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. Several accounts in the book detail the lives of the Romanovs and compare them with the lives of the poor in Russia.

• How do the lives of the upper class in Russia compare to the lower class? (topic sentence)
• Explain three instances in which the lives of the upper class in Russia contrast with those of the lower class.
• In your concluding sentences, explain how class disparity leads to a rebellion in turn-of-the-century Russia.

2. Nicholas’s wife, Alexandra, says she wears “invisible trousers” and takes a dominant role in the couple’s relationship.

• How does Alexandra’s role in the royal family positively and negatively impact their reign? (topic sentence)
• Explain why Alexandra’s influence over her husband was good for Russia, and why it may have impacted the royal family negatively.