Wish

Reading Check and Short Answer questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

Chapters 1-12

Reading Check

1. What grade is Charlie in?

2. What is Charlie’s father’s nickname?

3. Where has Charlie been sent to stay?

4. Whom does Charlie’s teacher assign as her backpack buddy?

5. Why does Charlie want the stars to come out?

6. What does Howard suggest Charlie do each time she gets angry?

7. What game does Howard excel at in Sunday school?

8. To what does Howard compare people’s problems to?

9. What does Charlie want to name the little dog?

10. Who helps Charlie look for the dog?

11. How many brothers does Howard have?

12. What nickname does Gus start calling Charlie?

13. Who is Jackie?

14. Who says Charlie looks like her mom?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Why is Charlie starting at a new school?

2. How does Bertha show Charlie kindness?

3. How do Bertha and Gus contrast with Charlie’s parents?

4. What caused Bertha and her sister (Charlie’s mom) to stop talking to each other?

Paired Resources

“Recognizing Childhood Emotional Neglect and Relearning Self-Love”

• This article from Verywell Health examines the effects of neglect and ways to help someone heal. (Teacher-appropriate; not student-facing)
• The connections include The Effects of Neglect and Abandonment on Children.
• How has Charlie experienced neglect? How are Bertha and Gus trying to help her heal?

“Sadie Ortiz: Battling Cultural Stereotypes”

• In this 5-minute TED Talk, Sadie Ortiz discusses stereotypes, damage they cause, and how she constantly battles them.
• This speech connects to the themes of Finding One’s Identity and Place in the World and Not Judging a Person or Place Through Stereotypes.
• What stereotypes does Charlie assume are true of Colby and the people who live there? How do these preconceived ideas keep Charlie at a distance from those around her?

Chapters 13-23

Reading Check

1. After Howard calls Charlie a “quitter,” what does she call him?

2. Where does Charlie apologize for shoving Audrey?

3. When Charlie’s father writes to her, what does he complain about?

4. What does Charlie tell Howard she thinks he wished for?

5. When Wishbone runs away, what favorite meal does Bertha make Charlie?

6. Who has a job at the Waffle House?

7. For how long has Charlie been wishing for the same thing?

8. To convince Dwight to give Charlie the wishbone, what does Howard offer him?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Instead of responding angrily when Charlie insults Howard, how does Mrs. Odom let Charlie know she forgives her?

2. How does Jackie act when she comes to visit Charlie?

3. When Charlie asks Jackie to take her back to Raleigh with her, how does Jackie respond?

Paired Resources

“To a Child, Wishing”

• Frances Kitchell Lamar’s poem presents the importance of a wish.
• The poem connects to the theme of Finding One’s Identity and Place in the World.
• How do Charlie’s wishes connect to the poem?

“Social Development in Pre-Teens: What You Need to Know”

• This Scholastic article focuses on the middle-school years and what adolescents experience.
• Connections to the theme include Finding One’s Identity and Place in the World.
• Where do we see Charlie trying “to find the identity that will take them into adulthood?”

Chapters 24-31

Reading Check

1. Before Vacation Bible School (VBS), what does Bertha buy Charlie?

2. Why does Charlie fight TJ at VBS?

3. When he gets home from work, what does Gus call Charlie?

4. What does Howard reveal was his wish?

5. What game do Howard and Charlie play that Howard likes?

6. Where does Charlie’s mom decide to move?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What does the note in Audrey’s lunchbox mean to Charlie?

2. How does Charlie feel when a social worker tells her she will soon return to Raleigh?

3. What has been Charlie’s wish that finally comes true?

Recommended Next Reads 

All's Faire in Middle School by Victoria Jamieson

• At 11-years old, Imogene Vega has been homeschooled because she works with her parents and friends at the Renaissance faire, and she takes the stories at faire seriously. When she decides to start attending a local school, she encounters people and events that make her question who she might be in the mythology of her own life.
• Shared themes include Finding One’s Identity and Place in the World and Not Judging a Person or Place Through Stereotypes.  
• Shared topics include middle school, friendship, family, imagination, growing up, talents, and new experiences.      
• All's Faire in Middle School on SuperSummary

Ghost by Jason Reynolds

• Ghost has been running since the night his father shot at him and his mother. When he encounters an opportunity to join the track team, he meets new friends, learns from a mentor, and understands more about himself and who he wants to be.
• Shared themes include Finding One’s Identity and Place in the World, The Effects of Neglect and Abandonment on Children, and Not Judging a Person or Place Through Stereotypes.  
• Shared topics include growing up, school, new friends, family, abuse, talents, new experiences, and choices.
• Ghost on SuperSummary