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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Jing-Mei says in the beginning of “Two Kinds,” “My mother believed you could be anything you wanted to be in America. You could open” what?
(a) A restaurant
(b) A hair salon
(c) A factory
(d) A clothing store

2. Jing-Mei says to her mother as they argue over piano practice after the talent show, “I’ll never be the kind of daughter you want me to be!” Her mother responds, “Only two kinds of daughters.” What are these two kinds?
(a) Those who marry young and those who are old widows
(b) Those who carry their name with pride and those who don’t
(c) Those who are obedient and those who follow their own mind
(d) Those who are respectful and those who are ungrateful

3. How long ago does Jing-Mei say she sent a tuner to her parents’ apartment to recondition the piano at the end of the story?
(a) A year ago
(b) A month ago
(c) Two days ago
(d) A week ago

4. What sensation does Jing-Mei describe as she begins hitting one wrong note after another during the talent show?
(a) I felt a wave of terror and then everything went black
(b) A chill started at the top of my head and began to trickle down
(c) A shiver of excitement started in my hands and spread up my arms
(d) A burning sensation in my heart and then an inability to breathe

5. When Jing-Mei stands up after playing her piano solo at the talent show, she realizes what are shaking?
(a) Her shoulders
(b) Her hands
(c) Her legs
(d) Her ribs

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Jing-Mei’s mother trade with Mr. Chong so that Jing-Mei may take piano lessons from him?

2. What is the neighborhood called where Jing-Mei’s family lives when she’s a child?

3. When Jing-Mei’s mother asks her for the capital of Finland, Jing-Mei responds with the capital of what country in the beginning of the story?

4. Who does Jing-Mei tell her mother she wishes she were like as they argue about piano practice after the talent show?

5. Of Auntie Lindo, Jing-Mei’s mother says in the beginning of the story, “Her daughter, she is only best” what?

Short Essay Questions

1. What comment does Waverly Jong make to Jing-Mei after her performance at the talent show? How does this make Jing-Mei feel?

2. How does Suyuan Woo go about discovering her daughter’s “genius” in the beginning of the story?

3. How does Jing-Mei’s mother look after her performance at the talent show? What does Jing-Mei think as she watches the following performances?

4. What are Suyuan Woo’s views of opportunity in America, as noted by the narrator in the opening of the story?

5. How does Jing-Mei describe her mother’s immigration to America in the opening of the story? What did she leave behind?

6. What is the most significant element of the communication and culture gaps between Jing-Mei and her mother in the story?

7. In what ways does Suyuan Woo lack in communication with her daughter in the beginning of the story?

8. How do Suyuan Woo’s actions in the story encourage the wrong responses from her daughter? What effects does this have on Jing-Mei?

9. What does Jing-Mei say to her mother to hurt her during their conflict in the climax of the story? How does Suyuan respond?

10. How does Jing-Mei describe her life as she passed from childhood to adulthood? In what ways does she say she disappointed her mother?

(see the answer keys)

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