FIRST READ EXTENSION QUESTIONS

The Writing on the Wall

Name: Date:

The Writing on the Wall

Camille Dungy

DIRECTIONS: Complete the following items after you have read the text.
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RI.9-10.3 Analyze how the author unfolds an analysis or series of ideas or events, including the
order in which the points are made, how they are introduced or developed, and the connections
that are drawn between them.

1. (a) Analyze how the author unfolds an analysis or series of ideas or events,
including how they are introduced.
Read paragraphs 2–4 of the article “The Writing on the Wall.” How does the
author begin to develop ideas about what life was like for Chinese immigrants
who came to America before the 1940s? What effect does this have on the reader?

(b) Analyze how the author unfolds an analysis or series of ideas or events,
including how they are developed and the connections that are drawn
between them.
Read paragraphs 3–5 of “The Writing on the Wall.” Explain how these three
paragraphs connect to the poetry written by Chinese immigrants at Angel Island
and how the poetry connected the immigrants.

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 FIRST READ EXTENSION QUESTIONS
The Writing on the Wall

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RI.9-10.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including
figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word
choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language of a court opinion differs from that of a
newspaper).

2. (a) Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text,
including figurative meanings.
Read paragraph 9 of “The Writing on the Wall.” What does the author mean when
she says that immigrants were separated from friends and family by “piles of
bureaucracy”?

(b) Analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and
tone.
In “The Writing on the Wall,” the author uses sound devices such as alliteration,
or the repetition of initial consonant sounds, to emphasize ideas and develop tone.
Read paragraph 16 of “The Writing on the Wall.” What does the phrase “to calm,
to communicate, to commiserate, and to conserve” reveal about the poetry written
at Angel Island? What does the phrase reveal about the author’s tone, or attitude,
toward the poems and poetry in general?

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 Informative Text
DIRECTIONS: Complete the following activity as either a written response or a group
discussion.
_____________________________________________________________________________
RI.9-10.2 Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the
text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an objective
summary of the text.

Identify the central idea of “The Writing on the Wall.” Then, explain how the author
develops it throughout the text with specific details.

Use these guidelines in your writing or discussion.

 Think about what the text is mostly about to determine the central idea.
 Identify details that help you understand this central idea. Look for facts,
statistics, examples, descriptions, reasons, and expert opinions.
 Explain how these details help you understand the central idea.

TIP FOR WRITTEN RESPONSE

If you use quotations from the selection, explain how the quotations connect to your
ideas.
TIP FOR DISCUSSION
Ask for evidence of one another’s claims or statements. For example, say, “What makes
you think so?” or “What evidence can you cite for that?”

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