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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 can really bum out Shawn sometimes?

2. How many times has Shawn's father said his name aloud in his presence?

3. What color are the dog's eyes?

4. At the premiere reading of the poem, who is referred to as "Bing-Bong"?

5. What does Shawn consider the bad part of his seizures?

Short Essay Questions

1. When Shawn first heard people referred to as "vegetables," what types of images did he envision in his head?

2. When talking to her mother, how does Cindy explain her experience with the dog's death?

3. How does Shawn describe the first signs that he will have a seizure?

4. During his last feeding of Shawn, Sydney tells Lindy that he is mad at something other than at Shawn. What is he mad at?

5. What kinds of things is Shawn able to remember using his gift?

6. Why does Shawn think that it is cool to live in Seattle?

7. How does Shawn describe the tests administered by the school psychologist?

8. Why does Shawn need medicine to control the seizures?

9. How does Sydney McDaniel support his argument that schools waste money educating the ineducable?

10. How does Shawn describe his experience with grand mal seizures as a child?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Shawn, his sister, and his mother witness the death of a dog that is hit by a car. How does this experience affect Shawn and his perception of death?

Part 1) What are the circumstances surrounding the death of the dog? How is the dog injured? What do Shawn's sister and mother do when the dog is injured? What do they do when the dog dies? What does Shawn see and experience when the dog dies and what is his attitude toward death just after the dog dies?

Part 2) Why is it important in the story that Shawn remembers witnessing the death of the dog? How does the topic of death relate to Shawn's own life? Does experiencing the death of the dog affect Shawn? How does Shawn feel about death as he remembers the death of the dog, and what does Shawn think death means at this point in his life?

Essay Topic 2

Paul and his father have both evidenced the desire to protect Shawn. Write a brief essay comparing and contrasting Paul and Sydney with regard to their sense of responsibility to protect Shawn. How are they the same and how do they differ? What concrete actions do they take to protect him? What actions can you predict they might take in the future? Will these actions in fact protect Shawn? Why or why not? Provide examples from the novel to support your assertion.

Essay Topic 3

Cindy often has sleepovers and Shawn's reaction to his sister's friends shows that in some ways he is a typical teenage boy.

Part 1) How does his sister and her friends regard Shawn? How do they think of him? How do they react to him and behave around him?

Part 2) How does Shawn normally react to his sister's friends? How does he react to Ally? Does he judge her behavior by the same standards as he uses for other girls? Why or why not?

Part 3) Why does Shawn think that Ally is "so perfect!"? Is he reacting like a normal teenage boy, or is something else at play here? How does his reaction to Ally help or hinder the plot?

(see the answer keys)

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