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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How does Paul describe the roadway on his street in Part 1?
(a) Crooked.
(b) Graveled.
(c) Smooth.
(d) Cobbled.

2. Why is the birdhouse empty?
(a) It is too warm for the birds.
(b) It is the wrong time of year for wrens.
(c) It is the wrong time of year for robins.
(d) It is too small for the birds.

3. What happens to the snow while Paul's secret becomes more apparent?
(a) It gets brighter.
(b) It gets heavier.
(c) It gets lighter.
(d) It gets darker.

4. What kind of boots does the postman have?
(a) Small.
(b) Large.
(c) Light.
(d) Heavy.

5. What is the most distressing feature of Paul's secret?
(a) The inability to respond to his mother and father.
(b) The conflict between him and his mother and father.
(c) The embarrassment of his mother and father.
(d) The inability to hear his mother and father.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is Paul deliberately delaying on the way home from school?

2. How does Paul now view the bare roofs?

3. What does Paul imagine the snow on the street to be?

4. How does Paul describe his street in Part 2 of the story?

5. In Part 1, what is Miss Buell talking about as Paul remembers his secret?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the snow do for the first time in Part 3, and what does this represent?

2. What is the advertisement for in the newspaper Paul finds in the gutter?

3. What does Paul think happened when the dog walked through the wet cement?

4. What does Paul surprisingly say at the end of his examination, and why does it cause everyone to become silent?

5. How does Paul view the snow at the beginning of Part 4?

6. Where is the snow when Paul first sees it during the examination?

7. How does Paul feel about his parents in Part 1 in relation to his secret?

8. How does Paul describe his walk home in Part 2, and why?

9. What does Paul's mother symbolize at the end of the story?

10. What is the startling discovery Paul makes at the end of his walk home?

(see the answer keys)

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