Lesson
2
:
Learning Optimism from Literature
Grade
Grade 6
UNIT
1
•
Optimism
In Unit 1, Lesson 1, “Learning Optimism from Literature,” students will learn examples of optimism from a contemporary work of children’s literature. Additionally, students will create their own sentences that demonstrate their comprehension of the word optimism. Finally, students will practice their reading and conversation skills by sharing sentences with classmates.
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SUGGESTED TIME:
20 minutes
RELATED SUBJECT:
English Language Arts
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
- 1 class period to introduce the book; 1 class period to discuss the book
- The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani is a total of 258 pages. It is written in a diary format, and it is not divided into chapters.
- The suggested reading assignment is approximately 15 pages per day for either in-class silent reading or homework.
- With this schedule, students will complete the book in 17 in-class reading sessions or 17 homework sessions.
- Students should complete the short-answer questions on the worksheet as they read the book.
- Allow at least 50 minutes for in-class discussion of the short-answer questions on the worksheet.
REQUIRED MATERIALS:
- Video: India and Pakistan: What was partition? by Al Jazeera English (~3 min)
- Book: The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani.
- Prohuman Grade 6 Unit 1 Worksheet 2: Learning Optimism from Literature
VOCABULARY:
- Hindu: A follower of Hinduism, the world’s oldest known organized religion still being practiced today. Hinduism is a religion with a very diverse philosophy based on several deity figures and texts—the Vedas, the Upanishads, the Mahabharata, and the Ramayana. There are over one billion Hiindus living in the world today, with the majority of Hindus living in India.
- Muslim: A follower of the religion Islam. Islam began in the seventh century by the prophet Muhammad. Muslims follow the teachings of a text called the Quran. There are approximately 1.6 billion Muslims living in the world today with the majority living in the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia, and South Asia.
- Optimism: I have hope and believe my actions will help things turn out well.
- Partition of India: The division of British India into the independent countries of India and Pakistan according to the Indian Independence Act passed by the British Parliament on July 18, 1947. Set to take effect on August 15, the rapid partition led to a population transfer of unprecedented magnitude, accompanied by devastating communal violence, as some 15,000,000 Hindus, Sikhs, and Muslims rushed to cross the hastily demarcated borders before the partition would be complete. Estimates of the number of people who died during the partition range from 200,000 to 2,000,000. (Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- Sikh: A follower of Sikhism, which originated in the Punjab region of India in the fifteenth century based on the teachings of Guru Nanak. The majority of Sikhs live in Punjab, India, but reside all over the world. There are twenty-six million Sikhs in the world today.
ELA COMMON CORE STANDARDS MET
CHARACTER AND SOCIAL EMOTIONAL (CSED) NATIONAL STANDARDS MET
LESSON PROCEDURE
Step 1:
- Tell the students that just three years after Anne Frank’s last diary entry, in 1947, there was a major historical event in India: the Partition of India into two independent states, India and Pakistan.
- The book we will be reading, The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani, is a work of fiction. Like the diary of Anne Frank, the novel is structured in a diary format.
- It is important to understand the historical context of this book. Play the video India and Pakistan: What was partition? By Al Jazeera English (~3 min)
Step 2:
- Have students complete the book, either through multiple in-class silent reading sessions or as homework.
- Students should complete the short-answer questions on the worksheet as they read the book.
Step 3:
- Allow at least 50 minutes for in-class discussion of the short-answer questions on the worksheet.
GRADE 6 UNIT 1 WORKSHEET 2: LEARNING OPTIMISM FROM LITERATURE
QUESTIONS TO ANSWER WHILE READING
- There are six main characters in this novel. Who are each of them and how do they each show optimism in their own way?
- What motivates Nisha to write to her Mama?
- What are the main religions in India? What was the religion of Nisha’s mother and father? Why were Nisha’s parents brave in marrying?
- Why does Papa say it is good that India will be free?
- On page 32, we learn about the tensions between Hindu students and Muslim students at Amil’s school. Nisha says, “Everything is different now, even though it’s exactly the same. I can see it all around us, but I don’t know what to call it. It’s like a new sound I can hear in the air.” What are some key moments in the characters’ everyday lives when tensions between Muslims and Hindus grow and become dangerous?
- Who were the following people and what was their position on the division of India after independence: Mohammed Ali Jinnah, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Mahatma Gandhi?
- What does being a doctor teach Papa about people?
- What did Papa say happens when you separate people into groups?
- A Muslim family saves Amil’s life by accepting the family into the shelter and providing them with space. Papa says, “We need shelter. My son will die if he doesn’t get warm” (p. 149). How does this scene celebrate humanity in a time of conflict? How is this moment a turning point for Nisha and her family?
- On page 171, when Nisha is attacked, what does Papa tell the man? Whose words does he quote? How did you feel about his response?
- What does Nisha’s friendship with Hafa show?
- What is a principle about optimism you learned from this book that you would like to live by?
Prohuman K-12 Curriculum © 2025 by Prohuman Foundation is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0.
To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
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