Short Story Unit - Close Reading & Analysis for High Middle School Short Stories

Looking for an engaging short story unit with rigorous reading and literary analysis activities for your high school and advanced middle school students? This Short Story Literary Analysis and Close Reading Unit Bundle provides TONS of materials for four classic short stories to help your students master a host of Common Core standards--all while having fun along the way!

And because the ability to closely read and analyze text is so critical to Common Core and individual state standards, this short story unit includes close reading activities for each short story—all with detailed lesson plans, full texts of short stories, and answer keys—so that students can read with a purpose, extract key concepts and comprehend at a deeper level. It even includes two engaging, fully editable PowerPoints to introduce and practice key concepts and skills for analyzing short stories--including irony and symbolism.

PLUS, ALL SHORT STORY MATERIALS ARE NOW PROVIDED IN BOTH PRINT & DIGITAL VERSIONS at no additional cost!

This short story close reading and literary analysis unit includes:

“The Masque of the Red Death” (Poe) Short Story Unit:

• Detailed 1-3 Day Close Reading Lesson Plan focusing on symbolism, allegory and imagery

• Full Text of Short Story—organized with numbered paragraphs for quick reference, so that students can annotate the text as they read

• Symbolism Activity and Handout—to help students identify and analyze important symbols of the short story and their significance.

• Room Symbolism and Source Text Activity—to enable students to analyze the deeper meaning of Poe’s room colors after exploring Shakespeare’s “Seven Ages of Man” and the Seven Deadly sins.

• Copy of Shakespeare’s “Seven Ages of Man”—including definitions of challenging terms, so students can analyze and compare source materials to the author’s work.

• Imagery Handout—to help students identify imagery and sensory details, analyzing how they help to create mood of the short story.

• Fun Theme and Mood Activity—a creative activity in which students act as party DJ, choosing a playlist that reflects the short story’s mood and themes and explaining their selections.

• Reader Response Activity—students reflect upon and write about what they learned, citing evidence from the text

• Pre/Post-Reading PowerPoint —Fully editable PowerPoint backgrounder with thought–provoking journal prompts, literary terms and activities (for allegory, symbolism and imagery), vocabulary and definitions, author information, historical context (including links to videos on the Black Plague) as well as comprehension and post-reading discussion questions. (Also included as a PDF to bypass any potential technical issues.)

“The Open Window” (Saki) Short Story Close Reading Unit and Pre/Post-Reading PowerPoint

• Detailed 1-2 Day Close Reading Lesson Plan focusing on irony

• Full Text of the Short Story

• Irony Graphic Organizer—to help students identify and analyze examples of irony in the short story and categorize by type

• Irony Skit Assignment and Graphic Organizer—an assignment that allows students to have fun and show their creativity, all while learning about irony; includes a graphic organizer for them to brainstorm ideas for a skit they will write and perform

• Irony Skit Rubric—to help make grading clear and easy, and more importantly, to help student understand the goals and expectations of the assignment

• Study Guide/Discussion Questions—to help students comprehend key plot developments, make inferences and analyze deeper meanings within the short story

• Context Clues Vocabulary Activity—students make predictions on the meanings of vocabulary words from the story, revising their responses when encountering the words in their reading and using clues from the text and a dictionary to determine final definitions

• Plot Summary Chart—students summarize key events in the plot, identifying where they belong in the classic story-telling arc.

• Pre/Post Reading Irony PowerPoint Includes: funny, memorable, real-life examples of all three types of irony with photos, links to videos and examples from language and literature; fun, creative activities to help students deepen their learning; review activities and more. (Included as fully editable PPT and PDF.)

• “Isn’t it Ironic?” (“Um, Not Really.”)—a fun improve-the-irony activity using Alanis Morissette’s hugely popular but highly criticized song. (Also offered for free in my TPT store.)

“Story of an Hour” (Chopin) Short Story Unit:

• Detailed 1-3 Day Close Reading Lesson Plan

• Full Text of the Short Story—organized with numbered paragraphs for quick reference

• Thought-provoking Journal Prompts—to build interest and activate prior knowledge

• Text Analysis Activities—including directed note-taking, for individual and small group learning

• Engaging Reader Response Activities—to help students reflect upon their learning and write about it

• Thought-provoking Discussion Questions—to get students writing and talking about the most important concepts of the short story

• Vocabulary Inventory—to introduce new words, determine which ones students need most help with pre-reading and to monitor growth afterwards

• Vocabulary Building—to help students learn new vocabulary by connecting to words in a meaningful way

• Plot Diagram—to help students record the most important events in the short story

• Fun Theme Activity—to determine universal themes of the story and connect them with modern music

“The Monkey’s Paw” (Jacobs) Short Story Unit:

• Full Text of the Short Story

• Thought-provoking Pre- and Post- reading Journal Prompts and discussion questions

• Anticipation Guide—to activate students’ prior knowledge and introduce themes

• Pre- and Post- Reading Vocabulary Inventory—to gauge student understanding of words and monitor growth

• Vocabulary Builder Graphic Organizer—to help students connect to and remember new words

• Short Story Comprehension Questions—to ensure students understand key events and characters

• Plot Diagram—students summarize the story and identify critical events

• Foreshadowing and Textual Evidence Graphic Organizer—students closely reread the text, citing passages that foreshadow future events

• Fun Theme Activity—students analyze multiple themes from the story, then connect them to contemporary music of their choice

• Extended Thinking Activity—students use creative and critical thinking to create their own wish list along with possible consequences

PLUS detailed answer keys for every activity and handout in order to save you time and generally make your life easier!

WHAT TEACHERS ARE SAYING:

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “This is probably my favorite resource purchased so far! Such a great tool for introducing literary analysis.”—Creative Comp

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Fantastic bundle! This unit is by far one of the best resources I have ever purchased on TPT. The students were engaged and involved. The short story units are comprehensive and creative without being too cutsie. Up-to-date graphics and activities. Classes especially liked the music activities and I especially liked the close reading focus. Attractive and easy to read. Student friendly. Challenging materials for AP or Tier 1, but works with all classes. Thank you for saving me hours of time.”—Writer’s Corner

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “A great variety of resources for short stories that I haven't typically taught. Good inspiration for how to organize my own unit and put together assignments.”—Trini B.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “This resource packs a big punch. Close reading is really be emphasized in my district, and this was a helpful resource. I liked how there are plenty of options and places to take the stories. It can really be tailored to suit the needs of the class.” –Paul D.

All these products are sold separately in my store. Buy them together and SAVE OVER 40%!

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Keywords: close reading activities, short story unit, short stories, high school short stories, middle school short stories, Halloween short stories, high school literary analysis, fiction unit, The Monkey's Paw, Masque of the Red Death, Story of an Hour, The Open Window, plot structure, foreshadowing, symbolism, allegory, inference, irony