What did Louis Sachar Teach you?

12/21/2015

What did Louis Sachar Teach you?

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Final Thoughts on Holes...

Cliffnotes.com wrote this about Louis Sachar,

"Sachar never sets out to teach a specific moral or lesson when he writes. Instead, he creates characters that his readers can empathize with and involves them in plots that are fun to read. As a result, he believes his readers will naturally become better people."

assignment:
How could someone naturally become a better person from reading Holes?
Did you relate to any of the characters?
What did you learn from the book?

Write a THOUGHTFUL 1-2 paragraph answer to this prompt. Make sure you edit before you post! If there are too many mistakes it will not be accepted!

60 Comments

Ryan

12/21/2015 15:42:31

Lois Sachar thought me to watch out in life for things that could get me hurt or in trouble. I learned this because in the story Holes a kid named Stanley was walking home from school then a famous pair of shoes hit him in the head. Then the cops found him with those famous shoes and accused Stanley for stealing the shoes even though he didn't. So the cops sent Stanley to a camp called Camp Green Lake even though there was no lake. Stanley got tour here'd there because he was thirsty all the time and he had to dig 5 foot deep holes all day in the sun. I learned to watch out for things because I could not be paying attention and then something could happen to me and I wouldn't even know and then I would regret what I did later in life. So in life I'm going to watch out for things so nothing bad happens to me.

Stanley Yelnats

12/22/2015 06:57:25

I feel like I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. How will you look out for "bad situations" if you don't know they're actually bad?

Stella

4/4/2018 02:26:53

If you are doing something,you should tell your best friends.They would help you.If they are like Stanley and Hector.Be prepared to cross new difficulties in life.

Alexa

12/21/2015 15:48:52

Someone could become a better person by reading holes because they could connect with the chracters and how they treat other people in the book and what their outcome is and try their best to become a better person. I didn't really connect with any of the chracters but I kind of identify with Stanley. Stanley and I don't want people to worry about us and we try to make the best of a bad situation. I learned how to be a better friend from the book because the boy's at Camp Green lake stood up for one another when something wasn't fair listened to people when they spoke and they were always there for each other.

Makenna

12/21/2015 16:12:22

I learned that the most powerful thing you need is friendship. Stanley and Zero's bond together was so strong that Stanley left camp to find Zero when he ran away. Stanley knew that he could get lost and die or he could of gotten in to more trouble. Stanley showed empathy to Zero. Also they showed true friendship when they climbed Big Thumb, they helped each other out when each of them were weak. However, climbing a mountain is really hard and they kept going. In real life people need friends to help them through hard times. Friends can help people. To conclude this people should treat their friends nicely. So that you will keep them. Friends can be really helpful.

Hector Zeroni

12/22/2015 07:00:33

You're right, Makenna! Stanley exemplified the quality of perseverance. He really sacrificed his own safety just for me. I know he is a true friend, and I will return the favor anyday. #campgreenlake4ever #BFF

Rose

12/21/2015 16:12:24

I learned that sometimes it's good to go out and do something for someone. You should help the person instead of just watching. In real life it requires empathy to go up to someone (even if you've only seen them once before) who is unhappy and ask them if they can be your friend. Someone could die if they didn't have a friend. I think Louis Sachar is trying to tell us that friendship is very powerful. It is really, very important.
I learned about empathy and friendship when Stanley carried Zero up God's Thumb. Instead of saving himself, and staying at Camp Green Lake, Stanley found Zero and saved him. By doing this he could have died. Stanley had empathy for Zero so he went out after him. Before Zero left Stanley discovered his friendship with Zero. They are true friends.

Mr. Pestone

12/22/2015 07:02:05

Awesome vocabulary, Rose! I love how you incorporated the Empathy lesson from Second Step!

Allison

12/22/2015 10:49:33

It very important to go out and do things for random people!

Aurora

12/21/2015 16:24:39

You learn that if you aren't a bad person you will always get out of trouble.No, I did not relate to any of the characters. After reading holes I think that I learned that friendship can get you through hard times. Also that a good friend will never give up on you. It proves true in real life.
😏

Mr. Pestone

12/22/2015 07:04:53

How has it been proven true in your life, Aurora?

Aurora

12/22/2015 10:48:34

When my bunny named Sugar died my friends helped me feel better. :-)

Heidi

12/21/2015 17:01:33

Someone can learn that friendship is always a good thing from reading the book holes. I learned that a friend is always good to have because they can help you with something that you can't do. Sometimes they might even surprise you with things they did you never expected them to do.

When you read the part in the book where Stanley and zero help each other you can see that they both helped each other between and help get items. Stanley let Zero dig the water hole because he was a better digger. Stanley carried the stuff up the mountain because he was more stronger than zero.

This would apply to real life when you are on a journey. Like Stanley and Zero they were both together on going to the gods thumb. If you are ever on a journey with just one friend they can help you a lot and do things you would never expect them to do. A friend can always help you

Mr. Pestone

12/22/2015 07:06:33

Heidi...Awesome comparison between Hector and Stanley!

Derek

12/21/2015 17:46:16

Someone could naturally become a better person by seeing that friends always help not hurt. Then they could go make some of their own friends. Even though we are not digging holes in 100 degree weather we can still rely on our friends to help. The only character I can relate to is Zero. I can relate to him because sometimes when they are selling things at a little table I think they are free and I go up to them and take one but the their all like these aren't free. I learned that you can rely on your friends to help you. When your having trouble with school or your family your friends can help you get through it.

Nina D

12/21/2015 18:18:44

Something other people and I learned from reading the book holes is to work together to reach your goal. I learned this by reading the part when Stanley and Zero are climbing the big thumb and have to help each other. When they were helping each other they were surviving and reaching their goal. They were sharing food and water and they carrying each other around. I could apply this to real life when you are playing a sport you have to work together with your teammates to in the game or reach your goal.

Mr. Pestone

12/22/2015 07:07:54

Awesome real-life connection, Nina!

Makenna and Anna

12/22/2015 10:47:18

We loved your theme of reaching a goal. We never would of thought of it. Nice job!!!

Allison

12/21/2015 18:26:33

Someone could become a betteer person after reading Holes by learning to be a better friend.They could learn it is important to have a friend at your side.They could learn this from te part of the book when Zero runs away.He was very feeble and couldn'thave survived without Stanley there to find the food and water.Someone could be a better person after reading holes by learning to always be there to help there friends when needed.

Mr. Pestone

12/22/2015 07:08:33

Nice use of vocab, Allison!

Rose link

12/22/2015 10:55:45

I agree that it is very important to have a friend at your side. You would be very sad if you didn't have one because you most likely wouldn't be very friendly.

Aidan

12/21/2015 18:46:39

Someone could become a better person form reading holes by becoming more friendly. They would realize it is good to have friends and to be close to them. They will help you. Also they might become a better person because they realize being a bad kid and stealing can lead to some serious consequences. I could relate to Stanley. I could because he tried to do something to help his dad but it turned out that it was not something he should have done.I have done that before truing to help but make the situation worse. From this book i learned a lot. I learned that friendship is important in overcoming fears and challenges that you face. Also that luck is a fourth of what your future has in store for you. You can take away from it that your friends are very important.

Stanley Yelnats

12/22/2015 07:10:43

I agree! Sometimes when you're trying to help, it only makes things worse. But like you said, I stuck it out till the end, tried hard, and overcame the consequences!

Karate Washington/ Your Every-Day Average Mermaid/ illuminati Confirmed!!!!!

12/22/2015 10:54:06

I liked how you said that sometimes trying to help can not turn out to what you expected. I also like when you said that 1 fourth of your fate is luck. I also can connect to your inference because one time I tried to help my brother and all that happened was that I was grounded for a week!

Jack

12/21/2015 18:48:38

Someone could become a better person after reading this because people would not want to do something bad and end up in a place like camp green lake. Nobody wants to get up early in the morning to eat bad food and dig a five foot deep five foot wide hole. Also have to take cold showers and be thirsty all the time. That definitely makes me want to be a good person. I learned after reading this novel that even in the toughest times friends can help you through it. If you have people to back you up and cheer you up life will be so much easier and tough times won’t be as hard. Also I learned that bad luck can turn around quick. Stanley was down in the dump but all of a sudden he got to gods thumb and then found a chest that belonged to him and he ended up with thousands of dollars. Also his dad found out a way to get the stink out of shoes which got them even more money. I learned some valuable lessons from that book. I can relate to Stanley because I always get blamed for things I do not do. My brother always blames me for hurting him but he is the one who punches me first and my mom ignores me. Also Aidan Always tells on me for taking things or using my iPad when I am not supposed to use it. But yet I never tell on him. Do you see how I relate to Stanley?

X-ray

12/22/2015 07:19:57

All I can say is be strong, it may be stormy now but the rain can't last forever!

Magnet

12/22/2015 10:47:09

I can relate to that because I have a sibling that blames me for everything and tells on me.

Aurora

12/22/2015 10:58:00

My brother and sister tell on me for taking the tooth paste before them.

:)/:(

12/22/2015 11:00:01

I can relate to that to because my little brother tells on me all of the time too!

Stanley Yelnats

12/22/2015 10:50:16

The bad food, cold showers, digging holes, and waking up early were hard but my friends helped me get through it.

James and Kieran

12/22/2015 10:52:54

First of all I see how you relate to Stanley. Your post also flowed really well. Here's a tip, ignore them and you might end up being fine. (I always do that).

Allison

12/22/2015 10:57:20

Agreed! :)

Sophia

12/21/2015 19:09:27

1. I now know that someone could become a better person after reading the book holes because it shows the value of friendship and that if you truly show that you can be "buddies" with someone then you will have people by your side so you would want to be like this if you hadn't already been like this.

2. I did relate to one of the charters. I related to Stanley because I have been unlucky before when I broke lots of bone or just injured myself. But I also have been lucky before when I made the A Travel Basketball Team. Stanley also has been lucky some times but then unlucky other times. That's how I related to Stanley from holes.

3. By the end of the book holes I've learned that if you don't value the true meaning of friendship you could lose friends, but if you do then you will gain friends. I also learned from hole is that the past doesn't affect your future, you could just be in the wrong place at the wrong time, or it could just be your fate.

Zig Zag

12/22/2015 10:44:56

I liked how you related to Caveman's life and his luck. Groovyyy, dude!

Squid

12/22/2015 10:57:30

I really liked how you said how it showed the value of friendship. I really pulls your thing together. It feels right dude.

Anna

12/21/2015 19:21:34

In Holes I learned that even if life is hard, keep trying and it will pay off. I learned this because even though Stanley and Zero were scraggly they kept climbing the big thumb. In the end they broke the curse,so the hard work was worth it.
I could apply this to real life because if you are having a hard time on the vocabulary packet you should try to think outside the box. This will make you write a devine summary for your current novel.

Mr. Pestone

12/22/2015 07:22:28

Great vocabulary, Anna! Because you work hard and think outside of the box, it's helping you with this blog post too!!!

Amanda+Jamie

12/22/2015 10:51:22

Awesome job, Anna. We loved how you used the vocab word "scraggly" in your writing. We really loved it when you used the bonus vocab word "divine". We also liked when you made the connection between the vocab packet and the book Holes. Great job!

Alex

12/21/2015 19:26:30

Louis Sachar taught me a lot. One thing he taught me is that you need friends and that luck plays a huge role in life. I know he taught me this because Stanley and Zero needed each other when they were climbing Stanley pushed Zero up and Zero pulled him up after. Also they gave each other encouragement. I know luck plays a big role in life because Stanley and Zero had amazing luck when they found onions and water because they would have died without them because they were away for a few days. Holes made me a better person in multiple ways. One way is that he taught me to be nicer so I will have more friends to count on. Another way he taught me to be a better person is that I should not complain because Stanley and many other people around the world are in way worse situations. Also he taught me to be more patient Because in Stanley's situation he had to be extremely patient because he knew he was innocent. I related to Stanley many ways. One is that some times I have bad luck when other people do things and I am accused for it. Also I related to him because I need my friends to help me with things and I help my friends with things. An example is when I do not understand things on home work and they help me or they do not understand it and I help them. Louis Sachar helped me become a better person and learn things.

Mr. Pestone

12/22/2015 07:24:43

Nice job working "patience" into your post. Stanley and the boys sure had to be patient to get out of Camp Green Lake!

Julianne

12/21/2015 19:52:07

Someone could naturally become a better person from reading holes because it could teach them an important lesson about life. One lesson that I learned was that what you do will effect your future. I learned this because Elya Yelnats broke his promise to Madame Zeroni, and this gave him and his family bad luck. Someone could naturally become a better person by knowing this because they could figure out that if they continued being bad, people would stop wanting to be friends with them.

I could relate to Stanley when the shoes fell on him. Sometimes things happens to me and it seems like it's luck, but it isn't as good as it seems at first.

Mr. Sir

12/22/2015 10:50:46

I like how you used evidence from the book about how you learned a lesson.

Ryan and Aidan

12/22/2015 10:58:11

Great point on how what you do will effect your future because even if you do the littlest thing thats bad but you don't think its bad it could effect your future because Stanley got tourchered in Camp Green Lake for getting hit in the head with some famous pair of shoes and he didn't even know what was happening. Be a good person in life.

Colin

12/21/2015 20:10:53

Someone could naturally become a better person after reading holes because they could learn how important friendships are.Friends can help you with a lot of things like homework and even climbing a mountain.I could relate to Stanley.I could relate to Stanley because if I was climbing a mountain to survive I would have carried my friend up if he fainted.
I learned from the book that you should never give up.Stanley never gave up when he was climbing the mountain.If he gave up he would have never found the oinons or water and died.In real life you could never give up in a game.You could be losing by 10 points at the end of a game but if you never give up there is a chance you could come back and win.

Mr. Pestone

12/22/2015 07:26:16

Great real-life connection!

Jamie

12/21/2015 20:14:08

After you have read Holes you have learned the golden rule of friendship. The golden rule is to treat others the way you want to be treated. You learned this because after reading the book you can infer that it's always good to have friends that you can rely on. If you feel good when you have a friend to rely on then you should be the friend that someone else can rely on. You can infer this when Stanley and Zero are climbing big thumb. Zero definitely had to rely on Stanley to survive. All of the boys at camp green lake also had to rely on each other too.
In real life I have friends that I know will always have my back. For instance if I don't know what the reading homework is I know I can text one of my good friends and they will tell me. If you only have friends that might go away then you should make friends that you know will always be there for you.

Mr. Pestone

12/22/2015 07:27:22

"The Golden Rule of Friendship!" Nice Job!

the warden

12/22/2015 10:56:03

I liked how you talked about the golden rule. Something I never learned about as a kid. I had a sad, sad childhood.

NateD.

12/21/2015 20:40:35

I think that someone could become a better person because in the book "Holes" many friends help each other out to escape Camp. This could teach children that you can count on a friend to help you through hard times like when Stanley lifted Zero up the mountain. I learned that having friends that you can count on can help you through hard times, and that if you tried hard to accomplish your goal, it can lead you to success. I learned this when Zero dug Stanley's hole, and in return, Stanley taught Zero how to read. If they weren't friends, Stanley may not have taught him how to read. Also, Stanley didn't give up trying to leave Camp Green Lake. I knew this when he went to find Zero to bring him back to camp. He also didn't give up when he tried digging the case out of the ground. People could learn this in real life because friends can help friends if a friend needs help. If you don't give up, you can lead to success because if you tried really hard to do something, you probably learned what went wrong and you could fix it.

Stanley

12/22/2015 07:29:32

When Zero helped me dig my hole, I figured I should return the favor in some way, because that's what friends do!

Mr.Pendanckey

12/22/2015 10:57:12

Nothing is impossible. The word itself says I'm possible

Kieran O'Grady

12/21/2015 20:54:04

After reading the book holes, I know that reading this book could make someone a better person. I know this because after seeing Stanley and Zero work together to survive as friends, you can kind of get the jist that friendship can help you in times of hardship. The reader might recognize this and try to be a better friend. I related to Stanley because in alot of books and shows there is a character who is unlucky at the begging and then their luck picks up at the end. This is a good way to create a exciting story because that was how the book holes was partially formed. I learned that friendship is a very powerful thing after reading this book. I learned this because if Stanley and Zero did not work together as friends, they might not have survived. Overall, I think holes is a great book and I would recommend it to anyone who wanted to read a touching novel combined with a thrilling adventure. Way to go Louis Sachar!

Mr. Pestone

12/22/2015 07:30:56

Great language, Kieran! You should write more reviews on the book recommendations blog!

amanda

12/21/2015 21:29:16

By reading this book, I learned that hard work and determination is the key to getting through the challenges in life. I learned this because in the book, the main characters faced difficult challenges during their experiences, and working together and staying determined helped them get through the harrowing job of digging holes. Someone could become a better person from reading this book because they could learn what you can accomplish with hard work and how it pays off. Also, they could learn that if you don't always try your hardest to be considerate and kind, consequences might come. If they do, then work really hard to be thoughtful to others. I can relate to Stanley because sometimes, when I have bad luck it usually leads to a not- so - good consequence. Those are some of the final thoughts I have after reading the book "Holes."

Mr. Pestone

12/22/2015 07:31:48

Awesome vocab, Amanda!

James and Kieran

12/22/2015 10:46:22

We like how you used the vocab and when you said through the harrowing job. Nice job!

Rebecca

12/21/2015 21:31:42

Someone could naturally become a better person by reading holes because it shows that if you take a risk good things can come out of it. Even if you are not sure if it is the right thing to do you still do it because you feel that something good will come out of it. I can relate to Zero because sometimes I get misunderstood just like when the counselors were teasing him. I think I learned that sometimes you won't always get what you want but sometimes you get too much.

Armpit

12/22/2015 07:34:21

Nice! This reminds of that song on the radio:

You cant always get what you want
But if you try sometimes
Well you might just find
You get some sploosh!

James

12/22/2015 07:39:47

Someone could naturally become a better person by reading holes because they read about kids who did bad enough crimes to go to a camp that's like a prison. There, they are punished and have to dig holes in the blazing hot weather. So kids and adults will learn that bad things can lead to an upset life. I also learned that you shouldn't always be so greedy about things. At camp the warden was greedy and made the children dig hole to find treasure. That might lead to an unhappy future. I could also relate to Stanley. I could because I was once at the wrong place at the wrong time. Like when the shoes fell on his head and arrested I was once blamed for picking on a young kid just because I was walking across the street laughing to a joke not knowing what was happening to that kid. Luckily They ended up realizing that it wasn't me who was picking on the kid it was someone else.

I learned three important lessons from that book. One was that if you do or act bad things it can review as severe punishment. Also I learned that if you are to greedy than you will act out bad actions, which will soon lead to punishment. Finally, I learned that you might get blamed for things that you didn't do like Stanley. That is ok because most likely someone will get you out for doing all those things you were blamed for.

Brevin Hawkinson

11/18/2017 15:01:28

Amazing book. And movie

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