Curated OER
Back to School: Style Analysis
Jump back into expository writing and analysis at the start of a new school year! Start with a review of an authors' stylistic choices in diction, syntax, treatment of subject matter, and figurative language. Writers choose a text to...
Curated OER
Style and Voice
Develop the writing skills of your high school class. Writers consider their personal style and voice, read selections by other authors, and then write pieces that challenge them to experiment with their own style.
Curated OER
Thoreau's Writing Style
Students analyze Thoreau's writing style. In this writing style lesson plan, students describe Thoreau's literary style and use the devices he employs in a response to one of his essays.
Curated OER
8th Grade Reading Comprehension Success
Augment your eighth grade language arts curriculum with a thorough set of reading comprehension activities and assessments. Focusing on a variety of skills, including vocabulary in context, text structure, main idea, and author's style,...
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The Rumpelstiltskin Story
Why didn't Rapunzel's hair stop growing? Why did it take the fairy godmother so long to intervene in Cinderella's affairs? Young writers consider unanswered questions like these and compose news articles investigating the true story...
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Text Elements—Vampires
Students explore the tone and style of passages from horror genre literature. For this literary elements lesson, students read The Vampire by John Stagg and the War of the World script by H.G. Wells, Students write about the way the...
National Endowment for the Humanities
The Argument of the Declaration of Independence
When in the course of a course on historic American events, it becomes necessary for learners to examine, with decent respect, the Declaration of Independence, it becomes evident that there are six separate and equal parts of that...
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Latino Literature: Poetry
Under construction, this lesson focuses on Canto Familia, a collection of poetry about Gary Soto's experiences growing up in California's Imperial Valley. Representative of the experiences of many Latinos, the poems also address themes...
K20 LEARN
It’s Never Too Late to Apologize: Character Development and Theme in “The Scarlet Ibis”
Sometimes saying I'm sorry just doesn't cut it. Scholars examine a series of apology poems, songs, and stories and consider each speaker's regrets. Using what they have learned, they analyze James Hurst's short story, "The Scarlet Ibis,"...
Curated OER
When I Set My Hat at a Certain Angle: Trying on Zora Neale Hurston's Voice to Dress-up Prose
After reading and evaluating examples of prose nonfiction by Zora Neale Hurston and other authors, high schoolers write a personal reflective essay rich in figurative language. By incorporating this strategy, they utilize voice within...
Curated OER
Boogie Woogie with a B: Using Alliteration while Exploring Patriotic Tunes
Are you looking for a way to bring writing into your history lesson - or history into your writing lesson? This cross-curricular activity is helpful and fun, no matter what class you're teaching! Using "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" by the...
Curated OER
Analyzing Poetry with TPCASTT
Middle schoolers read a poem and complete a TPCASTT chart. They make a prediction about the title (T) , paraphrase each line (P), identify poetic devices and nuances (C-connotation), explore mood and tone (A-attitude), point out shifts...
Novelinks
The Little Prince: Concept/Vocab Analysis
Focus on the literary elements of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's The Little Prince with a concept analysis sheet. With suggestions and explanations for many of the book's concepts, vocabulary, and other issues that may arise in instruction,...
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American Rhythms
Students combine elements of music with poetry. In this creative writing lesson, students examine poems from a variety of authors with varying writing styles. Students explore the different elements of poetry, including tone, rhythm,...
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Truman Capote: Other Voices, Other Rooms
Young scholars read and analyze Truman Capote's autobiographical short story, "A Christmas Memory." They discuss writing styles, conduct Internet research on Truman Capote, write a book review, and write a short story based on one of...
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Come On, Rain!
Students read and analyze the story. In this language arts lesson, students read Come on, Rain! and examine how mood and tone are created, the use of figurative language and the characteristics of the genre. Students research the time...
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I Dig Your Art, Man (or Woman)
Twelfth graders write a thesis regarding a modern artist of their choice for a 15-20 multi-media presentation. In this lesson students create a Power Point, video, or some other visual representation studying an artist or modern artistic...
Curated OER
The Study of Theme and Figurative Language in Poetry and/or Prose
Identify and analyze the use of figurative language used in select pieces of writing. These pieces of literature will represent at least two pieces by one writer and at least two pieces by different writers. This lesson would be a great...
Curated OER
The Bill of Rights: Debating the Amendments
Provide your class with an opportunity to investigate an important historical document. Without identifying the document, distribute copies of the original Bill of Rights, as transcribed by John Beckley, Clerk of the House of...
Curated OER
The Raven
After a close reading of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" individuals copy the rhythm and rhyme scheme and rewrite the final stanzas of the poem.
Curated OER
Diction: Formal and Informal Language
Coke or Pepsi? Is it the taste or the advertising that determines preference? As part of a study of diction, class members examine two passages, one formal and one informal, about Coca-Cola and Pepsi. In addition, they consider word...
Curated OER
The Declaration of Independence: From Rough Draft to Proclamation
High schoolers discover how the Declaration of Independence transformed from a draft to a treasured historical document. In this Declaration of Independence lesson, students discuss the context in which Jefferson wrote the document and...
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The Rest Cure: Gender in Medicine and Literature
Read and discuss "The Yellow Wall-Paper" and the gender issues that the story brings up. Use articles from the time period to analyze, complete with specific discussion questions. After two days, scholars write an essay based on topics...
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Ornithology and Real World Science
Double click that mouse because you just found an amazing lesson plan! This cross-curricular Ornithology lesson plan incorporates literature, writing, reading informational text, data collection, scientific inquiry, Internet research,...