As an assessment of their skill in crafting a compare and contrast essay, class members read and compare the portrayals of nature in excerpts from naturalist John Muir's My First Summer in the Sierra and from poet Emily Dickinson's...

Excerpts from John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath and from John Fante's Ask the Dust, as well as a variety of primary source documents provide the background for an examination of the migrant experience from 1920-1945.

Over the course of the lesson plan, your pupils read and analyze a translated eight-line poem from the Tang Dynasty written by Du Fu, a poet caught behind enemy lines during the An Lu-Shan rebellion (755-763). Literary/historical context...

Mystery is an exciting genre for young readers to investigate. The plots are so intriguing! Here is a series of lessons featuring Sherlock Holmes stories that invite learners to enter the world of the mystery genre.  Based on what...

Can authors speak to each other across works, genres, and centuries? Study the conversation between Christopher Marlowe in his poem "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love" and the responses by Sir Walter Raleigh and William Carlos Williams...

Learn about the destruction of the rainforest by analyzing statistics. Young learners make an original line graph showing destruction in the rainforest. Additional activities include making a collage, sequencing Dr. Seuss' The...

Learners at-risk in high school and primary grades pair up to read and write together. They create books modeled after authors and illustrators. They hold a parents' day to display their completed books.

Students read and explore the themes of the book The Eighty Yard Run. For this literature lesson, students discuss their observations and predictions. Students develop their own story which is similar to that of The Eighty Yard Run.

Some amusing commentary accompanies the answers to this interactive online quiz about Shakespeare's tragedy, which is on the syllabus for many high school seniors. The details in question range from fundamental to esoteric. Check content...

Challenge your class with this comprehensive list of literary vocabulary words. Learners take a pre-test, look up definitions, come up with an example, and then take a post-test. You might use this prior to a unit about poetic devices in...

Students explore point of view. In this acceptance lesson, students listen to a story in which six people didn't listen to the other's point of view and lost out in the end. The students discuss why we all think and feel differently and...

Learners demonstrate an evaluation of how the culture of a time period influences storytelling narratives by comparing Adeline's story to the plot summary of Cinderella and Anne Sexton's poem Cinderella. They write a poem which reworks a...

I love Faulkner, his experimental style and stream of consciousness are so exciting. Your learners can analyze William Faulkner and his novel, The Sound and the Fury by defining his place in American literary history and exploring...

A carefully crafted three-day lesson integrates poetry and visual art. By analyzing and comparing Langston Hughes' poem "Mother and Son" and Romare Bearden's collage "The Dove," readers explore the theme of hope. The lesson activates...

How affected is Thinks Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe's personal biography? Using a four corners strategy, and evidence from their readings, class members debate the degree of biographical influence in Achebe's novel.

The library is such a valuable resource for kids of all ages. Help elementary readers learn all about parts of the library, text features for both fiction and nonfiction text, and different ways to find books that they want to read.

Is there such a thing as fate/luck? Can one fight destiny? As part of their study of Chinua Achebe's purpose in writing Things Fall Apart, class members answer these questions from Achebe's point of view and then from William...

Why did Chinua Achebe write "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness" in response to Conrad's novel? As part of a study of Things Fall Apart, class members conduct a socratic seminar focused on Achebe's purpose and...

To gain an understanding of Imperialism, class members read Rudyard Kipling's poem, "The White Man's Burden" and Mark Twain's essay, "To the Person Sitting in Darkness." Groups compare these perceptions of non-white cultures with the...

As part of their study of Things Fall Apart, class members conduct a close reading of a section of Chinua Achebe's essay, "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness." Jigsaw groups then compare the voice in the essay...

What cultural concepts must readers understand in order to connect to Things Fall Apart? As part of their study of Chinua Achebe’s novel, class members research Nigeria and the Igbo culture to create a collaborative, web-based,...

"Eneke the bird says since men have learnt to shoot without missing, he has learnt to fly without perching." As part of their study of Things Fall Apart, class members read Paul Hernadi and Francis Steen's essay, "The Tropical Landscapes...

Literature containing life cycle information is available from many sources. Several examples of this type of literature are listed below with a synopsis and sample questions for each. These examples have been taken from a variety of...

Learners examine the impact and portrayal of mental illness in literature. They develop thier ideas about mental health through the arts in this the third lesson on mental health.