Describe Mariatu’s journey to regain her independence after her hands are removed by the rebel soldiers. How does Mariatu initially react to losing her hands? What events in the story mark her progression of acceptance of her disability? What does Mariatu refuse to do regarding her disability? Who helped her cope with the changes made to her body? How has Mariatu’s attitude shifted by the conclusion of the memoir?

Teaching Suggestion: Consider allowing students to review the chapters along with their Reading Check and Short Answer responses to refresh their memories on the different events that contributed to Mariatu’s independence. You might also permit students to first brainstorm everything they remember about Mariatu and her steps toward independence, then arrange the items in the order of their occurrence.

Differentiation Suggestion: For students who may need additional assistance, such as those with executive processing challenges, it may be beneficial to offer the individual questions of the prompt in a bulleted or numbered list; once they have individual responses, they can draft their answers into a cohesive paragraph. You might also consider permitting students to work in groups to discuss the major points in the memoir that contribute to Mariatu’s independence.