Breaking barriers is not an easy thing to do. Scholars read a section in Promises to Keep and summarize how Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in baseball. They write the gist of the passage in their journals and then complete...

Teach readers how to distinguish between a topic and a story's theme in a short lesson that uses the children's book, Should I Share My Ice Cream, as an exemplar. After listening to the story, pairs generate a list of topics covered...

How authors bring characters to life and make them believable is the focus of a instructional activity on characterization. Readers closely examine passages from To Kill a Mockingbird and Dreamland Burning, noting details that reveal the...

Practice makes proficient! Using a journal of their choice, authors organize pages, then begin their writing journey of on-going writing practice in which they compose all poetic forms including diamante, limerick, free verse, and more!

A repetition poem is the focus of a lesson that challenges scholars to compose an original piece. To add meaning to their poem, authors choose words to repeat at the start of most lines.  

Four steps to Open Mic Night! The location, invitations, supplies, and party favors are all part of the process in planning and hosting a fun-filled gathering where scholars read aloud an original poem or one by their favorite author. 

Good discussion questions, quizzes, and tests teach as well as assess. Readers of The Great Gatsby will learn much from the materials in a 36-page packet designed to help students prepare for the AP Literature exam. Included in the...

A thorough lesson introduces learners to Hans Christian Andersen, the nineteenth-century author who created wonderful tales. They read the original texts of several of his stories, including "The Ugly Duckling," "The Little Mermaid,"...

Learners read and compare two selections by two different authors with the theme man vs. nature. They complete a literary analysis paper comparing and contrasting the author's treatment of the topic with emphasis on setting, historical...

Students distinguish various books by David Shannon from other authors, compare three of Shannon's books for similarities, list various possible settings for stories, integrate Shannon's pattern of writing into their own, and formulate...

Second graders observe the teacher model writing a letter to the author of the book, COPS AND ROBBERS. They then compare the story structure of the book to those of FUNNYBONES and identify the setting, characters and theme.

Good reading practices can start at any age. Early readers work with the teacher to read a short story about a bear. First, they identify basic text features, such as the title, author, and illustrator. Then, they answer several simple...

Practice your speaking skills! Using a chosen visual aid, pupils present a previously written essay to the class. During the oral presentation, the listeners identify and write down the author's purpose and a question for the author. At...

Students chose Latin authors, their birthplace, life and works. They examine pictures of an Italian city and decide which Latin author it could be related to. They answer questions in Latin.

Guide your pupils through the process of creating a free e-mail account on Gaggle.net. Once the accounts are established, class members contact authors and practice letter writing techniques. This lesson includes resource links and is...

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...

Key to understanding scientific or technical texts is identifying the underlying question the author is attempting to answer. Provide your young scientists with an opportunity to practice identifying these questions and the procedures...

Students with autism increase their knowledge about autism, communication, life skills, and goal setting. They read selections from authors who have written about their experiences with autism.

Eighth graders are introduced to authors in the conservation community. As a class, they describe a personal experience they have had with nature. They identify examples of an author's descriptive writing techniques and answer questions...

Explore the fascinating ways in which authors use specific literary devices to create interesting and realistic texts. Using non-fiction articles with the subject of rogue waves, an excerpt from The Perfect Storm, by Sebastian Junger,...

Students discover how to locate books on meadow and pond animals and research them. Students discover how to locate fiction/story books about the animals mentioned in the counting book read. Students discover how to locate by author,...

Read a Hans Wilhelm story and complete creative writing activities. Start by reading Tyrone, the Horrible and discuss the behavior in the book. Then split your class into groups to create a "bully" situation and discuss possible...

First and second graders explore the importance of having a beginning, middle, and end when writing stories. For this story writing lesson, students write short stories using the story diamond as a guide. They invite their parents to an...

Have you heard of the QAR strategy? If your class is reading The Color Purple, provide them with this two-page activity to get them thinking. With the strategy, readers are introduced to four types of questions (right there, think and...