American Literature Curriculum Resources and Projects

Enhance your American Literature curriculum with these modern, relevant, and engaging high school English resources! This diverse bundle will breathe life into your 11th grade American Literature course throughout the entire year!

This resource includes research projects, high school English bell ringers, and activities aligning with American Literature literary movements!

How will this benefit you versus other English III bundles?

• The materials, activities, and projects align with any American Literature curriculum.
• The resources support common 11th grade literature themes and are not limited to specific texts.
• Each resource is editable to meet your needs and includes a grading rubric or answer key.
• The activities facilitate creativity and critical thinking with your students.
• The focus on text-to-text, text-to-self, and text-to-world connections promotes higher levels of engagement.
• The activities foster a deeper understanding of American Literature.
• All resources are digital with directions for printing and Microsoft Office compatibility.
• This bundle is teacher-friendly with a detailed guide for each resource that includes full implementation notes.
• Frequent updates and any resource enhancements are included in this bundle for free!

This American Literature curriculum bundle includes the following 10 resources:

American Literature Bell Ringers and Creative Activities

Breathe life back into your American Lit course by implementing activities designed for today's modern teens! This resource includes 32 bellringer prompts and six extended creative activities for secondary American Literature.

Your students will be engaged with the attractive resource design, high-interest writing prompts including quotes by American authors, and the multiple activities utilizing popular songs and video clips!

What other teachers like you are saying...

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

These are awesome! They are engaging and even culturally relevant to my students. They have served as amazing bellwork, but also sparked some interesting discussions.

Annette W.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

These are so awesome. There are so many creative ideas throughout these warm ups. I appreciate the hard work that went into these slides. They are manageable for face-to-face class and very use-able for distance learning posts (great for discussion boards).

Lela C.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

These bell ringers are great for American Literature classes!

Kim's Middle School Mania

American Literary Movements Posters

Assess your students' understanding of American literary movements with this creative poster project! This resource will enhance your instruction by providing a unique way to review any American Literature literary period.

Students will create dynamic digital posters illustrating literary movements with images, texts, and graphics representative of that specific time period.

There are two different project options for differentiation and to provide you with flexibility. All resources (including grading rubrics) are included for each option!

What other teachers like you are saying -

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is such a valuable resource! My kids have just finished a unit on Romantic Writers and this is a great way to end the unit with a visual literacy aspect! The explanation, the checklist, and the reflection log are all top-notch and so easy to use!

The student-provided examples are amazing and super helpful. What a great idea to have these posters available now all year round as examples of student-created posters of the literary period(s).

Kelley M.

Colonial Literature Introduction - Salem Witch Trials Research

Help your students connect with Puritan society and early American literature, such as The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter, with this modern, engaging Salem Witch Trials Research Activity.

This teaching resource includes 30 inquiry-based research task cards, a digital and print task card response sheet, a detailed teacher’s answer key, and access to 52 Bookmarked research websites on the history of the Salem Witch Trials.

Implementation is easy for teachers! All research websites for this activity are accessible from just one link!

See what educators like you think about this resource!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This might be my favorite purchase from TPT. I teach many different levels of readers and this allows me to tailor the material to the student. It's so handy . . . I really don't love reinventing the wheel.

Katherine S.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Great resource and thank you. Student were engaged and challenged.

Alt Ed ELA Teacher

The Crucible Activity | Salem Witch Trials Music Playlist and Song Analysis

Are your students suffering from disconnect while reading colonial American literature? This music playlist project will help your students make modern connections with Puritan society and their beliefs!

Check out what other teachers are saying about this resource!

⭐️⭐⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was a great activity to wrap up the Crucible. We had some trouble with music websites being blocked by our district's internet, but that is not the fault of the product! The kids worked around it and discovered some interesting music and made great connections!

Miss Kiel

⭐⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

My students are pumped for this unit! I can't wait to really dig in to the materials!

Raquel Eshelman

Stand Up! Civil Disobedience Research Project

The Civil Disobedience Research project focuses on real people who have engaged in acts of rebellion, protest, and civil disobedience in order to enact change. This project aligns perfectly with the Transcendentalism literary movement!

This project can be used as a short-term research activity containing thematic connections to Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience," Huckleberry Finn, or with any of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s writings.

Students will research real-life examples of civil disobedience and social protest. An accessible project page has been created for this resource with over 50 bookmarked websites featuring people and acts of civil disobedience!

See what other educators have to say about this resource!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I cannot overstate how much I loved this activity for my 11th-grade American Lit class. This ticked so many boxes...connection to Transcendentalism, research paper, engaging process, easy to modify for my own class, hours of time saved. I used this at the end of my Transcendentalist unit, and it was hugely successful. I will be using this again, for sure, and I highly recommend.

Heatharlyne W.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Great stuff here, take it as a whole unit or piece meal it into your own. The research project was the best part.

Nolan S.

The Elements and Motifs of Gothic Literature

The Gothic Literary Elements, Motifs, and Activities resource provides students with a frame of reference and the background knowledge they'll need when reading any Gothic novel or Gothic short story.

The materials provide your students with an engaging introduction to Gothic literary elements and can also be utilized as a modern, unique supplement to your existing Gothic literature resources!

This resources pairs well with the Dark Romanticism literary period, Southern Gothic literature, and with any popular short stories from American Gothic authors including the following:

• “Tell-Tale Heart,” “The Cask of Amontillado,” or any short story by Edgar Allen Poe
• “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” by Washington Irving
• “Young Goodman Brown” and “The Minister’s Black Veil” by Nathaniel Hawthorne
• “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner
• H.P. Lovecraft's Short Stories
• “The Haunting of Hill House” by Shirley Jackson

The Introduction to Gothic Literary Elements includes the following:

• A modern and engaging Introduction to Gothic Literature Google Slides presentation of 45 Slides (uses humor and modern cultural references) Questions and Note-Taking Student Handout with Answer Key
• Bell Ringer Writing Topics Reflecting Gothic Literature Themes and Literary Elements

See what teachers like you think!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

My students were so engaged when I presented this resource on gothic lit! They loved the images and video clips. This was so well put together. Love it!

H.S. T

Elements of Suspense and Horror Genre

The Elements of Suspense Introduction and Application Activities will teach students the writing techniques and literary elements used by authors to create a suspenseful story setting with a dark atmosphere or mood.

Help your students to become active readers by teaching them how to identify the element of suspense!

Students will learn how writers use foreshadowing, dramatic irony, and conflict in order to create heightened suspense.

This resource provides a useful introduction and supplement to the following stories:

• “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” by Ambrose Bierce
• “The Monkey's Paw" by W.W. Jacobs 
• "The Yellow Wallpaper"  by Charlotte Perkins
• "The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin
• “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Connell
• “The Red-Headed League” by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• “Murders in the Rue Morgue” or “The Black Cat” by Edgar Allan Poe

An application activity is included using videos of Roald Dahl’s “The Landlady” and Alvin Schwartz’s Short Story “Harold.”

This resource and the application activities will change how your students read suspenseful stories. They will learn how to read actively with a critical lens!

Check out the reviews for this resource!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Love this as an introduction to our suspense unit!

Claire S.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was a perfect fit for my short story unit which so happens to seem to fall around Halloween every year!

Donald M.

The 1920s or Great Gatsby Introduction Research Project - Create an Interactive Flipbook

Whether introducing Great Gatsby or the Harlem Renaissance literary movement, this unique Roaring Twenties project will hook your students from start to finish! Students will explore the culture of the fascinating 20s decade, and create research-based flipbooks showcasing what they've learned!

You will facilitate students' critical and creative thinking skills with this unique interactive 1920s research assignment! This resource, designed for 8th-12th grade, will take 2-3 days to complete. Students will select a relevant 1920s topic to research and feature in their books.

Materials for the following research topics are included:

• The Jazz Age
• Harlem Renaissance
• 1920s Consumerism and the Economy
• Roaring 20s Flappers
• Prohibition, Speakeasies, Bootleggers, Organized Crime (Al Capone and the Mob)
• Family Life
• Women’s Suffrage
• The Red Scare and the Trial of Sacco and Vanzetti
• Racism and the Resurgence of the KKK
• Henry Ford and the Automobile
• Charles Lindbergh and Aviation
• Babe Ruth and 1920s Sports
• The Impact of Old Time Radio

This project provides context for The Great Gatsby or serves as a supplement to a Harlem Renaissance literature unit.

What teachers like you are saying -

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

My students loved making this Flip book! They were very involved in researching the topic they chose. I love how everything is included and ready for them, even the links to the websites to use for research!

Lisa S.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Anything that is more hands-on is so good for our students. This made it easier for them to take notes and add to their knowledge.

Stacy R.

Poetry Out Loud Video Project

This creative poetry activity will enhance your poetry unit and engage your students through the use of technology and choice! Students will choose their own poems for this dynamic video poetry project. An example is included featuring "Mother to Son" by Langston Hughes!

Once they’ve selected the poems, students will then create a slides presentation featuring the title, author or poet, the lines of the poem, and images illustrating the poem’s meaning.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

My students jumped right in on this one!!! Thank you!

Crystal D.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is absolutely perfect as a culminating activity for my poetry unit!

S.E.

Rock Their Reading! Create a Music Video or Dynamic Book Trailer

Implement a fun independent reading activity with this video project! Digital storytelling can provide you with a reading comprehension assessment that measures both critical and creative thinking skills. Your students will love showcasing their knowledge in a fun, unique way! This resource can be used with any novel study or as independent reading book assessment!

Before creating their independent reading videos, students will learn about the different factors that make book trailers and film previews compelling. Some examples include using hooks, symbolic images, sound effects, and music.

Creativity does not mean anything without substance! This project requires that students include images and text depicting their novels' characters, conflicts, and themes - all the elements you'll need in order to assess their reading comprehension.

Enhance your current American Literature curriculum with this exciting resource bundle!