In this lesson, students are asked to compare the similarities and differences between two fables, "The Three Questions" and "Fu Finds the Way." Examples of students' Venn diagrams are provided.

In this lesson, students compare the video version of the teleplay "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street" to the actual teleplay. (A teleplay is a play or script written for television.) The links to media in this lesson no longer work, but it could easily be adapted to a different teleplay or to a stage show contrasted with a movie version. The lesson materials include handouts, graphic organizers, and samples of student work.

Students will read an article by Byron Loosle on the meaning of Native American symbols and compare that to a video clip of an actual Native American explaining the symbols. There is a difference of opinion and students will weigh both arguments along with the importance of the source and write their own opinion on the subject.

Students will comparing and contrast parts of "Eat Your Peas, Louise" by Mike Venezia to "Little Pea" by Amy Krause Rosenthal.

Links to 16 lessons that focus on skills within third grade reading standard RL.3.9.

Students will compare and contrast the written form of Sojourner Truth's "Ain't I a Woman" to a live reading of the poem by an actress. Follow-up activities provided.

Students will compare and contrast parts of two stories, "The Gingerbread Boy" and "The Gingerbread Girl" with the aid of graphic organizers.

In this lesson, students will talk about two characters from The Big Yellow Bus. Students will compare and contrast these characters. Then students write about what is similar and different.

This video [1:57] from the American Masters film Ralph Ellison: An American Journey explores the relationship between the fictional Brotherhood in the novel Invisible Man and the real-life Communist Party. Both Ellison and his literary mentor Richard Wright were associated with the Communist Party earlier in their careers, but later left because of political and artistic differences. Teaching materials are included.

This is a good example of how to write a literary analysis essay on poetry. This example compares and contrasts Tennyson and Yeats, Victorian poets, on the basis of their lives and their poetry. W.9-10.9a Analysis

Sixteen different versions of the Cinderella fairy tale from around the world. Some of the countries include: Norway, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, Serbia, Denmark, and Vietnam.

These five activities allow students to explore the various Cinderella folktales, while comparing and contrasting the characters. They provide lesson extensions, links to charts, discussion questions and the like.

Economic factors greatly influence the quality of education. The educational systems of developing countries are often on a substandard level when compared to nations of economically advanced countries. View and compare the classrooms of students from Kenya and Japan. [3:10]

Two PowerPoint presentations and a video [2:57] on comparing and contrasting literary and informational texts as well as how to write a literary analysis. Includes links to external resources.

This lesson introduces the comparison and contrast writing, a type of informative writing. [11:46]

Discussing real life heroes and heroines and viewing their pictures will help students learn about reading and writing biographies. A writing rubric assessment is included in this series of activities designed to teach about heroes and comparing and contrasting.

Although Disney's version of Cinderella is most popular in America, hundreds of versions exist across many cultures. This resource provides lessons, which examine the similarities and differences in literary elements among many versions of this fairy tale.

The 11th grade learning experience consists of 7 mostly month-long units aligned to the Common Core State Standards, with available course material for teachers and students easily accessible online. Over the course of the year there is a steady progression in text complexity levels, sophistication of writing tasks, speaking and listening activities, and increased opportunities for independent and collaborative work. Rubrics and student models accompany many writing assignments.Throughout the 11th grade year, in addition to the Common Read texts that the whole class reads together, students each select an Independent Reading book and engage with peers in group Book Talks. Students move from learning the class rituals and routines and genre features of argument writing in Unit 11.1 to learning about narrative and informational genres in Unit 11.2: The American Short Story. Teacher resources provide additional materials to support each unit.

In this unit, students will explore great works of American literature and consider how writers reflect the time period in which they write. They will write two literary analysis papers and also work in groups to research and develop anthologies of excellent American stories.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Students read and analyze stories from several 19th-, 20th-, and 21st-century American authors. After researching a time period, they select stories from that period to create an anthology. The readings enhance their understanding of the short story, increase their exposure to well-known American authors, and allow them to examine the influence of social, cultural, and political context.
Students examine elements of short stories and have an opportunity for close reading of several American short stories. During these close readings, they examine the ways that short story writers attempt to explore the greater truths of the American experience through their literature.

GUIDING QUESTIONS

These questions are a guide to stimulate thinking, discussion, and writing on the themes and ideas in the unit. For complete and thoughtful answers and for meaningful discussions, students must use evidence based on careful reading of the texts.

If you were to write a short story about this decade, what issues might you focus on?
What defines a short story? Just length?
To what extent do these stories reflect the era or decade in which they were written?
To what extent are the themes they address universal?

CLASSROOM FILMS

History.com has short videos on the Vietnam War (“Vietnam” and “A Soldier's Story”).

In this lesson, students will reflect on the main characters in the two short stories they have read recently. They will begin a short paper about these stories.