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 US Weather Bureau and Isaac make significant errors in judgment in the days leading up to the storm.

• What errors in judgment do the US Weather Bureau and Isaac make? (topic sentence)
• Describe one error in judgment the US Weather Bureau makes and one Isaac makes. Support your responses with evidence from the text.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, explain how these errors in judgment lead to the catastrophic loss of life and property in Galveston.

2. The media, specifically newspapers, plays an important role in the lead-up to and aftermath of the storm.

• In what ways do the newspapers impact people’s lives before and after the storm? (topic sentence)
• Describe one way in which the newspapers impact people’s lives before the storm and one way after the storm.