Activities for the Short Story “Araby”
- Dec 29, 2022
- 3 min read
Level of Students: Upper-Intermediate
Lesson Objectives: At the end of the lesson; Ss will be able to comprehend main ideas of the short story “Araby”, look from another character’s point of view, discuss themes, and recreate character’s settings.
Activities about the characters;
1. Imagine with Picture Prompt
Ask students to look at the picture that showed on the board. Then, ask them to imagine and create a new character that will appear in that specific place. Ask “How the character that you created would affect the storyline and other characters?”. Give time and wait for students to think and write down some notes.
The Picture;
Rationale / Aim(s): The visual cue will help students to boost their imagination skills while creating a new character for the story. They will be able to interpret and connect their character appropriately to the storyline. Also, they will be able to practice their creative writing skills. Finally, this activity will be engaging as they can use their imagination.
2. Look from Another Perspective
Ask students to choose one of the characters from the story and create a short scene about how they would feel or act at specific moments. Then, ask them to draw cartoon versions of those scenes like a storyboard. They can use the website called “Pixton” to create their cartoons.
Rationale / Aim(s): Students will consider other character’s feelings and perceptions apart from the narrator’s point of view. With this activity, they can interpret new ideas and practice their imagination along with creative thinking about the story. Creating cartoons will be more entertaining rather than just writing a paragraph. Also, it will attract student’s attention and improve their ability to recreate new storylines.
Pre-Reading Activity: Guess from the Quote
Write or show the quote of Araby on the board and ask students to guess the topic as well as possible plots. Ask them “Can you guess what this quote implies?”, “What is the main message?”, and “What are the possible storylines?”.
The Quotation; “I watched my master’s face pass from amiability to sternness; he hoped I was not beginning to idle. I could not call my wandering thoughts together. I had hardly any patience with the serious work of life which, now that it stood between me and my desire, seemed to me child’s play, ugly monotonous child’s play.”
Rationale / Aim(s): Students will brainstorm new ideas and focus on this quotation. Also, they will discuss and elaborate on possibilities. As they share their opinions, they will become ready to concentrate and actively read this short story.
While-Reading Activity: Commenting on Themes
Pair students and ask them to discuss the examples of themes from this story. Divide the board as “The Prison of Routine”, “The Desire for Escape”, and “Life and Death”. When they finished discussing, ask them to share examples and write those suggestions on the board.
Rationale / Aim(s): Students will think about the themes and scan the story. So, their ability of reading and discussing will improve. Focusing on themes will also help them to comprehend the main ideas of this short story.
Post-Reading Activity: Twisting
Ask students to imagine the characters differently in terms of gender, age, occupation, and social class. Ask them “What would change if these characters were living in different settings?”. Pair and let them to discuss ideas. Remind them to take notes in order to share with their classmates at the end of the lesson.
Rationale / Aim(s): Students will have chance to change character settings and the plot. They can use their imagination while recreating these characters. Also, critical thinking abilities will improve as they will analysis the characters, interpret, and apply certain settings for new identities. It will be entertaining for students to twist those characters without any limitation.
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