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Copywork
About This Passage
This passage will teach the writer how Suzy Kline uses a best-friend narrator to make a 'horrible' kid lovable. Notice how Doug's voice is always affectionate even when Harry is doing something gross or disruptive. The narrator is never mocking Harry; he is amazed by him. This affectionate narrator is the key to the whole series.
Open Chapter 1 of HORRIBLE HARRY IN ROOM 2B. Find the first moment when the narrator (Harry's friend Doug) describes Harry doing something 'horrible.' Choose 2-4 sentences that show both the horriblen...
Full copywork activity with handwriting lines available in the complete study guide.
Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
Retell the chapter, paying attention to how Harry's 'horrible' actions are framed. Are they actually bad, or are they just surprising?
Discussion Questions
- Harry's 'horrible' things are often unusual but not actually mean. How does Suzy Kline make the reader like Harry even though his nickname suggests he should be disliked?
- The book is narrated by Doug, Harry's friend, not by Harry himself. Why does Kline choose this point of view? What does Doug's voice let her do that Harry's voice could not?
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Vocabulary Builder
Item 1
a word that normally means 'very bad' but which the Harry books use in a playful, affectionate way
Item 2
liking to play tricks and cause small amounts of trouble, usually without meaning real harm
Item 3
impossible to know in advance — you cannot tell what Harry will do next
+ 7 more vocabulary words in the complete study guide
Critical Thinking
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