83 pages 2 hours read

Elizabeth George Speare

The Sign of the Beaver

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1983

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Answer Key

Chapters 1-5

Reading Check

1. Indigenous people such as the Penobscot tribe members (Chapter 2)

2. Ben (Chapter 3)

3. Matt’s father’s rifle (Chapter 3)

4. Fish (Chapter 4)

5. Honey (Chapter 5)

Short Answer

1. Matt cuts notches into sticks, seven notches per stick. Each stick equals one week. (Chapter 1)

2. Ben takes advantage of Matt’s generosity and steals his rifle. Later, a bear searching for food breaks down the cabin door, which Matt failed to latch properly. (Chapter 4)

3. Matt meets Saknis and Attean, who have been watching him from afar and later save him from a swarm of bees when he tries to steal honey from their hive. (Chapter 5)

Chapters 6-15

Reading Check

1. Robinson Crusoe (Chapter 7)

2. The beaver (Chapter 11)

3. A bow and arrows (Chapter 12)

4. The Bible (Chapter 14)

5. Glusekabe (Chapter 14)

6. A bear (Chapter 15)

Short Answer

1. Saknis wants Matt to teach Attean how to read English. He hopes Attean will be able to understand colonial treaties, so their people won’t be cheated in the future; he also hopes to bring the two boys together in friendship.