“The Monkey’s Paw” Movie Lesson Plan and Other Video Resources

It’s the summer and I’m watching movies. I’m not talking summer blockbusters. I’m talking movies from stories I teach. Today’s movie is “The Monkey’s Paw.” Actually, there’s about 93 “Monkey’s Paw” movies. Since I don’t bother with full length features, I viewed the two that were around a 1/2-hour long.

Let’s begin with this gem. There’s a swear word at the 17:22 mark. Fast forward, if necessary. It’s a little creepy in a Halloween-like way. Quite entertaining.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugjegclLNhM

I was skeptical about the next one initially, but it’s pretty good too. It portrays Mr. and Mrs. White a little more accurately. It’s more of a play than a movie. I recommend it.

Because you made a wish to not have to read the story to five different classes, here’s the audio book version.

“The Monkey’s Paw” Teaching Guide contains engaging lesson plans, graphic organizers, answer keys, rubrics, the actual story and a quiz. You’re getting an entire teacher-friendly/student-friendly, ready-to-use unit. Just print out what you need and make a few copies. Add your expertise and boom! That’s an entire unit’s peace of mind for $4.50 (and since you’re gonna share this with your grade level colleagues, make them pitch in).

Perhaps you’re wondering how you could turn this into a lesson plan involving ELA Common Core standards?

Do it with a chart.

Divide or fold a paper in half, long ways.
As you’re reading or after you’ve read To Build a Fire,” list 6-10 things in the left column that are important to the story.
As you watch the video, Write how those 6-10 things are portrayed in the video.
If you’re really interested in continuing the learning, do a basic comparison paragraph with a judgment on how accurately the film portrays the short story.

Don’t forget to write one of these chilling standards on the board

RL.9-10.7 – Analyze the representation of a subject or a key scene in two different artistic mediums, including what is emphasized or absent in each treatment.
RL.11-12.7 – Analyze multiple interpretations of a story, drama, or poem (e.g., recorded or live production of a play or recorded novel or poetry), evaluating how each version interprets the source text.

We have a treat for you on the next page: Clips from The Simpsons “Monkey’s Paw.”

Last Updated on November 17, 2016 by Trenton Lorcher