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Copywork
About This Passage
Chosen because Lowry arranges the loss as a list of three — childhood, friendships, carefree security — which gives the sentence the rhythm of a farewell. The single word trudged, placed at the start, tells the reader how Jonas now carries his body, and the dash before slipping away marks the moment the list collapses into an image.
Jonas trudged to the bench beside the Storehouse and sat down, overwhelmed with feelings of loss. His childhood, his friendships, his carefree sense of security—all of these things seemed to be slippi...
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Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
Retell Chapter 17 in six to seven sentences. Begin with the unscheduled holiday announcement, move through Jonas's four weeks without the pills and his new ability to see colors, then the war game on the playing field and Jonas's breakdown, then the exchange with Asher and Fiona, and end with the evening meal where Father describes releasing the smaller twin.
Discussion Questions
- Jonas realizes that Lily's angry fist was not really anger at all, only "shallow impatience and exasperation." What makes you think Lowry wants the reader to see that every feeling the family names at the evening meal is too small a word for what it should be? How do you know from the text?
- When Asher says to Jonas, "I apologize for not paying you the respect you deserve," the text says he "mumbled" it and "looked warily" at Jonas. What in these two details makes you think the apology is not really about respect? How do you know?
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Vocabulary Builder
Item 1
Walked slowly and heavily, as though tired or weighed down by sadness.
Item 2
A small building where supplies or equipment are kept for later use.
Item 3
Free from worry or responsibility; happily unburdened.
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Critical Thinking
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