English II

The scarlet “A”: Role-play in writing

This lesson was created to follow a close reading and examination of Nathanial Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. The plan uses a small group format and rotation schedule. The activities created strengthen students' understanding of an author's use of characterization, while reinforcing reading and creative writing skills.

Format: lesson plan (grade 10 English Language Arts)

By Tonya White.

Escapes

This lesson will help students become more understanding of cultural differences. Students will analyze the theme of escape in two poems. They will recognize and record literary elements found in the poems and connect the poems to life in a meaningful way.

Format: lesson plan (grade 10 English Language Arts)

By Mary Lou Faircloth.

Resources on the web

Weaving the multigenre web

In this lesson, students read novels, analyze the literary elements, and create a multigenre project to present information to their peers. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9–12 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Using technology to analyze and illustrate symbolism in Night.

This step-by-step lesson introduces students to Elie Wiesel's use of symbolism in his autobiographical novel, Night. After learning about symbolism and discussing its use in the book, students create photomontages using online... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 10 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Using student-centered comprehension strategies with Elie Wiesel's "Night"

Working in small groups, students use reciprocal teaching strategies as they read and discuss Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel’s memoir Night. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

So what do you think? Writing a review

After examining samples of movie, music, restaurant, and book reviews, students devise guidelines for writing interesting and informative reviews. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9–12 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Magazine redux: An exercise in critical literacy

This lesson prompts students to act as critical readers as they consider how and why their approach and experiences differ when reading an online version versus a print version of a magazine. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9–11 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Literary scrapbooks online: An electronic reader-response project

This lesson leads students to reflect on and respond to literature by creating an online scrapbook. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9–12 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Is a sentence a poem?

In this lesson, students analyze syntax, imagery, and meaning in a chosen one-sentence poem to decide what makes it a poem. Then students write one-sentence poems describing a picture. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9–12 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Identifying and understanding the fallacies used in advertising

Students examine the fallacies that they encounter daily through exposure to advertising. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9–12 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Gods, heroes, and other celebrated Greeks

This lesson, one of a multi-part unit from ARTSEDGE, is designed to help students shape a frame of reference for examining specific areas of ancient Greek influence on Western thought and culture. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 10 Visual Arts Education, English Language Arts, and Social Studies)

Provided by: The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

Form and theme in the traditional Mexican Corrido

In this lesson, one of a multi-part unit from ARTSEDGE, students learn about the traditional Mexican musical form of corridos, which dates back to the 1800s and continues to be very popular. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 10 English Language Arts, Music Education, and Social Studies)

Provided by: The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

Focus on first lines: Increasing comprehension through prediction strategies

In this lesson, students examine opening sentences in literary works and make predictions about the content of the texts they will read later. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9–12 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Draft letters: Improving student writing through critical thinking

This lesson challenges students to think critically about their writing on a specific assignment before submitting their work to a reader. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9–12 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Decoding “The Matrix”: Exploring dystopian characteristics through film

In this lesson, students are introduced to the definition and characteristics of a dystopian work by watching video clips from The Matrix and other dystopian films. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9–12 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Critical reading: Two stories, two authors, same plot?

This lesson encourages students to read and respond critically to two different pieces of literature with the same title. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9–10 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

A Biography Study: Using Role-Play to Explore Authors' Lives

In this ReadWriteThink lesson, students select American authors to research. They create timelines and biopoems about their authors and then collaborate in teams to design and present a panel presentation where they role-play their authors. The final project... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9–12 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Audio listening practices: Exploring personal experiences with audio texts

In this lesson designed to develop students’ involvement with media literacy, students keep a daily diary that records how and when they listen to radio, music (e.g., songs on MP3 players, podcasting), and other streaming media or archived broadcasts. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9–11 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Analyzing symbolism, plot, and theme in Death and the Miser

In this lesson, students apply analytical skills to an exploration of the early Renaissance painting Death and the Miser by Hieronymous Bosch. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 10 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE