Curated OER
The Crucible
Twelfth graders use an Internet scavenger hunt, vocabulary, sample essay questions, and short answer questions suitable for study and review of the play, The Crucible.
Curated OER
Symbol Beneath the Surface in "The Life You Save May Be Your Own"
Learners identify the value of symbols in shorts stories and analyze Flannery O'Connor's use of symbolism. In this symbolism lesson, students complete a worksheet about symbols for cars. Learners answer questions about Flannery...
Curated OER
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings: Chapters 34, 35
Students analyze Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings in part of an analysis of imagery. In this Maya Angelou lesson, students read chapters 34 and 35 in the novel and define imager. Students work in pairs to locate two...
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Characterization in Literature
Students discover characterization techniques and methods. In this characterization lesson, students choose favorite fiction characters and discuss what makes a character come alive. Students then describe a family member or a friend and...
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Cheerful Hearts and Willing Feet
Students explore characterization in Little Women. In this literature lesson, students participate in written analysis and research in order to explore Alcott's characterization in the novel.
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
Style and Voice
Develop the writing skills of your high school class. Writers consider their personal style and voice, read selections by other authors, and then write pieces that challenge them to experiment with their own style.
Curated OER
Allen Ginsberg: Poetry and Politics
Students explore the poetry of Allen Ginsberg. They read and analyze poems by Allen Ginsberg, conduct Internet research, collect examples of art of the 60s, and create a presentation.
Curated OER
Truman Capote: Other Voices, Other Rooms
Young scholars 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...
Curated OER
Medieval Coat of Arms/Heraldry
Students examine the history of Heraldry from medieval times in preparation for reading the novel "Freak the Mighty." They view and discuss examples of shields and discuss the color system and how shields were divided. As a culminating...
Curated OER
Poetic Analysis
Students write a poetic analysis on a poem by Carl Sandburg. They take their previous knowledge of poetic devices and apply them to a piece of writing that displays their knowledge on a specific poem. They explain what they know about a...
Curated OER
In A Station Of The Metro And A Pact
Students are exposed to two different works of poetry in order to complete a task of comparing and contrasting them. They analyze the poem and identify the juxtaposition. The analysis is compiled by them to make a class report of it.
Curated OER
Pablo Neruda
Eighth graders explore the life and works of Pablo Neruda. They complete an author map concerning his personal and professional life. Students identify the key components of an ode. They write an ode to a common object around their...
Curated OER
Evaluating Conclusions
Tenth graders evaluate seven conclusions which use A Doll's House for the prompt response. They develop criteria for writing effective conclusions which respond to an End-of-Course II writing prompt.
Curated OER
Wordsworth's Poetry
High schoolers read Wordsworth sonnet, "The World is Too Much With Us," and complete reader response criticsm worksheets. They examine the poet's ideas and techniques then write a letter to Mr. Wordsworth and explain how he might feel...
Curated OER
Analyzing Poetry and Characters
Students investigate historical context by reading poetry. In this language arts lesson, students discover the work of Michael Longley and examine his poem "Ceasefire." Students identify the sonnets used in the piece and...
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To Walt Whitman
Students examine the poem To Walt Whitman by Angela de Hoyos. They divide into groups. Each group creates a poem written from one of two perspectives: to Walt Whitman or to de Hoyos from Whitman.
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Ode to a Nightingale
Students read poems about Tuberculosis by John Keats. Using the poems, they identify similies, metaphors, personification and imagery. In groups, they make connections about the author's outlook on life and how his disease impacted his...
Curated OER
From Ordinary To Extraordinary Writing
High schoolers investigate the quality of writing while focusing on the use of sensory words to convey meaning and ideas. The power of similes and metaphors is emphasized while they create and edit works of writing. The skill of...
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Personal Odysseys and Everyday Heroes
Ninth graders study Greek Mythology, focusing on Gods and Goddesses. They compare the modern day hero with the classical hero and examine how individual characters are based on their own personal odysseys.
Curated OER
Skellig
In this Skellig worksheet, students read to understand the works of David Almond and learn about his life. Students read eleven passages and then answer ten questions related to reading for meaning and understanding the author's craft.
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Exploring the Power of Allusion
Something seems familiar here: Students learn how allusion invites more into a text. Using "The House On Mango Street" students will learn about allusion by paralleling events from both the Bible and from Greek mythology.
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: Sti Lesson 43: Screening Coleridge's Fantasies
Students are often hesitant to speak out with their own explications of literature, but usually have no qualms when asked to offer interpretations of popular musical lyrics. In fact, they seem quite eager to defend a lyrical explanation...