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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. What does a third grader do to hurt Zinkoff on his first day in Mrs. Biswell's class?

2. What kind of developmental problem does Zinkoff's teacher think he might have?

3. How does Andrew's father plan to get them moved to a new house?

4. What does Zinkoff's father ask him every day at dinner?

5. How are the students referred to by his first teacher?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Zinkoff practice after his first soccer game?

2. What does the narrator say the children do not notice about Zinkoff at a young age?

3. What do Zinkoff and his father discuss during lunch on their day at Willow Drive, and why?

4. What does Zinkoff wonder as he goes to bed after his first day at school?

5. What does Zinkoff play in orchestra, and why?

6. What does Zinkoff think his mother's star stickers are?

7. What is the Waiting Man waiting for?

8. When does the narrator say Zinkoff is most profoundly discovered?

9. What does Andrew's father think of the neighborhood, and why?

10. Why does Zinkoff feel like he can run forever?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

This book takes place in a few different settings. Describe some of these settings and how they affected the course of the plot. Why might Jerry Spinelli have chosen these particular places for this plot to take place?

Essay Topic 2

What kind of relationship did Zinkoff have with his family members, and how did that affect his actions?

Essay Topic 3

What are some of the key examples of gratitude in this book, and how do these instances affect that characters involved in those scenes?

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This section contains 627 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample