<p>NAME: ______PERIOD: ______</p><p>THE WATSONS GO TO BIRMINGHAM - 1963 Study Guide</p><p>Chapter 1</p><p>1. Why does Kenny’s mom give his dad dirty looks whenever it’s cold? 2. When Kenny’s mother suggests that Birmingham, Alabama, may be warmer and friendlier than Fling, Michigan, about what does his father remind her? 3. Why does Mr. Watson call the landlord a “snake in the grass?” 4. According to their father, why should the kids be glad their momma didn’t marry her other suitor? 5. What would you have done to rescue Byron?</p><p>Chapter 2</p><p>6. How did being Byron’s little brother help Kenny? 7. What were the two qualities that set Kenny up for teasing? 8. What does Kenny mean when he says, “I knew God had finally sent me my personal saver!”? 9. Who or what are Clark and Poindexter?</p><p>Chapter 3</p><p>10. What shocks Kenny about Rufus and Cody’s life in Arkansas? 11. What does Rufus do with the other half of the sandwich? 12. What does this say about Rufus’ economic status? 13. What were two things about which the other kids teased Rufus? 14. How did LJ win the World’s Greatest Dinosaur War Ever? 15. What did Kenny do that made him feel “like someone had pulled all his teeth out with a pair of rusty pliers”?</p><p>Chapter 4 16. What story does Byron tell Kenny and Joetta to explain why their mother makes them wear so many clothes in the winter? 17. What discovery does Kenny make about Larry Dunn and how does the discovery change his feelings about him? 18. What was the only good thing about Momma being afraid of the cold? 19. Explain why you would or would not like to have Byron as your big brother. 20. Explain what happened to Kenny’s gloves and what Byron did when he found out about it.</p><p>Chapter 5</p><p>21. What bad habit does Byron have? 22. What does Momma say she is going to do to Byron if he does it again? 23. What happened to Momma when she was little that made her so afraid of what Byron was doing? 24. How did Joetta save Byron?</p><p>Chapter 6</p><p>25. Kenny says, “If you were stupid enough to ask your question again there would be the loudest quiet in the world coming from Momma.” What does he mean by “loudest quiet”? 26. Why was Byron mad when his mom told him to sign for the food? 27. How did Byron get the cookies? 28. Explain what happened with the bird and Byron’s reaction to it. 29. Why do you think Byron reacted that way?</p><p>Chapter 7</p><p>30. What did Byron do to his hair? 31. Why do you think it made his momma so angry? 32. What did their father do to Byron? 33. What was their Momma’s reaction?</p><p>Chapter 8</p><p>34. What was the “final touch” Daddy bought for the car? 35. What personal care item does Mr. Watson always hide and why? 36. What was the surprise under the towel? 37. What does Daddy mean on page 110 when he says, “. . . road vibrations interfering with an accurate dispersal of the phonic interpretations”? 38. Where are the Watsons going and why?</p><p>Chapter 9</p><p>39. Why did Mr. Watson say they had decided to take Byron to stay with Grandma Sands? 40. What gift does Joetta receive and why does she hide it in her socks drawer? 41. Why do Byron’s parents have him spend the night in their room? 42. What was Byron’s plan to show his parents and make them sorry? 43. What was the only thing Kenny could call Byron to bug him?</p><p>Chapter 10</p><p>44. What kind of toilets did they have at the rest stop in Ohio? 45. What is Mr. Watson going to try to do on the trip that Mrs. Watson doesn’t know about? 46. Describe the Buster Brown trademark Kenny sees inside Joetta’s shoe. 47. Why is the chapter called, “Tangled up in God’s Beard”? 48. At the end of the chapter, Kenny says, “What could be better than driving on a mountain while ‘Yakety Yak’ played and cool, light air blew all over you?” What would be the ingredients in your perfect moment? Explain.</p><p>Chapter 11</p><p>49. When Kenny woke up the last time, what kind of music was his dad listening to? Why is this ironic? 50. What joke did Kenny and his daddy make about Momma’s name? 51. Why was Kenny so surprised at the way his grandma looked? 52. Who do you think Mr. Robert is? Explain. 53. Why do you think Bryon “surrenders” to Grandma Sands like he does? Explain. Chapter 12</p><p>54. Besides the actual dog, what else is the title of the chapter referring to? Explain. 55. How did Mr. Roberts save Toddy’s life? 56. Who did Grandma Sands laugh like? 57. Why does Birmingham seem to Kenny to be a serious punishment?</p><p>Chapter 13</p><p>58. Explain what happened down at Collier’s Landing and why they are supposed to stay away. 59. How does Byron explain a “Wool Pooh”? 60. What clues do we have that foreshadow something bad? 61. What was Kenny after in the water? 62. How does Byron reveal his true feelings for Kenny in Chapter Thirteen?</p><p>Chapter 14</p><p>63. Why does Kenny wonder if something is wrong with him? 64. When Kenny holds the shiny, black shoe with the Buster Brown trademark and believes Joetta died in the bombing, he worries about how he had been treating her. How had he treated her earlier that day? 65. What does By say has happened? 66. What allow Kenny to trust his senses and believe Joey was truly still alive? 67. Why is the image of the American flag (red, white, and blue) important in this scene of the book? What message is the author trying to convey?</p><p>Chapter 15</p><p>68. To what place does Kenny disappear more and more often and what is he looking for there? 69. What ugly thing does Kenny find in the World-Famous Watson Pet Hospital? 70. Does Kenny find the magic powers he was looking for to heal himself?</p><p>Epilogue</p><p>71. What are some of the ways Blacks were discriminated against in the South? Name four. 72. What is the NAACP and what were they fighting for? 73. Name four ways that Blacks and others protested segregation.</p><p>Extra Credit (10 points each)</p><p>1. Look through the newspaper and find a social injustice that you’d like to change. Write a letter to the editor expressing your views on the topic. Support your opinion with facts. Offer possible solutions to correct the injustice.</p><p>2. The Watsons traveled over 100 miles from Flint to Birmingham. Plan an excursion for today, following the same route. Make a travel brochure for your trip. Make it sound as exciting as possible. Plan your own itinerary for this trip. What interesting places might you stop along the way? Do some research using the Internet to discover what sightseeing you might like to do on this trip.</p><p>3. Write and illustrate a version of The Watsons for younger children to read. Be sure to tell the important things from the story, and capture each of the main characters’ personalities. You could also create a comic book version of the book.</p>