The Iron Giant

Section 1: Chapter 1

Vocabulary
  1. brink: the very edge
  2. glee: joyful delight
  3. infrared: a type of invisible radiation
  4. peer: to look at something that is hard to see
  5. sway: to move back and forth
  6. torso: the upper part of the human body
Vocabulary Sentences
  1. The brave knight had to peer into the mouth of the dark cave in search of the dragon.
  2. If you walk right to the brink of the cliff the view is wonderful, but you might fall over.
  3. Listening to music makes me want to sway to the rhythm.
  4. The remote control emits an infrared beam that operates the TV.
  5. After falling during the earthquake, the sculptor’s masterpiece was reduced to nothing but a torso.
  6. All of the children shouted with glee on the last day of school.
Comprehension Questions
  1. Nobody knows there the Iron Giant came from. (pg. 1)
  2. The author uses personification when saying the wind is singing. (pg. 1)
  3. The author uses simile when describing the Iron Giant’s head as being shaped like a dustbin and as big as a bedroom. (pg. 1)
  4. The Iron Giant’s eyes glowed white, then red, then infrared, while he looked at the sea. (pg. 2)
  5. The author uses personification when describing the sea as chewing the edge of the rocky beach. (pg. 3)
  6. Nobody knew the Iron Giant had fallen. (pg. 4)
  7. The hands and eyes went looking for a leg. (pg. 7)
  8. The Iron Giant’s eyes are red and then turn green after he is covered by a wave. (pg. 11)
  9. It is early in the morning when the Iron Giant looks for his lost ear. (pg. 10)
  10. The Iron Giant is hoping to find his lost ear when he walks out into the ocean. (pg. 10)

Section 2: Chapter 2

Vocabulary
  1. colossal: very large
  2. harrow: a machine used to break up dirt
  3. homeward: in the direction of home
  4. looming: to appear as large and menacing
  5. topple: to fall over
  6. twilight: the time of day just after sunset
Vocabulary Sentences
  1. The soldiers were relieved to begin their homeward march after the long battle.
  2. Brad built a tower of blocks that seemed like it would topple at any moment.
  3. The brand new harrow looked out of place behind the old rusty tractor.
  4. At twilight you can just begin to see the stars appear in the sky.
  5. The colossal amount of homework for this week is overwhelming.
  6. My list of chores is looming over my head like a mountain.
Comprehension Questions
  1. Hogarth runs home and tells his father about the Iron Giant. (pg. 13-14)
  2. The farmer who doesn’t believe Hogarth’s father is a fat, red man with a fat, red-mouthed laugh. (pg. 14)
  3. The second farmer says they will look for the Iron Giant’s foot tracks in the dirt. (pg. 14)
  4. The farmers see that the tractor had been bitten into two pieces. (pg. 15)
  5. The Iron Giant reaches toward the windshield and Hogarth’s father drives faster. (pg. 16)
  6. The farmers are frightened, silent, and amazed when they follow the Iron Giant’s footprints. (pg. 18)
  7. The furious farmers are afraid the Iron Giant will come back and steal people, animals, or houses. (pg. 19)
  8. The farmers do not want to fill the giant hole so that they can use it as a weapon against the Iron Giant when he comes back. (pg. 23)
  9. Hogarth lures the Iron Giant by tapping a nail and a knife blade together to make a clinking sound. (pg. 26-27)
  10. Hogarth feels sorry and guilty about helping to trap the Iron Giant in the pit. (pg. 31)

Section 3: Chapter 3

Vocabulary
  1. cog: a gear tooth
  2. dangle: to hang loosely
  3. deceive: to hide the truth
  4. delicacy: a delicious and highly prized food
  5. gleam: to shine brightly
  6. grope: to feel about with the hands
Vocabulary Sentences
  1. Whenever I would dangle the worm over the creek, a giant fish would leap for it.
  2. Sally had to grope for her glasses which had fallen onto the floor.
  3. Some people think snails are garden pests, but others think they are a delicacy.
  4. The bank robber tried to deceive the judge, but it was no use and he was sent to prison.
  5. The giant cog turned endlessly, driving the hands of the clock in the tower.
  6. The new toothpaste makes everyone’s teeth gleam whiter than ever.
Comprehension Questions
  1. The signs of spring are when the leaves unfurl from the buds, daffodils grow from the ground, and new grass appears. (pg. 32)
  2. The hill is often used for having a picnic. (pg. 33)
  3. The picnicking family thinks an earthquake in Japan is causing the ground to shake. (pg. 34)
  4. The picnicking father shouts for everyone to run to the car and they drive away. (pg. 37)
  5. The farmers groan and decide to call the army when they realize the Iron Giant has freed himself. (pg. 37)
  6. The Iron Giant’s eyes change colors, from dark blue to purple to red and then white, when Hogarth tries to get his attention. (pg. 39)
  7. Hogarth has the idea of leading the Iron Giant to the scrap-metal yard. (pg. 40)
  8. Some people stared and other people hid inside their bedrooms and kitchens when they saw the Iron Giant following the farmers. (pg. 40)
  9. The Iron Giant finds a greasy black stove with chrome on it, a double-decker bedstead with brass knobs, and a pile of rusty chain. (pg. 41)
  10. The Iron Giant’s eyes are a constant happy blue color after eating in the scrap-metal yard. (pg. 43)

Section 4: Chapter 4

Vocabulary
  1. astronomer: somebody who studies the stars and planets
  2. dismay: surprise or alarm
  3. gloom: partial darkness
  4. lament: a feeling of sorrow
  5. meteorite: a piece of rock from outer space
  6. swath: a path cut through a field of grain
Vocabulary Sentences
  1. The meteorite left a great crater when it crashed to earth.
  2. When the beloved king died, his subjects made a great lament.
  3. The harvester cut a wide swath through the ripe field of wheat.
  4. Ever since he was given a telescope as a child, the astronomer loved watching the stars.
  5. The knight was in complete dismay when he discovered his favorite sword had been damaged.
  6. Maddy decorated her room with balloons to get rid of the gloom caused by the endless rain.
Comprehension Questions
  1. The news of a night star beginning to change frightens all the people. (pg. 44)
  2. Astronomers first notice the change of the star. (pg. 45)
  3. The star is getting bigger because it is getting nearer. (pg. 46)
  4. The star is rushing toward the earth faster than a bullet, a rocket, and even faster than a meteorite. (pg. 46)
  5. The great black thing lands on Australia. (pg. 49)
  6. The space-bat-angel-dragon wants to be fed living things. (pg. 52)
  7. The people fear that if they feed the space-bat-angel-dragon it will never be full. (pg. 53)
  8. The people decide to fight the space-bat-angel-dragon instead of feeding it. (pg. 53)
  9. The space-bat-angel-dragon smiles after being attacked by the people. (pg. 55)
  10. The Iron Giant decides to fight the space-bat-angel-dragon himself. (pg. 59)

Section 5: Chapter 5

Vocabulary
  1. bliss: perfect untroubled happiness
  2. plunge: to move suddenly downward or forward
  3. sprawl: to be stretched or spread out in an unnatural or ungraceful manner
  4. squabble: a noisy argument over something small
  5. submit: to give in to somebody’s authority or demands
  6. writhe: a twisting squirming movement
Vocabulary Sentences
  1. On the last day of school, the boys couldn’t wait to plunge into the swimming pool.
  2. The worm began to writhe on the fishing hook when it realized it was about to be eaten.
  3. Building a snowman and drinking hot chocolate on winter days made the children feel perfect bliss.
  4. His feeling of accomplishment was shattered by a squabble over who’s drawing was prettier.
  5. When the puppy tried to walk on the frozen lake, his body sprawled across the ice.
  6. Kelly finally had to submit to the decision of her coach when he assigned her to second base.
Comprehension Questions
  1. The Iron Giant is taken apart and flown to Australia in different airplanes. (pg. 60)
  2. The Iron Giant challenges the space-bat-angel-dragon to a test of strength. (pg. 61)
  3. The space-bat-angel-dragon laughs loud and long at the Iron Giant’s challenge. (pg. 62)
  4. The space-bat-angel-dragon’s horns droop, his face is black, his claws are scorched blunt, his crest flops, and holes are burned in his wings after his first trip to the sun. (pg. 68)
  5. When the space-bat-angel-dragon lands on the earth so heavily the second time, it causes skyscrapers to fall over and creates tidal waves in the harbors, and throws herds of cows onto their backs. (pg. 73)
  6. The space-bat-angel-dragon weeps and says, “Enough, enough, enough!” (pg. 75)
  7. The space-bat-angel-dragon hears the battling shouts and war cries on earth which makes him want to join in and eat up the earth. (pg. 77)
  8. The Iron Giant commands the space-bat-angel-dragon to send his star back into Orion, live inside the moon, and fly around the earth and sing every night. (pg. 77)
  9. The Iron Giant received a nail, an old car, and an ocean liner for being the world’s hero. (pg. 78)
  10. The world became peaceful and people stopped making weapons when they listened to the space-bat-angel-dragon’s singing every night. (pg. 79)