A Little Princess

Reading Check and Short Answer questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

Chapters 1-5

Reading Check

1. What name does Sara give her doll?

2. What nationality is Sara’s maid?

3. Who is Sara’s first friend among the other girls?

4. What does Lavinia’s mama say about Sara’s habit of pretending things?

5. What is Becky’s job?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Why does Sara not like Ms. Minchin?

2. What mistake does Ms. Minchin make concerning Sara’s French maid?

3. Why does Ermengarde love Sara and want to be her friend?

4. Why does Lavinia feel resentful toward Sara?

5. Why does Sara decide she will pretend to be a princess?

Paired Resource

“Victorian Teenagers Reminisce”

• This 9-minute BBC film shows some of the opportunities and restrictions for girls in the Victorian Era.
• What prevents Sara from seeking other employment opportunities? How is she limited by the society in which she lives?

“Victorian Fashion”

• This site from Historic UK shows some examples of the sort of clothes Sara’s indulgent Papa might have bought for her.
• This resource relates to the themes of The Inner Princess: Character Versus Appearance and Jealousy of Sara’s Uniqueness.
• How does Sara’s elaborate clothing affect her popularity at the school in both positive and negative ways? How do the reactions of others to the character’s wardrobe reveal their own personalities? 

Chapters 6-9

Reading Check

1. What gift does Becky give to Sara for her 11th birthday?

2. What happens to Sara’s last doll after she learns her father has died?

3. Once Sara’s imagination is working again, where does she imagine herself to be living?

4. What animal does Sara tame in her attic room?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What does Sara say is the reason she pretends to be a princess?

2. What does Becky mean when she says that Sara will always be a princess no matter what happens to her?

3. Why does Sara assume that Ermengarde will no longer want to be her friend?

4. Why does Sara decide to tame an animal?

Chapters 10-14

Reading Check

1. What does the boy (Donald) give to Sara on Christmas?

2. What did King Alfred the Great do that caused him to have his ears boxed?

3. Where does Mr. Carrisford believe Sara was sent to school?

4. What kind deed does Sara do after finding fourpence in front of a bakery?

5. How does Ram Dass learn of Sara’s daydreams about her little room?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Why does Sara feel homesick when she sees the furnishings being moved into the house next door?

2. What happens when Ram Dass’s monkey escapes in Chapter 11?

3. Why is Mr. Carrisford so anxious to find Sara?

4. Why does the bakery woman promise to give the beggar girl bread in the future?

5. Why does Ram Dass tell Mr. Carrisford about the little girl in the attic and form a plan to make her vision come true?

Paired Resource

“Cinderella”

• This is the text of the classic fairytale “Cinderella.”
• The story relates to the theme of The Inner Princess: Character Versus Appearance.
• A Little Princess is often described as a “Cinderella story.” How are the stories alike? What elements in both stories might account for their timeless appeal?

Chapters 15-19

Reading Check

1. What really happened to the meat pie that Becky was accused of stealing?

2. Why does Sara never tell Ermengarde or Lottie how hungry she is?

3. What is in the two packages that arrive for Sara?

4. What do the “Large Family” children call the little girl whom Mr. Carrisford has been searching for?

5. Who is Anne?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What does Sara promise to do for Ermengarde in exchange for Ermengarde sharing her books?

2. Why does Sara tell Becky she doesn’t want to know where the magical gifts come from?

3. Why does Miss Minchin allow Sara to be a student again rather than a servant?

4. What does Ms. Minchin tell Mr. Carrisford to try to convince him to make Sara stay at the school?

5. Why does the baker woman take in Anne and give bread to hungry children?

Recommended Next Reads 

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

• When spoiled, bad-tempered Mary Lennox is orphaned and sent to live with her uncle, she finds an abandoned walled garden, and as she brings the garden to life, she comes to life herself.
• Shared themes include The Power of the Imagination.
• The Secret Garden on SuperSummary

“The Light Princess” by George McDonald

• This fairytale features a princess cursed with such lightness of body and mind that she might float away if she weren’t tied down. She doesn’t come to earth until she learns gravitas through sorrow.
• The story relates to the theme of The Inner Princess: Character Versus Appearance.
• Shared topics include strong personality types and the impact of sorrow.

Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens

• The adventures of an orphan boy in Victorian Era London illustrate life for the city’s impoverished citizens, especially its children.
• Oliver Twist on SuperSummary