Literature teacher’s notes
One Day by David Nicholls
  Before reading
1 Ask students to read About the story. Then ask them
to think about the two questions. Discuss answers as a
class.
Possible answers
It was the night of their graduation so they had officially
finished university. University is perhaps the most
important time in your education because you can then
decide what you want to do with the rest of your life.
2 Ask students to read the information in About the
author. Ask students if any of them have heard of David
Nicholls, or if they have read any of his books. Ask
students to give reasons why some of his books have
been such successful films.
Possible answers
His experience as both an actor and screenwriter will
2 Now ask students to focus on the characters of Emma
most likely have influenced the way he writes his novels
and help them translate into films (e.g. lots of dialogues).
Also, the fact that he is a contemporary writer means
that his stories probably appeal to contemporary cinema
audiences.
3 Focus the students on the title of the book, One
Day. Ask them to work in pairs and to think about the
different meanings of the phrase, and an example
sentence for each meaning. If they need help, write the
example sentences in Possible answers below on the
board, and ask them to think about the meaning of the
words one day in each sentence.
Possible answers
One day, I will become rich and famous. (= eventually)
You have one day to study for the test. (= a single day)
On this one day, there is a full moon. (= a single day of
many)
One day, you’re going to be sorry. (= at some unknown
point in the future)
  While reading
1 Ask students to read the text and then to answer the
questions using their own words. Refer them to the
glossary for help with words they may not know.
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B1+ Units
Possible answers
1 It could be curiosity, or that she wants to get to know
him better, or because graduation is an important day
and she is looking ahead to the rest of her life.
2 Because she thinks that going abroad is typical for
people of his class/social status who are just finishing
university.
3 Because she thinks that he is making fun of her accent
and is like other ‘posh’ boys who have done the same,
but also maybe because he did not understand (or
pretended not to understand) the true meaning of her
question, which was asking about his plans for his life,
not just the next few days/months.
4 Because he realised how shallow his first answer would
sound. He wanted to answer with something more
meaningful, and maybe show Emma that he is not the
‘predictable’ posh boy she seems to think he is.
and Dexter and how they are different. They should
think about their differences in the three areas given,
using the questions in brackets for the final point to
help them find supporting evidence in the text.
Possible answers
■ Family background and social class: Emma: from the
north of England, traditionally industrial, compared
to the more prosperous south (no longer strictly true,
but associations remain). No information about her
background, but she thinks Dexter is upper class
(‘posh’, ‘You’ve got too much money…’), suggesting
she does not consider herself to be in the same social
class. Dexter: from the south; privileged background;
has money to travel (‘I’ll go to France … maybe I’ll
go to China.’); no need to get a job as soon as he
graduates.
■ Plans and dreams for the future: Emma: thinks her
plans have to be meaningful (‘The important thing in
life is to make a difference’); wants to do something
that will change the world; idealistic. The fact she asks
the question at all shows how important she thinks this
is. Dexter: does not take Emma’s question seriously at
first (‘I want to be rich and famous’); perhaps has not
thought about his long-term plans, possibly because,
as Emma suspects, if he is from a wealthy family. His
second answer suggests he does not want to think
about the future (‘I don’t ever want to be different from
this’): he’s comfortable staying as he is.
■ Personalities: Emma: quite serious in her ideas but
does not intend to appear as such (‘She was silent
for a moment, then she laughed at herself.’); quite
annoyed when Dexter copies her accent. Dexter:
seems more carefree and light-hearted; corrects his
initial superficial thoughts (‘But then he thought a bit
more and spoke seriously.’).
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 Literature teacher’s notes
3 Tell students that there are elements of sarcasm and
humour in the dialogue between the two characters.
Ask students to look back and to identify some
examples.
Possible answers
‘Ah - you mean we have to change the world’ the boy
replied.
You’re predictable too. You’ve got too much money,
that’s your problem Dexter. What you really mean is that
you’re running away from life’.
‘I think you’re too broad-minded now’,
The characters probably do like each other. The
joking between them shows this, but also Emma is
disappointed when Dexter mimics her accent and she
thinks he is like other boys she has met. Dexter does
not want to give an answer to Emma’s question that she
might think is superficial or trite, so he tries to respond
with a more meaningful and serious answer.
4 Ask the students to think more about the style of writing
used in the extract. They discuss the questions in pairs
before discussing as a class.
Possible answers
1 The extract is written in the third person so the author
can give an objective description of both characters.
2 The author refers to them as ‘the girl’ and ‘the boy’
to highlight the fact that this is their first meeting and
they do not know each other. It also means that we do
not feel we know the characters yet. It suggests that
we will learn more about them later in the novel.
3 Perhaps so that the full focus is on the meeting
between the two and the introduction of their
characters. It also keeps the reader at a distance from
the text because we feel we are observing the scene,
rather than being involved in it.
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B1+ Units
  After reading
1 Read the statement aloud to the class. In pairs, students
discuss whether they agree with the statement and
then, working individually, complete it for themselves.
They compare their statement with their partner. Invite
volunteers to read their statements to the whole class.
2 Students work in small groups and discuss the three
questions. Discuss their ideas as a class.
3 Ask students to read the question and then work alone
to think about where Dexter and Emma will be on
the same date the next year. Ask them to make notes
and then to use their notes to write a short passage
describing what happens on that day. Remind them
to use the same style of writing as the extract (third
person). After the students have finished, you may wish
to tell them the significance of the date in the book:
each chapter is set on 15th July of each year, for twenty
years following their graduation. They do not always
meet, but each chapter reconnects their lives in some
way.
  CULTURAL INFORMATION
The structure of One Day is interesting, because each
chapter is set on the same date – 15th July – over a
twenty year period. The events of each chapter fit into
a single day. One Day is therefore a variation on the
circadian novel, where the action of the entire book fits
into a single day. By basing the narrative structure around
dates – and the same date every year – the author does
not need to worry about which important events in the
characters’ lives to include; only those that occur on
those dates are included. He uses a traditional third
person viewpoint, too – this allows us to get to know
each character objectively, without bias from the other.
It also allows the author to switch between the different
characters’ viewpoints easily.
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