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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. How many wagons did the family traveling with the Wilders have?

2. What did the people in Nebraska say would be needed for their crops to succeed?

3. What kind of signs were NOT posted in Nebraska?

4. What county did the Wilders see the farm conditions start to improve?

5. How many miles did the Wilders usually cover in a day during their journey?

Short Essay Questions

1. What was so different about Stanton?

2. What happened when the Cooleys lost their dog along the trip?

3. Why were the Wilders so anxious to get on their journey when the weather got good?

4. What services were the Wilders able to get in Yankton, and what were they surprised to not be able to find there?

5. What caused the Wilders to want to move from South Dakota?

6. What are the three "Miss" States that Rose talks about in the first chapter?

7. What did the Wilders buy when near the James River, and how much did they pay?

8. What did Laura insist the children do while they swam in the James River, and why?

9. How did the Wilders store the money they saved up for their trip?

10. What did Almanzo buy a bunch of before the trip, and why?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Almanzo is an upbeat man. How does this major feature about him affect the people around him? What are people's first impressions of him, and how does this affect Almanzo's capacity to lead? Make sure you support your answers with examples from the text.

Essay Topic 2

What are Rose's final words in the book, and what do they imply? How do these words sum up the entire theme of the book?

Essay Topic 3

The tone changes frequently in this book. What are the major places where this change in tone comes about, and what causes these changes?

(see the answer keys)

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