Cluster 1: Key Ideas and DetailsArchived

In this lesson, students will read and analyze two poems by John Donne: "Holy Sonnet X" and "Holy Sonnet VI." Text-dependent questions, an answer key, and teacher's help notes are included. As the summative assessment for the lesson, students will write a brief comparison/contrast essay to examine how Death is portrayed across both poems. A rubric for the essay is included, along with a writing organizer to help struggling writers draft a basic essay.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will consider the literary elements Shakespeare uses to communicate King Henry's inability to sleep. As they close read this passage multiple times, students will discover how diction, tone, syntax, and imagery help to convey King Henry's state of mind. Once they have grappled with the text in small groups and on their own, they will bring their discoveries and interpretations together in a final essay. A text marking handout and key, independent practice questions and key, a planning sheet, and a writing rubric have been included with the lesson.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will perform multiple close readings of the well-known "To be or not to be" soliloquy from William Shakespeare's Tragedy of Hamlet. The lesson is appropriate for 11th or 12th grade students who have some familiarity with reading Shakespeare but would benefit from fluency practice with the difficult text, as well as vocabulary building and argumentative writing about literature. The closure and extension activities provide suggestions for taking this study further using other Hamlet (or other Shakespearean) soliloquies.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will research modernism, analyze allusions and images in "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock," diagnose the character's mental weakness using evidence from the poem, and write him an email about how to improve his state of mind from the perspective of a hypothetical online mental health professional.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students close read chunks of this challenging excerpt from Their Eyes Were Watching God, which was included on the 1987 AP English Literature exam. As they read and mark the text, students will uncover Zora Neale Hurston's layers of meaning within beautiful figurative language and symbolism, all of which communicate Janie's realizations and maturity following Joe Starks's death. The close reading and provided questions lead students to develop interpretations of Janie's character as she reflects on her past and realizes she likes "being lonesome for a change."

Type: Lesson Plan

Through an analysis of the myth of Daedalus and Icarus, Pieter Bruegel the Elder's painting "Landscape with the Fall of Icarus," and E. E. Cummings' poem "anyone lived in a pretty how town," students will come to realize the importance of the cycle of life and nature as it pertains to human existence. The three texts come from dramatically different genres, time periods, and settings capturing the essence of a universal theme.

Type: Lesson Plan

Huck Finn's moral journey parallels Mark Twain's own questions about slavery. Like the photographers of the nineteenth-century, Twain, a Realist, struggled with how best to portray fictionalized characters, while still expressing truth and creating social commentary. In this lesson, students use a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast Mark Twain's novel and/or excerpts from Frederick Doulgass' narrative to original photographs of slaves from the late-nineteenth century. Then they write an essay to compare the different portrayals, arguing to what extent art can reliably reflect truth. In addition, they will discuss art as social commentary.

Type: Lesson Plan

After reading or viewing a text, students are introduced to propaganda techniques and then identify examples in the text. Students discuss these examples, and then explore the use of propaganda in popular culture by looking at examples in the media. Students identify examples of propaganda techniques used in clips of online political advertisements and explain how the techniques are used to persuade voters. Next, students explore the similarities of the propaganda techniques used in the literary text and in the online political ads to explain the commentary the text is making about contemporary society. Finally, students write a persuasive essay in support of a given statement.

In this lesson, some specific references are made to Brave New World as examples. A text list suggests additional novels, short stories, plays, and movies that will also work for this activity.

Type: Lesson Plan

This comprehensive lesson from ReadWriteThink.org helps students understand the complexity of a character (primarily the hero or protagonist) in a literary work. Several resources are included and the lesson is clear and easy to follow. Also, the culminating project offers several choices that should encourage student curiosity and creativity. Although the lesson is written for five 50 minute sessions, the teacher implementing the activities could effectively complete the lesson in less time.

Type: Lesson Plan

After reading Act 1 of The Crucible in which 13 of the 21 characters are introduced, students create Trading Cards to describe and analyze an assigned character. Then they explore portraits of Puritans online to assist them in creating a portrait of the character and present a rationale to explain their work of art. A "Portrait Gallery" is set up around the classroom, so the students are able to refer to portraits during later acts and better understand the characters' motives and relationships.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson sequence, students will read and analyze the poem "We Real Cool" by Gwendolyn Brooks. For the summative assessment, students will compose a fictional narrative from the perspective of a chosen character from the poem. The character will reveal how his/her days spent at the pool hall influenced who he/she is today.

Type: Lesson Plan

This lesson plan explores symmetry in the structure and themes of "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight," delving into the antagonist's representation of the "duality of nature." In examining knightly virtues, students will measure Gawain's strength as the poem's hero. The lesson explains background information that every medieval thinker listening to a performance of the poem would know, in an effort to put the student into the mind-set of the medieval audience, providing a deeper appreciation and understanding of the work.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students read, analyze, and discuss medieval English ballads and then list characteristics of the genre. They then emphasize the narrative characteristics of ballads by choosing a ballad to act out. Using the Venn diagram tool, students next compare medieval ballads with modern ones. After familiarizing themselves with ballad themes and forms, students write their own original ballads, which they perform in small groups. Finally, students engage in self-reflection on their group performances and on the literary characteristics of their ballads.

Type: Lesson Plan

This mini-lesson invites students to think of a literary character as a peer, creating an authentic connection between literature and life. While the lesson uses The Catcher in the Rye as an example, the activities could be centered on the primary character of any novel. Students choose a perspective on the character (from options suggested by the teacher) and work in small groups to identify scenes in the novel that reflect their view. They then select songs appropriate for the character and write a rationale for each song chosen, including supporting evidence from the text. When students present their completed playlists in class, their classmates inevitably make observations that increase everyone's insights into the character and the novel.

Type: Lesson Plan

In Part 2 of this three-lesson mini-unit students will complete close readings of two different creation myths. After looking closely at the texts, they will cite specific textual evidence to compare and contrast these myths and their similarities to other creation stories, to infer what the authors hinted at in terms of creation, and to realize the impact of specific word choices on the general tone of a piece of literature.

Type: Lesson Plan

This lesson is part two of a three lesson unit that will explore and analyze how different authors convey American Puritanism. In lessons two of this unit, students will analyze key literary elements and Miller’s use of rhetoric to create mood in the play, "The Crucible."

Type: Lesson Plan

This is Part three of a three-part series on the writings of F. Scott Fitzgerald. Students will analyze F. Scott Fitzgerald's inspirations for both his characters and stories. In this lesson, students will analyze a 1928 portrait of Louise Brooks by Eugene Robert Richee as a stimulus for creating an original character living during the glitter and glamour of the 1920s. Finally, using compiled textual evidence recorded throughout the three lessons, students will create a narrative in the style of Fitzgerald for Louise Brooks.

Type: Lesson Plan

This is Part two of this three-part series on the writings of F. Scott Fitzgerald. Through reading and analyzing excerpts from F. Scott Fitzgerald's short story "The Offshore Pirate" (1920) in Flappers and Philosophers, students will examine the characterization of Artida and Carlyle and compare the two characters.

Type: Lesson Plan

This lesson is part one of three in a unit that will explore and analyze how American Puritanism has been represented in different texts. The goal of this lesson is for students to analyze the central idea and how the authors' style (figurative language, persuasive techniques) contributes to establishing and achieving the purpose in "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God."

Type: Lesson Plan

This is Part one of a three-part series that focuses on passages from The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Through reading, text marking, and participating in collaborative discussions, students will analyze the universal themes: “Success can be corrupted by greed,” and “Irresponsibility can lead to destruction.”

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students first complete a survey to establish their beliefs about technology before using a literary elements map to explore the role of fictional technology in a novel such as 1984, Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451, REM World, or Feed (additional titles that could be used, including short stories, are included within the lesson plan). Next, using evidence from the text, students discuss and debate what they believe the story's author is saying about technology. As an assessment, students will utilize one of the items from the survey that caused the most disagreement in group discussions to form an argument as to why they think the author would agree or disagree with that particular statement on the survey. Students will write a letter to persuade another student in the class who disagrees with their viewpoint. Another group discussion can follow the exchange of these letters.

Type: Lesson Plan

This learning module supports implementation of academic standards in the 11-12th grade classroom. It includes a learning module template for teachers, as well as a student handout that provides the literary text and the learning tasks. The purpose of this lesson is for students to read, understand, and analyze complex text through close reading and scaffolded learning tasks. At the conclusion of the lesson, students will conduct an inquiry-based research task that culminates in an analysis paper that asks students to use evidence from their research and the text to support an original claim.

Type: Lesson Plan

This is the fourth and final lesson in a small unit on the life and works of Phillis Wheatley. Although details are given only for this final lesson, some information is given on the preceding three lessons.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will identify and analyze how Emily Dickinson uses figurative language to create tone. Students will complete text marking and annotations to show their analysis and will write a response that explains their analysis.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will identify and analyze how two authors use figurative language to support the themes of each of their poems. Students will complete text marking and annotations to show their analysis of each, and will write a response that explains their analysis of each.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this four-part lesson series, students will delve into the topic of grief through analysis of poetic devices, form, and point of view in poems by Emily Dickinson and Elizabeth Barrett Browning. Students will connect theme to the poets’ viewpoints on the emotions, or the lack thereof, that one experiences during times of pain and loss. Students will read the poems multiple times to seek layers of meaning and write an in-depth analysis.

Type: Lesson Plan

After reading Richard Wright's short novel Rite of Passage, students will demonstrate their understanding of plot, character, and conflict by writing recommendations for the protagonists' future to a juvenile court system judge.

Type: Lesson Plan

Compare and contrast how William Wordsworth established multiple themes within two of his poems: "Lines Written in Early Spring" and "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud."

This interactive tutorial is part 3 of 3. Click below to open the other tutorials in this series.

• Part 1: Identifying Multiple Topics in a Poem
• Part 2: Determining Multiple Themes of a Poem

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Continue to analyze William Wordsworth's poem "Lines Written in Early Spring" to determine multiple themes and craft thematic statements. 

This interactive tutorial is part 2 of 3. Click below to open the other tutorials in this series.

• Part 1: Identifying Multiple Topics in a Poem
• Part 3: Comparing Themes Across Two Poems -- Including Wordsworth's poem "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud"

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Study William Wordsworth's poem "Lines Written in Early Spring" to identify multiple topics and, in the next tutorial, to determine themes and craft thematic statements. 

This interactive tutorial is part 1 of 3. Click below to open the other tutorials in this series.

• Part 2: Determining Multiple Themes of a Poem
• Part 3: Comparing Themes Across Two Poems -- Including Wordsworth's poem "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud"

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Explore the poems "Invictus" by William Ernest Henley and "Life" by Charlotte Brontë in this interactive tutorial. Using these works of literature, you'll practice determining multiple themes in a poem and writing a summary of a poem. 

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Read excerpts from Bram Stoker’s famous novel Dracula. In this interactive tutorial, you'll examine how the author created suspense by tying together the story elements of setting, characters, and action. 

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Read the first chapter from Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart about a father and son who couldn't be more different. In this interactive tutorial, you'll identify their important traits, examine the importance of their differences, and explain the impact of the author’s choice to introduce these two characters by highlighting their differences.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Read and study excerpts from Willa Cather's classic novel My Antonia to analyze the impact of the author's choices regarding the selection of the narrator, where the story is set, and how the main character is introduced and developed. 

This interactive English Language Arts tutorial is Part Three of three. Click below to open the other tutorials in the series.

• PART ONE -- Analyzing the Impact of an Author's Choices
• PART TWO -- Analyzing the Impact of an Author's Choicesn Author's Choices

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Analyze the impact of an author's choices using excerpts from Willa Cather's classic novel My Antonia. In this series of interactive tutorials, you'll analyze the impact of an author's choices regarding the selection of the narrator, where the story is set, and how the main character is introduced and developed. 

This is the second tutorial in a three-part series. Make sure to complete all three parts. Click below to open the other tutorials in this series.

• PART ONE -- Analyzing the Impact of an Author's Choices
• PART THREE -- Analyzing the Impact of an Author's Choices

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Read and study excerpts from Willa Cather's classic novel My Antonia to analyze the impact of the author's choices regarding the selection of the narrator, the setting, and how the main character is introduced and developed. 

This interactive tutorial is Part One of three-part series. Click below to open the other tutorials in the series.

• PART TWO -- Analyzing the Impact of an Author's Choices
• PART THREE -- Analyzing the Impact of an Author's Choices

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Having studied two key topics in excerpts from the classic novel Pride and Prejudice in previous parts of this tutorial series, in Part Four you will use these topics and textual details from the novel to determine two themes of the novel. You will also analyze how these themes interact and build on one another.

Make sure to complete the previous parts of this series before beginning Part Four.

• Part 1
  
• Part 2
• Part 3
  

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Continue to explore two key topics in the classic novel Pride and Prejudice and analyze characters’ actions as they relate to these topics in Part Three of this four-part series. By the end of this series, you will use these topics and textual details to determine two themes of the novel. You will also analyze how these themes interact and build on one another.

Make sure to complete all four parts of the series!

• Part 1
  
• Part 2
• Part 3
• Part 4

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Explore two key topics (first impressions and self-awareness) in the classic novel Pride and Prejudice and analyze characters’ actions as they relate to these topics. This tutorial is Part Two in a four-part series. By the end of this tutorial series, you will use these topics and textual details to determine two themes of the novel. You will also analyze how these themes interact and build on one another.

Make sure to complete all four parts of the series.

• Part 1
  
• Part 2
• Part 3
• Part 4

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Explore two key topics in excerpts from Jane Austen's classic novel Pride and Prejudice and analyze characters’ actions as they relate to these topics in Part One of this four-part interactive tutorial series. By the end of this series, you will use these topics and textual details to determine two themes of the novel and analyze how these themes interact and build on one another.

Click below to complete all four parts of the series.

• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3
• Part 4

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Learn how to determine themes and write thematic statements in this interactive tutorial. In this tutorial, you'll examine three famous poems: “If-” by Rudyard Kipling, “A Psalm of Life” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and “Invictus” by William Ernest Henley. Using these works of literature, you will practice determining multiple themes in a poem and crafting thematic statements.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Learn about two significant writers of the Harlem Renaissance—Zora Neal Hurston and Langston Hughes. In this interactive tutorial, you'll read Hughes' poem "Freedom's Plow" to compare and contrast the authors' treatment of a similar topic and theme. 

This is part two in a two-part series of interactive tutorials. Click HERE to launch Part 1 to identify topics and determine themes in excerpts from Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Learn about two significant writers of the Harlem Renaissance, Zora Neal Hurston and Langston Hughes. In this two-part tutorial series, you'll read excerpts of texts from each author. In Part One, you'll practice identifying topics and determining themes using Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God. In Part Two, you'll read Hughes' poem "Freedom's Plow" to compare and contrast the authors' treatment of a similar topic and theme.

Click here to launch PART TWO.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Practice analyzing an author’s specific choices regarding characterization, setting, and plot structure within a text. In this interactive tutorial, we'll use excerpts from the novel Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison to analyze the how various narrative elements impact the meaning of the text.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Learn how to make inferences when reading a fictional text using the textual evidence provided. In this tutorial, you'll read the short story "The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin. You'll practice identifying what is directly stated in the text and what requires the use of inference. You'll practice making your own inferences and supporting them with evidence from the text.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

This web resource from Shmoop provides teachers with multiple teaching ideas to help students explore characterization, plot, symbolism, and theme in The Great Gatsby. Video clips, interactive flash cards, and online quizzes are all featured in this resource to help students see the "green light" regarding Fitzgerald's work.

Type: Teaching Idea

Use this online resource to help your students acquire a deeper understanding of Herman Melville's short story "Bartleby, the Scrivener." Choose videos that will guide students through analysis of the characters, the work of a scrivener, and the conduct of the lawyers. Questions about the story are also provided for analysis and discussion.

Type: Teaching Idea

This teaching idea guides students in generating questions for a student led seminar based on their reading of August Wilson's play, "The Piano Lesson". Students will then use their questions to conduct a Socratic Seminar about the play.

Type: Teaching Idea

Of Sound Mind tells the story of the frustrations, anxiety, and sorrow experienced by Theo, who is the only hearing son in a family that is deaf. Theo is torn between helping his family and planning for his future. Students investigate issues of family responsibility, maturity, and deafness in this unit as they cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says, work to analyze the impact of the author's choices regarding elements of the story, and write informative/explanatory texts to convey complex ideas clearly.

Type: Unit/Lesson Sequence

In this unit, students will examine the challenges of transitioning into adulthood faced by Taylor, who is an 18-year-old girl with autism. Taylor must go to Waskesiu Lake for the summer because her mother has a new job. Wild Orchid explores how Taylor learns to apply the coping strategies she has been taught when she finds herself in a new environment. She learns that she can be independent and think for herself. Through this lesson plan, students will work to determine two or more themes of a text, analyze the impact of the author's choices regarding the elements of a story, and write arguments to support claims with valid reasoning and sufficient evidence in response to questions.

Type: Unit/Lesson Sequence

JJonathan Swift's 1729 pamphlet "A Modest Proposal" is a model for satirizing social problems. In this 2 week unit, students complete multiple readings of Swift's essay: a guided reading with the teacher, a collaborative reading with a peer, and an independent reading. Through guided reading questions, students will examine satiric devices used by Swift, in addition to analyzing tone and how the various sections of the piece work togeher. Then, pairs of students will develop a mock television newscast or editorial script, like those found on Saturday Night Live's "Weekend Update," The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, or The Colbert Report, including appropriate visual images in PowerPoint. In their script, students will collaboratively identify a contemporary social problem, analyze it, and develop an outrageous satiric solution to resolve it.

Type: Unit/Lesson Sequence