James and Barry Study Black History
Comprehension Activities
Chapter One – The Fight
READING COMPREHENSION: Write complete sentence answers to the questions below.
1. Where do Barry and James go to school?
2. Who is their teacher?
3. What are they studying?
4. Where was Barry born?
5. Why does the teacher take the boys to the principal’s office?
VOCABULARY BUILDING: Find TEN new words in Chapter One. Look them up in a dictionary.
Write a synonym for each word. Then find the different forms of the word.
VOCABULARY
SYNONYM
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James and Barry Study Black History
Comprehension Activities
Chapter Two – Lera
READING COMPREHENSION: Circle TRUE or FALSE for each sentence. If the sentence is FALSE,
make it TRUE.
TRUE FALSE 1. Barry and Barinedum are two names for the same person.
TRUE FALSE 2. Barry’s mother is happy because the school called her about Barry.
TRUE FALSE 3. Barry’s mother’s name is Lera.
TRUE FALSE 4. Lera was a math teacher in her country.
TRUE FALSE 5. Lera lived in a refugee camp for five years.
TRUE FALSE 6. Lera is married to Barry’s father and they are a happy family.
TRUE FALSE 7. Lera knows Barry is a good son.
VOCABULARY BUILDING: Find TEN new words in Chapter Two. Look them up in a dictionary.
Write a synonym for each word. Then find the different forms of the word.
VOCABULARY
SYNONYM
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James and Barry Study Black History
Comprehension Activities
Chapter Three – The Meeting
READING COMPREHENSION: Write complete sentence answers to the questions below.
1. Why is there a meeting with Ms. North?
2. Who is in the meeting with Ms. North?
3. What will Barry read and write about?
4. What will James read and write about?
5. When will they meet again?
VOCABULARY BUILDING: Find TEN new words in Chapter Three. Look them up in a dictionary.
Write a synonym for each word. Then find the different forms of the word.
VOCABULARY
SYNONYM
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VERB
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ADJECTIVE
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James and Barry Study Black History
Comprehension Activities
Chapter Four – The Supermarket
READING COMPREHENSION: Circle TRUE or FALSE for each sentence. If the sentence is FALSE,
make it TRUE.
TRUE FALSE 1. Mrs. Lewis almost bumps into Lera’s cart in the supermarket.
TRUE FALSE 2. Lera sees bruises on Mrs. Lewis’s face.
TRUE FALSE 3. Mrs. Lewis and Kayla are two names for the same person.
TRUE FALSE 4. Lera works at a center for women.
TRUE FALSE 5. James hits his mother.
TRUE FALSE 6. Lera thinks Kayla must call the police.
TRUE FALSE 7. Kayla is worried about James.
VOCABULARY BUILDING: Find TEN new words in Chapter Four. Look them up in a dictionary.
Write a synonym for each word. Then find the different forms of the word.
VOCABULARY
SYNONYM
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VERB
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ADJECTIVE
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James and Barry Study Black History
Comprehension Activities
Chapter Five – Barry Reads
READING COMPREHENSION: Circle TRUE or FALSE for each sentence. If the sentence is FALSE,
make it TRUE.
TRUE FALSE 1. Mr. Clark uses a number game to decide who reads first.
TRUE FALSE 2. James reads his composition first.
TRUE FALSE 3. The first African slaves came to America in the early 1600s.
TRUE FALSE 4. Between 1790 and 1860 there were over four million slaves in the U. S.
TRUE FALSE 5. President Lincoln freed all slaves in 1863 after the Civil War began.
TRUE FALSE 6. For almost 100 years there were unfair laws that made segregation legal.
TRUE FALSE 7. In 1955, the police arrested Rosa Parks because she was a black woman who
would not give her seat to a white man on the bus in Montgomery, Alabama.
TRUE FALSE 8. Martin Luther King Jr. became a famous leader of the civil rights movement.
TRUE FALSE 9. Somebody killed Martin Luther King, Jr. when he gave his famous “I Have a
Dream” speech.
TRUE FALSE 10. Americans celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day because he helped change
the history of our country.
VOCABULARY BUILDING: Find TEN new words in Chapter Five. Look them up in a dictionary.
Write a synonym for each word. Then find the different forms of the word.
VOCABULARY
SYNONYM
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VERB
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James and Barry Study Black History
Comprehension Activities
Chapter Six – James Reads
READING COMPREHENSION: Circle TRUE or FALSE for each sentence. If the sentence is FALSE,
make it TRUE.
TRUE FALSE 1. James reads his composition about African immigration.
TRUE FALSE 2. Slave traders bought more than 12 million Africans and sold them all over the
world.
TRUE FALSE 3. Most slaves came from East Africa.
TRUE FALSE 4. Sometimes violence in Africa is because of oil and other resources.
TRUE FALSE 5. In 2006 4.2 million Africans had to leave their homes because of violence and
hunger.
TRUE FALSE 6. Life is wonderful in refugee camps.
TRUE FALSE 7. Mrs. Lewis cries when James reads his composition.
TRUE FALSE 8. Barry’s mother lived in a refugee camp before she came to America.
TRUE FALSE 9. Sometimes there are problems between Africans and African-Americans
because they don’t understand each other’s history.
TRUE FALSE 10. Mr. Clark asks the boys to join the baseball team.
VOCABULARY BUILDING: Find TEN new words in Chapter Six. Look them up in a dictionary.
Write a synonym for each word. Then find the different forms of the word.
VOCABULARY
SYNONYM
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VERB
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ADJECTIVE
ADVERB
James and Barry Study Black History
Comprehension Activities
Chapter Seven – Kayla’s Visit
READING COMPREHENSION: Write complete sentence answers to the questions below.
1. Who does Barry see when he comes home?
2. Where does Mrs. Lewis work?
3. What does Lera want to study?
4. What do Lera and Kayla plan to do tomorrow?
5. What does Kayla plan to do today?
VOCABULARY BUILDING: Find TEN new words in Chapter Seven. Look them up in a dictionary.
Write a synonym for each word. Then find the different forms of the word.
VOCABULARY
SYNONYM
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VERB
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ADJECTIVE
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James and Barry Study Black History
Comprehension Activities
Chapter Eight – Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
READING COMPREHENSION: Write complete sentence answers to the questions below.
1. What game do Barry and James play together?
2. What project do the boys need to do for Mr. Clark?
3. Why does James have a black eye?
4. How did Barry’s father die?
5. What does Barry’s mother NOT know how to do?
6. What is Lera and Kayla’s surprise?
VOCABULARY BUILDING: Find TEN new words in Chapter Eight. Look them up in a dictionary.
Write a synonym for each word. Then find the different forms of the word.
VOCABULARY
SYNONYM
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VERB
NOUN
ADJECTIVE
ADVERB