Holes
Chapter 6 — 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 told the truth and no one believed him. Was he simply unlucky, or did his own choices help bring this about?
The tension Stanley tells the truth about the sneakers and is not believed, yet he also took the falling shoe for a sign, ran, and was caught with them.
Today's focus
Notice how Stanley's story is told: what he said happened, what really happened, and why no one believed him.
Two core ideas
- Stanley told the truth about the sneakers and no one believed him: the boys at camp, the judge, and Clyde Livingston, his hero.
- Stanley read the falling shoe as a sign and ran, and the chapter lets him wonder why, so the story is told with some doubt about his own choices.
The shape at a glance
On his first evening at camp Stanley takes a cold four-minute shower, eats a poor dinner and tells the other boys what he did. Lying on his cot, he remembers the school bully, the sneakers that hit him on the head, the arrest, the trial and the judge's offer of Camp Green Lake or jail.
A way in
Start with the boys' reaction when Stanley says he stole the shoes. Ask the student why a true answer might be the one nobody believes.
Lesson plan
Retell The student tells the chapter back in order: the shower and dinner, the boys' question, the poster, the school day, the sneakers, the arrest, the trial and the judge.
Imitate the author After copying the passage, the student writes two sentences in the same pattern about a time something seemed too perfect to be chance: one that argues, and one that paints a picture.
Debate Take sides on the big question: was Stanley simply unlucky, or did his own choices help bring this about? Each side must use one quote from the chapter.
Purpose Close by asking why an author might tell a boy's story in pieces while he lies awake on his first night.
Easier Read the courtroom part aloud together and talk through discussion questions 1 and 3 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 tells the same moment two ways, and to add it to a critical-thinking answer.
Discussion
- Stanley told the judge the sneakers “fell from the sky.” The narrator says they hadn’t exactly. Why might the author let us see both versions?Author's choice
What it asks It asks why the author gives us Stanley's version and then the plainer one, and what each does to the reader.
One reading
It shows how odd the true story sounds, so we see why no one believed it.
“I was walking home and the sneakers fell from the sky,” he had told the judge.
No one believed they fell from the sky.
Another reading
It shows that Stanley was telling the truth as he lived it: a shoe really did hit him.
They hadn’t exactly fallen from the sky. He had just walked out from under a freeway overpass when the shoe hit him on the head.
It had hurt, too.
Listen for
- Says what the narrator adds to Stanley's words.
- Says how the reader might feel about Stanley after hearing both.
If stuck
- What exactly did Stanley tell the judge?
- What does the narrator say really happened?
- How would the story sound if we only had the judge's side?
A strong answer Stanley's words, “fell from the sky,” sound like something no judge would believe. The narrator then explains that he had just walked out from under a freeway overpass when the shoe hit him, which makes the story sound less strange and also shows why he said it. Giving both lets the reader see how the same event can sound true or ridiculous. A strong answer says what the second version changes and points to the words.
- The teachers never took Stanley’s complaints about Derrick seriously because Derrick was smaller. Why might they have looked at it that way?Inference
What it asks It asks why adults judged a bullying problem by the size of the two boys, and what that shows about how people decide whom to believe.
One reading
They went by looks: a big boy does not seem like someone who can be bullied by a small one.
The teachers never took Stanley’s complaints seriously, because Derrick was so much smaller than Stanley.
Another reading
They did not look closely at what Derrick actually did, and some of them treated it as a joke.
Some teachers even seemed to find it amusing
a bully named Derrick Dunne used to torment Stanley
Listen for
- Names size as the reason the chapter gives.
- Says what the teachers missed by looking only at size.
If stuck
- What does the chapter say Derrick used to do to Stanley?
- Who is bigger, Stanley or Derrick?
- What did some teachers find amusing?
A strong answer The chapter gives size as the reason: Derrick was so much smaller, so the teachers did not take Stanley's complaints seriously. They saw a big boy and a small one and decided who must be the bully. The narrator also says some teachers found it amusing, so they may not have looked at what Derrick did at all. A strong answer says what the teachers saw, and what they did not.
- The narrator says Stanley might have done better to lie a little. What would a lie have gained him, and what might it have cost?Moral reasoning
What it asks It asks the student to weigh a small lie against the truth, using what the chapter says each one did for Stanley.
One reading
A lie would have helped: the true story was not believed, while a simple one might have been.
He could have said he found the shoes in the street.
No one believed they fell from the sky.
Another reading
A lie would have cost too much: it would be untrue, and his mother told him to tell the truth.
“You don’t need a lawyer,” his mother had said. “Just tell the truth.”
Stanley told the truth, but perhaps it would have been better if he had lied a little.
Listen for
- Names one thing a lie could gain and one thing it could cost.
- Gives a reason, not only an opinion.
If stuck
- What could Stanley have said about the shoes?
- What did his mother tell him to do?
- What does the narrator mean by saying perhaps?
A strong answer A lie might have gained Stanley something: no one believed the truth, and he could have said he found the shoes in the street. The cost is that it would be a lie, and his mother told him to tell the truth. The narrator only says perhaps it would have been better, so even the narrator is not sure. A strong answer picks a side with a reason and admits the other side's point.
- Stanley’s story comes back in pieces as he lies on his cot. Why might the author tell it that way instead of all at once?Plot structure
What it asks It asks why the author breaks the story into pieces, and what the reader gets from each piece arriving when it does.
One reading
It fits a boy lying awake and thinking back, where one memory leads to the next.
Now, as Stanley lay on his cot, he thought it was kind of funny in a way.
Thinking back now, he wasn’t sure why he ran.
Another reading
It makes the reader want to know what happened, since the chapter starts with the joke that nobody believed him and holds back the rest.
Nobody believed him.
It was while he was walking home, carrying his wet notebook, with the prospect of having to copy the ruined pages, that the sneakers fell from the sky.
Listen for
- Names what the story begins with and where it ends.
- Says what the reader wants to know along the way.
If stuck
- Where is Stanley as he remembers all this?
- What does the chapter tell you first about the sneakers?
- Which piece of the story comes last?
A strong answer The chapter begins at camp, with the boys not believing Stanley, and then goes back through the poster, the court, the bully, the sneakers and the judge. That suits a boy lying awake and remembering, and it also makes the reader ask how he got here. Either reason works if the answer names a piece of the story and where it falls in the chapter.
- Stanley says the worst part was that his hero thought he was a thief. Why might that hurt more than the judge's words?Character
What it asks It asks why being misjudged by someone you admire can sting more than a punishment, and whether the chapter agrees.
One reading
It hurts more because Stanley admired Clyde Livingston and hoped to meet him.
In spite of everything, when Stanley found out that Sweet Feet was going to be there, he was actually excited about the prospect of meeting his hero.
That was the worst part for Stanley.
Another reading
The judge's words may hurt more, since they decide what happens to Stanley next.
The judge called Stanley’s crime despicable.
It was either that or jail.
Listen for
- Says what Stanley felt about Clyde before the trial.
- Compares what each man says and what each can do.
If stuck
- What did Stanley have on his bedroom wall?
- What does Stanley hope for when he hears Clyde will be in court?
- What can the judge do that Clyde cannot?
A strong answer The chapter says outright that Clyde Livingston's opinion was the worst part, and Stanley had a poster of him and was excited to meet his hero. But the judge's words are what send Stanley to camp, with only jail as the other choice. A strong answer can say that the hero's words cut deeper or that the judge's matter more, if it uses what each man says and what each one controls.
Critical thinking
- When Stanley says he stole the sneakers, the other boys do not believe him. Using two pieces of evidence, explain why they might doubt him.
What it asks It asks why the boys laugh at Stanley's answer, using what they say and what the chapter tells us about the shoes.
One reading
They doubt him because the shoes belonged to a famous star.
“Sweet Feet?” said X-Ray. “Yeah, right!”
Clyde “Sweet Feet” Livingston was a famous baseball player.
Another reading
They doubt him because stealing shoes seems too small a crime for this camp.
The other boys thought that was funny.
Maybe because their crimes were a lot worse than stealing shoes.
Listen for
- Two separate pieces of evidence, not one told twice.
- A reason that says why the boys doubt him, not only that they do.
If stuck
- Whose shoes does Stanley say they were?
- What do X-Ray and Squid say?
- What does the chapter say about the other boys' crimes?
A strong answer One reason is the owner: Stanley says the shoes belonged to Clyde Livingston, and X-Ray answers “Yeah, right!” because he is a famous baseball player. The other reason is the crime: the narrator guesses the boys laughed because their crimes were a lot worse than stealing shoes. A strong answer uses two different pieces of evidence and notices that the chapter only guesses at the boys' reasons.
- Stanley ran when the shoe hit him, and now he is not sure why. Using two pieces of evidence, explain what might have been going through his mind.
What it asks It asks the student to work out reasons for Stanley's running from his thoughts about the shoes and from his bad day.
One reading
He ran to bring the shoes to his father, who he thought could use them.
Stanley couldn’t help but think that there was something special about the shoes, that they would somehow provide the key to his father’s invention.
Maybe he was in a hurry to bring the shoes to his father
Another reading
He ran to get away from his miserable day at school.
he was trying to run away from his miserable and humiliating day at school
finally dropped it in the toilet in the boys’ restroom
Listen for
- Two separate pieces of evidence, not one told twice.
- Notices that Stanley himself offers two guesses and is not sure.
If stuck
- What did Stanley think was special about the shoes?
- What had happened to his notebook that day?
- What does the word maybe tell us about Stanley's memory?
A strong answer The chapter gives two guesses and Stanley is not sure which is right. He may have run to bring the shoes to his father, since he thought they would provide the key to his invention. Or he may have run from a miserable day at school, which ended with Derrick dropping his notebook in the toilet. A strong answer picks one or holds both, and uses two pieces of evidence.
- The judge says Stanley stole the shoes “just so you could have a souvenir.” Using two pieces of evidence, explain why the judge might think that.
What it asks It asks the student to see how the court read Stanley's act, using what was known and what the judge refused to believe.
One reading
The judge saw a boy who admired Clyde Livingston and wanted something of his.
Stanley had a poster of him hanging on the wall of his bedroom.
It had been taken by the police and was used as evidence of his guilt in the courtroom.
Another reading
The judge did not believe Stanley's story, so he looked for another reason.
No one believed they fell from the sky.
He could have said he found the shoes in the street.
Listen for
- Two separate pieces of evidence, not one told twice.
- A reason that explains the judge's thinking, not only a description.
If stuck
- What did the police take from Stanley's bedroom wall?
- What did Stanley tell the judge about the shoes?
- What did the judge say the money would have done?
A strong answer The judge may have thought of a souvenir because the court had a poster from Stanley's wall, which showed he admired Clyde Livingston. He also did not believe the story about the sky, so he needed another reason Stanley would take the shoes. A strong answer uses two pieces of evidence, and notices that this is the judge's guess, since the chapter says Stanley told the truth.