Black Beauty

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

ACTIVITY: “Black Beauty’s Job Application”

In this activity, students create a mock job application for Black Beauty, imagining that he is marketing himself as a loyal and hardworking horse with varied work experience.

Adopt Black Beauty’s perspective in the final section of the novel when he is in need of a new job and a new home (Part 4, Chapter 48). Write a short resume describing 2 or 3 of his previous jobs (for example, cab horse), 3 or 4 key accomplishments (for example, getting the doctor to Lady Gordon), and 3 or 4 of his personal characteristics. Include a short cover letter describing his ideal employer: What qualities does Black Beauty want in the person he will work for?

Teaching Suggestion: Consider using this activity as an opportunity to introduce or reinforce students’ knowledge of a resume structure or how to use a resume template. Use the list of Black Beauty’s previous jobs to discuss the central role horses played in the economy and functioning of Victorian England. After completing the resume and cover letter, have students exchange assignments and discuss whether they would hire Black Beauty.