Do you think Mark likes fishing? Which part of the story tells you this?
He must love to fish since he was thrilled to get the box
Which part of the story tells you that this is a fantasy?
Mark looks out his bedroom window and finds that the neighborhood has disappeared and benn replaced by a river and a forest.
Who do you think is the fisherman in the story?
The fisherman may be Uncle Scott since the reference to him at the beginning of the story is a clue that he will play an important role.
Why Mark thought it was unusual that the flies flew away?
The flies in the tackle box were supposed to be fishing lures, not real flies.
What Uncle Scott’s action – releasing the fish – tells us about his feelings for wildlife and nature?
) It shows that he respects the natural world and wants to help preserve it.
What do you think Mark’s broken speech – represented by ellipsis points – shows about this thoughts and feelings at this moment?
It shows that he has doubts about whether or not he should keep the fish, and he fears that his uncle may disapprove if he keeps it.
Why Uncle Scott asks Mark what the use is in fishing if he doesn’t keep the fish?
He wants to know if Mark, through his experience, has come to agree with him that it feels better to leave nature as you find it than to capture and kill the an
What will probably happen next, now that Mark has heard his mother’s voice through the open window?
The fantasy will probably end.
Identify the point at which we know for sure that the fantasy is over.
Mark’s mother mentions the real fishing lures that are scattered on Mark’s bed. We know that all through the fantasy the flies were real mayflies.
1. When Mark had a high fever, Uncle Scott sent him ________________________________.
metal box for trout flies
Mark opened his uncle’s present, and a cloud of mayflies ___________________________.
flew up and out the window
Looking out the window, Mark discovered that
his neighborhood disappeared and there was a river where the street had been.
Mark hurried outside and
got into a rowboat
Mark watched Uncle Scott catch a fish and then
let it go
Uncle Scott said Mark could keep the fish he caught. But Mark couldn’t kill it so he
put it back in the water.
8. Mark said good night and climbed back into his bedroom. When his parents opened the door, Mark
pretended to be asleep
