Young scholars read and write poetry that reflects true self expression. They use the published poetry as a springboard instead of a formula to write from the heart.

Students write and listen to rap songs. They discover how common themes in rap are indicative of the problems, as well as the empowerments, that can be seen in our urban cultures today. They discover how rap is actually an evolution of...

Students identify some common themes involving the Latino immigrant experience as conveyed through a variety of media, explore issues of identity in some examples of poetry written by Latinos and learn some basic poetry reading strategies.

Students listen and explore how African-American culture relates to learning Spanish as a foreign language. Poetry, music, and history are utilized while learning about Langston Hughes and Nicolas Guillen.

Learners examine different types of poetry in music, commercials and printed works. They identify themes of philanthropy in poetry as well. They finally share their findings with the class.

Students write Sun and Moon poetry. In this poetry lesson, students research the sun and the moon.  They write poetry and create two class baskets for descriptive words about each.

Learners participate in a variety of activities surrounding a thematic unit on apples and Johnny Appleseed.

Second graders examine the skills they need to have in order to function successfully in a family unit. They look at how families are different from one another and at the dynamics that exist in the families in this unit of lessons.

Eleventh graders examine the role of African-Americans in the Civil War. After reading a poem, they analyze and identify the difficulties faced by African Americans. In pairs, they complete a worksheet based on the poem and information.

Model for your class how to craft an analysis of a sonnet by examining the literary techniques used, the background of the poet, and critical reviews of the poem. As guided practice, learners are assigned a sonnet, complete a preliminary...

Use the Civil War and important figures from that period to help your class write poetry. You'll need to create a list of similes and metaphors, but you could also consider having your learners create this the day prior. They will use...

"How are belief systems represented and reproduced through nature?" This essential question guides lesson 6 of this unit on The Odyssey (the rest of the unit is linked). Students first write about a scenario in which they are...

Track the poetic elements in any text with a guided reading worksheet. Kids note examples of consonance, alliteration, onomatopoeia, repetition, rhyme, and rhythm when reading a poem or story, and provide a short explanation as...

Introduce your middle schoolers to the lives of past Native Americans. First, learners work together to put photographs in a sequence. Then, using their sequence, they create stories to share with the whole class. No matter how old your...

Dead trees provide nutrients for the soil, food for animals, protection and a home for organisms, a seed-bed for new trees, and a place for nitrogen-fixing bacteria to live. In the activity, pupils collect decaying logs, expose them to a...

Art can enhance the understanding of history. That's the big idea in a instructional activity that has young scholars read Randall Jarrell's poem "The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner" and an excerpt from John Hersey's...

SStudents view examples of O'Keef's work and watch a video about her life. They use colored pencil to create a 6" x 6" reproduction of a 2" x 2" square cut from a magazine picture, finding and using the most interesting shapes in the...

How do novels differ from plays? Explore with your class the text features of fiction and drama by reading The Hidden One: Native American Legend and then performing a reader’s theater script based on the story. Class members create a...

What makes a good monarch? Elementary and middle schoolers examine popular symbols of the British monarchy before designing a television advertisement about the qualities needed in a monarch. Next, they write poems using metaphors and...

The Harlem Renaissance if the focus of a carefully crafted, interdisciplinary unit designed to introduce middle schoolers to the contributions key figures made to American art and culture during the period. Class members select...

Celebrate Women's History Month with hands on-learning. The resource provides seven strategies to help educators teach Women's History Month, ranging from watching films to reading books written by women. Activities including writing...

The unit study of Angel Island Immigration Station concludes with scholars using information from the previous lessons to craft a news story about the Angel Island program.

In this acrostic poem instructional activity, students use the letters in the word Veteran to create an acrostic poem. Students create a 7 line poem.

Fifth graders discover how figurative language is used in poetry. They read selected poems and identify the figurative language with handouts and worksheets included in the lesson. They write poems of their own using figurative language.