Lesson Plan: Teaching “A Day’s Wait” by Ernest Hemingway
Learning Objectives
- Analyze Hemingway’s unique writing style, including his use of symbolism, imagery, and characterization.
- Reflect on the themes of bravery, communication, and cultural differences in perception.
- Develop critical thinking and creative expression through discussion, writing, and collaborative activities.
- Enhance digital literacy skills through blog writing and multimedia integration.
Pre-Study Activities
1. Warm-Up Discussion: Pose the question: “Is it brave to suffer in silence?”
- Encourage students to share their thoughts or personal experiences (directly or indirectly) of dealing with pain, illness, or emotional struggles.
- Provide guiding questions:
- How do people’s cultural or personal beliefs influence whether they open up about their suffering?
- Can staying silent lead to misunderstandings? Why or why not?
This activity builds empathy and sets the thematic foundation for the story.
2. Quickwrite Activity:
- Prompt: Do you consider it more courageous to face pain on your own or to seek support?
- Students write a paragraph reflecting on their perspective. Post this on a class blog or shared platform under the headline: “Is it Brave to Suffer in Silence?”
- This personal reflection primes students for the story’s theme of miscommunication and quiet suffering.
3. Video Introduction (New Addition):
- Play the YouTube video: “A Day’s Wait” – Ernest Hemingway
While-Reading Activities
1. Reading the Story:
- Focus Reading Passages: Ask students to pay special attention to lines 65-83, where Hemingway’s distinctive style is most evident.
2. Guided Literary Analysis: Assign the following focus points for their reading:
- Hemingway’s Style:
- Analyze the minimalist word choice, simple sentence structure, and subtle dialogue.
- Identify examples of the “Iceberg Theory” (what is left unsaid or implied).
- Symbolism:
- Explore the boy’s fever as a symbol of internal struggle or miscommunication.
- Discuss how the setting (e.g., the cold weather) reinforces the mood and themes.
- Imagery:
- Highlight vivid descriptions, such as the boy’s physical state, the surroundings, or the train whistle.
- Reflect on how these images evoke emotional responses.
Comprehension Check
- What is the main illness the boy is suffering from in the story?
- Why is the boy so worried about his temperature?
- What does the boy believe will happen to him because of his temperature?
- How does the father react to the boy’s illness?
- What does the boy do to show he is trying to be brave?
- What misunderstanding causes the central conflict in the story?
- What does the father do while the boy is resting?
- How does the boy’s behavior change once he realizes he’s not going to die?
- What theme does the story explore through the boy’s misunderstanding?
- How is Hemingway’s “Iceberg Theory” evident in this story?
Post-Reading Activities
1. Blog Writing Assignment:
- Students write a post about “A Day’s Wait,” addressing the following:
- How the story reflects themes of bravery, communication, and cultural misunderstandings.
- Hemingway’s style, focusing on lines 65-83 as a case study. Include examples from the text to support their analysis.
- The historical context of the “Lost Generation” and how Hemingway’s works represent this era.
- Additional Task: Find copyright-free images that represent Hemingway’s life and themes in the story. Use Google Advanced Search to source appropriately licensed visuals.
2. Pair Activity – Cultural Comparison Dialogue:
- In pairs, students create a fictional dialogue:
- One student plays a European traveler, and the other is an American local.
- The conversation includes confusion over measurement systems (e.g., Celsius vs. Fahrenheit, kilometers vs. miles).
- The dialogue ends with an explanation of the differences between the systems.
- Extension: Students record and present their dialogue as an audio file or video.
This activity reinforces cross-cultural understanding and enhances creativity.
Extension Activities
1. Creative Writing: Ask students to write a short, Hemingway-inspired narrative:
- Follow his minimalist style, focusing on a small, seemingly mundane event that carries a deeper emotional weight.
- Use symbolism and imagery to convey unspoken emotions or themes.
2. Discussion on Communication: Facilitate a class discussion:
- Why did the boy not express his true concerns to his father?
- How might open communication have changed the outcome of the story?
3. Comparative Literature: Explore another Hemingway short story, such as “Hills Like White Elephants,” and compare its style and themes with “A Day’s Wait.”
Assessment Criteria
- Blog Post: Clarity of analysis, depth of reflection, and appropriate use of textual evidence.
- Pair Dialogue: Creativity, cultural accuracy, and presentation quality.
- Class Participation: Engagement in discussions and willingness to share ideas.