New York State Education Department
Comprehensive English Examination: January 2014
What better way to prepare learners for academic success than to administer practice tests? With the Comprehensive Examination in English, scholars read informational and literary texts and answer listening and reading comprehension...
Reed Novel Studies
The Wind In The Willows: Novel Study
True friends stick together. In the case of The Wind In The Willows, the friends just happen to be a toad, mole, rat, and badger who team up to beat the weasels. The resource covers the first chapter of their raucous adventures. Scholars...
West Jefferson High School
The Novel — Honor
For classes tackling To Kill a Mockingbird, this lesson plan sets readers up for discussions or essay writing with questions and prompts. The prompts encourage individuals to explore beyond the novel itself, looking at...
Curated OER
Truman Capote: Other Voices, Other Rooms
Students 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 Truman...
Curated OER
A Separate Peace: Chapter 10 Reading and Study Guide
In this comprehension check worksheet, students define 3 vocabulary words, define 2 literary terms, and respond to 10 short answer questions pertaining to chapter 10 of A Separate Peace by John Knowles in order to help them better...
Curated OER
A Separate Peace: Chapter 13 Reading And Study Guide
In this comprehension check worksheet, students define 3 vocabulary words, define 1 literary term, and respond to 6 short answer questions pertaining to chapter 13 of A Separate Peace by John Knowlesin order to help them better...
Curated OER
Find a Character, Tell a Story
Fourth graders choose a character from a magazine, complete a character sketch, and develop a short story placing this character in a situation. They utilize a worksheet imbedded in this plan which guides them through creating their...
Curated OER
The Higher Power of Lucky
Young scholars complete activities using the book The Higher Power of Lucky. In this literature lesson plan, students read the story and identify the parts of the story. They create a wind chime like that found in the book.
Curated OER
Silver Blaze and Other Stories
In this Silver Blaze and Other Stories reading and study guide worksheet, young scholars respond to 8 multi-step short answer, multiple choice, and graphic organizer questions. The questions are designed to be answered before, while, and...
Orange County Schools
Piggybook
Summarizing text is a balancing act between being brief but thorough. You need to be short and to the point, but also cover all the important details, a task that presents a challenge for many young learners. In this lesson based on the...
Curated OER
A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words
Students, after reading the book, "Esperanza Rising," create a virtual display by combining different story elements into a visual representation. They choose the setting and characters of a scene that will act as a springboard of ideas...
Curated OER
Identifying Setting: Expository Writing
Your class can take turns describing a well know location or setting without giving its name, and the rest of the class can try to identify the location, based on the details given. They chart the elements that helped in the...
Curated OER
Identifying Theme
What's theme, and can texts of every length have one? Explore the themes of fives short reading passages with your middle school class. Encourage them to highlight specific places in the text where they recognized the theme.
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
El Bronx Remembered
Use a worksheet to cover different types of conflicts from El Bronx Remembered, a series of short stories by Nicholasa Mohr. The questions address "A Very Special Pet," "Shoes for Hector," "Mr. Mendelsohn," "A Lesson in Fortune-Telling,"...
K20 LEARN
Analyzing Literary Figures: Analyzing Literature
The author study gets an update in a research project designed for high schoolers. Scholars search for information about literary figures that connects them to their times, their works, their themes, and other writers. Researchers also...
Curated OER
Story Elements
In this literature companion worksheet, students respond to 6 short answer questions regarding story elements about a story of the choice.
Curated OER
Pride and Prejudice: Unsent Letter
What would the characters of Pride and Prejudice say to each other in a letter? Draft unsent correspondence between characters from Jane Austen's novel. A great way to explore characterization and plot structure in a creative lesson.
Curated OER
Things Aren't Always What They Seem
Students use video and the Internet to make predictions, draw conclusions, determine conflict and point of view while reading a short story. In this short story analysis lesson plan, students watch a related video and complete a...
Curated OER
Numbered Heads Together
Fifth graders demonstrate reading and active listening by examining story elements. Working in teams, each student will develop and demonstrate an understanding of story elements by answering questions related to a given story.
Curated OER
Shizuko’s Daughter: Discussion Web
Is Yuki a selfish character? Analyze her motivation and behavior during a unit on Shizuko's Daughter by Kyoko Mori. Readers fill out two sides of a graphic organizer with reasons why or why not she is selfish, and then come up with...
Curated OER
Literary Elements Worksheets and Graphic Organizers
Using graphic organizers can be an effective way to teach literary elements.
Curated OER
The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper
In this literature worksheet, learners respond to 25 short answer and essay questions about James Fenimore Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans. Students may also link to an online interactive quiz on the novel at the bottom of the page.
Curated OER
Great Expectations: Group Writing
Examine the differences between totalitarianism and democracy in this writing lesson. Using the same format and theme from Great Expectations, young writers work in pairs to compose their own short stories. They follow guidelines for the...
Curated OER
Setting the Story: Techniques for Creating a Realistic Setting
“It was a dark and stormy night.” Thus begins the 1830's novel Paul Clifford and, of course, all of Snoopy’s novels! Encourage young writers to craft settings for their stories that go beyond Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s often-mocked phrase...