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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. Within what room at Nickel did Elwood intervene in a fight, earning him a trip to the White House?
(a) The bathroom.
(b) The dormitory room.
(c) Elwood's homeroom.
(d) The dining hall.

2. How old was Elwood when both of his parents "took off" (27) and left him in the care of his grandmother Harriet?
(a) 12.
(b) 5.
(c) 14.
(d) 6.

3. Elwood was told that "classroom instruction" (51) took place how often at Nickel?
(a) Twice a month.
(b) Three times per day.
(c) Every other day, but not on Sunday.
(d) Every day.

4. How many boys in total did the Nickel staff get out of their beds the night they punished Elwood and some others for fighting?
(a) 3.
(b) 4.
(c) 5.
(d) 6.

5. What profanity-laden items were passed on to the black students at Lincoln High School whenever the students at the white high school received new ones?
(a) Uniforms.
(b) Desks.
(c) Textbooks.
(d) Sports equipment.

Short Answer Questions

1. Upon Elwood's arrival, Nickel housed "over" (49) how many inmates?

2. Who presented Elwood with a recording called "Martin Luther King at Zion Hill" (11)?

3. How many days in total had Elwood attended classes at Melvin Griggs Technical before he was unjustly accused of stealing a car?

4. Elwood became transfixed by the photo essays published in which magazine sold in Mr. Marconi's shop?

5. In what part of Elwood's body did he receive a punch from Black Mike at the scene of Elwood's intervention in the middle of a fight?

Short Essay Questions

1. For what reason was Elwood unable to get a full night's sleep the day of his arrival at Nickel?

2. In what way does the theme of collectivism arise within the Prologue of The Nickel Boys?

3. How many boys were incarcerated at Nickel at the time of Elwood's arrival and in what way was the campus divided into two?

4. What happened to prevent Elwood from attending his first class at Marvin Griggs Technical?

5. Who was Elwood and what event prompted him to need to return to Nickel?

6. How are the themes of brutality and oppression intertwined within Chapter 6?

7. In what way did the grounds of Nickel surprise Elwood upon his arrival and what is this detail's significance?

8. What does the industrial fan within Chapter 6 symbolize and with what theme does Whitehead connect the fan?

9. How does Whitehead use personification to depict the way that Harriet tried not to get her hopes up about the progress the black community might make in the wake of the Brown vs. Board of Education decision?

10. Who was Mr. Hill?

(see the answer keys)

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