"A Small Incident" describes a narrator riding in a rickshaw on a cold morning when the puller collides with an old woman, who falls and may or may not be hurt. The rickshaw puller stops and helps her to the police station despite the narrator's urging to move on. The narrator is left feeling small in comparison, and that shift in perspective is the heart of the story.

Because the story is only a few pages long, it is ideal for short written responses of one or two paragraphs. These assignments let you check comprehension and basic analysis without producing a stack of long essays to grade. They also give students low-pressure practice at making a claim and backing it up.

A short response rubric should be simple enough to apply in a minute or two per paper. Three rows are usually enough: a clear claim, relevant evidence, and an explanation of how the evidence supports the claim. Anything more detailed tends to slow grading without improving the quality of feedback.

Design prompts that require real thinking

A prompt that asks only what happens in the story invites summary, which is hard to grade for anything beyond accuracy. A stronger prompt asks how the narrator's attitude toward the rickshaw puller changes and what causes that change. Responses must then identify specific moments and explain a shift, which is a more demanding task.

• How does the narrator's view of the puller change from beginning to end?
• Why does Lu Xun open with a reference to national events before the small incident?
• What does the narrator mean when he says the figure grows larger in his mind?
• How does the setting, including the cold wind, contribute to the mood?
• What does the story suggest about the relationship between education and moral character?

Grade quickly with consistent criteria

To speed up grading, read three or four responses to calibrate before assigning any scores. Notice what a typical strong answer looks like and what an average one lacks, then use those benchmarks for the rest of the set. This simple step reduces drift and keeps early and late papers on equal footing.

Use a short comment bank for recurring issues, such as "explain how this detail supports your claim" or "identify the moment where the narrator's attitude shifts." Pasting or writing these quickly leaves more energy for the one personalized comment that matters. Students usually respond better to a few precise notes than to a crowded margin.

Use the story to teach evidence selection

With a text this short, students can see every possible piece of evidence and must decide which ones best support their claim. That choice is a skill in itself, and you can assess it directly by asking them to justify why they picked a particular line. Many students discover that the most obvious quotation is not always the most useful.

Encourage them to avoid long block quotations in a short response. A phrase or a single sentence is enough, and trimming it forces students to focus on the relevant words. This habit translates directly to longer essays later in the unit.

Connect the story to the larger collection

After students finish the short response, you can ask them to compare the rickshaw puller with another working-class figure such as Runtu or Ah Q. The comparison reveals how differently Lu Xun portrays dignity, hardship, and the narrator's own position. It also builds toward a longer comparative essay without requiring extra reading.

Keep the earlier short responses in students' portfolios so they can see their development over the unit. When they revisit their first claim after finishing the collection, they often revise it significantly. That visible growth is a powerful form of assessment evidence.