Holes

Sachar, Louis. Holes. New York: Yearling, 2000.

Louis Sachar won the Newbery Medal for Holes in 1999. This book tells a story about a boy named Stanley Yelnats whose family carries very bad luck that has affected him. He is falsely accused and convicted of theft. Rather than going to jail, he chooses to go to Camp Green Lake, which is not much of a camp at all. It is a juvenile detention facility that does not have a lake. Stanley quickly adjusts to being a camper once he is forced to dig holes by the warden that is five feet deep and five feet wide. Once Stanley and the rest of the boys at the detention facility realize that the warden is searching for, the book takes an unexpecting twist. Sachar writes this book with great insight, humor, voice, wisdom, and action filled scenes that force the reader to continue reading. 

Resources to Support the Text

Holes Trivia Game

This website provides the students with a trivia game that they can interact with after reading the complete text. The multiple choice game asks the students specific questions found in the text that the students must recall from their reading understanding including what season the book takes place in, what Stanley's great-great-grandfather is known as and what the boys steal while they are out digging holes. The game is quick, only fifteen questions and the students are able to check at the end the answers to their questions and make proper corrections if needed.

Holes Thinkquest

This link provides the students with an interactive website that allows them to explore Camp Green Lake. It has a map illustrating Camp Green Lake and you are able to visually see and read information about the different sections of the camp. The students are able to take what they have read in the text and visually see photographs of these locations. After exploring the map, the students can click on the different characters mentioned in the book and engage in activities to further develop and reinforce their comprehension about the text including its structure, characters, conflict and setting.

Key Vocabulary

Perseverance, desolate, hastily, defective, aimlessly, coincidence, absurd, wrden, stifling, juvenile

Reading Strategy

To increases the students comprehension after reading Holes, have the students complete response writing. Allow them to reflect on the themes that are seen in the text including friendship, accountability, discovery, learning, reading, and responsibility. Have the students comment and respond in a couple of paragraphs to at least one of these themes mentioned.

Writing Activity

Have the students reflect and write about the process that Stanley took to teach Zero how to read. Have the students view both perspectives as a teacher and student to talk about the traits that both Zero and Stanley implemented during this process. How would the book be different if Stanley did not teach Zero how to read?