Big Mouth & Ugly Girl

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. The plot of Big Mouth & Ugly Girl is driven by various choices characters make in the novel.

• What mistakes are made by major characters in the novel? (topic sentence)
• Select three characters and explain how each of them made mistakes and why they made them.
• In your concluding sentences, explain how the characters experienced growth because of the mistakes they made.

2. Matt and Ursula develop a relationship throughout the novel because of their shared experiences.

• How are Matt and Ursula alike and different? (topic sentence)
• Compare Matt’s and Ursula’s personalities, family life, and personas.
• In your concluding sentences, explain whether you think Matt and Ursula’s relationship is based on their similarities or their differences.

3. In Big Mouth & Ugly Girl, there appears to be distrust between the adults and the teenagers.

• Why do Matt and Ursula feel that adults cannot be trusted? (topic sentence)
• Give some examples that explain why Matt and Ursula may be justified in distrusting adults based on their home life and their interactions with police and school authorities.
• In your concluding sentences, explain why the adults acted the way they did and whether you believe they behaved rationally.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. In Big Mouth & Ugly Girl, Ursula creates the persona of Ugly Girl. Why does Ursula embrace this persona? What first motivates her to do so? Which responses from Ursula are from Ugly Girl and which are from Ursula herself? What are some potential consequences of Ursula’s use of her persona? What does Ursula mean near the novel’s conclusion when she says she doesn’t need to use the persona all the time? In what circumstances might she decide to use it again?

2. One theme in the novel is The Fallibility of Adults. Big Mouth & Ugly Girl was written in 2002, after the 1999 Columbine shooting. There have been some changes by lawmakers and schools since that time to counteract school violence. In some ways, scenarios in the novel may appear dated due to the ongoing presence of school violence and changes in policy since the time in which the story is set. Explain in which instances the adults in the novel are justified in their decisions. Matt’s life was changed after his careless comment, but whom was the principal protecting by reporting Matt? Are people always justified in reporting threats against schools? What signs should the adults in the novel have considered when analyzing Matt’s mental health?

3. Social isolation plays a major role in the actions of the novel’s characters. How do Matt and Ursula both experience social isolation, and why? How does social isolation motivate the characters’ responses to others and to the challenges they face? How might Matt and Ursula have responded to stressful situations had they felt supported by their peers and adults? Does either character reject people who try to support them?