Literature Lesson Plans

Children's Literature Journalism
General Elementary Books Literature Student Sites
Harry Potter Authors
High School Books Influential Authors Resources

 
  • 3D Model - This lesson helps students investigate setting. Students are asked to create a 3D model of one of the major settings in the book. They are challenged to include as many details as possible, including the time of day and season of the year.
  • Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day - Everyone has bad days, but Alexander's seems to be just awful. In this activity, students create their own bad day by describing a series of events that go wrong for them.
  1. A Grain of Rice/ The Grain of Rice - Compare both books and discuss which book has a richer text.
  2. A Separate Peace, Chapters 1 & 2 - The content discussed will include the protagonists, the theme of competition, and literary elements.
  3. Adventure On The Sea - Set the purpose ask them to predict what the story will be about.
  4. African Proverb Illustration - Students will understand how proverbs are used by different cultures to simplify a philosophical belief or explain a basic life truth.
  5. Anna Karenina Interviews - In this lesson, students create a series of questions to ask a character of their choice. They use the questions to help them research their character and then write an in-depth newspaper or magazine article about him or her.
  6. Applying Analytical Thinking - Introduce new methodologies when reading and analyzing literature.
  7. Arthur's Reading Race - Reading and evaluating, giving opinions.
  8. Author/Book Report Web Page -The students will create a web page that will contain a book report and a biography about the author that wrote the book that the student read.
  9. Author Study - In this activity, students research an author of their choosing. They create a detailed report about their author's life and his work. Students are encouraged to use a variety of mediums in their reports.
  10. Banned Book Debate - Banning books in schools is a hotly debated practice. In this activity, students investigate why books are banned and why some groups are against the idea. In a mock debate, students argue for and against banning books for an audience of their peers.
  11. Because of Winn-Dixie - Reading and interpreting the novel Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate De Camillo.
  12. Book Advertisement - In this lesson, students create a movie trailer-type ad to promote their book. They pick out critical scenes and have classmates act them out. Students then watch the advertisements and choose one of the books to read.
  13. Censorship! Fahrenheit 451 - The learner will respond to expressive materials that are read, heard, and/or viewed by demonstrating an understanding of what is read, heard, and/or viewed.
  14. Character Traits in the book Charlotte's Web - Character traits and adjectives taught through literature.
  15. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom - The student will be able to use flannel board pieces to re-tell the story of Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.
  16. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs - In this activity, students imagine what they would like to have fall from the sky every day and describe what happens when too much of it falls at once.
  17. Cora Unashamed - Students will discuss and comprehend interpretation questions that involve expanding the elements found in the story.
  18. Creating A Paragraph - Students will work cooperatively together to reconstruct and agree on a proper paragraph, using sentence strips with the correct topic, detail, and concluding sentences.
  19. Death of a Salesman - Biff - This is the first in a group of lessons that examine Biff's character, primarily in terms of ethics.
  20. Death of a Salesman Confrontation - The purpose of this lesson is to look at how Biff has changed, and how questioning the unethical behavior he has been taught has brought about that change.
  21. Death of a Salesman - Ethics - This is the third lesson in a series of lesson that examines Biff's character in terms of ethics.
  22. Death of a Salesman - Explore Success - In this lesson the students examine the influences of Ben and Charley as business role models for Willy.
  23. Death of a Salesman - Importance of Salesmen - This lesson consists of a look at the profession of the salesman.
  24. Death of a Salesman - Nature of Salesmen - Students will continue their examination of the sales profession, and its connection with the American dream.
  25. Doing Dewey - To aid students in understanding general library/media center terminology and the basic hundreds "breakdown" of the Dewey Decimal Classification System.
  26. Eric Carle - This lesson is a basic study of Eric Carle's work. The students study his drawings and stories and look for similarities and differences in the works.
  27. Face on the Milk Carton Characterization - Students will create an "I Am" Poem about their own personal characteristics after exploring qualities from characters in our novel..
  28. Fairy Tales Around the World - The student will be able to summarize three fairytales from other countries and share one of them with the class.
  29. Family Traditions and Culture - To provide a context to discuss meaning in written texts by using the background, knowledge, and experience of the students.
  30. Finding the Climax of the Story - In this activity, students chart the progression of a story as it builds to a climax. They then create a chart showing how the different scenes led up to the climax.
  31. Fitting Together - Students will work together as a team to create a puzzle which reflects the input of each student.
  32. Following Text Signposts - Students will be able to identify the purpose for the text feature.
  33. Genre Search - In this activity students complete an online scavenger hunt to learn about different genres.
  34. How Greek Mythology Changed Mankind - Teach the class what the people of ancient Greece believe ,the cause of the world and also the cause of man.
  35. How I'll Raise Our Reader - To make learning to read fun, and almost secretive, yet just as effective.
  36. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie - The children will develop good listening and spelling skills.
  37. In Their Shoes: Role Playing - Students will learn to go beyond the text to find the subliminal messages or underlying meanings of the author who portrays his/her characters.
  38. Inferences "All Summer in a Day" - Analyze the influence of setting on the problem and its resolution.
  39. Introduction to Tall Tales - What is a tall tale? Who are major tall tale characters?
  40. Juliek's Last Performance in Night - The learner will demonstrate analysis of Juliek's character by analyzing what he says, does, and acts in his final moments of life through discussion and writing.
  41. Junior Compare and Contrast Paper - An informational research paper that compares and contrasts an event between two different time periods as discussed in class.
  42. Learning the Elements of a Plot - Understand internal and external conflict.
  43. Lemony Snicket Electronic Pals - Provide a description of your own feelings on the book.
  44. Letters from Rifka - The student will be able to read Letters from Rifka and write a response as Tovah to three of Rifka's letters.
  45. Literature Circle - Writing descriptive questions about chapters.
  46. Literature- Federigo's Falcon - Students will gain understanding of how irony is used in the story.
  47. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe Scavenger Hunt - TSW demonstrate comprehension of information resources to research a topic.
  48. Making Connections and Drawing Insight - Lesson is designed to help students use their visualization skills in order to make connections and draw insights, which will help them to understand the characters.
  49. Making Inferences - Using what you know, what learned, and connections you can make, to tell what you think.
  50. Making Inferences Within Literature - Students will learn how to examine textual information, and infer the deeper meaning of the words.
  51. Making Valid Comparisons - I chose to do this cooperative learning strategy because I have used it many times in my student teaching and it always goes so well for students.
  52. Medea and Greek Amphitheater - Be able to understand reasoning behind the mechanics of the Greek theater.
  53. Modernizing Romeo and Juliet - The goal of this lesson is to help students better understand important speeches that occur in Romeo and Juliet.
  54. Multi-Cultural Awareness - Students learn about the lives of children around the world and use the book, Children Just Like Me,to compare differences and similarities to one child of their choosing from the book.
  55. Mystery Lesson - Identify major thematic climaxes in the mystery.
  56. Of Mice and Men Chapter 3 - The students will be able to write a brief essay that uses specific textual evidence to support their analysis.
  57. On My Honor - My goal is for students to be able to identify traits that make a friend and the meaning of honor.
  58. Paper Bag Report - This book report uses the paper bag as part of the report. Students draw scenes from the book on each side of the paper bag and use them to give a presentation about their book.
  59. Paragraph Reconstruction - Students will cooperatively work together to reconstruct and agree on a proper paragraph, using sentence strips with the correct topic, detail, and concluding sentences.
  60. Picture Show and Tell - Using pictures of things that 103 has been doing this year students will tell the class what is happening in the picture.
  61. Proper Questioning Techniques - This lesson is intended to have the students practice their questioning skills.
  62. Reading: Kissing Doorknobs - Novel by Terry Spencer-Hesser
  63. Reading: The Baker's Neighbor - The children will become familiar with the theme, conflict, resolution, characters, setting, and vocabulary of the play.
  64. Reading on the Web - What to look for on a web page. Who sponsors the page?
  65. Reading with The Help of Context Clues - To strengthen decoding skills using or relating words which mean the same.
  66. Recipes for Favorite Authors - Given a format to follow and research done on their author, students will write a recipe for their favorite author.
  67. Sequencing Stories - Appreciating Literacy and making real-life connections through media.
  68. Setting and Storyboards - The purpose of this lesson is to teach the students how to identify setting, as a literary element.
  69. Similarities and Differences Within Stories - The students will be able to discuss main points and similarities and differences of stories.
  70. Similes vs Metaphors - It will also introduce the literary term of "onomatopoeia".
  71. Storyboard a Book - Storyboards are used to help artists visualize a sequence of events. In this activity, students are asked to create a storyboard for the book they are reading.
  72. Story Mapping - To enable students to be able to use elements of setting, characters, problem, plot, and resolution to recall story.
  73. Storytelling - Storytelling is a great way to pass along family traditions and stories. In this activity, students share a family story with their class.
  74. Tales of Edgar Allen Poe - The short stories above represent the Emotional side of Poe and these works should be read before completing the assignment.
  75. Text Structure and Patterns - Lesson will focus on the structure patterns in Monster, and will have the students examining that structure.
  76. The 5 Literary Elements - To learn about the five elements of literature: character, setting, plot, theme and point of view.
  77. The Crucible - Students of this period have looked into the allegations and to offer alternatives to witchcraft to explain the people's behavior.
  78. The Great Gatsby ch. 4 - To show the students characterization with the movie.
  79. The Little Painter of Sabana Grand - Students will be able to understand and identify literary elements of realistic fiction.
  80. "The Man Who Was Almost A Man" - Students will make connections between the events and social attitudes of the time period, its influences on the author and the author's work.
  81. The Tragedy of Death of a Salesman - Prior to the reading the essay, and responding, the students will view the 1966 television production, with Lee J. Cobb playing Willy Loman.
  82. The Raven and Gothic Literature - The learner will interpret and evaluate representative texts to deepen understanding of literature of the United States .
  83. The Scarlet Letter - The student will read the novel and gather various data, facts and ideas about the time of the puritans
  84. The Victorian Era & Dickens - This lesson's purpose is to introduce the major characteristics of Victorian society in England before reading Charles Dickens's Great Expectations.
  85. The Whipping Boy - The Whipping Boy is a story of Jemmy, a boy who must take the place of Prince Brat every time the Prince should be whipped. This is a high action book that has scenes that are easy to act out. In this activity, students create a short play by acting out various scenes from the book.
  86. To Be or Not to Be - Students should come away from the lesson understanding the meaning of the soliloquy as well as its significance within the play.
  87. To Kill a Mockingbird - Debating the Tom Robinson Case - Lesson affords the students the opportunity to practice their skills of persuasion, by debating whether Atticus should defend Tom Robinson.
  88. To Kill a Mockingbird - Real Courage - This lesson provides the students a further opportunity to observe the kind of parent that Atticus proves to be.
  89. To Kill a Mockingbird - Standing Up for the Right - Students will explore Atticus's reasons for defending Tom Robinson.
  90. Trickster Tales - The goal is for learners to develop synthesis of comprehension by examining and distinguishing characteristics of a trickster tale.
  91. Tuck Everlasting Ch. 1-6 - My goals for this lesson are for the students to enjoy reading a classic, have fun enriching their reading skills, and for the students to have a better understanding of life.
  92. Twenty Questions - In this activity, students are put on the 'hot seat'. They have to give one to three sentence answers to questions asked by their classmates. The classmates are trying to find out as much about the book as possible by asking one question each.
  93. Understanding Imagery - Students will use imagery in a 1-2 paragraph assignment after lesson.
  94. Wordless Books: Creating a Storyline - This is a fun activity for kids. Stories use their own imagination from visual cues to create a story. This really helps with grammar and prediction skills. It is also a very useful creative writing exercise.
  95. You Saw What on Mulberry Street? - The student will be able to add onto a story being told by the class.
  96. World Literature - Through this unit the student will gain an appreciation for poetry from diverse poets.