B The artists who painted signs crossing out the dictator's face.

C The school officials who contacted families during emergencies.

D The citizens who risked their own safety to hide and feed others.

3. According to Celeste's journal, what is the symbolic purpose of Tía Graciela's conch shell collection?

A To serve as quiet, secure containers for her deep sorrows.

B To decorate the table centerpieces for future dinner parties.

C To listen to the sea echoes of her past childhood home.

D To trade with the local mailman for international letters.

4. How does the novel Little Women inspire Celeste over the summer on Juliette Cove?

A It inspires her to learn how to knit colorful winter scarves.

B It encourages her to connect with Jo, a character who wants to write.

C It teaches her recipes to bake empanadas for her neighbors.

D It helps her understand the political history of North America.

5. What momentous news does Tía Graciela receive that allows them to return to Chile?

A A letter has arrived proving Celeste's parents are in Spain.

B The General has died, meaning they can safely return home.

C The spring climate has finally arrived on Butterfly Hill.

D Mr. John Carter offered to drive them across the border.

I Lived on Butterfly Hill • Student Workbook Page 2 of 3

Butterfly Hill Workbook Student Name: _________________

Part 3

Open-Ended Inference & Analysis

Answer the following analysis questions in complete sentences. Support your inferences with specific text details, explaining character growth, emotional coping, and symbols.

Question 1: Cultivating Connection

How do Celeste's actions (making shell necklaces and a whale paperweight, and hosting a dinner party) shift her relationships with Meg, Valerie, and Charlie? What do these hand-crafted gifts reveal about how she bridges her Chilean culture with her life in Maine?

Question 2: Finding Sanctuary in the Seasons

Why does Celeste make the intentional choice to throw away her bedroom calendar? What does it mean for an exile to stop counting the exact number of days of separation and instead measure time by the cycle of the seasons?

Question 3: Looking Up to Move Forward

At the end of the text, Celeste observes that she loves the stars of the Northern Hemisphere almost as much as her Southern sky. What does this reveal about her personal growth, and how does the brilliant green planet (emerald) symbolize her upcoming journey back home?

I Lived on Butterfly Hill • Student Workbook Page 3 of 3

B It encourages her to connect with Jo, a character who wants to write. (Correct Option)

Celeste strongly aligns her identity with Jo March, an eccentric tomboy who uses writing and creative imagination to express herself.

5. What momentous news does Tía Graciela receive that allows them to return to Chile?

B The General has died, meaning they can safely return home. (Correct Option)

A late-night call from Spain announces the General is dead, triggering plans for a joyous, immediate return to Valparaíso.

Butterfly Hill Study Reference Key Page 2 of 3

Butterfly Hill Reference Key Part 3: Grading Rubric

Part 3

Open-Ended Inference Grading Rubric

Question 1: Cultivating Connection (Exemplar Rubric)

Full Credit Criteria: Student identifies that Celeste's dinner acts as a bridge from feeling like isolated "outsiders" to finding "belonging". Hand-crafted presents (shell necklaces and the whale paperweight) show how she shares elements of her culture—which values giving gifts for no reason—to foster deep connection.

Exemplar Answer: At the lighthouse, Celeste starts feeling included through shared play and Valerie's vulnerability about cancer. However, her dinner party turns this tentative connection into stable friendship. By making authentic pesto pasta and crafting gifts from local shells and stones, she translates Chilean traditions of unprovoked generosity to Maine, causing her peers to actively apologize for past bias.

Question 2: Finding Sanctuary in the Seasons (Exemplar Rubric)

Full Credit Criteria: Student infers that counting precise days (647 days of exile) keeps Celeste trapped in stubborn sadness. Throwing away the calendar is a psychological shift from counting days of separation to flowing with the cyclical rhythm of nature, promoting growth and acceptance.

Exemplar Answer: By throwing away her calendar, Celeste stops viewing exile as a prison sentence where every day represents pain and distance. Measuring time by the seasons, like Abuela Frida, allows her to recognize that change is natural, vast, and cyclical. It helps her understand that like the deep-rooted Andes Mountains, she can root herself deeply in Maine and continue growing.

Question 3: Looking Up to Move Forward (Exemplar Rubric)

Full Credit Criteria: Student observes that loving Northern stars shows Celeste has integrated both homes (Chile and Maine) into her identity. The green emerald planet symbolizes her mother, Esmeralda, and acts as a brilliant celestial welcome home.

Exemplar Answer: Celeste's appreciation of Northern constellations indicates she has grown beyond resentment; she has come to love her home in Maine. The emerald-green planet, which reminds her of her mother's name, Esmeralda, acts as a guiding celestial lighthouse, representing hope, healing, and her long-awaited physical reunion in Chile.

Butterfly Hill Study Reference Key Page 3 of 3

The email carries an underlying tone of longing and frustration as Kaede begs his father to call him or meet them in Osaka, offering to leave Shoma early to avoid being a burden. This written message highlights the painful contrast between Shoma's active, daily efforts to show Kaede around Tokyo and their father's chronic, remote absence. Through his writing, Kaede attempts to bridge the emotional distance, desperately seeking a guide for his school project and a father who is physically present.

Bullet Train Revelations

Aboard the shinkansen speeding from Tokyo to Osaka, Kaede watches the landscape transform from concrete gray into brilliant fields of green and blue, reminding him intensely of Vancouver's rainy, lush environment. This physical transition prompts a deep reflection on the true meaning of the common phrase "blood is thicker than water." Kaede recalls his friend Vincent explaining that the phrase originally referred to the blood spilled by soldiers in battle, making it a statement about choosing chosen friendships over biological family ties.

The peaceful journey takes an awkward turn when Shoma notices how incredibly heavy and overpacked Kaede's backpack is for a simple two-day trip. Shoma immediately understands that Kaede brought all of his belongings because he is terrified of being left behind or sent away to their father's house, sparking a painful conversation about family neglect. Shoma sincerely apologizes for failing to stay in touch as he got older, admitting that he is still trying to learn how to be a brother, while Kaede finds comfort in reading Shoma's articles and listening to his music.

Bridge of Lights

Arriving in the neon-drenched district of Dotonbori, Osaka, Shoma treats Kaede to an expensive hotel stay and introduces him to the unique regional differences of the Kansai area. As they walk over the famous Ebisu Bridge beneath the massive Glico running man sign, Kaede notes the distinct Kansai-ben dialect and the flipped escalator etiquette compared to Tokyo. He reflects on how his father chose to hide from his family after their move to Canada, and how his mother hid her deep resentment to protect Kaede from the pain of rejection.

Standing above the colorful canal, Kaede finds a light one-yen aluminum coin and nudges it into the dark water, wishing desperately that his mother were there with them. This wish sparks a comforting conversation about their mother's childhood visit to Osaka for real takoyaki, allowing the brothers to connect through shared memory. Before leaving the bridge, they snap silly selfies together and empty their pockets of bronze and silver coins, naming each wish they cast into the water, finding a guiding light in the vibrant city.

Home Literary Companion Page 2 of 3

Literary Study Companion

Home Study Companion

Finding Roots Unit Chapter Summaries

Backstage Scars

Waiting backstage at a live music venue in Osaka, Kaede writes a raw letter to his father, comparing his habit of checking his phone for missed calls to a child pick-marking chicken pox scabs. He notes that Shoma has been forced to act like a parent to make up for his father's absence, carrying the weight of familial responsibility alone. The fragrant floral bouquets in the dressing room trigger a sudden, painful memory of his mother's funeral, recalling how Shoma was the one who actually ordered the sunflower arrangement.

Despite his deep-seated pain, Kaede confesses that he is slowly working his father's neglect out of his system, viewing his father as a blind spot he must carefully navigate around. Looking out at the ecstatic crowd and musicians, Kaede realizes that music, writing, and hockey are all unique forms of "home" that offer powerful safety alongside extreme vulnerability. He concludes that his father's constant urge to escape was a tragic failure to look at the faces of his family, missing the ultimate sense of home that was always right in front of him.

Let Me Write in Private

In a brief email to his teacher Mr. Zaher, Kaede asks for a crucial change to his Summer Celebration Project on the theme of home. He politely requests that his writing not be included in the public school display, explaining that the writing process has forced him to explore thoughts and memories that feel too private to share. This message shows Kaede's growing maturity and boundary-setting as he navigates the complex intersection of public school expectations and private, heavy emotional healing.

By asking to keep his journal entries private, Kaede demonstrates a profound understanding of his own limits, realizing that some roots are meant to grow silently in the dark. He accepts the importance of the project but asserts control over his own narrative, refusing to allow his grief to be turned into a public spectacle. This quiet rebellion marks a major step in Kaede's healing process, showing that he is no longer just running away or fighting, but actively protecting his own emotional sanctuary.

Key Themes for Reflection

Defining Home: How does Kaede's understanding of "home" expand beyond a physical building to encompass music, relationships, and chosen family? The Power of Kotodama: How does Kaede's email to Mr. Zaher reflect the belief that words have spirit and power, and must be treated with care?

Home Literary Companion Page 3 of 3

A A successful concert performance for the band Interpunct.

B A ticket to ride the high-speed shinkansen to Hokkaido.

C Forgiveness and mercy for his injured friend, Jory.

D An extension of his summer school project deadline.

3. According to Vincent's research, what does "blood is thicker than water" originally signify?

A The importance of biological family ties over friendships.

B The decision to value chosen friendships over family bonds.

C The physical cost of playing intense contact hockey games.

D The geographical distance between Japan and Vancouver.

4. Why does Kaede write an email to his teacher, Mr. Zaher, about his school project?

A He needs to request a new writing notebook.

B He wants to change his project topic from "home" to "art."

C He wants to request that his personal writing remain private.

D He is asking for permission to visit a temple during school.

5. What does the floral arrangement at the live music venue remind Kaede of?

A His grandfather's beautiful garden back in Vancouver.

B The wild fields of Hokkaido that his father photographed.

C The sunflowers at his mother's funeral, ordered by Shoma.

D The beautiful decor of the Shinjuku hotel lobby.

Home Study Unit • Student Workbook Page 2 of 3

Home Study Workbook Student Name: _________________

Part 3

Open-Ended Inference & Analysis

Answer the following analysis questions in complete sentences. Support your inferences with specific details from the chapter summaries, focusing on emotional truth and themes of family.

Question 1: Sibling Connections and Guilt

Why does Shoma's effort to help and guide Kaede in Japan make things "harder" for Kaede, while simultaneously keeping him afloat? What does Shoma's apology on the bullet train reveal about his character and his growth as an older brother?

Question 2: Checking the Scabs of Abandonment

Explain the metaphor Kaede uses when comparing his habit of checking his phone for his father's calls to a child pick-marking chicken pox scabs. What does this suggest about the process of emotional healing and dealing with chronic neglect?

Question 3: Alternative Spheres of "Home"

At the music venue in Osaka, Kaede observes that writing, playing hockey, and performing onstage are all unique forms of "home." How do these active, creative outlets provide both intense safety and extreme vulnerability for those who participate in them?

Home Study Unit • Student Workbook Page 3 of 3

As Kaede's journal explores raw, painful truths about his mother and father, he sets boundaries to keep his writing private and off public display.

5. What does the floral arrangement at the live music venue remind Kaede of?

C The sunflowers at his mother's funeral, ordered by Shoma. (Correct Option)

Seeing dressing room flowers immediately brings back the painful memory of his mother's funeral and the sunflowers his brother ordered.

Home Study Reference Key Page 2 of 3

Home Reference Key Part 3: Grading Rubric

Part 3

Open-Ended Inference Grading Rubric

Question 1: Sibling Connections and Guilt (Exemplar Rubric)

Full Credit Criteria: Student analyzes that Shoma's care makes Kaede feel "harder" because it highlights the heavy responsibility and guilt of loss, but keeps him afloat by showing there is family who cares. Shoma's apology reveals he has matured and accepts responsibility for his past emotional distance.

Exemplar Answer: Shoma's active efforts make Kaede feel uncomfortable because they showcase the painful contrast with their neglectful father. However, Shoma's presence provides a vital safety net. Shoma's bullet-train confession and sincere apology show that he is breaking their family pattern of avoidance, actively committing to learn how to be a supportive brother rather than a "ghost."

Question 2: Checking the Scabs of Abandonment (Exemplar Rubric)

Full Credit Criteria: Student explains that Kaede compares checking his phone for missed fatherly calls to pick-marking chicken pox scabs. This suggests that checking is a bad habit that prevents healing, constantly reopening raw wounds of neglect and resulting in permanent emotional "scars."

Exemplar Answer: Kaede's metaphor reveals that his compulsive need to check for his father's presence is actually keeping his grief raw. Much like picking at physical scabs prevents skin from healing and leaves permanent scars, his bad habit of expecting his father to suddenly care only reopens the pain of abandonment. Healing requires him to stop picking at this emotional wound.

Question 3: Alternative Spheres of "Home" (Exemplar Rubric)

Full Credit Criteria: Student identifies that creative/athletic arenas (onstage, hockey rinks, writing rooms) function as homes because they offer immediate safety, power, and escape from domestic grief, but are also vulnerable because participants must expose their true selves.

Exemplar Answer: Active, creative endeavors provide sanctuary because they allow individuals like Kaede (hockey) and Shoma (writing) to feel strong, focused, and powerful in their environment. However, these spheres are dual-edged; they require participants to expose their passion, struggles, and authentic selves, making them sites of deep, courageous emotional vulnerability.

Home Study Reference Key Page 3 of 3

Unbound Liberty Study Companion Page 1 of 3

Literary Study Companion

Amal Unbound Companion

Aisha Saeed Chapter Summaries

Standing Up to Authority

The following day, Amal is left alone to iron and sort Nasreen Baji's extensive wardrobe while her mistress is away visiting prospective brides for Jawad Sahib. While gathering fresh flowers on the verandah, Amal hears a loud, demanding knock on the front door and watches Bilal turn pale with terror as he looks out the window. Bilal stammers that the police have arrived while Jawad Sahib is away, and two intimidating officers saunter past him into the foyer, wielding batons and steel guns.

The arrogant officers mock Bilal and immediately begin tracking muddy footprints across the estate's pristine cream carpet, completely disregarding the servants' presence. Horrified by their behavior and determined not to let them get the servants in trouble, Amal boldly steps forward and warns the officers that Jawad Sahib will be furious to find his property disrupted. When the taller officer threatens Amal and demands she mind her own business, she stands her ground, pointing directly at their muddy boots just as Jawad Sahib and Nasreen Baji return. Jawad Sahib swiftly asserts his dominance over the officers, who quickly back down and leave, prompting Nasreen Baji to praise Amal for her rare and difficult courage.

The Hidden Library

Later that afternoon, Amal enters the kitchen carrying Nasreen Baji's empty lunch tray and finds Hamid patting down fresh dough for rotis while Fatima and Nabila prepare the plates. Hamid and Bilal express their deep admiration for Amal's bravery in standing up to the aggressive police officers, noting that most servants simply freeze in fear around such authority figures. The shared experience creates an immediate bond of respect and trust among the estate staff, making Amal feel truly accepted.

Seeking to repay Amal for saving them, Bilal and Nabila pull her aside and offer a life-changing reward: access to the estate's extensive book collection. Nabila leads Amal down the hall to the library and pulls aside a heavy filing cabinet, revealing a hidden bookshelf wedged behind it containing books Jawad Sahib has completely forgotten. Overcoming her initial fear of falling into another one of Nabila's traps, Amal is filled with pure ecstasy, realizing that the incredible risk of secretly reading and keeping her mind alive is entirely worth it.

Fizzy Sodas and Forbidden Pages

A month passes, and Amal has successfully read seven secret books with Bilal and Nabila acting as her loyal lookouts. One morning, young Fatima enters Amal's room and, seeing her with a book titled *God's Own Land*, shyly asks if she could learn to read such books someday. Amal reassures Fatima that reading will soon become as natural as breathing, and reads the complicated story aloud, deeply moved by how intently the young girl hangs on to every word.

Later, Nabila and Mumtaz invite Amal to join them on a charpai on the rain-drizzled verandah, offering her a cold bottle of cola as a treat. The simple gathering sparks a warm, healing conversation as they joke about erupting sodas and share stories of their families back home. Mumtaz reveals she chose to live and work at the estate after her husband passed away because her in-laws' home was far worse, prompting Amal to realize that many women make difficult, unfair choices to survive. The peaceful afternoon ends on a note of hope as Nabila praises Amal for teaching Fatima to read, and Mumtaz encourages Nabila to learn as well.

Unbound Liberty Study Companion Page 2 of 3

Literary Study Companion

Amal Unbound Companion

Aisha Saeed Chapter Summaries

The Road to Lahore and Home

When Nasreen Baji's friend Zeba cancels a shopping trip to Lahore, the lonely mistress decides to take Amal along with her in her black town car. As they drive past vast cotton fields, orange groves, and sugarcane fields, Amal is shocked to see her old neighborhood and school flit past the darkened window. Spotting her fruit vendor friend Shaukat outside the open-air market, Amal is overcome by a sudden, aching sense of grief and nostalgia, realizing that her precious memories of home are starting to grow distant.

In Lahore, Amal is overwhelmed by the bustling, vibrant city filled with rickshaws, towering Urdu billboards, and active political protests demanding the jail of Judge Barsi. During their trip back, Nasreen Baji is shocked to discover that Jawad Sahib confiscated Amal's phone when she arrived, leaving her mother sick with worry. Moved by motherly concern, Nasreen Baji grants Amal three days of leave to return home for Hafsa's sister's wedding, leaving Amal in a state of speechlessness and profound anticipation as she prepares to cross the gates and see her family once more.

Key Themes for Reflection

Intellectual Sanctuary: In what ways do secret books and teaching Fatima to read serve as a form of intellectual escape and empowerment for Amal? The Power of Sisterhood: How does Mumtaz's advice help Amal and Nabila transition from rivals to allies who actively protect and support each other?

Unbound Liberty Study Companion Page 3 of 3

A The village was fully rebuilt and extremely wealthy.

B The market had been moved inside the Khan estate walls.

C Her mother and sisters were living there in secret.

D Jawad Sahib had personally destroyed the entire village.

3. How do Nabila and Bilal repay Amal for her brave actions in front of the police?

A By helping her plan a secret escape back to her home.

B By offering her extra fresh rotis from the kitchen skillet.

C By acting as lookouts so she can secretly borrow library books.

D By cleaning the muddy footprints off the foyer carpet for her.

4. Why does Mumtaz choose to remain and work at the estate after her husband's death?

A She enjoys shopping for gold earrings and ruby bangles.

B Living with her late husband's family was a far worse alternative.

C She is secretly learning how to read Urdu books from Amal.

D The estate provides her with unlimited bottles of sweet cola.

5. What prompts Nasreen Baji to grant Amal three days of leave to return to her family?

A Amal successfully sorted and ironed all her silk saris.

B She learns that Jawad Sahib confiscated Amal's phone, worrying her mother.

C The police officers ordered that Amal be allowed to leave.

D The family has run out of space to house the household servants.

Amal Unbound • Student Workbook Page 2 of 3

Amal Unbound Workbook Student Name: _________________

Part 3

Open-Ended Inference & Analysis

Answer the following analysis questions in complete sentences. Support your inferences with specific details from the chapter summaries, focusing on themes of power, literacy, and community.

Question 1: Literacy as an Intellectual Sanctuary

Explain why Amal is willing to take the immense risk of secretly borrowing books from Jawad Sahib's library. How does turning forbidden pages and teaching young Fatima to read Urdu letters keep her mind alive and serve as a form of silent resistance?

Question 2: Solidarity and the Mitigation of Jealousy

Analyze the shift in Amal and Nabila's relationship. How does their shared vulnerability as servants, combined with Mumtaz's blunt advice on the rain-drizzled verandah, help them move past harmful jealousy and realize they must protect each other to survive?

Question 3: The Contrast of Freedom and Duty

Contrast the freedom of Nasreen Baji, who shops effortlessly in Lahore by pointing at jewelry and saris, with the role of Amal, who strains under the heavy weight of the bags. What does Nabila's warning ("your arms will feel like they'll fall off") reveal about the physical reality of Amal's servitude?

Amal Unbound • Student Workbook Page 3 of 3

Mumtaz reveals that her late husband's home was highly toxic, showing that indentured estate work can represent a relative "haven" from worse abuse.

5. What prompts Nasreen Baji to grant Amal three days of leave to return to her family?

B She learns that Jawad Sahib confiscated Amal's phone, worrying her mother. (Correct Option)

Nasreen Baji is shocked to discover that Amal's family has had zero contact with her, appealing to her motherly empathy to grant immediate home leave.

Unbound Study Reference Key Page 2 of 3

Unbound Reference Key Part 3: Grading Rubric

Part 3

Open-Ended Inference Grading Rubric

Question 1: Literacy as an Intellectual Sanctuary (Exemplar Rubric)

Full Credit Criteria: Student analyzes that literacy provides intellectual freedom and mental survival. Secretly reading and teaching Fatima represent silent, revolutionary resistance, showing that her mind remains unbound even when her body is indentured.

Exemplar Answer: Amal risks severe punishment because books provide a crucial mental escape from the crushing weight of her servitude. Reading keeps her intellect active, allowing her to "learn new things" and keep her identity alive. Teaching young Fatima and Nabila represents a quiet rebellion against the system that thrives on keeping servants illiterate and subservient.

Question 2: Solidarity and the Mitigation of Jealousy (Exemplar Rubric)

Full Credit Criteria: Student analyzes how shared trauma and Mumtaz's advice ("you both could be here forever") shift their dynamic. By recognizing they are in the same subordinate position, they realize they must choose solidarity over toxic jealousy to make life bearable.

Exemplar Answer: Nabila's initial jealousy was fueled by the master-servant class system where favor is rare and precious. However, Amal's choice to stand up to the police to protect Bilal and Nabila breaks this wall. Mumtaz's stark reminder that they share the same lifelong struggle helps them realize that solidarity, rather than divisive fighting, is their best defense.

Question 3: The Contrast of Freedom and Duty (Exemplar Rubric)

Full Credit Criteria: Student contrasts Nasreen Baji's immense class privilege and financial freedom to shop in Lahore with Amal's physical burden of carrying the bags. Nabila's warning ("your arms will feel like they'll fall off") highlights the harsh physical toll of Amal's servitude despite the scenic luxury.

Exemplar Answer: The trip to Lahore highlights the vast, unfair gap in class privilege. Nasreen Baji experiences complete, careless agency, simply pointing at gold and saris to own them. In contrast, Amal's experience is physically defined by servitude: her arms ache from the crushing weight of the bags, proving that even inside an exciting metropolis, her daily reality remains tied to labor.

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The Red Pencil Study Companion Page 1 of 3

Literary Study Companion

The Red Pencil Companion

Andrea Davis Pinkney Chapter Summaries

Starshine and the Red Pencil

The mundane routine of Kalma is transformed by the arrival of Miss Sabine, an elegant aid worker from Sudan Relief wearing a beautiful, shock-purple *toob* and possessing warm, sand-colored "starshine" eyes. The curious camp children crowd around her, and Amira's younger sister Leila is the first to reach out, playing with Miss Sabine's clanking drawstring pouch. Miss Sabine immediately notices Amira standing quietly at the edge of the crowd; recognizing her silent nature, she respects her boundaries, refusing to force her to speak while letting her comfortable silence simply be.

Miss Sabine empties her bag, spilling a clattering cascade of yellow writing sticks with sharpened charcoal tips onto the sand, which the children eagerly scramble to grab. Though Amira is too slow to claim a pencil, Miss Sabine reaches over the crowd and presses a unique *red pencil* directly into her hand, curling Amira's fingers around its middle and presenting her with paper tablets as bright as wheat in a healthy season. This small, intentional act of kindness sparks a joyful, quick-beat drumming deep inside Amira, marking the physical beginning of her intellectual and artistic recovery.

Straight and Shiny

Holding the red pencil brings a mixture of excitement and profound alienation for Amira, as the straight, shiny implement feels skinny and foreign compared to the rough drawing twigs she used in her village. When she presses the pointed end to the yellow paper, she strikes a single half-a-dash, discovering that the pencil is brilliant red on both the outside and inside. Though she initially struggles to adapt to this new drawing tool, finding it awkward and hard to hold, the small mark represents her initial return to creative self-expression.

Amira's artistic block mirrors her muteness; when she attempts to sketch her beloved, missing sheep Nali, she finds herself emotionally unable to shape her features on the yellow page. She misses Nali's warm, prodding nose and playful, tickling presence, which serves as her deepest point of grief alongside her father's loss. However, her dreams offer a canvas of escape: she dreams of climbing high up to a muted television "flicker box" on an iron pole, tearing open its screen to play and sing with her lost friend Halima, showing that her imagination remains vibrant and unbound.

The Reality of the Toob

Amira observes the harsh social realities of Sudanese women through the figure of a young child-bride, older than Amira but still a child, who is led around by her rude, smoking husband. Amal/Amira watches the husband flick a hot cigarette butt onto his young wife's traditional *toob* garment, coughing under the haze and wincing as he spits indifferently. Later, the young girl trudges through the water line, carrying heavy gallons of water to wash her husband's stained underpants with a rock.

While Muma observes this labor and gently describes it as "a wife's love," Amira's internal thoughts reject this explanation, finding nothing to love about the rude man's behavior. This observation highlights Amira's growing critical awareness of gender inequality and childhood marriage, contrasting her dreams of education with the subservient, hard lives of the married girls around her. The red pencil and yellow paper represent her primary alternative to this path, reinforcing her silent, stubborn desire to learn, read, and define her own independent destiny.

The Red Pencil Study Companion Page 2 of 3

Literary Study Companion

The Red Pencil Companion

Andrea Davis Pinkney Chapter Summaries

Sudanese Flowers

In a poignant reflection on beauty and garbage, Amira describes the colorful "Sudanese flowers" that sprout on gateposts and cling to thorny branches throughout Kalma camp. These bountiful blooms come in all colors—white, green, red, yellow, and even black—tumbling and bouncing along the dusty roads in the wind. However, she reveals the bittersweet reality that these pretty "flowers" are actually windblown scraps of plastic trash bags littering the camp's pathways.

This metaphor illustrates Amira's unique artistic perspective, showing her rare ability to find beauty and light inside the bleakest, trash-filled landscapes of a refugee camp. The plastic flowers, which do not need water and keep blooming regardless of the season, symbolize the resilient spirit of the Sudanese refugees themselves. While the trash bag scraps litter their lives and paths, Amira's observation of them highlights her internal struggle to hold onto hope and find meaning in a world covered in physical and emotional debris.

Key Themes for Reflection

Trauma and Mutism: How does Amira's physical muteness function as both a shield to protect her mother and a cage for her intense, unasked questions? Artistic Rebirth: What is the symbolic difference between Amira's old drawing twig and the "straight and shiny" red pencil given by Miss Sabine?

The Red Pencil Study Companion Page 3 of 3

B She does not want to vex or upset her grieving mother, Muma.

C The patrol guards forbid the children from speaking aloud.

D She believes the television "flicker box" will steal her voice.

3. How does Miss Sabine show respect for Amira during their first encounter?

A She forces Amira to stand at the front of the line.

B She gives her a highly coveted, colorful purple toob.

C She does not force Amira to speak, letting her silence simply be.

D She offers to drive Amira and Leila back to Khartoum.

4. What distinct gift does Miss Sabine reach over the other children to give directly to Amira?

A A physical drawing twig from the forests of Sudan.

B A red pencil and bright yellow paper tablets.

C A bottle of sweet mango juice and a fresh roti.

D A new mosquito net made of thick, protective cotton.

5. Why does Amira initially struggle to draw with the red pencil?

A The lead is black inside, rather than brilliant red.

B The intake officers confiscated the pencil before she could draw.

C It feels too thin, straight, and short compared to her drawing twig.

D The paper tablets are too dark to show red markings.

The Red Pencil • Student Workbook Page 2 of 3

The Red Pencil Workbook Student Name: _________________

Part 3

Open-Ended Inference & Analysis

Answer the following analysis questions in complete sentences. Support your inferences with specific details from the chapter summaries, explaining character motivations and symbolic elements.

Question 1: The Metaphor of the Sharp-Eared Wolf

Reflect on the elder woman's statement that Kalma is "a sharp-eared wolf that cannot be held or released." What does this vivid metaphor reveal about the psychological impact of living in a refugee camp where one can neither return home nor easily move forward?

Question 2: From Twig to Red Pencil

Contrast Amira's old village drawing twig with the "straight and shiny" red pencil given by Miss Sabine. Why does the new red pencil initially feel strange, skinny, and alien to her? How does this physical struggle symbolize her emotional block in drawing her beloved sheep, Nali?

Question 3: Silent Voice as a Protective Barrier

Analyze Amira's physical muteness. How does her silence function as a protective barrier to shield her mother from further pain, and how does this contrast with her rich, heavy internal monologue of unasked questions (such as asking Muma if she saw her father fall)?

The Red Pencil • Student Workbook Page 3 of 3

While others scramble for standard yellow sticks, Miss Sabine hands Amira a unique red pencil and a tablet of bright yellow sheets.

5. Why does Amira initially struggle to draw with the red pencil?

C It feels too thin, straight, and short compared to her drawing twig. (Correct Option)

Amira experiences alienation because the formal, mechanical tool is skinny and foreign compared to her rough village drawing twigs.

The Red Pencil Reference Key Page 2 of 3

The Red Pencil Reference Key Part 3: Grading Rubric

Part 3

Open-Ended Inference Grading Rubric

Question 1: The Metaphor of the Sharp-Eared Wolf (Exemplar Rubric)

Full Credit Criteria: Student explains that the "sharp-eared wolf" metaphor represents Kalma's dangerous, precarious, and inescapable nature. The wolf represents a dangerous beast: the camp traps its residents, exposing them to trauma, while patrolling guards and the Janjaweed make leaving or entering equally perilous.

Exemplar Answer: The "sharp-eared wolf" metaphor encapsulates the profound sense of entrapment and danger felt by the refugees. Living in Kalma binds every aspect of their existence; they cannot safely leave due to the looming threat of the Janjaweed and wild hyenas, nor can they safely enter without facing aggressive, patrolling guards. The camp functions as a dangerous beast that can turn on them at any moment, trapping them in a cycle of constant anxiety and displacement.

Question 2: From Twig to Red Pencil (Exemplar Rubric)

Full Credit Criteria: Student contrasts the familiar, natural village twig with the skinny, artificial red pencil. The physical struggle of holding the foreign pencil symbolizes her psychological block—she cannot shape the face of her missing sheep, Nali, because her deep trauma and grief over her father's loss are still too fresh and unhealed.

Exemplar Answer: Amira's old drawing twig represents her organic, rustic life on the farm, which was comfortable and familiar. The straight, skinny red pencil represents a modern, foreign tool of structured writing that initially feels alien and difficult to hold. This physical discomfort mirrors her internal trauma; she is artistically blocked from drawing her beloved sheep, Nali, because her mind is not yet ready to process the violent loss of her old life.

Question 3: Silent Voice as a Protective Barrier (Exemplar Rubric)

Full Credit Criteria: Student discusses how Amira's muteness acts as a shield to protect her fragile, grieving mother ("Muma") from further emotional distress. While her voice remains buried, her rich, hyper-active internal monologue shows she is deeply analytical, holding back heavy questions about her father's fall to prevent burdening her family.

Exemplar Answer: Amira's absolute muteness is not just a physiological reaction to shock, but an act of deep empathy and love. She realizes her mother is emotionally fragile and carrying a heavy burden; therefore, she suppresses her intense questions—such as asking if Muma saw her father fall—to avoid "vexing" her. Her physical silence acts as a protective barrier to shield her mother from further pain, while her active mind continues to privately process the deep grief of their displacement.

The Red Pencil Reference Key Page 3 of 3