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 throughout your response that serve as examples and support.

1. The weather—particularly the storm that emerges in Chapter 19—plays a pivotal role in Scar Island’s plot and character development.

• Besides causing challenges and hardship, what opportunities does the storm create for the characters? (topic sentence)
• How does the storm change character relationships?
• In your conclusion, discuss how the storm mirrors and reinforces the book’s themes surrounding Power Struggle and Authoritarianism.

2. There is no single definition of “Redemption.” The concept is subjective, depending on the nature of the crime from which someone is being redeemed.

• Does Sebastian redeem himself at the end of the novel? What is the nature of the crime from which he is trying to be redeemed? (topic sentence)
• Does his character repair itself as much as Jonathan’s does? Or is his Redemption of a lesser degree?
• In your response, define “Redemption” in the context of Scar Island and include that in your final assessment of whether or not Sebastian fully redeems himself.