Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

A “New English” in Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart”: A Common Core Exemplar

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
To examine the “New English” Chinua Achebe uses in Things Fall Apart, readers complete a series of worksheets that ask them to examine similes, proverbs, and African folktales contained in the novel. Individuals explain the meaning...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Curated OER

Fall Similes

For Teachers 3rd - 12th
Fall is like a beautiful painting come to life—or is it more like an overflowing cornucopia? Practice writing similes with a lesson on figurative language. As learners review simile structure, they come up with their favorite similes for...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Macbeth: Denouement/Falling Action

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Readers of Shakespeare explore denouement in Macbeth and track the play's falling action in Act IV, Scene 1. They complete a worksheet/table noting the content and significance of each of the three apparitions granted Macbeth by the...
Lesson Plan
2
2
Maryland Department of Education

The Concept of Diversity in World Literature Lesson 5: The Tragic Hero

For Teachers 10th - 11th Standards
Should identifying a tragic hero be based on a universal definition or a definition based on the morals and values of a specific culture? As part of a study of Things Fall Apart, class members read Sylvia Plath's "Colossus" and then...
Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart: Oral and Literary Strategies

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Readers are first introduced to Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart by making a map of Africa. They will better understand the novel's historical and literary contexts, European and African literary traditions, and how...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson Plan 6: Introducing the Elements of Plot-Part Two

For Teachers 5th - 9th Standards
November is National Novel Writing Month, so if your young authors are embarking on this journey, be sure they understand plot elements. This collaborative lesson fits into the context of the larger NaNoWriMo project; however, the ideas...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Maryland Department of Education

The Concept of Diversity in World Literature Lesson 12: Author's Purpose - Yeats and Achebe

For Teachers 10th - 11th Standards
Is there such a thing as fate/luck? Can one fight destiny? As part of their study of Chinua Achebe's purpose in writing Things Fall Apart, class members answer these questions from Achebe's point of view and then from William...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Maryland Department of Education

The Concept of Diversity in World Literature Lesson 10: Author's Purpose Seminar

For Teachers 10th - 11th Standards
Why did Chinua Achebe write "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness" in response to Conrad's novel? As part of a study of Things Fall Apart, class members conduct a socratic seminar focused on Achebe's purpose and...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Maryland Department of Education

The Concept of Diversity in World Literature Lesson 11: The Historical/Biographical Approach to Literature

For Teachers 10th - 11th Standards
How affected is Thinks Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe's personal biography? Using a four corners strategy, and evidence from their readings, class members debate the degree of biographical influence in Achebe's novel.
Lesson Plan
2
2
Maryland Department of Education

The Concept of Diversity in World Literature Lesson 9: Debating Imperialism

For Teachers 10th - 11th Standards
To gain an understanding of Imperialism, class members read Rudyard Kipling's poem, "The White Man's Burden" and Mark Twain's essay, "To the Person Sitting in Darkness." Groups compare these perceptions of non-white cultures with the...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Maryland Department of Education

The Concept of Diversity in World Literature Lesson 7: Cultural Commentary

For Teachers 10th - 11th Standards
As part of their study of Things Fall Apart, class groups develop a multimedia presentation in response to the question, "In what ways does Achebe use literature as a means to express and comment on culture and history?"
Lesson Plan
4
4
Maryland Department of Education

The Concept of Diversity in World Literature Lesson 1: Unit Introduction

For Teachers 10th - 11th Standards
To launch a unit study of the concept of diversity in World Literature, class members compare Chinua Achebe's essay, "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness" and Richard Rodriguez's essay, "The Chinese in All of...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Maryland Department of Education

The Concept of Diversity in World Literature Lesson 3: Igbo Culture

For Teachers 10th - 11th Standards
What cultural concepts must readers understand in order to connect to Things Fall Apart? As part of their study of Chinua Achebe’s novel, class members research Nigeria and the Igbo culture to create a collaborative, web-based,...
Lesson Plan
2
2
Maryland Department of Education

The Concept of Diversity in World Literature Lesson 4: Proverbs

For Teachers 10th - 11th Standards
"Eneke the bird says since men have learnt to shoot without missing, he has learnt to fly without perching." As part of their study of Things Fall Apart, class members read Paul Hernadi and Francis Steen's essay, "The Tropical Landscapes...
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Making Inferences: The Fall of Saigon

For Teachers 8th Standards
Get hooked! Reel in and hook scholars to the unit with a slide show, text-based activity, and reading exercises. To increase curiosity, learners read only small pieces of Panic Rises in Saigon, but the Exits Are Few. Readers use the...
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Building Background Knowledge: The Impending Fall of Saigon

For Teachers 8th Standards
Scholars read "Doc-Lap at Last" and participate in a Three Threes in a Row activity in which they answer three questions about the text in their rows. They then discuss the central idea of the text. Readers finish the lesson plan with a...
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Comparing Meaning and Tone: The Fall of Saigon in Fiction and Informational Text

For Teachers 8th Standards
Who's that talking to? Readers listen to a reading of the "Forgotten Ship" transcript and answer questions focusing on word meaning and choice. They complete a chart to track the multiple narrators in the script. For homework, readers...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Niagara Falls, PodCards Worksheet

For Teachers 6th - 7th
In this language arts worksheet, students listen to a podcast about Niagara Falls. Students identify the noun that each of 7 adjectives refer to. They answer 7 comprehension questions. Students complete a cloze activity. The transcript...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Falling Apples

For Teachers K - 1st
Students practice identifying individual sounds in words by interacting with the phoneme /a/. They recite the tongue twister, "Abby had an apple in the bag," and play the game beware of the falling apples. Each student also reads the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

"The Fall of the House of Usher" by Edgar Allan Poe

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers read and analyze the short story "The Fall of the House of Usher" by Edgar Allan Poe. They take notes while reading the story, select an element to analyze, and write an essay about the characters, theme, or the setting.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Book Club Discussion: Things Fall Apart

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students read and discuss Chinua Achebe's novel Things Fall Apart. Students are guided to analyze the text through consideration of the author's use of 6 literary devices. Students also evaluate the text according to their personal...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Parts of the Plot: Constructing a Plot Diagram

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders conduct a plot diagram for a short story. They identify the problem, the rising action, the climax, the falling action, and the resolution. Students are able to sequence events in a story, and identify the parts of the plot...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves Storia Teaching Guide

For Teachers K - 2nd Standards
There was an old lady who swallowed some leaves? Little learners read a new version of the old swallow story with a fall twist as they try to answer the big question; Why is that lady swallowing all that weird stuff? The teacher's guide...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Rising and Falling Actions

For Teachers 3rd Standards
Rising and falling actions are big parts of how a plot moves through the course of a story, narrative, or novel. Youngsters use examples from their texts as they examine where the action rises and falls in the book, How My Parents...

Other popular searches