Chapter 1 — Teaching Companion

What it asks It asks the student to look closely at one picture the writer chose. A year ago, after the speakers ordered everyone indoors, Jonas ran inside alone. From the front window he saw none of the usual afternoon crews, only bikes dropped on their sides, and “an upturned wheel on one was still revolving slowly.” Right after, the chapter says the sense of his community “silent, waiting” made his stomach churn. The student decides what that one small moving thing does in the scene. It opens the first part of the last written question: what frightened meant to Jonas, before he set the word aside.

One reading

It shows how fast everyone obeyed. The wheel is still spinning, so its rider dropped the bike only a moment ago. Jonas did the same. One order from the speakers, and the whole town stopped where it stood.

• Instantly, obediently, Jonas had dropped his bike on its side on the path behind his family's dwelling.
• He saw only the abandoned bikes here and there on their sides; an upturned wheel on one was still revolving slowly.

Another reading

It makes the stillness felt. The wheel is the only thing moving on a street with no people, and it is slowing down. It shows the town “silent, waiting,” and that is what frightened Jonas.

• Looking through the front window, he had seen no people
• The sense of his own community silent, waiting, had made his stomach churn.

Listen for

• Uses what Jonas saw: no people, the usual crews gone, bikes on their sides.
• Notices the wheel is the one thing still moving, and that it is slowing.
• Connects the scene to the chapter's line about the community “silent, waiting.”
• Stays with what Jonas saw and felt; does not guess where the jet came from.

If stuck

• What did Jonas see when he looked out of the front window?
• Why would a wheel still be turning?
• What would the scene feel like without that wheel?

A strong answer A strong response might say the wheel shows how quickly everyone obeyed: it is still spinning because its rider dropped the bike a moment ago, just as Jonas dropped his “Instantly, obediently.” Another might say the wheel makes the stillness felt: it is the only thing moving on a street with no people, the community “silent, waiting.” A careful answer may notice that Jonas was “only fascinated” by the jet itself, and that this silent street is what made his stomach churn, so the wheel shows part of what the word frightened held for him.

What it asks It asks the student to stand inside Jonas at one small moment. After the scare, the voice explains that a Pilot-in-Training made a wrong turn, then says NEEDLESS TO SAY, HE WILL BE RELEASED. The tone is “ironic,” “as if the Speaker found it amusing,” and Jonas smiles a little, “though he knew what a grim statement it had been.” The chapter calls release from the community “a final decision, a terrible punishment.” The student decides what made a boy smile at words he knew were grim. It takes up one part of the last written question: a heavy word made lighter by the way it is said.

One reading

Because of the tone. The Speaker sounded amused, and Jonas caught it. A light voice can make even a grim thing seem small for a moment.

• There was an ironic tone to that final message, as if the Speaker found it amusing
• and Jonas had smiled a little, though he knew what a grim statement it had been.

Another reading

From relief. Minutes before, he had been trembling. Now the voice was calm and the scare had been “nothing,” only a wrong turn. The smile is his fear letting go, even with grim news attached.

• But it had been nothing.
• Within minutes the speakers had crackled again, and the voice, reassuring now and less urgent, had explained that a Pilot-in-Training had misread his navigational instructions and made a wrong turn.

Listen for

• Uses the Speaker's tone: “ironic,” “as if the Speaker found it amusing.”
• Notices Jonas smiled only “a little,” and still knew it was grim.
• Uses what came just before: the trembling, then the reassuring voice.
• Says only what the chapter says release is: being sent from the community, “a terrible punishment.” Does not say what happens to those released.

If stuck

• How did the voice sound when it said the Pilot would be released?
• How had Jonas felt just a few minutes before?
• Can the way something is said change how it feels to hear it?

A strong answer A strong response might say the Speaker's amused tone made the grim words feel lighter, so Jonas smiled along with it. Another might say the smile was relief: he had trembled, and now the voice was “reassuring” and the scare had been “nothing.” A careful answer may notice that Jonas knows the statement is grim and smiles anyway, so the tone has changed how the news feels without changing what it says.

What it asks It asks the student to weigh two people's claims about one feeling. Asher, late as usual, explains that he was riding past the hatchery, saw the crew separating salmon, and “just got distraught, watching them.” The Instructor smiles, thanks him for “a lesson in language,” and says “'Distraught' is too strong an adjective to describe salmon-viewing.” He writes “distracted” beside it on the board. Only Asher was at the hatchery, but the chapter also says Asher talks too fast and mixes words up. The student decides whose word is nearer to what Asher felt. It takes up one part of the last written question: a feeling measured by someone else's ruler, the same ruler Jonas later uses on himself.

One reading

The Instructor. Asher mixes up words all the time, so “distraught” is likely one more mix-up. Watching fish is not a reason to be that upset. “Distracted” fits what happened: he stopped to watch and lost track of time.

• Not like his friend, Asher, who talked too fast and mixed things up, scrambling words and phrases until they were barely recognizable and often very funny.
• 'Distraught' is too strong an adjective to describe salmon-viewing.

Another reading

Asher. He was the one at the hatchery, and he chose the word. The Instructor judges it by the event, salmon-viewing, and never asks Asher what watching the salmon was like. The new word goes on the board anyway.

• I guess I just got distraught, watching them.
• He turned and wrote "distraught" on the instructional board.

Listen for

• Uses the Instructor's reason: the word is too strong for “salmon-viewing.”
• Uses what the chapter says about how Asher talks.
• Notices that only Asher was at the hatchery, and that no one asks him more.
• Notices the Instructor is smiling and the class is grinning; the correction is friendly, not cruel.

If stuck

• Where was Asher, and what was he watching?
• What did the Instructor say about the word?
• Can someone else tell you how strong your feeling was?

A strong answer A strong response might side with the Instructor: Asher “talked too fast and mixed things up,” and being late for watching fish does not sound like being distraught. Another might side with Asher: he was the only one there, and the Instructor judges the word by the event, “salmon-viewing,” without asking him. A careful answer may notice that on the ride home Jonas measures his own feeling the same way, deciding frightened is “too strong an adjective,” the Instructor's very words.

What it asks It asks the student to set two moments in Jonas side by side. On the ride home he tries frightened, eager and excited before he settles on a word; the chapter says he “was careful about language.” At dinner Lily is telling of her anger at a visiting Seven who kept going to the front of the line for the slide, and she gets stuck: “They acted like ... like...” Jonas offers “Animals?” at once, and laughs. The chapter says neither of them knew exactly what it meant, but it was used for “someone uneducated or clumsy, someone who didn't fit in.” The student explains why this word comes so easily to a careful boy. It connects to the last written question: here a word settles someone quickly, before anyone has looked at what he felt.

One reading

It is play, not a judgment. He is helping his little sister finish her sentence, and they both laugh. Jonas takes care with words for his own feelings, not with a joke between the two of them at the table.

• "Animals?" Jonas suggested. He laughed.
• "That's right," Lily said, laughing too.

Another reading

It is a ready-made word. People use it for anyone who doesn't fit in, so it is there before Jonas has to think. Finding a word for his own feeling takes work. A word for a stranger takes none, because the boy is not there and Jonas never has to look at what he felt.

• Neither child knew what the word meant, exactly, but it was often used to describe someone uneducated or clumsy, someone who didn't fit in.
• Jonas was careful about language.

Listen for

• Sets the slow word hunt on the ride home beside the quick “Animals?”
• Uses the chapter's note on who the word is used for.
• Notices the laugh, and that the boy is not there to answer.
• Does not treat the word only as a joke, or only as cruelty.

If stuck

• Which words did Jonas try for his own feeling on the ride home?
• What was Lily trying to say when Jonas offered the word?
• Is it easier to find a word for someone else than for yourself?

A strong answer A strong response might say it is only play: Jonas is helping Lily finish her sentence, and they both laugh. Another might say the word is ready-made: it is “often used” for “someone who didn't fit in,” so it comes without thought, and the boy is not there to answer. A careful answer may notice that neither Jonas nor Lily knows exactly what the word means, yet Lily takes it at once and says it back: “Like animals.”

What it asks It asks the student to notice where Lily's new feeling comes from. She began “very angry” and showed a fist. Mother and Father ask questions, and Lily remembers feeling “strange” and “stupid” as a visitor herself. Then Jonas says, “I feel a little sorry for him,” and a moment later Lily says, “I guess I feel a little sorry for him.” The student decides whether the feeling she tells is her own, her brother's, or the family's. It takes up part of the last written question: whether a feeling's new name is truer, or just easier.

One reading

Her own. She got there through her own memory of feeling strange and stupid in another community. She even adds something Jonas never said: she is sorry for the fist.

• I felt strange. Because their methods were different.
• And sorry I made a fist.

Another reading

Her brother's. She says it right after him, nearly word for word, with “I guess” in front. She may be taking the words the family has handed her, the way she took “Animals” a minute before.

• "I guess not," Lily decided.
• I guess I feel a little sorry for him.

Listen for

• Notices that Lily's words nearly repeat Jonas's.
• Uses her own memory of feeling “strange” and “stupid.”
• Notices what she adds that is hers: the fist, and her grin.
• Does not call the talk sinister; the family is kind, and Lily ends up grinning.

If stuck

• How did Lily feel at the start of her turn?
• Who said “a little sorry for him” first?
• Can you really feel something because someone else said it first?

A strong answer A strong response might say the feeling is Lily's own: she remembered feeling “strange” and “stupid,” and she adds “sorry I made a fist,” which nobody gave her. Another might say she is telling Jonas's feeling: she repeats his words right after him, with “I guess” in front. A careful answer may notice that a borrowed word can still become a real feeling, which is the same thing Jonas's own new word raises.

What it asks It asks the student to look under a pretend face. Father describes a newchild who “isn't growing as fast as he should”; the committee is “beginning to talk about releasing him,” and Father may bring him home at night. Lily says, “Maybe we could even keep him,” “trying to look innocent.” The chapter says the look was fake, and they all knew it. Mother answers, smiling, “you know the rules,” and Lily giggles. The student decides whether the wish under the fake look is real. It connects to the last written question: a feeling made light enough to say, and settled with a smile.

One reading

The wish is real. Father calls the baby sweet, and Lily asked about him before anyone else did. She knows the rules, so she wraps the wish in a joke, and even after Mother answers she tries once more.

• He's a sweet little male with a lovely disposition.
• "Well," she said, "I thought maybe just this once."

Another reading

The wish is part of the game. She knows the rule as well as anyone, everyone sees through her face, and she giggles. She is playing at asking, and the family smiles along.

• The look was fake, Jonas knew; they all knew.
• Two children—one male, one female—to each family unit.

Listen for

• Separates the look, which is fake, from the wish, which may be real.
• Uses Father's words about the baby, and Lily's “maybe just this once.”
• Notices the rule, and that Mother answers with a smile.
• Says nothing about what will happen to the newchild later in the book; the chapter only says the committee is beginning to talk about releasing him.

If stuck

• What did Father say about the newchild?
• How did Mother answer Lily?
• Why might someone dress up a real wish as a joke?

A strong answer A strong response might say the wish is real: Father calls the baby “a sweet little male,” and Lily tries again with “maybe just this once.” Another might say it is play: everyone knows her look is fake, she knows the rule of one male and one female in each family, and she giggles. A careful answer may notice that the joke lets Lily say a wish the rules forbid, and lets Mother settle it with a smile.

What it asks It asks the student to notice what does not happen at the table, and to explain it. On his ride home Jonas decided frightened was “too strong an adjective” for himself, the very phrase the Instructor used on Asher's “distraught.” At dinner Mother says she feels frightened for a repeat offender who has “no third chance.” Jonas shivers. No one questions her word, though they asked Lily question after question about her anger. They take Mother's hands, and she feels “soothed.” The student decides why her strong word is allowed to stand when his was not. It is one part of the last written question: what the word frightened carries, before Jonas puts it down.

One reading

Because for her it is the right word. Jonas's own meaning of frightened is “something terrible about to happen,” and for the man that is true: one more mistake and he will be released. There is nothing to correct.

• Frightened meant that deep, sickening feeling of something terrible about to happen.
• You know that there's no third chance.

Another reading

Because the family answers her in a different way. Lily got questions; Mother gets comfort. She is a grown-up in “a prominent position,” and she names her own feelings, so the family holds her hands instead of weighing her words.

• From his place at the table, Father reached over and took her hand.
• One by one, they comforted her.

Listen for

• Uses Jonas's own meaning of frightened from the first page.
• Uses “no third chance” and Jonas's shiver.
• Notices the family asks Lily questions and asks Mother none.
• Writes in complete sentences with a reason and a line from the chapter; says only what the chapter says release is, and nothing about what the Ceremony will bring.

If stuck

• What did Jonas say frightened meant, at the start of the chapter?
• What is Mother afraid will happen to the man?
• What did the family do for Lily, and what did they do for Mother?

A strong answer A strong response takes a position and backs it with a line. A student might argue no one questions the word because it fits: Jonas's own meaning is “something terrible about to happen,” and the man has “no third chance.” Another might argue the family meets a grown-up's feeling with comfort, not questions: “One by one, they comforted her.” A careful answer may notice that the word Jonas put down as too strong comes back at his own table, and he shivers when he hears it.

What it asks It asks the student to look closely at one word the writer uses twice. Mother tells of her fear for the repeat offender, and “she confessed.” Jonas, last, almost wishes he could keep his feelings hidden, but that “was, of course, against the rules.” Then he “confessed” that he is apprehensive. People usually confess to a wrong. The student decides why the writer uses that word for telling a feeling. It is one part of the last written question: a feeling that has to be said aloud needs a word that can be said.

One reading

Because telling a feeling is hard, like owning up. Jonas's feelings are tangled tonight, and he would almost rather keep them to himself. Saying them out loud takes the same kind of courage as admitting a mistake.

• His feelings were too complicated this evening.
• This evening he almost would have preferred to keep his feelings hidden.

Another reading

Because the telling is owed. Keeping a feeling hidden is against the rules, so a feeling not yet told is almost like a wrong. Saying it puts things right, and the family thanks him for it.

• But it was, of course, against the rules.
• "I'm glad you told us of your feelings," Father said.

Listen for

• Notices the word comes twice, once for Mother and once for Jonas.
• Uses the rule: keeping feelings hidden is “against the rules.”
• Notices what follows each confession: comfort for Mother, and “I'm glad you told us” for Jonas.
• Writes in complete sentences with a reason and a line from the chapter; does not call the ritual cruel, and says nothing about what the Ceremony will bring.

If stuck

• What does it mean to confess something?
• What did Jonas almost want to do with his feelings tonight, and why couldn't he?
• What did the family do right after Mother told her feeling?

A strong answer A strong response takes a position and backs it with a line. A student might argue the word shows that telling a feeling is hard, like owning up: Jonas's feelings are “too complicated this evening,” and he “almost would have preferred to keep his feelings hidden.” Another might argue it shows the telling is owed: hiding a feeling is “against the rules,” so saying it is like making things right, and Father answers, “I'm glad you told us of your feelings.” A careful answer may notice that each confession is met with help, not blame, and may wonder whether having to say a feeling aloud shapes which word gets chosen for it.

What it asks This is the last question the student meets, and it gathers the earlier ones. Jonas starts with frightened and rejects it: “Wrong word.” Frightened was the jet, the empty street, the stomach churning. He borrows the Instructor's measure, “too strong an adjective,” tries eager and excited, notices “a little shudder of nervousness,” and settles on apprehensive. At dinner he is “glad that the appropriate descriptive word had finally come to him,” and says it. The student decides whether the new word is more accurate, or more manageable, or both. The chapter shows comfort and care in the ritual, so neither answer needs the community to be cruel.

One reading

Closer to what he feels. His feeling about December is not the jet's terror. He is also eager and excited, with only a shudder of nervousness. Apprehensive names that mix better than frightened did, and Jonas is careful about language.

• It was not what he was feeling now with December approaching.
• But there was a little shudder of nervousness when he thought about it, about what might happen.

Another reading

Easier to handle. He measures his feeling with the Instructor's words, the way Asher's was cut down to size. He is glad for a word that is “appropriate,” and he tells Mother and Father there is “really nothing to worry about.” The calm word makes the feeling something he can say at the table.

• It was too strong an adjective.
• "I'm feeling apprehensive," he confessed, glad that the appropriate descriptive word had finally come to him.

Listen for

• Traces the word hunt in order: frightened, eager, excited, the shudder, apprehensive.
• Uses the jet as what frightened meant to Jonas.
• Notices “too strong an adjective” is the Instructor's phrase, and “appropriate” rather than true.
• Writes in complete sentences, takes a position with a line from the chapter, and answers the other side; says nothing about what the Ceremony will bring.

If stuck

• What did frightened mean to Jonas, and when had he felt it?
• Which words did he try before apprehensive?
• Can a word be true and also make a feeling smaller?

A strong answer A strong response takes a position and tests it. A student might argue Jonas gets closer: his feeling about December is a mix of eagerness and “a little shudder of nervousness,” not the jet's “stomach-sinking terror,” and apprehensive names that mix. Another might argue he makes it easier: he uses the Instructor's “too strong an adjective,” is glad for the “appropriate” word, and tells Mother and Father there is “really nothing to worry about.” A careful answer may decide both happen at once: the word fits better and also makes the feeling something calm enough to say.