Model Selection Short Stories 8th Grade

Model Selection: Short Stories

​Model Selection: Short Story

Plot is the sequence of events in a story. The sequence usually unfolds in

chronological order, the order of time. However, sometimes there is a flashback to an earlier time. Flashbacks can provide insight into a character’s personality traits, or qualities, and motivation, the reasons behind the character’s behavior.

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​Model Selection: Short Story

The events of the plot usually center around one or more conflicts, or struggles, that the main character faces. Sometimes the conflict is external, pitting the character against an outside force. Sometimes the conflict is internal, taking place in the character’s mind.

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​Model Selection: Short Story

The story’s conclusion is the resolution, in which the conflict is settled and the outcome is revealed. Sometimes the resolution is a surprise ending that the characters or readers do not expect. Surprise endings and other unexpected twists in the plot create irony, a contrast between what seems true and what turns out to be the real truth.

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​Model Selection: Short Story

The perspective from which a story is told is called the point of view. In the first-person point of view, the story is told by a character in the story. In the third-person point of view, the story is told by a narrator outside the story. An omniscient narrator knows everything that each character thinks and feels. A third-person narrator also might be limited and only reveal the thoughts and feelings of a single character.

Open Ended

What internal conflict does young Arturo have about visiting his grandfather?

Open Ended

Describe young Arturo’s traits and motivation in life. What does he dislike about the

attitude expressed in the Spanish saying “Así es la vida,” or “That’s the way life is”?

Open Ended

In what way does Abuelo’s autobiography Así Es la Vida serve as a flashback?

From whose point of view is it told, and what does it help you understand about

this character?

Open Ended

Explain the irony in Abuelo’s behavior at the story’s end. What did Arturo expect

about his grandfather, and how did what he expected turn out not to be true?

Multiple Choice

At the start of the story, what does Arturo’s mother want him to do?

• visit his grandfather in a nursing home

• visit his grandfather in Puerto Rico

• watch his grandfather for one hour while she goes out

• cancel his visit to his grandfather and, instead, do his schoolwork

Multiple Choice

How does Arturo feel about his mother’s request?

• delighted

• frightened

• reluctant

• puzzled

Multiple Choice

Which of these is a personality trait that Arturo displays when you first meet him?

• He is self-centered.

• He is generous with his time.

• He is very mischievous.

• He has no sense of humor.

Multiple Choice

Which word best describes Arturo’s attitude toward schoolwork?

• lazy

• ambitious

• bored

• confused

Multiple Choice

From which point of view are the opening paragraphs presented?

• first person, narrated by Arturo

• first person, narrated by Arturo’s mother

• first person, narrated by Abuelo

• third-person omniscient

Multiple Choice

In what setting does most of the story take place?

• present-day Puerto Rico

• present-day Paterson, New Jersey

• Brooklyn about a hundred years ago

• present-day Brooklyn

Multiple Choice

What special tie does Arturo have with his grandfather?

• They were both born in the same town in Puerto Rico.

• They both have trouble learning English.

• Arturo is named after his grandfather.

• Arturo is the grandfather’s favorite grandchild.

Multiple Choice

Where in the plot does the sequence of events flash back to an earlier time?

• when Arturo’s mother drops him off at the nursing home

• when Arturo reaches Puerto Rico

• when Abuelo reads Arturo part of his autobiography

• when the woman in pink running shoes arrives

Multiple Choice

Abuelo calls his story “Así Es la Vida.” What does that mean?

• Say “yes” to life.

• That’s the way life is.

• Times have changed.

• My life has been filled with hard times.

Multiple Choice

What ambition did the grandfather have when he was a boy?

• He wanted to leave Puerto Rico.

• He wanted to be rich.

• He wanted to be a famous poet.

• He wanted to be around books all his life.

Multiple Choice

After the war, why did Abuelo stop teaching school?

• He wanted to please his father.

• He preferred farming.

• He did not have the required college degree.

• He left Puerto Rico.

Multiple Choice

How does Arturo’s grandfather react to the woman in the pink jogging outfit?

• He is annoyed by the interruption.

• He perks up and speaks more strongly.

• He does not remember who she is.

• He teases her wickedly.

Multiple Choice

What unexpected twist happens at the end?

• It turns out that the grandfather is writing poetry as well as an autobiography.

• The grandfather has been timing Arturo and is eager to go off and do something else.

• Though the grandfather seems in good physical shape, it turns out that he needs a wheelchair.

• Arturo decides that he would rather stay with his grandfather than go back home.

Multiple Choice

Which of these is an external conflict in “An Hour With Abuelo”?

• Arturo’s grandfather struggles to keep teaching and not go to war.

• Arturo’s grandfather struggles to remember his past.

• Arturo struggles to make time for his grandfather.

• Arturo struggles to decide whether or not he will visit his grandfather.

Multiple Choice

Which of these is a main theme of “An Hour With Abuelo”?

• Schoolwork is more important than family.

• If you work hard and “play by the rules,” you can control what happens in your life.

• People can lead happy, fulfilling lives even if everything does not turn out as planned.

• If you do not exercise, you will regret it in old age.