Having students choose a favorite quote or scene from the book allows them to express which parts of the story resonated with them on a personal level. In this way, students are making a text-to-self connection that demonstrates their understanding of the characters and their development or the themes of the novel. Students can share their storyboards afterwards and have a short discussion about what the quotes mean to them.
Some students may end up choosing the same quote, but have different perspectives. This is always interesting for students to see and can open up a discussion as to how not everyone can read the same lines in the same way based on their own perspectives and personal experiences.
"What if you miss?"
“gun shots make everybody / deaf and blind”
“but if blood inside you is on the inside of someone else, / you never want to see it on the outside of them”
ANOTHER THING ABOUT THE RULES / They weren’t meant to be broken. / They were meant for the broken / to follow.
BEEF / gets passed down like name-brand / T-shirts around here. Always too big. Never ironed out. / gets inherited like a trunk of fool’s / gold or a treasure map leading / to nowhere.
NO. 1.1: SURVIVAL TACTICS (made plain) / Get / Down / with / some / body / or / get / beat / down / by / some / body.
I WRAPPED MY FINGERS / around the grip, placing / them over Shawn’s / prints like little / brother holding big / brother’s hand again, / walking me to the store, / teaching me how to / do a Penny Drop.
Then / the bus-stop / lean back / to get a glimpse / of the world. / But the metal barrel / dug into my back, / making me wince, / making me obvious / and wack.
SHE BRUSHED HER HAND AGAINST MINE / to get my attention, / which on any other / occasion would’ve / been the perfect / open for me to flirt / or at least try to do / my best impression of Shawn, / which was / his best impression of Buck.
WHEN THEY SAID / you were gone, / I cried all night, / I confessed. / And the next morning, / over hard-boiled eggs / and sugar cereal, / Shawn taught me / Rule Number One— / no crying.
I stood in the shower / the next morning / after Shawn taught me / the first rule, / no crying, / feeling like / I wanted to scratch / my skin off scratch / my eyes out punch / through something, / a wall, / a face, / anything, / so something else / could have / a hole.
So I explained them to / her so she wouldn’t think / less of me for following / them / So that she knew I had / purpose / and that this was about / family / and had I known / The Rules when we / were kids I would’ve / done the same thing / for her.
BUT TO EXPLAIN MYSELF / I said, / The Rules are / the rules.
He knew them / like I knew them. / Passed to him. / Passed them to his little brother. / Passed to my older brother. / Passed to me. / The Rules / have always ruled. / past present future forever.
it was like the word / came out and at the same time / time went in. / Went down / into me and / chewed on everything / inside as if / I had somehow / swallowed / my own teeth / and they were / sharper than / I’d ever known.
WHAT YOU THINK YOU SHOULD DO? / he asked. / Follow the Rules, / I said / just like I told / everybody else. / Just like you did.
A DUMB THING TO SAY / would’ve been to / tell Buck how important / that soap was / that it stopped Mom from / scraping loose a river / of wounds. / But instead / I just said, / Riggs.
I TOLD HIM / about the / drawer, / the gun, / that I did / like he told me, / like Buck told him, / like our grandfather told / our uncle, like our uncle / told our dad. / I followed The Rules. / At least the first two.
AND EVEN THOUGH / his face was wet / with tears he wasn’t / supposed to cry / when he was alive, / I couldn’t see him / as anything less / than my brother, / my favorite, / my only.
DON’T NOBODY / believe nothing / these days / which is why I haven’t / told nobody the story / I’m about to tell you
NO. 3: REVENGE / If someone you love / gets killed, / find the person / who killed / them and / kill them.
“Shawn turned back toward me, eyes dull from death but shining from tears, finally spoke to me. Just two words, like a joke he'd been saving. YOU COMING?”
(These instructions are completely customizable. After clicking "Copy Activity", update the instructions on the Edit Tab of the assignment.)
Due Date:
Objective: Create a storyboard that identifies your favorite quote or scene in Long Way Down. Illustrate your quote and write what it means to you.
Student Instructions:
Requirements: Quote or Scene, Illustration, 1-2 sentences about what it means to you.
Read and analyze the essential components of the story with the help of students. Teachers can also initiate a role-play for some essential and significant scenes of the story so that the students have a different perspective before they start the actual analysis and discussion. This activity will also help students gain a few insights that they will be able to share later on during the discussion.
Before starting the discussion, explain the objectives of the discussion to the students and give essential discussion questions beforehand so students have a direction and do not go out of context. The discussion questions can address a few essential topics such as the significance of the title, main themes, development of characters, and connection with reality.
Guide the students to take notes throughout the discussion and ask the students to summarize the main points of the discussion after a set time period. This will encourage participate and help fill the gap for students who are unable to maintain concentration for longer periods of time.
Include activities for the group, such as brainstorming sessions or artistic endeavors centered around the book. Through joint investigation, students are able to work together and get a comprehensive overview of the entire narrative.
Encourage the students to be respectful towards each other’s opinions and try to understand different perspectives. Teachers can inform students of the ground rules beforehand so everyone is aware of the discussion boundaries and each student gets a chance to participate and share their perspective.
Students can concentrate on examining the social or cultural connotations of their favorite quotations. This may spark conversations on the novel's applicability to current events and how it affects readers' understanding of social topics. Analyzing the quote from this perspective will also add to an overall understanding of the characters present in the story.
Students can make links between the quotation they like most and more general literary devices such as motifs, symbolism, and foreshadowing by analyzing the impact of these devices on the meaning of the quote and its relevance to the overall narrative. Talking about this connection can improve the literary analysis as a whole and help readers gain a deeper comprehension of the author's technique.