התשע"דב' ז' באדר בס"ד

All Summer in a Day- Unit 2 / Nechemia Litke All Summer in a Day- Unit 2 / Nechemia Litke

Activities For Teaching HOTSActivities For Teaching HOTS

Method for teaching “Uncovering Motives”:

The teacher comes into to class with a strange object (some kind of toy, stuffed animal- something that

lights the students’ curiosity). The teachers starts teaching as if the object doesn’t exist, and then after a while

one of the students will eventually ask why the teacher brought the object to class. The teacher will then ask

the students to bring up different options. The main goal is to have the students understand that there was a

reason or motive for bringing the object to class. From this we can learn that in literature everyone has a

motive for saying or doing something, and we can only assume what the motive is without knowing for sure

what is really is.

Method of teaching the thinking skill of "Inferring":

Tell the students that you are going to make a statement in class and that you would like for them to

try to figure out what information you are not giving them and write it on a piece of paper.

(Ideas for statements: "I'm going to put on a sweater", "The class is going to be dismissed 10 minutes

early").

Collect their notes or have them read them to the class. Discuss what they wrote and why they came

up with each assumption. We are likely to find that they have written similar assumptions.

(Such as: "You are cold", or "You have to go somewhere").

Discuss how they come up with each idea: they inferred by the things I said and didn't say, by using

previous knowledge as well as my body language.

You can use the following worksheet (on the following page) to practice inferring:

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התשע"דב' ז' באדר בס"ד

All Summer in a Dayby

Ray Bradbury, 1954

No one in the class could remember

a time when there wasn't rain.

“Ready?"

"Ready."

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Sentence Emoticon

I can infer that…….

I have to go

now.

התשע"דב' ז' באדר בס"ד

"Now?"

"Soon."

"Do the scientists really know? Will it happen today, will it?"

"Look, look; see for yourself!"

The children pressed to each other like so many roses, so many weeds, intermixed,

peering out for a look at the hidden sun.

It rained.

It had been raining for seven years; thousand upon thousands of days compounded and

filled from one end to the other with rain, with the drum and gush of water, with the sweet

crystal fall of showers and the concussion of storms so heavy they were tidal waves come over

the islands. A thousand forests had been crushed under the rain and grown up a thousand times

to be crushed again. And this was the way life was forever on the planet Venus, and this was the

schoolroom of the children of the rocket men and women who had come to a raining world to

set up civilization and live out their lives.

"It's stopping, it's stopping!"

"Yes, yes!"

Margot stood apart from these children who could never remember a time when there

wasn't rain and rain and rain. They were all nine years old, and if there had been a day, seven

years ago, when the sun came out for an hour and showed its face to the stunned world, they

could not recall. Sometimes, at night, she heard them stir, in remembrance, and she knew they

were dreaming and remembering and old or a yellow crayon or a coin large enough to buy the

world with. She knew they thought they remembered a warmness, like a blushing in the face, in

the body, in the arms and legs and trembling hands. But then they always awoke to the tatting

drum, the endless shaking down of clear bead necklaces upon the roof, the walk, the gardens,

the forests, and their dreams were gone.

All day yesterday they had read in class about the sun. About how like a lemon it was,

and how hot. And they had written small stories or essays or poems about it:

I think the sun is a flower,

That blooms for just one hour.3

התשע"דב' ז' באדר בס"ד

That was Margot's poem, read in a quiet voice in the still classroom while the rain was

falling outside.

"Aw, you didn't write that!" protested one of the boys.

"I did," said Margot. "I did."

"William!" said the teacher.

But that was yesterday. Now the rain was slackening, and the children were crushed in

the great thick windows.

"Where's teacher?"

"She'll be back."

"She'd better hurry, we'll miss it!"

They turned on themselves, like a feverish wheel, all tumbling spokes.

Margot stood alone. She was a very frail girl who looked as if she had been lost in the

rain for years and the rain had washed out the blue from her eyes and the red from her mouth

and the yellow from her hair. She was an old photograph dusted from an album, whitened

away, and if she spoke at all her voice would be a ghost. Now she stood, separate, staring at the

rain and the loud wet world beyond the huge glass.

"What're you looking at?" said William.

Margot said nothing.

":Speak when you're spoken to." He gave her a shove. But she did not move; rather she

let herself by moved only by him and nothing else.

They edged away from her, they would not look at her. She felt them go away. And this

was because she would play no games with them in the echoing tunnels of the underground city.

If they tagged her and ran, she stood blinking after them and did not follow. When the class

sang songs about happiness and life and games her lips barely moved. Only when they sang

about the sun and the summer did her lips move as she watched the drenched windows.

And then, of course, the biggest crime of all was that she had come here only five years

ago from Earth, and she remembered the sun and the way the sun was and the sky was when

she was four in Ohio. And they, they had been on Venus all their lives, and they had been only

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two years old when last the sun came out and had long since forgotten the color and heat of it

and the way it really was. But Margot remembered.

"It's like a penny," she said once, eyes closed.

"No it's not!" the children cried.

"It's like a fire," she said, "in the stove."

"You're lying, you don't remember!" cried the children.

But she remembered and stood quietly apart from all of them and watched the

patterning windows. And once, a month ago, she had refused to shower in the school shower

rooms, had clutched her hands to her ears and over her head, screaming the water mustn't

touch her head.

So after that, dimly, dimly, she sensed it, she was different and they knew her difference and

kept away.

There was talk that her father and mother were taking her back to earth next year; it

seemed vital to her that they do so, though it would mean the loss of thousands of dollars to her

family. And so, the children hated her for all these reasons of big and little consequence. They

hated her pale snow face, her waiting silence, her thinness, and her possible future.

"Get away!" The boy gave her another push. "What're you waiting for?"

Then, for the first time, she turned and looked at him. And what she was waiting for was

in her eyes.

"Well, don't wait around here!" cried the boy savagely. "You won't see nothing!"

Her lips moved.

"Nothing!" he cried. "It was all a joke, wasn't it?" He turned to the other children.

"Nothing's happening today. Is it?"

They all blinked at him and then, understanding, laughed and shook their heads.

"Nothing, nothing!"

"Oh, but," Margot whispered, her eyes helpless. "But this is the day, the scientists

predict, they say, they know, the sun. . . ."

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"All a joke!" said the boy, and seized her roughly. "Hey, everyone, let's put her in a closet

before teacher comes!"

"No," said Margot, falling back.

They surged about her, caught her up and bore her, protesting, and then pleading, and

then crying, back into a tunnel, a room, a closet, where they slammed and locked the door. They

stood looking at the door and saw it tremble from her beating and throwing herself against it.

They heard her muffled cries. Then, smiling, they turned and went out and back down the

tunnel, just as the teacher arrived.

"Ready, children?" she glanced at her watch.

"Yes!" said everyone.

"Are we all here?"

"Yes!"

The rain slackened still more.

They crowded to the huge door.

The rain stopped.

It was as if, in the midst of a film, concerning an avalanche, a tornado, a hurricane, a

volcanic eruption, something had, first, gone wrong with the sound apparatus, thus muffling and

finally cutting off all noise, all of the blasts and repercussions and thunders, and then, second,

ripped the film from the projector and inserted in its place a peaceful tropical slide which did not

move or tremor. The world ground to a standstill. The silence was so immense and unbelievable

that you felt your ears had been stuffed or you had lost your hearing altogether. The children

put their hands to their ears. They stood apart. The door slid back and the smell of the silent,

waiting world came in to them.

The sun came out.

It was the color of flaming bronze and it was very large. And the sky around it was a

blazing blue tile color. And the jungle burned with sunlight as the children, released from their

spell, rushed out, yelling, into the springtime.

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"Now don't go too far," called the teacher after them. "You've only two hours, you know.

You wouldn't want to get caught out!"

But they were running and turning their faces up to the sky and feeling the sun on their

cheeks like a warm iron; they were taking off their jackets and letting the sun burn their arms.

"Oh, it's better than the sun lamps, isn't it?"

"Much, much better!"

They stopped running and stood in the great jungle that covered Venus, that grew and

never stopped growing, tumultuously, even as you watched it. It was a nest of octopi, clustering

up great arms of flesh-like weed, wavering, flowering this brief spring. It was the color of rubber

and ash, this jungle, from the many years without sun. It was the color of stones and white

cheeses and ink, and it was the color of the moon.

The children lay out, laughing, on the jungle mattress, and heard it sigh and squeak under

them, resilient and alive. They ran among the trees, they slipped and fell, they pushed each

other, they played hide-and-seek and tag, but most of all they squinted at the sun until the

tears ran down their faces, they put their hands up to that yellowness and that amazing blueness

and they breathed of the fresh, fresh air and listened and listened to the silence which

suspended them in a blessed sea of no sound and no motion. They looked at everything and

savored everything. Then, wildly, like animals escaped from their caves, they ran and ran in

shouting circles. They ran for an hour and did not stop running.

And then—

In the midst of their running one of the girls wailed.

Everyone stopped.

The girl, standing in the open, held out her hand.

"Oh, look, look," she said, trembling.

They came slowly to look at her opened palm.

In the center of it, cupped and huge, was a single raindrop.

She began to cry, looking at it.

They glanced quietly at the sky.7

התשע"דב' ז' באדר בס"ד

"Oh. Oh."

A few cold drops fell on their noses and their cheeks and their mouths. The sun faded

behind a stir of mist. A wind blew cool around them. They turned and started to walk back

toward the underground house, their hands at their sides, their smiles vanishing away.

A boom of thunder startled them and like leaves before a new hurricane, they tumbled

upon each other and ran. Lightening struck ten miles away, five miles away, a mile, a half mile.

The sky darkened into midnight in a flash.

They stood in the doorway of the underground for a moment until it was raining hard.

Then they closed the door and heard the gigantic sound of the rain falling in tons and

avalanches, everywhere and forever.

"Will it be seven more years?"

"Yes. Seven."

Then one of them gave a little cry.

"Margot!"

"What?"

"She's still in the closet where we locked her."

"Margot."

They stood as if someone had driven them, like so many stakes, into the floor. They

looked at each other and then looked away. They glanced out at the world that was raining now

and raining and raining steadily. They could not meet each other's glances. Their faces were

solemn and pale. They looked at their hands and feet, their faces down.

"Margot.

One of the girls said, "Well . . .?"

No one moved.

"Go on," whispered the girl.

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They walked slowly down the hall in the sound of the cold rain. They turned through the

doorway to the room in the sound of the storm and thunder, lightening on their faces, blue and

terrible. They walked over to the closest door slowly and stood by it.

Behind the closed door was only silence.

They unlocked the door, even more slowly, and let Margot out.

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Pre- ReadingPre- Reading

She packed my bags last night, pre-flightZero hour, nine AMAnd I'm gonna be high as a kite by thenI miss the earth so much, I miss my wifeIt's lonely out in spaceOn such a timeless flight

And I think it's gonna be a long, long timeTill touch down brings me 'round again to findI'm not the man they think I am at homeOh, no, no, no, I'm a rocket manRocket man burning out his fuse up here alone

Mars ain't the kind of place to raise your kidsIn fact, it's cold as HellAnd there's no one there to raise them if you didAnd all this science I don't understandIt's just my job five days a weekA rocket man, a rocket man

And I think it's gonna be a long, long time…

Read song and discuss it with the students. Play the song and follow.

Points for discussion:

1) Who is the song about?

2) Where is he going?

3) What are his feelings about leaving earth?

4) What does he think of Mars?

5) Could he take his family with him?

6) Do you think that it would be the same on other planets? Would it be the same on Venus?

LOTS QuestionsLOTS Questions

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1) Describe Venus's climate according to the story: _____________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

2) How many years had Margot been living on Venus? __________________________________

3) "When the sun came out for an hour and showed its face to the stunned world".

The word "stunned" means (circle the correct answer):

a. saddened

b. excited

c. amazed

d. happy

4) “They looked at everything and savored everything”.

The word “savored” means (circle the correct answer):

a. enjoyed

b. suffered

c. shared

d. fought

5) Why does Margot know more about the sun than her classmates do? ___________________

______________________________________________________________________________

6) Why did Margot's family live on Venus? ___________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

7) “Now the rain was slackening”.

The word “slackening” means (circle the correct answer):

a. strengthening

b. weakening

c. dancing

d. connecting

8) How does Margot describe the sun to her classmates? (Write two examples): _____________

______________________________________________________________________________

9) How long did the sun come out for according to the story? ____________________________

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10) What would Margot’s family lose if they moved back to Earth? ________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Literary TermsLiterary Terms

Genre: There are different types of literature categorized by subject matter, form and technique; the following are examples of genres: tragedy and comedy, novel and short story, poetry and pros.

Climax: This is the point of highest interest, the crisis, and is thereforealso at the turning point of the action.

1) What is the genre of the story “All Summer in a Day”? Explain!

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

2) Describe the climax of the story? _________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

HOTS QuestionsHOTS Questions

1) Why did William claim that Margot didn’t write the poem?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

2) Was Margot a happy child? ____________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

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3) Why do the other classmates dislike Margot? ___________________________________s___

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

4) What does Margot’s appearance tell us about her? _________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

5) Explain why the children ran wildly outside when the sun came out?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Extended HOTSExtended HOTS

1) How do you think the other children will treat Margot in the future? What thinking skill did you use

and how did you use it?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

2) What were the children’s intentions when they pushed Margot into the closet? What thinking skill

did you use and how did you use it?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

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Bridging Text and ContextBridging Text and Context

Read the following quote by Ray Bradbury:

"You're not like the others. I've seen a few; I know. When I talk, you look at me. When I said something

about the moon, you looked at the moon, last night. The others would never do that. The others would walk

off and leave me talking. Or threaten me. No one has time any more for anyone else. You're one of the few

who put up with me. "

―RayBradbury,Fahrenheit451

1) Make a connection between this new information and what you learned about the characters in "All

Summer in a day".

____________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Post ReadingPost Reading

Choose one of the following writing activities:

1) Write a continuation to the story describing Margot’s life after the incident of not seeing the sun.

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

2) Write a letter from Margot’s parents to her teacher regarding the incident of her being locked up

while the sun was out.

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________14

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______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

ReflectionReflection

1) Did you enjoy reading the story? Why or why not? ___________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

2) Think of a similar situation you have witnessed or experienced in school. How did you deal with it?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

3) How does the thinking skill of Uncovering Motives or Inferring add to your understanding of the

story?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

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Summative AssessmentSummative Assessment

LOTS (45 points)

1) Describe Venus's climate according to the story: _____________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

2) How many years had Margot been living on Venus? __________________________________

3) "When the sun came out for an hour and showed its face to the stunned world".

The word "stunned" means (circle the correct answer):

a. saddened

b. excited

c. amazed

d. happy

4) How long did the sun come out for according to the story? ____________________________

5) What would Margot’s family lose if they moved back to Earth? ________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

HOTS (40 points)

1) Why did William claim that Margot didn’t write the poem? ___________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

2) Was Margot a happy child? ____________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

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3) Why do the other classmates dislike Margot? ______________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Extended HOTS (15 points)

1) How do you think the other children will treat Margot in the future? What thinking skill did you use

and how did you use it?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Bridging Text and Context Question

Read the following quotes by Ray Bradbury:

“Some people turn sad awfully young. No special reason, it seems, but they seem almost to be born

that way. They bruise easier, tire faster, cry quicker, remember longer and, as I say, get sadder younger than

anyone else in the world. I know, for I'm one of them.”

― Ray Bradbury, Dandelion Wine

.

1) Explain the connection between this new information and the story “All Summer in a

Day”_____________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

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Answer to Summative AssessmentAnswer to Summative Assessment

LOTS

1) It had been raining for 7 years with thousands upon thousands of days compounded and filled from

one end to the other with rain.

2) For five years.

3) c. amazed

4) An hour.

5) Thousands of dollars.

HOTS

1) William claimed that Margot didn’t write the poem out of his jealousy of her memory of the sun, and

to show her that she is in no way superior to him.

2) It is inferred that Margot is not a happy child since she stands apart from everyone, and based on

her appearance of being frail (her face coloring has been washed away). Also, her great desire to see the sun

proves that she is unhappy without the sun.

3) The various reasons that the other children dislike Margot are:

a. She is able to remember the sun and is able to describe it (Margot says the sun is like a penny, and

the children’s immediate reaction is- “No it’s not!”). This would cause the other children to feel as if Margot is

“superior” to them.

b. Margot stands apart from the other children; this would also cause a condescending feeling towards

the other children.

Extended HOTS

1) Based on the children’s reactions (showing more pain when the rain resumed than when they

realized that Margot was missing) one could assume that not much would change. Unless, an adult, such as

the teacher would get involved and start an educational process with the children.

I used the thinking skill of Inferring because based on previous occurrences we can assume what might

happen in the future.

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Bridging Answer

1) Ray Bradbury's description of the people who turn sad at a young age and bruise faster and easier

than others sounds like a description of Margot, the main character of "All Summer in a Day".

Ray Bradbury says that these people become this way for no apparent reason, however, we can guess

that Margot became this way because of her lack of exposure to the sun as well as her being set apart from

her classmates. This quote makes one think of the influence that we have upon each other's personalities.

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