Independent Read: Learning to Read

Use Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass to answer the following question.

Douglass was “making friends of all the little white boys” (paragraph 1) most likely because________. (8.5F) (8.5G) (8.6C)

• he did not want to be seen with any fellow enslaved people

• he knew that they could read and he could not

• he did not know what to do with his extra bread

• he hoped that one of them could convince his owner to free him

Use Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass to answer the following question.

Which is most closely a central idea of this excerpt? (8.5F) (8.5G) (8.6C)

• No one felt sorry for the condition of enslaved people except for enslaved people themselves.

• Reading cannot change how you feel about things.

• The process of self-discovery can be a painful one.

• Children should not be learning about adult subjects.

Use Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass to answer the following question.

Douglass believed that learning to read would be a valuable skill. In paragraph 4 he calls reading “that more valuable bread of knowledge.” Which of the following statements supports why he feels that way? (8.6C)

• “I finally succeeded in learning how to write.”

• Reading helped Douglass form his own ideas and argue against slavery.

• “I looked forward to the time at which it would be safe for me to escape.”

• “Every opportunity I got, I used to read this book.”

Use Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass to answer the following question.

Determine the best meaning of the word bear as used in paragraph 5.(8.2B)

• to carry

• to bring forth or produce

• to endure

• to weigh on or burden

Use “Learning to Read” to answer the following question.

Which of the following inferences is best supported by the opening stanza of the poem? (8.5F) (8.5G) (8.6C)

Very soon the Yankee teachers

Came down and set up school;

But, oh! how the Rebs did hate it,—

It was agin’ their rule.

• The narrator is a Yankee teacher.

• Setting up schools is the main focus of the Yankees.

• Education of former slaves faces strong local opposition.

• The schools are being set up during a time of war.

Use “Learning to Read” to answer the following question.

Which of the following lines best describes the kinds of actions slaves would take in order to educate themselves? (8.5G) (8.6C) (8.7B)

• “Our masters always tried to hide/Book learning from our eyes;”

• “Well, the Northern folks kept sending/The Yankee teachers down;”

• “And I longed to read my Bible,/For precious words it said;”

• “And greased the pages of his book,/And hid it in his hat.”

Use “Learning to Read” to answer the following question.

What do the descriptions of the chances the slaves took, learning to read, suggest about them? (8.5F) (8.6C)

• They were too afraid to take any chances and stayed illiterate.

• They were happy to remain illiterate.

• They believed that knowledge didn’t agree with slavery.

• They were persistent in learning how to read.

Use “Learning to Read” to answer the following question.

Why does the author use the simile as a queen upon her throne at the end of the poem? (8.9D)

• To let the reader know that Chloe was proud of her successes.

• To let the reader know that Chloe was too old to learn to read.

• To let the reader know how the slave masters ruled.

• To let the reader know that the Yankees were smart teachers.

Use “Learning to Read” to answer the following question.

Read the dictionary entry. (8.2A)

leaves /lēvz/

1. Flattened structures of plants

2. Printed sheets of paper

3. Permission to be absent from duty

Which definition best matches the way the word leaves is used on line 18?

17 And had his master ever seen

18 The leaves upon his head,

19 He’s have thought them greasy papers,

20 But nothing to be read.

• Definition 1

• Definition 2

• Definition 3

• None of the above

Use both "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass" and "Learning to Read" to answer the following question.

Which idea about persistence is expressed throughout both selections? (8.5E)

• The less that you know, the less that you will worry about something.

• It’s advisable to give up when the situation becomes difficult.

• It’s easy to take risks when you have supportive friends.

• The risks it took to gain knowledge was worth the hard work.