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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. Where did Qian's mother get a job in Chapter 8?

2. When Qian and her mother went to America, what did they put on their suitcases to identify them?

3. What was one of Qian's favorite games in China at school?

4. In China, what did Qian's family used to dip their dumplings in?

5. What color cloth covered the windows where Qian's mother started to work in Chapter 5?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Qian say about arriving in the United States and her life there in "How It Began"?

2. What did Qian's mother suffer from when traveling, and when was her sickness particularly bad?

3. How did Qian get transferred back to her first classroom when she was moved to a classroom for special needs children?

4. What did Qian's parents do for her when she had chickenpox?

5. What did Qian and her mother do for Christmas?

6. Why did Qian love libraries and books?

7. In Chapter 6, when and why did Qian stop believing her father?

8. What would Qian's family eat on Sundays?

9. What happened the first time that Qian and her mother went grocery shopping after her father left?

10. What was it like working for Qian's mother working at the sushi-processing plant?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Qian mentioned several teachers she had during her schooling in New York. What positive and negative influences did teachers have on her life and education during that time?

Essay Topic 2

Qian’s father always tried to avoid embarrassment. Why did he always try to avoid embarrassment? What did saving face have to do with his efforts? Why was it important to him not to lose face?

Essay Topic 3

Qian was given a pet cat. Why did Qian’s father hate the cat? What role did superstition play in her not being able to keep the cat?

(see the answer keys)

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