Source: "The Talking Stone," from Wild Drums: Tales and Legends of the Plains Indians, by
Alex Grisdale, Winnipeg: Peguis Publishers, 1972.
Reading Comprehension Questions
In most Reading Comprehension, the questions look at how well you understand
the story’s content. So, they usually ask about story elements such as plot, characters,
and conflicts, etc. The responses are typically found in the text itself. They may also
ask you to make inferences (i.e. educated guesses) about information presented.
For each question where applicable, indicate the paragraph # where you located the
answer.
1) What perspective is the story being told from? (hint: First person or Third person)
Third person.
2) In paragraph 1, the narrator tells us, “I have made you fine bows and arrows,” she
once told them one day when they were ten summers. How old are the two sons?
Why do you think the narrator uses “summers” to count age?
The two sons are ten years old. I think the narrator uses “summers” to count age
because perhaps this story takes place in a time where there aren't any devices
like clocks or phones, and people don’t have any other way to keep track of time.
For example, Ancient Egyptians observed the sun to determine what time it was
during a day. Similar to the Ancient Egyptians, First Nations may have kept track
of their age by counting down the summers and keeping track of the seasons.
3) How do the two boys learn to be brave hunters? What does this tell you about how
these characters gain knowledge?
4) How do these characters measure (i.e. tell) time?
These characters measure time by counting down each passing summer. One
summer is equivalent to one year.
5) How would you describe the mother? Is she a good mother? How do you know?
6) Why did the mother ask the two braves to follow her sons? What kind of irony is
presented here?
The mother asked the two braves to follow her sons because she wanted to find
out why her sons were bringing home less birds each day and if they were
deceiving her about the scarcity of birds, and instead giving their birds to the
enemy.
Critical Thinking Questions:
In Critical Thinking, the questions prompt you to think deeply or “think out of the
box”. The responses are usually more open-ended and are not typically found in
any written line in the story. Instead, it requires the reader to use the information that
they understand from the story to make an intelligent comment about something
the story (i.e. text) presents.
7) In this short story, the stone is able to speak and tell stories to humans. What does
this fact show you about how these individuals view non-living things? What may be
their role or relationship to humans?
8) The stone tells the hunters to make sure they bring an offering (i.e. a gift) to old men
and women when they want to hear their stories. What do you think this suggests
about their cultural perspectives or values?