All Summer in a Day - Short Story Unit

2nd Day

Introduction: Create your own version of planet Venus. What does it look like? What is the weather? Can people live there?

Review: Discuss first half of the story, characters' feelings, conflicts, etc.

Reading: Finish reading the story together.

Ending: Discuss immediate reaction to ending of story. — What questions do you have about the ending?

Theme: A theme is the central idea or the message found in a story. Themes are usually expressed as generalizations about life. Authors want readers to think about what they have read and personalize it to their own experiences. Universal themes are when these generalizations cover different cultures, places, or periods in time.

Q: What is the central idea or theme of “All Summer in a Day”?

Discussion Questions:

• Who was responsible for bullying? 
• Who could have supported Margot and stopped the bullying? 
• What could have been done? 
• How often do you think about whether something is right or wrong before you decide to do it? Do you think you usually know right from wrong? How? What are your guidelines? 
• Real or imagined experience --act of caring / purposeful act of unkindness. How did you feel about yourself after each incident? 
• Have you ever regretted doing something wrong? What have you learned from it?

Role-play: take turns being Margot as the closet door was opened. Discuss how different people have different reactions.

Independent: Based on what we know from the characters from the text,

· How do you think Margot will treat the children after she missed the sun?

· What do you think the children are thinking once they realize that Margot missed the sun?

Write short (reasonable) ending to the story to what happens after.

Closure:

What is a theme? How did we find a theme in our story?

Extension Activity:

Students can examine or create scenarios that involve bullying and develop intervention strategies. Use to teach others how to prevent bullying.