Vocabulary• Genre – a category in which a work of literature is

classified• Elements of Plot- exposition, rising action, climax,

falling action, and resolution: The series of events in a story.

• Characterization- the way a writer creates and develops characters

• Point of View- how a writer chooses to narrate a story• Beneficial- helpful and good for you• Variable- Able to be changed, unusual• Maximum- the highest quantity• Minimum - the lowest quantity

HolesSetting / Draw it!

A "setting" is where something is or where something happens. To describe the setting can also include the time of day, the moods of any people there, and any other details that would help you understand what is happening.

• Holes opens with a description of the setting of most of this story. • Draw this setting. Be sure to include each thing on this list, and as many

details from the chapter as you can find (be creative about showing what it is like there):

• log cabin• hammock• "lake”• scorpions• rattlesnake• lizard• holes

Holes: Inferences

• To infer something (or, make an infer-ence) is to figure something out, or at least make a guess about something. For example, if someone bursts into tears and leaves the room, you could infer that something has upset them. You might even know what it is.

• A good inference is not a wild guess. It's based on evidence. Tears are evidence that someone is upset.

Holes: Inferences

• If you knew only the name, you might infer that a place called "Camp Green Lake" would have a lake, green plants, and lots of fun things to do. However, the first chapter gives you plenty of evidence to help you infer that Camp Green Lake is not a fun place.

• Questions:• What are three reasons you could infer that "Camp

Green Lake" isn't fun for the campers?• What is one reason you can infer that the Warden is

not nice to the campers?

Comprehension ?s Chapters 1-2

1. Explain the irony in the name Camp Green Lake. 2. Why will campers sometimes permit themselves to be bitten

by a rattlesnake or a scorpion? 3. What is the significance of the phrase, "The Warden owns

the shade"? 4. Why does the narrator suggest that if someone is bitten by a

yellow-spotted lizard they might as well lie in the hammock. 5. Why did Camp Green Lake always manage to find campers

despite the appalling conditions? 6. What choices did the judge give Stanley?

Holes by Louis Sachar Chapters Two and Three

Theme

THEMES• A theme is "a subject or topic of discourse or

artistic representation" (Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, tenth ed.); in other words, a theme is a big idea worth thinking and talking about.

• In Holes, one theme is something called perseverance. Perseverance means continuing to try, even though what you're trying is hard, things get in the way, or it's discouraging, or all three.

Holes: Themes

• It takes perseverance to run a marathon -- not just the day you run in it, but all those days before that when you are running to get ready. Lots of people say they're going to run in a marathon but never end up even at the starting line.

• Thomas Edison is famous for his perseverance. He had to try thousands of different things before he found one that worked. One of his most famous quotes is

• "Genius is one per cent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration. Accordingly, a 'genius' is often merely a talented person who has done all of his or her homework."

• Notice that he puts "genius" in quotes, because it's what you're calling someone (whether really a genius or not).

Holes: Themes

Questions:1. For the picture below, describe how the

person needed to have perseverance to do what he or she is doing.

Holes: Themes

Questions:2. In one of Aesop's Fables, _The Tortoise and

the Hare_, how does perseverance help the winner of that race?

Holes: Theme

3. How do you know Stanley's father has perseverance?

Chapters 4 and 5 Quote Analysis

An author can describe important events in a story by telling you about them: He checked Stanley's backpack and allowed him to keep it. Then he led Stanley outside into the blazing heat (p.14). Sometimes what a character says (and how he says it) is just as important as what happens. It can tell us what the person talking is like, and what has happened in the past or will happen in the future.

Chapters 4 and 5 Quote Analysis

•

You can learn a lot from a quote by explaining it in four parts, called a "quote analysis:"

• Write the quote and the page it comes from. Put it in quotation marks. • Explain who said those words, and to whom they were talking. • Paraphrase the quote.

That means put it in different words that mean the same thing. Don't use quotation marks because quotation marks mean you are writing exactly the words that were said.

• Explain what this quote tells you about this character or the plot of the story. What kind of person would say these things? Why would they say it? What would they have to know, or be thinking about, to say it?

Holes Chapters 3 and 4

1. Why did Stanley have a box of stationery? 2. How do we know that Stanley was very unhappy at home?3. How did Mrs. Bell inadvertently embarrass Stanley? 4. Briefly explain the curse of the one-legged Gypsy. 5. Why did Stanley's apartment smell of burning rubber and foot odor? 6. What did everyone in the family like about Stanley Yelnat's name?7. Explain the abundance of sunflower seeds on the floor by the desk. 8. How did the guard wish to be addressed by Stanley? 9. Explain how the laundry was done. 10. What instructions did the guard give to Stanley concerning digging? 11. According to Mr. Sir why did none of the campers attempt to escape despite the

fact that there were no fences or guard towers?

Chapters 4 and 5 Quote Analysis

Example:Quote: “If it makes you feel better to call me Mom,

Theodore, go ahead and call me Mom.” Characters: Mr. Pendanski says this to one of the boys. Paraphrase: If you want to call me Mom, it's okay with

me. What does it tell you? Mr. Pendanski wants them to feel

comfortable with him. He doesn't want to scare them.

Chapters 4 and 5 Quote Analysis

Your Turn!• Mr. Sir is a different kind of person than Mr. Pendanski.

Analyze this quote from him: "Whenever you speak to me, you must call me by my name. Is that clear?" (p. 13)

• Write the quote:Who does he say it to, and when and where?Paraphrase the quote:What does it say about Mr. Sir?

Tall Tales:

In some ways, the story _Holes_ is like a tall tale. In "tall tales," things are extreme. Good is very, very good and bad is very, very bad. Things don't change -- a rule is a rule.

• What is "the one rule" at Camp Green Lake?

• Who is probably a very, very bad character?

Holes: FlashbacksFlashbacks Many books tell a story by starting at the beginning, telling you what

happened, and ending at the end. Holes does not do this. We find out why Stanley is at Camp Green Lake after

he gets there, and little by little we find out more about what happened.Holes also has something called flashbacks. In the middle of the story,

FLASH! we are zapped back in time and we find out about things that happened a long time ago that are important to Stanley, even though he doesn't know it. We don't really know how they will be important -- but we can make inferences about them.

Whenever there are extra blank lines on the page, ask yourself "why??" Usually the setting is changing to a different time or place, or a lot of time passes by. Sometimes the pause is because something very important has happened or been said.

Holes Chapter 7: Flashbacks

In chapter 7, what is the first sentence of the "flashback to his grandfather's time?

What is the setting (time and place)?Find the country Latvia on the maps below; it is

abbreviated as "Lat." in the second map because it is small, and close to some other countries.

Holes

• Find the country Latvia on the maps below; it is abbreviated as "Lat." in the second map because it is small, and close to some other countries.

Holes

• Find a map of the world. Where is Latvia on it?

Holes: Flashbacks

• Here is a new "character" -- an animal. Why is a pig important to this flashback story?

Theme: Perseverance

Madame Zeroni gives Elya advice about the girl he loves. She tells him to do something.

Why is Elya going to need perseverance to do as Madame Zeroni asks?