Fist, Stick, Knife, Gun by Geoffrey Canada

What does the word sporadic mean in paragraph 1?

• continuous

• infrequent

• nonexistent

• quotidian

Read the excerpt from paragraph 2:

"Whatever pressure and stress his leaving put on my mother, having to raise four boys alone, she didn't show us. We thought everything was fine. But we were young, still living in a child period of innocence."

What can the reader infer based on this excerpt from paragraph 2?

• The boys were used to their mother being stressed, having to raise four boys alone because the dad was never around.

• The single mother was strong and did not become easily stressed out by the challenges that life had given her.

• The boys were young, so it was easy for the mom to handle them on her own.

• The mother was struggling & having a hard time, but she hid it from her kids because they were too young to understand at the time.

The reader can infer that Dan is being accused of...

• being irresponsible, and neglecting to look out for his brother.

• wasting his mother's money.

• being lazy and not fighting back when he knew he should have.

• being afraid of the thief.

Read the dictionary entry for incompetent. Which meaning of incompetent is used in paragraph 12?

• Entry 1

• Entry 2

• Entry 3a

• Entry 3b

Read the sentence from paragraph 18:

"Dan was still crying, but the boy knew it was not from fear of him."

The author includes this sentence to...

• prove that it's ok for boys to show emotion.

• show how upset Dan's mother has made him.

• show that Dan doesn't want to be violent, even though he knows he has to be.

• show that the thief has compassion for Dan, and is concerned about the reason for his tears.

Read the dictionary entry for institution. Which meaning of institution is used in paragraph 21.

• Entry 1

• Entry 2a

• Entry 2b

• Entry 2c

What does the word livid mean in paragraph 22?

• vibrant

• sad

• cheerful

• enraged

What can the reader infer about the daughter in paragraph 25?

• She didn't like violence, but she encountered times where she had to be violent.

• The next time she told her dad about bullies at school, he went and handled them for her.

• The bully never tried to mess the daughter again.

• The daughter became violent more often, so she could be the bully instead of the victim.

What does the jungle symbolize in paragraph 27?

• the playground

• the Bronx

• the real world

• the neighborhood

Why does the author compare the child to a fawn in paragraph 26?

• to emphasize the child's defenselessness

• to highlight the child's hidden strength

• to justify the child's violent behavior

• to emphasize child's size