Lesson Plan Enduring Understandings To make connections between Shakespeare's style and modern music To use figurative language to communiate a theme To experiment with Shakespeare's language and English sonnet form To understand how the parts of an English sonnet are organized to create a central message To understand how tone shift impacts the thematic message in poetry To create an original English sonnet around a central theme Common Core Skills R1-6, 9, 11/ W 1-2/ 4-5 (6), 10-11/ SL 1, 4/ L 1-6 Procedure This activity assumes that students have prior knowledge and experience with Shakespearean sonnets. Students will first need to have a basic understanding of English sonnet form and Shakespeare's language. I would recommend this activity at the end of a Shakespearean sonnet unit. The pop sonnet began as an internet sensation and went on to become a popular book. The author had the idea to "Shakespearify" modern pop songs and morph them into sonnets. The result? A whole new level of depth for (mostly) simple songs with simple themes. Shakespeare would have been proud because this was Shakespeare's process-- to take simple ideas such as love and give them more complexity and sophistication. In this activity, students will explore pop sonnets via the (now famous) pop sonnet blog where it all started. They will then set out to select their very own pop songs to morph into Shakespearean sonnets. Students may choose to do this activity in pairs-- depending upon the level of the class. After crafting their own pop sonnets, students will then answer a series of questions that takes them through explaining and analyzing their original poems. Consider having students publish their pop sonnets online (via individual or class blogs) along with the original song lyrics and their analyses. Another fun and interactive way for students to share their pop sonnets is to have a read aloud in which the class tries to guess the title of the original song that inspired the sonnet. Differentiation Crafting a Shakespearean sonnet can be quite tricky due to the rhyme scheme and meter. Consider having students try one or the other, not both. Another option would be to give students an assortment of pop sonnets from the blog and have them analyze one of those in lieu of writing their own sonnets.

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!

In this mega Beowulf Bundle, you will find 25 lessons and activities that include very thorough answer keys with textual evidence where applicable to take your Beowulf unit to the next level. This bundle includes the following items: 1. Beowulf Anticipation Guide: Heroism 2. Beowulf Cultural Discovery: An Introduction to the Anglo-Saxons 3. Beowulf WebQuest and Wordle Poem 4. Anglo-Saxon History Notes 5. Anglo-Saxon History Quiz 6. Anglo-Saxon Values and Vices Chart 7. Beowulf Journal Prompts 8. Beowulf Reading and Discussion Questions 9. Beowulf Reading Checks 10. Beowulf “Connecting the Dots” Graphic Organizers 11. Beowulf vs. the Epic Hero Cycle 12. Beowulf Rhetoric Activity 13. Bias and Propaganda in Beowulf 14. Intertextuality Activity: Beowulf and Wilbur’s Poem 15. Beowulf and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen 16. Beowulf Agree/ Disagree Activity 17. Beowulf Debatable Statements Activity 18. Beowulf Essay Brainstorming Activity— Topics/ Themes Chart 19. Beowulf Essay Thesis Statements 20. Literary Criticism: “Subversive Female Power in Beowulf” 21. Beowulf Essay Prompts + Outline Form and Rubric 22. Beowulf Kenning Activity 23. Anglo-Saxon Boast Writing Assignment 24. Beowulf Comic Book Project 25. Beowulf Skills Application Test

I have spent the past TWO YEARS of my life compiling this bundle. No joke! This bundle contains 20 mini-lessons in 22 files/ 200+ pages to help guide your high school English students to success on the Literary Analysis Essay. Writing workshop is the cornerstone of the English Language Arts classroom. As English teachers, we are charged with the task of teaching students how to write effective essays across different modes of writing. One of these modes, the academic literary analysis essay, can present challenges for both teachers and students. How does the teacher identify, scaffold, and assess the skills needed to write a literary analysis essay? And how does the student know where to start and how to organize the writing process? That’s where this bundle comes in. Throughout my teaching career, I have developed a step-by-step guide for writing a literary analysis essay that is practical and easy to follow for both teachers and students. In this bundle, I have compiled 20 mini-lessons that take students through the entire writing process, step-by-step, from reading samples, to brainstorming, to drafting, to editing and revising, and to reflecting. In fact, these lessons are built so that they are reproducible for teachers. You can simply take each mini-lesson and photocopy it for your students to complete as homework and/or in class. To make this guide even more accessible for teachers, each mini-lesson also contains differentiated modifications for you to use as needed, and there are also answer keys and models included where applicable. So, let’s get started! It’s the “write” time. Table of Contents Mini-lesson #1: Student Sample Essays Mini-lesson #2: Introduction to the Literary Analysis Essay Mini-lesson #3: Grading Expectations Mini-lesson #4 The Thesis Statement Mini-lesson #5: Textual Evidence Mini-lesson #6: Putting the Thesis Statement Together Mini-lesson #7: The Introduction Paragraph Mini-lesson #8: The Body Paragraph Mini-lesson #9: Topic & Concluding Sentences Mini-lesson #10: Selecting & Organizing Textual Evidence Mini-lesson #11: Blending Quotations Mini-lesson #12: Crafting Commentary Mini-lesson #13: Putting Together the Body Paragraph Mini-lesson #14: The Conclusion Paragraph Mini-lesson #15: Initial Revisions & Editing for “Academese" Mini-lesson #16: Grammar Editing Mini-lesson #17: MLA Format Mini-lesson #18: Final Revision Forms Mini-lesson #19: Revisiting the Rubric & Final Submission Form Mini-lesson #20: Metacognition Literary Analysis Sample Essay Pack Writing Folder Progress Checklist Teacher Approval Form