Where the Red Fern Grows

by Wilson Rawls

Chapter 1

• Focus question:

The narrator doesn’t yet reveal his name. What does he tell and show about himself?

Vocabulary Words:

dormant – adj. asleep; inactive

drastic – adj. forceful; violent

Farming in the 1920s

Chapter 2

• Focus question: How do you picture Billy and his home?

• Vocabulary:

sparsely – adv. thinly

bay – v. to bark with long, deep sounds

Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma

A Cherokee Chief

The Cherokee Strip in Oklahoma

Chapter 3

• Focus question: How does Billy change during these two years?

• Vocabulary:mull over – v. to think about

quaver – v. to tremble; to speak in trembling tones

The Ozark Mountains

Chapter 4

• Focus question: Compare Billy to the townspeople.

• Vocabulary:riffle – n. shallow, choppy stretch of water

wince – v. to draw back suddenly

Chapter 5

• Focus question: What bonds are already being forged between Billy and the pups?

• Vocabulary:gawk – v. to stare rudely

runt – n. an animal smaller than the usual size

Chapter 6

• Focus question: Are you surprised by his parents’ reaction when Billy comes home with the puppies? Why or why not?

• Vocabulary:query – v. to ask

hamper – v. to hinder; to prevent from acting

Rural Life

A corncrib is a slatted enclosure

for storing and drying ears of

corn. The spaced

slats let air circulate and

prevent rotting.

Another example of a corncrib

Chapter 7

• Focus question: What do you learn about raccoons and raccoon hunting in this chapter?

• Vocabulary:domain – n. territory under the control of one

ruler

Raccoon Hunting

Dogs chase the raccoon by scent until it is “treed,” which means that it is trapped in a tree.

The dogs then “bark treed,” and then the hunter got the raccoon down by chopping the tree down or scaring it out. It was considered unsportsmanlike to kill a raccoon while it was treed.

Chapter 8

• Focus Question: How does this chapter demonstrate Billy’s feelings for his dogs?

• Vocabulary:gruff – adj. deep, harsh, and hoarselimber – adj. flexible; bending easilylunge – v. to make a sudden forward

movement

Chapter 9

• Focus Question: Based on Billy’s actions, what three adjectives would you use to describe him?

• Vocabulary:drone – v. to make a dull, humming sound

momentum – n strength and speed with which something moves

Chapter 10

• Focus Question: What do you learn about the unusual qualities of Old Dan and Little Ann in this chapter?

• Vocabulary:nonchalantly – adv. Without showing emotion

or care

belligerent – adj. fond of fighting

Chapter 11

• Focus Question: What do you discover about the importance of self-reliance?

• Vocabulary:eddy – n. a small whirlpool or current

ventilate – v. to provide an opening for the escape of air or gas

Chapter 12

• Focus Question: Compare Billy and the Pritchard boys.

• Vocabulary:sidle – v. to move sideways slowly

Prohibition (1920 – 1933)

Chapter 13

• Focus Question: Are you surprised by the outcome of the ghost coon hunt? Why or why not?

• Vocabulary:leer – v. giving a sly, sidelong look

Chapter 14

• Focus Question: This chapter reveals the personalities of Billy’s mother, his youngest sister, and his grandmother. What is Billy’s relationship with each of them?

• Vocabulary:jubilant – adj. joyful

gloat – v. to show too much pride or satisfaction at succeeding

Chapter 15

• Focus Question: What do Grandpa’s actions tell about his character?

• Vocabulary:monotonous – adj. without changing

Chapter 16

• Focus Question: How do you predict the hunt will end? What makes you think so?

• Vocabulary:flit – v. to pass lightly and quickly

falter – v. to hesitate

Chapter 17

• Focus Question: Are the Colmans’ actions during the blizzard responsible or irresponsible? Explain your answer.

• Vocabulary:sear – v. to burn

Chapter 18• Focus Question:

What do you learn about love and loyalty from Billy, Grandpa, and the dogs?

• Vocabulary:defiant – adj. openly resisting

haggard – adj. looking worn from pain, tiredness or worry

slaughter – n. killing, murder

squabble – n. noisy disagreement

Chapter 19• Focus Question:

In what ways do Old Dan and Little Ann help Billy and his family?

• Vocabulary:predatory – adj. living by preying on other

animalsBerserk – adj. carried away by wild furyLithe – adj. bending easilyScourge – n. something that causes great

troubleEntrails – n. the inner parts of the body

Chapter 20

• Focus Question: How does Billy come to terms with the deaths of Old Dan and Little Ann?

• Vocabulary:caress – n. a gentle, tender touch

Credit

The questions and vocabulary presented on this slide were taken from:

NovelWorks: Where the Red Fern Grows. Scott Foresman Literature, 1997.

Jessica Elliott, Sellers Middle School

Garland Independent School District