The Age of Innocence teacher pack
Five weeks of lessons on The Age of Innocence for ages 14 to 18: a plan, a worksheet and the answers for each week, a final essay with a marking guide, and a reading certificate to print. Free to use in class.
Five weeks, week by week
- Week 1Parts 1 to 7
Newland’s engagement and Ellen’s social rejection reveal how family approval shapes marriage, reputation, and claims about women’s freedom.
Plan · worksheet · answers - Week 2Parts 8 to 14
Newland grows closer to Ellen but advises against divorce, exposing the conflict between personal freedom and protecting a family’s reputation.
Plan · worksheet · answers - Week 3Parts 15 to 20
Newland and Ellen confess their love, but obligations to May lead toward a wedding and a marriage marked by private distress.
Plan · worksheet · answers - Week 4Parts 21 to 27
Newland seeks Ellen again, while their shared restraint, family pressure, and Beaufort’s crisis expose tensions beneath orderly social life.
Plan · worksheet · answers - Week 5Parts 28 to 34
Ellen’s departure, May’s pregnancy, and Newland’s final Paris choice reveal how unspoken knowledge and restraint shape the course of their lives.
Plan · worksheet · answers
Assessment
Final essay
Three questions to choose from, 800 to 1,200 words, with a marking guide in four bands.
Quiz bank
The 30 questions and 40 flashcards online, for homework or a quick check in class. Open the quiz
Discussion
Questions for small groups, meeting by meeting. The book club kit
Reading certificate
Certificate of reading
Student's name
has read
The Age of Innocence
by Edith Wharton
Teacher and class
Free for 3 months
Get the full summary of The Age of Innocence, free
- 200,000+ classics as eBooks, audiobooks and 15-minute summaries, and print and large print at cost
- Up to 5 readers in your home on one plan
Back to the The Age of Innocence study guide · All teacher packs
