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Holes
Trailblazers · 4th–6th
Stanley tells himself he must save his energy for the people who counted, and the narrator says his heart had hardened. Was turning Zero down fair to a tired boy, or unkind to someone who counts too?
The tension Stanley is hot, tired and sore and truly has little left, while Zero asks plainly for the one thing he says he needs.
Notice what the camp has done to Stanley's body and what the narrator says it has done to his heart.
The boys are sent to new holes, and Stanley is glad to be away from the big hole. His body is stronger, and he writes a cheerful letter home while Zero watches. Zero says he wants to learn to read, and Stanley says sorry twice and does not help. The chapter ends with the narrator's remark about Stanley's heart and his thirst.
Start with the line "His heart had hardened as well." Ask the student what else the chapter says has toughened.
Retell The student tells the chapter back in order: the new holes, Stanley's sore head and strong body, the letter, Zero's request, and the ending.
Imitate the author After copying the passage, the student writes two sentences in the same pattern: one that names several things that have changed, and one that adds a change that is not about the body.
Debate Take sides on the big question: was turning Zero down fair to a tired boy, or unkind to someone who counts too? Each side must use one quote from the chapter.
Purpose Close by asking why an author might put a cheerful letter beside a scene in which a boy turns someone away.
Easier Read the scene with Zero aloud together and talk through discussion questions 3 and 5 only.
On level Talk through all five discussion questions, then have the student write one critical-thinking answer with two pieces of evidence from the chapter.
Harder Ask the student to find one more place where what Stanley writes and what he does do not match, and to add it to a critical-thinking answer.
1. Stanley's letter says the camp “builds character.” What do you think it has built in him so far?Theme
What it asks It asks the student to look at what digging has done to Stanley in this chapter, both outside and inside.
It has built strength: he is tougher and can dig a hole almost as fast as Magnet.
His muscles had strengthened, and his hands were tough and callused.
He was still the slowest digger, but not all that much slower than Magnet.
It has built hardness: he turns away someone who asks for help.
His heart had hardened as well.
“Sorry,” Stanley said again.
A strong answer Stanley's body is stronger: his muscles have strengthened and he is nearly as quick as Magnet. The narrator also says his heart has hardened, so what the camp has built may be a kind of toughness that is not all good. A strong answer says what character means to the student and uses a line about the body and a line about the heart.
2. Stanley thought Zero was reading over his shoulder, but Zero wanted something else. Why might Stanley have been so sure of what Zero was doing?Inference
What it asks It asks why Stanley guessed wrong about Zero, and what that shows about how he saw him.
He took Zero's standing so close as a sign of snooping, since Zero was watching him write.
Zero was standing beside him now, watching him write.
“I don’t like it when you read over my shoulder, okay?”
He had stopped paying attention to Zero at all, and so he did not stop to wonder.
He didn’t care what Zero thought. Zero was nobody.
All this time he had thought Zero was reading over his shoulder.
A strong answer Zero stood close and watched Stanley write, so Stanley took it for snooping. But the narrator also says Stanley did not care what Zero thought and that Zero was nobody, so Stanley may not have looked closely at him. A strong answer picks a reason and points to a line, and does not say why Zero cannot read.
3. Zero says, “I don’t have anybody to write to.” What do you hear in that sentence?Tone
What it asks It asks the student to hear one plain sentence and decide whether it sounds sad, matter-of-fact, or something else.
It sounds matter-of-fact: he asks for only what he needs, and gives a plain reason.
“You don’t have to teach me to write,” said Zero. “Just to read.”
It sounds lonely: he says it as a fact, but the fact is a sad one.
I don’t have anybody to write to.
Zero stared at him with penetrating eyes.
A strong answer Zero gives up the writing and asks only to read, and he explains why in one plain sentence, so it can sound matter-of-fact. The sentence also says no one is waiting for a letter from him, so it can sound lonely. A strong answer says which it hears louder and why, and does not guess at anything the chapter does not say.
4. Stanley's letter is printed in pieces, and Zero's request breaks in between them. Why might the author do it this way?Author's choice
What it asks It asks what the reader gets from seeing the cheerful letter and Zero's question woven together.
It sets the cheerful letter against what is really happening, so the two do not match.
It’s not all fun and games here, but I think I’m getting a lot out of it.
“I want to learn to read and write,” said Zero.
It shows Stanley's attention split between his letter and Zero, and how he tries to ignore him.
He stopped writing as Zero walked into the tent, then returned to his letter.
He didn’t care what Zero thought.
A strong answer The letter is cheerful and the scene is not, and printing them in pieces puts them side by side. Stanley stops, returns to the letter and goes on, which shows his attention is divided and he is trying to push Zero aside. A strong answer says what the reader sees from the two together and points to one place where the letter breaks off.
5. Zero asks, “Can you teach me?” in only a few words. What does it tell you about Zero that he asks this way?Character
What it asks It asks the student to read Zero from how little he says and how he says it.
He is serious and determined: he asks directly and keeps his eyes on Stanley.
Zero stared at him with penetrating eyes.
I want to learn to read and write
He is careful and modest: he asks for only part of what he wants.
“I don’t know how,” said Zero.
“You don’t have to teach me to write,” said Zero. “Just to read.”
A strong answer Zero says what he wants straight out and keeps looking at Stanley, so he seems serious and determined. When Stanley does not answer, he narrows the request to reading alone, so he is also careful about how much he asks. A strong answer picks what Zero's few words show and uses one line of his.
1. Stanley is glad to be digging his own hole again. Using two pieces of evidence, explain why this day feels easier for him.
What it asks It asks the student to find what makes the single hole easier: knowing the task, or being away from danger.
He knows exactly what the day demands.
At least now he knew just how much he had to dig for the day.
each boy dug his own hole, five feet deep and five feet wide
He is away from danger and from the Warden's watching.
it was a relief not to have other shovels swinging past his face
or the Warden hanging around
A strong answer One reason is that he knows exactly how much to dig, five feet deep and wide, so the day has a clear end. The other is that he is away from other shovels near his face and from the Warden. A strong answer uses two different pieces of evidence and says which reason matters more to a boy who was hit in the head.
2. Stanley's body has changed, but he still feels pain and thirst. Using two pieces of evidence, explain whether he is better or worse off in body than before.
What it asks It asks the student to weigh how the camp has helped and hurt Stanley's body, using the chapter's own details.
Better off: he is stronger and hurts less than he used to.
The remainder of his body hardly hurt at all.
His muscles had strengthened, and his hands were tough and callused.
Worse off: his head still throbs and his thirst never ends.
he felt a throbbing pain just above his neck where Zigzag’s shovel had hit him
no matter how much water he drank, he was always thirsty
A strong answer The digging has made Stanley's muscles and hands stronger, and the rest of his body hardly hurts. But his head still throbs where Zigzag's shovel hit it, and he is always thirsty. A strong answer picks better or worse, uses one fact on each side or two on one, and says what the other side would say.
3. Stanley's letter says camp is “hard, but challenging.” Using two pieces of evidence, explain how well the letter matches what the chapter shows.
What it asks It asks the student to compare Stanley's letter to the rest of the chapter, and to see what he leaves out.
It matches in part: the camp is hard and he is getting something out of it.
Camp is hard, but challenging.
His muscles had strengthened, and his hands were tough and callused.
It does not match: he says nothing of the head wound, the heat or the hardness he feels.
We’ve been running obstacle courses, and have to swim long distances on the lake.
His heart had hardened as well.
A strong answer The letter is partly true: camp is hard and he is getting stronger. But it speaks of obstacle courses and swimming and leaves out the digging, the head wound and the hardness the narrator describes. A strong answer uses two pieces of evidence and says how much of the letter is true.