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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. In Chapter 18, what was a Mexican singer that Francisco and his family enjoyed?

2. In Chapter 17, how many presidential debates were Francisco and the other students supposed to watch?

3. In Chapter 18, what office did Paul consider running for?

4. Where was Mr. Osterveen's wife from?

5. In Chapter 16, what were the main duties of the Squires Club?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Chapter 18, what were the Junior Scandals?

2. How did Francisco describe his sophomore English teacher in Chapter 12?

3. In Chapter 20, how did the Jimenez family get by when Roberto married and quit giving them money?

4. In Chapter 12, what book did Miss Bell suggest that Francisco read, and why did he like the book?

5. In Chapter 17, what did Francisco's parents think about the 1960 presidential candidates?

6. In Chapter 14, why did Francisco not like to drive the family DeSoto?

7. In Chapter 13, what did Francisco take for school lunch and why?

8. In Chapter 18, what did Francisco decide to perform for the Junior Scandals and why?

9. In Chapter 19, how did Paul Takagi and Francisco become friends?

10. In Chapter 18, how successful was Francisco's performance at the Junior Scandals?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Idioms are used in the book. What are idioms, and why would idioms have been difficult for Francisco and his family to understand?

Essay Topic 2

Francisco had light skin and could have passed as white, but he did not. What discrimination did Francisco face as a Mexican immigrant? Why did he not try to pass as white to avoid that discrimination? How did he embrace his Mexican heritage?

Essay Topic 3

Breaking Through is a true story. Why is the story an autobiography, rather than a biography?

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