Read this famous short story carefully several times. Pay close attention to the actions and words of each of the characters. Note carefully who each one of them is.
Write your 300-350 words on the "outcasts". Why are they, morally and physically, "cast out"? Think about the issues of societal and personal morality.
Read this Wikipedia page about the Donner Party of 1849. This case was famous at the time Bret Harte wrote "The Outcasts of Poker Flat." So it is helpful to be aware of it, as Harte's readers would certainly have been. However, you are NOT to write about it -- just be aware of it.
Emal to your group and to me.