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WorksheetsThe Medicine Bag - Comprehension Questions
Total questions: 22
Worksheet time: 11mins
In 'The Medicine Bag,' how does Grandpa arrive at the narrator’s home?
He is driving an old, dust-covered car.
He is riding in the back of an old pickup truck.
He is traveling to the narrator’s home in a police car.
He is walking down the street with dogs following him.
In 'The Medicine Bag,' why does Grandpa say he has arrived for a surprise visit with the family?
He wants to see where his only existing descendants live, and he wants to give Martin the medicine bag.
He feels that death is now very near, and he wants to be buried where his only existing relatives live.
He wants to teach his grandchildren lessons that will help them respect the old ways.
He wants to see his family in person to discuss the resentment he has felt for years.
In 'The Medicine Bag,' why does Grandpa collapse after arriving at the house?
He has been injured in an attack by dogs.
He is shocked by life in the suburbs.
He is overcome with grief.
He has heat exhaustion.
As Grandpa explains in 'The Medicine Bag,' how is the medicine bag to be passed down from generation to generation?
only through chiefs
only through males
only through females
only through firstborn children
In "The Medicine Bag," why is the pouch referred to as a medicine bag?
It holds rocks that carry magical energy.
It holds leaves that can overcome sickness.
It holds items that protect and guide the wearer.
It holds powders needed in the work of a Lakota shaman.
Which of the following words gives the most likely meaning of wearily as it is used in this sentence? After a ten-mile hike, we ate an early dinner and then climbed wearily into our tents.
sadly
tiredly
playfully
carefully
If Kris asks a question sheepishly, how does she ask it?
in a bold way
in a clever way
in an annoying way
in an embarrassed way
Which person best demonstrates the meaning of frail?
a famous athlete signing autographs
a sickly person being helped up the stairs
a shopper complaining about poor service in a store
a middle-school student taking high-school math classes
In 'The Medicine Bag,' before Grandpa comes to visit, how does the narrator feel about talking to his friends about his Lakota grandfather?
He makes fun of how Grandpa dresses and where he lives to amuse his friends.
He becomes angry when the other children make fun of Grandpa’s heritage.
He likes the fact that his stories about Grandpa appeal to the other kids.
He never reveals to his friends that Grandpa is a Lakota.
Which quotation from 'The Medicine Bag' best supports how Martin likes talking about his grandpa before his visit?
He was my great-grandfather, and he didn’t live in a tipi; he lived all by himself in a part log, part tar-paper shack on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota.
Our friends, who had always lived in the city and only knew about Indians from movies and TV, were impressed by our stories.
He taught me a Lakota chant to sing while I beat the drum with a leather-covered stick that had a feather on the end.
We never showed our friends Grandpa’s picture.
Which statement most clearly describes Martin in the early part of 'The Medicine Bag'?
Martin worries about his friends’ opinions.
Martin is cruel and insensitive toward others.
Martin appreciates and respects Grandpa’s behavior.
He never reveals to his friends that Grandpa is a Lakota.
Which sentence from 'The Medicine Bag' best supports how grandpa is described by Martin early on?
Maybe we exaggerated and made Grandpa and the reservation sound glamorous….
We usually had some authentic Lakota article to show our listeners.
I watched the group as it slowly came closer and saw that in the center of the strange procession was a man wearing a tall black hat.
His getup wasn’t out of place on the reservation, but it sure was here, and I wanted to sink right through the pavement.
Which quotation from 'The Medicine Bag' shows most clearly that Cheryl’s reaction to Grandpa’s visit differs from Martin’s?
My kid sister, Cheryl, and I always bragged about our Lakota grandpa, Joe Iron Shell.
As we supported him up the steps, the door banged open and Cheryl came bursting out of the house.
So even after she married my dad, who’s not an Indian, and after Cheryl and I were born, Mom made sure that every summer we spent a week with Grandpa.
Nothing bothered Cheryl about bringing her friends to see Grandpa.
Near the end of 'The Medicine Bag,' Grandpa gives Martin the medicine bag and says, '[You] need not wear it.' What do these words show most clearly about Grandpa’s thinking?
Grandpa knows that the medicine bag has power even if Martin does not wear it.
Grandpa realizes that the medicine bag will be more meaningful at a later time.
Grandpa feels sad that Martin does not want to wear the medicine bag.
Grandpa understands that Martin is uncomfortable about his heritage.
At the end of 'The Medicine Bag,' for which of the following is the medicine bag most clearly a symbol? Choose two options.
Martin’s desire to please his friends
Martin’s respect for his grandfather
Martin’s dislike for his Lakota heritage
Martin’s acceptance of his family heritage
Martin’s feelings of embarrassment about Grandpa
In "The Medicine Bag," Grandpa describes a piece of iron his father once found. What does the piece of iron most likely symbolize?
his father’s purpose in life
his father’s death in a coming war
his father’s distrust of white people
his father’s refusal to learn from his elders
Which quotation from "The Medicine Bag" most clearly supports the purpose of the piece of iron?
He did not understand his vision of finding something belonging to the white people, for in that time they were the enemy.
At first Iron Shell resisted the teachers’ attempts to change him, and he did not try.
As he walked into the place, he knew that his medicine had brought him there to learn and work with the white man’s iron.
I kept the bag until my son, your mother’s father, was a man and had to leave us to fight in the war across the ocean.
Given the context clues in this sentence, and your understanding of how a bear might behave, which is the best choice for the meaning of bearish?
When we interrupted Mr. Lee, he glared at us and uttered a bearish “Wait until I’m finished.”
sudden or unexpected
rough or grumpy
deeply angry
very hungry
The Latin word porcus means “hog or pig.” What kind of behavior would most likely be described as porcine?
speaking in a loud voice
eating greedily and sloppily
acting superior to other people
showing fear at signs of danger
Which sentence shows the use of the passive voice?
Pablo accepted his uncle’s gift.
The story was told by the tribal elders.
The young man set out on a vision quest.
It is important that we care for aging relatives.
Which sentence shows the use of the active voice?
We dressed in traditional clothes for the party.
Sara’s robe and headband were made by her aunt.
Miranda’s outfit was purchased at an outdoor market.
My own clothes were given to me by my mother.
What is the best way to rewrite this sentence using the active voice?
My grandfather was given an award by a local college for his book on Lakota history.
Lakota history was the subject of a book my grandfather wrote.
A local college gave my grandfather an award for his book on Lakota history.
My grandfather wanted to be given an award by a local college and so wrote a book.
The award my grandfather was given came from a college and was about Lakota history.
