The Ravine Questions

Based on lines 35-39 of The Ravine, what is the meaning of "winced?"

• He was in pain.

• He was uncomfortable.

• He was scared.

• He was embarrassed.

PART A: How does Vinny respond when he’s waiting for Starlene to jump?

• He’s cheering her on, hoping she lands safely.

• He screams and tells her to get down.

• He watches intently while silently hoping she lands safely.

• He gets out of the water to go jump next.

PART B: What piece of evidence supports your answer to Part A?

• “Let’s go,” Joe-Boy said. “They’re there already.”

• “But then Starlene and Joe-Boy said, ‘Come with us anyway. You let your mommy run your life, or what?”

• “Mo jumped, then Joe-Boy, then Vinny.”

• “She has no fear, Vinny thought, no fear at all. Pleasepleaseplease, Starlene.”

Reread lines 93-102. How does this part of the story move the plot forward?

• Now that Vinny has jumped off the smaller ledge, he should be able to jump off the bigger one.

• Vinny is contemplating whether or not he should jump from the smaller ledge.

• Vinny jumped and didn’t discover the dead boy, so he wanted to go higher instead.

• Vinny jumped off the smaller ledge, but knew that he still had to face the higher ledge.

PART A: What is Vinny’s point of view about his mom’s rules?

• It angers him.

• He agrees completely.

• He disagrees and thinks her view makes no sense because he doesn't believe in ghosts.

• He's embarrassed, but agrees that it's haunted.

PART B: What is one piece of evidence that supports your answer for PART A?

• “But if he’d said, ‘I can’t go, my mother won’t like it,” they would have laughed him right off the island.”

• “His mother would kill him if she ever heard about where he’d come.”

• “And Vinny said, ‘What if I get caught?’ and Joe-Boy said, ‘So?’”

• “Vinny decided he’d better believe in the legend. If he didnt, the goddess might get mad and send him bad luck.”

What is one reason that Vinny’s mom doesn’t want him at the pond?

• She doesn't want him to die, too.

• She thinks the stone goddess will haunt him.

• She believes the pond is haunted.

• She doesn't like Vinny's friends.

What is the most important theme of the story?

• Make your own choices.

• Take risks.

• Be a supportive and loyal friend.

• Listen to your mother.

PART A: Why is the setting important to the story?

• Because the ravine is where all the events take place.

• Because the conflict centers on the real potential for danger in the jungle ravine.

• Because without the boy dying there, there wouldn't be a story.

• Because it helps visualize Vinny's fears.

PART B: What evidence supports your answer to Part A?

• "The whole place smelled of mud and ginger and iron.”

• “The cold mountain water tasted tangy. Was it because the boy’s body was down there decomposing?”

• “They took their time because the hand and footholds were slimy with moss.”

• “Her shriek echoed off the rocky cliff, then died in the dense green jungle.”