Examine the life of Arthur Miller and the characters in one of his well-known plays, The Crucible. The first few slides give background information on Miller as well as Senator McCarthy and the blacklisted celebrities during the...

Scholars learn all about the Puritans in the third installment of a 16-part lesson series. After watching a video, they read and discuss biographies of Puritans and Quakers from American history, write journal entries and poetry, and...

As part of their exploration of the American dream, class members examine primary source materials to compare immigrant experiences of those arriving early in our country's history to those arriving in the US after World War...

The Scarlet Letter may be a classic, but keeping high schoolers engaged in the reading of Hawthorne's vocabulary, syntax, imagery, and historical references presents it own set of challenges. Here's a guide that offers readers...

Was Puritan society governed as more of a theocracy or democracy? After comparing and contrasting a series of primary source documents, middle and high schoolers form small groups and debate the question.

Designed for teachers, this guide to The Scarlet Letter is divided into background information about Hawthorne and Puritan New England, suggestions for teaching various ability levels, and ideas for extensions that include...

Use Nathanial Hawthorne's immortal text on the influence of religion on the early American settlements, as well as its continued impact on American culture, with a unit that focuses on The Scarlet Letter. In addition to Hawthorne's...

Enhance your unit on The Scarlet Letter with a thorough and applicable lesson. Learners use the anchor text in this unit plan that asks them to consider the Transcendental concepts intertwined within Nathaniel...

Puritans, their origins, their beliefs, and values are the subject of a presentation that could be used to introduce viewers to early American history or literature. The PowerPoint could also serve as a model for group projects and would...

Is Hester Prynne a virtuous woman? To conclude a unit study of Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter class members craft an argument essay in which they use the standards listed in Proverbs 31 from the Bible to judge Hester's virtues.

How does or society punish people who break the law? What effect does guilt have on a person's life? In what way does or society demand we conform to certain conventions? Such questions, found in this study guide, are sure to...

Read about the tumultuous beginning to the United States with an informational text passage about Colonial America. As young researchers peruse an article about the arrival of the Mayflower, the settlers' relationship to the neighboring...

The Scarlet Letter is the anchor text in a four-week unit that examines Hawthorne's novel through the lens of the intolerances found in a supposed civilized society. In addition to their reading, class members watch clips from...

Explore Puritanism and Puritan values with your high schoolers. A general overview is provided, and Puritan laws, family life, plainness, and temptation are all covered. Pictures and an occassional cartoon keep the presentation...

What were the virtues and values that helped form America? Pupils watch and discuss a video, read biographies of early Americans, chart the differences between early American religious movements, write journals and letters, draw, and...

Before reading Arthur Miller's The Crucible with your middle and high schoolers, consider running through this short PowerPoint. Five slides introduce the plot, the author, and Puritanism. The slides are text-heavy, and not much...

Young scholars explore the historical drama, "The Crucible" by Arthur Miller looking for examples of society's mistrust of nonconformity and the injustice that can as a result of fear.

Give your class some background information on both Nathaniel Hawthorne and his short story "Young Goodman Brown." Basic themes and characters are introduced, especially as this is an allegory with many symbolic elements. Help your...

To better understand early American literature, which was usually written by Puritans coming to the new world, learners pretend they have just landed on Mars. They compose a letter home describing their experiences, the new landscape,...

Designed as a visual outline for a lecture on the historical and literary background of The Scarlet Letter, the slides in this presentation pinpoint the themes and literary elements in the novel, the basic tenets of Puritanism, and the...

Give your class a deeper understanding of the context and meaning behind early American song lyrics. By reading the lyrics to "Yankee Doodle" and  "Revolutionary Tea," high schoolers will practice analysis by examining the...

How did literature evolve in America? This presentation briefly covers the transition from Puritan American all the way until today's Contemporary Period. Key figures from each time period are introduced, and a brief overview of each...

After studying the reasons settlers entered the New World, primary learners try to persuade others to enter this new land. Class members present their arguments in a variety of ways including posters, writings, and charts. Richly...

The Scarlet Letter is a treasure trove of topics awaiting exploration by readers of Nathaniel Hawthorne's romantic opus. Whether looking for imagery (light/dark, mirror, scarlet letters), symbols (static or evolving), ironies, etc.,...