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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 "Seventy-Six Dollars and Forty-Nine Cents," what does Angel keep thinking she needs to do?

2. In "Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push," what is the narrator's name?

3. What is the setting for "Choctaw Bigfoot, Midnight in the Mountains"?

4. In "Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push," what does the narrator's mom do?

5. In "Flying Lessons," how does the narrator know his grandmother is not going to swim at the beach?

Short Essay Questions

1. In "Seventy-Six Dollars," how does Monk convince Herve that he has superpowers?

2. Describe the game against the Clippers in "Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push."

3. In "Flying Lessons," what does Santosh say is his "deal with the devil"?

4. What career did the narrator's father have in "Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push."

5. How did the narrator get her nickname?

6. In "Seventy-Six Dollars," how did Monk get his name?

7. In "Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push," what does the dad teach his son's team?

8. In "Seventy-Six Dollars," who is Lisa Castillo?

9. What do Santosh and Tomas have in common?

10. In "Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push," why is the narrator so nervous about his dad getting involved with his team?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

All of the stories in this collection involve both kids and their parents. Choose any two stories and compare/ contrast the way the writers deal with the relationship between children and parents.

Essay Topic 2

Many of these stories are told in an unusual way. For example, "Choctaw, Bigfoot, Midnight in the Mountains" is the story of someone telling a story; "Seventy-Six Dollars and Forty-Nine Cents "is told in verse; "The Beans and Rice Chronicles of Isaiah Dunn" is told as a series of journal entries." Choose at least two stories from the collection and compare and contrast how they are told and how the storytelling method affects the stories' meanings.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay in which you think about how and why Santosh's opinion of his grandmother changes over the course of the story "Flying Lessons." How does this change affect what the story is trying to tell us.

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