Reader and Author Teacher Resources

Learners discuss their personal connections with stories they've read in the past and identify techniques to connect with more stories. They create illustrations, construct task cards, and complete sentence stems based on books they read...

Feelings of loneliness and alienation drive the characters in John Steinbeck's novel Of Mice and Men. Use this handout to set your class members up for a lesson on these big ideas. In addition to finding a couple of definitions and...

There are so many different ways to help learners make text-to-self connections. Here, fifth graders will create tableaus that show an event from a chapter in the class reader. They'll discuss why they chose that event to dramatize and...

Language arts learners don't need a lecture about poetry; they listen to poetry every day on the radio! Apply skills from literary analysis to famous songs and beautiful lyrics with a lesson about literary devices. As class...

After reading and discussing several personal narratives written by women in the 1920's, class members write a personal narrative of their own about a time in their lives they felt controlled. Sample narratives can be accessed through...

Phrenology, the belief that parts of your brain control certain aspects of your personality, is described in Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science. While we now know much more about the brain, learners use this idea...

Under construction, this lesson focuses on Canto Familia, a collection of poetry about Gary Soto's experiences growing up in California's Imperial Valley. Representative of the experiences of many Latinos, the poems also address themes...

Explore ways to make research and writing more interesting. The first in a series of three challenge activities designed to accompany Theme 2: Give It All You've Got involve creating sports cards, designing cereal boxes, and using other...

Help language learners understand words and cultural concepts. The second installment in a series of three language development lessons designed to accompany Theme 4: Person to Person helps bridge the gap for language learners by...

Heroes rise from adversity. That theme forms the focus of the critical lens essay in a sample comprehensive English examination. The exam, which is part of a larger series of sample standardized tests, also includes two short response...

Explore positive and negative character traits and universal themes in the story of Cinderella with primary learners. Story elements are reviewed and discussion questions are listed. Learners practice retelling the story and begin a...

Elementary schoolers look into the very real, and scary, practice of identity theft. They discover the main techniques used by people who steal other people's identity. Learners produce an identity theft tip sheet and share their tips...

Use a handy concept analysis guide as you begin your unit on William Shakespeare's The Tempest. With character descriptions, literary themes, and anticipated affective issues, the guide can help those new to using The Tempest craft a...

Even someone with a dark side can make a good decision—and vice versa. Readers explore Cole's traits and decisions in Ben Mikaelson's Touching Spirit Bear and analyze his sunside and shadowside. They identify a symbol that best...

Sometimes a whole story can change based on the perspective of the person telling it. Practice identifying and analyzing point of view in various reading passages and writing assignments with a language arts packet, complete with Common...

Integrate history, math, and art into a study of The Grapes of Wrath with a series of activities that ask learners to investigate the social, political, economic, and environmental factors at play during the 1930s. Designed to be used...

Does wisdom grow from the misfortune of others? Pupils read Aesop's "The Lion, the Fox, and the Beasts" and write a personal narrative about a time where they learned something from another's experience.

What would it be like to sell your eggs to a couple who can't have children on their own? Could you even imagine it? As most of us have never been in this position, this descriptive essay is really quite interesting. The reading itself...

Great Expectations can prove to be a challenge for instructors who choose to use Dickens's novel as required reading. Here's a curriculum guide that includes lessons that address some of these challenges. The first lesson in critical...

Encourage your readers to make connections between texts with this resource. After compiling notes for each text read (you choose the texts), groups craft skits in which major characters from each text meet. There is a rubric for the...

Students complete the Frayer Model. In this literature lesson, students review the concept of theme in literature. Students identify major themes in books they've read. Students learn the attributes of the Frayer Model and then complete...

Who was Vincent van Gogh? Most of the questions can be answered in two or three sentences; however, there is at least one essay prompt and one personal response question that require longer answers. Questions call for a good mix of...

Students explore the elements of film to analyze character, action, and the themes in the movie, "Quiz Show." The lesson plan encourages students to make personal connections and real life applications as they view the movie, critically.

Students examine the Edgar Allan Poe story "The Cask of Amontillado." In this character lesson, students discuss and analyze the characters in the story. Students make personal connections to the characters and create a brochure...