Be as romantic as a poetic. Appear as clever as Einstein. Wow others with your powers of observation by using similes to point out the similar aspects in two different things. This short video focuses on similes found in Shakespeare and...

Isn’t it ironic that many situations labeled ironic aren’t? Properly labeled examples of verbal, dramatic, and situation irony are defined and illustrated in a short, animated video that uses passages from literary works as models. The...

What is a paragraph? This question drives the PowerPoint. Viewers discuss important elements of a solid paragraph, transitions between paragraphs, and strategies for editing. Show this presentation and then look at an example...

How do themes and motifs build and develop through Act Five of Macbeth? With this two-page worksheet, readers record quotations that represent themes like ambition, conscience, and manhood. In addition, they speak to symbols like blood,...

Provide your class with this reading guide for chapter two of Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. They grapple with new vocabulary words like swamper, cesspool, and mollified before checking out literary terms and answering a list of questions...

Get your class writing with this project idea. Kids choose two pictures of objects that are like them and two pictures of objects that are not like them to entice their readers. Then, they write an informative paragraph describing each...

A reading of Theodore Roethke’s dark "Root Cellar" and Sylvia Plath’s more abstract "Mirror" launches a discussion of imagery and personification in poetry.  After finding examples of personification in the poems, class members...

Explore the pop art movement and create a sculpture in the pop art style based on a visual pun, or play on words. The scholar's work may use humor, allegory, metaphor, or be in the form of a parody. Visual examples are provided, and some...

In need of a high school band lesson? This resource includes a warm up, objectives for learners to focus on, and notes for each part of the song being played. These notes are specific to the learners it is written for, but may give you...

What are the three types of irony? High schoolers engage in a lesson about the use of irony while reading O.Henry's short story "Gift of the Magi." They'll discuss rising action, climax, and resolution in the text before highlighting the...

Beyond Paul Bunyan and his blue ox, tall tales can be a great way to teach young writers about word choice and voice in their writing. Using Jerry Spinelli's Maniac Magee  and the Six-Trait Writing process, they begin to write...

This lesson is designed for college students who are having anxiety regarding public speaking. In it, the speech givers go through a process of using imagery in order to reduce anxiety. The instructor guides the pupils in visualizing how...

Arm your writers with an arsenal of literary terms. With definitions of everything from plot structure and figurative language to point-of-view and types of irony, learners will gain an understanding of elements in stories and be able to...

Learners illustrate a simile. In this figurative language lesson plan, second graders are introduced to similes. They read the story Quick as a Cricket and talk about the similes used. Everyone chooses a simile and draws a picture to go...

Review selections from Shel Silverstein's A Light in the Attic and recognize characterization and tone used. Discuss and compare the various tones of each poem. Learners complete a character map and a pair share activity as well....

Review the elements of tall tales with your class. Take a look at their genesis and purpose. Different types of figurative language found in tall tales are included such as hyperbole, simile, and metaphor. Before reading an American tall...

Use psychodynamic theory as a part of analyzing a career cluster.The class defines vocabulary words, brainstorms a list of career traits, and completes an online career analysis inventory. They analyze 5 concepts of psychodynamic...

This is a basic reading comprehension practice worksheet. Learners read 3 passages: folktale, Richard Cory, and an informational text about the Roosevelts. They then answer multiple choice questions that test reading comprehension. Some...

How well do you know your Greek and Roman myths? Find out with these multiple-choice questions. Each question addresses a character in mythology. Choose who did what in this quiz!

In this mood activity, learners read a passage and define the theme, mood, and purpose of what they read. Students complete 3 questions.

In this alliteration worksheet, students read alliterative phrases and underline the alliteration they see. Students also complete alliteration phrases.

This resource on personification provides three different approaches aimed at different levels. The first, appropriate for upper elementary, provides examples of personification, followed by an exercise that requires replacing a word in...

In this poetry writing instructional activity, students identify the topic, similes, metaphors, onomatopoeia, rhyme scheme, and alliteration in a poem. Students fill out this information in a given diagram.

Class members can practice using sensory details and imagery with this writing prompt, which provides a vivid introduction about a girl who discovers a treasure box in her mother's garden. The middle, ending, and title of the story are...