Helen on eighty sixth street study guide
“Helen on Eighty Sixth Street” by Wendi Kaufman
Level-3 Study Guide
Name:________________________________
Level 1: Literal (right on the page) Find proof!
Directions for Level 1: Place a mark in the space next to each statement with which you agree. For each statement, provide a page citation and textual evidence that proves or contradicts the statement.
__127-128__1. The author is using Indirect Characterization to reveal the narrator's character traits.
“You should have seen the way Helen acted at school. It was disgusting, flirting with the boys.” this shows that Vita is very judging towards people she doesn’t like.
__true___2. The mother uses several Allusions throughout the story (refer to page 126 for the definition).
Pg. 129, “ I watch the other girls dress up as goddesses and Trojan women. They wear gold scarves wound tight around their necks and foreheads. They all wear flowers in their hair and flat pink ballet slippers.” The writer used allusions of Greek mythology in this story.
__true_3. Vita's action to sacrifice the letters is motivated by her desire to play Helen.
Pg. 133, “I think about what I want: to be Helen, to have my father come back.”
She wanted to have these three wishes come true with this burning of her letters.
Level 2: Inference (reading between the lines) Create an argument
Directions for Level 2: Place a mark in the space next to each statement with which you agree and provide paraphrased textual support.
__F__1. The letters Vita writes to her father reveal that she only wants to keep him informed on her social life.
Pg. 131: She writes to her dad about how much she miss her dad and if he misses her. “Mom is talking about the water again. I think this means she is thinking of you. We are both thinking of you, though we don’t mention your name. Are you thinking of us? Do you ever sit on the shore at night and wonder what we’re doing, what we’re thinking? Do you miss us as much as we miss you?”
Level-3 Study Guide
Name:________________________________
Level 1: Literal (right on the page) Find proof!
Directions for Level 1: Place a mark in the space next to each statement with which you agree. For each statement, provide a page citation and textual evidence that proves or contradicts the statement.
__127-128__1. The author is using Indirect Characterization to reveal the narrator's character traits.
“You should have seen the way Helen acted at school. It was disgusting, flirting with the boys.” this shows that Vita is very judging towards people she doesn’t like.
__true___2. The mother uses several Allusions throughout the story (refer to page 126 for the definition).
Pg. 129, “ I watch the other girls dress up as goddesses and Trojan women. They wear gold scarves wound tight around their necks and foreheads. They all wear flowers in their hair and flat pink ballet slippers.” The writer used allusions of Greek mythology in this story.
__true_3. Vita's action to sacrifice the letters is motivated by her desire to play Helen.
Pg. 133, “I think about what I want: to be Helen, to have my father come back.”
She wanted to have these three wishes come true with this burning of her letters.
Level 2: Inference (reading between the lines) Create an argument
Directions for Level 2: Place a mark in the space next to each statement with which you agree and provide paraphrased textual support.
__F__1. The letters Vita writes to her father reveal that she only wants to keep him informed on her social life.
Pg. 131: She writes to her dad about how much she miss her dad and if he misses her. “Mom is talking about the water again. I think this means she is thinking of you. We are both thinking of you, though we don’t mention your name. Are you thinking of us? Do you ever sit on the shore at night and wonder what we’re doing, what we’re thinking? Do you miss us as much as we miss you?”