Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. What is PTSD? How can trauma affect a person?

Teaching Suggestion: Claudia experiences PTSD throughout the novel, to the point where she dissociates and confuses the timeline of events. Having some background about the effects of PTSD could help students understand the novel more fully. Discussing this topic before reading could help the class remember the gravity of the issues in the novel as they read and discuss, even when some parts of the reading are uncomfortable.

• “The Many Forms, Faces And Causes Of PTSD” from NPR includes an 11-minute listen and a shorter article about PTSD.
• This document from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network contains two pages of background, facts, and ways to help a person dealing with traumatic stress. It focuses more on young people and dissociation.

2. How important is a physical home and community? How does gentrification affect neighborhoods?

Teaching Suggestion: The gentrification of Monday’s neighborhood provides a central focus in the setting, plot, and theme. Monday’s family and neighbors are being forcibly pushed out of their homes.