Students create brochures about the humor of Mark Twain. In this literature-analysis lesson plan, students read "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" and other short stories by Twain. Students write analytical paragraphs and...

Discover with your class the humorous solution that follows tall tales. Elementary learners will discuss the tall tale Paul Bunyan and give ordinary solutions for the problems in the story. They will read Sally Ann Thunder Ann...

Students present genres to the class.

Pupils discuss the characteristics of several different writing genres. They are given a prompt to and work in groups to continue writing in the style of a humorous, fantasy or suspense story. They share their stories with the class.

The New York Times Learning Network provides the resources that permit pupils to examine and then write and perform a fake news broadcast in the vein of “The Daily Show” or “Saturday Night Live” Weekend Update. The generated reports...

A delightful lesson on poetry is here for you and your middle schoolers. Learners are instructed to write a Halloween poem. They get to choose the age range for the audience of the poem. So, it may be scary (for older kids), or humorous...

Students define ethnicity and ethnic group in their own words. In groups, they view comic strips and identify how the strips relate to their family life. Individually, they write their own comic strip about their own ethnic group. To...

Students establish background regarding a controversial article regarding rape. Students determine whether this article achieved the label of "satire". Internet sites are used for reference.

Students discuss the characteristics of the literary genre known as "Southern Gothic". They write an analysis of the short story, "A Good Man is Hard to Find" by Flannery O'Connor.

Students read the fractured fairy tale, The Frog Principal by Stephanie Calmenson and compare it to the original version in order to gain deeper understanding of the fairy tale genre. In this fairy tale lesson, students identify and...

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...

Start by defining the word sitcom with the goal of launching a discussion. What exactly is a sitcom? How is a sitcom different from sketch comedy, drama, and reality television? Class members give examples, remember storylines...

Introduce your class to fairy tales with this lesson plan. After reading the fractured fairy tale, "The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig," third, fourth, and fifth graders write a personal narrative as a response to the fairy...

Beyond Paul Bunyan and his blue ox, tall tales can be a great way to teach young writers about word choice and voice in their writing. Using Jerry Spinelli's Maniac Magee  and the Six-Trait Writing process, they begin to write...

Students read and analyze the short story, "A Good Man Is Hard to Find," by Flannery O'Connor. They write a one-page response, explore various websites, take an online interactive journey, and write a final assessment paper.

Students are introduced to the characteristics of fables and folktales. In groups, they read and identify the various elements in the stories they read from around the world. For each story, they analyze the setting and the various...

Students are provided with an opportunity to explore not only the interface but also the variety of scenery and objects available on the program. Younger students may require additional teacher assistance during the computer activity.

Students investigate the world of Television by contrasting specific programs.  In this visual storytelling lesson, students compare and contrast the differences between comedy and drama by making a Venn Diagram.  Students...

Students listen to the story The Hallo-Wiener by Dav Pilkey in order to learn about the "monster" character. In this reading and art lesson, students cut a "bun" from beige construction paper, cut out an image of the main character...