A. He Does Not Receive a Birthday Gift from Abuelita
1. Which evidence from the first few pages of La Linea best supports and foreshadows the idea that things are going to change for Miguel in the very near future?
a. He does not receive a birthday gift from Abuelita.
b. Miguel gets a note from Papa.
c. Miguel’s name is not what it should be according to tradition
d. Miguel cannot have what he wants anyway.
2. “He herded the goats and watered the corn with a book in one hand, and still he did more work than anyone else!” (2).
This line supports the idea that Miguel’s father
a. was a natural when it came to working on the farm.
b. had a lot of catching up to do.
c. used time wisely and multitasked to get the maximum done.
d. really liked to read.
3. “I was the firstborn, so Papa should have named me Domingo after himself and Abuelo and Bisabuelo and Tatarabeulo…as far back as anyone could remember. But Papa declared I wouldn’t be like him, starting with his name” (2).
This passage signals to the reader that
a. Miguel could be different than the traditional male in his family heritage.
b. Papa and Miguel did not get along.
c. Papa wanted greater things for Miguel than what had been in Papa’s life.
d. Miguel does not understand his name.
4. “We walked through the opening, squeezing into the room behind the stall. The secret door closed. One dull bulb revealed a small storeroom stuffed from floor to ceiling with survival gear, organized by category” (91).
In the passage, the words “squeezing, secret, dull, and survival” help create a tone of
a. excitement
b. strength
c. wonder
d. nervousness
5. Which sentence from the book best shows that Miguel has past experience to support his doubt about Papa?
a. “Wouldn’t a father sacrifice whatever it took to bring his son to his side” (9)?
b. “Papa had been gone seven years. It seemed like forever” (31).
c. “I don’t believe you Miguel. You are just saying that about Papa, just to make me feel bad” (81).
d. “It took me years to accept that Papa did what he did out of love, not pride” (121).
6. “I stared out at the land and kept my thoughts to myself. The only thing that mattered was making it across la linea. If the stories were true, the worst was yet to come. Once we crossed la linea, everything would change. Everything” (84).
In the passage above, “la linea” in not only the title of the story, but also a ______developed through the story.
a. setting
b. symbol
c. metaphor
d. idea
7. “We read every word of every article of each of the papers, but they all said the same things. Equipment failure. A tragedy. Children with no identification” (85 – 86).
In the passage above, which words help the reader connect with Miguel, Elena and Javier’s desperate feelings about this horrific event?
a. “same…failure…tragedy”
b. “word….article…same”
c. “every…equipment..no”
d. “every…each…tragedy”
8. Which statement(s) best explains the contrast between Arnie and Jose that leads Jose to state in Gary Soto’s “Born Workers” that his cousin was “lazy, and worse, spoiled by the trappings of being middle class”.
a. “We are not only a team,” Arnie shouted, “but we’re also cousins”().
b. “Arnie hollered, arguing that some people were meant to work and others to
come up with brilliant ideas” ().
c. “They are cheats, he [Miguel] thought, people who sit in air-conditioned offices while others work” ().
c. “Oh yeah,” Arnie claimed, speaking for his cousin, “Jose was born to work”().
9. The line in the poem WHAT DOES AN ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT LOOK LIKE, Eriksen writes the line “He is a boat in 1492/sailing the ocean blue” as a reference to…
a. Japanese internment camps in this country during WWII
b. The laws enacted by our congress after 9/11/2001
c. Many immigrations laws that excluded certain immigrants
d. the misinformation around Columbus’ role in discovering America
10. An allusion is an indirect, literary or historical outside reference that brings more meaning to the work or piece. In Eriksen’s WHAT DOES AN ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT LOOK LIKE, the many allusions help develop the theme(s) that
RL.4a. Immigrants have contributed little to the growth of this country
b. Immigrants have been mistreated since their arrival in this country
c. Illegal immigrants are just immigrants
d. Illegal immigrants are treated poorly because they are different
11. At the beginning of both stories, Soto’s “Born Worker” and Jaramillo’s La Linea, the main characters experience conflict around their perspectives concerning how to be in the world. Jose and Arnie do not share the same perspectives, nor do Miguel and Elena. Decide on which statement(s) below best support this claim. RL.6/RL.1
a. The differences in perspective in both stories create internal and external conflicts.
b. The differences in perspective in both stories emphasize stereotypes about illegal immigrants.
c. The differences in perspective in both stories help move the plot forward.
d. The differences in perspective in both stories highlight aspects of the Latino culture that the reader may not have known.
Answer: A and D
12. When Abuelita says to Miguel, “Elena is younger and already she can take care of the rancho better than you,” there isn’t a bit of rancor in her voice. (20) L.4
This tells you that
a. Abuelita is not a critical person
b. Abuelita is not a wise person
c. Abuelita is not an agreeable person.
d. Abuelita is not a dramatic person.
13. The line in Ralph Waldo Emerson’s poem “What is Success” that best fits the success Miguel has experienced by the end of Jaramillo’s La Linea is RI.3/RL.10
a. “To win the respect of intelligent people”
b. “To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends”
c. “To find the best in others”
d. “To leave the world a bit better”
14. The fact that Nikki Giovanni’s grandmother “stood up to Cass Walker, a very conservative Knoxville businesswoman “(409), yet could forget her soap and climb “into the bathtub” (409), is an example of
a. irony
b. metaphor,
c. personification
d. simile
15. Giovanni says that her grandmother gave her “love [that] she did not have to earn” (414). In your opinion, does Miguel feel that way about Abuelita? Defend, refute or clarify your answer and use one specific piece of evidence from the story La Linea to support your position.
16. The immigrants writing in the collection “from I was Dreaming to Come to America” (885), although from various divergent countries, share…
a. the ability to forget their heritage
b. an understanding of the importance of having dreams
c. an understanding of the support of family
d. an understanding of how we are all the same
17. In the stories and excerpts we have read concerning “what makes us who we are,” the most important influence is our ancestors, “where we came from.” How has your ancestry influenced who you are?