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Copywork
About This Passage
This passage is a quiet turning point in the book. Most children Stanley's age have heard the nursery rhyme about the old lady who lived in a shoe, and most children have watched Sesame Street. When Zero says 'No' and stares blankly, Stanley learns something sad and new about his friend — that Zero missed some of the childhood things most children grow up with. Copying this passage slowly helps a young reader feel Stanley's surprise and gives a quiet moment to think about what it would mean to never have heard a nursery rhyme.
"You've heard the nursery rhyme about the little old lady who lived in a shoe?" "No." Stanley was amazed. "How does it go?" asked Zero. "Didn't you ever watch Sesame Street?" Stanley asked. Zero stare...
Full copywork activity with handwriting lines available in the complete study guide.
Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
Retell Chapter 16 in your own words. Start with Stanley coming into the Wreck Room and hearing X-Ray being loud, then move to the next day of digging with wheelbarrows, then to the Warden getting angry at lunch, then to Stanley getting a letter from his mother, and end with Zero asking about the nursery rhyme and Stanley being amazed that Zero has never heard it.
Discussion Questions
- What in the story tells you that Zero has never heard the nursery rhyme about the little old lady who lived in a shoe?
- What in the story tells you that Stanley is very surprised by what Zero does not know?
+ 2 more questions in the complete study guide
Vocabulary Builder
Item 1
A place or kind of song made for very young children.
Item 2
A short poem or song where the last words sound alike.
Item 3
A grown-up woman, usually spoken of politely.
+ 5 more vocabulary words in the complete study guide
Critical Thinking
+ 4 more questions in the complete study guide
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