To be honest, Kurt Vonnegut Jr.’s classic short story “Harrison Bergeron” kind of rubs me the wrong way.  It feels dated, cynical, and mean-spirited—and the one example of resistance is focused mostly on how physically attractive Harrison and the ballerina are. Harrison tries to dissent, but his rebellion hardly gives students a good example of what to do when faced with an oppressive government. And it ends on a depressing note with people just going along with the status quo.

When Shirley Jackson first published “The Lottery,” her mother told her in a letter, “This gloomy kind of story is what all you young people think about these days.” It’s been seventy-eight years since that letter, and given the world they have inherited, young people are still thinking about gloomy stories. Yet it’s easy to teach this classic story as nothing more than a shocking twist ending set safely in the past. Whether we like it or not, the question

I’ve loved Oates’ most popular short story since I first read the line that Connie “wore a pullover jersey blouse that looked one way when she was at home and another way when she was away from home.”  The 1960s culture, the teenage experience, the rising dread, a main character who makes a seemingly baffling choice—there is so much to appreciate in this classic story.  And it’s also one that students love—the relatable teen angst, the love of pop music,

Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s masterpiece of a short story touches on so many different and fascinating themes, but it’s not exactly an easy story for most teens to get into.  This tale of an imprisoned housewife who slowly goes insane as she becomes more and more obsessed with the wallpaper in her summer rental is confusing, seemingly random, and on the surface, plotless.   As one contemporary of Gilman said, it’s “enough to drive anyone mad to read it.” Add to

If you’re looking for short stories for you American lit. class you’re probably either A) hoping to find something that will engage your apathetic students B) sick of teaching the same tired old stories you’ve had to teach year after year or C) desperately trying to piece together a curriculum after your department changed your teaching assignment again. The good news is that whatever else we might get wrong in this country, the American canon is not short on masterpieces. 

I’m always on the lookout for a great new text that will impact my students and also be enjoyable to teach.  And when I do find that gem that has for some reason been hidden from me, I want other high school teachers to experience it as well.  I can get kind of excited about new discoveries, especially when they add diverse voices and views to my curriculum.  I created this unit on “Sweat”  and now I want everyone to