The Giver
Reading Response Journals
Chapters 1-5
1. The best memory I have with my family is…
2. My ideas of a perfect community are…
3. Tell about a “good” memory you have, a “bad memory”.
4. If I lived in a “controlled community” like Jonas, I would…
5. There are some references to “Release” in this first section. What do you think it means at this point in the story?
Chapters 6-10
1. There are more hints about what “Release” means (pgs 48-49). What do you think it means?
2. List the qualities Jonas has that qualify him to be the next Receiver (Chapter 8). How does Jonas react to his “Assignment”
Chapters 11-15
1. Write your reactions to the difference between “honor” and “power” in the community, as given by the Giver. (pg. 84)
2. The life of the Receiver is very lonely. Why does the community need a Receiver? How would you feel if you were chosen to be the Receiver?
3. Chapter 15 is the shortest chapter in the book but may be the most powerful experience for both Jonas and you. Briefly describe what happens in this chapter and how you felt about what happened
Chapters 16-19
1. Write about Jonas’s reaction to the experience of love (pgs. 125-126) and what happened when he asked his parents about love.
2. What impact is the baby Gabriel having on Jonas? How is Jonas affecting Gabriel?
3. Jonas has a strange reaction to his friends in Chapter 17. How does he feel and what decision does he “know with certainty” afterwards?
Chapters 20-23
1. Jonas and the elders have a plan that is “… barely possible. If it failed, he would very likely be killed.” Write about Jonas’s motivation for even attempting this plan.
2. Do you think the story has a happy or a sad ending? Explain.