Online Educational Resources

English Language Arts Resources

This page includes links to ELA resources prepared by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Library of Congress, and PBS Learning Media. Also available is our "author index"—a unique collection of materials, organized by author, that tracks the publication of commonly taught texts and their reception over time, and suggests lessons that encourage students to examine how those texts were read and understood at different points in history.

EDSITEment

A project of the National Endowment for the Humanities, EDSITEment offers humanities-focused educational materials to students, teachers, and parents. The website features a collection of lesson plans and interactive activities for a wide range of commonly taught authors, texts, and literary periods, along with a guide to resources specifically for online instruction.

Library of Congress

The Library of Congress is the nation’s oldest federal cultural institution as well as the largest library in the world. The library’s website includes digital collections and services, providing access to print, pictorial, and audio-visual materials, which can be used to supplement classroom instruction. The Library of Congress website has a special section specifically for resources in poetry and literature.

PBS Learning Media

The PBS Learning Media site provides numerous lesson plans, online activities, classroom resources, and educational videos covering multiple subjects for preschool through 12th grade. With the creation of a free teacher account, users have access to a vast array of PBS video resources like Crash Course and American Masters for use in their classrooms. The section for English Language Arts teachers includes materials supporting instruction in writing, literature, and foundational literacy skills.

Folger Shakespeare Library

Folger Shakespeare Library is the world’s largest Shakespeare collection and the ultimate resource for exploring Shakespeare and his world. The Folger’s website provides unparalleled access to a huge array of teaching and learning materials, including full texts of plays, sonnets, and poems, teaching modules created by classroom teachers, and information on the Folger Method, a critical framework designed to help students of all levels enjoy and experience Shakespeare. The Folger website also has a page dedicated to Teaching During COVID-19, offering access to weekly teacher community conversations and regularly updated collections of distance teaching materials.

Huntington Library

The Huntington Library is an institution that supports and promotes the appreciation of, as well as research and education in, the arts and humanities. Fundamental to their work is conservation—stewarding and protecting artworks, books, manuscripts and related materials to ensure their continued availability for new discoveries and interpretations. The Huntington’s website features a variety of online resources that support instruction for subjects including U.S. history, Texas history, world history, geography, and English language arts. These resources include standards-aligned lessons for learning at home; interdisciplinary activity guides; resources developed by teachers, for teachers, and inspired by the Huntington’s collections; and access to lesson plans and learning modules.

Harlem Renaissance Online Educational Resources

Humanities Texas has assembled a list of online educational resources related to the Harlem Renaissance and its history, literature, and culture. These websites include primary source documents, lesson plans, photographs, and other interactive elements that will enhance classroom instruction and student comprehension.

Poetry Online Educational Resources

Humanities Texas has assembled a list of poetry-related online educational resources for K-12 classrooms. These websites include texts of poems as well as lesson plans, videos, and other interactive elements that will and enhance classroom instruction and generate student interest in poetry.

Author Index

Humanities Texas has gathered resources related to the most commonly taught writers and texts in secondary-level ELA courses. Our goal is to provide a set of teachable resources that track the history of particular authors and texts and their reception over time. Each author page includes the first and significant publications of commonly taught texts; early reviews of the author's work; excerpts of critical reviews of that author's work; and suggestions for lessons, discussion, and activities. The index is a work in progress. Humanities Texas will continue to add authors moving forward, so please check back and also contact our staff should you have suggestions or questions.

Questions about Online Resources

Call 512.440.1991 (press 2) or email education@humanitiestexas.org.