Esio

Trot
By Roald Dahl

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Deana Jones
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4 Grade AIG, NBCT
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Esio Trot Name __________________
by Roald Dahl Day 1 (p. 9-15)
Vivid Vocabulary
jutted (p. 10) endearments (p. 13)
Comprehension Check
de plants and mrd. silver
1. Describe Mr. Hoppy’s two loves. _______________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2. Why doesn’t Mr. Hoppy tell Mrs. Silver how he feels about her? In what ways does he dream of
because mrs silver was love with alfie
getting her attention? ________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
mrs love alfie
3. How does Mrs. Silver feel about Alfie? Give evidence from the text. __________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
Picked Passage: “The distance between their balconies might not have been more than a few yards, but to
Mr. Hoppy it seemed like a million miles.” (p. 10) How does Mr. Hoppy feel? Why? Underline the exaggeration.

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Link to Literature: Alfie hibernates. What other animal(s) hibernate in winter? Why do they hibernate?

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Story Sketches Sketch what Mrs. Silver’s balcony looks like in order to make it safe & comfortable for Alfie.

Test Taking: “Mrs. Silver was a widow who also lived alone.” (p. 10)
Use context clues to determine the meaning of “widow.”
a) mother of several kids b) quiet, shy person c) lady who’s husband has died d) zookeeper
Swift Summary: Summarize this passage in 1-2 sentences:
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
© 2015 Deana Jones
Esio Trot Name __________________
by Roald Dahl Day 2 (p. 16-23)
Vivid Vocabulary
solemnly (p. 19) envy (p. 20)
Comprehension Check
1. Foreshadowing is when an author gives a clue about something that is about to happen in the story.
How does the author foreshadow on p. 16? _______________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2. Describe Mrs. Silver’s worry about Alfie. How does Mr. Hoppy plan to use her worry to help himself?
mrs silver wont alfie to grow
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
3. Study the words in Mr. Hoppy’s message. What do you notice? Explain. ______________________
the message was in tortoise language
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
Picked Passage: “Mr. Hoppy’s mind was spinning like a flywheel.” (p. 21) Explain what is meant by this.
What is Mr. Hoppy thinking about?

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Link to Literature: Mrs. Silver said, “Everyone wants to grow up!” Do you want to grow bigger or older?
Why or why not?

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Story Sketches Complete the graphic organizer:
Main Idea: Mrs. Silver would like Alfie to grow larger.

Detail: Detail: Detail:

Test Taking: Which of the following sentences from page 21 supports the fact that Mr. Hoppy Is clever?
a) “ ‘I worked in North Africa once.’ ” b) “Here, surely, was his big chance. Grab it, he told himself…quick!”
c) “When he heard the words slave for life, a little shiver of excitement swept through Mr. Hoppy.”
d) “Wait here. I’ll have to go in and write something down for you.”

Swift Summary: Summarize this passage in 1-2 sentences:

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
© 2015 Deana Jones
Esio Trot Name __________________
by Roald Dahl Day 3 (p. 24-31)
Vivid Vocabulary
bewildered (p. 24) quivering (p. 26)
Comprehension Check
1. Summarize Mr. Hoppy’s explanation of the magic words. How did Mrs. Silver react? _____________
tortoise language is spelled bakwards
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2. Explain how Mr. Hoppy chose the turtles. ________________________________________________
all the tortoise have the dark shell and all with more dan 13 ouses
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
3. Predict what Mr. Hoppy is planning to do with all the turtles. Do you think the plan will work? Why
or why not? ________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
Picked Passage: “Mr. Hoppy had bought no less than one hundred and forty tortoises and he carried them
home in baskets, ten or fifteen at a time.” (p. 30) About how many trips did Mr. Hoppy have to make?
Show your work.



Link to Literature: The pet shop owners told Mr. Hoppy what to feed the tortoises. What would they eat?
Do you have a pet? What does it eat?

__________________________________________________________________________________________
cabbage leaves and a bowl of water.

__________________________________________________________________________________________
my pet hachi eats his dogs food.

Story Sketches Trace the steps that Mr. Hoppy took in putting his plan into action right away. Use words.

First: Then: Next:

Test Taking: Why didn’t Mr. Hoppy want any tortoises smaller than Alfie?
a) He needed older, wiser tortoises. c) All the small ones had light colored shells.
b) There was no particular reason. d) He is trying to make Mrs. Silver think Alfie is growing, not shrinking.
Swift Summary: Summarize this passage in 1-2 sentences:
d
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
© 2015 Deana Jones
Esio Trot Name __________________
by Roald Dahl Day 4 (p. 32-39)
Vivid Vocabulary
basking (p. 35) vast (p. 38)
Comprehension Check
1. What had Mr. Hoppy’s job been before he retired? Explain how this helps with his plan.
the tortoise cachin
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2. How does Mrs. Silver’s schedule help Mr. Hoppy with his plan? _______________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
3. Describe Mr. Hoppy’s process for picking Tortoise #2. Do you think it will work? Why or why not?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
Picked Passage: “It was going to be a tense moment.” (p. 39) Explain what is meant by this statement.
Why will the moment be tense?

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Link to Literature: Mr. Hoppy had to weigh the tortoises. Tell about a time you have weighed something.

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Story Sketches Complete this character map for Mr. Hoppy. Give 4 character traits that describe him.
Write the page number where you found evidence for each trait.



Mr. Hoppy



Test Taking: Which of the following circumstances does NOT make Mr. Hoppy’s job easier?
a) Mrs. Silver loves Alfie very much.
b) Mrs. Silver lives directly below Mr. Hoppy.
c) Mr. Hoppy’s tortoise-catcher works very well.
d) Mr. Hoppy has plenty of tortoises to choose from.
Swift Summary: Summarize this passage in 1-2 sentences:
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
© 2015 Deana Jones
Esio Trot Name __________________
by Roald Dahl Day 5 (p. 40-47)
Vivid Vocabulary
foliage (p. 42) casually (p. 47)
Comprehension Check
1. Is Mr. Hoppy’s plan working so far? How do you know? ____________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2. Why hasn’t Mrs. Silver noticed the tortoise’s growth? How is this similar to what happens when
children grow? ______________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
3. Trace the steps in Mr. Hoppy’s plan so far. How many weeks has it gone on? ___________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
the plan was has gone on for 7 weeks

___________________________________________________________________________________
Picked Passage: “ ‘I can’t see a lot of difference myself ‘ Mr. Hoppy had answered casually.” (p. 47)
Why do you think Mr. Hoppy is downplaying Alfie’s “growth?”

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Link to Literature: Do you track your growth somehow? How do you know when you are getting bigger?

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Story Sketches Sketch Alfie and Tortoise No. 8 side by side. Draw them to scale as much as possible.

Test Taking: What was the first sign, to Mrs. Silver, that Mr. Hoppy’s special words are working?
a) The tortoise is chomping on lettuce when she gets home.
b) The tortoise is getting bigger.
c) The tortoise has more energy to move around and play.
d) Mr. Hoppy shows her how it is working on his tortoises.
Swift Summary: Summarize this passage in 1-2 sentences:
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
© 2015 Deana Jones
Esio Trot Name __________________
by Roald Dahl Day 6 (p. 48-53)
Vivid Vocabulary
halt (p. 48) enlarge (p. 50)
Comprehension Check
1. Why does Mrs. Silver finally notice the tortoise has grown larger? What problem does she now have?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2. Describe Mrs. Silver’s reaction to “Alfie’s” growth. How does she feel? Give evidence. ____________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
3. Will this new plan work? Why or why not? Predict what will happen between Mr. Hoppy and Mrs.
Silver, based on her words and actions. __________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
Picked Passage: “Mr. Hoppy suddenly felt very brave.” (p. 50) Why is Mr. Hoppy feeling this way?
How does he act on it?

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Link to Literature: The tortoise “outgrew” his house. Tell about a time you outgrew something you liked.

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Story Sketches Complete the following graphic organizer, using facts from these pages.
CAUSE EFFECT





Test Taking: What is Mr. Hoppy’s most important goal?

a) He wants “Alfie” to be as big as possible. c) He wants to be famous for his magic words.
b) He wants Mrs. Silver to like him the way he likes her. d) He wants to build Alfie a bigger house.

Swift Summary: Summarize this passage in 1-2 sentences:

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
© 2015 Deana Jones
Esio Trot Name __________________
by Roald Dahl Day 7 (p. 54-62)
Vivid Vocabulary
embraced (p. 58) reckons (p. 62)
Comprehension Check
1. Describe Mr. Hoppy’s behavior on his way down to Mrs. Silver’s apartment. How does he feel?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2. How does Mrs. Silver react to Mr. Hoppy’s marriage proposal? Did this surprise you? Why or why
not? ______________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
3. What happened to the original Alfie? Be specific. _________________________________________
He went to live in Roberta’s garden and ate lettuce and tomato.
___________________________________________________________________________________
When he was 30 years old he grew.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Picked Passage: “But he made it in the end.” (p. 62) Explain what is meant by this statement.

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Link to Literature: Mr. Hoppy had to clean up his living room. Tell about a time you had to clean up.

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Story Sketches Make an inference from these pages:
CLUE: What I figured out ON MY OWN:

Test Taking: Which would NOT be a good theme for this book?
a) Persistence and patience pay off. c) People always find out your tricks in the end.
b) Loves makes people do crazy things. d) Things aren’t always what they seem.

Swift Summary: Summarize this passage in 1-2 sentences:

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
© 2015 Deana Jones
Esio Trot ANSWER KEY
by Roald Dahl

Day 1 (p. 9-15)

Comprehension Check
1. Mr. Hoppy loves his flowers on his balcony. He also loves the lady who lives below him, Mrs. Silver. (p. 9-10)
2. Mr. Hoppy is very shy. He wishes he had the nerve to ask her for tea (p. 10) or he wishes he could do
something heroic like save her life. (p. 12)
3. Mrs. Silver loves Alfie. She whispers endearments to him (p. 13) and she is so excited to see him. (p. 15)
Picked Passage it seemed like a million miles… He feels overwhelmed by the idea of getting her attention
and feels like is very far away since she seemingly doesn’t not feel the same way about him.
Link to Literature Answers will vary. Ex. Bears hibernate to save energy in winter when they can’t find food.
Story Sketches She has planks around the side so he won’t fall off and a little house for him. (p. 14)
Test Taking (c) a lady who’s husband has died
Swift Summary Answers will vary but should include ~Mr. Hoppy, Mrs. Silver, Alfie

Day 2 (p. 16-23)

Comprehension Check
1. The author said, “…something happened that changed and indeed electrified Mr. Hoppy’s life.”
2. Mrs. Silver is worried that Alfie never gains weight. Mr. Hoppy wants to help her make him grow. (p. 19, 21)
3. If you read the message backward, you can read it and it simply tells the turtle to get bigger. (p. 23)
Picked Passage Mr. Hoppy’s mind is going really fast, as he’s thinking of a way to get Mrs. Silver’s attention.
Link to Literature Answers will vary.
Story Sketches Answers will vary but could include: -He hasn’t grown more than 3 oz. since she’s had him.
-She has seen pictures of giant tortoises. -She is desperate for Mr. Hoppy’s help.
Test Taking b) “Here, surely, was his big chance. Grab it, he told himself...quick!”
Swift Summary Answers will vary but should include: -Mr. Hoppy plans to help Alfie grow.

Day 3 (p. 24-31)

Comprehension Check
1. He says turtles are backwards creatures so you have to speak backward to them. She seems a bit confused
and doubtful but willing to try it. (p. 24-25)
2. He picked all turtles with dark-colored shells and he wanted a huge variety of sizes. (p. 28)
3. He is probably planning to replace Alfie with bigger tortoises. Answers will vary.
Picked Passage Catherine is trying not to get her hopes up about the new neighbor, but when sees Ryan
she allows herself to hope he gets soaked. She doesn’t like him because he is mean to David. (p. 29-31)
Link to Literature The tortoises would eat cabbage leaves. Answers will vary.
Story Sketches First, he cleaned out the area. Then, he called pet shops. Next, he went to buy tortoises.
Test Taking (d) He is trying to make Mrs. Silver think Alfie is growing, not shrinking.
Swift Summary Answers will vary but should include: ~Mr. Hoppy’s plan with the tortoises.

© 2015 Deana Jones

Esio Trot ANSWER KEY
by Roald Dahl

Day 4 (p. 32-39)

Comprehension Check
1. He had been a mechanic in a bus garage. He visits the garage to make a tortoise-catcher. (p. 32-33)
2. She is gone every day from 12:00-5:00. Her predictable routine gives Mr. Hoppy a chance to switch the
tortoises without her knowing. (p. 35)
3. He weighed tortoises until he found one that weighed exactly two ounces more so it wouldn’t be too
noticeable at first. (p. 37) Answers will vary.
Picked Passage This means Mr. Hoppy will be very nervous to see Mrs. Silver’s reaction. He will be
nervous because it will be his first chance to see if his plan might work and he really wants it to work.
Link to Literature Answers will vary.
Story Sketches Answers will vary. Ex. careful (p. 36), skilled (p. 32), creative (p. 33), sneaky (p. 35)
Test Taking: (a) Mrs. Silver loves Alfie very much.
Swift Summary Answers will vary but should include: Mr. Hoppy putting the plan into action.

Day 5 (p. 40-47)

Comprehension Check
1. Yes, because Mrs. Silver doesn’t notice the difference in size but is excited that the tortoise is eating. She
keeps reading the magic words to him. (p. 40-41)
2. She doesn’t notice because it is such a small change. Children grow slowly too so you don’t notice they are
getting bigger from day to day. (p. 43)
3. He has just finished the seventh week. Each week, he picks a tortoise that weighs exactly 2 ounces more
than the one from the week before. (p. 44-46)
Picked Passage Answers will vary but he probably doesn’t want to make Mrs. Silver suspicious of him.
Link to Literature Answers will vary.
Story Sketches Tortoise No. 8 should be a little more than twice as big as the original Alfie.
Test Taking (a) The tortoise chomping on lettuce when she gets home.
Swift Summary Answers will vary but should include: Mr. Hoppy’s plan is working.

Day 6 (p. 48-53)

Comprehension Check
1. He is too large to fit in his house, so she needs a bigger door on his house. (p. 48, 50)
2. She yells with excitement, strokes the tortoise and praises him. She is very excited. (p. 49)
3. Answers will vary, but it seems that Mrs. Silver will like Mr. Hoppy very much if it works. She touches him
softly on the arm and says if it works, he will be the most clever man alive. (p. 53)
Picked Passage He is feeling this way because Mrs. Silver is so happy with him so he asks to come down.
Link to Literature Answers will vary.
Story Sketches Answers will vary but example: -Because the tortoise is bigger, he can’t fit in his house.
Test Taking (b) He wants Mrs. Silver to like him the way he likes her.
Swift Summary Answers will vary but should include: -The plan has worked.

© Deana Jones 2015

Esio Trot ANSWER KEY
by Roald Dahl

Day 7 (p. 54-62)

Comprehension Check
1. He jumped down the stairs, flung open doors, and whispered to himself. He is terribly excited! (p. 57)
2. She says yes and that she thought he’d never ask. (p. 58) Answers will vary.
3. Mr. Hoppy returned all the tortoises to pet stores. He was bought by a girl named Roberta. She still has
him and he lives happily in her garden. (p. 62)
Picked Passage Alfie has finally, 30 years later, doubled in size.
Link to Literature Answers will vary.
Story Sketches Answers will vary.
Ex. Mrs. Silver immediately said she’d marry Mr. Hoppy; she may have liked him all along.
Test Taking: (c) People always find out your tricks in the end.
Swift Summary: Answers will vary but should include: -They all lived happily ever after.

© Deana Jones 2015