Fort Bend ISD (November 18, 2024) – McAuliffe Middle School’s English Language Arts Department recently brought author Edgar Allan Poe to life with a campus escape room where students went on a quest to find a logical explanation for his mysterious death.

“Our ELA Department wanted to engage our students in an immersive, real-life situation centered around current skills being taught,” ELA teacher Ashlee Thomas said. “We are currently on Informational Text, and what better way to tie in a real-life possible crime than to dissect the great Edgar Allan Poe's biography.”

Each ELA teacher crafted a workstation that focused on specific reading skills students needed to strengthen based on recent data. Students examined clues and gathered evidence throughout the campus, which included the counselor’s office, the school clinic, and even the campus police officer was involved.

The final stop was the school library, where the students composed a response based on the evidence they found. If correct, it unlocked the final clue and ended the escape room challenge.