Curated OER
The Hobbit
Students list W.H Auden's six characteristics of a quest story. They say what is meant by a "metaphorical quest." Pupils discuss some differences between symbolism and allegory. Students indicate how Bilbo Baggins's adventures changed...
Curated OER
Symbols of Freedom
Learners display knowledge of historical facts regarding the American Flag as they use creative writing skills.
Curated OER
What Kind of Ladybug Are You?
As a class, read different sentences prepared by the teacher, identifying the punctuation that is needed for the appropriate expression. In small groups, have each child assume the role of one or more character in The Grouchy Ladybug by...
Illustrative Mathematics
1.OA, NBT, The Very Hungry Caterpillar
First graders are exposed to addition of three whole numbers in a math activity centered around Eric Carle's, The Very Hungry Caterpillar. As the teacher reads, young mathematicians use counters and ten-frames to symbolize the number of...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Faulkner's As I Lay Dying: Burying Addie's Voice
Students explore the use of voice and title in William Faulkner's, "As I Lay Dying". They identify and discuss the use of image, symbols and narrative voice in the story.
Curated OER
Growing Plants in Science and Literature, More Than an Empty Pot
Students read The Empty Pot as an introduction to plants. In this planting lesson, students understand a sequence of events in the book and relate it to the sequence of a plants life. Students grow plants and record information in flower...
Curated OER
Numbers in Art
Students choose a number from one to twelve and tell a number story about it. They listen to the teacher read "Numbers in Art" by Lucy Micklethwait. Students choose three numbers from one to twelve and view works of art while looking for...
Curated OER
Speaking in Grave Tones
Fourth graders examine how a change in attitudes about death took place from the late eighteenth to the early nineteenth century and was embodied in gravestones, literature, and art.
Curated OER
Animals in Ancient Rome (Grades 7-8)
Students explore the role of animals in ancient Rome through the interpretation of a fictional account.
Curated OER
The Art of Political Cartoons in Revolutionary America
Students analyze political cartoons. In this colonial America lesson, students examine the provided political cartoons and respond to analytical questions about each of them.
Shmoop
ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.11-12.2
There is nothing more frustrating than discussing theme in literature, and now the Common Core requires that your learners determine two or more, and discuss the development of it throughout the text. This is crazy, but manageable with...
Curated OER
Combining Geography and Literature by Mapping a Story
Students listen to or read a story on their own. Using the text, they describe the relative locations of the main events. In groups, they develop two and three dimensional maps of the story. They create a key and a title for their map.
Curated OER
William Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury: Narrating the Compson Family Decline and the Changing South
Learners analyze the novel, "The Sound and the Fury," written by iam Faulkner, tracing the changing South. Through the narrative structure, the point of view, and the relationship between change and characterization, students view the...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Tales of the Supernatural
Scary stuff! Whether approached as the first horror story or a "serious imaginative exploration of the human condition," Frankenstein continues to engage readers. Here's a packet of activities that uses Mary Shelley's gothic novel to...
K20 LEARN
Lord of the Flies Unit, Lesson 7: Good To Be Bad
The seventh lesson in the Lord of the Flies unit asks scholars to consider whether or not an individual can overcome the worst thing they have ever done. Groups read different articles related to the question, share their expertise in a...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Language Analysis Based on Stave 1
Class members meet the original scrooge, the Dickens character whose name has become synonymous with a cold-hearted, tight-fisted, miser. Using the provided worksheet, readers closely examine context clues to determine the meanings of...
PE Central
Celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with Dance
Erin go bragh! Enliven your St. Patrick's Day celebration by teaching your class members some of the combinations found in traditional Irish step dancing.
Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Byzantine Architecture
View Byzantine architecture from the comfort of your classroom. A PowerPoint presentation introduces important vocabulary terms and examples of Byzantine architecture in the ninth instructional activity of the 11-part series. A Jeopardy...
Novelinks
Lord of the Flies: Themes and Notetaking
William Golding's Lord of the Flies is a treasure trove of symbolism and literary themes. Help your kids note the richest passages in the book with a lesson and graphic organizer. The lesson prepares kids to come up with a thesis...
Curated OER
Geo Jammin' By DeSign - Day 3, Lesson 15: The Quiltmaker's Gift
Students listen to a read aloud of The Quiltmaker's Gift by Jeff Brumbeau finding examples of symmetry in the illustrations in the book.
Curated OER
Beowulf: Songs of Ancient Heroes
Introduce your class to epic heroes with these activities for Beowulf. After watching a video clip, taking notes on heroes, and tracking characteristics of heroism throughout Beowulf, class members retell an episode of Beowulf using a...
Curated OER
Iconography: Art and Literature
Students discover the main subjects and objects of Buddhist art and how symbolism in the Arts can enhance the artistic elements. The instructional activity concludes with the creation of student works using iconography.
Curated OER
Encounter with a Skull (Tae dokuro, 1890)
Students read and analyze a short story by Koda Rohan. They conduct research, read and discuss a biography of the author, identify examples of Japanese and Buddhist symbolism in the story, and write an original story.
Curated OER
Animals in Art
Learners look at how animals are shown in literature and art as representing emotions, telling a story, or sending a message in this elementary school Language Arts and Visual Arts lesson.