Writing about Literature

Comparing a movie to a novel which inspired it
Step-by-step suggestions and a student model.

Let's Go Shoppping
This activity helps students understand point of view. It is designed for grades 7-9.

Money for Your Thoughts
By writing about a quarter, students learn the difference between summary and response writing.

Novel News: Broadcast Coverage of Character, Conflict, Resolution, and Setting
Students write a TV news broadcast using events in a novel as the subject. Includes resources and rubric.

Search Me (Not): Developing Profiles of Literary and Historical Figures by Imagining Their Web Searches
"Students try to guess the identity of a person in the class by considering what his or her recent Web searches reveal. They then split into groups to compose a list of possible Web searches that might have been queried by a literary or public figure and challenge each other to guess each person's identity. Learning is synthesized by writing reflection papers that address what their own Web searches might reveal about them personally and whether they would want this information to be used by others." Lesson includes related New York Times article.

Writing about Literature
A thorough set of suggestions, including pitfalls. Scroll down for printer-friendly versions of this handout.

Writing About Literature
These extensive suggestions are designed for high school or college level. Teachers are encouraged to consider their own composing process as they design an assignment. The page incldues suggestions for notetaking, sample journal prompts, ideas for integrating graphic mapping tools, and much more.

Writing a critique of a novel
Suggestions to guide middle school students. Includes two student models.

Writing an Approach Paper
A structured approach to writing about a novel.