National Endowment for the Humanities
The Glass Menagerie: Impact of Expressionism
Young scholars are challenged to write a realistic analysis of Tennessee Williams' nonrealistic memory play, The Glass Menagerie. Writers use the evidence gathered on their worksheets to craft an effective thesis and concluding statement...
August House
Anansi and the Tug o' War
Combine art, math, language arts, drama, and delicious Jell-o with a instructional activity based on the African folktale Anansi and the Tug o' War. Kids make predictions and discuss plot points of the story before joining in...
BBC
Tales of Hans Christian Andersen
Fairy tales seem like quick, fun children's stories, but asking compelling questions about characters, plot elements, and literary themes can transform them into rich and complex tales. Use a series of eight lessons on Hans Christian...
Curated OER
Lots of Lessons from Aesop
Aesop’s Fables offer young learners an opportunity to study figurative language. After reviewing theme, simile, alliteration, and metaphor, model for your pupils how to identify examples of these devices in the fable. Class members then...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Dramatic and Theatrical Aspects in Thornton Wilder’s “Our Town”: A Common Core Exemplar
“So I’m going to have a copy of this play put in the cornerstone and the people a thousand years from now’ll know a few simple facts about us.” Our Town is used as the text in a Common Core exemplar that examines the dramatic and...
Curated OER
Reviewing Literary Elements
Students identify the elements of fiction, and work on compare and contrast skills.. In this comprehension lesson plan, students read different versions of Cinderella. Students use a Venn diagram to compare and contrast the literary...
Penguin Books
A Teacher's Guide to the Signet Classic Edition of William Shakespeare's Othello
Villains populate literature. These dastardly characters serve as a contrast to the hero who they set out to destroy. Iago, the villain of Shakespeare's tragedy Othello, certainly rates as one of the most despicable. Motivated by...
EngageNY
Grade 9 ELA Module 2, Unit 2, Lesson 10
The slow curse of realization begins to sink in during the tenth lesson in a literary analysis unit on Sophocles' Oedipus the King. Ninth graders carefully read the selected lines for evidence of Oedipus' feelings during a turning point...
EngageNY
Grade 9 ELA Module 2, Unit 2, Lesson 20
Oedipus' lack of literal and figurative vision does not mean he cannot see his guilt in the terrible fates of Laius, Jocasta, and all the lives touched by prophecy. Conclude a literary analysis unit on Sophocles' Oedipus the King with a...
EngageNY
Grade 9 ELA Module 2, Unit 2, Lesson 6
The battle of wits and wisdom rages in Sophocles' Oedipus the King, particularly in Oedipus' discussion with Teiresias about the Sphinx's riddle. Ninth graders focus on this crucial conversation with a literary analysis instructional...
EngageNY
Author’s Craft: Poetry and Prose
During a drama circle, scholars closely examine the play created in the play A Midsummer Night's Dream. The pupils read Act 3 Scene 1 and turn and talk to their partners about the scene. They then complete a handout and discuss the...
EngageNY
Characters’ Decisions: The Flow of Consequences in Midsummer
Class members meet in their drama circles and share their thoughts on why it might be necessary for the audience to know something the characters don't. They read Act 3 Scene 2 of A Midsummer Night's Dream and complete consequence flow...
EngageNY
Author’s Craft: The Poetry of the Play
Feel the rhythm! Pupils begin reading Act 2, Scene 1 of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream as they continue participating in a drama circle. With discussion, they examine Shakespeare's use of rhyme, rhythm, and meter, analyzing how...
Ken Taylor
The Stones: Guilty or Not Guilty?
Young drama pupils will perform a number of expressive speaking exercises as they consider the themes of responsibility, consequences, and justice in the very modern Australian play The Stones. With a lot of role playing and...
Curated OER
Sophocles' Oedipus the King
Introduce your class to the Greek tragedy with a study of Sophocles’ Oedipus the King. Learners examine the features of a Greek tragedy, Sophocles’ achievements and contributions, and the universal themes that make the drama an enduring...
Teaching Tolerance
Community Arts Showcase
An art showcase encourages class members to explore the themes of social justice and tolerance. They create an original artwork, engage in group discussions, and journal writing. The art gallery also provides a chance for families and...
Southern Nevada Regional Professional Development Program
Reading Literature - The Ruin
Cross-comparison, the technique of focusing on two different texts with the same themes, motifs, events, etc., is employed in an exercise that asks groups to examine two different translations of “The Ruin,” a poem, written in Old...
Curated OER
The Breaking of Charity
The danger of mob mentality is on display in The Crucible by Arthur Miller. Get your class thinking with some challenging quickwrite questions, then assign characters from the play to be read aloud altogether. Links to worksheets for...
Curated OER
Graphs of the Heart
Students study Greek literature. In this Greek tragedies activity, students explore the dance-dramas of Martha Graham. Students study the choreography that brings ancient Greek literature to life.
Penguin Books
An Educator’s Guide to Chraisma by Jeanne Ryan
Often, science fiction makes a lot of connections to real life. An educator's guide for the novel Charisma by Jeanne Ryan, has readers discuss many of the real-life issues that come in the text. A brief summary helps garner interest in...
Curated OER
Eugene O'Neill on Page and Stage
Students investigate the life and works of Eugene O'Neill. In this American theater lesson, students read biographical information about O'Neill and review Long Day's Journey into Night. Students then analyze the play in order to deliver...
Curated OER
Hollywood
Pupils listen to a play, or perhaps, take turns reading portions of it aloud. Afterward, they thoughtfully analyze and discuss the components of a well-written play. Next, a theme is assigned, and each person writes a play in conjunction...
Curated OER
Cyrano De Bergerac: Understanding Drama Through Characterization and Dialogue
Students explore three major dramatic concepts using Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand. In this dramatic concepts lesson, students research the concepts of universal theme, characterization, and dialogue using the given text. Students...
Curated OER
The Memory Play in American Drama
Students take a closer look at a memory play. In this American drama lesson, students read Tennessee Williams's The Glass Menagerie and analyze it as a memory play. Students discuss the linear and non-linear aspects of the play prior to...