National Endowment for the Humanities
Charles Baudelaire: Poète Maudit (The Cursed Poet)
After learning the main ideas of the Decadent movement, learners work in small groups to read and translate poems by the French poet Charles Baudelaire using basic etymology skills. They then read the accurate English translations to see...
Curated OER
Journey Through a Midnight Dreary: Fun Trivia Quiz on "The Raven"
This Fun Trivia Quiz tests readers' understanding of Poe's "The Raven", including allusions. Because these online quizzes can be made by anyone, you will want to scrutinize the questions and answers prior to assigning this to your class.
Curated OER
Literature: Yoshiko Uchida Unit
Sixth graders read the books, The Invisible Thread: An Autobiography by Yoshiko Uchida and Baseball Saved Us by Ken Mochizuki about Japanese Americans during World War II. They hold discussions, take quizzes, and write essays about the...
K12 Reader
Alliteration in Literature and Rhetoric
Middle schoolers are asked to identify the alliteration used in John F. Kennedy's Inaugural Address, Emily Dickinson's "May-Flower," and a passage from Robert Lewis Stevenson's Kidnapped.
Marilyn Burns Education Associates
Eighteen Flavors
Your learners will be tantalized by this inquiry-based, collaborative activity as they discover how to write an equation that represents the height of an ice cream cone. Given the scenario based on the poem, "Eighteen Flavors," and...
Curated OER
Analyzing the Use of Irony in a Short Story
Ninth graders examine how literature connects to real-life and see how irony aids in the development of theme. They read Shirley Jackson's The Lottery, and discuss elements of foreshadowing and situational irony. Then learners will write...
Digital Public Library of America
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
A set of 14 primary sources provides background for a study of Lorraine Hansberry's drama, A Raisin in the Sun. Featured are images from stage productions of the play, white supremacy protests, a clip from a television interview, and...
Curated OER
If All The World Were Paper
Students investigate the reading of a rhyme and then practice learning it through drilling and repetition. They are introduced to the vocabulary with the help of a poster. Students draw from prior knowledge to set the context for further...
Curated OER
Where in the World is Flat Stanley?
Second graders analyze the proper form of a friendly letter and send flat Stanley letters all over the United States. In this letter writing activity, 2nd graders read the book Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown and create their own Flat...
Curated OER
Major Holocaust Themes in Elie Wiesel's Memoir, Night
Students read accounts of children during the Holocaust and read Elie Wiesel's "Night". Using the internet, they share ideas and discuss topics with peers across the nation. They examine the role of the individual in the Holocaust and...
Curated OER
What Is Haiku
Students engage in a instructional activity that is concerned with the study of poetry while focusing on Haiku as a format. They practice reading a variety of different pieces of literature in order to increase exposure. Students discuss...
Curated OER
Social Studies and Children's Literature
Students write a journal in response to literature. The story that is read is about prairies. The subject of prairies becomes an object for research. The culminating activity is the making of a map where prairies exist in the United States.
Curated OER
A Modest Proposal: Irony Made Understandable with Rock and Roll
Who doesn't love music? Poems and songs will engage your high school class in a discussion about irony. Use songs like "Rockin' in the Free World" or "Born in the U.S.A." to illustrate the ironic point of view. Print the lyrics so...
Washington University in St. Louis
Teaching Jazz as American Culture
Jazz and the City, Jazz and the Civil Rights Movement, Jazz and Gender, Jazz and Literature, Jazz and the Arts, Jazz and Film. Here's a packet of unit plans organized around themes that reflect American culture. Each unit examines how...
Curated OER
One With Nature
Students discover the connection between Japanese art and Romantic literature using a variety of sources and the impact of nature on these two art forms. This lesson is a three-day exploration.
Curated OER
The Lady of Shalott Theme of Art and Culture
In this reading comprehension worksheet, students respond to 4 short answer and essay questions based on themes of art and culture in "The Lady of Shalott." Students may also complete their choice of 3 reading activities suggested.
Curated OER
Exploring the Sonnet
Students research English/Shakespearean and Italian/Petrarchan sonnet forms. They write an original sonnet on their preferred form (English or Italian), write the poem on the wordprocessor and publish and post it on the net at the Sonnet...
Curated OER
Propaganda of War
Students examine examples of war propaganda. For this historical literature lesson, students research the elements of propaganda in relation to various wars of the past. They discuss different types of propaganda, and the potential...
Curated OER
Literature: Isabel Allende
Young scholars watch and respond to a Bill Moyers Now video on the Chilean author, Isabel Allende. They brainstorm a list of recent events that might inspire writers and choose one to write about in poetic, diary, or short story form.
Curated OER
Open Sesame: A Magical World of Reading
Third graders, through six lessons, study tales of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves and Aladdin and the Lamp from The Arabian Nights.
Curated OER
Literature Overview: January
Third graders examine two well known sayings, and write responses to the sayings. They read and analyze various Lewis Carroll poems and his life.
Curated OER
Fifth Grade Literature: January
Fifth graders examine and analyze various poems by Edward Hersey Richards, Robert Frost, and Emily Dickinson. They explore similes, and write journal entry responses.
Curated OER
Japanese Tanka Poetry
Students discover the techniques of creating Japanese Tanka poetry through in-class discussions and a fun group competition. This lesson is an excellent introduction to Japanese literature and/or poetry.
Curated OER
Native American Poetry
Fourth graders locate the poetry section of the LMC. They produce a hand written transparency based on the poem Hiawatha by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Students illustrate a poem from their poetry section. It is a mystery to them what...