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- “The White Umbrella” by Gish Jen. Quick Summary: A twelve year-old girl feels ashamed of her mother and wishes she had a different mother. She feels caught between two cultures as a first generation child in America, and experiences both internal and external conflicts as a result.
- “Thank You, Ma’am” by Langston Hughes. Quick Summary: The main character, a boy, attempts to steal an older woman’s belongings late one night. Instead of turning him in, she brings him to her home where she cooks a meal for him and changes his perspective about what kind of person he wants to be in life.
- “Fish Cheeks” by Amy Tan. Quick Summary: A 14 year-old girl is embarrassed about what visitors (including a boy she likes) will think of her family’s Christmas dinner.
- “The Treasure of Lemon Brown” by Walter Dean Myers. Quick Summary: After a bad day, the main character’s father tells him he can’t play basketball. He disobeys his punishment and decides to leave home anyway.
- Eleven – Sandra Cisneros. This story is both relatable and sad. It focuses on an 11-year-old girl on her birthday who is treated poorly by her teacher. Rachel explains how she is not just 11 but all the ages that came before rolled into one as she attempts to deal with a teacher who forces her to take responsibility for a sweater the teacher believes belongs to her, but Rachel is clear that it is not hers.
- Thank You Ma’am – Langston Hughes. With an interesting twist in how an older woman treats a young boy who tries to rob her, Hughes focuses on the human need to help others.
- Stray – Cynthia Rylant. Stray is a simple and sweet story about an innocent little girl who finds a stray dog. She bonds with the dog but knows she won’t be allowed to keep it because her family wouldn’t be able to support another mouth to feed.
- Fortune Cookie – Avi. With an interesting twist in how an older woman treats a young boy who tries to rob her, Hughes focuses on the human need to help others.
Apr 2, 2024 · “The Lottery” is the quintessential short story for middle school or high school English! Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” tells the story of an annual ritual that takes place in a seemingly idyllic town.
- All Summer in a Day. "All Summer in a Day" by Ray Bradbury is a science fiction short story that transports us to Venus, where the sun only shines for two hours every seven years - quite the weather shock, huh?
- Amigo Brothers. "Amigo Brothers" is a heartwarming tale by Piri Thomas, revolving around two best friends, Antonio and Felix, both superb boxers from New York City.
- The Scholarship Jacket. "The Scholarship Jacket" by Marta Salinas is an inspiring tale that tackles themes of perseverance, integrity, and the true meaning of success.
- Icarus and Daedalus. "Icarus and Daedalus" is a captivating Greek myth that paints a vivid picture of inventiveness, daring, and the perils of overconfidence.
Family plays an important part in much fiction, of course, but sometimes the short story form has offered us an insight into family life that the longer novel does not. Because it can only provide us with a few snapshots, or a handful of moments, perhaps even just one episode in a family’s life, the short story concentrates many of the aspects of family into just ten or twenty pages ...
Mar 24, 2024 · Short stories are excellent alternatives to chapter books for engaging reluctant readers- especially your middle school students whose attention can be harder to grab. These 81 short stories include favorites from well-known authors like Ray Bradbury, Edgar Allen Poe, and Jack London, as well as contemporary writers like Celest Ng and Cherie Dimaline. These stories …
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Feb 29, 2024 · By MARISSA DESPINS Updated Feb 29, 2024. short stories for middle school learners. When teaching grades 7-9 English, our short story unit is the one I look forward to most. Short stories definitely have their place in the middle school English classroom, as they are great for teaching literary elements and key reading strategi
