1. Count That
Day Lost
by
George Eliot

2. PRE-READING
1. Look at the pictures. Which do you think show a “good day”?
Explain why.
2. Suggest other activities that you could do on a “good day”.
1
54
2 3
6

3. VOCABULARY INTRODUCTION
English Hebrew English Hebrew
set of sun ‫השמש‬ ‫שקיעת‬ livelong day ‫היום‬ ‫של‬ ‫אורכו‬ ‫כל‬
to count ‫לספור‬,‫למנות‬,‫להחשיב‬ to cheer ‫לעודד‬
acts ‫פעולות‬ yea ‫כן‬
self-denying deed ‫מצדך‬ ‫הקרבה‬ ‫שדורש‬ ‫מעשה‬ nay ‫לא‬
to ease ‫להקל‬ to trace ‫לאתר‬
glance ‫חטוף‬ ‫מבט‬ soul ‫נשמה‬,‫נפש‬,‫אדם‬
kind ‫לב‬ ‫טוב‬,‫אדיב‬ to cost ‫לעלות‬
sunshine ‫השמש‬ ‫אור‬ worse than ‫מ‬ ‫גרוע‬
well spent ‫היטב‬ ‫שנוצל‬ lost ‫אבוד‬

6. 1. Match the words in column A with their meanings in column B.
A B
___1. trace a. act
___2. count b. give relief
___3. ease c. a quick look
___4. glance d. find
___5. cheer e. encourage
___6. deed f. add together to find the total number
d
f
b
c
e
a

7. 2. Complete a wordsearch.
count
deed
self-denying
ease
glance
trace
cheer
count
worse

8. BASIC UNDERSANDING
1. Match the lines from the poem in column A with their meanings in column B
A B
___a. One glance most kind 1.‫ביותר‬ ‫הקטן‬ ‫ואילו‬ ‫מעשה‬ ‫שום‬
___b. If, through it all 2.‫אדיב‬ ‫מאד‬ ‫חטוף‬ ‫אחד‬ ‫מבט‬
__c. No act most small 3.‫אם‬ ‫אבל‬,‫היום‬ ‫של‬ ‫ארכו‬ ‫לכל‬
___d. And, counting, find 4.‫ששמע‬ ‫מי‬ ‫של‬ ‫ליבו‬ ‫על‬ ‫שהקלה‬
___e. Then you may count that day well spent 5.‫מאבוד‬ ‫יותר‬ ‫כגרוע‬ ‫היום‬ ‫את‬ ‫תחשיב‬ ‫אז‬
___f. But if, through all the livelong day 6.‫כולו‬ ‫לאורכו‬ ‫אם‬
___g. That eased the heart of him who heard 7.‫הספירה‬ ‫ובעת‬,‫מוצא‬
___h. Then, count that day as worse than lost 8.‫היטב‬ ‫שנוצל‬ ‫כיום‬ ‫זה‬ ‫יום‬ ‫להחשיב‬ ‫תוכל‬ ‫אז‬
2
6
1
7
8
3
4
5

9. Stanza-‫בשיר‬ ‫בית‬
A group of lines which form a unit in a poem.
2. How many stanzas are there in the poem “Count That Day Lost”?__________

10. 3. Read the first stanza (lines 1-8) and answer the following questions:

11. a. Who is the speaker talking to?
CIRCLE THE CORRECT ANSWER
i) The reader.
ii) People who help others.
iii) People who count their acts.
b. What time of day is mentioned in the first stanza?
i) the afternoon
ii) the early evening
iii) night
c. What should you do at sunset?
d. The poet mentions three things that make a day well
spent. Name TWO of them.
You should count the acts that you have done.
one self-denying deed/one word that eased the heart of him who heard/one glance most kind

12. e. CIRCLE THE CORRECT ANSWER
The example of a “self-denying deed” is when….
i) a person visits a sick friend instead of going to a show.
ii) a person gives old clothes he doesn’t need to a homeless person.
iii) a person studies for hours for an important test.
f. Copy the words that mean “made someone feel better.”
g. Write in Hebrew the meaning of the word “count”
line 2:___________________________line 8:_____________________________‫לספור‬ ‫להחשיב‬
that eased the heart of him who heard

13. h. CIRCE THE CORRECT ANSWER.
You may think that a day is well spent if
you have….
i) smiled with happiness
ii) done one good deed
iii) enjoyed the sunshine

14. Read the second stanza (lines 9-16) and answer the questions that follow:

15. a. CIRCLE THE CORRECT ANSWER
At the end of the day, you may discover that you have…
i) had a very long, tiring day.
ii) done bad things during the day.
iii) done nothing for any other person.
b. Give ONE reason why a day is worse than lost.
c. COMPLETE THE SENTENCES
i) You can cheer someone by saying___________________________________
ii) A day is worse than lost when you can’t trace one act that_______________________
you’ve cheered no heart/you’ve nothing done(that you can trace…
yes or no/one word
brought the sunshine to
one face/helped some soul.

16. d. CIRCLE THE CORRECT ANSWER
“That helped some soul and nothing cost” means that….
i) you didn’t have to make a special effort to help someone
ii) you didn’t have to pay a lot of money to help someone
iii) helping someone was not worth the money

17. 5. Tick () True or False
True False
a. A day well spent is a day in which you don’t help others.
b. At the end of the day, we should count the things that
we have done during the day.
c. If you didn’t make anyone happy, your day is worse
than lost.
d. You should do good things and bad things every day.

18. ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
1. What is the message in the poem?
• If you want to have a meaningful life, help others.
• The message is to do good deeds for others and not
to waste your days.
• Good deeds are important and not difficult to do.
• Good deeds give your life meaning.
• Make your life worthwhile.

19. EXPLAINING PATTERNS
Look at the following series of numbers: 1,3,6,10,15, ______
What should the next numbers be? Why?
What should the next shape be? Why?

21. RHYMES
Write the words from the Word Bank that rhyme with each of the
words in the table below.
third fun grey run call mind bird space
pay blind heard base none
sun find day word all face

22. Find as many rhymes as you can in the poem. Highlight the rhyming words.
Stanza I Stanza II
Now write the numbers of the lines that rhyme

23. Rhyme Scheme-‫חריזה‬ ‫תבנית‬
Another way to show the rhyming pattern in the poem is to use a letter for each new sound at
the end of the line.
What is the rhyme scheme in the poem?
______________________________________________________________________
a a b c c b d d

24. A simile is a comparison in which one thing is described
as being similar to another.
A simile is usually introduced by like or as.
Her dress is as white as snow.
Find a simile in the poem.

25. HOTS: CAUSE AND EFFECT
Look at the picture. What happened? What may be the reason for this to happen?

26. Cause and Effect
An action that makes something else happen is called a cause (this is the
reason) and the result of the action is called an effect.
Cause
Dan asked me a question
The box is too heavy
It became cold
My cell phone got wet
Effect
I can’t lift it.
it stopped working.
I gave him an answer.
the birds flew to warmer
countries.
so

27. According to the first stanza (lines 1-8) what are the reasons for a day well spent?
Complete the following graphic organizer. Use the phrases below.
a day well spent
made no one happy  a kind word that made someone feel
better a caring look  didn’t help any person  doing an
unselfish (‫אנוכי‬ ‫)לא‬ act didn’t make anyone smile

28. What makes a day worse than lost?
If you ____________________________________________,then______
_________________________________________________________________.
 According to Eliot, is it very hard to help another person? Explain your answer by
giving examples from the text.
Thinking Skill I chose:_____________Inferring
Although the answer is not written specifically in the text, I believe
that Eliot tells the reader in the second stanza that it is not hard to
help another person. I assume this is the answer because Eliot
describes actions that require little effort such as “ act most small”,
or saying to another person simply yes or no (“yeh or nay”)

29. BRIDGING TEXT AND CONTEXT
Read the following quote and answer the question that follows.
“No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.
Aesop
Make a connection between the quote and the poem.
Aesop tells us that every act of kindness is important and is not wasted even if
it is very small. we can find the same idea in Eliot’s poem. The poet tells us that
if we want our day be well spent, then we should do at least one good act, and
even if it is only a word or a glance it still counts because it made someone else
fell good.
The poem Count That Day Lost expresses the same idea that is in the quote: if
you do even one act of kindness, “an act most small”, then your day is well
spent. An act of kindness can cheer another person, it can ease a person’s heart
and it can give meaning to our lives, so it is never wasted.

30. POST-READING
Make up a schedule for yourself of a day you think George Eliot would consider
worthwhile.