Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning responsibilities with this set of three plot-based quizzes covering H.P. Lovecraft’s short story “The Call of Cthulhu.” This set of materials may double as guided reading handouts to promote active engagement with fiction. Answer keys and a copy of the public domain narrative are included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: The identity of the narrator The narrator’s relation to Angell Angell’s profession The true cause of Angell’s death General assumptions about the nature of Angell’s death The narrator’s inheritance Characteristics of the sculpture the narrator receives The identity of a young sculptor A general character description of Wilcox The effects of a natural disaster Angell’s curiosity about Wilcox The reason Wilcox stops visiting Angell The narrator’s attitude toward Wilcox The collective experiences of artists and authors Legrasse’s home base Characteristics of the idol Legrasse possesses The academics’ collective reaction to the idol Professor Webb’s travels Legrasse’s account of the cultists Characteristics of the idol the cultists appear to worship The cultists’ name for bizarre beings The supposed origin of the strange beings The current location of the bizarre beings The manner of communication between the beings and humans The beings’ specific messages for humanity The cultists’ belief concerning the fate of humanity The narrator’s belief concerning his great uncle’s death The name of an important newspaper The content of an article in the newspaper The name of a ship Johansen and his peers attack The narrator’s travels around the world The identity of a Johansen relative whom the narrator meets The true cause of Johansen’s death What the narrator receives as a result of his visit to Norway The bizarre characteristic of a city Johansen visits The comparison between Cthulhu and a Greek mythological figure Events leading to Briden’s death A major decision Johansen makes The result of the major decision What the narrator decides to do with the records he has acquired The narrator’s assessment of his own fate

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning responsibilities with this plot-based quiz covering “The Lurking Fear” by H.P. Lovecraft, a short story with elements of horror and supernatural fiction: ghosts, unsolved murders, secret investigations, and bizarre creatures. The assessment may double as a guided reading handout to facilitate engagement with the text. An answer key and copy of the public domain narrative are included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: General description of the narrator Setting A gruesome inciting incident Preparations for an emergency escape Secondary characters and their fates Natural disasters that transpire The distinguishing physical characteristic of an antagonist The narrator’s peculiar observations Complications facing the narrator A new demonic attack A physical description of monstrous beings The beings’ horrifying behavior The resolution

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning duties with this plot-based quiz on H.P. Lovecraft’s short story “From Beyond,” a piece featuring numerous compelling elements for high school students: alien life, advanced technology, parallel realities, and more. The assessment may double as a guided reading worksheet to facilitate engagement with the narrative. An answer key and copy of the text are included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: Crawford Tillinghast’s beliefs The purpose of an advanced machine The narrator’s connection to Tillinghast The narrator’s advice for Tillinghast The physical transformation of Tillinghast The location of Tillinghast’s lab The effects of the machine on the narrator The narrator’s emotional reaction to his supernatural experiences Tillinghast’s advice for staying safe The collective fate of Tillinghast’s servants Peculiar creatures surrounding the characters The fate of the machine Tillinghast’s apparent cause of death The police officers’ assumptions about the narrator

For many high school readers, supernatural fiction and fantasy are genres that maximize engagement with literature. “The Tree” by H.P. Lovecraft features plot elements consistent with the aforementioned genres: allusions to Greek mythology, inexplicable vanishings, the personification of inanimate objects, and more. This multiple choice quiz covering “The Tree” helps English teachers promote homework accountability, evaluate reading comprehension, and save time at home without sacrificing quality in the classroom. An answer key and copy of the public domain narrative are included. Materials are delivered in printable Word Document and PDF formats. By completing this assessment, students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: The role of the beekeeper The protagonists’ jobs The nature of the relationship between the protagonists The artistic inspirations of each individual protagonist The Tyrant of Syracuse’s motivations The goddess whom the Tyrant wishes to honor Kalos’ reaction to his grave illness The request Kalos makes of his friend upon his death The promise Musides makes to Kalos prior to his death The length of time it takes Musides to complete his assigned task Peculiar characteristics of the tree The fate of Musides and his work

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning responsibilities with this plot-based quiz covering Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Sphinx.” This piece of psychological horror features compelling plot elements including a cholera epidemic, social isolation, fear of death, and more. An answer key and copy of the narrative are included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: The nature of the epidemic The location of the epidemic The narrator’s current location The length of time the narrator is away from home The relationship of the narrator to his roommate General character descriptions The narrator’s beliefs concerning omens The narrator’s obsessive tendencies The narrator’s frightening observation The reason the narrator was mistaken in his observation The roommate’s evaluation of the narrator in the resolution

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning duties with this plot-based quiz on H.P. Lovecraft’s short story “The Doom that Came to Sarnath,” a piece featuring many compelling elements: strange shadows, the vanishing of a city, the plundering of a race of lizard people, and more. The assessment may double as a guided reading worksheet to facilitate engagement with the narrative. An answer key and copy of the text are included. Materials are delivered in printable Word Document and PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: The name Sarnath used to be known by A physical description of the beings who once inhabited the area The name of the beings’ leader The object worshiped by the beings The value humans saw in this region The fate of the strange beings and the object they worshiped The function of the amphitheater The celebration humans held in commemoration of genocide A strange event that takes place annually The amount of time that has passed since the killing of the beings The fate of the kings and their noblemen The resolution

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning duties with this plot-based quiz on H.P. Lovecraft’s short story “Polaris,” a piece featuring numerous compelling elements for high school students: a narrator of questionable sanity, a dreamscape setting, the conflict between imagination and reality, and more. The assessment may double as a guided reading worksheet to facilitate engagement with the narrative. An answer key and copy of the text are included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: The narrator’s home Medical conditions from which the protagonist suffers Setting The role of the Inutos The strange qualities of the protagonist’s dreams The narrator’s strengths and weaknesses in the context of the war The job assigned to the protagonist The narrator’s observations of Polaris How the narrator fails his people The resolution

Evaluate general reading comprehension and maximize interest in supernatural fiction with this plot-based quiz on Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Fall of the House of Usher.” The assessment may double as a guided reading worksheet to facilitate engagement with the narrative. An answer key and copy of the text are included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: How the narrator comes upon the House of Usher The narrator’s descriptions of the House of Usher What the narrator means when he refers to “shadowy fancies” A characterization of the relationship between the narrator and Roderick The content of the letter Roderick wrote the narrator What the narrator means when he refers to Roderick’s "reserve [which] had always been excessive and habitual. The Ushers’ ancestry A description of the narrator as he first explores the House of Usher Roderick’s ill appearance Madeline’s relationship to Roderick Madeline’s unusual medical condition Roderick’s ability to play the guitar Why Roderick wants to keep Madeline’s corpse in the house A realization that Roderick and Madeline were twins A strange sight through the window Peculiar noises Roderick’s terrible fear regarding Madeline Roderick’s death The narrative’s resolution

Help high schoolers go beyond basic comprehension and develop critical thinking and literary analysis skills with this close reading inference worksheet covering Edgar Allan Poe’s supernatural short story “The Fall of the House of Usher.” An answer key and copy of the narrative are included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. By completing this close reading activity, students will: Read for literal comprehension Utilize dictionaries to ensure knowledge of word meanings Infer the intended effects of the author’s word choices and narrative techniques Discern the functions of given excerpts Explore the connection between the plot of the short story and the content of the poem titled “The Haunted Palace” Examine how complex characters think, behave, interact, and develop Apply knowledge of various sound and literary devices including alliteration, personification, euphemism, foreshadowing, situational irony, hyperbole, epiphany, juxtaposition, and more Conduct brief research on Swiss painter Henry Fuseli to develop greater understanding of Poe’s allusion to him Support claims and inferences with sound reasoning and relevant evidence Write about fiction with clarity, accuracy, and precision Come to class better prepared to discuss literature

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning responsibilities with this plot-based quiz covering the short story “The Imp of the Perverse” by Edgar Allan Poe, a piece of horror and psychological fiction that explores the impulse to do wrong for wrong’s sake alone. The assessment may double as a guided reading handout to facilitate engagement with the text. An answer key and copy of the public domain narrative, which is especially fitting for the Halloween season, are provided. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: The principles of phrenology The narrator’s assessment of phrenology The narrator’s understanding of perverseness The location from which the narrator shares his account The means by which the narrator committed his crime How the narrator learned of the murder method The immediate results of the murder How the narrator’s mind shifts over time The narrator’s repeated motto How the public comes to learn of the narrator’s crime The narrator’s ponderings in the resolution

Help high schoolers go beyond basic comprehension and develop critical thinking and literary analysis skills with this close reading inference worksheet covering Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Tell-Tale Heart.” An answer key and copy of the narrative are included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. By completing this close reading activity, students will: Read for literal comprehension Utilize dictionaries to ensure knowledge of word meanings Infer the intended effects of the author’s word choices and narrative techniques Discern the function of a given excerpt Describe tone in context Explore how complex characters think, behave, interact, and develop Compare and contrast characters Analyze a detail for symbolism and make logical inferences about the narrator’s subconscious motivations based on this analysis Apply knowledge of literary devices including metaphor and situational irony Support claims and inferences with sound reasoning and relevant evidence Write about fiction with clarity, accuracy, and precision Come to class better prepared to discuss literature

Evaluate general reading comprehension and eliminate assessment planning responsibilities with this plot-based quiz covering the short story “The Lie” by Kurt Vonnegut. The resource may double as a guided reading worksheet to facilitate active engagement with fiction. An answer key is provided. Materials are delivered in printable Word Document and PDF formats. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the following: The Remenzels’ socioeconomic circumstances Mrs. Remenzel’s suggestions for her son’s dorm room Dr. Remenzel’s general disposition The name of the school to which Eli is taken The general history of the school Eli’s disposition on the drive to the school The parents’ inference based on Eli’s behavior The identity of Tom Hilyer The playing out of an awkward situation Mrs. Remenzel’s confession Dr. Remenzel’s surprising behavior The resolution