This lesson’s purpose is to help students comprehend and analyze the first Rocky movie (1979) through a literary lens. Topics on this viewing guide and quiz include plot development, characterization, character arc of change, figurative language, and literary devices. It includes fifty multiple-choice questions (modeled after the SAT & ACT exam questions) and two open-ended essay questions. Questions are from all levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy (revised). Questions are in chronological order with the film. Answer key included. Objectives/US Standards (SUGGESTED) (From Corestandards.com): Students are expected to: • Analyze how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama propel the action, reveal aspects of a character, or provoke a decision. • Analyze how differences in the points of view of the characters and the audience or reader (e.g., created through the use of dramatic irony) create such effects as suspense or humor. • Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence.

These stories were written to inspire at a time when the world seems to need it most. The characters in these stories range from naïve, innocent, and kind to bold, strange, and detached from reality. We meet two young people in love in “What These Old Eyes Saw” and a curious man in “A Case of Delusion”. We have philosophical discussions in fables and conversations on love, wisdom, and giving with “The Student and the Master” stories. These stories are great for anyone of any age!

This lesson is aimed to help comprehension and analysis of “The Summoner’s Tale” from Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales. The quiz has seventeen multiple-choice questions that will require students to analyze the tales at higher levels of cognition. The questions are purposely ordered to begin at the lower levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy and progressively work up the levels with each successive question. More quizzes and tests will be added at my store as they are written. The answer key is included and this word document is editable!

This lesson plan is a collection of short reading passages from the upcoming book Through the Night: A Zombie Novel Book One by Carlos Salinas. This is only the first reading passage and many more will be added to my store as I write the book and create them (so follow me for updates ) Its high-interest story of young teens surviving a zombie apocalypse is aimed at young adult, teen, and new adult readers. Themes include: survival, honor, love, bullying, friendship, kindness, and triumph of the human spirit. It aims at engaging students in a gripping story while helping them improve their reading comprehension and use of reading strategies. This reading passage has six multiple-choice questions, twelve pages total, with answer key included. The questions range from the lower levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy to its higher levels. Questions include topics of story events as well as literary devices. These reading passages are ideal as homework, independent practice, warm-ups and do-nows. Feedback is welcome so please feel free to leave a comment on this lesson or send me a message! Thank you in advance.

This lesson is aimed to help comprehension and analysis of “The Physician’s Tale” from Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales. The quiz has fifteen multiple-choice questions as well as two open-ended essay questions that will require students to analyze the tale at higher levels of cognition. The questions are purposely ordered to begin at the lower levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy and progressively work up the levels with each successive question. Includes link to printable PDF version of the tale. Answer key included and feedback is welcomed!

This lesson is aimed to help comprehension and analysis of “The Friar’s Tale” from Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales. The quiz has fifteen multiple-choice questions as well as two open-ended essay questions that will require students to analyze the tales at higher levels of cognition. The questions are purposely ordered to begin at the lower levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy and progressively work up the levels with each successive question. Includes link to printable version of the tale. Answer key included and feedback is welcomed!

This lesson is aimed to help comprehension and analysis of Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Tell-Tale Heart”. This quiz has fifteen multiple-choice questions as well as two open-ended essay questions that will require students to analyze the story at higher levels of cognition. The questions are purposely ordered to begin at the lower levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy and progressively work up the levels with each successive question. Includes links to free printable story text, videos, and answer key.

An original short story entitled "Between Death and Life".This story tells about the death of a man named William Kind (symbolic for the kind of person he was.) Each chapter tells the scene at the emergency room where William dies of a heart attack. The first chapter is told from the perspective of his wife; the second from his son, Michael; the third from the doctor; and the fourth and final chapter is told by William himself. There are review questions after the story for student comprehension and reflection. The margins on the left side were intentionally made wider to facilitate student annotation (see annotation handout linked under “Helpful Resources”) including drawing pictures of events, asking questions, commenting on events, highlighting new vocabulary words, summarizing paragraphs, etc. This is great as a warm-up, class activity, or homework to strengthen reading skills and use of strategies. I am open to feedback and suggestions on how to make this lesson better! Includes 8 multiple-choice questions with answer key. Editable MS Word document.

Everyone needs a little encouragement! From students, to teachers, administrators, coaches, and parents! These printable thought/comment bubbles are perfect for letting people know how much you appreciate them and how proud you are of their accomplishments. Be creative and include some word play or inside jokes that will make it more meaningful for the person you’re writing it for. Leave these around the teachers’ and staff’s mailboxes and encourage others to leave one for a colleague. Better yet, leave some yourself for others and watch the morale and positivity blossom at your school or workplace! Great for leaving in students’ homework folders with motivational quotes or verbal pats-on-the-back encouraging them. The sky really is the limit with these little things that can make a big difference!

"The Scientist Rap" rap & hip-hop MP3 music file from the book "Got the Flow: The Hip Hop Diary of a Young Rapper" by Carlos Salinas. Includes printable handout of song lyrics. (100% clean) The main character of the book ("Got the Flow: The Hip-Hop Diary of a Young Rapper") 16-year-old Troy Jones challenges his science teacher that he can write an educational and positive rap song about science without any cursing. He promises to include the legendary scientists: Albert Einstein, Sir Isaac Newton, Nicola Tesla, and Thomas Edison. His teacher, Mrs. Hass, makes him perform it in front of the entire class for his passing grade. He is determined to become a successful rapper to give his mom a better life. If he can write a clean, educational song, then he is a better rapper for having met the challenge. Inspired by losing his first two rap battles, he is determined to win the third one.

"The Scientist Rap" rap & hip-hop music video and song from the book "Got the Flow: The Hip Hop Diary of a Young Rapper" by Carlos Salinas. Includes printable handout of song lyrics. The main character of the book ("Got the Flow: The Hip-Hop Diary of a Young Rapper") 16-year-old Troy Jones challenges his science teacher that he can write an educational and positive rap song about science without any cursing. He promises to include the legendary scientists: Albert Einstein, Sir Isaac Newton, Nicola Tesla, and Thomas Edison. His teacher, Mrs. Hass, makes him perform it in front of the entire class for his passing grade. He is determined to become a successful rapper to give his mom a better life. If he can write a clean, educational song, then he is a better rapper for having met the challenge. Inspired by losing his first two rap battles, he is determined to win the third one.

The eBook is available on Amazon https://goo.gl/zck2y4 Free excerpt at https://goo.gl/2FymNv This includes the MP3 music file with printable handout of lyrics. 100% clean appropriate for all middle school and high school students. Students can reflect and discuss or journal about the topics in the song's lyrics. The main character of the book ("Got the Flow: The Hip-Hop Diary of a Young Rapper") 16-year-old Troy Jones is in the hospital as his mom just survived a heart attack from overworking and stress. He is determined to become a successful rapper to give his mom a better life. Inspired by the pain of the his mom's hospitalization and the fear of his upcoming 3rd rap battle (he lost his first two) he pens this rap to God.

The eBook is available on Amazon https://goo.gl/zck2y4 Free excerpt at https://goo.gl/2FymNv ! This includes the MP4 music video with printable handout of lyrics. 100% clean appropriate for all middle school and high school students. Students can reflect and discuss or journal about the topics in the song's lyrics. The main character of the book ("Got the Flow: The Hip-Hop Diary of a Young Rapper") 16-year-old Troy Jones is in the hospital as his mom just survived a heart attack from overworking and stress. He is determined to become a successful rapper to give his mom a better life. Inspired by the pain of the his mom's hospitalization and the fear of his upcoming 3rd rap battle (he lost his first two) he pens this rap to God. The book is due out Fall 2017. THIS SONG IS FREE FOR DOWNLOAD ON SOUNDCLOUD AND FEEL FREE TO SHARE THE MP3. :) Free excerpt and updates at carlossalinaswriting.com! Thanks for listening!

A Lesson on How to Develop Good Habits, Reach Your Goals, and Improve Your Life: For Teens and Young & New Adults (For Anyone, Really!) I am very excited to share this lesson plan *preview* with you folks! I am all about staying motivated and personal growth so I decided to make a lesson to help students set clear, realistic goals, monitor and adjust their progress, break bad habits and form good ones, and key strategies to help keep them motivated throughout the whole process. I studied books by Tony Robbins, Napoleon Hill, Jim Rohn, Sean Covey, John C. Maxwell, Martin Seligman, and countless other successful mentors and coaches and concentrated the strategies, wisdom, and steps needed for effective change for teens and young adults. Some topics discussed and aimed for improvement are: • Psychology (Positive, Cognitive, Social, Behavioral, Industrial, and others) • Psychosomatic Illness • Positive & Negative Reinforcement and Punishment • Behavior Modification Everything in this lesson is worded in teen-friendly language with relatable ideas and situations adolescents would find themselves in. It also includes helpful pictures and graphic organizers for students to interact with the lessons effectively. Some notable Daily Thought titles are: 1. The Beauty and Struggle of Self-Transformation 2. Attitude is 99% of Success…and Write it Down! 3. Hard Truths in Life We Must All Accept…But There’s Good Ones, Too! 4. It’s not your potential that matters - it’s what you actually do! (And Ways to Stay Motivated) 5. Adopt an Attitude of Gratitude! Every Daily Thought comes with space for students to personally reflect on the day’s lesson on how it relates to them and how they will implement the strategies and practices personally. This lesson is designed to be worked on and reflected daily and it is very important that the participants adhere to the schedule to achieve the intended desired results. A special note to teachers: This is only Part I of this lesson. I expect the complete lesson to end up being around 45-60 days long and I would very much appreciate any constructive feedback and suggestions from you! Please send to me personally at authorcarlossalinas@gmail.com. I can also add you to my educational materials e-mail newsletter list if you would like to be notified when the complete lesson is available (as well as getting my other lessons for free). I would also love to connect with each and every one of you on my social networks linked below. Thank you in advance!

A Lesson on How to Develop Good Habits, Reach Your Goals, and Improve Your Life: For Teens and Young & New Adults (For Anyone, Really!) I am very excited to share this lesson plan with you folks! I am all about staying motivated and personal growth so I decided to make a lesson to help students set clear, realistic goals, monitor and adjust their progress, break bad habits and form good ones, and key strategies to help keep them motivated throughout the whole process. I studied books by Tony Robbins, Napoleon Hill, Jim Rohn, Sean Covey, John C. Maxwell, Martin Seligman, and countless other successful mentors and coaches and concentrated the strategies, wisdom, and steps needed for effective change for teens and young adults. Some topics discussed and aimed for improvement are: • Psychology (Positive, Cognitive, Social, Behavioral, Industrial, and others) • Psychosomatic Illness • Positive & Negative Reinforcement and Punishment • Behavior Modification Everything in this lesson is worded in teen-friendly language with relatable ideas and situations adolescents would find themselves in. It also includes helpful pictures and graphic organizers for students to interact with the lessons effectively. Some notable Daily Thought titles are: 1. The Beauty and Struggle of Self-Transformation 2. Attitude is 99% of Success…and Write it Down! 3. Hard Truths in Life We Must All Accept…But There’s Good Ones, Too! 4. It’s not your potential that matters - it’s what you actually do! (And Ways to Stay Motivated) 5. Adopt an Attitude of Gratitude! Every Daily Thought comes with space for students to personally reflect on the day’s lesson on how it relates to them and how they will implement the strategies and practices personally. This lesson is designed to be worked on and reflected daily and it is very important that the participants adhere to the schedule to achieve the intended desired results.

As many students struggle with understanding what atoms are and how they function and behave, this short, comical story was written to help teach and explain it with humor and wordplay. There are three main characters: the proton, the neutron, and the electron. They are having dinner when a hilarious argument ensues (along with scientific wordplay!). Includes nonfiction reading worksheet on atoms, 20 multiple-choice questions on both pieces, and a KWLS chart. I wrote this short story to help teachers like you help your students understand and learn science through humor. I hope you found it helpful and I would love to hear from you on what you think may make this lesson better. Completely customizable Word Document to meet your needs. Includes answer keys and 18 sheets total.

A zip folder with poster saying "Straight Outta Da Classroom" in the style of "Straight Outta Compton" font. Inspired by the hit movie, students love it and adds style to the classroom.

A must-have for any teacher! A free worksheet for group work where a student shares their writing and the others listen and write down something they enjoyed and something they want to know more about in the person’s writing. Made for groups of 5, but can be altered. Great for students to improve their writing and to sharpen their critical thinking skills!

A short story about a scientist who is obsessed with becoming immortal. Through lab experiments with mice and help from a local witch, he finally succeeds. He soon realizes that it may not be all he had hoped and then tries to get rid of his gift.

A collection of inspirational, motivational, truthful, philosophical, and thought-provoking quotes. Themes include, friendship, perseverance, goals, strength, positive attitudes, life, death, sorrow, and joy, among many others. Great for personal reflection or group discussion. Thanks! Ideal for expository, persuasive, journaling, narrative, and almost any other writing prompts. Recommended for teachers, students, coaches, and just about everyone else. Visit my store for more!