Interpreting a short story

Students will study the literary genre of the short story and examine how, through writing, an author can comment directly/indirectly on our society as a whole. Hopefully, the students will develop an awareness of the problems/concerns facing our society and an appreciation of how a skilled writer can mirror society's ills and sometimes offer solutions for the problems that plague us.

A lesson plan for grade 8 English Language Arts

By Regina Johnson

Learn more

Related pages

• To Kill A Mockingbird role-play: A Maycomb pig pickin': Somewhere near the middle of reading the novel, students start to become confused about characters. This fun role-play activity works especially well just after Chapter 21 and allows students to get to know characters beyond Jem and Scout. It also can be a springboard into further discussions of point of view, theme, and stereotypes.
• Cause and effect: Students will identify and interpret cause and effect as expressed in poetry.
• Seven directions: Making connections between literature and American Indian history : This middle school lesson uses picture books to integrate American Indian culture and belief systems with language and visual arts.

Related topics

• Learn more about Langston Hughes, analysis, character traits, language arts, literature, role playing, and stories.

Help

Please read our disclaimer for lesson plans.

Legal

Learning outcomes

Students will:

• predict what will happen next in a story.
• act out a scene from the story, experimenting with different roles.
• discuss/evaluate scene and outcome.
• relate the problem of the main character to problems faced by some members of our society.

Teacher planning

Time required for lesson

90 Minutes

Materials/resources

The short story entitled “Thank You Ma’am” by Langston Hughes

Activities

Phase I: Warm up the group

1. Ask students if they’ve heard about instances of school students stealing from their peers, particularly “status” items like expensive sneakers or electronic devices. Discuss this as a concept — don’t ask for specific incidents. Why would a student steal something like an iPod or a trendy shoe? Students may note that it can be difficult not to have what others have.
2. Tell students, “We are going to read a story today entitled ‘Thank You, M’am;’ by Langston Hughes. It is about a boy who wants things that he doesn’t have. We will also discuss possible endings for the story.”
   • About the story: “Thank You, M’am” is the story of an adolescent named Roger who attempts to steal a lady’s pocketbook. Mrs. Louella Bates Washington Jones, the lady from whom Roger tries to steal, does the unexpected. She kicks him “right in his blue-jeaned sitter” and shakes him “until his teeth rattle.” Mrs. Jones takes Roger to her home where she talks to him about “wanting things he could not get.”
3. After reading the story, focus the discussion on what might happen next if the story were to continue.
   • What do you think Roger might do next?
   • Do you think Mrs. Jones successfully taught Roger a lesson about stealing?
   • Do you think that Mrs. Jones has influenced Roger’s life in a positive way?
   • Do you think that Roger might lead a “straight” life in the future

Phase II: Selecting the participants

Ask students to describe the characters from the story and tell what they are like, how they feel, and what they might do next. Make sure that the students understand that Roger and Mrs. Jones are the main characters; people on the street who witnessed the attempted theft are minor characters. Have students volunteer for the roles of the characters for a role-playing activity.

Phase III: Creating the line of action

Set the stage. The role players will outline the scene, but they don’t prepare dialogue. A section of the classroom becomes the street where Roger attempts to steal from Mrs. Jones. Another corner of the classroom becomes the home of Mrs. Jones, where she talks to Roger, attempting to teach him that stealing is wrong. The student playing Roger decides where in the action he wants to begin.

Phase IV: Preparing the observers

Assign new jobs to students: Someone will evaluate the role playing, one will comment on the effectiveness of the behavior of the role players, and another will define the feelings of the persons being portrayed. Students volunteer for the tasks, or the teacher assigns them.

Phase V: The enactment

The students portray their roles, responding realistically to each other. The players/roles can be changed.

Phase VI: Discussion and evaluation

After the enactment has been completed, have a class discussion, using your own questions or some of the following questions:

1. How do you think Roger feels when Mrs. Jones says that she, too, had once wanted things that she could not have?
2. What do you think Roger thinks when Mrs. Jones leaves her purse out in the open where he could easily snatch it if he wanted to?
3. What is going on in Mrs. Jones’ mind when she gives Roger money?
4. What does Roger mean when he says that he “did not trust the woman not to trust him”?
5. Why do you think Roger could only utter a “thank you” before Mrs. Jones closes the door?

Phase VII: Share experience and generalize

Lead a discussion in which students relate Roger’s problem to real situations and current social problems. Ask students to write in their journals about a time they had an experience similar to Roger’s, where they wanted something they could not have. How did that make them feel? How did they act? Ask the students if they know of anyone like Mrs. Jones who decided to overlook their flaws and see the best in them. How did that make them feel? Did it change their feelings or behavior?

Assessment

Teacher/peer evaluation of discussion/role playing

Comments

This lesson works best with gifted/talented students, but all students could benefit from it.