The Black Cat Activity Bundle
by Language Arts ExcellenceThis resource features a bundle of all of our lesson plans, materials, and activities for Edgar Allan Poe's gruesome tale, The Tell-Tale Heart. Each product is thoughtfully crafted and allows students to think outside the box by delving deeply into the story's themes, characters, vocabulary, and plot development. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement. This activity bundle provides more than a week's worth of material to bring the story to life!
Included in this Bundle:
The Black Cat Literature Guide: This resource features a comprehensive literature guide for use while reading Edgar Allan Poe's creepy classic tale, The Black Cat. The packet provides an excellent basis for comprehension and vocabulary acquisition for the short story and encourages students to think critically about plot structure, literary elements, figurative language, and the superstitions within the story. The wide range of activities in this guide will keep your students engaged and help them to gain a deep understanding of one of the most highly regarded tales of American literature.
The Black Cat Socratic Seminar: A Socratic Seminar (or a "Fish Bowl" Conversation as I like to call them with my students) is a higher order way of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class texts. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, this student-tested resource was created to include everything you need to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom surrounding The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe... with very little preparation required on your end.
The Black Cat ESCAPE ROOM: This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Escape Room for The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task (and it is!), but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours runs smoothly from start to finish. The activity involves movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. It is the perfect activity for Halloween or any day you want to shake it up with your students without sacrificing learning. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of this game!
Unreliable Narrator of The Black Cat Lesson Plan (also included within Literature Guide): This resource features a full-length lesson plan and accompanying materials that asks students to delve into the crazed mind of the narrator of Poe's The Black Cat. Through an engaging "True/Untrue Storytelling" activity, precise mini-lecture on the unreliable narrator, guiding questions, and follow-up assignment, your students will be able to understand the sometimes daunting concept of the unreliable narrator and discuss how a story is affected when told through the eyes of one. This lesson plan opens up a new world for students as they realize that many of the books, movies, and tv shows that they have read or seen in the past may have been influenced by an unreliable narrator. Thus, not only is this lesson important, it is intrinsically fascinating to students and the "oohs" and "aha" moments that tend to arise from the discussion make it a blast to teach! I am confident that you and your students will love this lesson as much as mine have for years.
**BONUS FILE: Intro to Edgar Allan Poe PowerPoint: This product features a highly-engaging introductory PowerPoint Presentation for the Father of Horror himself, Edgar Allan Poe. A unit of study on Poe is not complete without learning the gory and heartbreaking details of his life and what made him into the master poet and writer whom we continue to marvel at today. This 20-slide powerpoint runs through his tragic family life and childhood, relationships, early occupations (before he was the Poe that you know), synopses of some of his most famous works, death theories, and current pop culture references. It concludes with a 10 question quiz to see how well students listened... and trust me, they will be hanging on your every word! This powerpoint encourages class participation, is fully editable to suit your class' needs, and lasts about 30-40 minutes to run through. I suggest presenting this on the very first day of your unit on Edgar Allan Poe. Enjoy and let the horror begin!
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By Language Arts Excellence
This activity features an engaging escape room in which students tackle 5 puzzles covering plot, figurative language, story elements and quotes from Edgar Allan Poe's The Black Cat!
There is no wonder why escape rooms are so popular; they are highly engaging and encourage people to work together and think creatively in order to solve different puzzles... all while trying to beat the clock! This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Escape Room for The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task (and it is!), but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours runs smoothly from start to finish. The activity involves movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. It is the perfect activity for Halloween or any day you want to shake it up with your students without sacrificing learning. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of this game!
How does it work?
In this escape room, students will try to escape out of the narrator's basement of horror by solving 4 different puzzles, discovering a hidden message through hidden jig saw puzzle pieces, and finding clues along the way.
- In the first task, students must order the plot events of The Black Cat on Freytag's Pyramid. Once solved, corresponding letters reveal the first code.
- In the second task, students must identify 7 types of figurative language within the short story. Highlighted boxes in the correct answers will reveal the code.
- In the third task, students must solve a word maze. Letters collected along the way unscrambled will reveal the code.
- In the fourth task, students must answer challenging multiple choice questions about The Black Cat that when correct, will reveal the code.
- In the fifth and final task, students must discover the hidden message (a quote from The Black Cat) using puzzle pieces they collected during the first four tasks.
Product Includes:
- Escape Room Basics
- Detailed Day-Of Instructions
- Escape Room Print Checklist
- Student Teams Chart
- Welcome Sign for Your Door
- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and supplementary materials to be kept at stations
- Student Answer Booklet
- Teacher Answer Keys
- Escape Room Reflection for homework or in-class writing activity
- Theme Reflection for homework assignment or in-class writing activity
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Check out these great products to supplement your study of The Black Cat:
⭐ The Black Cat Literature Guide
⭐ Unreliable Narrator of The Black Cat Lesson Plan
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe "Breaking News" Article and Illustration Activity
⭐ The Tell-Tale Heart/The Black Cat Socratic Seminar Materials
But why stop with one story? We have enough Edgar Allan Poe resources to frighten your students for months!
⭐ The Raven Literature Guide
⭐ The Tell-Tale Heart Literature Guide
⭐ The Black Cat Literature Guide
⭐ The Pit and the Pendulum Literature Guide
⭐ The Cask of Amontillado Literature Guide
⭐ The Fall of the House of Usher Literature Guide
⭐ The Masque of the Red Death Literature Guide
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Short Story BUNDLE
And because your students will be begging for more escape rooms...
⭐ The Raven ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ The Tell-Tale Heart ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ The Pit & the Pendulum ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ The Fall of the House of Usher ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ The Masque of the Red Death ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ The Cask of Amontillado ESCAPE ROOM
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The Black Cat Literature Guide
By Language Arts Excellence
This resource features a comprehensive literature guide for use while reading Edgar Allan Poe's creepy classic tale, The Black Cat. The packet provides an excellent basis for comprehension and vocabulary acquisition for the short story and encourages students to think critically about plot structure, literary elements, figurative language, and the superstitions within the story. The wide range of activities in this guide will keep your students engaged and help them to gain a deep understanding of one of the most highly regarded tales of American literature.
Product Includes:
- Attractive cover page for student packet
- Anticipation guide - "Debate Statements"
- Vocabulary
- Vocabulary drawing activity
- Comprehension questions
- Freytag’s pyramid worksheet
- "History of the Black Cat" extension article and comprehension questions
- "Putting it all Together" short essay question
- Literary elements worksheet
- Figurative language worksheet
- Unreliable Narrator of The Black Cat Lesson Plan
- Full answer keys for teacher use
While this literature guide is Common Core aligned for eighth grade, it is appropriate for students in seventh-tenth.
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Will you be teaching “The Tell-Tale Heart” during your Edgar Allan Poe unit as well? Save money on cohesive literature guides for both short stories by purchasing them together:
⭐ The Tell-Tale Heart and The Black Cat Literature Guides BUNDLE
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Check out these great products to supplement your study of The Black Cat:
⭐ The Black Cat ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe "Breaking News" Article and Illustration Activity
⭐ The Tell-Tale Heart/The Black Cat Socratic Seminar Materials
⭐ The Tell-Tale Heart/The Black Cat Compare Contrast Essay
⭐ Lamb to the Slaughter & The Black Cat Compare Contrast Essay
More resources to round out your Edgar Allan Poe unit:
⭐ Introduction to Edgar Allan Poe PowerPoint
⭐ Introduction to Edgar Allan Poe Scavenger Hunt
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Bell Ringer Journal Prompts
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Crossword Puzzle
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Brochure
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe's Obituary
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Quote Posters
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Resource Bundle
But why stop with one story? We have enough Edgar Allan Poe resources to frighten your students for months!
⭐ The Raven Literature Guide
⭐ The Tell-Tale Heart Literature Guide
⭐ The Pit and the Pendulum Literature Guide
⭐ The Cask of Amontillado Literature Guide
⭐ The Fall of the House of Usher Literature Guide
⭐ The Masque of the Red Death Literature Guide
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Short Story BUNDLE
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⭐Click to Follow Language Arts Excellence⭐
The Black Cat Socratic Seminar
By Language Arts Excellence
Socratic Seminar Materials for Edgar Allan Poe's The Black Cat
A Socratic Seminar (or a "Fish Bowl" Conversation as I like to call them with my students) is a higher order way of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class texts. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, this student-tested resource was created to include everything you need to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom surrounding The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe... with very little preparation required on your end.
Product Includes:
• Assignment Directions with step-by-step instructions on how to conduct fishbowls in your classroom
• Engaging Introductory Activity for Conversation Building
• 5 Discussion Questions for each “Fishbowl” conversation
• “Fishbowl” Preparation Sheet
• Conversation Builder Prompts
• Observation Sheet
• Rubric
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Check out these great products to supplement your study of The Tell-Tale Heart:
⭐ The Tell-Tale Heart Literature Guide
⭐ The Tell-Tale Heart Anticipation Guide and Lesson Plan
⭐ The Tell-Tale Heart Creative Writing Assignment on Perspective
⭐ The Tell-Tale Heart ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ The Tell-Tale Heart Figurative Language Challenge Activity
⭐ Unreliable Narrator of The Tell-Tale Heart Lesson Plan
More resources to round out your Edgar Allan Poe unit:
⭐ Introduction to Edgar Allan Poe PowerPoint
⭐ Introduction to Edgar Allan Poe Scavenger Hunt
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Bell Ringer Journal Prompts
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Crossword Puzzle
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe ESCAPE ROOM
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Brochure
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe's Obituary
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Quote Posters
⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Resource Bundle
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