Hands-on learning is a form of education in which children learn something by doing it themselves. Instead of the teacher lecturing students on a certain topic or taking tedious notes, children engage with the topic and try to understand it themselves by using their hands or by doing it. direct experience. The hands-on learning has proven to be very beneficial for the students. In “The Lesson,” the author uses the literary device of characterization, through the character of Sylvia, to further develop the central idea that hands-on learning is beneficial to students. Throughout the story it shows how her character develops and she becomes more mature as she learns the lesson that Miss Moore is trying to teach her. Miss Moore teaches this lesson through hands-on learning by taking the children to FAO Schwartz to experience inequality firsthand. By the end of the story, readers can see how Miss Moore opened her mind to the inequalities of life and how Sylvia's character changed, proving that hands-on learning is beneficial. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned"? Get an original essay The author develops this central idea when Miss Moore takes the children to FAO Schwartz, a toy store, to teach them a lesson. There, Sylvia and the other children see other families able to buy sailboats for $1,000 when, on the other hand, they cannot afford anything in the store and even have difficulty providing for the necessities of the family. life. In the store, they see a $1,000 sailboat that rich people can afford, whereas if they wanted a sailboat, they "would buy a sailboat for a quarter at Pop's, a tube of glue for a dime, and a ball of string for eight cents.” ". Sylvia sees what life is like outside their small, poor neighborhood and how rich people live. She is able to compare her life with that of others, as shown in the previous quote. Miss Moore takes the children into town so they can experience the outside world and see it for themselves, learning for themselves. The use of this literary device, characterization, helps develop the central idea of ​​the story because it shows how Sylvia learns/understands this lesson. This shows how she is becoming more mature and aware of the world around her and it opens her mind to the world outside her neighborhood. When Sylvia first sees how rich people live, she feels a sense of shame for living in poverty and not being able to afford what the rich can afford so easily. She says: “But I feel funny, ashamed. But what should I be ashamed of? I have as much right to enter as anyone. Initially, Sylvia refuses to acknowledge her inferior position in society and the fact that she is a victim of poverty. She is furious at how rich people live and resists change. Sylvia is satisfied with her life and considers herself and the other children to be "the only good ones" in the neighborhood. Miss Moore takes the children to the toy store so Sylvia can experience and see for herself how other people live. She tries to teach children the lesson of the inequality that exists in the world and if they want to be more than their parents in life, they must work hard and strive to educate themselves. Miss Moore wants Sylvia to view her low social status as a bad thing, something she should desire to get out of and Sylvia "doesn't present it." Sylvia sees nothing wrong with the way.