Breaking Through

Multiple Choice and Long Answer questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, unit exam, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. Breaking Through opens with what traumatic memory from Panchito’s past, which took place in the late 1940s?

A) He thinks back to when his mother was forced to give up his youngest brother for adoption.

B) He thinks back to when his father was in so much back pain that he wept bitterly at church one Sunday afternoon.

C) He thinks back to when he and his family dug a hole under the barbed wire fence to sneak into the US.

D) He thinks back to his grandfather’s funeral, and how the entire village in El Rancho Blanco came together to mourn him.

2. Both Roberto and Panchito make efforts to adapt to American teenage pastimes, especially in Chapter 3. What is an example of how they do this?

A) They begin listening to rock n’ roll music, such as Elvis Presley.

B) They eat hot dogs every day, even though the brothers do not particularly like beef.

C) They start wearing saddle shoes.

D) They both try and find girlfriends.

3. Why do Papa and his business partner take out a bank loan in Chapter 5?

A) They want to buy a truck that will serve both of their families.

B) They want to start a small strawberry farm.

C) They want to buy Christmas gifts for both of their wives.

D) They want to build a shared cabin, where both of their families can vacation.

4. As a graduation gift, Papa gives Panchito his beloved medal, featuring which Catholic saint?

A) St. Christopher, patron saint of travelers

B) St. Jude, patron saint of lost causes

C) St. Joseph, patron saint of fathers and workers

D) St. Thomas Aquinas, patron saint of educators and learning

5. What is the reason that Panchito’s little brother is nicknamed “Trampita,” as described in Chapter 7?

A) Because Trampita’s favorite movie as a little kid was “Lady and the Tramp,” and he especially loved the dog named Tramp.

B) Because Mama used to dress Trampita in clothes salvaged from the dump, and it means “Little Tramp.”

C) Because Trampita would stomp around when he was learning to walk, and “tramp” means to “walk heavily.”

D) Because Trampita used to mispronounce his birth name (Slampita) in a way that sounded more like “Trampita.”

6. Which of the following is not an example of scenes featuring a “stain” that sets Panchito apart from white American society?

A) Prior to his first day of high school, Panchito tries to remove strawberry stains from his hands with bleach.

B) Panchito and Roberto use Fab detergent instead of body soap before dinner at a steak restaurant to remove the strawberry stains from their bodies.

C) Before his graduation from middle school, Panchito uses Fab and Ajax to remove strawberry stains from his hair and hands.

D) Panchito uses a whitening cream from Roberto’s girlfriend Peggy to lighten the strawberry-colored skin on his hands and legs.

7. When Trampita and Torito find an old pair of sneakers for Panchito in the dump in Chapter 9, they are slightly too big for him. How does Panchito make them fit?

A) He stuffs his shoes with excess strawberries.

B) He wears two pairs of socks.

C) He asks his mother to pray for his feet to grow and, by some miracle (or perhaps due to a growth spurt), they do.

D) He stubs his toes every morning to make them swell to a slightly larger size.

8. What is the underlying reason why, in Chapter 10, Papa becomes furious at Roberto and Panchito for arriving home a few minutes late?

A) Papa feels overwhelmed due to his poverty and his chronic back pain, which makes him insecure. He takes his frustrations out on the boys.

B) Papa fears that the boys are becoming too lax and therefore “too American.”

C) Mama is unhappy with Papa, and so Papa takes his frustrations out on the boys.

D) Papa is a strict disciplinarian. Even if they are just a few minutes late, he feels it is important to instill a sense of discipline into the boys.

9. One of the employees at Twitchel and Twitchel offers to sell Panchito the typewriter he finds in the storage room. What is the name of that employee?

A) Chase Twitchel

B) Geoffrey Twitchel

C) Bob Twitchel

D) Francisco Twitchel

10. When Miss Bell asks Panchito to write an autobiographical story in Chapter 12, what story does he elect to tell?

A) He tells a story about Trampita, in which Panchito accidentally abandons him.

B) He tells a story about Papa, in which he slaps a comic book out of Panchito’s hands.

C) He tells a story about Roberto, in which they play basketball in an abandoned quarry.

D) He tells a story about Mama, in which she stays up all night praying to Saint Thomas.

11. At the start of his junior year in high school, Panchito’s guidance counselor, Mr. Kinkade, laughs that Panchito received good grades in all subjects except for what class?

A) Homeroom

B) Driver’s Education

C) Typing

D) American History

12. In Chapter 13, Mama refrains from packing Panchito her normal homemade lunch in favor of baloney sandwiches so that he will not be targeted. What did Mama usually pack Panchito for lunch?

A) Enchiladas

B) Sopas

C) Burritos

D) Taquitos

13. Who requests that Panchito participate in the class talent show?

A) Marvin Bell, the class president

B) Sally Struthers, the head cheerleader

C) Jimmy Bulk, the class clown

D) Lolita Suez, the loner

14. As Panchito heads off to college, there is a growing social movement in the US that piques Panchito’s interest. What is the movement, and which of the book’s themes does it correspond to?

A) The rise of feminism, corresponding to the theme of Solidarity of Family and Community

B) The civil rights movement, corresponding to the theme of Rage Fueled by Injustice

C) The flower power movement, corresponding to the theme of The Value of Spirituality and Faith

D) The anti-war movement, corresponding to the theme of Rage Fueled by Injustice

15. Which of the following statements best describes Papa’s emotional state at the end of the book?

A) He is content because Panchito will be moving upward in life after college.

B) He is wistful, thinking about the life that could’ve been if he were afforded educational opportunities.

C) He is a mix of emotions, both angry and delighted that Panchito will be leaving to pursue higher education.

D) He is numb because he can hardly imagine a life without Panchito nearby.

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating text details to support your response.

1. Who is Trampita and what is their relationship to Panchito? How is this character thematically important?

2. In Chapters 16-18, Panchito’s efforts to amalgamate his own Latino culture with American culture manifests in his agreeing to participate in the Junior class talent show. How is this so? What symbolic meaning does the talent show hold?