The Horned Toad Response

1. Personal Connections: Describe an experience you've had that is similar in any way to those of the boy or another character in the story.

Comprehension

2. Reading Check: (a) Why does Grandma come to live with the narrator's family? (b) Where did Grandma live before her husband died? (c) What happens to Grandma at the end of the story?

3. Strategy: Make Connections: (a) Cite one example of a personal connection, a textual connection, and a societal connection you made while reading this story. (b) In what ways did making connections add to your reading experience? Explain.

Analysis

4. Interpret: In Paragraph 34, the narrator says "Somehow that day changed everything." Explain what happened and why you think these events lef to such a profound change.

5. (a) Contrast: Grandma tells the narrator to put the toad back, but he ignores her advice. WHat does this show about the differeneces in the two characters' attitudes toward nature? (b) Analyze: How does this difference explain Grandma's reaction to the toad's death? (c) Interpret: Why is it important to the boy that Grandma help bury the toad and keep its death a secret?

6. (a) Make Inferences: What gives the narrator the courage to resist his relatives in their discussion about Grandma''s burial? (b) Analyze: Why is he surprised at their response? (c) Make Inferences: Why do you think the adults change their attitude?

7. Evaluate: Which character do you think changes the most in this story? Explain.