Holes
Chapter 33 — Teaching Companion
Louis Sachar · Trailblazers 4th–6th
Coaching, not a script — and not an answer key: every question here has more than one defensible answer.
This chapter's big question
Stanley calmly plans to walk halfway and look for Zero, yet he will not admit what he is looking for in each hole. Is he being honest with himself, or sparing himself?
The tension Stanley's thinking is clear and sensible: he will turn back in time and make a deal with the Warden. But the chapter says there is something he looks for and does not name.
Today's focus
Notice what Stanley says he is doing, and what he keeps from himself.
Two core ideas
- Stanley thinks clearly once he calms down: he will go only halfway, then return and make a deal with the Warden.
- The chapter says he looks into every hole without admitting to himself what he is looking for, and it never says what that is.
The shape at a glance
Stanley slows to a walk and, once calm, plans to go halfway and look for Zero before returning. He passes hole after hole, far beyond where he expected, and looks into each. At one cluster his heart stops and he finds a family of lizards, runs, and collapses. Then he finds an empty sunflower sack with a single seed on it.
A way in
Start with the line "He didn’t admit to himself what he was looking for." Ask what the student thinks a person can know without saying it.
Lesson plan
Retell The student tells the chapter back in order: the walk, the plan, the endless holes, the lizards, the sack and the seed.
Imitate the author After copying the passage, the student writes one sentence in the same pattern: what someone doubted, what risk they would not take, and what hope they kept.
Debate Take sides: is Stanley being honest with himself, or sparing himself? Each side uses at least one quote from the chapter.
Purpose Close by asking why the author never says what Stanley is looking for.
Easier Read the lizard scene aloud together and talk through discussion questions 1 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 the chapter says what Stanley thinks without saying what he feels, and to add it to a critical-thinking answer.
Discussion
- Stanley looks into each hole he passes, but “didn’t admit to himself what he was looking for.” What might he be hoping or fearing to see?Inference
What it asks It asks the student to guess at what Stanley will not name, using what the chapter does show him doing and thinking.
One reading
He fears finding Zero in bad shape, which is why he does not say it.
And as long as he’d come this far, he might as well look for Zero.
He stepped over the mounds and looked into the first hole. His heart stopped.
Another reading
He hopes for any sign of Zero, and saying it aloud would make the hope too big to bear.
Stanley found himself looking down into each hole he passed.
in a land of nothingness, any little thing seemed unusual
Listen for
- Uses what Stanley does, and says what the chapter does not tell us.
- Gives a reason why a person might not say it to himself.
If stuck
- Who has Stanley said he might as well look for?
- What happens to his heart at the first hole in the new cluster?
- Why might a person avoid saying what they fear?
A strong answer The chapter says Stanley looks into each hole and does not admit to himself why. It does say he might as well look for Zero, and that his heart stops at the first hole. A strong answer gives a guess, hopeful or fearful, rests it on those lines, and admits that the chapter does not say.
- Stanley smiled as he realized his plan would not quite work. What does that smile tell you about him?Character
What it asks It asks what is behind a smile when a plan falls apart: humor, relief, or a quiet admission.
One reading
It is a smile at himself: he catches the mistake in his own thinking and finds it funny.
He smiled as he realized that wouldn’t quite work.
Walking helped calm him down and allowed him to think clearly.
Another reading
It is a rueful smile: he sees that the plan would have run him out of strength, so he trims it to halfway.
He would only go halfway —halfway as far as he thought he could go, so that he’d still have the strength to return.
He decided he would walk as long as he could, until he was too weak to go any farther
Listen for
- Names a feeling behind the smile and points to a line.
- Notices that the plan changes right after the smile.
If stuck
- What was Stanley's first plan about how far to go?
- Why would that plan not quite work?
- What does he decide instead?
A strong answer Stanley first plans to walk until he is too weak and then turn back, then realizes he would have no strength left for the trip home. His smile can read as amusement at himself or as a small, rueful admission that he must be more careful. A strong answer says what the smile shows about how clearly he is thinking now.
- Stanley will go only halfway, so he can still return. Is that wise, or too little for someone who may be in danger?Moral reasoning
What it asks It asks the student to weigh looking after yourself against what you owe someone who may need help.
One reading
It is wise: he has no water, and a rescuer who collapses helps no one.
with no water in his canteen, he didn’t want to risk his life
so that he’d still have the strength to return
Another reading
It is too little: he treats the search as an afterthought and keeps one eye on getting back.
And as long as he’d come this far, he might as well look for Zero.
But he was in no hurry.
Listen for
- Weighs both sides, not only the one the student likes.
- Uses what Stanley says about water, strength or his reasons.
If stuck
- What does Stanley have in his canteen?
- Why does he want to keep some strength?
- What words does he use about looking for Zero?
A strong answer With an empty canteen and a long walk back, going only halfway is careful, since a boy who collapses cannot help anyone. But the chapter has him say that he might as well look, which can sound like a small effort. A strong answer takes a side, gives a reason, and says what the other side gets right.
- The author says guessing where the Warden will dig is like “trying to guess the winning numbers in a lottery.” Why might that picture fit?Author's choice
What it asks It asks what the lottery picture adds to the plain fact that the holes are scattered.
One reading
It shows chance: there is no pattern, so any hole is as likely as any other.
But out here there was no system.
the Warden would just pick a spot at random
Another reading
It shows a hope for luck: the Warden digs again and again in the hope that one hole will win.
in a fit of frustration, the Warden would just pick a spot at random, and say, “What the hell, dig here.”
It was like trying to guess the winning numbers in a lottery.
Listen for
- Contrasts the order near the compound with the scatter farther out.
- Says what a lottery makes a reader think of.
If stuck
- How were the holes dug back at the compound?
- How are they dug out here?
- What happens to someone who wins a lottery?
A strong answer Back at the compound the holes were in rows with room for the water truck, but out here the Warden picks spots at random in frustration. A lottery is chance with a hope of winning, so the picture shows both. A strong answer says which part of the picture matters more, the randomness or the hope, and why.
- The chapter ends with one word: “Lunch.” What tone does that word set after everything before it?Tone
What it asks It asks what feeling comes from a single short word after a tense walk, an empty sack and one seed.
One reading
It is dry humor: one seed is all the lunch he has, and he says so with a shrug.
He turned it inside out and found one seed stuck to the burlap.
Lunch.
Another reading
It is grim: the joke covers how little he has and how far he is from help.
It turned out to be an empty sack of sunflower seeds.
in a land of nothingness, any little thing seemed unusual
Listen for
- Names a tone and points to a line that makes it.
- Notices how short the last line is next to the lines before it.
If stuck
- What does Stanley find on the ground?
- What does he find stuck to the sack?
- How long is the last line?
A strong answer The empty sack gives him one seed, and the author gives that moment a single word. The word is funny in a dry way, and it also shows how little he has. A strong answer names the tone, funny, grim or both, and says what in the wording makes it.
Critical thinking
- Stanley keeps thinking he has passed the last hole. Using two pieces of evidence, explain what keeps pulling him on.
What it asks It asks whether the holes themselves pull him on, or whether something in Stanley does.
One reading
The holes pull him on: each time he thinks he is done, another cluster appears.
Just when he thought he’d passed the last hole, he’d come across another cluster of them, a little farther away.
After more than an hour had gone by, he thought he had surely seen the last hole
Another reading
His own wish pulls him on: he looks into each hole and has already said he might look for Zero.
Stanley found himself looking down into each hole he passed.
he might as well look for Zero
Listen for
- Two different pieces of evidence, not one told twice.
- Says whether the pull is outside Stanley or inside him.
If stuck
- What does Stanley think each time he has passed the last hole?
- What does he do as he passes each hole?
A strong answer Each time Stanley thinks he has seen the last hole, he finds another cluster a little farther away, so the holes keep drawing him on. He is also looking down into each one and had already said he might as well look for Zero. A strong answer says whether the pull is in the holes or in Stanley, with two pieces of evidence.
- Stanley expects to return to camp and beg for mercy. Using two pieces of evidence, explain what he expects when he gets back.
What it asks It asks what Stanley thinks waits for him: punishment, or a bargain he can make.
One reading
He expects to be at the Warden's mercy: he will have to beg.
He’d have to return to camp. He knew that.
beg for mercy
Another reading
He expects to get through it by trading something she wants.
Then he’d have to make a deal with the Warden, tell her where he found Kate Barlow’s lipstick tube, and beg for mercy.
It would be better to return later, after everyone had a chance to calm down.
Listen for
- Two different pieces of evidence, not one told twice.
- Says what Stanley is willing to give up.
If stuck
- What does Stanley think he will have to do when he returns?
- What does Stanley plan to tell the Warden?
A strong answer Stanley knows he has to go back, and he expects to beg for mercy, so he knows he is in trouble. But he also has a bargain ready: he will tell the Warden where he found Kate Barlow's lipstick tube. A strong answer says whether he is more afraid or more prepared, and uses two pieces of evidence.
- Stanley sees the lizards and runs. Using two pieces of evidence, explain how the lizards change the way he moves.
What it asks It asks what the lizards do to Stanley's pace: a burst of running, then care.
One reading
They send him running until he collapses, which costs him strength he cannot spare.
He leapt back over the mound and ran.
He ran until he couldn’t run any farther, then collapsed.
Another reading
They make him careful afterward: he slows down and approaches everything with caution.
He walked slowly toward it.
The encounter with the lizards had made him very cautious.
Listen for
- One piece of evidence from right after the lizards and one from later.
- A reason why the first reaction and the second differ.
If stuck
- What does Stanley do the moment he sees the lizards?
- How does he approach the thing on the ground?
A strong answer Stanley first leaps back and runs until he cannot run any farther, which uses up strength he needs to get home. After that, the chapter says the lizards made him very cautious, so he walks slowly toward the thing on the ground. A strong answer shows the change from fright to care with two pieces of evidence.