Reading Check and Short Answer Questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

SECTION 1

Reading Check

1. What word does the narrator use to describe Karim’s effect on the class?

2. What type of French does Karim speak?

3. Where does the teacher, Robert, take the class for the weekend?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Compare Karim’s version of his first day of school with the narrator’s version of Karim’s first day.

2. What are some of the struggles that Karim experiences in his new life in Canada? How does he try to contend with the challenges?

3. Summarize the conversation regarding ethnic diversity amongst the students. How does Karim respond to this conversation?

4. Why does Karim wake up in the hospital? How does this event reveal the true characteristics of some of his classmates as well as Karim’s own motivations?

Paired Resources

“Shifting Aspirations: Young Syrian Refugees’ Experience in Canada”

• Refugee Outreach’s 2023 article is an overview of the challenges that Syrian refugees face in the North American nation.
• This information connects with the themes The Heterogeneity of the Immigrant Experience, Nature Versus Culture, and The Importance of Storytelling.