Description
This digital short story lesson is designed for teaching Sticks by George Saunders, a powerful example of flash fiction commonly used in middle school and high school ELA classrooms.
Every family has its own unusual traditions. In this 392-word short story, the narrator reflects on childhood through the lens of a father who maintains a symbolic metal pole, decorating it to mark holidays and important life events. What begins as a simple tradition gradually reveals deeper meaning through symbolism, indirect characterization, and emotional restraint.
This short story analysis resource encourages students to engage in close reading, literary analysis, and critical thinking. Classroom discussions naturally emerge around parent-child relationships, emotional repression, family dynamics, control, and forgiveness, making this text ideal for teaching theme, tone, and author’s purpose.
This resource includes a teacher guide for easy implementation, along with reading comprehension questions and literary analysis questions aligned to secondary ELA standards. An answer key is provided, and all questions are fully editable. Students also complete a creative writing assignment with a grading rubric, as well as an after-reading creative project that reinforces symbolism and textual evidence.
This lesson is ideal for short story units, symbolism lessons, flash fiction analysis, sub plans, or stand-alone ELA activities for grades 7–12.