Medicine Bag Critical Thinking Questions

Which statement expresses the main theme of "The Medicine Bag"?

• One's culture and the traditions associated with it are something to proud of, not ashamed.

• Younger generations tend to not have the same respect for traditions that the older generation do.

• People can often be cruel or unkind towards people and practices that they don't understand.

• Physical objects can help people feel connected to their loved ones, even once they are gone.

Tags

CCSS.RL.8.2

Which detail from the text best supports the answer to the previous question?

One's culture and the traditions associated with it are something to proud of, not ashamed.

• "Our friends would have laughed at the picture, because Grandpa wasn't tall and stately like TV Indians" (Paragraph 3).

• "To Grandpa and the Sioux, he once told me, a thing would be done when it was the right time to do it and that's the way it was. / 'Also,' Grandpa went on, looking at me, 'I have come because it is soon time for Martin to have the medicine bag" (Paragraphs 39-40).

• "'I gave him the bag, for I believed it would protect him in battle, but he did not take it with him. He was afraid that he would lose it. He died in a faraway place'" (Paragraph 72).

• "'Thank you, Grandpa,' I said softly, and left with the bag in my hands. / That night Mom and Dad took Grandpa to the hospital. Two weeks later I stood alone on the lonely prairie of the reservation and put the sacred sage in my medicine bag" (Paragraphs 82-83).

How does hearing his grandpa's story about the medicine bag affect Martin?

• It causes him to believe his grandpa about the medicine bag's protective powers.

• It makes him fearful of what might happen if he refuses to wear the medicine bag.

• It helps him understand the significance of the medicine bag and be more accepting of wearing it.

• It causes him to be skeptical about whether or not the medicine bag can truly protect him.

Tags

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.8.3

Which quote from the text best supports the answer to the previous question?

It helps him understand the significance of the medicine bag and be more accepting of wearing it.

• "'He was afraid that he would lose it. He died in a faraway place'" (Paragraph 72).

• "Again Grandpa was still and I felt his grief around me" (Paragraph 73).

• "I closed my eyes and waited for him to slip it over my head" (Paragraph 78).

• "'It would not be right to wear it in this time and place, where no one will understand'" (Paragraph 79).

In the passage, how do Martin and Cheryl's points of view towards their grandpa compare?

• Martin and Cheryl are both embarrassed by how their grandpa presents himself.

• Martin and Cheryl are both proud of their grandpa and his culture.

• Martin is proud of his grandpa, hwile Cheryl is embarrrassed by how he dresses.

• Martin is initially embarrassed by his grandpa, while Cheryl is unbothered.

Which section from the text best supports the answer to the previous question?

Martin is initially embarrassed by his grandpa, while Cheryl is unbothered.

• "My kid sister Cheryl and I always bragged about our Sioux grandpa, Joe Iron Shell" (Paragraph 1).

• "Not that we were ashamed of him, but because we knew that the glamorous tales we told didn't go with the real thing" (Paragraph 3).

• "As we supported him up the steps, the door banged open and Cheryl came bursting out of the house. She was all smiles and was so obviously glad to see Grandpa that I was ashamed of how I felt" (Paragraph 17).

• "But it had been brushed and the feather in the beaded headband was proudly erect, its tip a brighter white. His hair la in silver strands over the red shirt collar" (Paragraph 49).