IMPORTANT: Comprehension questions will be in chronological order as you read through the story. Page numbers are approximate, and will vary with different editions of the book.
Section 1: Chapters 1-4
Vocabulary
- harness: straps that form the gear of a working animal
- trap: a device used for catching animals
- quill: a large feather from a bird
- nuisance: an annoying person or thing
- waggle: to move while shaking
- moccasins: shoes made of soft leather
Vocabulary Usage in the Book
- The mittens have long, braided harnesses so that you can tie the mittens up behind you, so they won’t get in your way if you’re working. (Ch. 4, pg. 21)
- After freeze-up lots of them go to winter camp to trap with their folks and would be there till Christmas. (Ch. 4, pg. 18)
- Grandma says in the old days they made the designs on the bands with porcupine quills(Ch. 4, pg. 22)
- That Roger is just a nuisance (Ch. 3, pg. 14)
- The little plane circled our village and then flew low over Andreson’s store and waggledits wings at us. (Ch. 1, pg. 1)
- He has on those old kind of summer moccasins the long kind that wrap up your leg a little ways. (Ch. 4, pg. 19)
Vocabulary Sentences
- Jordan watched the leaves in the trees waggle as the strong wind blew.
- On cold nights I like to wear my moccasins around the house.
- The husky had to wear a harness in order to pull the sled.
- In colonial times, writing would be done with a quill because pens had not been invented.
- The crying child was a nuisance during the movie.
- We have to set out a trap every night in order to catch the mouse.
Comprehension Questions
- Sam tells Fred he brought her a new teacher. (Ch. 1, pg. 5)
- Fred and Bertha have never seen a woman wear pants. (Ch. 2, pg. 7)
- Fred is named after Dubin’s mother, Frederika. (Ch. pg. 11)
- The village needs a school because there are enough children in the village. (Ch. 3, pg. 14)
- Bokko doesn’t go to school because she is deaf. (Ch. 3, pg. 15)
- Mamma thinks everyone should be working hard instead of going to school. (Ch. 4, pg. 20)
- Fred’s grandma grumbles at Mamma because she orders her parkas from a catalog. (Ch. 4, pgs. 22-23)
Section 2: Chapters 5-9
Vocabulary
- holler: to shout
- arithmetic: basic mathematics
- hunker: to squat down close to the ground
- picky: difficult to please
- geography: the study of the earth’s surface
- embarrass: to make someone feel self-conscious
Vocabulary Usage in the Book
- I waited for the teacher to hollerand hit her desk with the ruler, but she just looked a look at them, with her eyebrow up and her mouth a little pushed to one side. (Ch. 5, pg. 26)
- After Miss Agnes folded up the big Alaska map, she gave us all a paper with arithmetic on it. (Ch. 7, pg. 43)
- Ever before we went to school, she used to get a pencil from Old Man Andreson and she’d hunker down by the boxes in the store and she’d copy the writing. (Ch. 6, pg. 34)
- So we were surprised to find Miss Agnes was going to be so picky. (Ch. 6, pg. 37)
- Miss Agnes used the big map to teach us geography. (Ch. 7, pg. 41)
- Big Pete was embarrassed to come into the school, I could tell. (Ch. 7, pg. 45)
Vocabulary Sentences
- Jill would embarrass her friend by tripping her during dance practice.
- Taylor would often hunker down in the living room to build with blocks.
- Mother had to holler so that her toddler would not run into the street in front of the bus.
- The 3rd grade teacher tested her students on their arithmetic every Wednesday morning.
- The boy was a picky eater and would not taste the tuna sandwich.
- While studying geography, the class learned about the many mountain ranges in the United States.
Comprehension Questions
- Miss Agnes gives Little Pete and Roger with a smart look. (Ch. 5, pg. 26)
- Miss Agnes doesn’t believe in grades. (Ch. 5, pg. 27)
- Fred makes a picture of Miss Agnes because she doesn’t know how to make a picture of music. (Ch. 5, pg. 32)
- Miss Agnes tells Bertha she is ready to learn cursive. (Ch. 6, pg. 35)
- Miss Agnes wants the children to learn arithmetic so that no one could cheat them. (Ch. 7, pg. 44)
- Miss Agnes gives Bokko sign language books to help her learn to talk with her hands. (Ch. 8, pg. 53)
- Mamma isn’t mad at Miss Agnes anymore because she sends her a loaf of bread. (Ch. 8, pg. 58)
Section 3: Chapters 10-13
Vocabulary
- community: a group of people with the same interests or culture
- brittle: easily broken
- snare: to catch
- microscope: an instrument used to see very small particles
- echo: a sound heard again after being reflected
- phonograph: an old-fashioned record player
Vocabulary Usage in the Book
- Sometimes at night on weekends we have music and dancing in the community hall. (Ch. 10, pg. 66)
- Too brittle. (Ch. 13, pg. 82)
- People give him moose and caribou, but he snares rabbits and ptarmigan to eat. (Ch. 11, pg. 73)
- One of the best things of all was when Miss Agnes ordered a little microscope for us, and we could look down inside it and see things that lived in the water. (Ch. 11, pg. 75)
- She didn’t pack the books or the phonograph or the records. (Ch. 16, pg. 107)
Vocabulary Sentences
- In science class, Henry was fascinated by what he could see in a drop of water while looking at it under the microscope.
- The sly fox was always trying to snare Little Red Riding Hood.
- My grandmother loves to play jazz records on her old phonograph.
- Little Italy is a community in New York where many Italians live.
- I could hear an echo when I clapped my hands loudly in the empty hallway.
- After the storm, there was a brittle layer of ice on the lake.
Comprehension Questions
- Miss Agnes takes her squeeze box out at any time of the day. (Ch. 10, pg. 65)
- If the dance goes on long enough, then everyone has a best song they sing. (Ch. 10, pg. 67)
- Miss Agnes makes a number line with the skinny white paper. (Ch. 11, pg. 69)
- Fred’s grandfather and his friends didn’t know about World War I because there weren’t radios then. (Ch. 11, pg. 72)
- Fred wants to look into the microscope forever, even if her eyes feel sore and tired. (Ch. 11, pg. 75)
- Miss Agnes feels homesick when she plays the King’s Choir record. (Ch. 12, pg. 79)
- The people ran our of the church screaming when they saw the bright flash. (Ch. 13, pg. 86)
Section 4: Chapters 14-17
Vocabulary
- brag: to speak highly of oneself
- forget: to be unable to remember
- invent: to create something new
- gloomy: dark or dim
- priest: a person ordained as a minister
- country: a state or nation
Vocabulary Usage in the Book
- And they all bragged about Mama when she talked to Bokko with signs, like she was the one who invented sign language. (Ch. 17, pg. 110)
- “…No one forgets their teachers.” (Ch. 16, pg. 107)
- And they all bragged about Mama when she talked to Bokko with signs, like she was the one who invented sign language. (Ch. 17, pg. 110)
- It is raining, dark and gloomy. (Ch. 17, pg. 111)
- That’s the one that was a priest. (Ch. 15, pg. 98)
- He tells us the stories his mamma told him, about before there were any white men in the country. (Ch. 11, pf. 74)
Vocabulary Sentences
- When my uncle got married, a priest performed the wedding.
- John tried to invent a machine that would wash his dog.
- It’s not considered polite to brag, even if you do have the highest score.
- Mother told me many times not to forget to brush my teeth before going to bed.
- The stormy weather made the sky look gloomy.
- Brazil is a country in South America.
Comprehension Questions
- Miss Agnes makes books about each student for them to read. (Ch. 14, pg. 91)
- Miss Agnes gives the students notebooks so they can create their own dictionaries and learn to spell. (Ch. 14, pg. 93)
- Fred thinks that good English sounds wrong because she’s not used to speaking it the right way. (Ch. 15, pg. 97)
- Miss Agnes leaves her books, phonograph, and records behind. (Ch. 16, pg. 107)
- Fred and Bokko’s job is to hang up the fish strips to dry. (Ch. 17, pg. 110)
- Fred has a lump in her throat every time she thinks about what Miss Agnes taught her. (Ch. 17, pg. 111)
- Fred and Bokko discover that Miss Agnes has returned to the village. (Ch. 17, pg. 113)