In 1856 Congressman Preston Brooks of South Carolina beat Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts over the head with a cane. This event, which highlighted the acrimonious debate over the expansion of slavery, is the focus of a paper...

Seventh graders identify the various elements of a short story. After reading Rudyard Kipling's short story, "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi," students identify the author's purpose in writing the story as well as the elements that make it a short...

Students study the idiom as a form of speech. They practice using idioms by developing a Jeopardy game using a provided template.

Second graders identify action words and read and discuss the book "The Hidden Feast" by Martha Hamilton and Mitch Weiss. Students answer story comprehension questions, match animals with their animal family names, and complete a simile...

Everyone wants to feel like they belong. James, in James and the Giant Peach, finds a feeling of belonging in a very odd place—inside a peach! Scholars read the story of James and the Peach and work through vocabulary, language, and...

Students explore the literal and figurative meanings of twenty-nine phrases and sayings. This unit of nine lessons integrates written expression and convention to demonstrate the value of idioms to the language.

Sixth graders research railroad idioms.  In this idiom lesson, 6th graders read through a glossary of different railroad idioms and their meanings. They illustrate a chosen idiom.

Use this poetry analysis worksheet to help your learners understand a poem of their or your choosing. This resource asks class members to summarize the poem and analyze it by looking at voice, word choice, imagery, and theme. The...

Learners listen to story A Mason-Dixon Memory, by Clifton Davis, and complete worksheets about the story. The worksheets are embedded in the plan. This activity provides good reading comprehension practice for young readers.

Three of Emily Dickinson's poems, "I like to see it," "Because I could not stop for Death," and "We grow accustomed to the Dark," provide instructors with an opportunity to model for class members how to use close reading strategies to...

Students identify and use literary devices such as personification, idioms, hyperbole, and metaphors. They identify one literary device and illustrate the meaning. They write a letter using correct letter format and incorporates literary...

Students create a clay object in which they are to personify. They use their own personal experiences to help the viewer imagine what it would be like to be that particular object. They also watch videos of fables to help them with...

Break down Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls into manageable chunks by focusing on plot points and literary elements in specific chapters. This resource is all about the first chapter, and asks pupils to use complete sentences to...

Poetry is all about sound and rhythm. The sound of the words, the rhythm of the lines, and the emotional atmosphere created by these elements and the literary devices poets use, compress whole stories into a few stanzas. The specialized...

Little Man, in Vince Vawter's Paperboy, is a great baseball player, but due to stuttering he'd rather not speak to a soul. Scholars read how Little Man deals with his fears as they use vocabulary words to complete sentences,...

Young scholars use a stick figure to help them learn to write with details. In this details lesson, students brainstorm details to add to the stick figure 'Plain Polly.' Young scholars then draw stick figures for their own writing and...

Students study important historical figures.  In this United States history lesson, students trace the signature of John Hancock using cotton swabs, glitter, and various art supplies after discussing the historical significance of...

Students complete a unit of activities to learn about idioms and proverbs. In this idioms and proverbs lesson, students complete 16 lessons to learn about idioms and proverbs. Students complete a booklet of proverb and idiom activities.

In this online idiom quiz activity, students analyze the idiom examples within the sentence and select the correct answer for the meaning of the idioms to complete the 10 exercises.

Pupils research why people wear hats, caps or bonnets. They investigate various occupations, world costumes, sports, or idioms around hats. Students become more aware of cultures different from their own within this lesson.

In this online idiom quiz worksheet, middle schoolers analyze the given idiom and read them within a sentence. Students select the correct meaning of the 10 exercises.

Students, in groups, identify the origins of a number of transportation idioms. They search for current transportation idioms to have a partner explain.

Track your class's progress on all of the ELA Common Core standards with these handy charts. Along the left side, each seventh grade identifier is listed along with the full text of the standard. As you teach, reteach, assess,...

Students define freedom of the press in peace and war time. As a class, they identify the need for the public to be informed, but discuss where the line should be drawn to protect national security. They develop their arguments and...