9th Grade Short Stories Centers

This activity features an engaging escape room in which students tackle 5 puzzles covering plot, figurative language, story elements, and quotes from Edgar Allan Poe's chilling tale, The Pit and the Pendulum!

There is no wonder why escape rooms are so popular; they are highly engaging and encourage people to work together and think creatively in order to solve different puzzles... all while trying to beat the clock! This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Escape Room for The Pit & the Pendulum by Edgar Allan Poe. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task, but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours runs smoothly from start to finish. The activity involves movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of this game!

How does it work?

In this escape room, students will try to escape out of the Inquisitor's dungeon of gloom and doom by solving 5 different puzzles, discovering a hidden message, and finding clues along the way.

• Plot Diagram: In the first task, students must order scrambled plot points from The Pit & the Pendulum and place them in the correct spot on Freytag's Pyramid. Highlighted boxes will reveal the code.
• Figurative Language: In the second task, students must identify 7 types of figurative language within the story. Highlighted boxes in the correct answers will reveal the code.
• Jig Saw: In the third task, students must solve a colorful jig saw puzzle that when intact, displays an important quote from the story.
• Close Read: In the fourth task, students must answer challenging multiple choice questions about The Pit & the Pendulum that when correct, will reveal the code.
• Hidden Message: In the fifth and final task, students must discover the hidden message (a quote from The Pit & the Pendulum) using clues from the first four tasks.

Product Includes:

- Escape Room Basics

- Detailed Day-Of Instructions

- Escape Room Print Checklist

- Student Teams Chart

- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and supplementary materials to be kept at stations

- Student Answer Booklet

- Teacher Answer Keys

- Visual "Keys"

- Escape Room Reflection for homework or in-class writing activity

- Theme Reflection for homework assignment or in-class writing activity

__________________________________________________________________________________

Check out these great products to supplement your study of The Pit and the Pendulum:

⭐ The Pit & the Pendulum Digital Escape Room (paperless version)
⭐ The Pit and the Pendulum Literature Guide

⭐ The Pit and the Pendulum Sensory Detail Activities

⭐ The Pit and the Pendulum Socratic Seminar

More resources to round out your Edgar Allan Poe unit:

⭐ Introduction to Edgar Allan Poe PowerPoint

⭐ Introduction to Edgar Allan Poe Scavenger Hunt

⭐ Edgar Allan Poe ESCAPE ROOM

⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Bell Ringer Journal Prompts

⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Crossword Puzzle

⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Brochure

⭐ Edgar Allan Poe's Obituary

⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Quote Posters

⭐ Edgar Allan Poe Resource Bundle

And because your students will be begging for more escape rooms...

⭐ The Raven ESCAPE ROOM

⭐ The Tell-Tale Heart ESCAPE ROOM

⭐ The Black Cat ESCAPE ROOM

⭐ The Fall of the House of Usher ESCAPE ROOM

⭐ The Masque of the Red Death ESCAPE ROOM

⭐ The Cask of Amontillado ESCAPE ROOM

___________________________________________________________________________

Click to Follow Language Arts Excellence

This resource features a bundle of all of our lesson plans, materials, and activities for Edgar Allan Poe's chilling tale of terror and torture, The Pit and the Pendulum. Each product is thoughtfully crafted and allows students to think outside the box by delving deeply into the story's themes, characters, vocabulary, and plot development. Lessons have all been classroom-tested and allow for differentiation while encouraging optimal student engagement. This activity bundle provides a week's worth of material to bring the story to life (if you dare!).

Included in this Bundle:

The Pit and the Pendulum Literature Guide: This literature guide features a comprehensive mini-unit for The Pit and the Pendulum. The packet provides an excellent basis for comprehension and vocabulary acquisition for the short story and encourages students to think critically about Poe's use of sensory details, literary elements, figurative language, and symbolism. A full answer key is provided along with two bonus student-tested lesson plans and full procedure for conducting a P&P Socratic Seminar in your classroom. The wide range of activities in this guide will keep your students engaged and help them to gain a deep understanding of one of the most horrifying tales in American literature.

The Pit & the Pendulum ESCAPE ROOM: This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct a full-length Escape Room for The Pit & the Pendulum. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task, but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours runs smoothly from start to finish. The activity involves movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of this game!

The Pit and the Pendulum Socratic Seminar (also included within Literature Guide): This resource features lesson plans and materials to conduct a formal set of Socratic Seminars for P&P. Socratic Seminars (or "Fish Bowl" Conversations as referred to in this resource) are higher order ways of assessing whether your students are able to understand and react to your class texts. These seminars rely on the power of inquiry and allow students to take the lead in their learning and discussion. The only problem? They require a great deal of preparation. Fortunately, this student-tested resource includes everything you need to conduct a structured and formal set of Socratic Seminars in your classroom surrounding the short story... and no preparation is required by you at all.

The Pit and the Pendulum Sensory Detail Lesson Plan & Materials (also included within Literature Guide): This product features 3 engaging, differentiated activities that focus on the rich sensory details of Edgar Allan Poe's ultimate tale of torture. The activities span before, during, and after reading the story with the intent to not only identify the sensory details, but to analyze their importance and how they add to the reader's experience with the tale. The activities support multiple learning styles so that all students walk away from this difficult story with an entirely new appreciation for Poe's incredible use of the English language while having fun at the same time!

**Bonus File: Edgar Allan Poe's Obituary - Halloween Lesson Plan: Students get the chance to create the epitaph for the gravestone of one of the most revered authors in American literature. The activity encourages students to be thoughtful with their knowledge of Poe but also to be creative with their inscriptions. This can be done in or outside of class and also works as a great emergency substitute plan during the month of October. To be festive, I love to give this assignment on the anniversary of Edgar Allan Poe's actual death day, October 7.

______________________________________________________________________________

Click to Follow Language Arts Excellence

**Now with newly added material! - Annabel Lee Escape Room!**

This mega bundle features 9 of our rigorous and engaging escape rooms on Edgar Allan Poe and his horrifying tales!

There is no wonder why escape rooms are so popular; they are highly engaging and encourage people to work together and think creatively in order to solve different puzzles... all while trying to beat the clock! These meticulously-crafted resources feature all of the materials you need to conduct 9 full-length Escape Rooms on the Father of Horror and some of his most popular stories and poems. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task, but these products provide everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours run smoothly from start to finish. The activities involve movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of these games!

Each Escape Room Includes:

• Escape Room Basics
• Detailed Day-Of Instructions
• Escape Room Print Checklist
• Student Teams Chart
• Welcome Sign for Your Door
• Materials for 5-6 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions, and necessary information to be kept at stations
• Student Answer Booklet
• Teacher Answer Keys
• Escape Room Reflection for homework or in-class writing activity

Escape Rooms Included: Edgar Allan Poe, The Black Cat, The Cask of Amontillado, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Masque of the Red Death, The Pit & the Pendulum, The Raven, The Tell-Tale Heart, Annabel Lee

Purchasing this mega bundle saves 30% off the cover price of the 9 escape rooms. Suitable for middle-high school students.

___________________________________________________________________

Click to Follow Language Arts Excellence

This bundle includes the in-class and digital version of our Pit & the Pendulum Escape Rooms!

There is no wonder why escape rooms are so popular; they are highly engaging and encourage people to work together and think creatively in order to solve different puzzles... all while trying to beat the clock. Now, you can facilitate our popular Pit & the Pendulum Escape Rooms in the classroom and at home for distance learning with this meticulously-crafted bundle. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task, but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours run smoothly from start to finish. All tasks are skills-based so that with these fun lessons, learning is not sacrificed. Whether they are in school or at home, your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize how much they've learned about the short story.

How does it work?

In this escape room, students will try to escape out of the Inquisitor's dungeon of gloom and doom by solving 5 different puzzles, discovering a hidden message, and finding clues along the way.

• Plot Diagram: In the first task, students must order scrambled plot points from The Pit & the Pendulum and place them in the correct spot on Freytag's Pyramid. Highlighted boxes will reveal the code.
• Figurative Language: In the second task, students must identify 7 types of figurative language within the story. Highlighted boxes in the correct answers will reveal the code.
• Jig Saw: In the third task, students must solve a colorful jig saw puzzle that when intact, displays an important quote from the story.
• Close Read: In the fourth task, students must answer challenging multiple choice questions about T_he Pit & the Pendulum_ that when correct, will reveal the code.
• Hidden Message: In the fifth and final task, students must discover the hidden message (a quote from The Pit & the Pendulum) using clues from the first four tasks.

In-Class Escape Room Includes:

- Escape Room Basics

- Detailed Day-Of Instructions

- Escape Room Print Checklist

- Student Teams Chart

- Welcome Sign for Your Door

- Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions (2 per page for easy printing), and necessary information to be kept at stations

- Student Answer Booklet

- Teacher Answer Keys

- Visual "Keys"

- Escape Room Reflection for homework or in-class writing activity

- Theme Reflection for homework assignment or in-class writing activity

Digital (Paperless) Escape Room Includes:

- Instructions for how to access and share escape room and answer key through Google Drive

- Materials for 5 Tasks: digital task signs, detailed task instructions, and worksheets

- Digital Student Answer Booklet

- Digital Teacher Answer Key

*Note that this is the digital version of the escape room; tasks are identical, just reformatted for digital experience. Requires use of Google Slides.*

___________________________________________________________________________

Click to Follow Language Arts Excellence

This bundle includes 7 more of our rigorous and engaging escape rooms for your short story unit featuring A Sound of Thunder, To Build a Fire, The Pit & the Pendulum, Lamb to the Slaughter, The Necklace, The Veldt, and The Fall of the House of Usher.

There is no wonder why escape rooms are so popular; they are highly engaging and encourage people to work together and think creatively in order to solve different puzzles... all while trying to beat the clock! This meticulously-crafted resource features all of the materials you need to conduct 7 full-length Escape Rooms for A Sound of Thunder, To Build a Fire, The Pit & the Pendulum, Lamb to the Slaughter, The Necklace, The Veldt, and The Fall of the House of Usher. Planning an escape room may seem like quite the daunting task, but this product provides everything from the basics and set-up instructions to signs and answer keys so that yours run smoothly from start to finish. These activities involve movement, energy, creative thinking and most of all, collaboration. Your students will be having so much fun that they won’t even realize the higher order thinking skills they are applying in the playing of these games!

How does it work?

Your students must work to escape your classroom by solving 5 different skills-based puzzles, discovering hidden messages, and finding clues along the way based on the short story they feature.

Each Escape Room Includes:

• Escape Room Basics
• Detailed Day-Of Instructions
• Escape Room Print Checklist
• Student Teams Chart
• Materials for 5 Tasks: task signs to be folded upright, task instructions, and supplementary materials for each station
• Student Answer Sheets
• Teacher Answer Keys
• Code Word Theme Open Response for homework or in-class writing activity
• Escape Room Reflection for homework or in-class writing activity

Purchasing this bundle saves an incredible 30% off the cover price of the 7 escape rooms. Suitable for middle and high school students.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

If this combination of escape rooms isn't exactly what you're looking for, check out Volume 1 or build your own bundle!

⭐ Short Story Escape Room Bundle - Volume 1

⭐ Build Your Own Escape Room BUNDLE

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Click to Follow Language Arts Excellence