A Single Shard

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

Multiple Choice

1. How is Tree-ear’s reaction to Min’s shattered samples an example of foreshadowing?

A) The pottery is broken just as the two vases later will be.

B) He feels despair in both cases.

C) He thinks the broken shards would have been enough to convince the emissary.

D) He collects both sets of fragments and throws them away.

2. Compare Ajima’s temperament to Min’s. Which pair of qualities below best describes the couple? 

A) Ajima is fearful, and Min is courageous.

B) Ajima is kind, and Min is impatient.

C) Ajima is clever, and Min is slow-witted.

D) Ajima dislikes Tree-ear while Min accepts him.

3. Tree-ear describes multiple steps in the pottery-making process. Which activity gives him the best understanding of the potter’s art? 

A) Chopping wood

B) Rinsing clay

C) Firing pots

D) Carrying back clay from the riverbank

4. Incised designs are an innovative feature of celadon pottery. What sort of work do they entail?

A) Scraping glaze off a fired pot

B) Painting a design on a glazed pot

C) Firing a pot in the kiln at a specific temperature

D) Carving a recessed design into unfired clay

5. Crane-man has very strong views about honorable ways to make a living. Which of these options comes closest to what he says on the subject in the novel?