Sometimes, it is okay to skip school.

All children should live with their

biological parents.

If someone hurts you in some way, you

should figure out how to “get them back”.

Parents should always want what’s best

for their children

ANTICIPATION GUIDE:AGREE OR DISAGREE

Author of five books in the Bluford Series

Born in Cleveland, Ohio

College degrees from California State University

Taught high school from 1967 to 1977 in San Diego, California

Travel across United States as a child

Began working as a teenager: papergirl , waitress, shrimp boat worker, picked crops

Always wanted to be a writer

Sold her first story when she was a college freshman

Pen name: A.E. Schraff

Editor thought she was a man because of the name

Writer of more than 80 books

ANNE SCHRAFF

Major

Characters

Cindy Gibson

Lorraine Gibson

Mr. Mitchell

Raffie Whitaker

Bobby Wallace

Grandma Rose

Harold Davis

1. periodic - occurring at intervals of time

2. manipulate – to manage or influence skillfully

3. accompany – to go along with; to join in

4. warily – to be on guard; in a watchful manner

5. cherished – loved; treated as dear

6. parched – being extremely and completely dry

7. swaggered – walked with a strut or defiant air

8. fragile – easily broken or damaged

9. glared – staring fiercely or angrily

10. profusely – freely; in a great amount

VOCABULARY

M A T C H T H E P I C T U R E T O T H E V O C A B U L A R Y W O R D

periodic

manipulate

accompany

warily

cherished

parched

swaggered

fragile

glared

profusely

Our story begins.. .

At first, Bobby Wallace was

everything Cindy Gibson hoped

for. He was friendly, seemingly

mature, and handsome--the perfect

escape from her problems in

school and even bigger troubles at

home. But then, Bobby starts

behaving strangely, and Cindy

gets scared.

When Cindy refuses to go to school and Jamee asks Cindy’s mom to step in, Mrs. Gibson says, “But what am I supposed to do? I’m only a mother. Who listens to mothers anymore?” Do you agree with Mrs. Gibson’s evaluation of her position? Is there anything you think she should be doing differently? Explain and provide examples from your own life.

We learn in Chapters 1 and 2 that Cindy is worried about a lot of things. Make a list of the things you are worried about or have worried about recently. Then write a paragraph explaining your top three worries. Why are you worried about these things? Is there anything you can do to stop worrying about them? Describe in detail.

C H O O S E O N E O F T H E F O L L O W I N G T O P I C S T O W R I T E A P A R A G R A P H

1. How does Cindy feel about her mother? Why does

she feel this way?

2. Who is Raffie Whitaker, and how does he treat

Cindy?

3. How does Cindy respond to his behavior? How does

her mother respond to his behavior?

4. When Cindy was younger, why did she spend very

little time with her mother? Who took care of her

when her mother wasn’t able to?

5. What does Mrs. Davis notice and compliment Cindy

on? How does Cindy react to this compliment?

Q U E S T I O N S C H A P T E R S 1 & 2

Pretend you are Jamee Wills

and it is your job to convince

Cindy she should go back to

school. Write a letter to Cindy,

explaining the three most

important reasons she should

go back to school. At some

point in your letter, you should

try to acknowledge some of

the reasons why Cindy doesn’t

want to go to school, arguing

against her reasons.

Cindy tries in small ways to “get back” at people who hurt her. She feels good when she hangs up on Raffie when he taunts her, and she skips school in part to get back at her mother for ignoring her. When have you done something to “get back” at someone else? Write about a time when you tried to get revenge in some way. You may have done something indirect, the way Cindy does, or something more significant. What did you do? Did you get the results you wanted? Looking back, do you think it was the right thing to do?

CHOOSE 1 TOPIC

1. What activity does Mr. Mitchell suggest that Cindy become

involved in? What is her reaction? What are her friends

reactions?

2. How does Cindy initially behave toward Bobby when he

approaches her? What is his response to her? How does

what Bobby says influence Cindy’s behavior toward him?

3. When Cindy gets home, eager to tell Mom her good news,

what does she learn about her mother’s whereabouts? How

does Cindy feel about what her mother has done?

4. Who does Cindy sit with during the Bluford Buccaneers’

football practice? Why is this significant to her?

5. After Bobby and Cindy eat Chinese food, what unfamiliar

place does Bobby take Cindy to?

Q U E S T I O N S C H A P T E R 3 & 4

If I were Cindy, I would have

accepted Bobby’s offer to get in his

car and go out for ice cream.

Friends should not date their

friend’s exes.

Cindy deals well with her problems

at home.

AGREE OR DISAGREE

To Cindy, being hugged by Mrs. Davis is like “being wrapped in a favorite warm blanket.” Write about a person who has given you a similar sense of comfort and belonging at a difficult time. What was this person like? Why did you need comforting at that particular time? How did the person comfort you?

So that Bobby will accept her, Cindy agrees to go to the old row home and drink wine even though she doesn’t want to. Write a paragraph about a time when you did something just because you wanted someone to think you were cool. What was your relationship to the person beforehand? What did you do to impress them? What was the result of your actions? Looking back, do you think you did the right thing?

CHOOSE ONE

1. What are some of the kids doing in the basement of the row

home where Bobby takes Cindy: What is Cindy’s reaction to

what she sees there?

2. Before Cindy goes into her apartment, what does Bobby give

her? What does this item represent to Cindy?

3. What happens between Mom and Cindy once Mom returns

from her trip?

4. How does Bobby respond when he doesn’t find Cindy waiting

for him where he wanted her to be?

What does Cindy see that makes her think there might be a

l ink between bobby and Raffie? What does Bobby say when

Cindy asks him about it?

Q U E S T I O N S C H A P T E R 5 & 6

Pretend you are an advice columnist, l ike Dear Abby.

You’ve received the following letter. Write a reply to the

letter, giving the best advice you can.

DEAR ABBY

Dear Abby,

I’m so confused, and I don’t know what to do. I’m dating a

wonderful man who I hope will propose to me any day now. The

problem is that my fifteen-year-old daughter, Cindy, seems to hat him.

She claims he is mean to her, but I just can’t believe that’s true. And

she nags me to spend more time with her, but then she and I end up

fighting about him when we are together. If he and I get married, I

can’t see how they’ll ever get along. What should I do?

Lorraine

1. What kind of work does Mom say Raffie does?

2. When Cindy’s mother comments about the bruise on Cindy’s wrist, what does Cindy tell her?

3. What does Harold tell Cindy about RaffieWhitaker? What is Cindy’s reaction?

4. What is Mom’s reaction when Cindy confronts her with the truth about Raffie?

5. While they are at the beach, what does Bobby give Cindy?

Q U E S T I O N S C H A P T E R 7 & 8

When Grandma Rose complains about a scary show on TV,

Harold says, “…there’s nothin ’ in a fake TV show that’s scarier than things in the real world.”

T H E R E A L W O R L D

When Grandma Rose complains about a scary show on TV,

Harold says, “…there’s nothin ’ in a fake TV show that’s

scarier than things in the real world.”

THE REAL WORLD

Do you agree with Harold?

Explain your answer.

Make a list of things “in the

real world” that you find

especially frightening.

Compare your list with a

classmate.

1. On their way home from the library, Harold asks Cindy something that surprises her. What does he ask her? How does Cindy feel about this question? What is her reply to Harold?

2. When Cindy returns from the library, what item does Mom happily show her and then tell her about? What is Cindy’s reaction?

3. How does Bobby behave when Cindy tells him she wants to leave the Halloween party? What does Cindy finally realize about Bobby?

4. What dramatic events happen before the party ends, and who is involved?

5. What finally makes Mom realize the truth about Raffie? Who is Cindy surprised to learn assisted in getting evidence against Raffie?

Q U E S T I O N S C H A P T E R 9 & 1 0

IDEA DIAGRAM

What I think about myself

talents

emotional

intelligence

physical

PROJECT IDEAS

S cr i p ted C o n ver sat i on

Like Cindy, who looks to Mrs. Davis for advice, young

people often need the guidance of adults to help them

through difficult situations. Write the script for a

conversation in which a young person approaches an adult

for help with a specific problem.

Make the conversation as realistic as possible by including

the following: difficulties the characters would face

solutions that they might propose to solve the problem

express the emotions they are feeling

Begin with a narrator explaining who the characters are

For extra credit, perform your script in class.

PROJECT IDEAS

S cen e I l l u st rat i on

Think of your favorite scene from the book.

Write a paragraph explaining why this was your favorite

scene.

Draw a picture of how you imagine that scene would look

Try to include as much detail as possible about all the

characters involved and the surrounding scenery.

PROJECT IDEAS

P o st card A ct i v i t y

Pretending you are a character in Someone to Love Me,

write a postcard to another character from the book.

In the postcard, you should ask that character a question

about his or her actions or behavior.

Pass your postcard to another student in class, who will

write a reply to your postcard in the voice of the other

character.

PROJECT IDEAS

C h a r acter D i a g ram

On a sheet of paper, draw five boxes. Lable each

bow with the name of one of the main characters

in the book: Cindy, Mom, Bobby, Raffie, and Mrs.

Davis.

Cindy

2 facts:

2 descriptive words:

key quote:

Mom

2 facts:

2 descriptive words:

key quote:

Bobby

2 facts:

2 descriptive words:

key quote:

Raffie

2 facts:

2 descriptive words:

key quote:

Mrs. Davis

2 facts:

2 descriptive words:

key quote:

In each box, do the following:

a. Write two facts that you’ve

learned about that person

b. Write two descriptive words

that seem right for that person.

c. Identify one key quote from the

story that helps illustrate each

person’s personality.