Sadly, there's no wisecracking blue genie in this one!

In the book, 1001 Arabian Nights, there is a sultan that hates women and likes to marry one and then have her killed the next night.  After killing many women this way, he finally marries a woman named Scheherazade who tricks him into letting her live by telling him stories each night, but not finishing them.  That way he must let her live to hear the end of the story.

In the movie version, the sultan was betrayed by his first wife and is planning on killing the next, which is Scheherazade.  He has never actually had a wife killed and because she saves him from his madness, he never does.

What was the director's purpose in changing the story in this manner?


a. to create an indifferent tone
b. to focus on the irony of the situation
c. the director probably never read the original story.
d. it makes the sultan a more sympathetic character






Scroll down for the answer.














______________
a. is incorrect.  An indifferent tone means that the director doesn't care one way or the other.  Since he made the change, we can assume he cares.
b. is incorrect.  There is no irony in this situation.  Many students automatically pick the irony answer since it sounds intelligent.  Don't fall for that trick.
c. is incorrect. 
d. is correct.  If the sultan is killing women, it makes it hard to accept him as a guy who deserves to get the woman at the end of the movie.


~

Made You Look!

 Read the following passage from We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach:

Peter had been to state twice and nationals once. Been given a sweet Jeep for his sixteenth birthday, and ended up good and wasted at about a hundred crazy-fun parties. And now he was eighteen. In the fall, he’d be off to sunny California. And seriously, how sick was college going to be? Pledging some frat and playing ball all over the country and partying with his teammates and frat brothers every weekend. Then he’d go pro if he were lucky, or else get into coaching or something, and he and Stacy would get married and raise some kids and hit up Baja or TJ on Christmas breaks and buy a sweet summer place on Lake Chelan with a Jacuzzi. 


What is the author’s attitude toward Peter?

a. Scornful
b. Disdainful
c. Mocking
d. Aggravated

Scroll down for the answer.











_______________________

Answer: c. The author realizes that Peter's goals are shallow and rather insignificant.

Thanks to Ms. Parsons for this question!  You know, a good tip for the state test is to look up.  After you've finished the questions and before you start the next passage, look up and give your poor eyes a break!

 Read these panels from Marvel Team-Up #8 When Spider-Man teams up with Hellcat to fight the Mankiller:

Which line from the dialogue is an example of an allusion?

a. "You're willing to battle for the things you believe."

b. "I'm a regular Patrick Henry."

c. "Are we going to stand here yapping all night?"

d. "Because you're a loner, Spider-Man... an outcast."

Scroll down for the answer.

______________________________________________________

An allusion is a reference to another literary work or historical person/event.  These can be difficult to spot if you are not familiar with what is being alluded to.  In this case, Spider-Man is referring to famous American patriot, Patrick Henry ("Give me liberty or give me death!"), so the correct answer is B.

Shameless Plug: Teaching ACES

 Never fear, fellow teacher - your question of the day is just a scroll below!

Teaching ACES step-by-step

You are using these questions to help prepare your kids for the reading comprehension multiple choice questions, but do you have a solid plan for getting them to answer the constructed response section?  If not, consider below:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/XET-Teaching-ACES-for-Constructed-Responses-12163122

ACES provides a formula for students to think about when formatting a constructed response or short answer question. It is the basic structure for organized writing and is often used to set students up for larger works that will require thesis statements and paragraphs. It is also often used on state testing.

The poem "Ozymandias" is used to break down each component in each lesson.

Teaching this basic structure can be time consuming and irritating for both student and teacher. This pack aims to alleviate some of that stress on both by scaffolding the process and having students practice one element at a time, building upon previous lessons until all elements are mastered.  It can be done in a series of four days or less, if needed, but I prefer to teach this one day a week over four weeks.

After going through the example, students get a chance to practice each part ( lesson one is only A, lesson two is A and C, lesson three is A, C, and E, and the final lesson is A, C, E, and S.

The primary text is "Ozymandias" by Shelley and students will practice on each section using passages from "Fire and Ice" by Frost, The Four Loves by C. S. Lewis, Dune by Herbert, and Invisible Man by Ellison.

Each lesson has a student worksheet to let them practice with a small reading passage.

I created this last year for use with my inclusion class and it worked wonders.  It made it where they could grasp what we were asking for and by breaking it down into chunks, they were not overwhelmed.  I have an honors class this semester and will be using it with them as well.

Tom Sawyer

 Read the following passage from Tom Sawyer:

“[They] covered themselves with dust and glory.” 

The above line is an example of:

a. zeugma

b. dramatic irony

c. hyperbole

d. alliteration

Scroll down for the answer.

_______________________________________

The correct answer is a. zeugma.  What the heck is zeugma?  It doesn't matter.  There is no dramatic irony going on.  There is no hyperbole.  There is no alliteration.  The only time you guess a word you do not know is when you know all the other answers are false.  In this case, you should have been able to recognize all the other answers as false and, with some trepidation, picked zeugma.

It was also used in the book Project Hail Mary: 

"I wake up covered in medical equipment and pain."

Still think I made it up?  Look here for a thorough explanation of zeugma:

http://literarydevices.net/zeugma/

Well, He Is Following the Directions...

What is the picture below an example of? 

a. archetypes

b. soliloquy

c. hyperbole

d. irony

Scroll down for the answer.

_________________

d. is the correct answer.  Irony comes in different forms, but mostly it is the unexpected in some way.

~

Did You Ever Think as a Hearse Goes by....

 Read the following passage from Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman and answer the question:

Mr. Vandemar, on the other hand, simply walked. It was too consistent, too steady and inexorable a walk to be described as a stroll: Death walks like Mr. Vandemar.

Which literary device represents Death?

a. allusion
b. hyperbole
c. tone
d. personification

Scroll down for the answer.

________________


Answer: D - one of the clues that alerts the reader of personification is that sometimes the thing personified will be capitalized (like Death here).  This is not always the case, but when you see something like Death or Time capitalized, then think personification.

Thanks to Ms. Parsons for this question!  I was trying to come up with some clever thing to say about Death and her class, but nothing really seemed to work (they were all either cheesy, morbid, or both), so... :(