Middle School Literacy

Our literacy resources feature video tutorials and short, self-paced modules on specific concepts in literacy.

Literacy Lessons in Science and Social Studies

astronautIn this collection of 38 science and social studies-themed literacy lessons, students read primary and secondary texts on a variety of topics to learn and practice literacy standards.

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Exploring Vietnam War Stories

vietnam war storiesExplore the Vietnam War through the lens and personal stories of Maryland Veterans that experienced it first-hand.


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Voices of Baltimore: Life under Segregation

voices of baltimoreIn this collection of 19 social-studies-themed literacy lessons, students read primary and secondary texts on a variety of science topics to learn and practice literacy standards.

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Writing in US History Collection

writing in US HistoryThis collection contains six interactive, self-paced lessons for high school students. Each lesson provides an immersive look at a key topic in U.S. history integrated with tools to develop writing skills.

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Other Resources

Knowing Poe

The literature, life, and times of Edgar Allan Poe, in Baltimore and beyond.

"The Tell-Tale Heart" | Edgar Allan Poe

In this interactive lesson, students explore the importance of setting in literature and apply their learning to the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

The Many Plots of A Midsummer Night's Dream

Students learn about the various plots in the play and how they move it forward. Videos, text-dependent questions, and graphic organizers highlight what students need to know about the play's Athenian court.

Character Change: The Diary of Anne Frank

In this interactive lesson, students examine what Anne Frank’s writing and a video dramatization of her diary reveal about her character and how it changed while she was in hiding.

Character Conflict: Language Immersion

In this interactive lesson, students develop literacy skills as they explore an English language arts focus on internal and external conflict as a plot device.

Symbolism: Keely's Mountain

In this interactive, blended lesson, students develop their literacy skills through an ELA focus on symbolism. Key strategies include making inferences, determining important information, comparing/contrasting ideas, and making connections.

Personification: Cowbirds

In this interactive lesson, students learn about the cowbird through a documentary video and explore how the video uses personification as a literary device to present information about this bird.

Overcoming Challenges

Students conduct research to help them write an explanation of a television program or video game project based on the theme of overcoming challenges.

Arguing for Change

Students use fiction and nonfiction text resources, as well as interactives and multimedia, to prepare an argumentative writing assignment to get classmates to stop bullying.

What Affects the Choices We Make?

Students use fiction and nonfiction resources, multimedia, artwork, and photography to help them write an argument for or against a planned TV program about choices and how to make them.