$10 - $20 8th Grade Literature Circles (by date, latest first)

1. Examination Day Full-Week ELA Unit Plan: Socratic Seminar, Choice Board, Slides

• Dive into Henry Slesar's thought-provoking short story, "Examination Day," with a full-week ELA unit plan designed for middle school. This comprehensive package includes detailed Socratic seminar procedures, engaging choice board activities, and dynamic presentation slides to encourage critical thinking and student-led discourse on themes of intelligence testing and government control.

1. Harrison Bergeron Full-Week ELA Plan: Socratic Seminar, Choice Board, Slides

• Explore Kurt Vonnegut's classic dystopian tale, "Harrison Bergeron," in this complete week-long ELA unit. Middle school students will engage deeply with themes of enforced equality and individuality through structured Socratic seminars, creative choice board activities, and informative slides, all designed to foster critical analysis and vibrant classroom discussions.

1. All Summer in a Day Comprehensive Week-Long Lesson Plan: Seminar, Choice Board

• Immerse your students in Ray Bradbury's poignant story, "All Summer in a Day," with this extensive unit plan. The curriculum includes everything you need to facilitate meaningful discussions around themes of isolation, bullying, and the longing for sunshine. Engaging seminars and diverse choice board activities provide varied learning opportunities that cater to different student interests and learning styles.

1. The Pedestrian Full-Week ELA Unit Plan: Socratic Seminar, Choice Board, Slides

• Step into the futuristic world of Ray Bradbury's "The Pedestrian" with this detailed unit plan for grades 6-8. Through thoughtful Socratic seminars, a creative choice board, and educational slides, students will analyze the story's critique of technological dependency and societal conformity, developing critical thinking skills that transcend the classroom.

Comprehensive Dahl Exploration: This bundle combines three of Roald Dahl’s most compelling stories, each presented in a detailed ELA unit designed to engage middle school students. Perfect for an author’s study, this bundle allows students to analyze Dahl’s unique narrative style and recurring themes across different works. From the mysterious escalations in "Way Up to Heaven" to the unsettling undertones of "The Landlady" and the darkly comic "Lamb to the Slaughter," students will appreciate Dahl’s mastery in crafting suspense and surprise. This bundle is an excellent resource for end-of-year activities, sub plans, or a focused thematic unit on one of literature’s most intriguing authors.

1. Way Up to Heaven ELA Unit

Description: Explore the suspenseful realms of Roald Dahl’s "Way Up to Heaven" with this detailed ELA unit. This package includes engaging slides for easy teaching, a structured Socratic seminar to foster deep discussion, comprehensive lesson plans for effective learning, and versatile choice board activities to cater to diverse learning preferences. Students will delve into thematic analysis, character study, and the craft of writing through guided essays and creative projects.

2. The Landlady ELA Unit

Description: Dive deep into the chilling story of "The Landlady" with this complete ELA unit. It features dynamic slides that enrich the narrative experience, a Socratic seminar to enhance critical thinking, and a choice board that offers creative and analytical options like comic strips and alternate endings. Additional essays and activities, including a film comparison using a Venn diagram, make this unit perfect for a comprehensive study of narrative techniques and thematic development.

3. Lamb to the Slaughter ELA Unit

Description: Unpack the intrigue of Roald Dahl’s "Lamb to the Slaughter" in this all-inclusive ELA unit. This resource provides detailed slides for seamless instruction, engaging seminar guidelines to discuss the complexities of the plot, and a range of activities including a choice board for student-driven projects. The unit also includes tailored essay prompts and additional activities that encourage a deeper understanding of the story’s themes and Dahl’s distinctive writing style.

Bonus:

Includes in-depth character analysis across three stories and synthesizing essay prompt with graphic organizers!

Included Resources:

1. Sorry, Wrong Number ELA Unit: A Full Week of Engaging Lessons for Middle School

• Description: Dive into the suspenseful world of "Sorry, Wrong Number" by Lucille Fletcher with this comprehensive ELA unit. Over the course of a week, students will read the script, listen to the captivating radio play, and engage in dynamic activities including a Socratic seminar and creative choice board projects. Each lesson plan is fully detailed, with scaffolds and extensions to support all learners, making it perfect for a middle school reader's theater.

2. The Hitchhiker ELA Unit: A Full Week of Engaging Lessons for Middle School

• Description: Explore the eerie tale of "The Hitchhiker" by Lucille Fletcher in this full-week ELA unit. Students will delve into the text and the radio play, enhancing their understanding through structured lessons, a Socratic seminar, and creative projects from a choice board. The unit includes detailed lesson plans, comprehensive question sets, and all necessary materials to make it an ideal choice for a middle school reader's theater experience.

3. The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street ELA Unit: Slides, Essay, Choice Board (Grades 6-8)

• Description: Uncover the chilling drama of "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street" with this engaging ELA unit. Designed for grades 6-8, students will read the play, analyze key themes, and express their understanding through essays and choice board activities. The unit features fully detailed lesson plans, interactive slides, and thoughtful discussion prompts, providing a rich reader's theater experience for middle school students.

Bundle Features:

• Engaging Content: Each unit includes captivating dramas and plays that are perfect for reader's theater, keeping students motivated and excited about learning.
• Comprehensive Lesson Plans: Detailed, day-by-day lesson plans ensure a structured and organized approach to teaching, with clear objectives and standards alignment.
• Dynamic Activities: Students will engage in a variety of activities, including reading, listening, Socratic seminars, and creative choice board projects, fostering critical thinking and creativity.
• Support for All Learners: Each unit comes with scaffolds and differentiation strategies to support diverse learning needs, ensuring every student can participate and succeed.
• Ready-to-Use Resources: Fully printable and easy to implement, these units save teachers time and effort in planning and preparation.

Perfect for middle school humanities teachers, this bundle provides everything you need to deliver a series of engaging and educational drama units that will captivate your students and enhance their learning experience. Bring your classroom to life with these dynamic ELA resources!

This resource features a bundle of all of our lesson plans, materials, and activities for Edgar Allan Poe's chilling tale of revenge, The Cask of Amontillado. Each product is thoughtfully crafted and allows students to think outside the box by delving deeply into the story's themes, characters, vocabulary, and plot development. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement. This activity bundle provides a week's worth of material to bring the story to life!

Included in this Bundle:

• The Cask of Amontillado Literature Guide: This 25-page literature guide features a Common-Core aligned mini-unit for the story. It provides basis for comprehension, vocabulary acquisition, and reader response for The Cask of Amontillado and encourages students to think critically about Poe's use of irony, foreshadowing, literary elements, and symbolism. A full answer key is provided along with one bonus student-tested lesson plan. The wide range of activities in this guide will keep your students engaged and help them to gain a deep understanding of and appreciation for one of the most horrifying tales in American literature.

• The Cask of Amontillado ESCAPE ROOM: This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Escape Room for The Cask of Amontillado. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task (and it is!), but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours runs smoothly from start to finish. The activity involves movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. Because this is a skills-based escape room, it is the perfect way to review the story for the final quiz or test. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of this game!

• The Cask of Amontillado Socratic Seminar: This resource features lesson plans and materials to conduct a formal set of Socratic Seminars for Edgar Allan Poe's chilling tale of insult and revenge. Socratic Seminars (or "Fish Bowl" Conversations as referred to in this resource) are higher order ways of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class texts. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, this student-tested resource includes everything you need to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom surrounding the short story, The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe... and no preparation is required by you at all.

• The Cask of Amontillado Family Crest Activity (also included within Literature Guide): This product features a thoughtful and engaging supplemental activity for the story. In this mini-project that can be done in class or as homework, students will closely examine Montresor's family crest (or is it!?), then create their own symbolic family crest using meticulous instructions and the template provided. They will also need to thoroughly explain what they have included on their family crest. A detailed lesson plan is included for use on the following day that allows students to showcase and explain their family crests using an imaginative teaching method. This is a great activity to get your students to think symbolically and to reflect upon the ideals of their own families. Your students will thank you for offering such a thoughtful activity to go along with their reading of The Cask of Amontillado!

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This resource features a bundle of all of our best-selling lesson plans, materials, and activities for Veronica Roth's best-selling dystopian novel, Divergent. Each product is thoughtfully crafted and allows students to think outside the box by delving deeply into the novel's themes, characters, and plot development. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement. You will not find tedious lists of comprehension questions and vocabulary words in this bundle; instead you will find materials that will bring the novel to life!

Included in this Bundle:

⭐ Introduction to Dystopia Powerpoint & Crossword

This resource features an engaging, interactive, editable PowerPoint Presentation for introducing or reviewing Dystopian Fiction to your students! The PowerPoint Presentation runs through an entire lesson from warm-up to explanation, application, and summarizer. Also included are 2 pages of "guided notes" so that you may differentiate your lecture for all levels of students. Recently, a fun dystopia crossword puzzle has been added to help reinforce knowledge of the lesson. Since utopias and dystopias are intrinsically motivating for students, this lesson is always a fun one and gets students excited about the upcoming unit on Divergent.

⭐ Divergent "Silent Conversation" Quote Pass Activity

This product features a thoughtful and engaging activity for use during your study of Divergent. Centering around 5 different provocative passages from the book, this lesson provides your students with a chance to think, reflect, and respond to their peers without ever saying a word. This creative approach is a great way to differentiate instruction among your students and allows even your most quiet students to shine. I am confident that this no-prep lesson will become a must-do activity within your unit on Divergent!

⭐ Tattoos of Divergent Character Symbolism Lesson Plan

This powerpoint explores the symbolism behind the character's tattoos. It is a fantastic opening mini-lesson to an activity in which students choose their own "symbolic" tattoos. My students LOVE this activity - just be prepared to share what symbolic tattoo you would get - they WILL ask!

⭐ Divergent Faction Acrostic Poem Assignment

This product contains an assignment for students to create their own acrostic poem for their favorite faction from Divergent. This is the perfect assignment to give after conducting a mock ceremony in your classroom.

⭐ Divergent Fear Landscape Assignment

This resource contains two separate assignments for creating a fear landscape so that you may differentiate among your figurative and literal thinkers. The first is more appropriate for students who can think symbolically (typically end of eighth grade and above) while the second is better suited for your literal thinkers (sixth-seventh grade). No matter which assignment you give, this is an engaging project that will urge students to consider their deepest fears and connect with Tris and her Dauntless friends in Divergent.

⭐ Divergent Mock Choosing Ceremony

This product contains everything you need to conduct your very own true-to-the-book Choosing Ceremony for Divergent in your classroom! This is one of my favorite activities I do with my students all year as I truly get insight into who they are and what they believe. The Choosing Ceremony will be an emotional challenge for some but very well-worth it!

⭐ Divergent Worksheet Bundle

This product includes a crossword puzzle, faction knowledge worksheets, a Freytag's Pyramid worksheet for entire novel, character review worksheet, and full answer keys.

⭐ Divergent Socratic Seminar Lesson Plan and Materials

Socratic Seminars are higher order ways of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class text. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, with this resource, the work has been done for you. This packet includes everything you need to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom surrounding the novel.

⭐ Divergent Final Project - Long Lost Sixth Faction

This project instructs students to create their own faction. They must create everything from faction name, symbol, jobs, and manifesto to a propaganda poster, initiation process and more! This comprehensive project takes students about 1 week to complete. Because it is such an incredibly engaging activity, it truly runs itself and is the perfect way to conclude your study of Divergent.

⭐ Divergent Unit Test

This comprehensive test includes 46 well-written questions: character matching, plot-level multiple choice, faction knowledge chart, vocabulary, and short answer along with full answer key.

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This resource features a bundle of exciting presentations, lesson plans, and materials to supplement your unit on dystopian literature. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement with any dystopian short story or novel. In this bundle, you will not find tedious lists of comprehension questions and vocabulary words; instead you will find material that will bring dystopias to life (well not literally!) in your classroom.

Included in this bundle:

⭐ Introduction to Dystopia Powerpoint: This resource features an engaging, interactive, editable PowerPoint Presentation for introducing or reviewing Dystopian Fiction to your students! PowerPoint Presentation runs through an entire lesson from warm-up to explanation, application, and summarizer. Also included are 2 pages of "guided notes" so that you may differentiate your lecture for all levels of students. Since utopias and dystopias are intrinsically motivating for students, this lesson is always a fun one and gets students excited about the upcoming unit on whatever dystopian novel or short story you'll be reading!

⭐ Escape from Dystopia ESCAPE ROOM: This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Dystopia Escape Room. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task, but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours runs smoothly from start to finish. The activity involves movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of this game!

⭐ Dystopian Literature Socratic Seminar: This resource features everything you need in order to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom for any dystopian short story or novel. It is the PERFECT addition to any dystopia unit for middle or high school students! Socratic Seminars are high-order ways of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class texts. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, with this resource, the work has been done for you!

⭐ Dystopia Quote Posters: Make your classroom pop with this set of 25 posters featuring provocative quotes about dystopia. Each 7.5 x 7.5 (square) PDF poster contains a quote either about dystopias or from dystopian literature imposed over a stunning photograph to spruce up your ELA classroom during your dystopian unit. The square format makes for an eye-catching arrangement on your wall or bulletin board and serves as a great conversation starter. I suggest laminating the posters so that you can use them year after year!

Purchasing this bundle saves more than 20% off the cost of the resources for your unit on dystopia.

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This resource features a bundle of four exciting lesson plans, activities, and classroom decor for your unit on the hero's journey. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement. You will not find tedious lists of comprehension questions and vocabulary words in this bundle; instead you will find materials that will allow your students to understand and connect with the hero's journey on a deeper level.

⭐ Hero's Journey Anticipation Lesson Plan:

This product features an engaging introductory lesson plan that will have your students thinking, writing, speaking, and moving on the first day of your hero's journey unit. In this activity, they must choose between 6 different quotes by famous figures about what makes a hero, articulate why the quote aligns with their own perspective, then share their findings with the rest of the class in a fun, non-intimidating way.

⭐ Hero's Journey Socratic Seminar:

This resource features everything you need in order to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom for any novel that follows the model of the hero's journey. Socratic Seminars are high-order ways of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class texts. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. They are also a great way for students to work together and build upon one another's ideas without the assistance of a teacher. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, with this resource, the work has been done for you and you will have several days of student-led learning during your unit on the hero's journey!

⭐ Hero's Journey ESCAPE ROOM:

Though your students have been learning about the 12 stages, 8 archetypes, and countless examples of the hero's journey through literature and film, it is time for them to become heroes themselves by escaping your classroom! In order to do this, they must work in small teams to solve 5 different puzzles related to the hero's journey, discovering a hidden message, and finding clues along the way.

⭐ Hero's Journey Quote Posters:

Make your classroom pop with this set of 25 posters featuring provocative quotes about the hero's journey. Each 7.5 x 7.5 (square) PDF poster contains a quote about heroes imposed over a stunning photograph to spruce up your ELA classroom during your unit on the hero's journey. The square format makes for an eye-catching arrangement on your wall or bulletin board and serves as a great conversation starter. I suggest laminating the posters so that you can use them year after year!

Purchasing this bundle saves more than 20% off the cost of the four resources for your hero's journey unit.

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Also, check out these great products for your unit on the hero's journey by Language Arts Excellence:

⭐ The Alchemist

⭐ Divergent

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This resource features a bundle of all of our lesson plans, materials, and activities for Edgar Allan Poe's gruesome tale, The Tell-Tale Heart. Each product is thoughtfully crafted and allows students to think outside the box by delving deeply into the story's themes, characters, vocabulary, and plot development. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement. This activity bundle provides more than a week's worth of material to bring the story to life!

Included in this Bundle:

The Black Cat Literature Guide: This resource features a comprehensive literature guide for use while reading Edgar Allan Poe's creepy classic tale, The Black Cat. The packet provides an excellent basis for comprehension and vocabulary acquisition for the short story and encourages students to think critically about plot structure, literary elements, figurative language, and the superstitions within the story. The wide range of activities in this guide will keep your students engaged and help them to gain a deep understanding of one of the most highly regarded tales of American literature.

The Black Cat Socratic Seminar: A Socratic Seminar (or a "Fish Bowl" Conversation as I like to call them with my students) is a higher order way of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class texts. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, this student-tested resource was created to include everything you need to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom surrounding The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe... with very little preparation required on your end.

The Black Cat ESCAPE ROOM: This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Escape Room for The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task (and it is!), but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours runs smoothly from start to finish. The activity involves movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. It is the perfect activity for Halloween or any day you want to shake it up with your students without sacrificing learning. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of this game!

Unreliable Narrator of The Black Cat Lesson Plan (also included within Literature Guide): This resource features a full-length lesson plan and accompanying materials that asks students to delve into the crazed mind of the narrator of Poe's The Black Cat. Through an engaging "True/Untrue Storytelling" activity, precise mini-lecture on the unreliable narrator, guiding questions, and follow-up assignment, your students will be able to understand the sometimes daunting concept of the unreliable narrator and discuss how a story is affected when told through the eyes of one. This lesson plan opens up a new world for students as they realize that many of the books, movies, and tv shows that they have read or seen in the past may have been influenced by an unreliable narrator. Thus, not only is this lesson important, it is intrinsically fascinating to students and the "oohs" and "aha" moments that tend to arise from the discussion make it a blast to teach! I am confident that you and your students will love this lesson as much as mine have for years.

**BONUS FILE: Intro to Edgar Allan Poe PowerPoint: This product features a highly-engaging introductory PowerPoint Presentation for the Father of Horror himself, Edgar Allan Poe. A unit of study on Poe is not complete without learning the gory and heartbreaking details of his life and what made him into the master poet and writer whom we continue to marvel at today. This 20-slide powerpoint runs through his tragic family life and childhood, relationships, early occupations (before he was the Poe that you know), synopses of some of his most famous works, death theories, and current pop culture references. It concludes with a 10 question quiz to see how well students listened... and trust me, they will be hanging on your every word! This powerpoint encourages class participation, is fully editable to suit your class' needs, and lasts about 30-40 minutes to run through. I suggest presenting this on the very first day of your unit on Edgar Allan Poe. Enjoy and let the horror begin!

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This resource features a bundle of all of our lesson plans, materials, and activities for Paolo Coelo's inspirational best-selling novel, The Alchemist. Each product is thoughtfully crafted and allows students to think outside the box by delving deeply into the novel's themes, characters, and plot development. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement. You will not find tedious lists of comprehension questions and vocabulary words in this bundle; instead you will find materials that will bring the novel to life!

Included in this Bundle:

⭐ The Alchemist "Silent Conversation" Quote Pass Activity

This product features a thoughtful and engaging activity for use during the study of The Alchemist. Centering around 5 different provocative passages from the book, this lesson provides your students with a chance to think, reflect, and respond to their peers without ever saying a word. This creative approach is a great way to differentiate instruction among your students and allows even your most quiet students to shine. I am confident that this no-prep lesson will become a must-do activity within your unit on The Alchemist!

⭐ The Alchemist Anticipation Guide & Lesson Plan

This product features an anticipation guide for The Alchemist, and a meticulously-explained lesson plan that is in my opinion, the absolute best way to approach a new novel. Using a non-intimidating method called "Numbered Heads", this activity will get your students thinking, writing, conversing, and reporting about themes you will be encountering during your study of The Alchemist.

⭐ The Alchemist Bell Ringer Journal Prompts

This resource features a set of 25 reader response journal prompts for use during your unit on The Alchemist. Each bell ringer is comprised of a quote from the novel and a thoughtfully crafted question that encourages students to personally connect with his inspirational words. Prompts can be used as bell-ringers (most popular and mean the first 5 minutes of every class for a month are planned for you!), summarizers, stations, full class or small group discussion questions, for homework, task cards, sub plans, as a filler activity… the possibilities are endless!

⭐ The Alchemist ESCAPE ROOM

This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Escape Room for The Alchemist. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task, but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to answer keys so that yours runs smoothly from start to finish. The activity involves movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. All tasks are skills-based so that with this fun lesson, learning is not sacrificed. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of this game!

⭐ The Alchemist Quote Posters

Make your classroom pop with this set of 20 gorgeous posters featuring quotes from The Alchemist. Each 7.5 x 7.5 (square) poster contains a provocative quote from the novel imposed over a stunning photograph meant to inspire your students and motivate them to follow their dreams. The square format is reminiscent of Instagram and makes for an eye-catching arrangement on your wall or bulletin board. I suggest laminating the posters and using them not just during your Alchemist unit, but all year long!

⭐ The Alchemist Socratic Seminar Materials

This resource features lesson plans and materials to conduct a formal set of Socratic Seminars for The Alchemist. Socratic Seminars (or "Fish Bowl" Conversations as referred to in this resource) are higher order ways of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class texts. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, this student-tested resource includes everything you need to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom surrounding The Alchemist... and no preparation is required by you at all.

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Click to Follow Language Arts Excellence

UPDATED FOR THE 2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR: Finally, a poetry unit designed for high-school English that teenagers genuinely love!! Your students' skills in close reading and literary analysis of poems will skyrocket....

The 3-week unit features 60+ canonical poems written by a diverse spectrum of English-speaking poets. The poems and accompanying lesson plans are organized into 12 thematic packets which can be used in sequence over two weeks. That's over 200 pages worth of editable poetry resources!

This unit promises to elicit dynamic engagement from all students without compromising on intellectual rigor. The discussion questions, quick writes, literary device quizzes, and analytical writing assignments will challenge your students to dig beneath the surface of the text and generate profound interpretive insights!!

Here are some highlights from this editable 200-page curriculum:

• Homework Packets with Poems (5-6 Poems per Packet): The 12 homework packets contain a total of 71 poems by a diverse range of award-winning poets such as William Shakespeare, John Keats, Christina Rossetti, Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, Langston Hughes, Sylvia Plath, Robert Hayden, Theodore Roethke, Maya Angelou, Audre Lorde, Mary Oliver, Gary Soto, Li-Young Lee, Ada Limón, Elizabeth Acevedo, and others. The poems are collected into ten reading packets that focus on prominent literary devices and themes: 1) poems using sensory imagery, 2) poems using figurative language, 3) love poems, 4) poems on ethical dilemmas, 5) poems on complex parent-child dynamics, and 6) poems on cultural identity. Because teenagers have a lot to say about these themes, the poems will set the stage for your class to have fascinating and profoundly productive discussions!! (75 pages)

• Literary Devices Glossary: A glossary with definitions and examples of the various types of figurative language, imagery, stanzas, and syntactic devices. Many teachers already have a glossary of literary devices, but I'm providing this in case you need one. (2 pages)

• Literary Devices Quizzes: A total of ten quizzes, each with 10 questions about a wide range of literary devices: metaphor, personification, symbolism, imagery, alliteration, etc. Open each class with a quiz to assess whether your students can accurately identify the literary devices used in the poems from the homework packets. Answer keys included. (24 pages).

• Discussion Questions: This bundle features a list of discussion questions for the first poem in each of the homework packets. The discussion questions will ensure that every class discussion starts on a productive foot. Every discussion question is grounded in concrete textual details and challenges students to arrive at lucid interpretive insights! The questions lend themselves to a range of different pedagogical uses: 1) to focus students’ thinking prior to beginning a discussion, 2) to prompt in-class writing, 3) to assign written reflections for homework, etc. Guaranteed to elicit student engagement and foster deep thinking! Answer keys included. (60 pages)

• Quick Writes: The quick writes give students an opportunity to capture and refine the best ideas generated in the discussion. Quick writes can also help reticent students to gather their thoughts so they'll feel ready and eager to contribute. (24 pages)

• Analytical Writing Assignment: Challenge students to take their interpretations one step further by writing an analytical paper on a poem of their choice. The assignment sheet contains detailed instructions for how to generate a formalist analysis of a poem (analyzing how the poem's formal features contribute to its meaning). This kind of formalist analysis is exactly what students are asked to generate on the AP Literature exam! Sample paper included. (15 pages)

This entire resource packet will come to you in two separate formats: Word docs *and* PDFs. Because the Word docs are fully editable, you'll be able to customize the materials to suit the skill levels of your students — year after year! If you don't have Microsoft Word, you'll still be able to access all of the materials as PDF documents — which are easy to navigate and quick to print!

My store is called “Rigorous Resources” because all of the resources contain rigorous content that will motivate students to engage in thought-provoking and productive discussions. Thank you for choosing Rigorous Resources.

Happy teaching!

Adam Jernigan, Ph.D.

adamjernigan@gmail.com

Should you prefer to purchase the poetry units individually, here are links to the five poetry units:

Poetry Unit #1: Sensory Imagery in Poetry

Poetry Unit #2: Figurative Language in Poetry

Poetry Unit #3: Love Poems

Poetry Unit #4: Poems on Ethical Dilemmas

Poetry Unit #5: Poems on Family Relationships

Poetry Unit #6: Poems on Cultural Identity

Store: https://www.TeachShare.com/Store/Rigorous-Resources

Covering The Scarlet Letter? Don't know where to get started? This bundle is for you, focusing on Nathaniel Hawthorne's classic novel The Scarlet Letter it includes an introduction power point, flip book study guide, characterization flip book, graphic organizers, and a film analysis worksheet.

Studying Fahrenheit 451? Don't know where to start? We got you covered. This bundle comes complete with a study guide, characterization flip book, introduction power point, and graphic organizers.

Studying One Hundred Years of Solitude? Don't know where to begin? Then this product is for you! This is a GROWING bundle! Includes many resources for your unit on One Hundred Years of Solitude.

Covering The Picture of Dorian Gray? Don't know where to get started? This bundle includes everything you need for your students to analyze the text for plot development, characterization, vocabulary, and more. Makes learning fun and easy for your students.

The Picture of Dorian Gray Introduction Power Point which introduces your students to concepts and themes present within the text.

The Picture of Dorian Gray Flipbook Study Guide ensures your students are keeping track with key ideas and details of the text.

The Picture of Dorian Gray Characterization flipbook ensures your students understand characterization and character development

Graphic Organizers for ANY Novel! Ensures your students are keeping track of the Plot, Vocabulary, Theme, Symbols, and aid in comprehension of the text.

The Picture of Dorian Gray Vocabulary Lists and Quizzes which introduces your students to new vocabulary words they will see inside the novel.

Teaching Dragonwings? Don't know where to start? This bundle includes many activities to do before, during, and after reading the novel. This is a bundle for the novel Dragonwings by Lawrence Yep. Don't be afraid to take flight with this bundle.

Covering The Boy in the Striped Pajamas? Don't know where to start? We have you covered! This bundle includes six different products to help: an introduction power point, a holocaust web quest, a study guide, a characterization flip book, graphic organizers, and a film analysis. Great for differentiated instruction!

*Study Guide and Characterization flipbook are both the Google Drive Version; however, to access them you will need to click on the bonus file and follow the links.

Covering The Kite Runner? Don't know where to get started? This bundle is just for your! Includes a Introduction Power Point, study guide, graphic organizers, film analysis, novel project choice board, and characterization flip book. Great for differentiation.

In need of engaging activities for a novel study? Teaching Frankenstein but don't know where to get started? We bundled some of our best resources here for Mary Shelley's classic novel Frankenstein (also known as The Modern Prometheus) to help you and your students have a successful novel study.

Frankenstein Introduction Power Point which introduces your students to concepts and themes present within the text.

Frankenstein Flipbook Study Guide ensures your students are keeping track with key ideas and details of the text.

Frankenstein Characterization flipbook ensures your students understand characterization and character development.

Graphic Organizers for ANY Novel! ensures your students are keeping track of the Plot, Vocabulary, Theme, Symbols, and aid in comprehension of the text.

Film Analysis Worksheet for Novels Helps your students analyze one of the many Frankenstein Films.

Teaching Esperanza Rising? Don't know where to start? This bundle includes many activities to do before, during, and after reading the novel. This is a complete unit for the classic novel Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan.

Esperanza Rising Introduction Power Point which introduces your students to concepts and themes present within the text.

Esperanza Rising Flipbook Study Guide ensures your students are keeping track

with key ideas and details of the text.

Esperanza Rising Characterization flipbook ensures your students understand

characterization and character development.

Esperanza Rising Graphic Organizers ensures your students are keeping track of the

Plot, Vocabulary, Theme, Symbols, and aid in comprehension of the text.

Esperanza Rising Vocabulary Lists and Quizzes which introduces your students to new vocabulary words they will see inside the novel.

Covering the As You Like It? Don't know where to get started? This bundle includes everything you need for your students to analyze the text for plot development, characterization, language, and more. Makes learning Shakespeare fun and easy for your students.

Complete Unit.

Covers the entire play of As You Like It !

Great for differentiation.