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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Who told the author he should "dress the way you want to be"?
(a) His teacher.
(b) His father.
(c) His mother.
(d) Curtis.

2. The author told his mother that _____ are supposed to _____.
(a) Mothers and fathers/Stay together.
(b) Fathers/Do as they please.
(c) Mothers/Obey their husbands.
(d) Boys/Cry.

3. What was Candy Rustin's real name in "A Serious Step"?
(a) Carlie.
(b) Cena.
(c) Lacey.
(d) Lacena.

4. What object of the author's did a ninth grader in "A Boy's Big Problem" say had been through four world wars?
(a) His shirt.
(b) His shoes.
(c) His pencil.
(d) His backpack.

5. What does the author say his mother brought a sense of to the family?
(a) Love.
(b) Security.
(c) Peace.
(d) Humor.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "A Terrible Temper," the author realized that if people could make him _____, they could ______.

2. The author's mother told him if he could _____, he could learn just about anything he wanted to know.

3. What was the reason the author and his classmates were given for having to retake a test for the psychology class, Perceptions 101?

4. What method in "Two Positives" does the author say his family used to protect each other?

5. What type of curriculum did the school counselor enroll Curtis in, in Carrying the Load?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why didn't the author get the job he was promised in the summer of 1971?

2. How was the author's new neighborhood in "Eight Years Old" different from his old one?

3. What happened in "A Terrible Temper," when the author's mother brought him a new pair of pants?

4. What role did the English teacher, Mrs. Miller, play in the author's life, in "ROTC Triumph"?

5. What was the final event that led the author to break down and find determination to resolve his temper?

6. How did the author respond to the news that his father was leaving the family?

7. Why did the author initially fall behind in his college studies?

8. What was the author's father like intellectually?

9. How does the author take on the challenge of being student-sergeant for a rambunctious unit?

10. What are the reasons the author gives in "A Serious Step" for not being ready for love?

(see the answer keys)

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