to later compile in a class booklet. As...

Where do directors and set designers get their ideas so that the set they build creates the mood and atmosphere the director wants for a production? From the script! Introduce theater high schoolers to the script analysis techniques used...

Pages and pages of engaging activities, worksheets, and writing projects on teaching folktales and fables await you! You don't want to miss this incredible resource that not only includes a wide range of topics and graphic...

According to Cicero, "Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others." Pupils explore similar inspirational quotes after watching a time-lapse video. Next, scholars interpret one of the quotes by creating...

You could spend a full day discussing The Phantom of the Opera and not scratch the surface, but a set of lessons about the literary elements and themes of the musical production is a great start. Young thespians build upon the...

Anansi is a tricky character, but can he realize he's wrong and write an apology letter? Learners use Anansi and the Pot of Beans to practice writing, art, and figurative language. A series of activities are engaging for both...

"What is the theme of this story?" The very question can spark fear in the minds of readers and incinerate confidence. Here you will discover an exercise that shows how writers use the tools of setting, plot, conflict, and...

Help learners on the autism spectrum build awareness of their feelings of anxiety through a hands-on learning activity. Using a set of cards with examples of the different types of anxiety someone might face, learners discuss ideas...

Use a handy concept analysis guide as you begin your unit on William Shakespeare's The Tempest. With character descriptions, literary themes, and anticipated affective issues, the guide can help those new to using The Tempest craft...

This is an absolute must-have resource for exploring honesty with your learners! Youngsters role play four scenarios that involve honest and dishonest actions, and then engage in meaningful discussion and activities regarding those...

Rudyard Kipling's advice to his son in the poem "If" is a resounding message that echoes through generations. After reading the famous poem, middle schoolers work on analyzing specific lines, completing activities based on...

How can negative thoughts affect your life? Learn about the ways you think about yourself can define your personality, and how self control can be the answer to higher self esteem.

Should primary graders have their own computers? Should animals be kept in captivity? Young writers learn how to develop and support a claim in this short unit on persuasive writing.

After reading chapter one of The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi, take part in a magic square vocabulary activity in which scholars match the term with its definition and insert its corresponding number in to...

Words of appreciation make great gifts for special occasions, but people can't tie them up with a bow ... until now! Using the lesson plan, learners write gratitude messages to a chosen recipient. Next, they fill a box or paper bag with...

What would the world be like if everyone expressed gratitude? Pupils explore the concept by watching a motivating time-lapse video. Scholars express appreciation by handing out tokens of gratitude, and then write about their...

Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, and Mother Teresa were some of the greatest leaders of all time; what made them so great? Scholars discover the qualities of effective leaders using teen leadership activities. Learners complete an...

Strap on those backpacks, it's time to travel through history with this literature unit based on the first four books of The Magic Tree House series. While reading through these fun stories, children create story maps, record...

Narrative essay writing is the focus of a series of exercises that model for learners how to not only read a narrative, but how to also examine the techniques fiction writers use to create a setting, develop their characters, represent...