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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. In Shawn's memory of Christmas when he is six years old, what are Cindy and Paul doing?

2. How old is Earl Detraux's son?

3. What is Earl Detraux doing now?

4. What does Shawn do at the Pacific Science Center when he is eight?

5. According to Shawn in Chapter 10, what does it mean when his mother sounds overly positive?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Shawn say in Chapter 12 that he never loved or feared his brother more than at one particular moment the previous summer?

2. What did Shawn's father do at the Pacific Science Center when Shawn was eight years old?

3. What is Sydney McDaniel's definition of parental love, as offered on The Alice Ponds Show?

4. What is Shawn's opinion of the role of memories and "being known for who you are" when someone dies?

5. What are some of the things in Chapter 10 that Shawn remembers about his mother from over the years that make him feel loved?

6. What does Shawn try to tell his father over and over again in Chapter 16, and why?

7. The morning after Ally spends the night, why does Shawn think that something is wrong?

8. What does Shawn mean when he says that "invisibility has its advantages" when it comes to girls?

9. Paul and Cindy discuss their father's appearance on The Alice Ponds Show. What do they think about what their father says on the show?

10. What does Shawn think about after viewing the clip of an interview between Sydney McDaniel and Earl Detraux on the Alice Ponds Show?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

When Shawn's father shows up at his class with a cameraman to tape footage for a PBS special on "Appropriate Allocation Decisions in an Era of Diminishing Funding," what are the similarities and differences between Shawn's father's beliefs and actions with those of Shawn's teacher and teacher's aides and how does Shawn feel about these people?

Part 1) What is the approach of Shawn's teacher and aids to the students in the class? What does Shawn think about these characters and why? How do these characters react to Shawn's father and his documentary? Why?

Part 2) While Sydney McDaniel is videotaping his special for PBS, what does he say about educating people who "cannot learn?" What does Shawn think about the points that his father makes? What in particular that his father says catches Shawn's interest in a big way?

Part 3) What are there similarities or differences between Shawn's father and the classroom teacher and aides regarding the way they think about and treat the children? What are they and why do they exist?

Essay Topic 2

One of Sydney McDaniel's main reasons for saying he wants to end Shawn's life is because he says he wants to end Shawn's "pain." What does Sydney think that the pain is like for Shawn when he has his daily seizures? Where does he get his information? Is he correct? Name three ways that Sydney's reaction to his son's seizures affects Shawn and the entire family?

Essay Topic 3

Shawn remembers when he was four and his father attempts to feed him. Shawn's coughs food onto his father's face. He complains to his wife about how hard it is to deal with Shawn's disabilities. How does this incident typify Sydney McDaniel's reaction to Shawn's disabilities? Identify how often in his life has Shawn's father has fed him. According to Sydney, his anger during this incident is directed at what or whom? Why? When Sydney says he "can't do this any more." To what is he referring? Is Sydney's reaction to Shawn's disabilities valid or logical? Why or why not?

(see the answer keys)

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