LAFS.7.RL.1.1Archived Standard

In this lesson, students will listen to a song, read a biography, and then view a speech, all from a former child soldier from the Sudan and current international hip-hop star Emmanuel Jal. Students will examine the information presented in all three formats by taking Cornell Notes and then participate in a fishbowl discussion based on the lesson's guiding questions. As a summative assessment, students will write a paragraph answering one of the guiding questions, supporting their ideas with text evidence. This is the second lesson of a three-part unit that will build towards having the students research and write a paper on child soldiers.

Unit overview: This unit will guide students though the process of reading multiple texts to develop knowledge about the topic of child soldiers and will culminate in a final research project. The first lesson focuses on news articles while the second lesson concentrates on one former child soldier's story as portrayed through interviews and his music. As a whole, the unit integrates close reading of multiple sources with speaking and listening activities and provides students with opportunities to write routinely from sources throughout the unit. The unit provides ample occasions for students to read, evaluate, and analyze complex texts as well as routine writing opportunities that encourage reflection.

Type: Lesson Plan

"Pyramus and Thisbe" is a tragic love story in which two lovers are separated by forces seemingly beyond their control. This lesson guides students through an analysis of the story elements and how they function together to create a theme. A plot diagram helps students to analyze this classic story after the teacher models analysis using the familiar children’s story, Cinderella. Students will write a response analyzing how the plot elements and symbols develop the story's themes.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will be challenged with self-discovery as they use the Socratic discussion method to gain a deeper understanding of the poem, "The Hangman," by Maurice Ogden. Teachers will guide students using text annotation to focus on specific word choice and examine its impact on the poem. Further, students will gain a deeper understanding of the poem through responding to text-dependent questions. In the culminating writing assignment, students will choose from two topics to demonstrate their understanding through a written response that is supported by details from the text. A PowerPoint, text-dependent questions and key, rubrics for the writing tasks, and other handouts are included as attachments with the lesson.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, which is part 2 in a series, students will study the seemingly innocuous poem "The Walrus and the Carpenter" by Lewis Carroll and analyze the plot sequence and main character attributes that lead to the ultimate demise of all those silly little oysters! The students will complete a plot organizer, answer text-dependent questions relating to the plot and character development, and write an essay at the end of the lesson to further analyze the characters in the poem. Graphic organizers and answer keys, text-dependent questions and a key, and the writing prompt and rubric are all included with the lesson.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this close reading lesson, the first in a series of three lessons, students will analyze "The Walrus and the Carpenter" by Lewis Carroll. They will work to determine the meaning of selected vocabulary words from the poem, including coming up with synonyms and antonyms for each word and using each word in a sentence. Students will also analyze the use of various types of figurative language, as well as the use of repetition and rhyme and how this use impacts meaning and tone throughout the poem. Graphic organizers and other student handouts, a vocabulary assessment, short and extended answer questions, a writing rubric, and several suggested answer keys are included with this lesson.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will examine the concept of internal conflict in Ernest Hemingway's short story, "A Day's Wait." Several activities and worksheets, such as vocabulary mapping, a conflict multi-flow chart, and a self-reflection rating scale, are provided to deepen understanding. The lesson culminates in an analysis essay of the impact of Hemingway's stylistic use of first-person point of view to add suspense to a story.

Type: Lesson Plan

This lesson guides students as they analyze character development in the literature they have read, and then develop a Facebook page based on one of the characters.

Type: Lesson Plan

The goal of this two day exemplar is to give students the opportunity to use the reading and writing habits they've been practicing on a regular basis to unpack the meaning of Jacques' soliloquy from William Shakespeare's As You Like It. By reading and rereading the passage closely and focusing their reading through a series of questions and discussion about the text, students will be able to understand the structure and purpose of this particular soliloquy and how it delves into universal themes regarding the human condition. When combined with writing about the soliloquy, students will discover how much they can learn from even a very short selection of a text.

Type: Lesson Plan

This lesson allows students to explore characters and their traits through a series of exercises using text evidence. Both printed materials and online organizers are provided. The final culminating activity asks students to "become" a character and describe himself/herself as well as describing other characters. Students then guess which character is being described.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will read "The Monkey's Paw" by W.W. Jacobs. They will answer text-dependent questions that include having students analyze the text for foreshadowing clues, as well as use of situational irony. Students will use context clues and dictionaries to determine the meanings of selected vocabulary words from the story. Students will also work to determine morals in the story and will write two extended response paragraphs articulating the moral and how each is developed and supported by textual details. A PowerPoint on theme versus morals, foreshadowing, and situational irony is provided to help students with these concepts. Text-dependent questions, an answer key, a vocabulary handout, a teacher's guide for the story, and a rubric for the summative assessment are provided.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will read O. Henry's "A Retrieved Reformation" and an additional O. Henry selection to compare the themes of love and redemption. They will identify supporting details of the themes in each text and use them to support their analysis in a short written response.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will read the poem "Uncoiling" by Pat Mora, analyze the poem's theme by identifying personification and connotations in the text and then composing a written analysis of the poem.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will discuss various ways to get involved in their community and will research current organizations and their roles in supporting community needs. Students will use their research to write a well-developed essay explaining the types of community organizations that are currently involved in supporting community needs and will determine how they might want to become involved.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will read and analyze “Annabel Lee” by Edgar Allan Poe and will analyze and discuss the poetic devices and figurative language used in the poem as it supports the topic of “The Death of a Beautiful Woman.” Students will write a short response to explain their analysis.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will be able to analyze how Rudyard Kipling uses theme and short story elements to create the classic story, "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi." Students will engage in various pre-reading activities to scaffold background knowledge, vocabulary, and ability to identify theme. Working in cooperative groups will allow students to discuss and evaluate their learning in a non-threatening environment. At the conclusion of the lesson, students will write an original narrative using what they learned in this lesson to create their own story.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will read and analyze the poem "Jabberwocky" by Lewis Carroll as they focus on how the nonsense words and use of figurative language create tone and meaning. They will use context clues to determine the meaning of unknown words and phrases and explore how Carroll’s use of figurative language affects the tone.

Type: Lesson Plan

As students will have previous exposure to the historical themes and factual information about the attacks on Pearl Harbor, the United States involvement in WWII, and the internment of Japanese in camps throughout the western United States, this lesson exemplar will allow students to participate in critical discussion of two stories that illuminate important, yet divergent, experiences of war and conflict. This lesson exemplar will push students to think critically about the experience of wartime as felt by both soldiers and civilians as they navigated specific trials that were a part of their direct or peripheral involvement in WWII.

Type: Lesson Plan

The goal of this one day exemplar is to give students the opportunity to use the reading and writing habits they've been practicing on a regular basis to discover the rich humor and moral lesson embedded in Twain's text. By reading and rereading the passage closely, and focusing their reading through a series of questions and discussion about the text, students will explore the problem Tom Sawyer faced and how he "solved" his conundrum. When combined with writing about the passage, students will learn to appreciate how Twain's humor contains a deeper message and derive satisfaction from the struggle to master complex text. At the end of the lesson, students are provided two writing prompts to constructive a narrative inspired by Twain's text.

Type: Lesson Plan

Government take over is upon the United States--well, it is in the short story "Harrison Bergeron" by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr! In this lesson, students in your classroom will question if we are all treated equally and if we really want equality "every which way." This close reading lesson allows students to explore cause and effect relationships in this engaging, dystopian short story. Students are also challenged to compare the messages in "Harrison Bergeron" with the poem "Government of Evil." Graphic organizers, text-dependent questions, answer keys, and a writing rubric for the summative assessment are included with the lesson.

Type: Lesson Plan

Learn how to make inferences based on the information included in the text in this interactive tutorial. Using the short story "The Last Leaf" by O. Henry, you'll practice identifying both the explicit and implicit information in the story. You'll apply your own reasoning to make inferences based on what is stated both explicitly and implicitly in the text. 

Type: Original Student Tutorial

This activity aids students' reading comprehension and is an investigation of meaning in any short story through peer collaboration. Students work independently to choose quotations that exemplify significant events of the text, come to a consensus about the quotations' significance in collaborative groups, and then formulate analytical quiz questions for peers to answer. A final reflection writing ties all parts of the activity together at the end.

Type: Teaching Idea

In this ReadWriteThink.org lesson, students will be able to explore the genre of science fiction, while learning more about the science integrated into the plot of the story using nonfiction texts and resources. First, students define the science fiction genre and then read and discuss science fiction texts. Next, they conduct research to find science facts that support or dispute the science included in the plot of the science fiction book they read. Students then revisit their definition of the genre and revise based on their reading. Finally, students complete a project that examines the science fiction genre in relation to real-world science concepts and topics. This lesson plan makes the connections between the worlds in science fiction and students' real world explicit by asking them to explore the underlying science that supports the fictional world and considering its relationship to the real science in today's society.

Type: Teaching Idea

Students read a short story of high interest and doodle in either a journal or using an online tool, responding in images, symbols, shapes, and colors. Students have to include the plot, characters, point of view, and theme. Then students work in small groups to construct graphics for the story. Each group then presents to the class. The presentations can be displayed on a class bulletin board or scanned into a Web page.

Type: Teaching Idea

This article outlines the steps used to facilitate a mind mirror project that analyzes characters from the short story "The Lottery" (Jackson 1982). Additionally, this article describes reflective activities that enabled students to monitor and improve critical thinking skills throughout the project and concludes by offering insights for teachers interested in using mind mirror projects in their classrooms.

Type: Teaching Idea

Petey is the story of a man who was born with cerebral palsy in 1922 and lived in institutions his entire life. In this unit, students will learn about important challenges individuals with severe disabilities may face and the importance of regarding persons with disabilities with respect and dignity as they cite textual evidence to support analysis of the text, analyze how particular elements of a story interact, and write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and evidence.

Type: Unit/Lesson Sequence