One Word, Six Letters

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In One Word, Six Letters, Dayton, who shouts a homophobic slur during a school assembly with a visiting poet, has to write a letter of apology during his in-school suspension. Because readers never see the complete letter, invite students to imagine what Dayton wrote at that point in the story. Then, have them write a second letter that Dayton might send to the poet one year later. As students share their letters with each other in small groups, have them discuss how Dayton’s understanding of accountability, empathy, and the impact of his actions changed over the course of the novel.

Questions for Discussion or Reflective Writing

• Dayton spends much of the novel focused on how shouting the six-letter slur has changed the way people see him. Why does he believe that people should not cut him out of their lives or treat him “like a danger” because of it? How does his perspective shift as he begins to understand Farshid’s experience of hearing that word shouted?
• We get to see the perspectives of both Dayton and Farshid. How do you think the story would have been different if we had only seen Farshid’s perspective? Or only Dayton’s? What did having both points of view bring to the story and to your understanding of the characters and the choices they made?
• What draws Dayton to Brody? After the incident, Dayton considers Brody his best friend and often excuses Brody’s crass and crude behavior. Why does Dayton choose to report Reggie and Brody after Farshid’s locker is defaced? What does that choice cost him? How does Dayton feel about making that choice?
• As Dayton eventually comes to understand, everyone has a right to share their identities on their own terms. What is Farshid grappling with in terms of his identity and how to present himself to the world? How do you think his other identities or experiences impacted how Farshid navigated his sexual identity?
• Why do you think a group like Rainbow Coalition is important in a school community? What does it mean to be an ally? What did you learn from this book about allyship, and what questions do you still have?
• At the end of the novel, Farshid is in a position where he could shape Dayton’s future with one word. Why do you think Khorram ends the story with Farshid holding that power? What does the book’s closing question ask you to consider about the weight of words and the choices we make in how to use them?

Related Resources

One Word, Six Letters excerpt from Macmillan

Author Interview: One Word, Six Letters by Adib Khorram from Bookcrushin’