60 pages • 2 hours read
Letters from Rifka
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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.
PART 1
Reading Check
1. Why do the guards “speak ill” of Rifka and her family?
2. How does Rifka write her letters?
3. What item is stolen from Rifka’s rucksack at the Polish border?
4. Which disease does Rifka contract after crossing the Polish border?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. To whom does Rifka write her first letter? From where does she write?
2. Summarize the plan that Rifka and her family devise in order to continue their journey. What is Rifka’s role in the plan and why was she chosen for this responsibility?
3. What embarrassing act must Rifka endure at the Polish border? What does she recall about the moment?
4. How does Saul take care of Rifka during her illness? What decisions does he make in order to help her get better?
Paired Resources
- Britannica Kids shares an overview of this historical event and includes links to historical figures and terms for quick reference.
- This information connects with the themes Empathy for Suffering Individuals and Writing as Freedom.
- How did the Russian Revolution lead to the displacement of communities, such as Rifka and her family?
- Poetry Foundation provides background on this 19th-century Russian poet.
- This biographical information connects with the theme Writing as Freedom.
- In what ways does Pushkin’s background link with the content of the novel? How do both Pushkin and Rifka place importance in writing?
“Judaism: Rituals and Practices”
- Cultural Atlas provides a brief overview of some of the important ceremonies in the Jewish communities.
- This resource connects with the theme Empathy for Suffering Individuals.
- Which of the Jewish rites of passage does Rifka miss celebrating?
PART 2
Reading Check
1. Of what action does Rifka’s mother disapprove?
2. Which family member in Berdichev does Rifka often think of fondly?
3. For what food item does Rifka exchange her family’s money?
4. How does Rifka define the word “immigrant”?
5. According to Rifka, why can’t her accommodation with Gaston and Marie ever be her home?
6. Of whom does the milkman remind Rifka?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. How does Rifka offer to help a peasant girl? Describe what the two girls talk about.
2. What problem does Rifka and her family encounter as they try to buy their passage to America? What is the outcome of the situation?
3. What is the HIAS? What recommendation does the worker make in regard to Rifka’s immediate future?
4. What event does Rifka hold in secret on her 13th birthday? What is the importance of this event for Rifka’s culture?
5. How does Rifka’s opinion of Antwerp change over her months living there? What are some of the reasons that Rifka changes her opinion of the city?
Paired Resource
- The Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS) provides background of their work supporting Jewish communities around the world.
- This resource connects with the themes America as Land of Opportunity and Empathy for Suffering Individuals.
- Research the HIAS to find out more about this organization and the way it has aided Jewish and non-Jewish immigrants. Is the novel’s representation of the organization accurate? What do the references to HIAS contribute to the novel and its key themes?
PART 3
Reading Check
1. What unfortunate news does Rifka learn about her hair?
2. Why does Rifka’s ship arrive later than its originally scheduled date?
3. What do the ship’s passengers see on their arrival to America?
4. Where does Rifka elect to sleep in the hospital?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. Who is Pieter? How does this person feel about Rifka, and what occurs between them?
2. What are some of the challenges that Rifka faces on Ellis Island? What is the outcome of the situation?
3. How does Rifka occupy her time on Ellis Island? What help does she provide and how does she view her new home?
4. Who is Ilya and what is Rifka’s reaction to meeting this person?
Paired Resources
“Ellis Island: History and Culture”
- The US National Park Service provides a variety of resources related to the history of Ellis Island as a reception point for immigrants.
- This resource connects with the themes America as Land of Opportunity, Empathy for Suffering Individuals, and Writing as Freedom.
- What was the role of Ellis Island in shaping immigration policy? How are immigration policies demonstrated in the novel?
“Selected Images of Ellis Island and Immigration, ca. 1880-1920”
- The Library of Congress shares a collection of images related to immigrants entering Ellis Island at the turn of the century.
- These images connect with the theme America as Land of Opportunity.
- Based on the images and details in the text, what can you tell about the conditions for immigrants entering Ellis Island?
PART 4
Reading Check
1. Why does Rifka give Saul money?
2. According to Rifka, what do you have to be in order to come to America?
3. For what is Rifka worried that Ilya will get in trouble?
4. Which quality does Doctor Askin see in Rifka that is important for medical work?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. Summarize Rifka’s reunion with her brother Saul. What do the siblings observe about each other since their year apart?
2. Describe Rifka’s meeting with her mother. What is the main topic of their conversation?
3. Describe the circumstances surrounding Ilya’s decision to enter America. How does Rifka try to help him and what is the outcome of the situation?
4. How do the officials decide Rifka’s case? What factors help them decide?
Recommended Next Reads
Witness by Karen Hesse
- Hesse’s 2001 novel focuses on the effect of a Ku Klux Klan resurgence in a small Vermont town.
- Shared themes include America as Land of Opportunity, Empathy for Suffering Individuals, and Writing as Freedom.
- Shared topics include the marginalization of Jewish communities and the setting of early 20th-century America.
- Witness on SuperSummary
The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
- Frank’s diary, which shared her experiences between 1942 and 1944 in Nazi-occupied Netherlands, was published posthumously by her father after her death in a Nazi concentration camp.
- Shared themes include Empathy for Suffering Individuals and Writing as Freedom.
- Shared topics include the marginalization of Jewish communities and antisemitism.
- The Diary of a Young Girl on SuperSummary
Reading Questions Answer Key
PART 1
Reading Check
1. The guards do not like that Rifka and her family are Jewish. (Part 1, September 2, 1919)
2. Rifka writes the letters on blank pages of a book of Alexander Pushkin’s poetry, which was a gift to Rifka from her cousin Tovah. (Part 1, September 2, 1919)
3. Brass candlesticks (Part 1, September 3, 1919)
4. Typhus (Part 1, October 5, 1919)
Short Answer
1. Rifka writes her first letter to her cousin Tovah from Russia on September 2, 1919. (Part 1, September 2, 1919)
2. Rifka’s parents and their Uncle Avram devise a plan so Rifka and her family can hide on the train to Poland. Rifka is integral to the plan, as her appearance and perfect Russian accent helps her pass as a non-Jewish girl. She distracts the guards until Uncle Avram rushes over and asks the guards to help with a “burglary.” (Part 1, September 3, 1919)
3. At the Polish border, Rifka and her family are forced off the train and told to strip down for a medical examination. Rifka is embarrassed and mentions that the doctor smells of alcohol and spends a large part of the examination focused on her mother. When Rifka begins to feel sick, she blames the doctor. (Part 1, September 3, 1919)
4. After Rifka’s parents and her brother Nathan also contract typhus, they are taken to a hospital, and Rifka is left in the care of Saul. Since they are sleeping on the floor of a shed with Papa’s family, Saul decides to find them a new place at an inn, and picks apples in the orchard to pay for their stay, while Rifka recovers in the room. (Part 1, October 5 and November 3, 1919)
PART 2
Reading Check
1. Rifka reading Pushkin (Part 2, November 27, 1919)
2. Bubbe Ruth (Part 2, November 27, 1919)
3. An orange (Part 2, November 30, 1919)
4. Rifka describes being an immigrant as “wandering between two worlds.” (Part 2, December 1, 1919)
5. Because her parents are not there (Part 2, February 25, 1920)
6. Uncle Zeb (Part 2, March 17, 1920)
Short Answer
1. Rifka sees a young girl breastfeeding a baby, and after learning that the girl misses having her sister fix her hair, Rifka offers to help. She notices that the girl’s hair is dirty, and there are sores on her scalp, but she still helps anyway. She tells the girl that she is going to America and the girl questions why anyone would want to leave Poland. (Part 2, November 27, 1919)
2. Before buying their tickets to America, their fitness to travel must be approved by a doctor. Rifka is diagnosed with ringworm, and, despite the family’s attempts to bribe them, the doctors do not approve her to travel. The family must consider whether or not to leave her behind. (Part 2, November 30, 1919)
3. HIAS stands for the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, an organization that offers support to Jewish communities in various cities. An HIAS worker recommends that Rifka’s family travel to America without her, and that Rifka go to Antwerp, Belgium, to receive treatment for her ringworm. (Part 2, December 1, 1919)
4. On her 13th birthday, Rifka holds a mitzvah ceremony for herself in her room. She makes a Star of David, and then places her father’s prayer towel and her mother’s locket on the table while she says prayers in Hebrew. Although she is alone, she uses this ceremony to connect with her parents in America as well as her culture, as this ceremony is a significant moment in a Jewish child’s rite of passage into adulthood. (Part 2, February 25, 1920)
5. Initially, Rifka is hesitant living in Antwerp, and she only leaves her room to go to the convent for her ringworm treatments. The nuns encourage her to start seeing the city more, and after some months, along with the milkman’s kindness in helping her home, Rifka realizes that the people in Antwerp are much nicer and open compared to the previous cities in which she lived. (Part 2, February 25, 1920-July 29, 1920)
PART 3
Reading Check
1. That it may never grow back (Part 3, September 14, 1920)
2. Because the ship was damaged during the storm and needed to wait to be towed to America (Part 3, September 21, 1920)
3. The Statue of Liberty (Part 3, October 1, 1920)
4. In a crib (Part 3, October 7, 1920)
Short Answer
1. Pieter is a sailor on Rifka’s ship to America. He takes a liking to her, and he finds her extremely clever, particularly with languages, as well as brave. Rifka shares her first kiss with Pieter and is confused about her feelings for him. After Pieter falls overboard during a storm, Rifka recalls how brave he was in saving her. (Part 3, September 16, 1920)
2. At Ellis Island, Rifka is detained for further tests to make sure that she is not still a carrier of ringworm. She also is detained as a possible “social responsibility” since, without her hair, she will not be a desirable match for marriage and therefore will need sponsorship from the state. (Part 3, October 2, 1920)
3. While detained on Ellis Island, Rifka helps people in need. She translates various languages, helps clean, and even takes care of an orphaned baby whose mother died of typhus. (Part 3, October 7, 1920)
4. Ilya is a Russian peasant Rifka meets at Ellis Island. Ilya refuses to eat any of his food. At first, Rifka is overwhelmed with emotions, as this peasant represents the reasons that her family had to leave home and experience hardships; however, she has Empathy for Suffering Individuals and encourages him to nourish himself. Eventually, Ilya becomes her “shadow.” (Part 3, October 7, 1920)
PART 4
Reading Check
1. Rifka gives Saul money so that he can buy new candlesticks and make sure that their parents do not need to work on the Sabbath. (Part 4, October 9, 1920)
2. “[P]erfect,” meaning healthy and unflawed (Part 4, October 11, 1920)
3. For wasting toilet paper (Part 4, October 14, 1920)
4. Compassion (Part 4, October 22, 1920)
Short Answer
1. After nine days at Ellis Island, Saul visits Rifka; her other family members are occupied with work. Rifka observes how handsome her brother has become in their year apart; likewise, Saul observes how much his sister has grown, as well as how she has adapted so well to learning different languages. He shares his concerns over her missing hair and her befriending of Ilya. (Part 4, October 9, 1920)
2. Rifka’s mother visits two days after Saul, bringing her a cake to belatedly celebrate her birthday. They discuss strategies to help Rifka’s hair grow, but in the end, they cannot find a solution. (Part 4, October 11, 1920)
3. Mr. Fargate informs Ilya and Rifka that he will make a decision on both of their cases the following day. Beginning with Ilya, the doctors are concerned that Ilya cannot communicate. Rifka urges him to read from the Pushkin book and points out that his uncle cares for him. Ilya is inspired to show his intelligence and ability to communicate. As a result, he is accepted into America. (Part 4, October 22, 1920)
4. After Ilya’s admittance, Rifka’s decision meeting is next. The doctors are concerned that she will not be able to marry, and Rifka is equally concerned that the itching on her head means that the ringworm has returned. After Ilya reads some of her poetry aloud, the doctors agree that she can stay. She also learns that the itching on her head is not from the ringworm but from her hair growing. (Part 4, October 22, 1920)
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