"It seemed the more I knew about people the more I knew about the strange magic hidden in their hearts." Ultima's strange magic and the hidden hearts of Narciso, Tenorior, and the other foils in Bless Me, Ultima, are examined in the...

What does Scout learn about herself from the other characters in Harper Lee's tale? Groups are assigned two different secondary characters, compile a list of the character's traits, and, using evidence from the text, consider what Scout...

This activity spans five days and culminates in a role-play where judges consider the arguments of each learners to determine the top five villains or heroes of all time. Learners discuss characterization of heroes and villains, theme,...

Cover the canine characters in The Call of the Wild through discussion and writing. Small groups complete a jigsaw-style activity, with each group focusing on one dog and using textual evidence to back up their ideas. Next, individuals...

Take a look at the interactions between characters in A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin with a discussion and writing activity. The resource provides questions for discussion and a prompt for writing, as well as a homework...

“Desire + Danger = Tension.” Thus begins a PowerPoint that details how to create tension and maintain the reader’s interest in a story. Although text-heavy, the color-coded slides model how the D + D = T formula functions and the...

Putting together an interesting story can be hard, but this set of worksheets will guide your writers into the depths of their own creativity as they characterize both their main character and villain. Using humor to keep learners...

The class considers parent-child relationships in relation to how they have been portrayed in classical and modern mediums. They view video clips and read excerpts from fairy tales and news paper articles to explore the evil-step parent...

What makes a story interesting? Complex characters! As part of a series of worksheets that prepares middle schoolers to write their own novel, the exercises included explain the role of the protagonist, the antagonist, and the supporting...

Conflict can be fun! Or at least it can be, if it forms the basis of a novel plot. This resource, part of a NaNoWriMo series of worksheets that prepares middle schoolers to write their own novel, presents the element of conflict. After...

Young learners explore the antagonist. They retell Hansel and Gretel and identify the witch and the stepmother as antagonists. They then brainstorm common character traits of an antagonist, and then write a paragraph describing an...

Darth Vader, The Wicked Witch of the West, Shere Khan, Moby Dick...these are some of the most famous villains in film and literature. Study the four categories of conflict with your class and have them finish the day by creating a...

Develop a mystery character using clues from a bag. This engaging activity will help learners understand character traits. They develop a list of the items from the bag, discuss and develop the character with a partner, and create a...

As part of an lesson involving literature or writing, have your learners watch and discuss this presentation on plot development. In a series of slides, viewers engage in an activity to explore dramatic structure, including plot...

Use this writing prompt and brainstorming page to help your pupils prepare to write their own myths. Individuals must choose a natural event to explain, come up with a protagonist and an antagonist, determine a setting, and think of a...

Middle schoolers in particular will benefit from this simple presentation. Forty slides cover story elements like the protagonist, antagonist, and setting, and literary devices are also included. Some examples are given, but for the most...

Should Goldilocks have entered the bear's home? Select a popular children's story (like Goldilocks and the Three Bears) and model taking a stance either supporting or challenging the protagonist's actions. Then, after they understand the...

Comedy, tragedy, act, scene, prop. do you want to review important drama terms? Actors record the term next to its definition on a worksheet that could be used individually or as a group activity. A link to a corresponding PowerPoint...

The Cosby Show in the classroom? Use an episode from a 30-minute TV sitcom to introduce the concept of subplot. Young writers use a sub-plotting worksheet (not included) to record their observations about how the subplot is developed in...

Arm your writers with an arsenal of literary terms. With definitions of everything from plot structure and figurative language to point-of-view and types of irony, learners will gain an understanding of elements in stories and be able to...

Create conflict! It’s the challenges that make stories (and life) interesting. Using the script provided by this resource, lead your young writers through a series of activities that acquaint them with both external and internal...

Pupils practice using predictive strategies before reading a book. In this literacy lesson, students identify the theme and characters of the novel based on the cover illustrations.

Introduce your class members to the parts of a play. Although the title of the presentation would suggest that examples from Shakespeare’s tragedy will illustrate the terms, beyond the first slide, Romeo and Juliet is not mentioned;...

Students develop original characters as protagonists and antagonists. In this characterization lesson, students write brief character sketches for their original characters. Students also assess each others characters by exchanging...