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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. What was the music teacher's Halloween project with Mrs. Zajac's students?

2. What were the two things the city of Holyoke was known for?

3. What kind of car did Mrs. Zajac drive?

4. While Pam was teaching the class, who was disruptive and threatened to punch her?

5. What prevented Mrs. Zajac from teaching lessons for as long as she wanted?

Short Essay Questions

1. What are "cume" folders? Why do teachers have them? What goes into them? How does Mrs. Zajac use the cumes and why?

2. What subject did Mrs. Zajac's students have on Wednesday afternoons? How was the behavior in the classroom different from other times as the students prepared their Halloween project?

3. How did Clarence's behavior change in the first three days of school? What was Mrs. Zajac's reaction? What were Clarence's consequences for his behavior? What does Mrs. Zajac finally decide to do?

4. What are some of the frustrations teachers teaching today face?

5. What kind of parent participation did Mrs. Zajac receive from her students' families? How did she respond to this situation?

6. What was Mrs. Zajac's favorite saying, or mantra, to her students? What does she want her students to understand about learning?

7. What did Mrs. Zajac realize were the similarities and difference between Alice and Judith?

8. What happened in the 1970's to the town of Holyoke? How did this affect the town and its economy? What plans did the state and local governments come up with to renew Holyoke?

9. What was the name of Mrs. Zajac's school and where was it located? What did we know about the school? What was the make-up of the student body in her classroom?

10. What is the subject of Kidder's story? Is it fiction or non-fiction? How does he go about learning about his subject?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Compare and contrast the Puerto Rican and white cultures as evidenced in church, in school, and in the city of Holyoke.

Essay Topic 2

Who was Suzanne? What role did she play in Mrs. Zajac's life? Why did the writer tell us about Suzanne?

Essay Topic 3

Much of the story of Kelly School's fifth grade class involved Mrs. Zajac and her work with Clarence. Do you believe Mrs. Zajac did all she could do for Clarence and made the right call by having him removed from the class? Or, do you think she should have kept Clarence in the room and continued to try and help him? Support your answer.

(see the answer keys)

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