It can be a challenge to find appropriate 6th grade short stories. Some stories are extremely long and are almost a short novel in length, whereas others are not appropriate for modern-day values.
I love using short stories in my classroom. I use them to teach the elements of the novel, figurative language and critical thinking skills. This list of 6th grade short stories makes it so much easier to find quality stories to use with this grade level.
6th Grade Short Stories
A little boy notices the carpet in his house. He imagines it is an active swamp with snakes and other creatures. He tells himself that if he can avoid the black parts of the carpet which are “snakes” and get to the other side of the room then he will get a puppy for his birthday. Any student who has played the floor is lava will understand this story.
The Hockey Sweater by Roch Carrier
Roch’s favourite Montréal Canadiens sweater is too small. His mother orders a new sweater from the Eaton’s catalogue. Much to Roch’s despair, a Toronto Maple Leafs sweater arrives. Chaos will ensue for Roch who idolized Maurice Richard and would NEVER betray his idol.
It is Rachel’s 11th birthday and things do not go as planned. She begins to wish that she was any other age besides eleven.
The Beau Catcher by Frederick Laing
Genevieve Smith is a shy and timid girl who just wants someone to ask her to the country club dance. She heads off to the local department store to buy herself some rainboots when she spots pretty hair accessories in the Beau Catchers section. She purchases a hair ribbon and soon gets asked to the dance. Was it the hair ribbon or something else?
Names/Nombres by Julia Alvarez
Julia struggles with her identity as she feels that she lives two lives – the one at school with all her American friends and at home with her immigrant parents.
I hope this list of 6th grade short stories helps you locate the best ones for your students.
If you are looking for a ready-to-go 6th-grade short story unit check this out.
This 6th-grade short story unit contains 12 different lessons to help your students read and analyze short stories. Students will explicitly learn about various literary elements and devices such as plot, character, setting, theme, conflict and figurative language such as similes and metaphors. This unit uses the following short stories:
- The Wish by Roald Dahl
- The Hockey Sweater by Roch Carrier
- Eleven by Sandra Cisneros
- The Beau Catcher by Frederick Laing
- Names/Nombres by Julia Alvarez
6th Grade Short Story Unit Outline
- Activating Prior Knowledge Graffiti Brainstorm
- What is a short story?
- Literary Elements Note
- Literary Elements Practice Stations
- Literary Elements Quiz
- Literary Devices Note
- Literary Devices Practice
- Literary Devices Quiz
- Short Story Group Work & Choice Board Project
- Short Story Application Task (Test)
- Write Your Own Short Story
- Short Story Sharing Café
Unit Includes:
- Individual PDFs of student pages for uploading to Google Classroom or other LMS systems
- Google Slides graphic organizers for 1:1 schools
- Literary elements and devices classroom posters (anchor charts)
- Student choice
- Comprehension questions, quizzes and test
- Scaffolded and regular graphic organizers options
- Unit plan and detailed daily lessons
- Lessons divided up with title pages for easy access
- Standards-based assessment options
- Points-based assessment options
Want more information about this unit? Click here.
Looking for more middle school short stories? Click here.
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