Show Me a Sign

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

Part 1, Prologue-Chapter 9

Reading Check

1. What is unique about many of the residents on the island of Martha’s Vineyard?

2. Of whom does the whale on the beach remind Mary?

3. What does Mary take to Ezra?

4. Who has Mary’s mother invited as a guest for dinner?

Short Answer

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

1. What happened to Mary’s brother?

2. What does Ezra reveal about the history of Martha’s Vineyard?

3. What prejudices exist within the community on the island?

Paired Resource

History of American Sign Language

• This 6-minute video explains the history of American Sign Language (ASL).
• How does Thomas Gallaudet come up with the idea to bring English Sign Language to America? Who makes changes to prohibit American Sign Language? How is this video related to the novel’s themes of Defining Deafness and Debunking Myths and Social Hierarchies?

Part 1, Chapters 10-19

Reading Check

1. What does Mary ask Nancy to help her do to Andrew Noble?

2. What does Andrew collect from the island?

3. Who do Nancy and Mary encounter in a tree branch while they are in the apple tree?

4. What does Andrew borrow from Mary’s mother?

5. What does Mary attempt to steal from Andrew?

Short Answer

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

1. Why does Mary refuse to tell her father why she would dress as a ghost?

2. What are Ezra’s theories on the cause of deafness in the island community?

3. What is Andrew’s theory for the cause of deafness on the island?

Paired Resource

Misconceptions About Deaf People

• This article describes common misconceptions about people in the deaf community.
• This connects to the theme of Defining Deafness and Debunking Myths.
• What are some of the common misconceptions about people who are deaf? How do these misconceptions play out in the story so far?

Part 2, Chapters 20-28

Reading Check

1. What does Mary believe Andrew Noble plans to do with her?

2. What does Mary do at the inn in which she is staying?

3. What nicknames does Mary give the innkeeper and the kindly student at the inn?

4. What name does Mary give the man who took her from the inn?

5. Who is the owner of the A. M. initials Mary finds in Mr. Minot’s residence?

Short Answer

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

1. What does Andrew threaten to do if Mary does not agree to say she has gone with him voluntarily?

2. What does Mary find disturbing upon her arrival in Boston?

3. What doubts does Mr. Minot have about Andrew’s claims about the deaf community?

Paired Resource

Rights for People with Disabilities

• This 8-minute video describes some of the hardships for people with disabilities in history and how changes began to occur for the disabled.
• How were people with disabilities often treated in early American history? Why did attitudes begin to shift about people with disabilities? How is this video related to the novel’s themes of Social Hierarchies and Defining Deafness and Debunking Myths?

Part 2, Chapters 29-37

Reading Check

1. Who is waiting for Mary when she escapes with the sailor?

2. Who is pursuing Mary and Ezra in the Defiance?

3. What happens to Andrew?

4. What does Mary give to Nancy?

Short Answer

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

1. Who is the mysterious sailor who has been watching Mary's residence?

2. Why is it significant that George’s room has been cleaned?

3. What does Mary mean when she says “no interpreter was needed” while she eats dinner with family and friends?

The Revolutionary War

• This 9-minute video provides a brief description of the Revolutionary War.
• What caused the Revolutionary War? How is Ezra’s experience in the war useful to him in the novel? How is Mary’s experience in Boston and the return to Martha’s Vineyard related to the novel’s theme of A Tale of Two Towns?

Recommended Next Reads

Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

• This novel is about a good-natured 13-year-old girl who is born without arms and navigates the complexities of attending a new school, developing friendships, and the mysteries of a western theme park.
• Shared topics include coping with differences, relocating to unfamiliar places, and prejudice.
• Shared themes include Social Hierarchies.
• Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus on SuperSummary

El Deafo by CeCe Bell

• This graphic novel tells the story of a girl who develops meningitis and experiences deafness. She is given a device to help her hear and invents the superhero character of El Deafo to help her cope with her differences.
• Shared topics include deafness, relocating to unfamiliar places, and ignorance about the hearing impaired.
• Shared themes include Social Hierarchies and Defining Deafness and Debunking Myths.
• El Deafo on SuperSummary