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. At the end of her memoir, we have the sense that Ahmedi has filled her father’s shoes and made great sacrifices to support her family.

• Compare Ahmedi with her father. How are they similar in temperament and upbringing? (topic sentence)
• Analyze 3 or more moments from the text in comparing and contrasting Ahmedi with her father in defense of your topic sentence.
• In your conclusion, explain how the novel’s theme of A Woman’s Place in the World relates to the similarities and differences between Ahmedi and her father.

2. The negative impacts of the Taliban on Ahmedi’s life are obvious, but The Other Side of the Sky provides us with little information to understand the Taliban.