$10 - $20 8th Grade Short Stories Lesson

This Figurative Language Short Passage BUNDLE includes four passages with 3 close reading and writing worksheets each - for a total of 12 high-quality worksheets! Answer Keys Included!

Figurative Language Short Passage Sets are a no-prep, printable close reading activity that's perfect for middle school and high school. Each passage has between 206-226 words and is filled with between 14-19 examples of figurative language, such as hyperbole, metaphor, simile, and personification. I’ve found that although my students can tell me the definition of these terms, simile is the only one they can truly pick out in a text. As a result, their writing is filled with overused similes that need work! These figurative language passage sets are rigorous, use higher-level words and phrases, and in addition to merely identifying the different types, students will be asked to discuss the impact it has on the reader, as they’re asked to do on standardized testing.

***Check out all my figurative language passage activities here!

Simply print and go! There is truly no preparation needed, which is why this set is perfect to leave for sub plans, bell ringers, homework, test prep, review or assessment!

*As an optional review activity, use my No-prep Four Corners Figurative Language Activity resource for a fun whole-group game, then use this passage set for assessment!

Activity:
Students can complete all three worksheets in each set as part of a packet, but I suggest using one each day. If you teach allusion, alliteration, idiom, or onomatopoeia, you can ask students to include those in Task 2 where they will be asked to continue the passage using a similar writing style. I have left some blanks on the checklist for this very purpose.

Reflection:
The class can review the answers and comments as a whole group when the activity is complete. You’ll be surprised how much better they’ll get at figurative language after being exposed to some high-quality examples!

WHAT'S INCLUDED...

12 Printable Worksheets

Each set includes...

► Task 1: Read and Highlight a Figurative Language Passage

► Task 2: Write a Similar Figurative Language Passage Using a Checklist

► Task 3: Figurative Language Analysis Graphic Organizer

⭐️ LOOKING FOR RELATABLE READING ACTIVITIES FOR TEENS?

Check out the Pop Culture ACTIVITY BUNDLE - your solution to no-stress lesson planning and easy print and go sub plans.

INCLUDES THESE HIGH-INTEREST TOPICS FOR TEENS...

⭐️ Crocs

⭐️ Netflix

⭐️ Takis

⭐️ Fortnite

⭐️ MrBeast

⭐️ Air Jordans

⭐️ TikTok

⭐️ OpenAI

6-Page Article & Activity Sets - Includes 8 Sets!

Each set includes...

► 1-page pop culture article

► Reading Comprehension - 7 multiple choice questions

► Critical Thinking - 5 short answer questions

► Crossword Puzzle

► Design Page

► Impossible MAZE

This Pop Culture Bundle for Middle School will make your students WANT to work and stay on task as they read about high-interest trending topics among teens. Also available for High School and Upper Elementary School.

Have a question?

Please check out the Q&A section or message me and I'll get back to you within 24 hours.

Don't forget to leave me feedback! I love to hear what my buyers say, how the product worked for them, and any feedback I can use to improve my product! (It also earns you points towards future TeachShare Purchases)

**For personal and single classroom use only. If using with multiple classrooms, please purchase additional licenses at the discounted rate.**

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This bundle includes lessons for all stories in the book Flying Lessons and Other Stories edited by Ellen Oh. The stories are not included in this resource. Lessons are focused on the following stories:

- How to Transform an Everyday, Ordinary Hoop Court into a Place of Higher Learning and You at the Podium by Matt De La Peña

- The Difficult Path by Grace Lin

- Sol Painting, Inc. by Meg Medina

- Secret Samantha by Tim Federle

- The Beans and Rice Chronicles of Isaiah Dunn by Kelly J. Baptist

- Choctaw Bigfoot, Midnight in the Mountains by Tim Tingle

- Main Street by Jacqueline Woodson

- Flying Lessons by Soman Chainani

- Seventy-Six Dollars and Forty-Nine Cents by Kwame Alexander

- Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push by Walter Dean Myers

Each lesson includes WORKSHEETS and a PRESENTATION. Worksheets come in color and b/w. Presentations include answer keys.

Each lesson contains:

- Pre-reading journal prompt

- Story vocabulary (except Main Street)

- Tiered reading questions

- Questions focused on one particular ELA standard

- Answer keys

BONUS ESSAY WRITING PROMPTS ARE INCLUDED!

If you teach 90 minute block classes, you would likely get through one lesson per day. If you teach 50 minute classes like I do, each lesson could take two days. This bundle could last from 2 weeks to 4 weeks depending on your schedule.

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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Say goodbye to last-minute lesson planning stress with No Prep Sub Plans Bundle. Packed with engaging activities and ready-to-use lesson plans, this all-in-one bundle is meticulously designed to ease the burden of substitute teacher planning while keeping students engaged and motivated. You get 4 days of lessons that include both reading and writing. The Behavior Reward Tickets ensure a seamless teaching experience for substitute teachers.

How to use the Reward Tickets:

Don't have the time or patience to put together a sub binder? Don't worry! When I have to step out, all I leave on my desk is any work for my students and place this Sub Note sheet on top....it's everything my sub needs to see on one easy note sheet. Fun, tear-off reward tickets that students can redeem for a small prize when the teacher returns will have students fighting to behave in order to earn one of the five coveted tickets! This will be a game-changer in your classroom!

WHAT'S INCLUDED...

12 Printable Worksheets

Each set includes...

► Task 1: Read and Highlight a Figurative Language Passage

► Task 2: Write a Similar Figurative Language Passage Using a Checklist

► Task 3: Figurative Language Analysis Graphic Organizer

► Answer Keys

The Four Figurative Language Short Passage sets have 3 close reading and writing worksheets each - for a total of 12 high-quality worksheets! *Answer Keys Included! Figurative Language Short Passage Sets are a no-prep, printable close reading activity that's perfect for middle school and high school. Each passage has between 206-226 words and is filled with between 14-19 examples of figurative language, such as hyperbole, metaphor, simile, and personification. I’ve found that although my students can tell me the definition of these terms, simile is the only one they can truly pick out in a text. As a result, their writing is filled with overused similes that need work! These figurative language passage sets are rigorous, use higher-level words and phrases, and in addition to merely identifying the different types, students will be asked to discuss the impact it has on the reader, as they’re asked to do on standardized testing.

• Sub Note Sheet with tear-off reward tickets for good behavior!

***CHECK OUT THE PREVIEWS FOR MORE DETAILS!***

Simply print and go! There is truly no preparation needed, which is why this set is perfect to leave for sub plans, bell ringers, homework, test prep, review or assessment!

*As an optional review activity, use my No-prep Four Corners Figurative Language Activity resource for a fun whole-group review game, then simply leave these sub plans whenever you are going to be out!

Activity:
Students can complete all three worksheets in each set as part of a sub packet, but if you don't see them for a full block then assign only one page each day you're out (you'll get even more bang for your buck!) If you teach allusion, alliteration, idiom, or onomatopoeia, you can ask students to include those in Task 2 where they will be asked to continue the passage using a similar writing style. I have left some blanks on the checklist for this very purpose.

⭐️ LOOKING FOR RELATABLE READING ACTIVITIES FOR TEENS?

Check out the Pop Culture ACTIVITY BUNDLE - your solution to no-stress lesson planning and easy print and go sub plans.

INCLUDES THESE HIGH-INTEREST TOPICS FOR TEENS...

⭐️ Crocs

⭐️ Netflix

⭐️ Takis

⭐️ Fortnite

⭐️ MrBeast

⭐️ Air Jordans

⭐️ TikTok

⭐️ OpenAI

6-Page Article & Activity Sets - Includes 8 Sets!

Each set includes...

► 1-page pop culture article

► Reading Comprehension - 7 multiple choice questions

► Critical Thinking - 5 short answer questions

► Crossword Puzzle

► Design Page

► Impossible MAZE

This Pop Culture Bundle for Middle School will make your students WANT to work and stay on task as they read about high-interest trending topics among teens. Also available for High School and Upper Elementary School.

Have a question?

Please check out the Q&A section or message me and I'll get back to you within 24 hours.

Don't forget to leave me feedback! I love to hear what my buyers say, how the product worked for them, and any feedback I can use to improve my product! (It also earns you points towards future TeachShare Purchases)

**For personal and single classroom use only. If using with multiple classrooms, please purchase additional licenses at the discounted rate.**

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This bundle includes the in-class and digital version of our The Lottery Escape Rooms!

There is no wonder why escape rooms are so popular; they are highly engaging and encourage people to work together and think creatively in order to solve different puzzles... all while trying to beat the clock. Now, you can facilitate our popular The Lottery Escape Rooms in the classroom and at home for distance learning with this meticulously-crafted bundle. 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 run smoothly from start to finish. All tasks are skills-based so that with these fun lessons, learning is not sacrificed. Whether they are in school or at home, your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize how much they've learned about the short story.

How does it work?

In this escape room, students will try to escape the picturesque American town with a dark secret by solving 5 different skills-based puzzles, deciphering an encrypted message, and finding clues along the way.

• Close Read: In the first task, students must answer challenging multiple choice questions about The Lottery. The corresponding letters of the correct answers reveal their first code.
• Vocab Challenge: In the second task, students must fill in the blanks with vocabulary words from the text. Shaded boxes within the correct answers form their second code.
• Character IDs: In the third task, students must fill in a blank character chart about important characters in the story. When assembled correctly, letters of the correct answers reveal the third code.
• Criss-Cross: In the fourth task, students must solve a crossword puzzle with questions about literary elements and plot events of the story. Circled boxes on the crossword once unscrambled will reveal the code.
• Encrypted Message: In the fifth and final task, students must decipher an encrypted message (a quote from The Lottery) using clues they collected during the first four tasks. When the message is written on the scroll, final question is answered, and booklet brought to you, they can finally escape before it is their turn to pick from the dreaded black box.

In-Class Escape Room Includes:

- Escape Room Basics

- Detailed Day-Of Instructions

- Escape Room Print Checklist

- Student Teams Chart

- Welcome Sign for Your Door

- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and necessary information to be kept at stations

- Student Answer Booklet

- Teacher Answer Keys

- Escape Room Reflection for homework or in-class writing activity

- Theme Reflection for homework assignment or in-class writing activity

Digital (Paperless) Escape Room Includes:

- Instructions for how to access and share escape room and answer key through Google Drive

- Materials for 5 Tasks: digital task signs, detailed task instructions, and worksheets

- Digital Student Answer Booklet

- Digital Teacher Answer Key

*Note that this is the digital version of the escape room; tasks are identical, just reformatted for digital experience. Requires use of Google Slides.*

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This bundle includes the in-class and digital version of our Escape from Dystopia Escape Room!

There is no wonder why escape rooms are so popular; they are highly engaging and encourage people to work together and think creatively in order to solve different puzzles... all while trying to beat the clock. Now, you can facilitate our popular Escape from Dystopia Escape Rooms in the classroom and at home for distance learning with this meticulously-crafted bundle. 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 run smoothly from start to finish. All tasks are skills-based so that with these fun lessons, learning is not sacrificed. Whether they are in school or at home, your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize how much they're learning about dystopian literature!

How does it work?

In order to escape from your dystopian [digital] classroom of despair and destruction, your students must escape your room by solving 5 different utopian and dystopian related puzzles, discovering a hidden message, and finding clues along the way.

• Dystopia FAQs: In the first task, students must complete a crossword puzzle with questions about dystopian and utopian societies. Once complete, they must unscramble circled boxes to reveal the first code.
• Trending Now: In the second task, students must match an actual current law, statistic or trend with the dystopian novel that shows what, if taken to the extreme, could happen to our world. Once completed correctly, letters within the shaded boxes will reveal the second code.
• Word Maze: In the third task, students must complete a word maze. Letters collected along the way will reveal a theme of dystopia and act as the third code.
• Unknown Citizen: In the fourth task, students must perform a close reading of W. H. Auden's The Unknown Citizen. This is the perfect poem for discussing the totalitarian aspects of dystopian societies and how citizens can completely lose their individuality within them. The letters of the multiple choice questions about the poem will form the fourth code.
• Dys/U topia?: In the fifth and final task, students must assemble two charts for Utopia and Dystopia using hypothetical elements of both types of society. Letters of the correct answers reveal the final code phrase to escape the classroom!

In-Class Escape Room Includes:

- Escape Room Basics

- Detailed Day-Of Instructions

- Escape Room Print Checklist

- Student Teams Chart

- Welcome Sign for Your Door

- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and necessary information to be kept at stations

- Student Answer Booklet

- Teacher Answer Keys

- Visual "Keys"

- Escape Room Reflection for homework or in-class writing activity

- Theme Reflection for homework assignment or in-class writing activity

Digital (Paperless) Escape Room Includes:

- Instructions for how to access and share escape room and answer key through Google Drive

- Materials for 5 Tasks: digital task signs, detailed task instructions, and worksheets

- Digital Student Answer Booklet

- Digital Teacher Answer Key

*Note that this is the digital version of the escape room; tasks are identical, just reformatted for digital experience. Requires use of Google Slides.*

These escape rooms can be used as an introduction to or as a review of dystopia, however students will need at least a fundamental understanding of utopian and dystopian societies prior to engaging in the activities. Therefore, this 30-slide Introduction to Dystopia Powerpoint is included to be taught a day or two prior to the escapes.

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If you are looking for the perfect way to introduce or review dystopian literature for your students with a rigorous yet engaging activity, look no further than our Escape from Dystopia Escape Room!

There is no wonder why escape rooms are so popular; they are highly engaging and encourage people to work together and think creatively in order to solve different puzzles... all while trying to beat the clock! 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!

How does it work?

In order to escape from your dystopian classroom of despair and destruction, your students must escape your room by solving 5 different utopian and dystopian related puzzles, discovering a hidden message, and finding clues along the way.

• Dystopia FAQs: In the first task, students must complete a crossword puzzle with questions about dystopian and utopian societies. Once complete, they must unscramble circled boxes to reveal the first code.
• Trending Now: In the second task, students must match an actual current law, statistic or trend with the dystopian novel that shows what, if taken to the extreme, could happen to our world. Once completed correctly, letters within the shaded boxes will reveal the second code.
• Word Maze: In the third task, students must complete a word maze. Letters collected along the way will reveal a theme of dystopia and act as the third code.
• Unknown Citizen: In the fourth task, students must perform a close reading of W. H. Auden's The Unknown Citizen. This is the perfect poem for discussing the totalitarian aspects of dystopian societies and how citizens can completely lose their individuality within them. The letters of the multiple choice questions about the poem will form the fourth code.
• Dys/U topia?: In the fifth and final task, students must assemble two charts for Utopia and Dystopia using hypothetical elements of both types of society. Letters of the correct answers reveal the final code phrase to escape the classroom!

Product Includes:

- Escape Room Basics

- Detailed Day-Of Instructions

- Escape Room Print Checklist

- Student Teams Chart

- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and supplementary materials to be kept at stations

- Student Answer Booklet

- Teacher Answer Keys

- Code Word Theme Open Response for homework or in-class writing activity

- Escape Room Reflection for homework or in-class writing activity

This escape room can be used as an introduction to or as a review of dystopia, however students will need at least a fundamental understanding of utopian and dystopian societies prior to engaging in the escape room. Therefore, this 30-slide Introduction to Dystopia Powerpoint is included to be taught a day or two prior to this lesson.

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We've gone digital! Check out the digital version to support distance learning here:

⭐ Escape from Dystopia Digital ESCAPE ROOM & PowerPoint

Also, check out these great products for your unit on DYSTOPIA by Language Arts Excellence:

⭐ Dystopian Literature Socratic Seminar

The Handmaid's Tale

⭐ The Handmaid's Tale "Hot Seat!"

⭐ The Handmaid's Tale "Silent Conversation" Quote Pass Activity

⭐ The Handmaid's Tale Anticipation Guide & Lesson Plan

⭐ The Handmaid's Tale Journal Prompts

⭐ The Handmaid's Tale Quote Posters

⭐ The Handmaid's Tale Socratic Seminar Lesson Plan and Materials

The Lottery

⭐The Lottery Activity Bundle

⭐ The Lottery Social Media Materials

⭐ The Lottery Socratic Seminar Lesson Plan and Materials

⭐ The Lottery "Tossing Lines" Anticipation Guide

Harrison Bergeron

⭐ Harrison Bergeron ESCAPE ROOM

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⭐⭐⭐For the escape room enthusiasts out there, you can now build your own bundle at 20% off the cover price of 3 or more escape rooms! Click the link to check out all of the escape rooms Language Arts Excellence has to offer: Build Your Own Escape Room BUNDLE⭐⭐⭐

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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 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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Click to Follow Language Arts Excellence

This resource features a bundle of all of our lesson plans, materials, and activities for Edgar Allan Poe's chilling tale of plague and pestilence, The Masque of the Red Death. 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 Masque of the Red Death Literature Guide: This literature guide features a Common Core-aligned mini-unit for use while reading The Masque of the Red Death. The packet provides an excellent basis for comprehension and vocabulary acquisition for the short story and encourages students to think critically about Poe's use of literary elements, figurative language, and symbolism. Also included are 12 reader response task cards for literature circles and a creative social media activities that will bring the story to life in the 21st century. A full answer key is provided along with three bonus student-tested lesson plans. 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 horrifying tales in American literature.

• Masque of the Red Death Anticipation Guide & Lesson Plan (also included within Literature Guide): This resource features an anticipation guide for the story along with a meticulously-explained lesson plan that is in my opinion, the absolute best way to approach a new short story. 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 Masque of the Red Death.

• The Masque of the Red Death Social Media Activities (also included within Literature Guide): This resource features two fun, interactive activities to bring The Masque of the Red Death into the 21st century! In this 45 minute lesson plan with accompanying materials, your classroom will transform into a real life "twitter-world" in which students will create twitter accounts for hypothetical characters in the story and interact with one another through their twitter pages. The Snap Chat worksheet is perfect for an engaging homework or sub-plan that your students will look forward to working on and sharing with their friends.Your students will thank you for offering such fun ways to connect with Poe's twisted tale and will not even realize how much they are learning by digging deep into the text. Both work perfectly for a Friday or even on Halloween when students need a mental break and a chance to tap into their creativity!

• The Masque of the Red Death Socratic Seminar: This resource features lesson plans and materials to conduct a formal set of Socratic Seminars for The Masque of the Red Death. 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... and no preparation is required by you at all.

• The Masque of the Red Death ESCAPE ROOM: This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Escape Room for The Masque of the Red Death. 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!

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This resource features a bundle of all of our lesson plans, materials, and activities for Roald Dahl's ironic tale of an enraged housewife, Lamb to the Slaughter. 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:

⭐ Lamb to the Slaughter Literature Guide: This resource features a comprehensive literature guide for the study of the story. The numerous activities provide an excellent basis for comprehension and vocabulary acquisition for the short story and encourages students to think critically about literary elements, theme, and a great emphasis on irony. A social media activity will encourage your students to bring the story to modern day and a formal open response question is included to ensure deep thinking and close reading of the text. Of course, a full answer key is provided for all lessons and worksheets. The wide range of activities in this literature guide will keep your students engaged and help them to gain a deep understanding of this cheeky tale.

⭐ Lamb to the Slaughter Escape Room: This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Escape Room for Lamb to the Slaughter by Roald Dahl. 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. 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.

⭐ Lamb to the Slaughter Anticipation Guide & Lesson Plan (also included within Literature Guide): This resource features an anticipation guide and a meticulously-explained lesson plan that I believe is the absolute best way to approach a new story. 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 Lamb to the Slaughter and your overall short story unit. I am confident that your students will enjoy this thoughtful, engaging activity and beg you to begin reading this creepy yet cheeky tale.

⭐ BONUS {FREE} FILE: Lamb to the Slaughter & The Black Cat Compare Contrast Essay: For this assignment, students will need to think critically and specifically about the similarities and differences between the two famous stories of marital strife taken to the extreme. A comprehensive chart is provided to prompt students to take a close look at both tales and to think beyond the obvious (like the fact that they are written by different authors) and consider the deeper similarities and differences (plot structure, mental state of the narrators, and elements of suspense, etc.) between them. These thoughtfully-constructed materials will help students develop exemplary compare/contrast essays that they can be proud of!

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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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