MENSA Education & Research Foundation
It’s Greek to Me: Greek Mythology
It's no myth: this packet on Greek mythology is an excellent addition to your social studies curriculum. With writing activities, such as short answer responses and biopoems, and reading activities, which include creation stories and...
Curated OER
The Rest of the Story
Third graders make predictions about the story "The True Story of the Three Little Pigs" based on background knowledge. They read the story, stopping to verify or reject predictions. They write their own opinionated fairytales.
Curated OER
Stories
Students read and write a short story. In this short story lesson plan, students read a short story and answer comprehension questions on it that teaches them about the world around them. Then they write a short story to teach...
Curated OER
Imagining Your Science Fiction Short Story
Twelfth graders brainstorm ideas for their own science fiction story. Using worksheets, they sketch the plot and setting for their story. They create appropriate characters and develop their interactions among each other. They share...
Curated OER
"The Gambler" and "The Journey": A Comparison of Worlds in Two Short Stories
“The Gambler” and “The Journey” offer readers an opportunity to experience two very different views of Jewish life in Poland between WWI and WWII. Whether used as a part of a study of the Holocaust, or as a compare/contrast exercise, the...
Curated OER
Analyzing the Use of Irony in a Short Story
Ninth graders examine how literature connects to real-life and see how irony aids in the development of theme. They read Shirley Jackson's The Lottery, and discuss elements of foreshadowing and situational irony. Then learners will write...
Curated OER
Writing a Personal Letter Using the Short Story "Eleven"
Challenge your class to connect to the text of "Eleven" by Sandra Cisneros with this activity, which prompts them to write a personal letter from the main character's point of view. The story, prompt, and letter template are all included...
K5 Learning
Ann and Frank
Challenge your third and fourth graders to look deeply into a text with a reading comprehension activity. After learners finish the short passage, they answer four questions that range in levels of difficulty and analysis.
Curated OER
Reading Comprehension: Myth About Fire
No matter what you read, you can always practice locating the main idea and key details to increase reading comprehension. Third graders read about an Aboriginal myth, they then complete three short-answer questions using key details...
K5 Learning
What Police and Detectives Do
What do police and detectives do to keep their community safe? Six short-answer questions make up a activity designed to reinforce reading comprehensions skills while providing information about police officers and detectives.
Independence Public Library
Unmasking the Truth Behind the Red Death
"The Masque of the Red Death" provides readers with an opportunity to research and plan a presentation about a topic related to Edgar Allen Poe's classic short story.
K5 Learning
Rocks
Five short answer questions follow an informational reading passage that details the three different types of rocks—sedimentary, igneous, metamorphic—and their rock cycle.
K5 Learning
Why Does the Ocean have Waves?
Six short answer questions challenge scholars to show what they know after reading an informational text that examines waves—what they are, what causes them, and how different Earth factors affect their size and strength.
California Education Partners
Eleven
It is difficult to articulate how growing up feels as accurately and beautifully as Sandra Cisneros does in her short story "Eleven." After seventh graders read the story and note the author's use of figurative language, they respond to...
K5 Learning
Emma's Favorite Restaurant
Scholars answer six short answer questions following a tale about a family who decides to try a new restaurant and the surprise their children feel when they enjoy their meal.
Teach-nology
Making My Swimming Pool
If you'd always wanted an expensive swimming pool, how would you make the money to build it? Kids read a short passage about a quest to create a dream swimming pool, and use a list of words to fill in eight spaces throughout the...
Carl's Corner
Four Little Penguins
What happens to the four little penguins sitting on the ice? Find out with a mini book that includes eight pages of illustrations and rhyming lines. Sure to delight the penguin lovers in your class!
Curated OER
Reading Comprehension 4: Level 8
Need a quick but comprehensive reading strategies exercise? Even your most reluctant readers will be engaged by the story of a nuclear reactor explosion at a top-secret Idaho base. After reading the short passage, learners answer nine...
Curated OER
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck: Chapter 1 Reading Check
Good worksheets pinpoint key events and get readers thinking about the choices writers make when crafting a story. Here's a good worksheet. Designed to be used with the first chapter of Of Mice and Men, consider having your pupils...
Curated OER
Reading Comprehension: "Just One Touch"
Are you preparing for state testing or hoping to develop literacy skills in your classroom? Give your class this short reading assignment and the questions that follow. The reading passage is about a page in length, and there are 15...
Curated OER
Reading Comprehension: "Wild"
Develop reading skills in your middle school classroom with this short reading passage. Consider assigning your class a reading strategy to practice as they read the selection. Ten reading comprehension and vocabulary-in-context...
Trinity University
Who Am I? Using Personal Narrative to Reflect on Identity
Who am I? Pupils work to answer this question through a unit that explores personal narratives and identity. Exit tickets for activities that examine different poems, short stories, and autobiographical writing serve as prewriting for...
Curated OER
"Juanita Does the Laundry"
In this reading comprehension worksheet, students read a short story that describes a woman doing her laundry in a laundromat. Students then answer 10 multiple choice questions.
Read Works
Sam’s Helicopter Ride
First graders read a short story and answer questions based on what they read. The question set includes multiple choice and short answer questions.