James Thurber
Lesson plans for "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" and other stories

|Biography| |"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty"| |Other Thurber stories|

Biography

James Thurber
Biography and related links.

Pathfinder: James Grover Thurber
Biography, reviews, links to related sites, even a Thurber quiz.

Thurber House
Biography, quotable quotes, and more.

"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty"

Graphic Organizer for Active Reading
This 3-page handout supports "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty." It includes a graphic organizer, vocabulary, and editing practice. Access requires Adobe Reader or compatible application.

"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty"
Vocabulary, guided reading questions, related notes.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty Continues ...
After analyzing the structure of the story, students create another episode in Walter Mitty's secret life. Lesson includes graphic organizer.

Vocabulary from "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty"
A list of 18 words drawn from the story.

Other Thurber stories

Comparing and Contrasting Fables
Students will apply literal, interpretive, and critical thinking skills to two versions of a fable. They will then draw a cartoon to illustrate the moral of one of the fables they read. Suggested fable: "The Fox and the Crow" by Aesop and by Thurber.

James Thurber, "The Catbird Seat"
Six questions for discussion and/or writing. This document requires MS-Word for access.

"The Little Girl and the Wolf"
Text of the story.

"The Unicorn in the Garden"
An online text of the story.

"The Wood Duck"
In this podcast Jonathan Lethem reads James Thurber's short story "The Wood Duck" and discusses Thurber with The New Yorker's fiction editor, Deborah Treisman.