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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. In 1994, what kind of program did California implement related to welfare recipients?
(a) A driver's license program.
(b) A finger-printing program.
(c) A welfare-to-work program.
(d) A facial recognition program.

2. When did Smarsh say both her parents lost jobs and entered one of the hardest stretches of their lives?
(a) 2008.
(b) 2000.
(c) 2006.
(d) 2010.

3. Why did Betty agree to marry Dean?
(a) Jeannie liked him.
(b) He was a good cook.
(c) He had money.
(d) He was from Colorado, and she loved Colorado.

4. What was one of the things that hindered Betty from retaining custody of her son with Bob?
(a) She was pregnant again.
(b) She had just gotten fired from her job.
(c) She had just been admitted to a mental health hospital.
(d) She was gearing up for her third divorce.

5. Why did Aaron beat Betty when she was a child, as told by Smarsh in Chapter 4?
(a) Betty asked for milk.
(b) Betty asked for shoes.
(c) Betty missed picking up a single nail in the yard from a carpentry project.
(d) Betty asked for a Christmas present.

Short Answer Questions

1. What job did the judge tell Betty was no job for a woman?

2. Who did Smarsh's father marry in Chapter 4?

3. What car did Nick sometimes drive Smarsh and her brother to school in?

4. What would Betty say when she saw a homeless person at a Wichita intersection?

5. Where did Jeannie start her third kindergarten?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens that leads to Nick losing his house in Part IV?

2. Why does Smarsh think being poor carries such a unique kind of shame in America?

3. What were some of the government assistance programs Smarsh and her brother benefitted from as children?

4. In Part III, what does Smarsh's father do to her that she is very hurt by?

5. In Part IV, what was Betty's husband Bob like to both her and Jeannie?

6. What does Smarsh say is a big differences between the poor and the middle-and-upper-class families who make mistakes?

7. In Part IV, what did Ray once offer to do for Betty that was criminal but that Betty tells Smarsh she considered?

8. What was one reason Bob found it fairly easy to get full custody of his and Betty's son in Part IV?

9. In Part III, what is Smarsh's stepmother Chris like?

10. What made Betty's poverty more tolerable to other people, in Smarsh's opinion?

(see the answer keys)

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