Character Traits
People in real life exhibit character traits, and so do characters in stories.
What are character traits? Look at this chart to find examples.
What are character traits? Look at this chart to find examples.
Good readers can identify these traits in characters by reading carefully and searching for clues.
Try to find character traits for each of the characters in the following story, "Shoofly Pie." Use the characterization chart below to record your answers.
Try to find character traits for each of the characters in the following story, "Shoofly Pie." Use the characterization chart below to record your answers.
shoofly_pie.pdf |
Theme
Naomi Shihab Nye evokes memories of loved ones by the foods associated with their lives in "Shoofly Pie." The theme is memories and traditions. Three days after her mother's funeral, Mattie is wandering the streets. When she stumbles into Good for You Restaurant; it's because she's drawn to the name. She doesn't anticipate becoming the cook there. But they need the help, and she needs a place to belong. This touching story by Naomi Shihab Nye, Shoofly Pie, does a wonderful job of creating a sense of hope as Mattie begins to compensate for the loss of her mother.
Questions
Reading Comprehension: How do the characters in Nye's Shoofly Pie use food as a means of communication and comfort? Use text from the story to support your answer.
Make a Connection: Some people believe that grief can bring people together. How does Nye reinforce this idea in Shoofly Pie? Use textual information to support your answer.
Analyze Theme: The writer C.S. Lewis in his memoir, A Grief Observed says, "No one ever told me that grief felt so [much] like fear." Relate this quote to lines 350-370 of Nye's Shoofly Pie. Cite evidence from the text as support for your response.
Draw Conclusions: Reread lines 465-482. Has Mattie gotten over her grief by the end of the story? Cite evidence to support your conclusion.
Analyze Imagery: Nye says she started writing things down in notebooks because she "wanted to remember everything. The quilt, the cherry tree, the creek. The neat whop of a baseball rammed perfectly with a bat." Using examples, explain how Nye's keen eye for detail brings the setting and characters to life in Shoofly Pie.
Make a Connection: Some people believe that grief can bring people together. How does Nye reinforce this idea in Shoofly Pie? Use textual information to support your answer.
Analyze Theme: The writer C.S. Lewis in his memoir, A Grief Observed says, "No one ever told me that grief felt so [much] like fear." Relate this quote to lines 350-370 of Nye's Shoofly Pie. Cite evidence from the text as support for your response.
Draw Conclusions: Reread lines 465-482. Has Mattie gotten over her grief by the end of the story? Cite evidence to support your conclusion.
Analyze Imagery: Nye says she started writing things down in notebooks because she "wanted to remember everything. The quilt, the cherry tree, the creek. The neat whop of a baseball rammed perfectly with a bat." Using examples, explain how Nye's keen eye for detail brings the setting and characters to life in Shoofly Pie.