Commandments 1-5

Identify and Define 8 Parts of Speech
Types of Subjects and Predicates,
4 Sentence Purposes
4 Sentences Types
Preview 7 Sentence Structures

*Come to class prepared to discuss Chapters 1-3 of Homer Price on Week 1

Composition: Write one paragraph about the most exciting moment of your life. Your goal is to make the audience feel like they are experiencing your excitement along with you. You will have an opportunity to share your writing in class next week.

Literature: Read Chapters 4-6 of Homer Price

Homer Price Discussion Questions (Memoria Press): *We will use these questions as a guideline for our class discussion. Students are not required to answer these before coming to class (or even to look at them), but they are welcome to if they would like to prepare beforehand.

Chapter 1:

1. Describe Homer.
2. Why is “Aroma” an appropriate name for Homer’s pet skunk?
3. Briefly explain the classification system of the animal kingdom and the role Latin plays in it.
4. Find on page 20, “the air was filled with Aroma!” What is the double meaning of this phrase?
5. Do you agree with Homer’s decision not to tell his mother about Aroma? Why or why  not?
6. Note the picture of the robbers in bed on p. 25. Do you state anything amiss?

Chapter 2:

1. What is the Super-Duper’s reason for not flying or being horse shoes? Do you think that is the real reason? Why or why not?
2. Does the Super-Duper remind you of a well-known comic hero? Who is it? Give evidence from the story of the similarities between Super-Duper and this hero.
3. As the boys first see the car in the ditch from a distance, do you think Homer is completely convinced that the Super-Duper was not hit by an electric ray? Fin the words in the story that support your answer.

Chapter 3:

1. Uncle Ulysses is a huge fan of labor-saving devices. List some common labor-saving devices we use today. Choose one that you think is the most helpful, and support your choice by explaining how this device makes your life easier.
2. The author of this book like to have fun choosing the names of his characters. Note the names of Homer’s aunt and uncle. Why are they interesting? How does Mr. Gabby’s name fit his personality?
3. How does Homer’s provide both the cause and the solution to the doughnut problem?
4. Think of a worthwhile item for which you would like to create a market. Discuss ways in which you could do this.
5. What does Uncle Ulysses say right after he walks into the lunch room and sees the doughnut mess? How does his response add humor to the story? What is that kind of humor called?

Chapter 4:

1. Burning leaves reminds Homer and the sheriff of other things that commonly occur in the fall. What are these fall events? Can you think of others not mentioned?
2. We’ve already seen that the author likes to have fun with the names of his characters. Can you name four characters found in Greek literature or Greek mythology from which the author had drawn names for the characters of this book? Discuss these characters briefly.
3. When Miss Terwilliger says she wants to enter the contest, the judge says, “The American female is beginning to find her rightful place in the business and public life of this nation.” He is said to have made a “fancy speech about ‘women’s rights.'” To what are these sentences referring?
4. Where in the United States is Niagara Falls? For what is it known? Find it on a map.

Chapter 5:

1. After his first impressions, how does the sheriff describe the stranger? Why is this humorous?
2. Contrast the information people in the story use to “judge” others. What conclusion can you draw?
3. Homer says Mr. Murphy read that “if a man can make a better mouse trap than anybody else, the world will beat a path to his house.” What does this mean? What is the double meaning here?
4. You have learned to be watching for context clues in a story that foretell coming events. Find a clue on page 113 that hints at coming trouble.

Chapter 6:

1. Who was Henry Ford and where did he live? For what is he famous? How does Uncle Ulysses explain the benefits of mass production and assembly lines?
2. Miss Enders says, “Just think. Last week there were only grass and trees and squirrels on this spot!” Do you think the author is suggesting that this is a good change or a bad one?
3. What items are included in each house in the new suburb? Is this good or bad? Why?
4. What is a “union”? What problem did the Street Sign Putter Uppers Union cause for Centerburg?