Learners discuss characterization and relate to the main character in Catherine, Called Birdy.  In this Catherine, Called Birdy lesson, students discuss passages that are comedic and sad and the effect they have on their...

Young scholars draw conclusions about a story with examples to support their statements. For this reading comprehension lesson, students look at a PowerPoint of a variety of passages from different books. They answer questions about the...

Learners read about a boy while exploring poetry.  In this poetry instructional activity, students discuss how Deshawn's neighborhood and family are described.

Fourth graders identify the literary elements of a nonfiction text. In this literary elements lesson, 4th graders read the text Piano Starts Here--The Young Art Tatum and fill in a chart that includes the events from the book....

Students see that a garden is a place where an individual can go for inner peace and solitude. They discover that a garden is to be shared. Students describe the importance that a garden has to the environment and lives of individuals...

Pupils listen to a read aloud of "Dan, the Flying Man" and complete a class re-write of the book highlighting what the main character would fly over if he flew over their town. They may keyboard their entry into the class book.

Sixth graders listen as the teacher describes the difference between the 1st and 3rd person. They then search through their literature books to find a story written from a 3rd person perspective and discuss why the story is in third...

Students create their own monsters that exist in their imaginary closets and decorate their environment. They then write a short story to describe their illustration using a prompt.

Young scholars read and analyze the twelve short stories in the novel "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes." They create their own detective that has to solve a new kind of crime, and write and edit a short story with their original...

Students read and analyze the short story "The Fall of the House of Usher" by Edgar Allan Poe. They take notes while reading the story, select an element to analyze, and write an essay about the characters, theme, or the setting.

Students compare a photo of a child's room during the Holocaust to their room. In this WWII activity, students read picture books and evaluate the roles of characters in the book. Students create either a poster about the roles, a movie...

Students study the art forms of printmaking and pointillism. They create a picture using their hands and fingers to create shapes and sizes. They add detail to create characters. They discuss their pictures as a class.

Students explore several Chinese dynasties and research various topics including papermaking, calligraphy, and Lu Hou. They also demonstrate how to use an abacus and create several math problems to solve with it. Choosing a dynasty,...

Young scholars identify examples of private resources. For this philanthropy lesson, students read the book A Chair for My Mother and identify the private resources the characters used in the text. Young scholars name private resources...

Students explore the concept of a personal budget. For this philanthropy lesson, students use a Venn diagram to compare 2 stories in which the main characters spend money in different ways.

Sixth graders evaluate trustworthiness in others. In this character education lesson, 6th graders brainstorm items that are trustworthy, and then list attributes of trustworthy friends. Then students read a story to evaluate the...

Middle schoolers examine primary documents related to the burning of Chambersburg during the Civil Way. In this Civil War era history lesson plan, students study numerous primary documents relating to the burning of the town of...

Students practice the story element of setting. In this setting lesson, students listen to the story Tulip Sees America by Cynthia Rylant. They discuss and describe the places that Tulip saw in the story.  

In this my family and other animals: Larry's Idea instructional activity, student answer 22 questions about the story, Larry's Idea, match characters, put events in order, and rewrite sentences.

Second graders explore world geography by reading two different fairy tales. In this cultural storytelling lesson, 2nd graders read Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and the Moroccan story The Girl Who Lived with the Gazelles. Students...

Class groups examine fairy tales from a feminist and a Marxist perspective, identifying how these tales present gender roles and class/power systems. The groups then script and perform their own tale that uses one of these lenses.

Build a literature unit around the book George Washington's Socks with this series of short answer questions. Broken up in two- and three-chapter increments, these reading comprehension questions allow young readers to demonstrate...

In this collection of graphic organizers for a literature unit, students will complete 22 different graphic organizers on the topic of character development. For example, this collection includes character analysis and various attribute...

In this Julius Caesar instructional activity, students determine character traits of Julius Caesar and Brutus from quotations given.  Students are given 13 quotations about or by Julius Caesar and 8 quotations about or by Brutus.