Help middle and high school students go beyond basic reading comprehension and support the development of critical thinking and literary craft analysis skills with this close reading worksheet covering Piri Thomas’ coming-of-age short story “Amigo Brothers.” An answer key is provided. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. By completing this close reading activity, students will: Identify what the text states explicitly as well as implicitly Utilize dictionaries to ensure knowledge of word meanings Infer the intended effects of the author’s word choices and narrative techniques Explore how complex characters think, behave, interact, and develop Compare and contrast the story’s protagonists Apply knowledge of literary devices including eye dialect, metaphor, onomatopoeia, personification situational irony, and more Consider themes in context Support claims and inferences with sound reasoning and relevant evidence Write about fiction with clarity, accuracy, and precision Come to class better prepared to discuss literature

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning responsibilities with this plot-based quiz covering the short story “Amigo Brothers” by Piri Thomas. The assessment may double as a guided reading worksheet to facilitate active engagement with the narrative. An answer key is included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: Setting The ages of the protagonists The protagonists’ shared goals and philosophies Physical descriptions of the protagonists How the protagonists decide to handle conflict The reaction of the public The story’s resolution And more

Support vocabulary development and enhance reading comprehension with this set of games and activities to complement Piri Thomas’ coming-of-age short story “Amigo Brothers.” A crossword puzzle, a word search activity, a vocabulary application worksheet, and answer keys are provided. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Specifically, the following vocabulary terms are addressed: affect, barrage, bilingual, bout, briskly, corazón, dispel, evade, fitful, frenzied, hermano, improvise, lanky, nimble, peer, pensively, squint, tenement, torrent, and unbridled. By engaging with these activities, students will: Determine the meaning of unfamiliar and complex words Consult reference materials in order to learn and verify word meanings Discern the most proper application of words as they are used in sentences

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning responsibilities with this plot-based quiz covering a short story by the Brothers Grimm: “The Three Brothers.” The assessment may double as a guided reading worksheet to facilitate active engagement with the Grimm’s fairy tale. An answer key is included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: The brothers’ common objective The nature of the father’s relationship with his sons The brothers’ distinct interests Secondary characters who cross paths with primary characters The resolution And more

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning responsibilities with this plot-based quiz covering a short story by the Brothers Grimm: “The Singing, Springing Lark.” The assessment may double as a guided reading worksheet to facilitate active engagement with the Grimm’s fairy tale. An answer key is included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: The daughters’ requests of their father The father’s favorite daughter Threats from a predator The father’s fear upon returning home Peculiar traits of the prince The reason for the youngest daughter’s return home The reason for the prince’s reluctance to attend a celebratory event How the prince is persuaded to attend The prince’s seven-year promise The princess’ pursuit of information and resources The resolution

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning responsibilities with this plot-based quiz covering a cautionary fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm: “The Wolf and the Man.” The assessment may double as a guided reading worksheet to facilitate active engagement with the narrative. An answer key is included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: The fox’s perspective on what makes for the best self-defense The wolf’s impulsive nature The fox’s role in the wolf’s downfall The various humans the wolf observes The fox’s actions in contrast to the wolf’s The wolf’s lack of knowledge about the ways of man The fox’s concluding remarks

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning responsibilities with this plot-based quiz covering a short story by the Brothers Grimm: “The Wolf and the Seven Young Goats.” The assessment may double as a guided reading worksheet to facilitate active engagement with the fairy tale. An answer key is included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: The reason for the mother goat’s departure Distinguishing characteristics of the wolf The mother’s emotional state as she departs Means by which the wolf tries to trick the little goats The number of eaten goats The location of the uneaten goat(s) Means by which the eaten goats are rescued The wolf’s cause of death The goats’ collective reaction to the wolf’s death

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning responsibilities with this plot-based quiz covering a short story by the Brothers Grimm: “The Donkey.” The assessment may double as a guided reading worksheet to facilitate active engagement with the fairy tale. An answer key is included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: A queen’s self-image The donkey’s relation to the king and queen The queen’s treatment of the donkey The donkey’s love of music Factors that contribute to the donkey’s sadness A king’s kindness A servant’s secret order The donkey’s transformation The resolution And more

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning responsibilities with this plot-based quiz covering a short story by the Brothers Grimm: “Gossip Wolf and the Fox.” The assessment may double as a guided reading worksheet to facilitate active engagement with the narrative. An answer key is included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: Gossip Wolf’s general disposition Gossip Wolf’s request of the fox The fox’s general disposition Acts of deception The humans’ treatment of Gossip Wolf The resolution And more

With this test covering the entirety of the science fiction novel Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton, English teachers will evaluate students’ knowledge of characters, plot, and vocabulary. In addition, students will demonstrate character analysis skills by drafting a five-paragraph essay in which they argue whether John Hammond is a sympathetic or unsympathetic figure. A test preparation guide, standards-based writing rubric, and answer key are included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. By taking this assessment, students will: Demonstrate knowledge of primary and secondary characters and the key aspects of their lives Demonstrate knowledge of significant events that take place throughout the novel Respond to an essay prompt about John Hammond’s characterization Cite relevant textual evidence in support of claims made in an academic essay

Support vocabulary development and enhance reading comprehension with this set of games and activities to complement Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton (seventh iteration and epilogue). A crossword puzzle, a word search activity, a vocabulary application worksheet, and answer keys are provided. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Specifically, the following vocabulary terms are addressed: awestruck, bemused, benign, curtly, deduce, evoke, hasten, impetuous, ineffectually, laconically, matriarchal, narcotic, paradigm, rebuke, reeking, shirk, skitter, and spatial. By engaging with these activities, students will: Determine the meaning of unfamiliar and complex words Consult reference materials in order to learn and verify word meanings Discern the most proper application of words as they are used in sentences

Support vocabulary development and enhance reading comprehension with this set of games and activities to complement Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton (sixth iteration). A crossword puzzle, a word search activity, a vocabulary application worksheet, and answer keys are provided. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Specifically, the following vocabulary terms are addressed: agitation, cascade, dismay, empirical, euphoria, giddy, impregnable, incurious, interminable, menacingly, phosphorescent, protrude, revocation, squint, striation, taunt, and tinny. By engaging with these activities, students will: Determine the meaning of unfamiliar and complex words Consult reference materials in order to learn and verify word meanings Discern the most proper application of words as they are used in sentences

Support vocabulary development and enhance reading comprehension with this set of games and activities to complement Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton (fifth iteration). A crossword puzzle, a word search activity, a vocabulary application worksheet, and answer keys are provided. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Specifically, the following vocabulary terms are addressed: auxiliary, clamber, commodity, foliage, frivolously, gibber, guru, humility, idle, indistinct, inexorably, marshal, mundane, outmoded, precariously, scowl, supercilious, temperament, and translucent. By engaging with these activities, students will: Determine the meaning of unfamiliar and complex words Consult reference materials in order to learn and verify word meanings Discern the most proper application of words as they are used in sentences

Support vocabulary development and enhance reading comprehension with this set of games and activities to complement Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton (fourth iteration). A crossword puzzle, a word search activity, a vocabulary application worksheet, and answer keys are provided. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Specifically, the following vocabulary terms are addressed: abruptly, concomitant, docile, emphatic, exhalation, flare, immense, maudlin, ominous, pungent, shrill, sparse, swiftly, taut, treacherous, trudge, vaguely, vindicate, wince, and wriggle. By engaging with these activities, students will: Determine the meaning of unfamiliar and complex words Consult reference materials in order to learn and verify word meanings Discern the most proper application of words as they are used in sentences

Support vocabulary development and enhance reading comprehension with this set of games and activities to complement Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton (second iteration). A crossword puzzle, a word search activity, a vocabulary application worksheet, and answer keys are provided. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Specifically, the following vocabulary terms are addressed: adamant, barren, besieged, bleak, chitter, consternation, daunting, eccentric, erode, impart, indifferent, obscure, perpetually, personnel, primly, reproachfully, signify, and tedious. By engaging with these activities, students will: Determine the meaning of unfamiliar and complex words Consult reference materials in order to learn and verify word meanings Discern the most proper application of words as they are used in sentences

Support vocabulary development and enhance reading comprehension with this set of games and activities to complement Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton (first iteration). A crossword puzzle, a word search activity, a vocabulary application worksheet, and answer keys are provided. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Specifically, the following vocabulary terms are addressed: arid, asphyxiate, beckon, competence, conjure, descend, edema, gnarled, iteration, masticate, peer, preliminary, primitive, profusion, promptly, scamper, scourge, and taxonomy. By engaging with these activities, students will: Determine the meaning of unfamiliar and complex words Consult reference materials in order to learn and verify word meanings Discern the most proper application of words as they are used in sentences

Support vocabulary development and enhance reading comprehension with this set of games and activities to complement Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton (introduction and prologue). A crossword puzzle, a word search activity, a vocabulary application worksheet, and answer keys are provided. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Specifically, the following vocabulary terms are addressed: commerce, consortia, consul, corrugated, decipher, grueling, haste, intravenous, murmur, prestigious, principal, rickety, shudder, transitory, trot, vagaries, and whimsical. By engaging with these activities, students will: Determine the meaning of unfamiliar and complex words Consult reference materials in order to learn and verify word meanings Discern the most proper application of words as they are used in sentences

Help high school students go beyond basic reading comprehension and support the development of critical thinking and literary craft analysis skills with this close reading worksheet covering a meaningful excerpt from chapter 16 of Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers. An answer key is provided. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. By completing this close reading activity, students will: Identify what the text states explicitly and implicitly Consult reference materials as needed to learn or verify word meanings Discern the intended effects of the author’s word choices and narrative techniques Examine how complex characters think, behave, interact, and develop Apply knowledge of literary devices with emphasis on foreshadowing Choose the best textual evidence in support of an idea Write about complex literature with clarity, accuracy, and precision Come to class better prepared to discuss literature

Support vocabulary development and enhance reading comprehension with this set of games and activities to complement chapter 16 of The Adventures of Ulysses by Bernard Evslin (“The Return”). A crossword puzzle, a word search activity, a vocabulary application worksheet, and answer keys are provided. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Specifically, the following vocabulary terms are addressed: archery, bestow, brawl, churl, clamor, disarm, errand, exultant, jest, lanky, merry, quiver, rampart, roister, scurvy, spurn, stile, tallow, torpor, and wheedle. By engaging with these activities, students will: Determine the meaning of unfamiliar and complex words Consult reference materials in order to learn and verify word meanings Discern the most proper application of words as they are used in sentences

Support vocabulary development and enhance reading comprehension with this set of games and activities to complement chapters 14 and 15 of The Adventures of Ulysses by Bernard Evslin. A crossword puzzle, a word search activity, a vocabulary application worksheet, and answer keys are provided. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Specifically, the following vocabulary terms are addressed: bard, besieged, brazen, buoyant, commerce, exert, heft, lyre, oracle, owlish, prudence, scowl, smitten, sneeringly, stagger, sturdy, supplicant, usher, witty, and writhe. By engaging with these activities, students will: Determine the meaning of unfamiliar and complex words Consult reference materials in order to learn and verify word meanings Discern the most proper application of words as they are used in sentences