Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Nathan’s mentors help him find the hero within himself.

• Who is one character who acts as a mentor to Nathan, and what does this character teach Nathan about himself? (topic sentence)
• Give details from the book to show what the character’s relationship with Nathan is like and how Nathan applies the lessons he learns from this mentor.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, connect your ideas about the mentor character to the novel’s theme of Finding the Hero Within.

2. Pond and Nathan’s friendship helps the author convey a message about people and nature.

• What does Pond symbolize, and what does he teach Nathan about nature? (topic sentence)
• Offer evidence from the story that shows how Nathan attempts to help his friend and how Nathan changes because of their friendship.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, draw a connection between Nathan’s friendship with Pond and the novel’s overarching theme of The Importance of Respecting Nature.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. Consider the need for healing in the complex relationships between Nathan’s relatives. Select two family members from the novel. How do these relatives demonstrate their love for one another? In what ways do their actions hurt each other? Ultimately, do these two characters reconcile the problems between them, or are these issues unresolved by the novel’s ending? Make and defend a clear claim about the relationship’s connection to the theme of Family as a Source of Both Love and Pain. Support your ideas with evidence from the text. Remember to cite quoted evidence.

2. Consider the importance of water in Young’s novel. How does the motif of water connect to the theme of The Importance of Respecting Nature? How does the motif’s significance develop throughout the story? How does Nathan’s relationship with water change over the course of the novel, and how do these changes reflect his evolution as a character? Make and defend a clear claim about the motif of water in Healer of the Water Monster. Support your ideas with evidence from throughout the text. Remember to cite quoted evidence.