1a. What does Tommy find in the attic?
2a. What does Margie hate most about school?
3a. What do Margie and Tommy think is strange about teachers in the old days?
1b. Why are Tommy and Margie interested in this object?
2b. What might Margie like about school?
3b. How does Margie's teacher do things differently than a teacher in the old days would do things?
4a. List the differences and similarities between Maggie's school and school in the old days.
4b. What are the advantages of using computers in school? What are the advantages of employing human teachers? What are the disadvantages of an educational setting such as Margie's school?
5a. The author of "The Fun They Had" wrote in the 1950s about life as it could be in the 2050s. How accurate do you think his predictions may be?
5b. How does the old book's portrayal of school compare to your school life? How is it different? What is your idea of a perfect school?
Third-Person Point of View. In some stories told from the third-person point of view, the narrator is omniscient, meaning he or she knows everything about the thoughts and emotions of all the characters. Can the narrator of "The Fun They Had" see inside the head of Margie? Does the narrator offer information about the thoughts and emotions of Mrs. Jones or Tommy?
Dialogue. Dialogue is enclosed in quotation marks and is often accompanied by tag lines—words and phrases such as he said or she replied—that tell who is speaking. What information does dialogue reveal in this story? What is not revealed through dialogue?
1. Write a thank-you note to a former teacher telling about something important you learned from him or her and stating why you are grateful to have had that person as a teacher.
2. Imagine you could design your own school day. Write out your idea of a perfect schedule.
3. Write a questionnaire for parents, family friends, or teachers to fill out about what life was like in their teenage years.
Indirect Objects. Some sentences have a direct object—a receiver of the action in the sentence. To find the direct object, ask what? about the verb in the sentence.
Example Cows eat alfalfa. Cows eat what? alfalfa
Some sentences with direct objects also have indirect objects. Indirect objects tell you to whom or to what or for whom or for what the action of the verb is done.
A noun is not an indirect object if it is the object of a preposition.
Example Mom made a cake for me. (for is a preposition; me is the object of the preposition)
Insert indirect objects into each of the following sentences.
1. Bob brought soda pop.
2. The pizza parlor offered free cheese sticks.
3. Dad drove to soccer practice.
4. Grandma wrote a letter.
5. Gordon buys special treats.
6. Ursula owes five dollars.
7. Ana never told the secret.
8. Jin and Robert sent a surprise package.
9. Tas wants to draw a picture.
10. Liz and I will buy the sweater.
Forming Adverbs. Many adverbs are formed by adding the suffix –ly to an adjective. In some cases, when the adjective ends in y, the suffix that makes it an adverb is –ily. For each adjective below, indicate the correct adverb form.
1. scornful click to select answer a. scornfully b. scornfuly
2. lofty click to select answer a. loftly b. loftily
3. soft click to select answer a. softily b. softly
4. immediate click to select answer a. immediatily b. immediately
5. glum click to select answer a. glumily b. glumly
6. adorable click to select answer a. adorably b. adorabily
7. drowsy click to select answer a. drowsly b. drowsily
8. gaudy click to select answer a. gaudily b. gaudly
9. gleeful click to select answer a. gleefully b. gleefuly
10. sore click to select answer a. sorily b. sorely
