In this lesson, students will analyze paragraphs 4-7 of Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart," focusing on how the narrative point of view develops the central ideas of madness and obsession. Additionally, students will explore how Poe's manipulation of time builds tension in the text.

In this Random House for High School Teachers reader's guide to Emily St. John Mandel's novel, Station Eleven, students will explore themes of the relationships that sustain us, the ephemeral nature of fame, and the beauty of the world as we know it. This guide includes discussion questions and suggested supplemental readings.

This Random House for High School Teachers reader's guide includes an introduction, discussion questions, author biography, and suggestions for further reading designed to enhance student discussion of Keith Donohue’s imaginative and unique tale, The Stolen Child.

This Random House for High School Teachers teacher's guide includes an introduction and overview; discussion questions focusing on character, theme, and conflict; author biography; and suggestions for further reading designed to enhance student discussion of Keith Donohue’s imaginative and unique tale, The Stolen Child, a classic coming-of-age story that is also about love, the importance of memory, and the transformative power of art.

This page has discussion questions for Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin.

In this Penguin Reader's guide to The Street of Crocodiles and Other Stories by Bruno Schulz, students will learn the background of the book as well as the author, and deepen their understanding of the text through indepth discussion questions.

In this lesson, students review traits of some of the major characters in Orson Scott Card's science fiction classic, Ender's Game. Students start by listing Ender's character traits, then discuss them. Students then choose another character to analyze, searching for passages in the novel that provide evidence of their character traits.

This lesson focuses on the author's use of language; moreover, how it is used to convey mood, images, and meaning. Students are tasked here with examining a selection identifying examples of stylistic devices within the passages. Next, students discuss possible reasons for author's selected style choices. The lesson is detailed with examples from Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God, yet the lesson may be altered to be used with other instructor selected text.

Exploring the use of style in literature helps students understand how language conveys mood, images, and meaning. After exploring the styles of two authors, students will translate passages from one author into the style of another. Then they will translate fables into style of one of the authors.

In this resource from Crash Course Literature, students will learn about Toni Morrison's novel of friendship, betrayal, and loss, Sula. Sula tells the story of two African American girls, the town where they grew up, the tragic event that was central to their youth, and the very different people they became.

Summarizing teaches students how to take a large selection of text and reduce it to the main points for more concise understanding. Upon reading a passage, summarizing helps students learn to determine essential ideas and consolidate important details that support them. It is a technique that enables students to focus on key words and phrases of an assigned text that are worth noting and remembering.

Worksheets and Powerpoint lessons to help students of differing levels summarize selected passages.

In this video, students explore the use of supernatural elements within William Shakespeare’s plays, focusing particularly on Macbeth, Hamlet, and The Tempest. Students examine supernatural beliefs during the 16th and 17th centuries, and they also identify how supernatural elements drive the plot of many of Shakespeare’s plays.

This Random House for High School Teachers reader's guide includes an introduction, discussion questions, and author biography designed to enhance student reading of Swamplandia! by Karen Russel, a novel about a family’s struggle to stay afloat in a world that is inexorably sinking.

In this Penguin Classics guide to Marcel Proust's novel, Swann's Way, students will learn the background of the book as well as the author, and deepen their understanding of the text through indepth discussion questions. Supplemental readings are suggested.

This Random House for High School Teachers reader's guide includes discussion questions designed to aid students in exploring The Sweet Girl by Annabel Lyon, a novel that follows Aristotle’s strong-willed daughter as she shapes her own destiny: an unexpected love story, a tender portrait of a girl and her father, and an astonishing journey through the underbelly of a supposedly enlightened society.

In this Penguin Reader's guide to the classic Irish fairy tale The Tain, students will learn the background of the book and deepen their understanding of the text through indepth discussion questions.

In this Penguin Classics guide to Murasaki Shikibu's The Tale of Genji , students will learn the background of the book as well as the author, and deepen their understanding of the text through indepth discussion questions. Supplemental readings are suggested.

Students engage in a character study of the numerous figures created by Charles Dickens in A Tale of Two Cities. Students first compare and contrast several forms of communication: email, text message, and telephone. They then complete a character study chart that breaks down physical background, character traits, social status/background, unanswered questions about the character, and a final judgment about the character. Next, students will create text messages between numerous characters that show the relationship between the characters, their background, and plot points that they are involved in. The lesson concludes with students sharing their text messages and a discussion of the rationales behind their choices.