Name: __________________________________________ Date: ____________ Period: ____ Score: ______

“A Retrieved Reformation” Reading Guide -- Chunking the Text, Created by Mr. Jackson
 Before We Read Activities:
--In today’s story, the protagonist changes his evil ways, from bad to good. Brainstorm a list of reasons why a student might
change his/her “bad” ways. One has been done for you.
1. attending a PBS celebration for 2. 3.
good behavior, like the movie party

 During We Read Activities: (Note: We’ll pause and reflect to better understand the story.)
[Preview of the story: The story you are about to read is about Jimmy Valentine, a criminal. He is an expert
at breaking into safes. Can anything make him change his evil ways?]
1. Jimmy Valentine serves time in prison for what crime?

2. What words and phrases below describe Jimmy Valentine in this part of the story? Circle two.
confident loves nature reformed well-connected honest
3. Fill in the blanks with what you know about Ben Price.
He is the ____________________ who caught Jimmy Valentine. He works only on ____________________ cases.
4. Which of the following is a likely reason for Jimmy’s coming to Elmore? Circle one.
to rob the Elmore bank to take a vacation there to meet Ben Price
5. What is true about Jimmy as a safecracker? Circle one.
He is not respected. He works with others. He never takes too much. He is a skillful worker.
6. Why does Jimmy change his life?

7. Reread the letter Jimmy writes to his friend. Circle any phrase below that is not part of Jimmy’s plans.
move West sell the shoe store buy new tools rob a bank marry Annabel
8. Infer: Somehow Ben Price has learned that Jimmy is planning to marry the banker’s daughter. What would you infer
that Ben Price thinks Jimmy’s motives are?

9. Analyze: The door of the safe closes on little Agatha. This event put Jimmy in a difficult situation. Why?

10. Infer: Why does Jimmy ask Annabel for the rose she is wearing?

11 Infer: What do you think Jimmy’s intentions are as he walks toward the door? Circle one below.
take his tools to Little Rock leave town before he is arrested surrender to Ben Price
12 How has Jimmy changed from the beginning to the end of the story?

13. Predict: Sometimes a story ends at the point where another story seems to begin. Predict what will happen next in the story.

 After We Read Activities:

--Complete the exit pass: short story review in Google Classroom. Note: The study guide for Friday’s test is located on the back page.
 [Short Story Reading & Writing Test Study Guide -- Fri., Dec. 6]
Note: Look over the front page as additional study notes. Also, you can review with the short story review Quizizz
in Google Classroom. Make study cards if that helps. The test will be on the computer (via Pear Assessment).
1. Know the plot of “A Retrieved Reformation.” What happens to Jimmy Valentine from the beginning to the end?

2. Be able to make inferences/draw conclusions from a few excerpts from the text.
3. Jimmy Valentine’s prison number is #__________.
4. Use context clues to figure out the meaning of Tier 2 words. You’ll be given a reference sheet to use with the definitions of
selected words from the story. Remember synonyms have “same meaning of words”; antonyms have “opposite meanings.”
5. Know the following characters from the story:
1. Jimmy Valentine: _____________________________ 5. Agatha: __________________________________________________
2. Ben Price: __________________________________ 6. May: ___________________________________________
3. Mr. Adams: _________________________________ 7. Ralph D. Spencer: _____________________________
4. Annabel: ___________________________________ 8. the boy on the Elmore bank steps: ________________________________
6. Just like the novel test, know the stages of the plot diagram and be able to plot key events from the story on the appropriate
stage. The five stages—in order: (1) exposition, (2) rising action, (3) climax, (4) falling action, & (5) resolution.
(See the plot diagram in Google Classroom for more assistance if needed.)
7. Again, know these recurring Tier 3 terms. (These words were on the novel test—so, you should already know what they mean.)
1. Man vs Man: when 2 or more characters have a conflict with each other
2. Man vs Nature: when a character faces a conflict with the world/nature or opposing forces
3. Man vs Self: when a character faces conflict with himself/herself (internal conflict)
4. Protagonist: the main character of a story
5. Antagonist: the enemy of the story (“bad” person)—it can be a person or a force of nature/society
6. Dynamic: when a character changes
7. Static: when a character stays the same; does not change
8. 1st-person point of view/perspective: when the narrator is a character in a story (words like “I” & “me” are used.)
9. 3rd-person point of view/perspective: when the narrator is someone else outside of the story (words like “they” or “he” are used)
10. Novel: a long, fictional book (like The Outsiders or A Wrinkle in Time)
11. Short Story: a brief fictional story (like “A Retrieved Reformation”)
12. Drama: a play (like “The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street”)
13. Suspense: a feeling of growing tension and excitement felt by the reader
14. Flashback: a break in time order of a story to reveal something that occurred in the past
15. Foreshadowing: when a writer provides hints that suggest future events
16. Theme: the main message about life or human nature that the writer wants to share with the reader
17. Imagery: language or words that appeal to the five senses (see, hear, feel, taste, & touch)
18. Mood: the feeling or atmosphere of a story that the reader feels (reader)
19. Tone: the writer’s attitude toward his/her topic (writer)

8. You’ll respond to ONE open-ended writing question. Make sure you read and answer the question carefully
completely with strong, appropriate evidence from the text to support your answer. (You’ll choose which one to answer.)

9. Be able to point out strong, appropriate evidence that supports claims or arguments about various topics.
 Which evidence is the best to support the claim?
10. Lastly, know that the hook is the first sentence(s) of an essay that grabs the readers’ interest. Know the correct order of an essay:
introduction + body + conclusion Also, remember that A = Assertion + E = Evidence + C = Commentary.
And what each one means!

--Study! This is the last test before next week’s checkpoint assessment. Good luck! --Mr. J :)