🌙 “I Never Want to Walk on the Moon” – Short Story Reading & Analytical Writing Lesson Pack

This flexible lesson pack uses B.J. Novak’s quirky short story “I Never Want to Walk on the Moon” (from One More Thing) to guide students from comprehension into literary analysis and analytical paragraph writing.

What makes this story such a great teaching tool? Novak flips the usual symbolism of “the moon” and “stars” (BIG dreams, achievement, exploration) and gives us a narrator who’s practical, cautious, and ironically resistant to those ideals. Students get to laugh, think, and debate—while strengthening their close reading and writing skills.

✨ What’s included:

1. Reading Comprehension Questions (print + digital) to ensure comprehension while prompting students to notice key details about character, irony, and symbolism.
2. Mini-Lesson Slide Deck with:
   • Do Now warm-up on symbolism of the moon & stars
   • Armstrong’s quote as contrast to narrator’s perspective
   • Symbolism + irony quick write
   • Chart organizer for textual evidence
   • Tone/diction analysis check
   • Group challenge discussion prompt
3. Analytical Paragraph Assignment Sheets (print + digital) with two differentiated options:
   • Option 1 (easier): 2 prompts on characterization & symbolism with scaffolding for topic sentences and graphic organizers.
   • Option 2 (more challenging): 3 prompts (characterization, symbolism, irony) with prewriting and scaffolds to push analysis further.
4. BONUS: Passage Analysis Activity: a guided close-reading task where students annotate, identify claims/evidence, and practice explaining effects. Perfect for reinforcing analytical thinking in a structured way.

💡 Teaching focus:

• Explore how diction and irony create tone.
• Analyze how symbolism can be subverted.
• Practice constructing analytical paragraphs with claims, evidence, and reasoning.

Perfect as a formative assessment, stand-alone short story lesson, or as part of a larger unit on tone, symbolism, or satire.

What's Not Included?

Please note that this unit includes scaffolded reading questions AND instructional writing materials and mentor texts for "I Never Want to Walk on the Moon" in the collection, One More Thing by BJ Novak, but I do not own the rights to distribute the stories themselves.

You will need a copy of the story.

I recommend purchasing a copy of the text to use for yourself, previewing the text here, or borrowing from the library.