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A Literature of Democracy
Eleventh graders analyze how American literature shows a lot of different genres. In groups, 11th graders create a short report about the passage they have chosen.
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The Individual and His Role in Society
Tenth graders discover how various writers approach the themes of : alienation and solitude, living life "deliberately" and "phonies." Through reading, journaling, class discussion, and writing assignments they realize the power of the...
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Haiku
Sixth graders study Haiku. In this Haiku lesson, 6th graders explore the history of the poetry form. Students also examine the structure the Japanese poetry as they read examples. Students write their one Haiku.
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VH1 Ultimate Albums Bob Marley - Legend Episode #3
Students compare Reggae to other musical genres and identify rhythms. They study the history and musical significance of Reggae as a musical genre.
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Tradition through storytelling and music
Young scholars discover how storytelling can shape a person's tradition.Students examine different methods of storytelling such as music, biographies, and African folktales. They then demonstrate their knowledge of storytelling by...
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Night by Elie Weisel
Students read "No News from Auschwitz" and answer the study questions as an introduction to the novel. They record reactions to the essay and compare with reactions after reading "Night".
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Literature of the Islands and the Sea
Learners read an age-appropriate novel in which an island setting plays an important role from a provided list. This will help them understand life on an island. They will analyze the plot, theme, characterization, setting, and style...
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Babar's Travels
Students read the story The Story of Babar and have a class discussion about his travels, discuss their families, design a map, pick music, and more. In this cross curricular musical lesson plan, students create a music map for each of...
Pennsylvania Department of Education
Using Literary Elements to Compare Fiction Texts
Students explore language arts by reading and reflecting on literary examples. In this fiction writing instructional activity, students read several different cultural versions of the story "Cinderella" and discuss their interaction with...
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Identifying Science Fiction
Students discuss works of science fiction that they read, highlight aspects that made each a part of science fiction genre, identify formal literary elements, and discuss ways each can be developed through science fiction.
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Poetry
High schoolers apply reading comprehension skills to poetry and synthesize the information to create a new piece of work.
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Crane, London, and Literary Naturalism
Students identify the key characteristics that comprise American literary naturalism in Jack London's "To Build a Fire" and Stephen Crane's "The Open Boat." In this naturalism analysis lesson, students identify characteristics of the...
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Comparison of Multicultural Literature
Students read and compare/contrast three different cultural versions of "Twas the Night Before Christmas." Using handheld computers, they read eBook versions of each version, complete a BooksLog, and write and illustrate a modern version...
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Amazing Autobiographies
Students read a wide range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an understanding of the many dimensions (e.g., philosophical, ethical, aesthetic) of human experience. They apply knowledge of language structure,...
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Write a Myth
Learners explore myths in ancient times. In this mythology lesson, students read or view a video production of a myth to determine specific characteristics of myths. Learners work in groups to write a myth that explains an...
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Fantasy Stories
Students create fantasy stories. In this creative writing activity, students write a fantasy where they can use characters that they have read about in The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien.
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A Question of Style: Exploring the Nature of Shakespeare's Comedy
Students present scenes from As You Like It and critique presentations of their peers. In this As You Like It lesson, students stage the opening scene, experimenting with different approaches to find the tone and style they think...
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Fact or Fiction
Students explore journalism by reading a book in class. In this factual research instructional activity, students read a portion of a Magic School Bus book and identify parts that seem to be factual and fictional. Students view an...
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Folktale Unit Outline
Seventh graders analyze grammatical structures and identify literary elements in a variety of texts. Through the genre of folktales, ancient or indigenous cultures are studied.
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The Great Gatsby
Students read "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald. In groups, they research the events and spirit of the 1920s and relate events in the novel to actual historical events. They compare the characteristics of various genres and...
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Reviewing Literary Elements
Students identify the elements of fiction, and work on compare and contrast skills.. In this comprehension lesson, students read different versions of Cinderella. Students use a Venn diagram to compare and contrast the literary elements...
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How Tragic!
Learners study and interpret a classical tragedy and role play a character from the play. In this tragedy lesson, students discuss a specific work to discover the form, structure, and characteristics of the genre and interpret the...
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Cinderella Stories From Around the World
Fifth graders review the basic story of the Cinderella fairy tale. In groups, they read various stories of Cinderella from different cultures. They use a compare and contrast chart to examine the differences between the American...
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Teaching the Kono Salmon Kite
Students complete several student readings involving kite making and kite flying. They analyze how the parts of a system go together and how these parts depend on each other. They comprehend how different environments both provide...