Discussion Guide for Teacher Absent Often
PART 2: A CHILD OF THE KHMER ROUGE
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Literal or Acquisition or Right There
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Inference or Meaning Making or Putting It Together
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•Answers can be given in one word or sentence.
•Answers are found directly in the text.
•Constructing meaning/ understanding and connecting to other parts of the text. Look in more
than one place and put the info together.
•Answers require one or more sentences.
Interpret or Transfer or Making Connections
•Connecting text to other texts, other media, etc. and/or using text to form an opinion, etc.
Answers require you to think about what you just read, what you already know, and how it fits
together. Combining knowledge & understanding.
•Questions cannot be found using the text alone.
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Assignments / Lessons/ Activities
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Pronunciation & Definition Guide
Don’t forget to pause in your reading to include these activities at the right point in the book.
Not every word that might be needed is included the most important ones are included when a
pronunciation can be found. Words/ names/ etc. are included only the FIRST time they occur in
the text. Click the  to hear it (when available). Descriptions follow.
Chapter 6: The Irish Jewish Cambodian Cowboy
Chapter 7: A Cambodian Wedding in Wyoming
♦ p. 26 Pol Pot
PAWL PAWT
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Khmer political leader whose totalitarian regime (1975–79) imposed severe hardships on the Cambodian
people. His radical communist government forced the mass evacuations of cities, killed or displaced millions of
people, and left a legacy of brutality and impoverishment. (Enyclopaedia Britannica)
? Why was it important to Kari and George to have a Cambodian friend after they returned
to Wyoming with their new baby, Ratanak (Grady)?
Students will INFER the answer and give examples using TEXTUAL EVIDENCE from chapters 6 & 7.
Chapter 8: Amanda’s Kitchen
p. 29 Grady hid between Kari’s legs, too shy to answer the Khmer question, “How are
you, nephew?” Kari asked Grady to sompeah, to bow with his hands together, to show
respect toward Amanda. Respect for elders is a Cambodian value she felt Grady
should know.
? Are elders shown respect in the United States? How does your culture or family show
respect for elders? Or how do you show respect for your elders?
Students will MAKE CONNECTIONS between the text and their personal experiences.
Chapter 9: Amanda’s Childhood
♦ p. 33 Khmer Rouge
K-MEHR ROOZH
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Under Pol Pot the Khmer Rouge forced the reconstruction of Cambodian society with mass deportations from
the towns to the countryside and mass executions. More than two million died before the regime was
overthrown by the Vietnamese in 1979. Khmer Rouge forces have continued a program of guerrilla warfare
from bases in Thailand. (Oxford Dictionaries)
? Amanda and her family had to flee their home in Pailin, Cambodia as the soldiers of the
Khmer Rouge invaded their city. Imagine that you have to flee your home and you can only
take three things that you can carry with you. Explain what items you would take and why.
Students will TRANSFER experiences from the story to their own life to create a solution to a problem. Will they
choose their favorite things? (ex- iPod) Useful things? (ex- cooking pot) Irreplaceable things? (photos)
Chapter 10: The Long March
bottom of p. 39 - 40 At daily meetings, the Khmer Rouge soldiers gave out the rules for
Angka’s new society. Money and education became the enemy and all foreign
influence was banned… to hide our city-dweller past.
? Explain why Angka and the Khmer Rouge soldiers would make “education” an enemy in
the new society of Cambodia?
Students will INTERPRET the values of education and what threat that might pose to the new government.
Words couldn’t be spoken anyway, since no one knew who to trust… Everyone
knew that would be a death sentence.
? What did the Khmer Rouge soldiers gain by isolating everyone, even splitting up families?
p. 40
Students will INTERPRET what threat a united population (even a family, small group, or village) might pose to
the new government.
Chapter 11: The Year Zero
♦ p. 39 Angka
Angka ("The Organization") was the secretive upper-levels of the new ruling government. (Mount Holyoke)
Chapter 12: Remembering Little Sister
Chapter 13: Half-Moon Cake
Chapter 14: Daikon Camp
Chapter 15: Escape
Chapter 16: Refugee
p. 62 For the next two months we traveled through transit camps… We flew to the
Philippines and spent six months learning how to function in the modern world… I
couldn’t imagine the America could be any better than that.
? What modern-day technology (of the early 1980s) would be the most confusing? The most
appreciated?
What about refugees that are coming to the United States today? Would the 2015 answers
change from the early 80s answers?
Students will MAKE CONNETIONS between their own lives and the refugees.
? What IB Learner Profile Traits do you see in Amanda? Identify examples from chapters 6 –
16.
Students will INTERPRET what traits Amanda has and give an opinion based on TEXTUAL EVIDENCE from chapters
6 – 16.
IB Learner Profile Traits
knowledgeable
risk-taker
reflective
caring
principled
communicator
inquirer
balanced
open-minded
thinker
Display the IB Learner Profile Trait PPT slide to remind students of the traits.
► What? So what? chart (row 3 of 6)
► Statements to Consider chart (column 2 of 3)