Lesson Plans "The Monkey's Paw" Grades 8-9: Free PDF Download

"The Monkey’s Paw" LESSON PLANS for High School English Teachers:

ELA CCSS-Aligned Lesson on “The Monkey’s Paw” by W.W. Jacobs.
Ideal for grades 8-9. 

What’s Included? 

• Abridged & Altered Version of “The Monkey’s Paw” (950L-1050L Lexile) – I've revised this story a bit to make it slightly less horrifying at the end. Instead of the White family’s son dying, in this version, their beloved family dog dies. Yes, it's still quite sad, but I have students who have lost family members, and I just didn't want to risk triggering anyone. The death and "zombie return" of a dog just felt easier to get through than the death and resurrection of the family's son.   
  
  
• Comprehensive Reading Comprehension Questions – 12 rigorous, multiple-choice questions designed to assess main idea, theme, conflict, characterization, plot elements, and literary devices.
  
  
  
• Scaffolded Literary Terms Guide – Two differentiated versions to support all learners:
  • Guided Version with definitions and examples to assist students in understanding key terms.
  • Independent Version where students apply their knowledge to define terms and find examples in the text.
• Answer Keys 
  
  
• Two 60-minute lesson plans.

Skills Addressed: 

📌 Critical Thinking & Textual Evidence – Students support their responses with text-based evidence, preparing them for standardized tests and high-level analysis.
📌 Engagement & Accessibility – The revised storyline makes the story more relatable, while still keeping the eerie tone of the original.
📌 Versatile for Various Learning Levels – With built-in scaffolds and differentiated materials, this unit is perfect for a range of learners in grades 8-11.

Why Choose This Unit?

⭐ Save Planning Time – Everything is ready to print and use in your classroom. I spent around 8-10 hours putting this together, so you don't have to! 

⭐ Perfect for Short Story Units or Halloween Lessons – Engage students with mystery, suspense, and literary analysis.

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