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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does Dave save himself from being forced to lie across the stove?

2. When Dave is called back to the office from his classroom in Chapter 1, The Rescue, who is there to see him?

3. What are Dave and his brothers allowed to do on Christmas Eve in Chapter 2, Good Times?

4. What do Dave and his family like to do in the springtime in Chapter 2, Good Times?

5. What does Dave say when people at school ask him the cause of his bruises?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the Happy Hour that Dave's parents celebrate, as outlined in Chapter 3, Bad Boy.

2. Describe Mother's reaction when the principal calls her about Dave's condition in Chapter 4, The Fight for Food.

3. Describe the breakfasts Dave usually receives from his mother.

4. Explain what type of punishment Dave's mother invents for him when she doesn't think the corner treatment is effective anymore.

5. Describe the clothes Dave wears to school every day in Chapter 1, The Rescue.

6. Explain what the school requires Dave to do before school every day in Chapter 1, The Rescue.

7. What does Dave's mother tell the doctor when she dislocates his shoulder?

8. Describe Dave's family life before the abuse starts.

9. Describe the types of inquiries Miss Moss starts to ask Dave in Chapter 4, The Fight for Food.

10. Many times Dave's mother sends him to search the house for something she has lost. What does she do to him if he forgets what he is looking for?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Summarize the events in the book that lead Dave to calling his mother's house, 'The Madhouse'. Give several examples from the book and describe how these events are considered insane by Dave.

Essay Topic 2

Analyze Dave's coming of age throughout the story.

- What fears and emotions does he experience as he experiences more and more abuse from his mother?

- How do his attitudes change as he develops from a young boy into an adult?

- Cite examples of the changes Dave goes through from the good times in the story through his abuse and his rescue.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss how Dave's mother changes from the beginning of the book to the end.

- How do her attitudes toward her family and Dave in particular change?

- How does her attitude toward Dave's father change?

- What are the differences in her attitude toward the way she takes care of her family, cooking, cleaning, planning vacations, and nurturing change through the course of the book?

(see the answer keys)

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