Explore our fun Holes book activities now! These lesson plans are a dynamic and engaging alternative to other traditional book report ideas. Students will love creating storyboards such as a character chart, plot diagram, and more! Storyboarding allows students to demonstrate their understanding of plot, characters and literary elements with visuals and pictures as well as words. This enables students of all abilities to successfully dive deep into a novel study and enjoy the process! Our Holes lesson plans will get your students pumped about reading and analyzing this amazing story.
This is a classic novel for middle school readers that they won't soon forget, especially with Storyboard That’s Holes by Louis Sachar activities!
Stanley Yelnats believes his family has been cursed. A story passed from generation to generation says that Elya, his great-great grandfather failed to fulfill a promise to an old Romani woman, who cursed him and his family. After being mistakenly convicted for stealing a pair of shoes, Stanley is sent to Camp Green Lake. The name is deceptive, the camp is a detention center for boys in the middle of the Texan desert.
Stanley is thrown into tent D with a diverse mix of other juvenile delinquents, including a quiet boy named Zero. The “campers” are made to dig holes, under the watchful eye of Mr. Sir, the counselor. Mr. Sir claims it is to build character, but Stanley uncovers that the Warden is using the boys to help her search for something.
In a secondary plot, readers learn that Green Lake used to be a well-to-do area; rich and abundant, on the edge of a large lake. Kate, the school teacher, falls in love with Sam, a local medicinal salesman. When the two are caught kissing, the town is in an uproar because Sam is Black. Charles Walker, a member of the town’s richest family, wanted to court Kate. He leads the town in hunting down Sam, who is killed. Kate becomes known as the ruthless outlaw, “Kissing Kate Barlow”. As a bandit, she coincidentally robbed a man named Stanley Yelnats, the young protagonist’s great grandfather.
This first Stanley Yelnats also believed this is because of the Yelnats family curse. In Latvia, his father Elya fell in love, and wished to marry a young woman named Myra. Seeking the advice of Madame Zeroni, he was given a pig and told to carry it to the top of a mountain, allowing it to drink from the river. Once the pig grew, he could take it to Myra as a dowry. To repay Madame Zeroni, he was to carry her up the mountain to make her strong as well. When he goes to Myra, he is disgusted by her personality. Elya leaves for America, forgetting his end of the bargain.
These three stories collide when Zero and Stanley run away from the camp. After being in the desert for some time, they climb a mountain in search of water. Zero becomes weak and Stanley must carry him. When they reach the top they drink the water and Stanley sings a song taught to him by his family. Zero’s real name is Hector Zeroni, and he’s a descendant of Madame Zeroni. When Stanley carries him up the mountain and sings to him, the promise is fulfilled and the curse lifted. The boys then figure out that the Warden is a descendant of the Walker family and is in search of Kissing Kate’s buried Treasure, hence the endless digging of holes. They go back to a hole where Stanley found a lipstick container and find a box of treasure. The authorities are called in, the camp is shut down, and the boys live happily thereafter.
Louis Sachar is a young-adult author who was born in 1954 in East Meadow, New York. Sachar graduated from University of California, Berkeley, and began writing shortly thereafter. He used his personal experiences working with children in an elementary school as inspiration for Sideways Stories from Wayside School, but added lots of comedy and silly elements to make the stories more engaging.
Around the time that this book was accepted for publication, Sachar began studying law at University of California, Hastings College of Law. Upon graduation, he did some part time law work while he wrote more children’s books. Obviously Sachar never continued with his career as a lawyer, as his true calling was a writer!
Holes is arguably the most popular of Louis Sachar’s books, earning him several awards including the Newbery Medal for the year’s “most distinguished contribution to American literature for children”. Sachar and his wife Carla have one daughter named Sherre, who is now a zookeeper. They live in Austin, Texas.
Louis Sachar has written many wonderful books for children. Here are just a few more! Use Storyboard That’s general novel study activities with any of these books today!
These questions may be used during reading, or upon completion of the novel. While it is best to get students discussing what they’ve read, these questions can also be answered individually in a reader’s notebook. It is always such a joy to hear the different opinions that students have, even though they are reading the same novel!
Storyboard That is an excellent tool for students to create fun and engaging projects as a culminating activity after finishing a novel. In addition to our premade activities, here are some ideas that teachers can customize and assign to students to spark creativity in individual students, pairs, or small groups for a final project. Several of these ideas include Storyboard That templates that can be printed out or copied into your teacher dashboard and assigned digitally. All final projects can be printed out, presented as a slide show, or, for an extra challenge, as an animated GIF!
Identify the key elements of the plot in "Holes" by Louis Sachar, including the exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. Pay attention to significant events, conflicts, and character development throughout the story.
Choose a plot diagram template from Storyboard That's collection of layout options. Select a template that best fits your preferences and the level of detail you want to include in your plot diagram.
In the first section of the plot diagram, fill in the exposition of the story. Introduce the main characters, setting, and the initial conflict or problem they face. Provide a brief summary of the beginning of the book.
In the next section, add the rising action of the story. Include the series of events and obstacles that the characters encounter as they work towards resolving the conflict. Show how tension and suspense build throughout the story.
Identify the climax, which is the turning point or most intense moment of the story. It is the peak of the conflict and often involves a major decision or confrontation. Place this event in the appropriate section of the plot diagram.
Illustrate the falling action, which reveals the aftermath of the climax and ties up loose ends. Depict how the conflict is resolved and the story's resolution. Show the final outcome for the main characters and any important revelations or lessons learned.
Holes is story about a boy named Stanley who is sent to Camp Green Lake, a place for delinquent boys, after he was accused of a theft that he didn’t commit. While there, Stanley uncovers the history of the camp, as well as the mystery of the “curse” that he believes has plagued his family for many years.
It is obvious that one reason why the book is called Holes is because Stanley and the other boys are forced to dig holes all day. However, the holes symbolize a lot of what Stanley feels at times such as hopelessness, hardship, and adversity.
It is obvious that one reason why the book is called Holes is because Stanley and the other boys are forced to dig holes all day. However, the holes symbolize a lot of what Stanley feels at times such as hopelessness, hardship, and adversity.
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