69 pages • 2 hours read
The Age Of Miracles
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During Reading
Reading Questions & Paired Texts
Reading Check and Short Answer Questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.
CHAPTERS 1-3
Reading Check
1. What grade is Julia in?
2. Who is Hanna?
3. Where are Hanna and her family going?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. From what perspective is Julia narrating and how does that affect the story?
2. What is “the slowing” (2), and how do people react when they learn of it?
3. How do Julia’s parents react to the slowing?
CHAPTERS 4-9
Reading Check
1. With whom does Julia spend the eclipse?
2. What does Julia’s grandfather think about the slowing?
3. What is happening to birds?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. How is the slowing affecting school?
2. What declaration does the president of the United States make, and how will it impact Julia and her family?
CHAPTERS 10-15
Reading Check
1. What items are in demand once “clock time” is implemented?
2. How has the slowing affected the tides?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. Why do leaders insist on “clock time” (113), and how do they enforce it?
2. When Hanna returns, what does Julia notice?
3. How does society treat real-timers?
Paired Resource
“Americans Have Positive Views About Religion’s Role in Society, but Want It Out of Politics”
- The Pew Research Center presents results from a poll about religion in American society.
- This connects to the theme Chaos and Order: Religion’s Role in Society.
- Based on what is revealed about the characters, how would different characters answer these poll questions?
CHAPTERS 16-20
Reading Check
1. Who does Julia see in Sylvia’s house?
2. What is Circadia?
3. What is gravity sickness?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. On the way to her grandfather’s house on New Year’s Eve, what happens, and how does it affect Julia’s mother?
2. Who loses power in the neighborhood, and what does this suggest?
3. Why does Joel lie to Helen about the pedestrian?
Paired Resource
“What’s Worrying America’s Kids”
- Nemours Kids reports results of a survey of young people ages 9-13.
- This connects to the theme The Painful Nature of Growing Up.
- How are Julia’s worries similar and different from those in this survey?
CHAPTERS 21-27
Reading Check
1. How many students have left Julia’s school since the slowing began?
2. Where does the family search for Julia’s grandfather?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. What are the implications of Bermuda grass dying?
2. How do Julia and Seth spend an afternoon together, and what does it reveal about their characters?
Paired Resource
“Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet”
- This NASA resource explains the effects of climate change and includes links for additional research.
- This connects to the theme The Loss of Personal and Planetary Ecosystems.
- How does the slowing compare with global warming?
“Can Little Actions Bring Big Joy? Researchers Find ‘Micro-Acts’ Can Boost Well-Being”
- With a written article and 3-minute audio, NPR explains the BIG JOY Project, which is discovering how small acts of joy can dramatically impact lives.
- This connects to the theme Small Changes Have Large Consequences.
- How does helping the whales affect Julia?
CHAPTERS 28-34
Reading Check
1. What happens to the Orion as the astronauts head back to Earth?
2. How did Julia’s grandfather die?
3. What causes Seth’s illness?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. Why haven’t Seth and Julia been talking with each other?
2. How is the “wheat point” (305) significant?
3. What is The Explorer’s mission?
Recommended Next Reads
The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
- Generations after people fled underground to survive, 12-year-olds Lina and Doon race to piece together a mystery and save their world. This is the first book in the series.
- Shared themes include The Painful Nature of Growing Up, The Loss of Personal and Planetary Ecosystems, and Small Changes Have Large Consequences.
- Shared topics include growing up, dystopia, friendship, family, courage, nature, rules, government, and the unknown.
- The City of Ember on SuperSummary
Breathe by Sarah Crossan
- Since the Switch, survivors on Earth live in a controlled dome and pay to continue breathing manufactured air. Alina, Quinn, and Bea meet while fighting against the status quo and searching for freedom and hope.
- Shared themes include The Painful Nature of Growing Up, The Loss of Personal and Planetary Ecosystems, and Small Changes Have Large Consequences.
- Shared topics include friendship, romance, growing up, choices, factions, hope, power, freedom, and nature.
Reading Questions Answer Key
CHAPTERS 1-3
Reading Check
1. 6th grade (Chapter 2)
2. Julia’s good friend (Chapter 3)
3. Moving to Salt Lake City, Utah (Chapter 3)
Short Answer
1. She narrates from the future, which means she knows more than the reader. Telling the story in first-person makes the global events feel more personal. (Chapters 1-3)
2. “The slowing” (2) is when the Earth’s rotation slows, adding time to each day and night. As they find out, people view it differently. Some people demonstrate, and they declare that the world is ending. Schools try to provide counseling to students. The media reports nonstop about this issue. People hurry to be with their families. (Chapters 1-3)
3. Julia’s mom views it as a catastrophe and begins stockpiling food. Julia’s dad carries on as if things were normal. (Chapters 2-3)
CHAPTERS 4-9
Reading Check
Short Answer
1. School is continuing. Classes are smaller, as families pull their children out. The bells are off, but teachers try to continue teaching. Some kids are getting gravity sickness. (Chapter 5)
2. The president of the United States declares the country will return to following the “twenty-four-hour clock” (109), despite the hours not conforming to people’s expectations for daylight and darkness. Since Julia and her family and others not living near the poles are not used to sunlight in the middle of the night and darkness at noon, this decision will upend their lives, and make sleep and other activities difficult. (Chapter 9)
CHAPTERS 10-15
Reading Check
1. Sleeping pills, blackout curtains, sleep masks, and other drugs (Chapter 13)
2. The slowing has brought tides farther inland. (Chapter 14)
Short Answer
1. Leaders argue for “clock time” because they say it is necessary for the markets and financial security. Some people say it is important for “national security.” (113) Companies and schools organize their days around this schedule, but it is not mandatory. People can choose to live by this schedule or “real time.” Since it causes deep divisions, there is societal pressure to conform. (Chapter 10)
2. Julia tries to talk with Hanna and realizes they are not close anymore. Hanna does not want to connect with her. (Chapter 11)
3. Many people in society shun or actively target those not adhering to “clock time.” Julia’s mom, for example, speaks against Sylvia. When Tom and Carlotta are arrested, Julia notices they have been growing marijuana for a long time but are only now getting arrested. This implies they were turned in by someone who was against them following “real time.” (Chapters 10-15)
CHAPTERS 16-20
Reading Check
1. Her dad (Chapter 16)
2. A community of people following “real time” (Chapter 18)
3. A sickness brought on by the slowing that has different symptoms, like fainting, problems moderating body temperature, and more (Chapters 18-20)
Short Answer
1. Julia’s mother faints while driving and hits a pedestrian who stepped in front of the car. Helen worries about the pedestrian and tries to find out if he survived. She stops driving. (Chapters 17-18)
2. Those homes following “real time” lose power, and an investigation finds they were targeted, suggesting it was due to their decision not to follow the 24-hour clock. (Chapter 18)
3. Joel tells Helen the pedestrian she hit survived to protect her. She has been worrying and suffering in different ways, and he does not want to increase her troubles. (Chapters 20)
CHAPTERS 21-27
Reading Check
1. A quarter of the school (Chapter 22)
2. Circadia (Chapters 25-26)
Short Answer
1. Bermuda grass is hearty and supposed to survive heat. When even Bermuda grass starts dying, it implies everyone is in danger. (Chapter 21)
2. Julia and Seth spend an afternoon trying to help beached whales by pouring water on them. Their actions reveal they care about nature and have empathy. (Chapter 24)
CHAPTERS 28-34
Reading Check
1. The Orion disintegrates in the atmosphere. (Chapter 28)
2. Julia’s grandfather was preparing a bunker when he fell from the ladder, hit his head, and died. (Chapter 32)
3. His extreme sunburn (Chapters 31-33)
Short Answer
1. Both expected the other to talk and read into the silence. It was a misunderstanding because neither wanted to risk being the first to speak. (Chapter 28)
2. The “wheat point” (305) was the time when wheat could not grow unassisted on Earth. Because wheat is such an important food, it signals increased danger for people. (Chapter 29)
3. The Explorer’s mission is to take some history of Earth into the universe with the hope it will be found and Earth will be remembered. (Chapter 34)
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