Nov. - Week 2

Line 18 shows that the speaker –

• wants to get to the end of the game quickly

• questions if his best friend is really that good at checkers

• knows he should have chosen another friend

• is concerned about what his friend has done

How can the reader tell that this is a free verse poem?

• The lines of the poem do not have a regular rhyme scheme

• The lines of the poem have a regular rhyming pattern

• The poem uses imagery and visual pictures to describe events

• The poem tells a story with characters and a setting

A synonym for the word choose in line 3 is –

• reject

• select

• ask

• refuse

The poet uses the line below mainly to show that the speaker is feeling –

This friendship...would it last?

• angry

• embarrassed

• careless

• upset

What is the main message of the poem?

• Friendship is something you have to work at.

• A true friend is always honest.

• Some events in life are difficult to win.

• Competition can often tear friendships apart.

In the poem, which words does the author use to help the reader imagine the speaker’s experience at the beginning of the game?

• started out friendly

• had me beaten

• would it last

• brains were in a stew

The speaker is upset when –

• he can’t think of a game to play

• Grover cheats on a test

• his friend is not honest

• he plays checkers

By the end of the poem, the reader realizes that the speaker –

• needs to be a better friend

• does not know whether his friendship can be saved

• is able to use his imagination to guess about the next move in the game

• calls a more honest friend over to play the next game of checkers

A synonym for the word mend in line 20 is –

• break

• sew

• stitch

• repair

Read lines 4, 5, and 6 from the poem.

It was debated

as we waited

our brains were in a stew.

The poet uses these lines mainly to help the reader imagine what the decision the two boys had to make at the beginning of the poem –

• sounds like

• smells like

• feels like

• looks like