View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What room at school did Melba sometimes avoid because it was become "the main place for them to get me"?

2. Who were the federalized soldiers that inadequately protected the nine children?

3. What group of government officials was pressing for the removal of the 101st from Central High School?

4. Which newspaper did the segregationists tell businesses to stop advertising in?

5. What was the evening newspaper that the Pattillos sometimes read?

Short Essay Questions

1. What led to Minnijean's suspension?

2. What were some of the special "days" that the segregationists came up with to harass the Little Rock Nine?

3. What happened to Melba when saluting the flag?

4. What damage did the white mob do after Melba and the other students left the school after their first day inside?

5. Describe Little Rock's shopping district.

6. Melba felts lonely at school. Why?

7. Why did Grandma India want Melba to read about Gandhi?

8. What were the changes that Melba observed in her fellow students integrating into the school as the harassment continued?

9. What items dear to Melba did she decide to give away at Thanksgiving?

10. Describe Mrs. Pickwick.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

One of the most enduring images from Little Rock's Central High School was the very first day when Elizabeth Eckford, a young, small girl, was surrounded by angry, yelling white people. Find a copy of this image and write about how it makes you feel.

Essay Topic 2

The white leaders of Little Rock refer to Little Rock people as "forward-thinking" and a place where white and African American people got along. These leaders thought that racism was not a problem because there hadn't been a lynching in the state for almost ten years. Melba believed the Little Rock of her youth was anything but progressive. Why did she say this? Why was there such a dichotomy in what people believed about 1950s race relations in Little Rock?

Essay Topic 3

Melba wrote in her diary, "Please, God, let me learn how to stop being a warrior. Sometimes I just need to be a girl." Discuss what you think she meant by this.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 759 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample