While my students read a piece of literature, I give them "Reading Checks" to hold them accountable for the reading. These questions are not designed to be "tricky" or difficult. They exist only as a means to check whether or not students read the assigned pages; therefore, they are 100% plot questions. I use these questions to make sure students are on the same page (literally) and are ready to move beyond plot into analysis during class activities. As a side note, reading check grades are an excellent way to communicate to parents why a student may be struggling in your class because they will reflect whether or not a student is doing the assigned reading. In this document, I have attached reading checks for a novel study on Fahrenheit 451-- there are 5 reading checks in all (two for Part One, one for Part Two, and two for Part Three). Answer keys are included for EACH reading check!

This product is a POWER POINT that contains 30 MENTOR SENTENCES from famous classic writers to model key literary terms, rhetorical devices, and syntactical structures for students. For each sentence, students are to: 1. Copy the sentence. 2. Make observations about the sentence. 3. Imitate the sentence. 4. Learn about literary devices. 5. Answer questions about how the devices are used for rhetorical and literary effect. 6. Revise an essay with a new sentence modeled after that of the famous writer. 7. Reflect back on the new added sentence. 8. Share with a partner. These MENTOR SENTENCE activities will take students through the process of not only using literary and rhetorical devices in action but will integrate them into writing workshop as mini-lessons for making their writing more powerful. This POWER POINT is fully editable and is suitable for Advanced Placement and modifiable for other levels of HIGH SCHOOL English. ========================== Devices included in this set include: Parallel Structure Antithesis Anaphora Asyndeton Parataxis Polysyndeton Paradox Irony Chiasmus Balanced Sentence Epistrophe Rule of Three Tricolon Analogy Personification Metaphor Simile Metonymy Synecdoche Loose Sentence Hypotaxis Apostrophe Allusion Alliteration Consonance Assonance Rhetorical Question Litotes The Dash Hyperbole Understatement Semi-colon Colon Repetition Contrast Periodic Sentence Simple Sentence Amplification Antimetabole Anadiplosis Balanced Sentence Zeugma Epithet Epanalepsis PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS ZIP FILE CONTAINS THREE VERSIONS OF THIS PRODUCT. IT IS NOT POSSIBLE TO EMBED FONTS INTO POWER POINT WITH MAC, SO I HAVE INCLUDED A .PDF VERSION AND AN UNEDITABLE .PNG VERSION (ON POWER POINT) THAT YOU CAN USE TO PRESERVE THE ORIGINAL FONTS AS DESIGNED. THIS FILE ALSO INCLUDES THE ORIGINAL POWER POINT THAT IS EDITABLE BUT WILL OPEN WITH DEFAULT FONTS FOR POWER POINT UNLESS YOU OWN THE SAME FONTS AS IN THE PRESENTATION.

This packet contains the following items to use with your students when preparing for an essay on the epic poem Beowulf: Beowulf Agree/ Disagree Activity a. This student handout contains five thematic statements that are relevant to the Beowulf story. Students either agree or disagree with each statement and then briefly explain their reasoning. This handout taps into students' prior knowledge on life themes relevant to the poem in order to establish a framework for thematic ideas they will observe in the story. I typically use this activity as an Anticipation Guide at the beginning of the Beowulf unit; however, it can also be used as an essay brainstorming guide or a classroom debate guide. These statements really get students interested in the story as they begin to think about why they believe what they believe and discuss/disagree with their peers. Beowulf Debatable Statements Activity a. This essay brainstorming activity contains 16 debatable thematic statements that relate to the Beowulf story to help students generate ideas for a Beowulf essay. Students are to think about how each statement applies to the Beowulf story (apart from their own personal opinions) and then briefly explain how each statement is true or false in the story. Students can complete this activity on their own or in small groups, and it is a terrific means of organizing whole class discussion and debate prior to beginning the writing process. After discussing the themes presented, students can then select one theme as the focal point for a theme analysis essay on the epic poem. Beowulf Essay Brainstorming Activity— Topics/ Themes Chart Beowulf Essay Thesis Statements Literary Criticism: “Subversive Female Power in Beowulf” Beowulf Essay Prompts + Outline Form and Rubric ALL of these items are included in my MEGA BEOWULF BUNDLE (25 lessons and activities/ 108 pages with keys)! The entire bundle can be found in our store, sold separately. Bundle and SAVE!

This product contains Lincoln's Gettysburg Address (found in the public domain) and 12 COMMON CORE multiple-choice questions for close reading along with a short answer written response question. I have provided the answers to the multiple-choice questions as well as a sample paragraph response to the prompt. The questions are critical thinking and analysis-type questions similar to that on the PARCC. This is a fantastic resource to prepare for the simulated research portion of PARCC as well as an excellent resource for targeting Common Core reading skills. Questions assess skills such as: Word meaning Summary Textual Evidence Rhetorical Devices Rhetorical Effects Text Purpose & Audience Be sure to check out Bespoke ELA online at: www.bespokeclassroom.com & follow our broadcasts on Periscope @bespoke_ela

This multiple-choice/ matching test includes two pieces of "new material" that connect to the epic poem Beowulf ("The Seafarer" and "Ulysses" by Tennyson), a few historical questions about the Anglo-Saxon Period, a matching section of epithets to characters, a matching section of Anglo-Saxon traits to examples from the epic poem, a series of interpretation/ analysis questions, and a written response/ essay question. This test does NOT test rote memory-- it is a challenging skills application test that is 40 questions long and will truly assess your students' understanding of skills rather than plot. The two pieces of "new material" can be used as taught pieces as well. This test is a great way to align your assessments of Beowulf with the Common Core standards because it involves transferring skills rather than just memorization. Answer key is included!

Included here are three popular creative writing assignments to accompany a unit on Beowulf. Beowulf Kenning Activity a. In this activity, students try their hand at creating modern-day kennings to share with the class. Students have fun being creative with kennings! Anglo-Saxon Boast Writing Assignment a. This assignment asks students to create a poetic boast modeled after that of Beowulf in the epic poem. Students must integrate devices such as hyperbole, alliteration, and kennings into a boast about their accomplishments. Then, students are to write a paragraph explanation of the role boasting plays in the poem using at least two quotations from the text. Students have great fun sharing their boasts and also comparing/ contrasting theirs to that of Beowulf's. This is a great activity to get students involved in the poem in an interactive way! Beowulf Comic Book Project a. This Beowulf project uses the structure of the comic book to assess student understanding of the literary elements in Beowulf, Anglo-Saxon culture, and reading/writing/collaboration skills. Included here is the project assignment along with a Common Core aligned rubric. This is a great project to tap into student motivation in a fun, collaborative, engaging way that will simultaneously target reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills. All three creative writing tasks are included in my MEGA BEOWULF BUNDLE (25 activities and lessons with answer keys included!) You can find the ENTIRE bundle in our store, sold separately. BUNDLE AND SAVE!

In this mini-lesson, students learn the three parts that make up an effective conclusion paragraph for a literary analysis essay. They will draft a conclusion paragraph, adding rhetorical punch to the final concluding statement, and then peer revise the conclusion for impact. This is an essential mini-lesson for the writing process. Find it in the Literary Analysis Mega Bundle, sold separately. Bundle and SAVE!

This bundle consists of 15+ multi-lesson activities to get your students involved in analyzing one of the key literary elements: characterization. In fact, all other elements and techniques generally revolve around characterization, so by working with your students to analyze character, they will also be exposed to these other devices. This bundle is divided into two sections: “Series Activities” and “Characterization Quick-picks.” The first section is organized according to a “lead activity” that corresponds to follow-up activities. Each “lead activity” contains a “Teacher Page” that gives instructions and tips for implementation along with the Task, Objectives, Common Core Standards, and an Optional Do Now Activity. Each “lead activity” is followed by a series of activities that are designed to stem from the “lead activity” although several of the follow-up activities can be used in isolation on their own. Each of these “follow-up” activities requires students to further explore characterization and finally to synthesize their findings into some kind of writing or presentation. This bundle is organized by “lead” activities that mostly include the following documents: Teacher Page, Lead Activity, Exploratory Activity, Interactive Activity, and Synthesis Activity (not necessarily in that order). You as the teacher can decide which activities will best fit the needs of your students and your curriculum and use them accordingly. The second section of this bundle contains “Characterization Quick-picks,” which are a series of single characterization lessons that you can use in isolation with any piece of literature or in conjunction with any of the more structured lesson series in section one of the booklet. These “grab and go” activities are particularly useful on those days when you need a quick lesson that is aligned to the Common Core. There are enough activities in this bundle to make characterization the entire focus of your curriculum. Use the multiple times throughout the year with different pieces of literature, or work through each activity as the year progresses. Each of these activities is sold separately in my store. Bundle and save over $15.00! Happy character analysis!

Given all of the tragic events that have happened in our world and continue to happen in our world, I have compiled a reading list of 75 texts for grades 6-12 about DIVERSITY, RACISM, INCLUSION, TOLERANCE, and MULTICULTURAL AWARENESS. I truly believe that it is crucial to our world that we diversify our students' reading experiences beyond the standard cannon because it's only when we are able to have experiences with people different from us that we can begin to understand those differences and not fear them. I spent many hours researching the texts on this list. The list contains poems, speeches, plays, novels, and essays that address issues such as bullying, racism, LGBTQ, learning differences, and cultural identity (African American, Asian American, Mexican American, and many others). Each text is hyperlinked on the list to Amazon and/or a website where you can either find the text or read about it. Please note that some texts are more suitable for 6th-7th grades while others are only suitable for 12th grade. Please vet these texts according to the grade you teach and appropriateness for your school community and student body. The great thing I discovered by creating this list was that it was DIFFICULT keeping the list down to just 75 texts. There are SO MANY awesome texts out there about these issues, which is a great problem to have. Now, we just need to get them into our classrooms. This document also contains a list of web resources where you can find even MORE READING LISTS and lesson plans for teaching on the importance diversity. I truly hope that you are able to use this product this year in your classroom. And I'd love to hear feedback of any texts that I absolutely MUST ADD to the list. I am always looking for ways to expand reading lists for my students and can't wait to integrate some of these pieces this year. I feel that as teachers we are the harbingers for creating peace in our world, and we bear the responsibility of showing our students that we are all part of the "human family." It is only through education that the violence can end.

This listing is for a characterization activity entitled "Magic Mirror" in which students analyze how a character's perceptions of himself/herself reveal character traits. This mini-lesson is part of the Mega Characterization Bundle of over 15 characterization mini-lessons that get your students working with all literary devices and techniques. You can find it listed separately in our store. Bundle and save over $15.00! For this mini-lesson: "Magic Mirror" Task To analyze the similarities and differences among a protagonist’s view of himself/herself versus how other characters view the protagonist Objectives To develop criteria for analyzing character To assess comprehension of character development across a text To select appropriate academic vocabulary for literary analysis To support analysis with textual evidence Common Core Standards R1, 3, 6, 11/ W1-4, 9-11/ SL 1, 4, 6/ L1-3 Instructions Oftentimes, the disparity in perception between how a protagonist of a story sees himself/herself and how other characters view the protagonist causes the protagonist to make a mistake—sometimes a very tragic mistake. In “Magic Mirror,” students are to consider how the protagonist views himself/herself as compared to how other characters view him/her. By looking at the protagonist through this lens, students can begin to see the imperfections of the protagonist that bring about conflict in the story. The lead activity, “Magic MIrror,” asks students to brainstorm adjectives to describe how the protagonist sees himself/herself. It also asks students to brainstorm adjectives to describe how other characters view the protagonist. Then, students can complete any or all of the follow-up activities to analyze the information from the “Magic Mirror” Activity including the “Magic Mirror” Chart, “Magic Mirror” Venn diagram, or the “Magic Mirror” Writing Task. All of these activities lend themselves to sharing/ discussing either in small groups or as a whole class, so consider ways for students to interact throughout these activities.

This listing is for a characterization activity entitled "What's in a name?" in which students analyze how a character's name reveals character traits. This mini-lesson is part of the Mega Characterization Bundle of over 15 characterization mini-lessons that get your students working with all literary devices and techniques. You can find it listed separately in our store. Bundle and save over $15.00! For this mini-lesson: Task To research the meaning of a character’s name and analyze how the meaning of names helps to create characterization Objectives To develop criteria for analyzing character To assess comprehension of character development across a text To select appropriate academic vocabulary for literary analysis To support analysis with textual evidence To conduct research from multiple sources and use that research to support analysis Common Core Standards R1, 3, 6, 11/ W1, 2, 4, 7, 9-11/ SL 1, 4, 6/ L1-3 Instructions Many modern literary critics argue that researching a character’s name in a piece of literature is a necessary part of conducting character analysis. In this activity, students will research the meaning behind a character’s name from a piece of literature. Students can either select the character, or you can assign each individual student or student groups to a particular character. Students will then visit several websites to conduct research on the meaning behind the name and compile their findings onto the Research Activity Sheet. After students have conducted the name research, there are three optional follow-up activities that involve discussion (“What’s in a name?” Pair Discussion), exploration (“What in a name?” Chart), and writing (“What’s in a name?” Analytical Paragraph)—all are attached below. These optional activities will allow students to compare/ contrast their findings from their name research and discuss how this research informs character analysis.

This listing is for a characterization activity in which students analyze the three dimensions of character. This mini-lesson is part of the Mega Characterization Bundle of over 15 characterization mini-lessons that get your students working with all literary devices and techniques. You can find it listed separately in our store! Bundle and save over $15.00! Task To assess the three dimensions of character Objectives To develop criteria for analyzing character To assess comprehension of character development across a text To support analysis with textual evidence To work effectively with others to produce a product To produce a piece of argumentative writing in an organized, coherent way using textual evidence Common Core Standards R1-3, 6, 10, 11/ W1, 2, 4, 10-11/ SL 1, 4, 6/ L1, 2, 3, 6 Instructions “Characters in 3-D” addresses the three dimensions of characters. Like real life people, characters have different aspects that create our life experiences. These dimensions are: physiology (physical makeup), sociology (life experiences), and psychology (behaviors & attitudes). When compiled together, we can begin to see a cause/ effect relationship emerge between the three different dimensions of character. In this series of activities, students will consider the three dimensions of a character and analyze how they interact to produce an entire character. In the Lead Activity, students are introduced to the three dimensions of character and then asked to apply them to their favorite character. Then, students move on to assessing the three dimensions of a protagonist of a piece of literature and collect evidence to put into an analytical paragraph in which they discuss how the physiology and sociology of a character lead to his/her psychology. Finally, students can work in groups to create a brand new SUPERHERO character in which they practice mapping out the three dimensions of character to present to the class. Students will have LOTS of fun creating a new SUPERHERO and sharing it with the class! This creative activity provides an interactive and entertaining way to assess students’ understanding of the three dimensions of character.

This listing is for a characterization activity entitled "Relationship Rectangle" in which students analyze how a character's relationships work to develop character traits. This mini-lesson is part of the Mega Characterization Bundle of over 15 characterization mini-lessons that get your students working with all literary devices and techniques. You can find it listed separately in our store. Bundle and save over $15.00! For this mini-lesson: "Relationship Rectangle" Task To analyze how character relationships contribute to character development Objectives To develop criteria for analyzing character To assess comprehension of character development across a text To select appropriate academic vocabulary for literary analysis To support analysis with textual evidence To communicate and defend an argument through class discussion Common Core Standards R1, 3, 6, 11/ W1, 2, 4, 10-11/ SL 1, 4, 6/ L1-3 Instructions For this activity, students will consider how the protagonist’s relationships in a story develop characterization. The “Relationship Rectangle” asks students to focus on the protagonist’s key relationships, including the protagonist’s most important relationship, most difficult relationship, the relationship that provides the protagonist with the most help and support, and finally the antagonist that acts against the protagonist throughout the story. Student’s selections for these relationships may vary, but students are asked to support their relationship selections with textual evidence and then discuss their findings with a group. Through this discussion, students will begin to agree/ disagree with each other’s relationship selections as a means of synthesizing how relationships in a story serve to characterize the protagonist. Students are then asked to develop an analytical paragraph that asks them to analyze how one particular relationship constructs the characterization of the protagonist. I have provided a shaping sheet for this analytical paragraph; however, you may wish to use it only for differentiation, with all of your students, or not at all (depending upon your students’ skill levels and needs).

This listing is for a characterization activity entitled "Debate Time!" in which students debate on various topics relating to characterization using textual evidence. This mini-lesson is part of the Mega Characterization Bundle of over 15 characterization mini-lessons that get your students working with all literary devices and techniques. You can find it listed separately in our store. Bundle and save over $15.00! For this mini-lesson: "Debate Time!" Task To debate different aspects of characters using textual evidence to support character analysis Objectives To develop criteria for analyzing character To support analysis with textual evidence To use rhetorical skills for constructing and supporting an oral argument To construct an effective argument supported with logical reasoning and textual evidence Common Core Standards R1, 3, 6, 11/ W1, 2, 4, 10/ SL 1, 3, 4, 6/ L1-3 Instructions One of the most engaging and interactive ways to get students involved in class discussion is through a debate. For the FIVE debate activities included in this listing, you will assign your students to a specific character from a specific piece of literature. Then, students will answer the yes or no “focus question” for the debate activity by providing textual evidence, reasons, and character traits to support each side of the debate for the assigned character. Each debate activity also includes an optional “Post-Debate Write-up” that students can complete after they have debated the question in class. This writing activity will help students to synthesize the class debate and arrive at their own character analysis. If you would like to assess the quality of student responses as well as create a more independent debate, consider using the rubric included here in this packet. This rubric requires students to speak a certain number of times, and students are assessed on the quality and depth of what they say—not just for merely speaking. There are also ways for students to earn bonus points during the discussion according to this rubric. The checks and symbols on the rubric are how I notate student credit during the debate. Overall, these discussions will get your students involved in analyzing literature on a deeper level and using textual evidence to support arguments.

This listing is for a characterization activity entitled "Subtext Submarine" in which students analyze how subtext reveals character traits. This mini-lesson is part of the Mega Characterization Bundle of over 15 characterization mini-lessons that get your students working with all literary devices and techniques. You can find it listed separately in our store. Bundle and save over $15.00! For this mini-lesson: Task To assess how subtext reveals character traits Objectives To develop criteria for analyzing character To assess comprehension of character development across a text To support analysis with textual evidence To use inference to analyze character To present findings to the class in an effective, organized, and compelling way To work effectively with others to produce a product Common Core Standards R1-4, 6, 10, 11/ W1, 2, 4, 10-11/ SL 1, 4, 6/ L1-6 Instructions Subtext is a difficult skill for students to comprehend because it requires students to look beyond what they see and to use their inference skills to draw conclusions about character. For this reason, I have developed the metaphor of the submarine to help students visualize this concept. In the “Subtext Submarine” activities that follow, students are introduced to the concept of subtext and then asked to apply that concept to character analysis. The Lead Activity contains an introduction to subtext using the metaphor of a submarine—the idea being that text exists on the surface (above the water), and subtext exists below the surface (under the water). Students are then asked to analyze a series of silly conversations for subtext and then to create their own. They will not only enjoy analyzing the silly conversations (“Ten Ways to Say NO!”) but also inventing their own (“Ten Ways to Say YES!”). The follow-up activities ask students to find examples of subtext in a piece of literature and explain how the subtext reveals character traits. Students can refer back to the list of Characterization Adjectives at the beginning of this packet in order to select appropriate academic vocabulary as they assign character traits to each example of subtext. Finally, students will then create a skit in which they use subtext to reveal character in order to synthesize their understanding of the concept. Once students have a grasp of the concept of subtext, they will enjoy working with it and using it to analyze character.

This product contains 26 pages of items to support a unit on nonfiction, or informational texts. You will find graphic organizers to assess the three more common text structures: descriptive, cause/effect, and compare/contrast. These graphic organizers are accompanied by writing tasks that are great tools to use for beginning an essay analyzing a nonfiction text. You will also find question stems to use for your nonfiction unit that include questions about text features, text structures, and rhetorical devices & appeals. These question stems are excellent tools for targeting Common Core skills and for preparing for standardized tests. In addition, there are two graphic organizers for addressing the 5W's of a nonfiction text as well as comparing/contrasting nonfiction texts. Overall, this is an excellent resource to enrich your next nonfiction unit!

As English teachers, we ask our students to edit and revise their peers' essays. However, students do not always know how to give constructive feedback. It's important that students are able to give constructive feedback about targeted writing skills while also maintaining the dignity of the writer. This product contains a handout with five tips for writing effective comments during peer revision and coaches students on how to go about giving thoughtful, quality feedback on academic essays in a supportive and encouraging manner. Then, there are "Comment Cards" that are divided according to targeted writing skills that give students a menu of options for giving positive comments and constructive criticism. Students are given models for writing criticism in a way that gives student an editing and revision task instead of simply marking something as incorrect. Writing criticisms as actionable items gives students a clear direction for editing and revising the essay. The Comment Cards are clustered according to the following targeted writing skills: Thesis Statement Introduction Paragraph Conclusion Paragraph Topic/ Concluding Sentences Body Paragraphs Organization Grammar & Punctuation Style & Word Choice Credibility MLA Format Following Directions Evidence Commentary & Analysis Students are also allowed to add their own comments to these cards in order to give themselves a bank of high-quality comment options. The Comment Cards are presented in two formats. The first format presents the comments clustered with their "sister" skills such as evidence and commentary. Following these pairings, each individual targeted writing skill is printed on a page of its own. You can decide how you want to give them to students as part of your writing workshop. These comments can also be used by teachers to give students feedback when they turn in essays. They can be easily converted into a checklist to accompany the essay rubric.

In this set of debate activities by Bespoke ELA, students will participate in a series of debates in response to "yes/no" questions about Shakespeare's play Macbeth. There are 10 debate questions in all. Students will collect evidence to support both sides of the argument and then debate a side with their peers in order to practice constructing logical arguments supported by textual evidence. Each debate chart is followed by an argumentative writing assignment as a culmination of the class debate. The teacher page included gives some suggestions for how to run a debate in your classroom, and I have also included my Debate Guide & Rubric for scoring your students' participation. These debate activities are excellent starter activities for an essay on Macbeth. Use them to facilitate the writing process and/or have students create "oral argument" presentations in which they share their interpretations with the class.

This reproducible sheet contains all of the Common Core College Readiness Standards for ELA for grades 9-12. This sheet is designed to give to students as a handout and put the power of the Common Core into their hands. The sheet contains two reflection questions at the bottom for students to answer. They are to identify the standards for a given assignment and then reflect upon their performance on those standards. This will help make the Common Core a "common" language in your classroom and enable students to track their own progress throughout the year. And, not to mention-- this sheet is a HUGE TIME SAVER for teachers because it makes students responsible for identifying and tracking standards. Give it a try!

This anticipation guide asks students to consider the modern-day, American concept of heroism. Students will brainstorm examples of heroism in today’s world as a means of studying the epic hero and the Anglo-Saxon concept of heroism. This activity establishes student anticipation of reading the poem Beowulf and provides an interesting platform for class discussion and debate. This guide is included in my MEGA Beowulf Bundle, which includes 25 lessons and activities to take your Beowulf unit to the next level! Find the entire bundle in our store, sold separately. BUNDLE AND SAVE!