Nora has a Master's degree in teaching, and has taught a variety of elementary grades.
Short stories can be very useful in the classroom. Their brevity keeps kids engaged, and they can also be an efficient way for teachers to teach a particular topic or concept. Short stories that are nonfiction can cover a variety of information from multiple subjects: from science to history to social studies. When teaching with nonfiction, you might consider finding stories based on your students' interests to get them hooked.
Many nonfiction stories are about people's lives. This can be especially interesting, since it helps students make connections between their own lives and the lives of others. Some of these stories can even be about famous historical figures, which can be especially fascinating to kids when they're learning about history. The short story examples in this lesson connect students with the lives of real people and help build their knowledge of life and world events.
In the book, Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down, four college students living in North Carolina decide to protest segregation in their city. To do this, they organize a sit-in at a restaurant's lunch counter. Even though many people don't want them there, the friends protest for what they know is right. The book incorporates a variety of metaphors alongside the history of the Civil Rights movement. This picture book is written for young students, but with middle school students this book could be a springboard into other pieces of nonfiction once everyone has gained some background knowledge. Plus, visual learners will likely be able to connect with the illustrations.
This story is Zora Neale Hurston's examination of her experiences as a black woman in America. She discusses how slavery and racism have affected her life and her outlook in the world. She talks about when she feels the most black: when she is surrounded by white people, not when she's in her comfort zone. This essay is sure to spark interesting conversation among your students.
Essays of E.B. White is from the same man who wrote the famous books Stuart Little and Charlotte's Web. This book gives students the chance to get inside the mind of the famous author. The essays are White's thoughts on writing and even his advice to young writers. The essays will give students a chance to learn some background of one of their favorite writers.
The book, This Boy's Life, is the story of Tobias Wolfe's journey and struggles from being a young boy to becoming a young man. The book goes through Tobias Wolfe's childhood in rural Washington to becoming part of an elite boarding school, where he was the odd man out. Each chapter stands alone as its own story, but is interconnected through characters we meet again and again. When teaching the stories, you may consider starting with the first chapter in which Tobias and his mother go on a car ride from Florida to their new (although temporary) home in Utah.
Blizzard tells the story of the massive blizzard that hit the east coast of the United States in the 1800s. Murphy uses diaries and letters to piece together how the blizzard happened and what happened after the blizzard hit. Hundreds of people died, ships were lost at sea, and the snow caused all kinds of chaos that disrupted people's lives.
A Summer Life is book of stories about Gary Soto's life. It is filled with stories about growing up in California in a Mexican American family in the 1950s. The story The Grandfather is a great place to start with students. The story tells about all the things that Soto used to do with his grandfather, as well as his grandfather's nostalgia for Mexico and his strong belief in family.
To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member.
Create your account
Short stories can be very useful in the classroom. Their brevity keeps kids engaged, and they can also be an efficient way for teachers to teach a particular topic or concept. Short stories that are nonfiction can cover a variety of information from multiple subjects: from science to history to social studies. When teaching with nonfiction, you might consider finding stories based on your students' interests to get them hooked.
Many nonfiction stories are about people's lives. This can be especially interesting, since it helps students make connections between their own lives and the lives of others. Some of these stories can even be about famous historical figures, which can be especially fascinating to kids when they're learning about history. The short story examples in this lesson connect students with the lives of real people and help build their knowledge of life and world events.
In the book, Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down, four college students living in North Carolina decide to protest segregation in their city. To do this, they organize a sit-in at a restaurant's lunch counter. Even though many people don't want them there, the friends protest for what they know is right. The book incorporates a variety of metaphors alongside the history of the Civil Rights movement. This picture book is written for young students, but with middle school students this book could be a springboard into other pieces of nonfiction once everyone has gained some background knowledge. Plus, visual learners will likely be able to connect with the illustrations.
This story is Zora Neale Hurston's examination of her experiences as a black woman in America. She discusses how slavery and racism have affected her life and her outlook in the world. She talks about when she feels the most black: when she is surrounded by white people, not when she's in her comfort zone. This essay is sure to spark interesting conversation among your students.
Essays of E.B. White is from the same man who wrote the famous books Stuart Little and Charlotte's Web. This book gives students the chance to get inside the mind of the famous author. The essays are White's thoughts on writing and even his advice to young writers. The essays will give students a chance to learn some background of one of their favorite writers.
The book, This Boy's Life, is the story of Tobias Wolfe's journey and struggles from being a young boy to becoming a young man. The book goes through Tobias Wolfe's childhood in rural Washington to becoming part of an elite boarding school, where he was the odd man out. Each chapter stands alone as its own story, but is interconnected through characters we meet again and again. When teaching the stories, you may consider starting with the first chapter in which Tobias and his mother go on a car ride from Florida to their new (although temporary) home in Utah.
Blizzard tells the story of the massive blizzard that hit the east coast of the United States in the 1800s. Murphy uses diaries and letters to piece together how the blizzard happened and what happened after the blizzard hit. Hundreds of people died, ships were lost at sea, and the snow caused all kinds of chaos that disrupted people's lives.
A Summer Life is book of stories about Gary Soto's life. It is filled with stories about growing up in California in a Mexican American family in the 1950s. The story The Grandfather is a great place to start with students. The story tells about all the things that Soto used to do with his grandfather, as well as his grandfather's nostalgia for Mexico and his strong belief in family.
To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member.
Create your account
Already a member? Log In
Back
I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. It’s like a teacher waved a magic wand and did the work for me. I feel like it’s a lifeline.
