Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. The protagonist in a novel undergoes significant change because of the events in the story. Most often, it involves a change in their outlook or even in their self-perception.

• Although Teddy Youngblood is at the center of the story’s conflict, could Ethan Metzger be considered the novel’s protagonist? (topic sentence)
• Consider Ethan’s actions in the immediate aftermath of the football camp events; discuss his remarks to the therapist. Why does he keep returning to the therapist long after the mandatory meetings are over?
• In your concluding sentences, analyze how Ethan has changed by the end of the novel. What has the experience taught him about other people, about handling guilt, and about accepting responsibility?

2.