Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
Region VII, Central Visayas
DIVISION OF MANDAUE CITY
Jose L. Briones St.,Mandaue City
2

FOREWORD

This Self-Learning Kit (SLK) is prepared to develop the reading

comprehension skills of Grade 9 students highlighting the most essential
competency: to analyze literature as a means in understanding the
unchanging values in volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous (VUCA)
world.

Welcome to HARLEM!

In this module, you will be exploring a story about a teenage boy who
received unexpected kindness from a total stranger.

You are given five (5) days to finish this learning kit.

Good luck and keep safe!

 3 CONTENT STANDARDS

The learner demonstrates understanding of how Anglo-

American literature and other text types serves as means of
valuing other people; also how to use processing information
strategies, different forms of adverbs and conditionals for him/
her to play an active part in a Chamber Theater presentation.

GRADE LEVEL STANDARDS

The learner demonstrates communicative competence

through his/her understanding of British-American Literature,
including Philippine Literature and other text types for a deeper
appreciation of Philippine culture and those of other countries.

PERFORMANCE STANDARDS

The learner proficiently plays an active part in a Chamber

Theater presentation through employing effective verbal and
non-verbal strategies based on the following criteria: Focus,
Voice, Delivery, Facial Expressions, Style and Body Movements
or Gestures.

MOST ESSENTIAL LEARNING COMPETENCY

In this module, you will be able to:

Analyze literature as a means of understanding unchanging values in the
VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous) world, specifically:
A. Identify the elements of a short story;
B. Make inferences from the events in the featured selection; and
C. Write a short reflection on the story read.
 4

Learning starts with a good reading. According to Irish

political thinker and statesman Edmund Burke, “to read
without reflecting is like eating without digesting.” Lessons
learned from what we read are like food for our souls. This
make these pieces of literature magical and inspiring.

Hi! My name is Brittany. I am here to help you in exploring

the world of narratives, specifically, the short story. In this
journey, you will discover the elements that make a story
beautiful and worth remembering.

Connect the events in the featured story so that you can

discover the “treasure” that you will be bringing forever.

Have fun learning!

This module consists of three activities and one assessment:

• Exploration—Tell Tale

• Literary Appreciation—Story Web

• Analysis—INFER-ness
• Enrichment—My Takeaway
 5 WHAT HAPPENED?
Before we proceed to the reading selection, let us first
activate your memory on the ELEMENTS OF A SHORT STORY.

REVIEW
Draw a line that connects the picture to the word it represents.

• CHARACTERS
1

https://naruto.fandom.com/wiki/Kurama

• CONFLICT

https://www.deviantart.com/narsilion/art/NPL-New-Konoha-93695860

• PLOT
youtube.com/watch?v=29MR_EWmKX8

• SETTING

https://www.pinterest.ph/narutobattles/naruto-comics/

• THEME
https://www.quora.com/What-life-lessons-has-the-Naruto-series-taught-you
 6 WHAT HAPPENED?

I hope you get the correct answers. Here is a brief dis-

cussion on the BASIC ELEMENTS OF A SHORT STORY.

Setting

It refers to the time and place the story happened.

It is introduced at the beginning of the story
through sensory words.

Characters

They are the people, animal, being, or creature involved in a

story. They can be the:

• MAIN CHARACTERS— they are the story’s central characters.

They can be:

 PROTAGONIST (bida) - the leading character; or

 ANTAGONIST (kontrabida) - the character who is against

the protagonist

• SUPPORTING CHARACTERS— they are not the focus of the story

but they help in moving the story and giving it depth and
meaning.

Conflict

It refers to the
problem or struggle in
the story faced usually by the main
characters. It can be:

 EXTERNAL—main character vs. outside

force like another person, nature, society,
supernatural being (or God), technology,
etc.

 INTERNAL—character vs. himself/herself. It

happens within the character’s mind like
having psychological problems. https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/conflict-in-literature
 7 WHAT HAPPENED?
Plot
It is the series of events happened in the story. It has the
following parts or elements as shown in the diagram below.

https://allaccesspassblog.com/2012/10/03/summarizing-short-stories-story-elements-and-conflict/

Theme

It is the central idea of the story. It is the underlying

message or belief about life which the author tries to
convey. It binds all the other elements of the story.

It answers the question: “What is the story all about?”

Finding the Theme

Since, the theme is the most • What did you, or what were you
difficult element of a short Lesson •
supposed to learn?
What is the story trying to teach?
story to identify, you can
• What principles are evident in the story?
use these questions and
keywords related to theme
Moral •

•
What values are being emphasized?
What character traits are encouraged?
to help you determine the
• How does this story encourage you to be
theme of a story.
Message a better person?
• How does this story apply to your life?

• What is the overarching concept

present in this story?
Motif • What are the recurring patterns in
this story?
 8 WHAT HAPPENED?

What situations or experiences have molded

your concept and beliefs about trust and
kindness? Do you think that trust is earned?

Accomplish the Anticipation Guide and let’s

find out.

Direction: Read each statement carefully. Respond to the given statements

whether you agree or disagree. Put a check mark () in your chosen column.

Agree Disagree Statements

Doing bad things will be eventually rewarded.

Kindness can correct bad behavior.

To be kind is to give one’s trust.

Children who are neglected at home are typically bad and

cannot be trusted.

One’s hardship is not an excuse to do bad things.

Buckle up, my friend! Flex those literary muscles for

you are going to explore a heart-warming story of a
boy of your age who received an unexpected
empathy and extraordinary generosity from a
complete stranger.

Read carefully and answer the activities which

follow. Write your answers in a clean sheet of paper.
 9 WHAT TO KNOW?

Thank You, Ma'am

(Langston Hughes)

She was a large woman with a large purse that had everything in it
but hammer and nails. It had a long strap, and she carried it slung across her
shoulder. It was about eleven o’clock at night, and she was walking alone,
when a boy ran up behind her and tried to snatch her purse. The strap broke
with the single tug the boy gave it from behind. But the boy’s weight and the
weight of the purse combined caused him to lose his balance so, instead of
taking off full blast as he had hoped, the boy fell on his back on the
sidewalk, and his legs flew up. the large woman simply turned around and
kicked him right square in his blue-jeaned sitter. Then she reached down,
picked the boy up by his shirt front, and shook him until his teeth rattled.
After that the woman said, “Pick up my pocketbook, boy, and give it
here.” She still held him. But she bent down enough to permit him to stoop
and pick up her purse. Then she said, “Now ain’t you ashamed of yourself?”
Firmly gripped by his shirt front, the boy said, “Yes’m.”
The woman said, “What did you want to do it for?”
The boy said, “I didn’t aim to.”
She said, “You a lie!”
By that time two or three people passed, stopped, turned to look,
and some stood watching.
“If I turn you loose, will you run?” asked the woman.
“Yes’m,” said the boy.
“Then I won’t turn you loose,” said the woman. She did not release
him.
“I’m very sorry, lady, I’m sorry,” whispered the boy.
“Um-hum! And your face is dirty. I got a great mind to wash your face
for you. Ain’t you got nobody home to tell you to wash your face?”
“No’m,” said the boy.
“Then it will get washed this evening,” said the large woman starting
up the street, dragging the frightened boy behind her.
 10
He looked as if he were fourteen or fifteen, frail and willow-wild,
in tennis shoes and blue jeans.
The woman said, “You ought to be my son. I would teach you right
from wrong. Least I can do right now is to wash your face. Are you hungry?”
“No’m,” said the being dragged boy. “I just want you to turn me
loose.”
“Was I bothering you when I turned that corner?” asked the woman.
“No’m.”
“But you put yourself in contact with me,” said the woman. “If you
think that that contact is not going to last awhile, you got another thought
coming. When I get through with you, sir, you are going to remember Mrs.
Luella Bates Washington Jones.”

Sweat popped out on the boy’s face and he began to struggle. Mrs.
Jones stopped, jerked him around in front of her, put a half-nelson about his
neck, and continued to drag him up the street. When she got to her door,
she dragged the boy inside, down a hall, and into a large kitchenette
furnished room at the rear of the house. She switched on the light and left
the door open. The boy could hear other roomers laughing and talking in the
large house. Some of their doors were open, too, so he knew he and the
woman were not alone. The woman still had him by the neck in the middle
of her room.

She said, “What is your name?”

“Roger,” answered the boy.

“Then, Roger, you go to that sink and wash your face,” said the
woman, whereupon she turned him loose—at last. Roger looked at the
door—looked at the woman—looked at the door—and went to the sink.

Let the water run until it gets warm,” she said. “Here’s a clean towel.”

“You gonna take me to jail?” asked the boy, bending over the sink.

“Not with that face, I would not take you nowhere,” said the woman.
“Here I am trying to get home to cook me a bite to eat and you snatch my
pocketbook! Maybe, you ain’t been to your supper either, late as it be. Have
you?”
 11
“There’s nobody home at my house,” said the boy.

“Then we’ll eat,” said the woman, “I believe you’re hungry—or been
hungry—to try to snatch my pocketbook.”

“I wanted a pair of blue suede shoes,” said the boy.

“Well, you didn’t have to snatch my pocketbook to get some suede

shoes,” said Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones. “You could of asked me.”

“Ma’am?”

The water dripping from his face, the boy looked at her. There was a
long pause. A very long pause. After he had dried his face and not
knowing what else to do dried it again, the boy turned around, wondering
what next. The door was open. He could make a dash for it down the hall.
He could run, run, run, run, run!

The woman was sitting on the day-bed. After a while she said, “I were
young once and I wanted things I could not get.”

There was another long pause. The boy’s mouth opened. Then he
frowned, but not knowing he frowned.
The woman said, “Um-hum! You thought I was going to say but,
didn’t you? You thought I was going to say, but I didn’t snatch people’s
pocketbooks. Well, I wasn’t going to say that.” Pause. Silence. “I have done
things, too, which I would not tell you, son—neither tell God, if he didn’t
already know. So you set down while I fix us something to eat. You might run
that comb through your hair so you will look presentable.”
In another corner of the room behind a screen was a gas plate and
an icebox. Mrs. Jones got up and went behind the screen. The woman did
not watch the boy to see if he was going to run now, nor did she watch her
purse which she left behind her on the day-bed. But the boy took care to sit
on the far side of the room where he thought she could easily see him out
of the corner of her eye, if she wanted to. He did not trust the woman not to
trust him. And he did not want to be mistrusted now.
“Do you need somebody to go to the store,” asked the boy, “maybe
to get some milk or something?”
 12
“Don’t believe I do,” said the woman, “unless you just want
sweet milk yourself. I was going to make cocoa out of this canned milk I got
here.”
“That will be fine,” said the boy.
She heated some lima beans and ham she had in the icebox, made
the cocoa, and set the table. The woman did not ask the boy anything
about where he lived, or his folks, or anything else that would embarrass him.
Instead, as they ate, she told him about her job in a hotel beauty-shop that
stayed open late, what the work was like, and how all kinds of women came
in and out, blondes, red-heads, and Spanish. Then she cut him a half of her
ten-cent cake.
“Eat some more, son,” she said.
When they were finished eating she got up and said, “Now, here, take
this ten dollars and buy yourself some blue suede shoes. And next time, do
not make the mistake of latching onto my pocketbook nor nobody else’s—
because shoes come by devilish like that will burn your feet. I got to get my
rest now. But I wish you would behave yourself, son, from here on in.”
She led him down the hall to the front door and opened it.
“Good-night! Behave yourself, boy!” she said, looking out into the
street.
The boy wanted to say something else other than “Thank you,
Ma’am” to Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones, but he couldn’t do so as he
turned at the barren stoop and looked back at the large woman in the
door. He barely managed to say “Thank you” before she shut the door. And
he never saw her again.

Source: https://www.chino.k12.ca.us/cms/lib/CA01902308/Centricity/Domain/1689/Thank%20You%20%20Ma%20am.pdf

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

JAMES MERCER LANGSTON HUGHES

A famous poet, novelist, journalist and activist who is one of the

famous figure in the Harlem Renaissance, a period in which the African-
American literary, intellectual and artistic life flourished. He was hailed as
“Poet Laureate of the Negro Race”.
 13 Now, that you are done reading the story, let us
flex your memory on the details from the story that
you remember. Answer the activity that follows.

ACTIVITY 1: TELL-TALE Score: _______/5

Read carefully the questions below. Circle the letter of your answer.
1. What does Roger want to buy with the money he was trying to steal from Mrs.
Jones?

A. A bike C golden watch

B. blue suede shoes D. food

2. Where does Mrs. Jones take Roger after she catches him trying to steal her purse?

A. her house C. police station

B. nearest church D. Roger’s house

3. What happened at the end of the story?

A. Roger runs away without a word.

B. Roger offers to repay Mrs. Jones.

C. Mrs. Jones does not let Roger go and reports him to the police.

D. Mrs. Jones gives Roger money and sound advice before he leaves.

4. In “Thank You, Ma'am,” why does Roger sit on the far side of the room when Mrs.
Jones goes behind the screen?

A.He wants her to see that he is not taking anything from her purse.

B.He is scared that she is calling the police and wants to see what she is doing.

C.He wants to be where she cannot see him so that he can take money from
her purse.

D.He does not want to smell the food she is cooking because it will make his
stomach growl.

5. How does Roger show that he can be trusted?

A. He does not take anything from Mrs. Jones.

B. He does not run away when they reached Mrs. Jones’ house.

C. He is honest when he tells Mrs. Jones the reason why he tried to steal her
purse.

D. All of the choices

 14
To show that you understand the story,
identify its elements by completing the
chart below.

ACTIVITY 2: STORY WEB Score: _______/10

“THANK YOU,
MA’AM”

Conflict Plot
Setting Characters
(What problem is (Write 3
faced by the main important
character?) events in the
story?)

What type of
conflict?

Man vs.
Theme:
_____________
______________________________
______________________________
______________________________
______________________________
______________________________
______________________________
 Inferring is making a conclusion
based from facts and proofs. In
15
understanding a literary piece, a reader
must have this skill.

ACTIVITY 3: INFER-NESS Score: _______/5

Read the statements below and choose the correct answer. Write only the letter that
corresponds to your answer on the space before the number.
_____ 1. What can you infer based on the short dialogue below?

Mrs. Jones: Um-hum! And your face is dirty. I got a great mind to wash your
face for you. Ain’t you got nobody home to tell you to wash
your face?
Roger: No’m.

A. He is neglected at home. C. He runs away from home.

B. He is an orphan boy. D. He is mentally ill.
_____ 2. How will you describe Mrs. Jones based on given line below?
“But you put yourself in contact with me,” said the woman. “If you think that that
contact is not going to last awhile, you got another thought coming. When I get
through with you, sir, you are going to remember Mrs. Luella Bates Washington
Jones.”
A. She is bossy. C. She is motherly.

B. She is frightened. D. She is longing for a son.

_____ 3. How does Mrs. Jones show her trust to Roger?
A.She let makes him clean himself. C. She leaves her purse near him.
B.She eats with him during dinner. D. She tells him her full name.
_____ 4. At the end of the story, Roger hardly says his “thank you” to Mrs.
Jones. This shows that ___________________.
A. Roger is too shy to Mrs. Jones.
B. Roger is too happy that he forgets to say “thank you”.
C.Roger is too overwhelmed with Mrs. Jones’ kindness towards him.
D. Roger is too excited to buy the shoes he wanted and hurriedly leaves
after he receives the money given by Mrs. Jones.
_____ 5. Which idea does the theme of “Thank You, Ma’am” deal with?
A.The value of hard work C. The value of shoes
B. The value of money D. The value of kindness
16 ASSESSMENT
Test A.
Let us revisit your responses to the Anticipation Guide given before reading the
story “Thank You, Ma’am”. Do you still hold the same beliefs? Check the
appropriate column and support your responses with lines/situation from the story
and from your own experiences.

Explanation of your
Agree Disagree Statements
response
Doing bad things will be eventually
rewarded.

Kindness can correct bad

behavior.

To be kind is to give one’s trust.

Children who are neglected at

home are typically bad and
cannot be trusted.
One’s hardship is not an excuse to
do bad things.
Test B.
Tell what element of the story is shown by the given lines.

1. She was a large woman with a large purse that had everything in it but
hammer and nails.
A. Character B. Conflict C. Setting D. Plot

2. She was walking alone, when a boy ran up behind her and tried to snatch
her purse. The strap broke with the single tug the boy gave it from behind.
But the boy’s weight and the weight of the purse combined caused him
to lose his balance so, instead of taking off full blast as he had hoped, the
boy fell on his back on the sidewalk, and his legs flew up. the large
woman simply turned around and kicked him right square in his
blue-jeaned sitter. Then she reached down, picked the boy up by his shirt
front, and shook him until his teeth rattled.
A. Character B. Conflict C. Setting D. Theme
16 ASSESSMENT

3. It was about eleven o’clock at night…

A. Conflict B. Plot C. Setting D. Theme
4. The boy wanted to say something else other than “Thank you, Ma’am” to
Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones, but he couldn’t do so as he turned at
the barren stoop and looked back at the large woman in the door. He
barely managed to say “Thank you” before she shut the door. And he
never saw her again.
A. climax B. exposition C. resolution D. rising action

5. In another corner of the room behind a screen was a gas plate and an
icebox. Mrs. Jones got up and went behind the screen. The woman did
not watch the boy to see if he was going to run now, nor did she watch
her purse which she left behind her on the day-bed. But the boy took care
to sit on the far side of the room where he thought she could easily see
him out of the corner of her eye, if she wanted to. He did not trust the
woman not to trust him. And he did not want to be mistrusted now.
A. resolution B. falling action C. exposition D. climax

ENRICHMENT ACTIVITY: My Takeaway

Make a short reflection on the given questions:

Have you ever shown kindness to someone or had been the re-
ceiver of someone's kindness?
What was the situation about?
How did you feel?
Write about that experience in 5 or more sentences.
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
17 WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED?

In analyzing a story, we should identify its five basic elements:

setting, characters, conflict, plot and theme. Inferencing is helpful in
getting the theme of a particular story. This is done through taking
note the characters’ actions and reactions.

Langston Hughes’ story contains values which are undeniably

needed to work well with others specially in these volatile, uncertain,
complex and ambiguous (VUCA) world. Kindness and trust are
implicitly shown in the story.

Furthermore, the story makes us realize that an act of kindness is

an act of trust.

Lastly, Hughes believes that simple acts of kindness can

change a person’s view on himself/herself that may lead to the
transformation of becoming a better version of himself/herself.

Congratulations! You have successfully accomplished

all the tasks.

SUMMARY OF SCORES

Tell-Tale __________/5
Story Web __________/10
Infer-ness __________/5
Assessment __________/10

TOTAL: __________/30
 Harlem, which is internationally known as the Black Mecca, is a
18
district in Manhattan, New York, USA. Though it is located in a highly
White-dominated city, the economic growth brought by foreign migrants during
the 1920’s attracted the African-Americans to settle in the said district. Moreover,
Harlem became the centerstage of the Civil Rights Movement. It witnessed the
different socio-political and economic reform activities.

Despite of the dark part of the history of the African-Americans, Harlem had
reborn. Its cultural and literary flourished bringing the era of Harlem Renaissance
which celebrates the economic development, cultural preservation and racial
identity of these people.

This Self-Learning Kit (SLK) is entitled HARLEM to appreciate the culture of the
African-Americans, particularly their history and literature.

REFERENCES

eNotes.com. Thank You, M'am - Summary Comprehensive Guide to Short Stories,

Critical Edition Ed. Charles E. May. eNotes.com, Inc. 2004 eNotes.com.
accessed July 9, 2020 <http://www.enotes.com/topics/thank-you-
mam#summary-the-story>

radesFixer. An Analysis Of “Thank You Ma’am”, a Simple Story about Second

Chances and How It Should Be given as Written by Langston Hughes. Re
trieved from https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/an-analysis-of-
thank-you-maam-a-simple-story-about-second-chances-and-how-it-should-
be-given-as-written-by-langston-hughes/

Harlem Heritage Tours. “History of Harlem”.HarlemHeritageTours.com. Harlem,

which is internationally known as the Black Mecca, is a district in
Manhattan, New York. https://harlemheritage.com/history-of-harlem/
MasterClass

TheFamousPeople.com. “Langston Hughes Biography.” TheFamousPeople.com.

https://www. thefamouspeople.com/profiles/langston-hughes-187.php

Somers, Jeffrey. Biography of Langston Hughes, Poet, Key Figure in Harlem

Renaissance. ThoughtCo. Accessed July 6, 2020 .https://
www.thoughtco.com/biography-of-langston-hughes-4779849
 SELF-LEARNING KIT
It is hoped that you have understood and mastered the competencies
covered in the Self-Learning Kit. The skills you have learned will be of great help
as you take part in the challenging demands of society.
The enriching experiences you have gained through this learning material
enable you to know more about yourself, especially your capabilities. Hence,
you are ready to extend your horizons.
Learning the essential competencies in English 9 is to prepare you to
become globally competitive in the future. As you meet the complex demands
of the global world, you stand confident because of the wide range of
competencies you have mastered which made you more expressive of your
thoughts and sideas.
Bringing up rear, as productive learners, you are equipped with the 21st
century skills which you need to be ready for tomorrow’s world.

LearningResourceManagementandDevelopmentCenter (LRMDC)
Curriculum Implementation Division
Division of Mandaue city
 Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
Region VII, Central Visayas
DIVISION OF MANDAUE CITY
Jose L. Briones St.,Mandaue City

NIMFA D. BONGO, Ed.D., CESO V

Schools Division Superintendent

ESTELA B. SUSVILLA, Ph.D., CESO VI

Assistant Schools Division Superintendent

JAIME P. RUELAN, Ed.D.

OIC-Chief Curriculum Implementation Division

ISMAELITA N. DESABILLE, Ph.D.

Education Program Supervisor-LRMDS

MERCEDITA M. DEMORAL, Ed.D.

Education Program Supervisor-English

MIRIAM L. CONCEPCION
Writer/Illustrator/Layout Artist