Eight Keys Novel Study Unit
Fill in traits for each character as you encounter them in
the story. Be sure to cite evidence by listing the page
number where you find the description.
CHARACTER
ELISE BERTRAND
FRANKLIN
AMANDA
BETTERMAN
UNCLE HUGH
AUNT BESSIE
LEONARD
ANNIE
AVA
DIANA
DESCRIPTION
*Protagonist (good guy)
*Bullied by Amanda, and has to share a locker with her
*Lets Amanda’s bullying bother her; depressed about it
*
*
*Elise’s best friend
*Strict parents
*Loves Science
*Doesn’t let bullying bother him
*
*Antagonist (bad guy)
*Bullies Elise
*Best friend with Caroline
*
*
*Craftsman
*Leaves extra tools, etc. out for Elise to build with
*Understanding & firm, has Elise set goals
*Caterer
*Lets Elise help cook & makes ice cream for them
*Understanding, patient
*Elise’s dad’s best friend
*Tries to help Elise get organized & gives advice
*
*Aunt Bessie’s sister
*Comes to live with Aunt Bessie & Uncle Hugh- Elise
becomes jealous
*Loving mother
*Annie’s baby
*Elise is nervous around her & a little jealous
*
*Wears cat sweaters
*Interviews for the newspaper
CAROLINE
JAKE
ALEC
*Rides the bus with Franklin & Elise
*Amanda’s best friend
*Nice to Elise- helps her with her Social Studies HW at
lunch
*
*Elise’s cousin
*Picks on Franklin
*
*Elise’s cousin
*Picks on Franklin
*
Directions: Answer the questions below. Cite the page number
where the answer to each question is located.
CHAPTER 1
Why My Life Really Stinks
1. How does the game of Knights work? “They gather their swords, head to the
woods, and go on missions to battle IMAGINARY ghost knights.”pg. # ___3____
2. …we go on chivalrous missions…” What does the word chivalrous mean?
___BRAVE__pg. # __3__
Use it in a sentence. answers will vary
3. Why didn’t Franklin & Elise get to know the other kids at school or on the bus?
THEY HAD EACH OTHER, and that’s all that mattered to them pg. #___7_____
4. Describe what happened to Elise the first day of school. _
_People made fun of her because of her scabby legs and they called her “scabular.”
___________________pg. # ____8-9___
5. Predictions: What do you think will happen to Elise & Franklin in middle school?
__________________answers will vary
CHAPTER 2
One Last Visit to Summer
**Begin character sketch for Uncle Hugh & Aunt Bessie**
1. What is Uncle Hugh’s occupation (job)? __craftsman_________ pg #__12___
What is Aunt Bessie’s occupation (job)? caterer- be able to explain that a caterer is a
person who makes food (example: We got Osaka to cater my birthday party)
________pg #_12____
2. Why are Franklin & Elise not allowed to help carry trays to the van?
Because Aunt Bessie thinks that they will drop something (one of the trays, etc.)
pg. # __14_____
3. Where are Elise’s parents? Why doesn’t she think of them very often? ______________
her mom died when she was born and her dad left when she was three (the doctor
told him he only has a year to live) pg # ___18____
4. Compare & contrast Franklin & Elise’s lives & homes:
Franklin
both
*overprotective parents
*live in barns
*parents don’t work
*Knights
*LOTS OF RULES
*both teased @ school
*lactose intolerant- can’t
*same middle school
have milk or lots of sweets/sugar
*mom and dad cook most meals
because Franklin is allergic to lots
of things
Elise
*parents died
*lives with
aunt Bessie
Uncle Hugh
*no rules @
home
*called Cricket
*unlimited
sugar
5. How did Elise get the name Cricket? She wouldn’t stop talking in full sentences
when she was little, so Uncle Hugh gave Elise the nickname, Cricket. pg. # __15__
6. Draw an oblong shape: (“rectangular” oval)
CHAPTER 3
Things Get Worse
1. Complete the character sketch on Leonard. Remember to cite page numbers.
2. What does Elise notice while rocking in the barn? __a key_____ pg. #__30___
3. What family news does Uncle Hugh and Aunt Bess share with Elise? Annie and
Ava are coming to live with them. ____pg. # __34_____
How do you think that Elise is going feel once they arrive & why? She’s going to be
sad that Annie and Ava are coming to live with them, because the baby is going to
get all of the attention (and will take away Elise and Aunt Bessie’s time together in
the kitchen)
CHAPTER 4
Things Get Much Worse
1. Franklin and Elise handle Amanda’s bullying in different ways. Why do you
think it bothers Elise more than Franklin? Elise is more sensitive and wants to fit in
more than Franklin pg. # __36-41_____
2. In regards to mean comments made by Amanda, Franklin asks “What’s her
problem?” However, Elise thinks, “What’s wrong with us?” Who do you think really
has the self-esteem problem: Amanda, Franklin or Elise? __________answers will
vary__
Why? __________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________pg. #__37___
3. Why is it becoming harder and harder for Elise to get to school? She is being
bullied by Amanda and she doesn’t get a lot of her work done and doesn’t catch the
bus on time pg. # _37______
What could Elise have done differently in this situation? She could wake up earlier
so that she could catch the bus on time, she could get to her locker before Amanda
CHAPTER 5
Feeling Stuck
1. Elise misses the bus….again. Franklin is waiting on her. What does this tell you
about Franklin? ______he is a good friend and he really cares about her ______________
2. Elise begins calling Franklin a “dorkus”. What does this tell you about Elise ________
___She is starting to copy Amanda, and wants to fit in with all of the cool kids
because “everyone else is doing it.” ___________pg. # __43_____
3. Why do babies make Elise nervous? Three reasons… 1. They are fragile… every
time she touches them they will break (she thinks) 2. She doesn’t know why they
are crying 3. They remind her of her mom _____________________________pg. # _______
3. “It’s not fair!” This is what Elise says in regard to people not liking her because
she is friends with Franklin. Do you think this is fair? Why or why not? ______answers
will vary_______ pg. # _______
CHAPTER 6
I make it to school
**Have you started the character sketch for Annie, Ava, Diana & Caroline?**
1. Make an inference: Why do you think Amanda never lets anyone see her smashing
Elise’s lunch? She doesn’t want to get in trouble by a teacher and she doesn’t want
people to see her as a bully… She doesn’t want anyone to know she’s a bad person.
She wants people to like her, but no one is going to like her if they see her mean to
others. pg. # _______
2. When Caroline gets attention for doing something good in school, her friends are
not happy for her. Are these good friends? ________________________________________________
Why do you think they act that way? ______________________________________________________
3. Uncle Hugh gives Annie the rocking chair Elise wants. How do you think this
makes Elise feel? Upset/mad because even though she never told him she wanted
the rocking chair, she still liked it and really wanted it. pg. # _______
CHAPTER 7
I turn twelve
1. List the gifts that Elise gets for her birthday. Pg # ___________________
Gift certificate from Aunt Sally and Uncle Beau
One Free Day Trip pass from Leonard
Cookbook from Aunt Bessie
Goal journal from Uncle Hugh
Knot tying book from Franklin
Letter from her dad (final letter)
2. Who does Elise get a letter from every year on her birthday? ___dad_________________
3. Elise’s father writes that, “While others can help, in great part we mold ourselves.”
What does this mean? Other people can tell you a lot of things in life, but it is always
up to you to make the correct choices; no one can do the things to make you better,
but you. It is up to you to make the most of your life (This is a good lesson for us all)

Do you agree with this? Why or why not? answers will vary_
4. What was the only day Elise and her parents spent together? _her birth day (the
day she was born… her mother died in labor) _____
CHAPTER 8
Being 12 is (unfortunately) just like being 11
1. What has Elise forgotten to do…again and what advice did Aunt Bessie give her?
_her homework; she should have done it right after school_______________ pg. # ___71__
2. Why is Elise sitting alone in the lunchroom? _she has no other friends but
Franklin, and he went to the SGA meeting _______________________
How does she feel? _ lonely___________________________________________________ pg. # __72___
3. “Maybe they didn’t know I was a loser.” This is what Elise thinks as she is sitting
alone in the lunchroom. Why is it dangerous to feel this way about yourself? _______
__________________answers will vary- When you don’t have confidence in yourself, you
will keep feeling worse about yourself and others will not have confidence in you
either____ pg. # _______
4. How do you think Amanda & Caroline became friends? Do they act the same?
make an inference- Caroline might have felt sorry for her because of the way
Amanda treats her. pg. # _______
5. “Sometimes things don’t change on their own. Sometimes we have to change them.”
Explain what this means. How does this apply to Elise?
It is up to you to make the changes in your life. No one else can make a change for
you. You are responsible for the changes in our life. Things won’t change unless you
take action. (this is a good lesson for us all)  pg. # ___