Speak Third Marking Period: for Discussion

Speak Third Marking Period: For Discussion Group members: ______

1. In the beginning of the third marking period, Melinda expresses a repeated nostalgia for childhood. Find and record two such examples. Then discuss the following questions in relation to your own life: Was being a child better than being a teenager? In what ways? In what ways is it better to be older? Why is it hard to be in-between childhood and adulthood? Record your responses.

2. What do you think of Melinda’s description of her English class (“Code Breaking”)? Also, do you agree with Rachel/Rachelle’s argument? Record your thoughts.

3. In “Stunted,” Melinda describes her lack of progress in art class and mentions that “The last time Mr. Freeman had anything good to say to me was when I made that stupid turkey-bone thing” (103). Why do you think Melinda has not made much progress in her project since making the “stupid turkey bone thing”?

4. One might argue that the relationship between the plot events and prominent use of seasonal weather imagery in the “Third Marking Period” represent the author’s use of situational irony. How so? Use examples from the text to support your response.

5. After watching a patient with closed eyes and a bloody bandage on his neck be wheeled by on a stretcher, Melinda ends her accidental trip to Lady of Mercy Hospital, saying “There is nothing wrong with me. These people are really sick people, sick that you can see. I head for the elevator. The bus is on its way” (113). Do you agree with Melinda? Why/why not? What do you think she means when she says this? Discuss and record your ideas.

6. How is Melinda’s encounter with Andy Evans in MISS (in school suspension) described differently than their prior run-ins? What do you think accounts for this difference?

7. Find and record three pieces of advice that Mr. Freeman gives to Melinda in the “Third Marking Period.” How has Melinda’s life been affected by Mr. Freeman and working on her art project? Find clues in the text to support your ideas.

8. Consider the following thoughts that Melinda shares in her remembering of the party night--“A Night to Remember”:

“A senior. And then he was talking to me. This gorgeous cover-model guy. His hair was way better than mine, his every inch a tanned muscle, and he had straight white teeth. Flirting with me! Where was Rachel—she had to see this!”

“He took my hand and pulled me close to him. … The music was sweet. This was what high school was supposed to feel like. Where was Rachel? She had to see this!”

“And I thought for just a minute there that I had a boyfriend, I would start high school with a boyfriend, older and stronger and ready to watch out for me. He kissed me again. His teeth ground hard against my lips. It was hard to breathe.”

Why do you think Melinda first thought of Andy in such glowing, positive terms? What do you think she meant in saying “This was what high school was supposed to feel like”? What other social/cultural message(s) does she express?