The Dark Is Rising

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“Tests and Challenges”

In this activity, students pair the Signs that Will collects to stages in his development.

Each of the Signs that Will receives is accompanied by a test or challenge. Sometimes the test comes after the sign and sometimes before. 

• List each of the six Signs on the left side of a page. In the middle of the page, describe the test or challenge that Will must undergo in claiming it. Note whether the test or challenge occurs before he receives the Sign or after.
• Before the six Signs are joined, Will has one further task to accomplish. Add that to your list of tests and trials.
• On the right side of the page, note what you think Will learned from each trial.
• In the space below your list, write 2-3 sentences explaining whether each test is essentially the same, or whether Will learns something new in each trial.
• Pair with a partner to compare your work and conclusions. Discuss the lessons Will learns in the story and determine which one is the most important to his character development. Be ready to share your rationale with the class.

Teaching Suggestion: Students might work alone initially, then form small groups where they can discuss the meaning of the signs and their associated trials. This activity connects to the theme of Coming-of-Age As a Leap Into the Adult World and potentially to Dark May Be Evil but Good Is Not Nice (depending on whether Will draws any moral lessons from his tests).

Differentiation Suggestion: For English language learners, consider providing sentence starters to structure responses—e.g., “This test taught Will that_____”; “These tests are similar in that they all­­_____”; “Each test teaches Will something new because_____.”