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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 does the poet describe Bernie and Peaches moving in "Moving Again"?

2. How does the poet describe her school in "First Grade"?

3. In whose shadow does the poet describe growing up in "The Other Woodson"?

4. Whose voice is described in the poem "Off-Key"?

5. Why did Jacqueline Woodson relate to the character "Stevie" in "Stevie and Me"?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who is described in "New Girl"? How does the poet describe her feelings for this individual?

2. What does the poet describe thinking about as she eats breakfast in "Saturday Morning"?

3. Where did Jacqueline Woodson's family move after the death of Aunt Kay? How is this setting described in "Moving Again"?

4. Where does the author describe Grandma Georgiana sitting on the bus in "What Everybody Knows Now"? Why did she sit here?

5. How has the setting of Jackie's grandparents' home changed in "Daddy This Time"?

6. Where does the author describe her family moving in Brooklyn in "Brooklyn, New York"? Why did they move?

7. How does the author compare her family members in "Genetics"?

8. How does the author describe her family's reaction in "When I Tell My Family"? What does Jackie describe telling them?

9. Who wrote the short story "The Selfish Giant"? How is this story described in the poem with the same name in Brown Girl Dreaming?

10. What made Jacqueline Woodson relate to the character of Stevie, as seen in "Stevie and Me"? Who is Stevie?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the themes of pride, prejudice, and the American Dream in Brown Girl Dreaming. How are these themes embodied by Georgiana, Gunnar, Mary Anne, and Jackie? What symbolism and imagery in the narrative relates to these themes?

Essay Topic 2

Describe Jacqueline Woodson's siblings and discuss their relationships growing up. What were the age differences between Jackie and her siblings? With whom did Jackie feel the most rivalry growing up? Why?

Essay Topic 3

Describe and discuss examples of irony and foreshadowing in Brown Girl Dreaming. What is ironic about Mary Anne’s impending return for her children at the end Part 2? How does the author foreshadow Gunnar's death?

(see the answer keys)

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