The Dark Is Rising is a richly atmospheric fantasy that blends myth, folklore, and suspense into a powerful coming‑of‑age quest. As winter deepens and strange forces awaken, readers follow Will Stanton on a journey that challenges courage, destiny, and the timeless battle between Light and Dark.
Reading Level
Lexile 920L
Interest Level
Grades 6-8
Length
232 pages
Award
Newbery Honor
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⭐ About the Book: The Dark Is Rising
The Dark Is Rising by Susan Cooper is a masterful contemporary fantasy and a standout title on the Common Core Grades 6–8 Exemplar List. On his eleventh birthday, Will Stanton discovers he is one of the Old Ones, ancient beings tasked with protecting the world from the rising forces of the Dark. As the youngest and last of the Old Ones, Will must learn to use his powers quickly and wisely.
His mission is urgent: Will must find and unite the Six Signs, powerful talismans that together form a circle capable of holding back the Dark. As winter deepens and supernatural forces close in, Will faces riddles, visions, betrayals, and battles that test his courage and destiny. Cooper’s writing blends myth, folklore, and atmospheric tension into a story that feels both timeless and haunting.
This Newbery Honor novel is an excellent choice for teaching symbolism, archetypes, mythological structure, and the classic struggle between good and evil. Students are drawn to Will’s journey and the richly imagined world Cooper creates.
⭐ Book Details
| Publication Date | December 21, 2001 |
| Reading Level | Lexile 920L • Guided Reading Level X |
| Interest Level | Grades 6–8 |
| Awards | Newbery Honor • Two Carnegie Honor Awards |
| Length | 232 pages |
| Estimated Word Count (Series) | Approx. 331,840 words |
| Estimated Reading Time (Series) | About 22 hours and 7 minutes |
| Audiobook Length | 8 hours and 42 minutes |
| Genre | Fantasy (Book #2 in The Dark Is Rising Sequence) |
| Setting | England |
| Themes | Good vs. Evil, Language and Communication, Fate vs. Free Will, Power, Family |
| Point of View | Third-person omniscient |
| Memorable Quote | “The snow lay thin and apologetic over the world… All the broad sky was grey, full of more snow that refused to fall. There was no colour anywhere.” |
| First Line | “‘Too many!’ James shouted, and slammed the door behind him. ‘What?’ said Will.” |
The Dark is Rising Activities
Book Unit Samples
You will find the following in this novel study sample:
- Vocabulary Practice for Chapters 1-2
- Comprehension Questions for Chapters 1-2
- Constructed Response Question – Inference – The Neighbors
Teaching Idea #1 – Character Trait Bags
After reading the first few chapters of The Dark is Rising, students decorated bags with characters and symbols from the story. Attaching pieces of yarn, textured fabric, and the like gave the drawings a 3D effect. On the reverse side of the bag, students made predictions about why the symbols and objects may be important in the story. As the students read, they brought in objects to fill the bag. At the end of the novel, the actual objects were compared to the predictions that were written on the back of the bags.
Teaching Idea #2 – Multiple Meaning Words Bulletin Board
In Lesson 6 of The Dark is Rising Book Unit, students studied multi-meaning words. One activity during this lesson is to purposefully misconstrue a multiple-meaning word to make a puzzle for others to solve.
See the bulletin board below with some of the students’ puzzles.
Teaching Idea #3 – Reading Makes You Bright
A second bulletin board idea came from Lesson 8 of the novel study on affixes.
Instructions for Students: Stack the four pieces of paper together. Fold them in half vertically. Turn the folded paper so that the fold is at the top like a tent. Staple along the folded edge. Cut two slits beginning at the bottom and heading toward the top of your book to divide the book into three equal sections. Be careful not to cut the whole distance so your book will stay intact. You should have three flaps. You will write prefixes on the first flap, base words in the middle flap, and suffixes on the last flap. Try to think of base words that will give you the most real words possible with the prefixes and suffixes you have chosen.
After cutting out your ornament, glue your flipbook onto your Christmas ornament. Flip through your book trying to find real words. Write each real word you find on your ornament.
Teaching Idea #4 – Character Trait Bags
Teaching Idea #5 – Artwork
Have students describe the scenes that are taking place in each drawing.
Teaching Idea #6 – Movie
Have students watch the movie version and compare it to the book. This free printable will help students compare and contrast.
See the product that inspired this post.
The Dark is Rising Novel Study includes vocabulary practice, comprehension questions, constructed response writing, and skill practice.
