How do you think the parrot in "The Ghost" chapter of Matilda feels in the chimney? Put a class member in the hot seat and have the class ask questions relating to how they might have felt if they were the parrot in the chimney....

Fourth graders interview community members for a newspaper, design a business brochure, write a disappearing ghost story, and try their hands at monoprinting. This series of three lessons combines art, journalism, and creative writing....

Develop a better understanding of "Blackbeard's Ghost" with this differentiated activity. Working in groups on a creative project, middle schoolers can reinforce their reading comprehension and literary analysis skills. Use this...

Students explore the elements of a ghost story and cautionary tales. The story, "Encounter With a Skull" is read and used as a model for their own story creations. The values and belief systems of various cultures are examined.

Students rewrite the beginning of a story. In this writing lesson, students read stories from Spooky South by S.E. Schlosser in order to gain exposure to different ways to begin a story. Then, students chose one of the three techniques...

Second graders read the story The Ghost Cather and complete activities related to the book. For this language arts lesson plan, 2nd graders complete comprehension questions, art projects, and more.

Students write words that describe the Ghost in Hamlet and act out scenes to grab the audience's attention. In this Hamlet lesson plan, students use language to interpret feeling and grab the audience's attention.

Students explore philanthropy in literature. In this cross curriculum literacy and character development lesson, students read A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens and note charitable acts described in the story. Students relate story...

Fourth graders interview community members for a "newspaper". They design a business brochure, write a disappearing ghost story, and experiment with mono-printing. They experiment with a variety of materials, tools, equipment, and...

Students read an "All Day Nightmare" by R.L. Stine. They use the interactive book to choose the plot at the end of each chapter. They also complete an open-ended story.

Students analyze graphical forms of Eudora Welty and interpret the shorts stories in the representations. In this graphical representations lesson, students analyze the short story genre in comic strips. Students then create their own...

Students discuss the illustration's allusion to the myth, Pandora's Box. Students locate instances of folk sayings or expressions that make these tales seem authentic to the reader. Students draw a Venn diagram comparing Catskinella and...

What skills do storytellers employ to bring to life the characters and events in their tales? After listening to a recording of a Haitian folk tale, class members consider how tone of voice, pace, and gestures can be used to enliven a...

Here is a wonderful lesson designed for students with special needs. This well-thought-out lesson uses Big Books, familiar stories, and has a lot of review learning built into it. The book, The Keeping Quilt is used in the main part of...

The Magic Pot by Patricia Coombs is the theme of this multidisciplinary lesson plan. Early readers first take part in a read aloud and grand conversation about the story's details. Then, they get to work practicing their skills in...

Students examine the use of ghosts in shipping stories. As a class, they assign roles and they act them out in a play. They make it seem as if they are in danger on their voyage and work together to create a script. They ask questions...

Eleventh graders divide into research groups and select a topic to pursue from a list that ranged from historical sites to local ghost stories to the nearby aluminum plant.

Students examine the narrative forms and tales unique to the U.S.-Mexico border. They discuss the possible sociological meanings of these stories, and then write their own versions to demonstrate that they explain the forms.

In this reading comprehension activity, students use the book "The Magic Pot," to explore many concepts including; story elements, sequencing, and phonics. Students also practice making doubles using coins and "magic pots." This very...

Students engage in a study that focuses upon the study of artifacts for the purpose of defining the heritage of family. They conduct research using a variety of resources. The information is used in order to create a personal family...

Ninth graders work together to brainstorm an idea to focus on the similiarties and differences between various cultures. Individually, they interview family members using questions they created based on their topic. They use their...

Students explore folk groups and traditions in their local community. In this folklife lesson, students list the folk groups they belong to and its traditions. Students write about their favorite tradition and may complete extension...

Young scholars read two Inuit folktales about life and death. In this language arts lesson, students study the models of giving found in these Inuit tales about life, death, grief, sacrifice, and generosity. As the class reads these...

Students write with controlled and/or subtle organization. They identify the main idea and explicit details. Students analyze paragraph and essay structure. They utilize context clues to identify organization.