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 below bulleted outlines. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. In the memoir, Steve suffers brutal attacks at the hands of his foster parents.

• What changes should be made to the foster care system to protect children in foster care? (topic sentence)
• Provide three examples from the text to describe how someone who was suspicious of the Robinsons might have intervened on behalf of Steve.
• In your concluding sentences, explain what measures could be taken by child welfare services to regularly check on children like Steve.

2. While in college, Steve works as a janitor over the summer with a janitorial crew he befriends.

• What impact does the janitorial staff have on the trajectory of Steve’s life? (topic sentence)
• Explain why the janitorial staff is important to Steve, what void the janitorial staff serves to fill, and how the staff encourages Steve and changes the trajectory of his life.