"Morning Talk" + "Immigrant Picnic"

In “Morning Talk,” why does the speaker tell the robin that it should be called a red-breasted thrush?

• This bird is a Jis ko ko.

• The true robins live in England.

• Bird watchers insist that robins cannot talk.

• Red-breasted thrushes are immigrants.

Which word or words best describe the speaker in “Morning Talk”? Choose two options.

• turtle

• gardener

• European

• Native American

• red-breasted thrush

What is the central, or main, focus of “Immigrant Picnic”?

• conversations and jokes at a picnic

• the meaning of a national holiday

• confusions and connections among words

• methods of grilling hamburgers and hot dogs

If it can be said that a person chirruped to her friends, which of the following must be true?

• She was ignoring them.

• She was amused by them.

• She was very angry with them.

• She was communicating with them.

If a person pipes in during a conversation, which of the following actions would that person most likely be doing?

• telling the group to be quiet

• adding a comment

• making a joke

• shouting

In “Morning Talk,” readers witness the following exchange.

[from the speaker] “. . . They claim / you are misnamed and that we ought / to call you ‘a red-breasted thrush’ / because you are / indigenous.” (lines 11–15)

[from the robin] “Your people didn’t come / from Europe or even India. / The turtles say you’re a relative / to red clay on this great island.” (lines 25–28)

How does this exchange relate most clearly to a theme, or lesson, of “Morning Talk”?

• It indicates that animals are often wiser than the smartest person.

• It suggests that many animals can speak if we learn to listen to them.

• It suggests that it is not what people call us that makes us who we are.

• It proves that there are many things that one can learn by contemplating nature.

How do you know that the family members in “Immigrant Picnic” are probably new to America?

• The way to grill hot dogs is a mystery to them.

• The speaker wears a hat shaped like Pennsylvania.

• They are celebrating the Fourth of July with a picnic.

• They do not use common American sayings correctly.

In “Morning Talk,” how are the speaker and the robin alike?

• Both are native to America.

• Both travel north each spring.

• Both immigrated from Europe.

• Both have come from far away.

In which excerpt from “Immigrant Picnic” is the first line most clearly enjambed?

• I put on hamburgers and hot dogs, / slice up the sour pickles and Bermudas. . . . (lines 14–15)

• "You're running around," my mother says, / "like a chicken with its head loose." (lines 18–19)

• She gives me a quizzical look as though / I've been caught in some impropriety. (lines 23–24)

• That's not the point I begin telling them, / and I'm comparing words to fish now. . . . (lines 28–29)

In which excerpt from “Morning Talk” is the first line end-stopped?

• of the garden. Pink and yellow / firecracker zinnias, rough green (lines 3–4)

• "I've heard you're not / THE REAL ROBIN. Bird watchers have" (lines 8–9)

• "lives in England. They claim / your are misnamed and that we ought" (lines 11–12)

• "Look who's talking!" he chirruped. / "Your people didn't come" (lines 24–25)