Mary Oliver (1935-2019) was an American poet whose writing often focused on the natural world. In this poem, a speaker shares why they enjoy waking up early in the morning.
Material Type: Reading
Conoce la historia de Shakira, una de las artistas latinas más famosas del mundo.
Material Type: Reading
In June 2014, NPR published this story about Rashema Melson. At the time, Melson was a homeless high school senior at Anacostia High School in Washington, D.C. She is now a student at Georgetown University.
Material Type: Reading
In this informational text, Linus Unah, a freelance journalist, discusses one teen's work helping street kids in southern Nigeria. Unah covers the subjects of global health, conflict, agriculture, and development in Nigeria.
Material Type: Reading
The purpose of this lesson is to show learners how to keep a nature journal. How to reflect, respond, and question the observations they see in the world.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Diagram/Illustration, Lesson Plan
In this short story, a young basketball player begins a new life in Florida.
Material Type: Reading
This news article from Wicked Local discusses a middle school that added recess to their school day.
Material Type: Reading
Ira Glass is the host of WBEZ Chicago's public radio show This American Life, which uses interviews and real-life stories to examine different topics each week. On October 28, 2011, This American Life spoke with a mixture of middle school students about their experiences as adolescents. Skill Focus: In this lesson, you’ll practice identifying an author’s central idea and how they support it. Identifying an author’s central idea means paying attention to the evidence and reasons they give for their idea. As you read, take note of details that present the thoughts and concerns of the interviewed students, and what those reveal about middle school and adolescence.
Material Type: Reading
Richard Blanco was born in Madrid, Spain, and raised in Miami, Florida. He is the Education Ambassador of the Academy of American Poets. In 2013, at President Barack Obama's second inauguration, Blanco became the first immigrant poet, first Latino poet, and first openly gay poet to read a poem at the presidential inauguration. He is the author of multiple collections of poetry and a memoir. In this poem, the speaker writes to his mother.
Material Type: Reading
In the late 18th century, Toussaint L'Ouverture (1743-1803) led a slave uprising, also known as the Haitian Revolution, that liberated the former French colony and created the Republic of Haiti.
Material Type: Reading
Esmeralda Santiago is a Puerto Rican author known for her narrative memoirs. Santiago often writes about her experiences living in both Puerto Rico and Brooklyn. In the following piece published in the New York Times, Santiago reflects on her life and identity as she looks up a recipe for arroz con pollo, a classic Latin American dish.
Material Type: Reading
This story is set in a future where technology and artificial, or fake, objects have replaced many aspects of the life that we take for granted today. As you read, make note of the details that support how the narrator reacts to a real tree.
Material Type: Reading
Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) was an American poet and author known for his tales of horror. "The Tell-Tale Heart" is a story of murder and madness, and it is considered to be a classic of American literature.
Material Type: Reading
Recommendations for Teaching Academic Content and Literacy to English Learners.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration
