short story writing assignment grade 8

Short Story Writing for Students and Teachers

What Is a Short Story?

The clue is in the title!

Short stories are like novels only…well…shorter! They contain all the crucial elements of fully developed stories except on a smaller scale.

In short story writing, you’ll find the key story elements such as characterization, plot development, themes explored, etc., but all within a word count that can usually be comfortably read in one sitting.

Short stories are just one of many storytelling methods; like the others, they help us derive meaning from our world.

How Do Short Stories Differ From Novels?

The reduced scale of a short story explains most of the differences the form has with longer forms such as novels.

Short stories usually have a tighter focus on a single main character and rarely shift between perspectives the way we often find in longer works of fiction.

Space is of the essence in this form, so long passages of exposition are usually avoided and the story starting at the last possible moment.

In purely numerical terms, short stories can be anywhere between about 1,000 to around 20,000 words or so, though many would consider even 10,000 too long.

A short novel clocks in at around 60,000 words, with word counts between 20-60,000 words being taken up by that red-headed stepchild of prose, the novella.

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How to Write a Short Story

Good storytelling is an art. But, luckily it’s a craft too and, like any craft, the skills and techniques can be learned by anyone.

In this article, we’ll first take a look at some ways to kickstart the short story writing process, before taking a look at some of the structural considerations essential for students to understand before they write their short stories.

We’ll also explore some simple practical activities that will help students to draw on their creative resources and personal experiences to help bring their stories to life.

Finally, we’ll look at some general tips to help students put a final polish on their masterpieces before they share them with the world.

How t o begin a story

Create a Dramatic Question

The first thing a student needs to do when writing a short story is to create a dramatic question. Without a dramatic question, readers will have no motivation to read on as there will be no story .

This dramatic question can take many forms, but as it will be the driver of the plot, it will be the single most important element of the story.

Take the movie Rocky as an example. In it, an aging journeyman boxer, Rocky Balboa, answers two dramatic questions:

1. Will Rocky find love?

2. Can he become the Heavyweight Champion of the World?

Often the dramatic question is of this will she/won’t she type. But, whatever form it takes, there must be some obstacles put in the way of answering it.

These obstacles can come in the form of an external obstacle, such as an antagonist or a negative environment, or the form of an internal obstacle, such as heartbreak or grief.

This is the conflict that creates the crucial element of suspense necessary to engage the reader’s interest.

Whatever form a student’s dramatic question takes, it will provide the plot impetus and how the student will explore their story’s theme.

Practice Activity: Identify the Dramatic Question

It is good practice for students to attempt to identify the dramatic question any time they read a book or watch a movie. Ask the students to think of some classic or popular books and movies that they are already familiar with. Can they extract the major dramatic question from each?

Find Inspiration in the World Around

One of the most common complaints from students, when asked to write a short story, is that they don’t know what to write about. This is the age-old curse of writer’s block.

Figuring out what to write about is the first hurdle students will need to overcome. Luckily, the inspiration for stories lies everywhere. We just need to help students to know where to look.

As writers, students must learn to see the world around them with the freshness of the eyes of a young child. This requires them to pay close attention to the world around them; to slow things down enough to catch the endless possibilities for stories that exist all around.

Luckily, we have the perfect activity to help our students to do this.

Practice Activity: Breathe Life into the Story

We can find stories and the details for our stories everywhere.

Students need to tune their ear to the fragments of stories in snatches of overheard daily conversations. They need to pay enough attention to catch their own daydreaming what-ifs on the bus to school or to keep an eye out for all those little human interest stories in the local newspaper.

Once the living details of life are noticed, students need to capture them quickly by recording them in a journal. This journal will become a great resource for the student to dip into for inspiration while writing their stories.

Those half-heard conversations, those anecdotes of street life witnessed through a bus window, the half-remembered dreams scribbled down while gulping down a rushed breakfast. All these can provide jumping-off points and rich detail for a student’s short story.

Outline and Prepare

Preparation is important when writing a short story. Without a doubt. There is, however, a very real danger of preparation becoming procrastination for our student writers.

Students must learn to make their preparation time count. The writing process is much more productive if students invest some time in brainstorming and organizing their ideas at the start.

To organize their short story, students will need to understand the basic elements of structure described in the next section, but the following activity will first help them to access some of the creative gold in their imaginations. The discipline of structure can be applied afterward.

Practice Activity: Dig for Nuggets

For this activity, give each student a large piece of paper, such as a leaf from an artist’s sketchbook, to brainstorm their ideas. Employing a large canvas like this encourages more expansive thinking.

Instruct students to use colored pens to write sentences, phrases, and fragments, even doodles. Anything that helps them to dump the contents of their mind onto the paper. This is all about sifting through the rubble for those nuggets of gold. Students shouldn’t censor themselves, but instead, allow their mind’s free reign.

To help your students get started, you can provide them with some prompts or questions as jumping-off points. For example:

• What is your basic premise?
• What is the story about?
• Who are your main characters?
• Where is your story set?  

Encourage students to generate their own questions too by allowing their minds ample room to roam. Generating new questions in this way will help them gather momentum for the telling of their tale.

SHORT STORY WRITING STRUCTURE

Even getting off to a great start, students often find themselves in difficulties by the middle of their story, especially if they haven’t achieved a firm grasp of structure yet.

The main elements students will need to master are plot, theme, and character development.

In this section, we’ll take a look at each of these in turn.

Plot refers to the events of the story. This is the what of the tale. It’s useful for students to understand the arc of the plot in five sections: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.

Exposition: This is the introductory part of your story. It should introduce the reader to the central characters and orientate them to the setting.

Rising Action: Here the student begins by introducing the central dramatic question which will be the engine of the story. A series of obstacles must be placed in the way of the main character that will increase suspense and tension as the story moves forward toward the climax.

Climax: The climax is the dramatic high point of the story. This is where interest peaks and the emotions rise to their most intense.

Falling Action: Now the conflict is resolving and we are being led out to the story’s end.

Resolution: The central dramatic question has been answered, usually in either a happy or tragic manner, and many loose ends are tied up.

Practice Activity: Instruct students to use the five-part plot structure above to map an outline for their tale before writing .

If the plot consists of the series of events that constitute the story, then the theme refers to what those events mean.

The theme of a story is the underlying message of the story.

What is the ‘big idea’ behind all the action of the plot? This is open to a certain amount of interpretation on the part of the reader, but usually, a little reflection by the student writer will reveal what the events of the plot mean to them.

If, as described in the introduction, stories are how we derive meaning from the world, the theme will reveal the writer’s perspective on things.

Practice Activity: Organize students into groups and ask them to list their Top 5 movies or books of all time. Instruct them to briefly outline the main plot points using the plot structure above. When they’ve completed that, instruct the students to discuss what they think the main themes of each of the works of fiction were.

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Character Development IN SHORT STORY WRITING

No doubt about it, characterization is essential to the success of any short story. Just how important characterization is will depend on whether the story is plot-driven or action-driven.

In the best writing, regardless of genre or length, the characters will be at least plausible. There is a lot that students can do to ensure their stories are populated with more than just cardboard cutouts.

One effective way to do this is to reveal a character through their actions. This is the old show, don’t tell trick at work.

A good short story writer will allow the character to reveal their temperament and personality through their actions.

For example, instead of merely describing a character as putting a mug on the table, perhaps they bring it down with a thud that betrays their anger.

Another great way to reveal character is in the use of dialogue. How characters speak to each other in a story can reveal a lot about their status, mood, and intent, etc.

Our students must learn to draw complex characters. Archetypes may serve us well in some contexts, but archetypes are not real people. They are caricatures. If our students want to people their fictional world with real people, they need to create complex, even contradictory characters, just like you and I are.

If their characters are too consistent, they are too predictable. Predictability kills suspense, which in turn kills the reader’s interest.

Practice Activity: Reveal Mood through Action

For this simple activity, provide the students with a list of emotions. Now, challenge the students to concoct a short scene where a character performs an action or actions that reveal the chosen mood.

To start, you might allow the students a paragraph in which to reveal the emotion. You might reduce this to just a sentence or two as they get better at it. Remind students that they need to show the emotion, not tell it!

HOW TO POLISH AND REFINE A SHORT STORY

Now students have already had a look at how to begin and how to structure a story, we’ll take a look at a few quick tips on how they can polish their stories generally – especially during the editing process.

Write Convincing Dialogue:

For students, investing time in learning how to write great dialogue is time well spent.

Not only is well-written dialogue great for revealing character, but it will break up intimidating walls of text too.

Dialogue is a great way to move the story forward and to provide subtle exposition.

 As mentioned earlier, journals are the perfect place to dump interesting snatches of conversation that become a valuable resource for writing convincing dialogue – except, of course, if you are passing through North Korea or the like!

Vary Sentence Length:

 When finished with their first drafts, encourage students to read their work out loud when editing and rewriting.

Often, students will be surprised to realize just how regular the rhythm of their sentences has become.

Like musicians, writers have chops. It’s easy to fall back on the same few favored structures time and again. Students can do a lot to spice up their writing simply by varying sentence lengths.

Shorter sentences are pacier and punchier while longer sentences can slow things down, calming the reader, then, boom!

Varying sentence length throughout a story prevents the writing from becoming stale and monotonous.

Punctuation:

As with varying sentence length above, the rhythm of a story can be altered through the choice of punctuation.

Students can think of punctuation as musical notation marks. It’s designed to help the reader understand the composer’s intention for how it is to be read and interpreted.

Students should understand punctuation as an imperfect but effective tool. Its use affects not only the work’s rhythm but also the meaning.

It is well worth the student’s time to perfect their use of punctuation.

To Conclude                                                  

There are a lot of moving parts to short stories.

From the nuts and bolts of grammar and punctuation to crafting a plot and exploring big thematic ideas, mastering the art of short story writing takes time and lots of practice.

With so much ground to cover, it’s impossible to address every aspect in a single unit of work on short story writing.

Be sure to offer students opportunities to see the short story in action in the work of accomplished writers, as well as opportunities to practice the various aspects of short story writing mentioned above.

Draw attention to writing best practices when they appear even in work unrelated to the short story.

Lots of time and plenty of practice might just reveal a latter-day O. Henry or Edgar Allen Poe sat in one of the desks right in front of you.

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Grade 8 Curriculum

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The setting is the time and place where the story takes place. This includes the landscape, buildings, and weather to create the stage where the story unfolds.

Conflict is a struggle. It may be between people, aspects of nature, society, emotions, health, etc..

• Internal conflicts occur within a character where values or traits are in opposition to each other.
• Human vs. Human
• Human vs. Nature
• Human vs. Society
• Human vs. Self (Internal Conflict)
• Human vs. Fate or Destiny (seemingly External Conflict)

The theme within a story is a central idea, belief, insight, or lesson

Discussion :

• Who is Charles? - How do you know?
• When did she realize?
• When did you realize?
• Dramatic irony -opposite or contrast between what reader thinks is going on and what is really. There is irony in that the family finds Charles so fascinating -glorifying the misbehaviors through phrases like "Pulling a Charles" while not realizing they were giving Laurie the attention he desired.
• What else did you find humorous? Why do we enjoy mischief and pranks in class? Why is a rebel often idolized? They break the rules! We get to live outside the box and not follow the rules.
• Misbehavior, attitude.
• Staying after school - "And so all the children stayed to watch him" Was this true?
• The mischievous child
• The concerned, relaxed, clueless, parents
• What is the stereotype of the teacher?
• Reader sympathy - who do you feel sympathetic towards? Why Charles, Laurie, parents (anyone?)
• Why did Laurie do the things he did? What do you think he learned? What happens next?
• What do you think of how the parents dealt with their son? What should they have done differently? What will they do now?

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sweet-tooth

The short story is a fiction writer’s laboratory: here is where you can experiment with characters, plots, and ideas without the heavy lifting of writing a novel. Learning how to write a short story is essential to mastering the art of storytelling . With far fewer words to worry about, storytellers can make many more mistakes—and strokes of genius!—through experimentation and the fun of fiction writing.

Nonetheless, the art of writing short stories is not easy to master. How do you tell a complete story in so few words? What does a story need to have in order to be successful? Whether you’re struggling with how to write a short story outline, or how to fully develop a character in so few words, this guide is your starting point.

Famous authors like Virginia Woolf, Haruki Murakami, and Agatha Christie have used the short story form to play with ideas before turning those stories into novels. Whether you want to master the elements of fiction, experiment with novel ideas, or simply have fun with storytelling, here’s everything you need on how to write a short story step by step.

The Core Elements of a Short Story

There’s no secret formula to writing a short story. However, a good short story will have most or all of the following elements:

• A protagonist with a certain desire or need. It is essential for the protagonist to want something they don’t have, otherwise they will not drive the story forward.
• A clear dilemma. We don’t need much backstory to see how the dilemma started; we’re primarily concerned with how the protagonist resolves it.
• A decision. What does the protagonist do to resolve their dilemma?
• A climax. In Freytag’s Pyramid , the climax of a story is when the tension reaches its peak, and the reader discovers the outcome of the protagonist’s decision(s).
• An outcome. How does the climax change the protagonist? Are they a different person? Do they have a different philosophy or outlook on life?

Of course, short stories also utilize the elements of fiction , such as a setting , plot , and point of view . It helps to study these elements and to understand their intricacies. But, when it comes to laying down the skeleton of a short story, the above elements are what you need to get started.

Note: a short story rarely, if ever, has subplots. The focus should be entirely on a single, central storyline. Subplots will either pull focus away from the main story, or else push the story into the territory of novellas and novels.

The shorter the story is, the fewer of these elements are essentials. If you’re interested in writing short-short stories, check out our guide on how to write flash fiction .

How to Write a Short Story Outline

Some writers are “pantsers”—they “write by the seat of their pants,” making things up on the go with little more than an idea for a story. Other writers are “plotters,” meaning they decide the story’s structure in advance of writing it.

You don’t need a short story outline to write a good short story. But, if you’d like to give yourself some scaffolding before putting words on the page, this article answers the question of how to write a short story outline:

https://writers.com/how-to-write-a-story-outline

How to Write a Short Story Step by Step

There are many ways to approach the short story craft, but this method is tried-and-tested for writers of all levels. Here’s how to write a short story step by step.

1. Start With an Idea

Often, generating an idea is the hardest part. You want to write, but what will you write about?

What’s more, it’s easy to start coming up with ideas and then dismissing them. You want to tell an authentic, original story, but everything you come up with has already been written, it seems.

Here are a few tips:

• Originality presents itself in your storytelling, not in your ideas. For example, the premise of both Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Ostrovsky’s The Snow Maiden are very similar: two men and two women, in intertwining love triangles, sort out their feelings for each other amidst mischievous forest spirits, love potions, and friendship drama. The way each story is written makes them very distinct from one another, to the point where, unless it’s pointed out to you, you might not even notice the similarities.
• An idea is not a final draft. You will find that exploring the possibilities of your story will generate something far different than the idea you started out with. This is a good thing—it means you made the story your own!
• Experiment with genres and tropes. Even if you want to write literary fiction , pay attention to the narrative structures that drive genre stories, and practice your storytelling using those structures. Again, you will naturally make the story your own simply by playing with ideas.

If you’re struggling simply to find ideas, try out this prompt generator , or pull prompts from this Twitter .

2. Outline, OR Conceive Your Characters

If you plan to outline, do so once you’ve generated an idea. You can learn about how to write a short story outline earlier in this article.

If you don’t plan to outline, you should at least start with a character or characters. Certainly, you need a protagonist, but you should also think about any characters that aid or inhibit your protagonist’s journey.

When thinking about character development, ask the following questions:

• What is my character’s background? Where do they come from, how did they get here, where do they want to be?
• What does your character desire the most? This can be both material or conceptual, like “fitting in” or “being loved.”
• What is your character’s fatal flaw? In other words, what limitation prevents the protagonist from achieving their desire? Often, this flaw is a blind spot that directly counters their desire. For example, self hatred stands in the way of a protagonist searching for love.
• How does your character think and speak? Think of examples, both fictional and in the real world, who might resemble your character.

In short stories, there are rarely more characters than a protagonist, an antagonist (if relevant), and a small group of supporting characters. The more characters you include, the longer your story will be. Focus on making only one or two characters complex: it is absolutely okay to have the rest of the cast be flat characters that move the story along.

Learn more about character development here:

https://writers.com/character-development-definition

3. Write Scenes Around Conflict

Once you have an outline or some characters, start building scenes around conflict. Every part of your story, including the opening sentence, should in some way relate to the protagonist’s conflict.

Conflict is the lifeblood of storytelling: without it, the reader doesn’t have a clear reason to keep reading. Loveable characters are not enough, as the story has to give the reader something to root for.

Take, for example, Edgar Allan Poe’s classic short story The Cask of Amontillado . We start at the conflict: the narrator has been slighted by Fortunato, and plans to exact revenge. Every scene in the story builds tension and follows the protagonist as he exacts this revenge.

In your story, start writing scenes around conflict, and make sure each paragraph and piece of dialogue relates, in some way, to your protagonist’s unmet desires.

4. Write Your First Draft

The scenes you build around conflict will eventually be stitched into a complete story. Make sure as the story progresses that each scene heightens the story’s tension, and that this tension remains unbroken until the climax resolves whether or not your protagonist meets their desires.

Don’t stress too hard on writing a perfect story. Rather, take Anne Lamott’s advice, and “write a shitty first draft.” The goal is not to pen a complete story at first draft; rather, it’s to set ideas down on paper. You are simply, as Shannon Hale suggests, “shoveling sand into a box so that later [you] can build castles.”

5. Step Away, Breathe, Revise

Whenever Stephen King finishes a novel, he puts it in a drawer and doesn’t think about it for 6 weeks. With short stories, you probably don’t need to take as long of a break. But, the idea itself is true: when you’ve finished your first draft, set it aside for a while. Let yourself come back to the story with fresh eyes, so that you can confidently revise, revise, revise .

In revision, you want to make sure each word has an essential place in the story, that each scene ramps up tension, and that each character is clearly defined. The culmination of these elements allows a story to explore complex themes and ideas, giving the reader something to think about after the story has ended.

6. Compare Against Our Short Story Checklist

Does your story have everything it needs to succeed? Compare it against this short story checklist, as written by our instructor Rosemary Tantra Bensko.

Below is a collection of practical short story writing tips by Writers.com instructor Rosemary Tantra Bensko . Each paragraph is its own checklist item: a core element of short story writing advice to follow unless you have clear reasons to the contrary. We hope it’s a helpful resource in your own writing.

Update 9/1/2020: We’ve now made a summary of Rosemary’s short story checklist available as a PDF download . Enjoy!

Click to download

How to Write a Short Story: Length and Setting

Your short story is 1000 to 7500 words in length.

The story takes place in one time period, not spread out or with gaps other than to drive someplace, sleep, etc. If there are those gaps, there is a space between the paragraphs, the new paragraph beginning flush left, to indicate a new scene.

Each scene takes place in one location, or in continual transit, such as driving a truck or flying in a plane.

How to Write a Short Story: Point of View

Unless it’s a very lengthy Romance story, in which there may be two Point of View (POV) characters, there is one POV character. If we are told what any character secretly thinks, it will only be the POV character. The degree to which we are privy to the unexpressed thoughts, memories and hopes of the POV character remains consistent throughout the story.

You avoid head-hopping by only having one POV character per scene, even in a Romance. You avoid straying into even brief moments of telling us what other characters think other than the POV character. You use words like “apparently,” “obviously,” or “supposedly” to suggest how non-POV-characters think rather than stating it.

How to Write a Short Story: Protagonist, Antagonist, Motivation

Your short story has one clear protagonist who is usually the character changing most.

Your story has a clear antagonist, who generally makes the protagonist change by thwarting his goals.

(Possible exception to the two short story writing tips above: In some types of Mystery and Action stories, particularly in a series, etc., the protagonist doesn’t necessarily grow personally, but instead his change relates to understanding the antagonist enough to arrest or kill him.)

The protagonist changes with an Arc arising out of how he is stuck in his Flaw at the beginning of the story, which makes the reader bond with him as a human, and feel the pain of his problems he causes himself. (Or if it’s the non-personal growth type plot: he’s presented at the beginning of the story with a high-stakes problem that requires him to prevent or punish a crime.)

The protagonist usually is shown to Want something, because that’s what people normally do, defining their personalities and behavior patterns, pushing them onward from day to day. This may be obvious from the beginning of the story, though it may not become heightened until the Inciting Incident , which happens near the beginning of Act 1. The Want is usually something the reader sort of wants the character to succeed in, while at the same time, knows the Want is not in his authentic best interests. This mixed feeling in the reader creates tension.

The protagonist is usually shown to Need something valid and beneficial, but at first, he doesn’t recognize it, admit it, honor it, integrate it with his Want, or let the Want go so he can achieve the Need instead. Ideally, the Want and Need can be combined in a satisfying way toward the end for the sake of continuity of forward momentum of victoriously achieving the goals set out from the beginning. It’s the encounters with the antagonist that forcibly teach the protagonist to prioritize his Needs correctly and overcome his Flaw so he can defeat the obstacles put in his path.

The protagonist in a personal growth plot needs to change his Flaw/Want but like most people, doesn’t automatically do that when faced with the problem. He tries the easy way, which doesn’t work. Only when the Crisis takes him to a low point does he boldly change enough to become victorious over himself and the external situation. What he learns becomes the Theme.

Each scene shows its main character’s goal at its beginning, which aligns in a significant way with the protagonist’s overall goal for the story. The scene has a “charge,” showing either progress toward the goal or regression away from the goal by the ending. Most scenes end with a negative charge, because a story is about not obtaining one’s goals easily, until the end, in which the scene/s end with a positive charge.

The protagonist’s goal of the story becomes triggered until the Inciting Incident near the beginning, when something happens to shake up his life. This is the only major thing in the story that is allowed to be a random event that occurs to him.

How to Write a Short Story: Characters

Your characters speak differently from one another, and their dialogue suggests subtext, what they are really thinking but not saying: subtle passive-aggressive jibes, their underlying emotions, etc.

Your characters are not illustrative of ideas and beliefs you are pushing for, but come across as real people.

How to Write a Short Story: Prose

Your language is succinct, fresh and exciting, specific, colorful, avoiding clichés and platitudes. Sentence structures vary. In Genre stories, the language is simple, the symbolism is direct, and words are well-known, and sentences are relatively short. In Literary stories, you are freer to use more sophisticated ideas, words, sentence structures and underlying metaphors and implied motifs.

How to Write a Short Story: Story Structure

Your plot elements occur in the proper places according to classical Act Structure so the reader feels he has vicariously gone through a harrowing trial with the protagonist and won, raising his sense of hope and possibility. Literary short stories may be more subtle, with lower stakes, experimenting beyond classical structures like the Hero’s Journey. They can be more like vignettes sometimes, or even slice-of-life, though these types are hard to place in publications.

In Genre stories, all the questions are answered, threads are tied up, problems are solved, though the results of carnage may be spread over the landscape. In Literary short stories, you are free to explore uncertainty, ambiguity, and inchoate, realistic endings that suggest multiple interpretations, and unresolved issues.

Some Literary stories may be nonrealistic, such as with Surrealism, Absurdism, New Wave Fabulism, Weird and Magical Realism . If this is what you write, they still need their own internal logic and they should not be bewildering as to the what the reader is meant to experience, whether it’s a nuanced, unnameable mood or a trip into the subconscious.

Literary stories may also go beyond any label other than Experimental. For example, a story could be a list of To Do items on a paper held by a magnet to a refrigerator for the housemate to read. The person writing the list may grow more passive-aggressive and manipulative as the list grows, and we learn about the relationship between the housemates through the implied threats and cajoling.

How to Write a Short Story: Capturing Reader Interest

Your short story is suspenseful, meaning readers hope the protagonist will achieve his best goal, his Need, by the Climax battle against the antagonist.

Your story entertains. This is especially necessary for Genre short stories.

The story captivates readers at the very beginning with a Hook, which can be a puzzling mystery to solve, an amazing character’s or narrator’s Voice, an astounding location, humor, a startling image, or a world the reader wants to become immersed in.

Expository prose (telling, like an essay) takes up very, very little space in your short story, and it does not appear near the beginning. The story is in Narrative format instead, in which one action follows the next. You’ve removed every unnecessary instance of Expository prose and replaced it with showing Narrative. Distancing words like “used to,” “he would often,” “over the years, he,” “each morning, he” indicate that you are reporting on a lengthy time period, summing it up, rather than sticking to Narrative format, in which immediacy makes the story engaging.

You’ve earned the right to include Expository Backstory by making the reader yearn for knowing what happened in the past to solve a mystery. This can’t possibly happen at the beginning, obviously. Expository Backstory does not take place in the first pages of your story.

Your reader cares what happens and there are high stakes (especially important in Genre stories). Your reader worries until the end, when the protagonist survives, succeeds in his quest to help the community, gets the girl, solves or prevents the crime, achieves new scientific developments, takes over rule of his realm, etc.

Every sentence is compelling enough to urge the reader to read the next one—because he really, really wants to—instead of doing something else he could be doing. Your story is not going to be assigned to people to analyze in school like the ones you studied, so you have found a way from the beginning to intrigue strangers to want to spend their time with your words.

Where to Read and Submit Short Stories

Whether you’re looking for inspiration or want to publish your own stories, you’ll find great literary journals for writers of all backgrounds at this article:

https://writers.com/short-story-submissions

Learn How to Write a Short Story at Writers.com

The short story takes an hour to learn and a lifetime to master. Learn how to write a short story with Writers.com. Our upcoming fiction courses will give you the ropes to tell authentic, original short stories that captivate and entrance your readers.

Rosemary – Is there any chance you could add a little something to your checklist? I’d love to know the best places to submit our short stories for publication. Thanks so much.

Hi, Kim Hanson,

Some good places to find publications specific to your story are NewPages, Poets and Writers, Duotrope, and The Submission Grinder.

“ In Genre stories, all the questions are answered, threads are tied up, problems are solved, though the results of carnage may be spread over the landscape.”

Not just no but NO.

See for example the work of MacArthur Fellow Kelly Link.

[…] How to Write a Short Story: The Short Story Checklist […]

Thank you for these directions and tips. It’s very encouraging to someone like me, just NOW taking up writing.

[…] Writers.com. A great intro to writing. https://writers.com/how-to-write-a-short-story […]

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Short Story Projects for the Eighth Grade

Related articles, examples of analyzing text structure for elementary, creative ways for students to demonstrate reading comprehension, hands-on activities for 8th grade language arts class.

• Narrative Procedure Activities for Fourth Grade
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The eighth grade language arts curriculum covers both reading and writing objectives, including reading comprehension, narrative writing and text analysis and comparisons. Short stories provide a tool for incorporating many of the standards for the eighth grade level. Whether the students write the stories themselves or use published short stories, the projects provide an interactive means to better understand the intricacies of literature.

Writing Comprehension and Presentation

A story fair is similar to a science fair as students create displays and share information. This concept expands the typical read-and-discuss format, allowing eighth graders to show their comprehension of the story. Each student selects a short story to use as the basis for the presentation. She creates a display board that includes graphics and key information about the story, such as characters, setting, conflict and resolution. To incorporate eighth grade learning standards, have the students demonstrate how those elements support the main idea or theme of the short story. Invite other classes to visit the story fair so the students can give presentations about their stories.

Create and Perform

Eighth graders read many short stories in language arts class, but writing is also a critical component in the language arts curriculum. Writing narratives teaches eighth graders about point of view, characterization, dialogue and descriptions -- all features eighth graders should include in written work. Instead of a teacher or peer review, let the eighth grade students read their short stories to an audience. Preparing the stories before the performance allows the eighth graders to focus on creating a clear piece of writing that is organized, sticks to a particular style and works for the selected audience, per the eighth grade standards. Have the students practice reading the stories with expression. Unlike a play, a short story is typically read aloud by one person without acting out the details. Practice performances in the classroom prepare the eighth graders to perform in front of other groups, such as parents, other eighth grade classes or elementary classes.

Student Teachers

Instead of having the students always on the learning end, let them take over the teaching role. Short stories are particularly suited for student instruction because of the length. The students can easily read and analyze the short stories in one sitting. Break the class into small groups and assign a specific short story. That group takes is responsible for planning and instructing the lessons based on the story. This requires the students to read and analyze the story first to develop discussion questions, written assignments or extension projects on the piece of literature. Because the short story typically focuses on one main character with few major events, students can easily narrow down the focus of the teaching portion. Assign each group a date for teaching the short story lesson to the class. You can schedule them close together, or spread them throughout the grading period. Since each group is teaching only a short story and not an entire novel, the lesson should only take one class period.

Creative Representations

A creative project to complement a short story allows eighth graders to represent their understanding in a hands-on way. Unlike a novel that may have too many details and characters to accurately represent, a short story has a manageable number of details to use as the basis for an artistic project. Create a list of projects that work with any short story. Ideas include a collage, song, artifact, sculpture, drawing or other piece of artwork that depicts a central theme or component of the story. Another option is to use the original story as inspiration for a new piece of writing. Examples include a letter written from the perspective of the main character, a poem based on the story or an advertisement based on the story.

• Read Write Think: Short Story Fair Projects
• Common Core State Standards Initiative: English Language Arts Standards -- Reading: Literature -- Grade 8
• Common Core State Standards Initiative: English Language Arts Standards -- Writing -- Grade 8

Based in the Midwest, Shelley Frost has been writing parenting and education articles since 2007. Her experience comes from teaching, tutoring and managing educational after school programs. Frost worked in insurance and software testing before becoming a writer. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in elementary education with a reading endorsement.

Collaborative Student Projects in High School English Classrooms

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Eighth Grade Creative Writing Worksheets

• Who Am I? – Character Description
• Scoring Rubric: Poetry
• Story Starters
• Student Proofreading Checklist
• Creative Writing with Photo Inspiration
• The Middle Ages: The Feudal System Activity Packet
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• Scoring Rubric: Research Report/Paper
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• An Immigrant's Story
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• The Middle Ages: Medieval Towns Activity Packet
• The "I Remember" Poem
• Scoring Rubric: Literary Analysis/Interpretation
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• Scoring Rubric: Fictional Narrative
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• Scoring Rubric: Cause-Effect
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• Where Are the Wild Things: Maurice Sendak
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The Power of Short Writing Assignments

Brief writing prompts and responses help students in any discipline.

A panicked student confronts a blank laptop screen late at night. A frazzled teacher sits in front of a pile of yet-to-be-graded essays the following evening. Long writing assignments can cause fear and anxiety for students and teachers. 

Some educators avoid assigning writing, believing that they don’t have the time to either incorporate such a project or grade it. Thankfully, writing assignments need not be long in order to be effective. If you don’t wish to assign a potentially time-consuming project, try these short assignments to help students become better writers and thinkers.

Summarizing for Comprehension



Summaries are an easy way to incorporate writing into any subject. They are a valuable way to challenge students to concisely identify the main details, themes, or arguments in a piece of writing. The longer the reading assignment, the more demanding the process of writing a cogent summary. 

Teach students how to engage the text in a conscientious manner, reading the material while noting its most important elements. I periodically ask my students to write a 50-word summary on a textbook chapter, an exercise that many of them find exceedingly difficult at first. Gradually they become more confident in distilling an author’s main points.

Share the best work with the class, underscoring the components of particularly effective summaries. When students hear the summaries of others, they develop a greater understanding of how to construct their own. 

Prompt with Questions

Part of our jobs as teachers involves giving students the tools to continue learning new information on their own, as well as equipping them with the desire and skills to challenge their own biases. All of this involves teaching young people how to craft incisive questions. 

Review with students the importance of questioning, and introduce to them different question-writing techniques, pausing before calling on a particular student to encourage every student to think about the answer. 

Have students write a single-sentence question in response to a piece of nonfiction or fiction writing. Then, assign students to answer each other’s questions with another carefully constructed sentence. Each student should have a piece of writing—a question and an answer—that is roughly two sentences in length for teachers to review.

Consider employing question prompts such as Bloom’s question starters. Teachers can tailor the complexity and specificity of these prompts to the needs of the student.

Encourage Creative Responses

Short writing assignments can also be more imaginative assignments. Consider, for instance, asking students adopt the voice of a historical figure:

• Thomas Jefferson composing a three-sentence response to Hamilton’s banking plan.
• Theodore Roosevelt tweeting his opinions on modern antitrust investigations of Google, Facebook, and Apple.

• A series of text messages between George Washington and Franklin Delano Roosevelt about whether the Lend-Lease Program is a harmful “entangling alliance.”


English teachers, for example, may want to incorporate fictional characters into their creative-response assignments to require students to practice inferring a character’s thoughts. English teachers can use these creative responses as brief, but powerful, assessment tools for reading comprehension.

Keep It Short

A student is never too old to revisit the basics of writing, and educators should not underestimate the importance of teaching students how to construct compelling and grammatical sentences. 

Any short writing assignment can be reduced to a single sentence. Some options include the following:

• Write a sentence-long summary of an article or book.

• Describe the main idea of the piece in one sentence.

• Complete a one-sentence story or memoir. 


One-sentence assignments push students to meticulously choose the right words and structure to convey their points.  

A Chance for Collaboration

Short writing assignments offer many opportunities for collaboration between disciplines.

Try incorporating vocabulary words or techniques that students are learning in other classes into a short writing assignment. A history teacher might ask students to write a summary of a reading using vocabulary from their English class. A history teacher could also integrate a book or short story from an English class. These techniques need not be limited to the humanities and social sciences. STEM instructors could assess informative or explanatory writing skills by asking students to compose a list of sentences outlining the steps they took to solve a problem or create something. 

Mechanics Matter



Good writing on any subject demands proficiency in content and form. Short writing assignments allow busy teachers to pay attention to grammar and punctuation. 

When assigning a short writing project, a teacher may wish to require some structural element (“incorporate a quote” or “use at least two compound sentences in your response”). Whatever the case, educators should stress the importance of grammar, punctuation, style, and syntax.

Blaise Pascal famously wrote, “I didn’t have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead.” Trying to get a point across in a few words or sentences is often more challenging than going on for many pages. Short assignments also require students to self-edit—a skill that is valuable throughout school and in their working life. 

Short writing assignments allow for fun, quick, and stimulating ways of teaching valuable writing skills.

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70 Example Ideas 8th Grade Writing Prompts

By Suzanne Brown | Last Updated May 4, 2022

School is hard, and when it comes to 8th-grade writing prompts, students are often overwhelmed with the possible topics they can choose from. On top of that, the eighth-grade year is jam-packed with so much material that it becomes impossible to know where to even begin! That’s why we’re here for you. We’ve put together a list of 70 great example ideas for 8th-grade writing prompts, which will help make your job a lot easier.

1. What are You most Proud of Accomplishing? How Do You Feel When You Reflect on It?

2. Write about a Time When Your Best Friend Surprised You

3. what qualities make someone a good listener why are you a good listener, 4. how do you feel about graduating this year what part are you most excited about, 5. why is it important to celebrate accomplishments like graduation, 6. write about something that comes easily to you. what makes you so good at this particular thing, 7. write about something that you find challenging. why is it hard what could you do to improve.

8. What was Your Most Embarrassing Moment? Why?

9. write about a time when you felt successful. what did you do how did you feel afterward, 10. what does it mean to be a part of a community, 11. how will you choose which high school you’re going to do you get to decide, or will your parents decide, 12. do you crave adventure or attention why or why not, 13. if you could have dinner with any historical figure, who would you choose and why.

14. What New Technology Has Developed in Your Lifetime, and How Has It Helped You? 

15. Write a News Article Outlining the Dangers of Global Warming

16. describe your favorite place to someone who has never been there. what can they do and see, 17. think about your hobby and write an article explaining its benefits to someone who doesn’t know about it, 18. describe a unique family tradition of yours to someone not in your family, 19. write a story informing elementary school kids about how to prepare for middle school.

20. Do You Think It is Easier to Be a Boy or a Girl? Why?

21. does online bullying exist why or why not.

22. What is the Most Important Piece of Information That You Can Give to an Adult? 

23. Do You Think That Free Speech Should not Have Consequences?

24. Do You Think Wearing a Uniform to School Benefits all Students? Why or Why not?

25. sometimes people say boys should not cry. do you agree or disagree why, 26. if you were to make a youtube channel, what would it be about and why .

27. Do You Think 8th Graders are Young or Old? Why?

28. what are you allergic to, and how do you deal with this daily, 29. what do you do when you are sick, 30. why are writing skills important, 31. do you prefer to watch tv or read books why is this better .

32. Describe a Food That Someone Has Never Eaten to them. How Will It Taste, Smell and Feel?

33. write a letter to a friend who has just lost a family member.

34. Write a Letter to Your Grandma Teaching her How to Use an iPhone

35. write a letter to yourself, to open on the first day at school next year .

36. How Frequently Do You Take Photos? What Do You Like to Take Photos of? Do You Share them with other People?

37. are you looking forward to advancements in artificial intelligence or has technology already advanced too far.

38. Describe Your Daily Routine to Someone Who Lives in Japan

39. write a poem about graduation, 40. what does “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree mean, and where did it originate” .

41. Write a Letter to Your Principal Convincing them to Let You Start a School Club 

42. Think about all of the Plastic Waste in the Ocean. Write a Solution Essay for This Problem

43. Why is It Important to Conserve the Rainforest?

44. Should People be Allowed to Travel anywhere in the World without a Passport? Why or Why not?

45. What is Haggis, and Would You Eat It? Why or Why not?

46. Do all States Have the Same Laws? Why or Why not?

47. Write a Character Profile about One of Your Favorite Television Characters 

48. What is the Best Way for Schools to Prevent Bullying?

49. Write a Response to This Quote by Frida Kahlo “”I don’t Paint Dreams or Nightmares, I Paint my Own Reality””. What Does She Mean by this, and How can You do this?”

50. We are Becoming too Dependent on Technology. Do You Agree or Disagree with this Statement? Why?

51. Should Children be Allowed to Vote in Political Elections, such as Presidential Elections? Why or Why not?

52. Is the Glass Half – Empty or Half -Full? Why?

53. Who is Your Favorite Actor or Actress? What do You Like about him or her?

54. What does It Mean to be Emotionally Intelligent?

55. Do Your Parents Allow You to Have or Use a Cell Phone? Why or Why not?

56. What is the Best Thing about Getting Older? Why?

57. Write a Short Story about What Life Would be Like If You Lived in a Different Country

59. Do You Consider Yourself to be a Good Test – Taker? Why or Why not?

60. Write a Daily Journal Entry from the Perspective of Yourself in 5 Years’ Time

61. Should the Wealthiest People in the World be Made to Give up Some of Their Money to Help those Who are less Well – off?

62. Are Boys and Girls Treated equally?

63. write a fictional story that is set in your hometown, 64. the school board should ban junk food on school grounds/property. why or why not.

65. Exams and Tests Should be Banned in School. Why or Why not? 

66. Describe the Day of Your Proudest Moment

67. Think about How You could Improve Your School for yourself and for Your Fellow Students. Write a Letter to Your School Board with Your Ideas 

68. Do Eighth Graders Have the Toughest Time at School Compared to every other Grade? Why or Why not?

69. What are 5 Easy Things We Can Do in Our Daily Lives to Look After Our Planet?

70. Cell Phones should be Locked away at the Start of the School Day and only Given Back at the end. Do You Agree or Disagree? Why?

71. Describe Your Dream Family Vacation. Where Would You Go? Who Would You Go with? What Would You Do?

72. should there be a limit on wealth or a maximum amount of money one person can have why or why not .

Grade 8 Language Arts

Assignments.

April 14 - After Covid is Over writing assignment  - 3 complete paragraphs with at least 5 sentences each! 

April 15 - Working on above assignment. reading news article: 'He's a tough little guy': Officer who found toddler lost in Ontario woods tells of recovery

April 16 - cover plot diagram concepts with video clips and handout, work time provided

April 19 - review plot diagram concepts and get story prompt - a picture - work on story elements for creative narrative

*must write to the prompt

* must contain dialogue

* must follow plot diagram concepts

April 20 - "Punctuating Dialogue "worksheet and time to write

April 21 - Creative story writing

Treasure Island

Treasure Island audio

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atBFFhV2Jcs

online E book of Treasure Island

https://www.gutenberg.org/files/120/120-h/120-h.htm

Feb. 24 - read to page 77

Feb. 25 - read to page 90

Feb. 26 - read through glossary handout for novel and Ch. 9-12 -  The Sea Shanty handout and assignment

March 1 -  reading "Treasure Island" to page 94

March 2 - reading test

March 3 - review of components of a plot and then quiz, started filling out story map for "Treasure Island", read to page 100

March 4 - read to end of page 105, then work on answering Ch. 9-12 The Sea Shanty questions

March 5  - work on response 2

March 8 - time provided to work on Responses - review of questions and content

March 9 - read to page 125

March 10 - finished part 3 and started response 3

March 11 - irony lesson

March 12 - literary terms quiz

March 15 - read to page 146

March 16 - read to page 162

March 17 - read to page 179 - start Response 4

March 18 - literary terms test - working on Responses

March 19 - no school

March 22 - read chapter 22 and then work on responses

March 23 - read to page 205, work on Response 4 - on the audio we were at 5:03 - five hours and three minutes in

March 24 - Read Chapters 25, and 26 

March 25 - Read Chapter 27 - start at 5 hrs., 34 minutes, 35 sec. on audio

March 26 - Work on Response 5

March 29 -Read Chapters 28, 29, 30 

March 30 -Read Chapters 31,32, 33

March 31 - Read Chapter 34 and work on Response 6

April 1 - work day - finish up reading and assignments

April 12 - literary terms quiz, finish working on all Responses and prepare for Final

April 13 - Final test for Treasure Island

Thursdays - Literary terms quiz EVERY Thursday!!!

April 12 - literary terms quiz

Response 6 - read Chapters 28-34 first

Treasure Island - Response 6  - read Chapters 28-34 first

• Compare a character in your novel to a character in another novel you have read. 
• Do you agree with the actions of the protagonist/main character in your story? Explain why or why not. Explain FULLY !!!!
• If you could change one thing about the story, what would it be? Why? 
• What was your favourite line or lines from the novel? Why?
• Would you recommend this novel to another person? Why? Or why not? Fully Explain.

Treasure Island Response 5 - read Chapters 22-27

Treasure Island - Response 5 - read Chapters 22-27 first

• What words did the author use to describe the place? What can you hear, see, feel or smell as you read?
• How is the setting like another place you know?
• Which character is the protagonist? What does he want? Be specific and DETAILED!!!
• Which character is the antagonist? What does he want? Be specific and DETAILED!!!

Treasure Island Response 4

Treasure Island - Response 4

Name ______________

• Is the place important to the story? How?

2. What is the conflict? How do you think it will be solved?

3. How does this novel differ from other books you’ve read in this genre?

Treasure Island Response 3

Response 3 - Treasure Island 

Name _____________

Write  1-2 page  journal style entries based on the given list of prompts. You want your responses to be specific and detailed.  DO NOT  give a summary o f the story.  EDIT, EDIT, EDIT!!! 

SHARE with  [email protected]  when completed and edited. 

• Who is your favorite character? Give an example from the story to tell why. 
• Write about something that surprised you or that you found interesting. 
• Tell your thoughts or feelings about the theme of the story.(Need to state the theme in a sentence and then explain in further sentences.)

Treasure Island Response 2 - due March 10

Name ___________________

Write 1-2 page journal style entries based on the given list of prompts. You want your responses to be specific and detailed. DO NOT give a summary o f the story. EDIT, EDIT, EDIT!!! SHARE with [email protected] when completed and edited. 

• Explain a character's problem and then offer your character advice on how to solve his/her problem.  
• Pick one character and explain why you would/would not like to have him/her as a friend.  
• Describe and explain why you would/would not like to have lived in the time or place of the story.  

Literary terms and devices handouts

Remember that there are several TYPES of CONFLICTS in stories.

PDF 8th Grade Literary Terms And Definitions I 13 14

Grade 8 LiteraryTerms

Types of Conflict 

Person Versus Person

In this type of conflict,  the central character clashes with another person . It doesn’t always have to be a person. They could be animals for instance. I guess It’s just easier to say person instead of entity.

Example:  Jimmy and Eric compete for the same position on the baseball team.

Person Versus Self

When a story has a person vs. self conflict,  the main character battles him or herself . He or she may lack confidence or ability. He or she may have to make a difficult choice. Or he or she may have to address a personal problem. The key here is that the battle occurs within the character, though it may involve and affect other characters.

Example:  Alexa caught her friend Jamie stealing from a classmate. Now Alexa must choose between keeping her friendship with Jamie and doing the right thing.

Person Versus Society

With this type of conflict,  the main character challenges a law, tradition, or institution . The main character or characters may battle against the forces that represent these institutions.

Example:  Vanessa makes an art project protesting police brutality. Her art teacher loves the project and tries to feature it in the town art show, but the county commission rejects the project. Now Vanessa, her art teacher are going to fight for the freedom of expression.

Person Versus Nature

When a story has a person vs. nature conflict,  the main character fights to endure or overcome forces of nature . He or she may struggle to survive harsh elements, navigate through a disaster, or meet his or her basic needs. Stories with this type of conflict may occur in the wilderness often, but they can occur in urban settings too.

Example:  Alex and Scott are out at sea on a small fishing boat when a large storm hits. After their boat flips over and sinks during the storm, Alex and Scott struggle to make it back to the shore. Just when they think that things can’t get any worse, they see a shark fin circling them.

Person Versus Supernatural

In stories with this type of conflict,  the main character resists forces that are not of this world . He or she may battle monsters or strange creatures. He or she may challenge beings with magical powers. Or he or she may encounter hostile aliens. The key to this conflict is that forces that are not of this world threaten the main character.

Example:  Tara and her friends accept a dare to sleepover in the old abandoned house on the hill. They acted brave at first, but when they started seeing ghosts they tried to run. Trapped in the haunted house, Tara and her friends struggle to escape with their lives.

Person Versus Technology

In a story with this type of conflict, the main character resists technological forces. He or she may battle rouge robots or hostile computers. Or he or she may just struggle to accept or use the technology of a changing world.

Example:  Bob is a salesman who never adapted to the new ways of doing business. Now he has a new boss who forces Bob to send text messages and emails. Bob struggles to use these technologies and fears that he will lose his job. But maybe some help from his youngest son will help Bob catch up to the pace of business today.

Components of a Plot

https://www.khanacademy.org/ela/cc-2nd-reading-vocab/xfb4fc0bf01437792:cc-2nd-the-moon/xfb4fc0bf01437792:close-reading-fiction/v/the-elements-of-a-story-reading

Treasure Island Personal Response 1

Write 1-2 page journal style entries based on the given list of prompts. You want your responses to be specific and detailed. All prompts must be addressed.  DO NOT give a summary of the story. EDIT, EDIT, EDIT!!!

1.List the characters in the story and describe qualities which you admire. Tell what and why you respect the individuals. Point out classmates who possess the traits you admire. 

• Do any of the characters do things you feel are wrong? Explain. 
• Some characters play small, but important roles in the story. Name such a character. Why is this character necessary for the story? 

4.Would you like to be anyone in the story? Who? Why? Or why not?

SHARE with [email protected] when completed and edited. 

Anne Frank: A Diary of a Young Girl - continued from December 2020

audio - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67VqAoIC2Ew

Each student has a copy of the novel (which they are responsible to return) in their baskets to read along with.

If you don't have your book copy with you here is a pdf version: 

file:///C:/Users/desla/Downloads/the_diary_of_a_young_girl.pdf

Jan. 4 and Jan. 5 - Discussion of reading strategies - asking questions

  The Stranger

https://misstrunnell.weebly.com/uploads/3/2/0/6/32061203/the_stranger.pdf

-reading together and recording questions

Jan. 6 Discussion of reading strategies - asking questions -reading together - starting at page 219 and reading to 232

Jan. 7 -  Discussion of reading strategies - asking questions -reading together - starting at page 232  and reading to 239

Jan. 8 - check up and work day

Jan. 11 -14 - finish reading the novel in class. Jan. 14 - open book test

Jan. 15 - reading/work time

Jan. 18  - open book test

Jan. 19 -  test

Jan. 20 -  open book test

Jan. 21-  Diary Writing - 22

On 4 August 1944 the police arrest Anne and her family. Imagine that Anne wrote in her diary for that day. Write her diary for her. 

On your computer and in Google Docs  write at least 2 clear, detailed and organized paragraphs using complete sentences to the following prompt: 

When you are done  make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Diary Writing 22

Midterm Exam for LA 8

January 25 Part A and 26 Part B during class time.

Please prepare by studying on Exambank.com

Dec. 17 - Quotes and how to use them in a sentence

Firstly we will go through this:

https://www.washoeschools.net/cms/lib/NV01912265/Centricity/Domain/253/Social%20Studies/The%20Quote%20Sandwich.pdf

Introduce a quote:

There are five basic ways to introduce quotations: 

• With a complete sentence 
• With “according to” 
• With a reporting verb 
• With a “that” clause 
• As part of your sentence
• With “according to”  - 
• With a reporting verb - Describe Develop Propose Find Report Use Suggest Study Describe Suggest Demonstrate Discuss Identify Observe Suggest Expand Publish Give Examine Indicate Develop Argue Say Note Demonstrate Explain Report Claim Find Analyze Point out Think Stated

Anne said, “_______________________” and that provides support for my opinion that Peter loves Anne. 

• With a “that” clause  -  In the March __, 1944 entry Anne suggested that she and Peter …

Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl audio and assignments

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67VqAoIC2Ew

Each student has a copy (which they are responsible to return) in their baskets to read along with.

Oct 13 - read to page 27

Oct. 14 - read to page 38 and to 1:13:58 on audio

October 15 - Response #2 - On your assigned computer and in Google Docs write a clear, detailed and organized paragraph(s) using complete sentences to the following prompt:

Saturday, 20 June, 1942 Anne names her diary Kitty and plans to treat it as her closest friend. She writes that “paper is more patient than man.” Why do you suppose that despite the richness of her family life and her many classmates, Anne still longs for a “real” friend?

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 2.

Next SHARE it with [email protected]

Oct. 16 - For the audio book the class left off at 1:29:40 which is page 46 up to Monday November 9 1942.

Oct. 19 - Response #3- On your assigned computer and in Google Docs write two clear, detailed and organized paragraphs using complete sentences to the following prompt:

Saturday, 20 June, 1942 Ann mentions the Anti-Jewish decrees: “Jews must wear a yellow star, Jews must hand in their bicycles, Jews are banned from trams and are forbidden to drive. Jews are only allowed to do their shopping between three and five o’clock.…Jews must be indoors by eight….Jews are forbidden to visit theaters.…Jews may not take part in public sports….and many more restrictions.” Consider how you might feel if any of these restrictions were placed on your life. Select one and briefly describe the impact it might have on your life if it were to become law.

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 3.

Oct. 20 - read to page 61 audio 1:56.58

Oct. 21 - Response #4  On your assigned computer and in Google Docs write two clear, detailed and organized paragraphs using complete sentences, with correct spelling, capitalization and punctuation to the following prompt:

Wednesday, 8 July, 1942 Anne must pack her most “vital belongings” into a school satchel. If you were forced to pack quickly and could only fill a small school bag, what items would you consider “vital belongings”?

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 4 .

Oct. 22 - read to page 77 and listen to audio to 2:25.07

Oct. 23 - Response #5  On your assigned computer and in Google Docs write two clear, detailed and organized paragraphs using complete sentences to the following prompt:

Saturday, 11 July, 1942 Anne tries to make her room more cheerful with pictures of film stars and postcards. What do you have on the walls in your room? Describe the ways you might try to make the Secret Annexe more attractive. 

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 5 .

Oct. 26  - review parts of a paragraph and complete worksheets

Oct. 27 - Reading test then start review the parts of a letter - see entry underneath this entry on my website

Begin Response #6 -  On your assigned computer and in Google Docs write a clear, detailed and organized friendly letter using complete sentences and at least 3 paragraphs to the following prompt:

Friday, 21 August, 1942 Anne is upset because even though she is thirteen years old, her mother still treats her like a baby. Write a letter to Anne advising her on how to convince her mother to accept the fact that Anne is nearly grown.

( Do not repeat yourself throughout the letter , but use specific detailed support)

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 6. 

Oct. 28 - working on letter

Oct. 29 - reading to page 86 audio time 2:41.07

Oct. 30   - Response #7  On your assigned computer and in Google Docs write two, or more, clear, detailed and organized paragraphs using complete sentences to the following prompt:

Monday, 21 September, 1942 Anne writes, “I was being discussed and they decided that I’m not completely stupid after all, which had the effect of making me work extra hard the next day.” Write about a time in your life when someone gave you a compliment and how that compliment made you feel.

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 7. 

Nov. 2 - Response #8  On your assigned computer and in Google Docs write two, or more, clear, detailed and organized paragraphs using complete sentences to the following prompt:

Monday, 28 September, 1942 Anne is amused by a quarrel between Mrs. Van Daan and Mrs. Frank. Anne concludes that “You only really get to know people when you’ve had a jolly good row with them. Then and then only can you judge their true characters!” People often say hurtful things in the heat of an argument that they would never normally say. Think about a quarrel you have had with a friend or family member. What did you learn about that person’s character because of the fight?

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 8. 

Nov. 3, 4, 5  - reading and grammar tests and reading to page 90, audio 3:12:19

Nov. 6  - Response #9  On your assigned computer and in Google Docs   complete the following dialogue - write one clear, detailed and organized paragraph using complete sentences. 

Tuesday, 29 September, 1942 Complete the following dialogue. Please don't just use one or two words - describe!

First Student: Yuck, using a jar for a toilet is just gross. Second Student: Yeah, really. But I think I could be quiet for a whole day. First Student: Dream on. You talk all of the time. I can’t imagine not being able to talk at all. You : Anne could still tell her family what she was thinking without making noise. She could…

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 9. 

Nov. 9  - snow day

Nov. 10 - reading day - to page 112  and audio - 3:32:51

Nov. 12 - Response 10  

On your assigned computer and in Google Docs write THREE, or more, clear, detailed and organized paragraphs using complete sentences to the following prompt: 

If you were given three wishes, but could only use them for things that didn’t directly benefit you, what would you wish for? Why?

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 10. 

Nov. 13 - reading day - your choice of reading material

Nov. 16 - Response 11

On your assigned computer and in Google Docs write two, or more, clear, detailed and organized paragraphs using complete sentences to the following prompt: 

List 15 things you are grateful for in a paragraph format. In another describe how having gratitude improves your life?

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 11. 

Nov. 17 - Reading "Anne Frank" to page 121 - audio 3:46:44

Nov. 18 - Response 12 

Write in detail about someone who is important to you. Explain why they are important. 

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 12. 

Response 13 

Write in detail about your biggest strength and your greatest weakness. How do these traits affect your character?

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 13. 

Nov. 23 - reading test and writing day

Nov. 24 - reading "Anne Frank" page 151 audio 4:41:41

Nov. 25 -  Response 14 

I would love to learn to ...

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 14. 

Response 15 

What is your favourite childhood memory? Why? Explain fully. 

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 15. 

Nov. 27 - in class lesson

Nov. 30 -  Reading Anne Frank starting at page 151 (audio 4:41:41) and read  to the end of Monday 28 February, 1944

Dec. 1  - Response 16

On your computer and in Google Docs write two, or more, clear, detailed and organized paragraphs using complete sentences to the following prompt: 

Who is the person you usually talk to when you have a problem or an issue to resolve? Why? Explain fully. 

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 16. 

Dec. 2 - Response 17

Where is your most favourite place to go to when you are feeling "afraid, lonely or unhappy"? Why? Explain fully. 

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 17. 

Dec. 3 and 4 - Reading Anne Frank starting at page 161 - 168 to start of Tuesday, 7 March 1944

Response 18

On your computer and in Google Docs write 5, or more, clear, detailed and organized paragraphs using complete sentences to the following prompt: 

Identify the 5 most pivotal people in your lives who have influenced you, and whose values and expertise you rely on. Provide the details and/or share anecdotes and examples. 

* Often students identify friends, family members, religious leaders or teachers.

*An anecdote (pronounced  an-ik-doht)  is a very short  story  that is significant to the topic at hand; usually adding  personal  knowledge or experience to the topic. 

This portion of the assignment allows me, as the teacher, to connect with you as we move into our study of the topic of genocide and explore the people who really matter to us, and imagine what our lives might be like if those people were taken away.

We, later on in other responses, will explore questions like:

• Who would you rely on if these pivotal people weren’t there?
• What effect would this have on you?

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 18. 

Dec. 7 - reading together- starting at page 168  and ending on page 176

Dec. 8 - reading together - starting at page 176 and reading to 183

Dec. 9 - review and preparation for reading comprehension - Main Idea - emailed to you

Dec. 10 - On your computer and in Google Docs write at least 3 clear, detailed and organized paragraphs using complete sentences to the following prompt: 

What makes a person nice ? Explain fully. 

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 19. 

On your computer and in Google Docs write at least 3 clear, detailed and organized paragraphs using complete sentences to the following prompt: 

Today is a good day because ...

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 20. 

Dec. 11 -  Meet for check up and then work on Responses 19 and 20.

Dec. 14 - reading together - starting at page 184 and reading to 197

Dec. 15 - reading together - starting at page 197 and reading to 209

Dec. 16 - reading together - starting at page  209 and reading to 219

Dec. 17 and Dec. 18 - Using quotes in your writing instruction and lesson.

Then response writing using the text and quotes. 

On your computer and in Google Docs write at least 2 clear, detailed and organized paragraphs using complete sentences to the following prompt: 

Look back on Anne's entries from March 19 to end of April 17. Do you think Peter loved Anne or not? Provide support to your opinion. 

When you are done make sure your name is at the top left hand side of the page along with the date and the title - Response 21

Who or That?

Rule:   Who  refers to people.  That  may refer to people, animals, groups, or things, but  who  is preferred when referring to people.

Example:   Anya is the one  who  rescued the bird. NOTE:  While Anya is the one  that  rescued the bird is also correct,  who  is preferred.

Example:   Lope is on the team  that  won first place.

Example:   She belongs to an organization  that  specializes in saving endangered species. NOTE:  While teams and organizations are composed of people, they are considered groups. However, this matter is not always clear-cut. Consider this sentence: “Several of the university’s scientists  who/that  favored the new policy attended the meeting.” Which is correct,  who  or  that ? Does “university’s scientists” seem more like individual people than a group? In cases like this, you may use your own judgment.

For anyone who wishes to use them:

• Alice in Wonderland:  https://www.gutenberg.org/ ebooks/11
• King Arthur and his Knights:  http://www.gutenberg. org/ebooks/12753
• Dracula:  https://www. gutenberg.org/ebooks/345
• Frankenstein:  https://www. gutenberg.org/ebooks/84

 (It was really difficult to find nonfiction books for some reason)

• Outdoor sports and games:  http://www.gutenberg. org/ebooks/16316

Oct. 26 How to write a paragraph and a few other grammar issues you MUST address

Hey Grade 8s many of you are using "u" for the word you.  Please edit your work before submitting for marking. 

Also the pronoun "I" is capitalized and is not written as "i". Please edit your work before submitting for marking. 

In Grade 8, students refine and build upon previously learned knowledge and skills in increasingly complex essays. On a regular basis, 8th grade students are expected to produce coherent and focused multi-paragraph responses or essays that are basically error-free and demonstrate feature varied sentence structure. Eighth grade students should be able to select and use different forms of writing for specific purposes such as to inform, persuade, or entertain. Eighth graders should be able to edit their writing based on their knowledge of grammar and usage, spelling, punctuation, and other conventions of written language. In Eighth grade, students use every phase of the writing process and continue to build their knowledge of writing conventions. Students use citations competently, follow research report formats, and present written reports incorporating graphics and media.

How to write a paragraph

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQRoAiVyR0k

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odmjqkDC_RY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJFcIWk57g8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnz4G8B9Hmc

Personal or Friendly Letter

Writing a Personal Letter using BLOCK FORMAT

• Place your address and today's date in the left upper corner.
• Below on the left,  write  "Dear" and the person's name, followed by a comma.
• Under that, indent and  write  your three paragraphs. 
• Afterward,  write  a closing like "Sincerely" or "Truly" on the left, followed by a comma.
• Then underneath that sign your name (or in our case type your name).

Personal Letter Format

Personal Letter Rubric

Sept. 30 - Timeline activity

Sept. 17 reading comp. test.

The Aged Mother

Sept. 16 assignment The Transformations of Cindy R.

Read the story in the text book pages 10-25. Complete the following:

The Transformations of Cindy R. 

• What is a parody? 
• What is the main message of the story? Or the theme?

In her story  The Transformations of Cindy R. the author, Anne Mazer, presents the idea that ______________ is (your opinion) _______________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

because____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________.

• What about the Fairy Godmother… Is she what you think Godmothers should be, or not?

Explain and provide details from the story. 

____________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

Literary terms test Friday, Sept. 11

Please study your term sheets.

Thank-you ma'am - handout and writing due Thursday, Sept. 10

Grade 8 la overview.

Analyze ends with –lyze, so paralyze, which sounds similar, likely ends the same way! Students will apply the rules they’ve learned about spelling to figure out how new words are spelled. They’ll take notes and create outlines that show logical flow of their thoughts, and they’ll select good information sources to help them write about a specific topic, for a specific audience and purpose. Their writing will become more convincing as they add words to prove their point.

Students will study and create their own texts, including oral, print and visual texts, as they develop listening and speaking, reading and writing, viewing and representing, and inquiry and research skills.

Theme in literature

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4qME64SkxM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RecVd-6g-IY

Literary Terms Sheet provided to all students to study

Box 119 Nobleford, Alberta T0L 1S0

Phone: 403-824-8417

Free Printable Analyzing Story Structure Worksheets for 8th Grade

Analyzing Story Structure: Discover a collection of free printable worksheets for Grade 8 Reading & Writing teachers, designed to help students delve into the intricacies of story structure and enhance their comprehension skills.

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Analyzing Story Structure worksheets for Grade 8 are essential tools for teachers looking to enhance their students' reading and writing skills. These worksheets are specifically designed to help students in Grade 8 understand the various elements of a story, such as plot, characters, setting, and theme. By breaking down stories into their core components, students can better grasp the intricacies of storytelling and improve their own writing abilities. Teachers can incorporate these worksheets into their lesson plans, using them as a means to engage students in group discussions, individual assignments, or even as a basis for creative writing exercises. Reading comprehension strategies are also an integral part of these worksheets, as they help students to not only understand the story but also to analyze and interpret the author's intentions. Overall, Analyzing Story Structure worksheets for Grade 8 are an invaluable resource for teachers looking to foster a love of reading and writing in their students.

Quizizz is an innovative platform that offers a wide range of educational resources, including Analyzing Story Structure worksheets for Grade 8, to help teachers create engaging and interactive learning experiences. In addition to worksheets, Quizizz provides teachers with access to thousands of quizzes, games, and other activities that can be easily integrated into lesson plans. These resources are designed to support students' reading and writing skills, as well as their overall comprehension and critical thinking abilities. Teachers can use Quizizz to track their students' progress, identify areas for improvement, and even create personalized learning paths to ensure each student receives the support they need. With its vast library of content and user-friendly interface, Quizizz is an invaluable tool for teachers looking to enhance their Grade 8 students' reading and writing abilities while making learning fun and engaging.

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