Junior reports harm
Junior tells Penelope about the attack and stolen money.
“I raised money last night, but then some guys attacked me and stole it.” (Alexie 80)Read in the chapter
This week’s aim
Grandmother says Roger respects Junior now. By Halloween, who respects Junior at Reardan, and who has turned on him at home?
Start here · Read
Read the text. Find one detail for the aim. Write in your notebook.
Read this week →Before you start
Junior is making connections at Reardan. His friendship with Rowdy is still broken.
Words to think about
“And he didn’t tell anybody. Rowdy was my secret-keeper.”
What does a secret-keeper do?
Read and listen
Open a chapter. Read the words as you listen. Write one useful detail in your notebook.
- Chapter 10 · pp. 74–76Read & listen: Chapter 10 →
Tears of a Clown
- Chapter 11 · pp. 77–81Read & listen: Chapter 11 →
Halloween
LOOK BACK · CHAPTER 7
Look back: the friendship breaks
Which words turn Junior’s school choice into an accusation about loyalty? Compare this earlier scene with how people treat him at Halloween.
Printed page 53 · Read in context →
Words in the drawing
“I HATE YOU!” “YOU SUCK!” “YOU WHITE LOVER!”
Connect it to the aim
Earlier, Rowdy treated leaving for Reardan as turning against him. Keep that broken friendship in view when Chapter 11 shows the costs Junior faces at home.
Audio opens with the chapter. If asked, use your Pritzker Google account.
Talk it through
Say your answer out loud first. You can try it with a partner.
Keep both places in view
At Reardan
Penelope keeps Junior included in the donation.
At home
Junior describes the break with Rowdy; he also reports an attack.
Your comparison
What improves, and what is still lost or uncertain?
Try saying: “I think ___ because the text says ___. This shows ___.”
LOOK BACK · CHAPTER 9
Look back: a ride and a sign of respect
Read the earlier scene beside this portrait. What does Eugene say about Junior’s choice, and how does Roger react to Eugene and his bike?
Printed page 72 · Read in context →
Words in the drawing
“Indian” appears on the motorcycle. Caption: “Dad’s best friend, EUGENE, + his 1946 Indian Chief Roadmaster.”
Connect it to the aim
Earlier, Eugene praised Junior’s courage, and Roger spoke to Junior with respect after seeing the motorcycle. Those actions help test Grandmother’s explanation; people from home do not all respond as Rowdy does.
Need another way to think about it?
From a highlight to your writing
Notice the words
“I’ll still put your name on the money when I send it.”
Margin note
Penelope keeps Junior part of their project even without his donation. She recognizes his involvement, so the stolen money does not cancel his place beside her.
My notebook
“Still” = included even with no money. His part counts.
See note 9 beside the passage · Alexie 80
See the observation become sentences
- What it says
Penelope will include Junior’s name with the donation even though he has no money left to contribute.
- What it helps explain
She recognizes his effort and treats him as part of their project.
Your turn: another detail
Write what Junior’s report establishes about the attack. Then name one question it does not answer. Keep the fact of harm separate from a guess about motive.
Test a possible misreading
First thought: Rowdy being Junior’s “secret-keeper” means they have already made up.
A memory of earlier trust
Junior remembers Rowdy keeping a secret in an earlier childhood scene.
“And he didn’t tell anybody. Rowdy was my secret-keeper.” (Alexie 76)Read in the chapter
Look again: Chapter 10 recalls an earlier moment of trust. Put that memory before the Chapter 7 punch in the event timeline, even though Junior tells the memory later.
Your notebook → your Aim Response
Build your response
Choose your evidence here. Write your sentences in your notebook.
What does my answer need to cover?
At Reardan
Name someone and use an action showing respect or care.
At home
Explain which relationship is damaged and what proves it.
Write your answer
At Reardan, ___ shows ___, while at home, ___ shows ___.
A starting shape, not the only way to write your answer. Replace the spaces with your own thinking.
Pick quote 1. Explain it.
The exact quotation, its context, and its citation will appear here.
What it saysIn my own words, this means …
What it showsThis helps answer the question because …
Pick quote 2. Explain it.
The exact quotation, its context, and its citation will appear here.
What it saysIn my own words, this means …
What it showsThis helps answer the question because …
Choose two different quotations. Then check that your writing explains every part of the aim.
Connect the two details
The first detail shows … . But / So / Because … . Together, these details help explain … .
Choose the connector that matches your reasoning: but contrasts, so gives a result, because gives a reason.
See the shape in a complete model
This model answers a related question. Notice where the quotes, explanations, words, and appositives go.
A memory of earlier trust
Junior remembers Rowdy keeping a secret in an earlier childhood scene.
“And he didn’t tell anybody. Rowdy was my secret-keeper.” (Alexie 76)Read in the chapter
Can help with: At home.
Taking part despite having little
Junior describes his Halloween fundraising.
“I was a poor kid raising money for other poor people.” (Alexie 79)Read in the chapter
Can help with: At Reardan.
Inclusion after the money is gone
Penelope tells Junior she will include him in the donation.
“I’ll still put your name on the money when I send it.” (Alexie 80)Read in the chapter
Can help with: At Reardan.
A limit to the progress
Junior describes his continuing feeling of being an outsider.
“But nothing much changed. I was still a stranger in a strange land.” (Alexie 81)Read in the chapter
Can help with: At Reardan.
Junior reports harm
Junior tells Penelope about the attack and stolen money.
“I raised money last night, but then some guys attacked me and stole it.” (Alexie 80)Read in the chapter
Can help with: At home.
The rupture before Halloween
Junior describes the rupture with Rowdy after the school-choice conversation.
“my best friend had become my worst enemy.” (Alexie 53)Read in the chapter
Can help with: At home.
Keep the whole aim in view. A practice pair about Reardan may leave home unexplained. Your final response needs evidence and explanation for both places.
DRAWING → EXPLANATION
Use a visual detail in your explanation.
- Look back: the friendship breaks · page 53
Connect Rowdy’s earlier accusation to a specific event at Halloween. Explain what Junior loses at home as he begins to find respect at Reardan.
- Look back: a ride and a sign of respect · page 72
Name a concrete sign of Roger’s respect, then compare it with Penelope’s response to Junior at Halloween. Keep Eugene’s support in view when describing who turns against Junior.
Add the assigned words
Words of the day 2 points
Use one word from each of these 3 groups. Complete all 3 groups for the vocabulary points. Words separated by “or” are alternatives.
Meaning + one sentence example
confession (noun) — An admission of something private, hidden, or difficult to say.
Junior’s confession about the stolen money lets Penelope respond to what happened.
Original writing example · More word help
Meaning + one sentence example
commitment (noun) — A promise or steady effort to stay with a goal or person.
Penelope shows commitment to their project when she keeps Junior’s name on the donation.
Original writing example · More word help
Meaning + one sentence example
naive (adjective) — Lacking experience and too ready to trust a simple explanation.
It would be naive to assume that one kind exchange means everyone at Reardan accepts Junior.
Original writing example · More word help
An alternative from a listed root family fills the same group. Review words in a practice model do not replace this list. Connect each word to your point; a made-up event is not evidence.
Add two appositives
Introduce two people or ideas 2 appositives · 2 points
The words between the commas give another name for the noun.
Penelope, another name for this person or idea, …
See one that works
Penelope, Junior’s classmate at Reardan, joins him in a charity project.
“Junior’s classmate at Reardan” and “Penelope” name the same person or idea. Keep both commas; finish with your own point.
Rowdy, another name for this person or idea, …
See one that works
Rowdy, the friend who once kept Junior’s secrets, matters to Junior’s sense of home.
“the friend who once kept Junior’s secrets” and “Rowdy” name the same person or idea. Keep both commas; finish with your own point.
See more evidence
Explore the evidence
Connections at Reardan
Whose actions show growing respect or care? How much has changed?
Strain at home
What harm or distance does Junior experience? What can the evidence establish?
Go further: weigh the change
What has he gained or lost so far? Which evidence keeps the answer from being one-sided?
A memory of earlier trust
Junior remembers Rowdy keeping a secret in an earlier childhood scene.
“And he didn’t tell anybody. Rowdy was my secret-keeper.” (Alexie 76)Read in the chapterChange
What this detail can show
This is a flashback to Rowdy keeping Junior’s secret. It shows what the friendship once offered, not that Rowdy and Junior have already made up.
Taking part despite having little
Junior describes his Halloween fundraising.
“I was a poor kid raising money for other poor people.” (Alexie 79)Read in the chapterThemes
What this detail can show
Junior helps raise money even while he is poor himself. The project gives him a way to contribute alongside Penelope; it does not make his own poverty disappear.
Inclusion after the money is gone
Penelope tells Junior she will include him in the donation.
“I’ll still put your name on the money when I send it.” (Alexie 80)Read in the chapterCharacters
What this detail can show
Penelope keeps Junior in the shared donation even though his money was stolen. She values his part in the project instead of judging him only by what he can pay.
A limit to the progress
Junior describes his continuing feeling of being an outsider.
“But nothing much changed. I was still a stranger in a strange land.” (Alexie 81)Read in the chapterChange
What this detail can show
Junior still feels like an outsider. One caring exchange can matter without making him feel fully at home in the school.
Junior reports harm
Junior tells Penelope about the attack and stolen money.
“I raised money last night, but then some guys attacked me and stole it.” (Alexie 80)Read in the chapterCharacters
What this detail can show
Junior tells Penelope that he was attacked and robbed. This report supplies evidence of harm, but it does not by itself establish who the attackers were or why they attacked him.
The rupture before Halloween
Junior describes the rupture with Rowdy after the school-choice conversation.
“my best friend had become my worst enemy.” (Alexie 53)Read in the chapterChange
What this detail can show
After Rowdy’s punch, Junior describes the friendship as broken. Use this earlier moment beside the Chapter 10 memory to show the trust he fears he has lost.
Find more evidence in the chapter
- Chapter 11: Read the Halloween attack scene. Record what Junior observes and what he guesses about the attackers. Which claims about who turned on him can you support, and which remain uncertain?
- Chapter 9: Return to Roger’s behavior after Grandmother offers her explanation. Add a concrete action to the Reardan side of your comparison.
Choose a second quote that adds something
You have explained Penelope including Junior. Which quotation most directly checks the claim that he now feels fully accepted at Reardan?
In your notebook: explain what your second quotation adds that the first one could not show alone.
Check your paragraph
10 points total · 2 points in each area
Point to the evidence in your own paragraph before checking a box.
These boxes are a self-check, not a grade. Development reflects how your argument builds and your growth as a writer. Checks stay in this browser.
Your paragraph goes in your notebook. Follow your teacher’s directions for turning it in. Nothing on this page submits your work.
Extra reading practice
Check yourself
Complete the explanation
Use each choice once. These are practice sentences, not quotations.
Keep track of time as well as relationships. The story about Junior's earlier crush is a , so Rowdy's secret-keeping shows past rather than a present reconciliation. In the Halloween scenes, Junior admits a mixed : he wants to help and also wants Penelope to notice him. After the prevents him from contributing money, she includes his name anyway. That action offers a small sign of . A reader should recognize the kindness without turning one encounter into proof that Junior's isolation has ended or that he knows who attacked him.
- Blank 1: A scene that takes the story back to an earlier time.
- Blank 2: The confidence shown by keeping a friend’s private information secret.
- Blank 3: A reason for doing something; there can be more than one.
- Blank 4: The taking of Junior’s collection money by the attackers.
- Blank 5: The feeling of being included in a group or shared activity.
Follow care after the collection goes wrong
Drag the blocks or use the arrow buttons. Keyboard: focus a block and press Alt + ↑ / ↓.
- Junior calls after her, and they agree that helping people feels good.
- Penelope asks about his condition, and he shows her his bruises.
- The next morning, Junior shows Penelope his empty hands.
- She promises to include his name on the donation anyway.
- He explains that attackers stole the money he collected.
Take it into your writing
In your notebook, explain one real sign of welcome using a quotation, then add a second detail that shows why Junior’s sense of belonging is still incomplete.
Practice feedback is for you. These activities do not submit a grade.