Using The Man in the Well in Gifted Advisory
Ira Sher's 17 Minute Story is Worthy of Days of Discussion
Sep 19, 2009
A gifted advisory class addresses the needs of a unique population of students. These are students who can quickly understand abstractions, and they have interpretive thinking strengths. "The Man in the Well", by Ira Sher, is a short story that can fit into the limited time students have in advisory, and students will be able to use it as a springboard for discussion for several common advisory topics.
Summary of the "Man in the Well" by Ira Sher
A group of nine year old children find a man who is stuck in a well. He asks them to get adult help, and instead they choose to bring him food and keep him in the well. As he learns their names, they grow afraid and uncomfortable, and ultimately they abandon the man, leaving him stuck in the well.
The story of The Man in the Well is available to listen as a streaming file on The American Life. It was originally broadcast on August 21, 2009 on NPR as part of the series called "The Cruelty of Children".
Discussing Responsibility
The most obvious theme in "The Man in the Well" is that of responsibility. The advisory teacher should ask students:
- What is the responsibility the children have to help the man? (Follow up: Do people have the responsibility to help each other?)
- What is the responsibility the children have to each other? (Follow up: Do friends have the responsibility to help each other do the right thing?)
- How are the children avoiding responsibility? (Follow up: Are the children showing any responsible choices in the story?)
As the advisory group discusses responsibility issues, the teacher should guide them to "go deep", as gifted kids are capable of constructing meaning on many levels. It is important that the teacher mentions that while the children have the luxury of taking all the time they want to decide if they want to help the man, they are increasing the man's misery by lying to him about the level of help he can expect.
Discussing Identity
When the man learns the names of the children, the class will pick up that the game has changed for the children in the story. The advisory teacher should ask:
- Why is it easier for the children in the story to be unkind when the man doesn't know who they are?
- Why does using someone's name have such a powerful effect? (Follow up: Why is it important to learn the names of your peers?)
- How can people identify themselves without using their names?
- How does the power balance shift when the man starts calling names?
The advisory group can branch off into many issues where names matter to kids. Online bullying is often accomplished through the anonymous nature of the internet. Students often feel invisible in a class until a teacher knows the student's name – and says it correctly.
Listening to the "Man in the Well", as opposed to reading it, has the added benefit of the advisory group experiencing the story together. This uses auditory skills, requires intense focus, and gives the students a chance to finish at the same time, so the deep discussions can start right away.
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