Response 1. Personal Connections Describe an experience you've had that is similar
in any way to those of the boy or another character in the story.
Comprehension
2. Reading Check (a) Why does Grandma come to live with the narrator's
family? (b) Where did Grandma live before her husband died? (c) What
happens to Grandma at the end of the story?
3. Strategy: Make Connections (a) Cite one example each of a personal
connection, a textual connection, and a societal connection you made
while reading this story. (b) In what ways did making connections add to
your reading experience? Explain.
Analysis
4. Interpret In paragraph 34, the narrator says "Somehow that day
changed everything." Explain what happened and why you think these
events led to such a profound change.
5. (a) Contrast Grandma tells the narrator to put the toad back, but he
ignores her advice. What does this interaction show about differences in
the two characters' attitudes toward nature? (b) Analyze How does this
difference explain Grandma's reaction to the toad's death?
(c) Interpret Why is it important to the boy that Grandma help bury the
toad and keep its death secret?
6. (a) Make Inferences What gives the narrator the courage to resist his
relatives in their discussion about Grandma's burial? (b) Analyze Why is
he surprised at their response? (c) Make Inferences Why do you think
the adults change their attitude?
7. (a) Draw Conclusions Why do you think Gerald Haslam titled this story
"The Horned Toad"? (b) Interpret What might the horned toad
symbolize, or represent?