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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. The author decides to make maple syrup with whom?

2. The author notes the changing seasons and decides his favorite season is ____________.

3. The author drives his son back to _____________ in "April 28."

4. In "December 21," the author discovers that a local squirrel has stashed __________ all along the path.

5. In this section, whom does the farmer meet with at the cabin?

Short Essay Questions

1. How important are these fishing expeditions for the author? Why?

2. What takes place in "December 29 Winter Ecology?" Why might the author do this?

3. What takes place in "April 4 Returns"? Describe the author's attitude at this time.

4. How do Stuart's classmates respond to his father? How important might their reactions be to how he perceives his father? Why?

5. How does the author spend Christmas? How does he feel about this? How does this experience compare to his other experiences throughout this book?

6. What does the author learn from this dissection? How is this important to him?

7. How does the author feel about celebrating Christmas? Why might he feel this way?

8. How does the author feel about the mice and flies? Why? How does this compare to how he feels about other animals?

9. How does the book come to an end? After a year of living in the woods, how does the author feel about his life there? Why?

10. What does the author say in "Moss Watch"? Why might he study moss?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

At several times throughout the book the author describes and discusses the history of the land.

Part 1) Describe this history. Why does the author tell his readers about the history of the people of Maine, as well as the geological history of the area? Is this important information for the story? Why or why not? How is this information connected to other aspects of the story?

Part 2) What else does the author study during his time in the Maine woods? Why does he study this? How is this study, as a whole, an important part of the author's time in the Maine woods?

Part 3) How is studying a part of your everyday life? How does this affect you? How can you benefit from studying? How can people, in general, benefit from studying?

Essay Topic 2

The author goes for many runs.

Part 1) Describe these runs. Why does the author choose to go on these runs? Why are they important to him? What do they reveal about him?

Part 2) How are his runs tied to other events in this book? What else is important to the author while he is living in the cabin? Why?

Part 3) What activities do you participate in? Why? What do they reveal about you? How are they important to you and your life?

Essay Topic 3

Much of the activities in the woods have to do with survival.

Part 1) Describe the activities of the author and other creatures. How are they necessary to survival? What parallels in behavior can be seen between the author and the wild animals? Why?

Part 2) What activities do you do that are related to survival? Are those activities based on instinct or on the way in which you were raised?

Part 3) How is survival a theme in this book? What does the author say about this theme? Why does he say this? What does this reveal about him?

(see the answer keys)

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