This section presents terms and phrases that are central to understanding the text and may present a challenge to the reader. Use this list to create a vocabulary quiz or worksheet, to prepare flashcards for a standardized test, or to inspire classroom word games and other group activities.

1. swan dive (noun):

human entry into water, head first, with arms outstretched to right and left, as if wings

“Or it’s winter and you sled to the bottom of Halftank Hill, and you’re trudging back up and there he goes zipping down, his arms out like a swan diver, screaming his head off.” (1)

2. constraint (noun):

limit or restriction

“There are no other constraints. Not a fence in sight. No grown-up hand to hold. Nothing but the bright wide world in front of him.” (3-4)

3. giraffe (noun; in the story, used as adjective):

four-legged creature with a long neck and spotted hide, tallest animal in the world, native to Africa

“He loves his giraffe hat. His dad bought it for him at the zoo. If she has told him once, she has told him fifty times: Do not wear it to school.” (9)

4. cubbyhole (noun):

a small shelf or drawer for storing objects; in schools, cubbyholes are usually grouped together in rows and columns, each with a square opening and assigned to a single person