Continue work on the two-piece poem that compares two characters from Esperanza Rising. Give class members a few minutes to finish their drafts. After they have a complete product, model how to critique and edit the poems with one group....

To gain a deeper understanding of the importance of the settings in The Kite Runner, readers use the provided poem frame to create three poems, one for each of the settings in Hosseini's novel.

Poems carved into the wooden walls of the Asian immigrant prisons on Angel Island provide upper elementary graders an opportunity to study not only the story behind the poems but to also focus on the figurative language employed by the...

Why do writers choose the language they do? Here's a resource that has the poet himself answer that very question. Joseph Coelho explains why he chose the words and images he used in his poem, "If All the World Were Paper."

Young poets use word cards to prompt a metaphor poem comparing to very dissimilar items.

Passport photos are notoriously unflattering but here's an activity that encourages youngsters to create a poetic picture of themselves using each category on the passport as a prompt for a poem.

Young writers needn't be self-involved to craft a conceit. Directions for how to craft this form of extended metaphor, models, and a worksheet are all included in the packet.

Class members use the think-pair-share strategy to compare the views of W.E.B. Du Bois and Booker T. Washington and to consider how each man's backgrounds influenced his philosophy.

What kind of shoe is this person? What time of day is this person? Aspiring poets’ responses to a list of questions provide descriptive words and phrases that can be crafted into a blank verse poem. A link to sample poems is provided.

What do Lady Gaga and Dame Edith Sitwell have in common? As they examine Sitwell's poetry, class members learn that the similarities are far more than their unique appearance.

Three poems, “Under the Mangoes” by Jacqueline Bishop, Eleanor Wilner’s “What It Hinges On,” and Robert Frost’s “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening,” provide the text for an examination of alliteration, consonance, and assonance. After...

Students listen as the teacher explains what poetry is as well as describes several types of poetry such as haiku, free verse, limerick, cinquain, and an acrostic. Students read examples of each type of poetry. They compose a poem...

Learners analyze Japanese tanka poetry. In this Japanese poetry instructional activity, students identify analyze the structure of tanka poetry. Learners complete the activities at the given links for the instructional activity and...

Learners watch a video titled Discovering Angel Island: The Story Behind the Poems about immigrants that came through Angel Island. In this Angel Island lesson plan, students respond with a journal entry.

Introduce magic and imagination into your classroom with a poetry activity. Learners read the poem "Tiny" by Mandy Coe and use their magic tickets to visit any place they can think of! The final result is a poem describing where they...

Contemplate what music learners listen to and why they listen. Can they find poetry within music lyrics? Specifically hone in on blues lyrics and ruminate upon the social issues prevalent in the themes. Particular song lyrics coincide...

Incorporate art and poetry into an early elementary science lesson about cloud formation. With fun and engaging activities that follow a natural learning progression, youngsters will develop key vocabulary and conceptual understanding...

Use this simple collaborative activity to introduce the definition, art, and poetry of romanticism. Educators will have to provide the poetry, images of the art, and the survey for the learners, but by using this resource, they won't...

The works of Carol Ann Duffy, Scottish poet and Britain's 2009 poet laureate, serve as a model for a writing activity that asks class members to select a character card, brainstorm lists of words, phrases, actions, and items associated...

Add a strong poetry lesson to your literature unit. Middle and high schoolers investigate their writing voices with journaling and group discussion, then choose a famous poet to study. They write letters to their chosen poets, explaining...

How many oceans can you name? First, have learners try to name as many oceans as they can, and then have them locate and identify the oceans on a world map. They create a recognizable ocean animal using poster board and tissue paper....

What's happening in this poem? Have your high schoolers participate in an activity about connotation and denotation. They apply the concept of connotation to a reading of Theodore Roethke's poem "My Papa's Waltz." Lead a discussion about...

Students create poetry and verse, using all 5 senses to paint a visual image of life in a Japanese-American internment camp.

What is stereotyping, and how do we handle stereotyping in our daily interactions? Your young historians will not only have the opportunity to learn about the first African American woman to publish a short story–Frances Ellen...