Analyzing Story Elements

What underlying message might the story be suggesting about individuality and group dynamics?

• Groups are always stronger than individuals.

• Individuals who don’t fit into a group are a threat to its stability.

• Accepting individual differences can prevent negative consequences for the group.

• Fitting into a group is more important than standing out.

In storytelling, characters are defined as:

• The individuals or entities who play a role in the story and drive the plot.

• The events that create suspense and lead to a climax.

• The dialogue and words used to communicate a story’s message.

• The outcome of the main conflict.

What does theme mean in the context of a story?

• The specific time period in which the story takes place.

• The message, moral, or underlying idea the author wants to communicate.

• The main events and climax of the story.

• The description of the setting and characters.

Danielle shuddered as she ducked her head to enter the attic room. The light was dim, but she could see broken chairs piled up in a corner and a child's collapsed playpen nearby. The ceiling was pitched, slanting upward to a point. But she couldn't stand up all the way except in the very center. She felt a bead of sweat slip down her cheek and wondered why it was so hot in the shadowy room. She was nervous about exploring a place where so many memories lay covered with dust. What is the importance of the setting in this passage?

• A. The setting shows why Danielle is looking for something.

• B. The setting explains how the family uses the attic to store belongings.

• C. The setting influences the mixed emotions that Danielle experiences.

• D. The setting suggests a difficult time she doesn't want to remember.

They started climbing joyfully. Heidi went running here and there and shouting with delight, for here were whole patches of delicate red primroses and there, the blue gleam of the lovely gentian flowers. Above them, the tender-leaved golden cistus flowers all laughed and nodded. Delighted with this waving field of brightly-colored flowers in the valley, Heidi forgot about Peter and the goats. She ran on in front and then off to the side, tempted first one way and then the other, as she caught sight of some bright spot of glowing red or yellow. All the while she was plucking whole handfuls of the flowers, which she put into her little apron. She wanted to take them all home and stick them in the vase so that she might make her bedroom look just like the meadows and valleys outside. Peter had to, therefore, be on the alert, and his round eyes, which did not move very quickly, had more work than they could well manage because he had to keep an eye on all the goats. The goats were as lively as Heidi and they ran in all directions. Peter had to follow whistling and calling to get all the runaway goats as well as Heidi together again.

• A. It makes her cheerful and excited.

• B. It makes her feel hurried.

• C. It makes her feel relaxed.

• D. It makes her sad and gloomy.

The Stadium in my Backyard by Dave McCaul As a kid, I was determined to become a professional baseball player. I lived in Minneapolis, so the weather was less than ideal for baseball. But with the coming of summer, I spent practically every waking hour in my backyard. It was a big backyard, rectangular in shape. Standing with my back to the house, I would look out over the outfield. A picket fence separated our place from the back alley. That was the homerun fence. On one side of the yard was a row of tall hedges with tangled branches that reached out to the sky like thin arms. Those hedges represented the crowd. On the other side was a doghouse, which was like the dugout where my team waited on the bench. At night, the lights in the back alley lit up my backyard so that we could play night games. My neighbor and I would take turns pitching balls to each other. My neighbor had an impressive fastball that was tough to hit. I could just see the digital scoreboard reporting the speed of his pitches. 90 mph. 95 mph. 100 mph! But with my team rooting for me from the bench and the crowd watching my every swing, I refused to strike out. Every now and again, I would hit the ball over the homerun fence. Running around the bases, I would close my eyes and imagine the fireworks exploding in the stadium. I would hear the breeze tossing the leaves of our Elm tree, which was like the sound of the crowd cheering me on. And I would wave to my adoring fans and know exactly how it felt to be a professional baseball player. What does the setting say about the narrator's character?

• He has a short span of attention.

• He has a big imagination.

• He feels lazy in the summer.

• He does not like routine.

As soon as Mrs. Peal asked the question, Jack felt the knot in his stomach. He felt that knot because he knew he had been caught. He had gotten onto her roof from the elm tree in his backyard and had broken one of her roof tiles when he had landed. Mrs. Peal wasn't home at the time, but the damage was obvious when she pulled into the driveway. Jack had already gotten in trouble for climbing on his own roof. Mrs. Peal knew that because she had called his mother when she'd seen him playing on the roof one day. Jack liked the adventure of being up high where he could get a bird's-eye view of the world. He felt invisible. He knew he wasn't supposed to, but he was always careful, and the trees in the yard gave him such an easy way to get to the roof. But here was Mrs. Peal: "Jack, did you get on my roof?" "No, ma'am, I didn't get near your roof," he lied. "Then tell me how you think that roof tile up there got broken," she said, pointing to the spot. "It's right under the branch of your favorite elm tree." "I don't know, Mrs. Peal, maybe a squirrel fell or maybe something fell out of an airplane," he said. His stomach was really churning, and all he could think of was getting away from his neighbor. Mrs. Peal laughed and shook her head. "When was the last time you saw an airplane flying over my house?" "Sometimes airplanes fly so high you can't see them," Jack said. "Don't make it worse for yourself by lying to me, Jack," she said. "You look me right in the eyes and tell me you didn't break the tile when you jumped out of the tree." She took his shoulders in both hands and looked Jack right in his eyes. Jack knew he'd been caught and exhaled deeply. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Peal. I didn't mean to break your tile. I can just see so much farther from your roof than my roof." "Jack, you're not supposed to be on the roof, period," Mrs. Peal said. "You know your parents have told you to stay off the roof." "Are you going to tell my parents?" Jack asked. "Yes, because they've asked you not to climb on it, but I'll also tell them how much fun you have, how careful you are, and that it isn't very far from the ground." Mrs. Peal replied. "You should talk to them about it, too." Jack felt the knot in his stomach loosen, knowing that Mrs. Peal might help him change his parents' thoughts about climbing.

• She laughs at the silly explanation that he offers.

• She gets Jack's parents to pay for repairing her roof.

• She threatens to tell Jack's parents if he doesn't confess.

• She makes Jack look her in the eyes and tell her the truth.

Mrs. Peal's Roof

As soon as Mrs. Peal asked the question, Jack felt the knot in his stomach. He felt that knot because he knew he had been caught. He had gotten onto her roof from the elm tree in his backyard and had broken one of her roof tiles when he had landed. Mrs. Peal wasn't home at the time, but the damage was obvious when she pulled into the driveway.

Jack had already gotten in trouble for climbing on his own roof. Mrs. Peal knew that because she had called his mother when she'd seen him playing on the roof one day.

Jack liked the adventure of being up high where he could get a bird's-eye view of the world. He felt invisible. He knew he wasn't supposed to, but he was always careful, and the trees in the yard gave him such an easy way to get to the roof.

But here was Mrs. Peal: "Jack, did you get on my roof?"

"No, ma'am, I didn't get near your roof," he lied.

"Then tell me how you think that roof tile up there got broken," she said, pointing to the spot. "It's right under the branch of your favorite elm tree."

"I don't know, Mrs. Peal, maybe a squirrel fell or maybe something fell out of an airplane," he said. His stomach was really churning, and all he could think of was getting away from his neighbor. He couldn't believe he'd said that about the airplane—that was the stupidest thing he'd ever heard!

Mrs. Peal laughed and shook her head. "When was the last time you saw an airplane flying over my house?"

"Sometimes airplanes fly so high you can't see them," Jack said.

"Don't make it worse for yourself by lying to me, Jack," she said. "You look me right in the eyes and tell me you didn't break the tile when you jumped out of the tree." She took his shoulders in both hands and looked Jack right in his eyes.

Jack knew he'd been caught and exhaled deeply. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Peal. I didn't mean to break your tile. I can just see so much farther from your roof than my roof."

"Jack, you're not supposed to be on the roof, period," Mrs. Peal said. "You know your parents have told you to stay off the roof."

"Are you going to tell my parents?" Jack asked.

"Yes, because they've asked you not to climb on it, but I'll also tell them how much fun you have, how careful you are, and that it isn't very far from the ground." Mrs. Peal replied. "You should talk to them about it, too."

Jack felt the knot in his stomach loosen, knowing that Mrs. Peal might help him change his parents' thoughts about climbing.

Which sentence shows how the setting causes Jack to make a poor decision?

• A. "I don't know, Mrs. Peal, maybe a squirrel fell or maybe something fell out of an airplane," he said.

• B. She took his shoulders in both hands and looked Jack right in his eyes.

• C. "I can just see so much farther from your roof than my roof."

• D. Jack felt the knot in his stomach loosen, knowing that Mrs. Peal might help him change his parents' thoughts about climbing.

"Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents," grumbled Jo, lying on the rug.
"It's so dreadful to be poor!" sighed Meg, looking down at her old dress.
"I don't think it's fair for some girls to have plenty of pretty things, and other girls nothing at all," added little Amy, with an injured sniff.
"We've got Father and Mother, and each other," said Beth contentedly from her corner.
The four young faces on which the firelight shone brightened at the cheerful words, but darkened again as Jo said sadly, "We haven't got Father, and shall not have him for a long time." She didn't say "perhaps never," but each silently added it, thinking of Father far away, where the fighting was.
from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

• A. negative

• B. excited

• C. happy

• D. hopeful

The Case of the Missing Library Book Mr. Berry, the librarian, had a reputation for being strict and for never making mistakes. He maintained complete order in the library and could tell immediately if a book was missing or misplaced. He did not say much. This struck fear into the students. They always said that Mr. Berry did not have to talk. When someone was careless with a book, the look on Mr. Berry’s face told that person everything he or she needed to know. All of this contributed to making Tom feel terrible about losing the copy of Animal Farm that he had borrowed nearly four weeks earlier. It was as if the book had disappeared from the face of the earth. In fact, Tom had completely forgotten about the book until he received an overdue notice from Mr. Berry through the mail. Tom did not look forward to facing the librarian directly. When he left for school that morning, he felt as if he were going to his execution. Tom’s fear increased with each tick of the clock. It was already fourth period by the time he talked himself into going to see Mr. Berry. As he walked to the library, his palms were sweating and he felt as though he had butterflies performing acrobatics in his stomach. When he walked through the doors, he saw that the library was deserted, except for Mr. Berry. Tom was happy that nobody would witness the embarrassing scene that was sure to erupt. Upon seeing Tom, Mr. Berry said, "Oh Tom, I owe you an apology. I guess I made a mistake. I didn't realize that you had already returned Animal Farm." At first, Tom didn't know what to say, and then, much to his surprise, he found himself telling Mr. Berry that he hadn't returned the book, that he'd lost it, and that he'd looked all over for it but couldn't find it. Tom could not stop the words from coming out of his mouth. When Tom finished, Mr. Berry smiled and said, "Well, somebody found it and returned it. That's the important thing. It's important to remember that everybody makes mistakes. I guess we both did in this case." Tom smiled too; he felt relieved. As he made his way back to class, he decided that he really liked Mr. Berry and that he would try to use the library more often. What caused Tom to change his opinion of Mr. Berry?

• Mr. Berry returned Tom's library book for him.

• Tom heard that Mr. Berry was nice after all.

• Mr. Berry gave Tom a good grade.

• Tom had a conversation with Mr. Berry.