Trick or treat! Here are five spooky and classic Halloween short stories, perfect for school, around the campfire, at your Halloween party, or for reading after trick-or-treating.
1. “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allen Poe. A classic from the father of tales of terror. Other favorites: “The Masque of the Red Death,” “The Cask of the Amontillado,” “The Raven,” and “The Black Cat.”
2. “The Devil and Daniel Webster” by Stephen Vincent Benét. A New Hampshire farmer who sells his soul to the Devil and is defended by Daniel Webster, the famous lawyer, statesman, and orator.
3. “Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Take a midnight stroll with the Devil. This story is set during the Salem witch trials, at which Hawthorne’s great-great-grandfather, John Hathorne, presided as a judge.
4. “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” by Washington Irving. The famous story of Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman, the ghost of a Hessian soldier killed during the American Revolutionary War.
5. “The Man and the Snake” by Ambrose Bierce. A tense tale of psychological terror.
Click here to sign up for our newsletter.Distinguished scholar-teachers Amy and Leon Kass demonstrate how short stories, speeches, and songs can be used to enhance civic education and how a pedagogical approach that stresses learning through inquiry can make primary sources come alive for students of all ages.
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