Exploring 'Ghost' by Jason Reynolds
A Grade 8 ELA worksheet focusing on character analysis, theme, and literary devices in Jason Reynolds' novel 'Ghost'.
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Exploring 'Ghost' by Jason Reynolds
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Read each question carefully and provide thoughtful answers based on your understanding of Jason Reynolds' novel, 'Ghost'.
1. What is the primary reason Castle 'Ghost' Cranshaw initially joins the Defenders track team?
To escape trouble at home
To prove his athletic ability to his friends
Coach Brody sees his potential and invites him
He wants to win a scholarship for running
2. What significant event from Castle's past continues to haunt him and influence his behavior?
A serious injury that ended his basketball career
His father going to jail for shooting at him and his mother
Failing a grade in school and being held back
Being bullied relentlessly by older kids in his neighborhood
3. Coach Brody often uses the phrase, 'You got to what you want.'
4. When Castle thinks about his past, he says it's like a that he can never truly outrun.
5. Explain how the theme of overcoming one's past is developed through Castle's journey on the track team.
6. Describe an internal conflict that Castle faces throughout the novel and how he attempts to resolve it.
7. Look at the image of the running shoes below. How do these shoes symbolize Castle's transformation and his journey in the novel?
8. Coach Brody was once an Olympic gold medalist in track.
True
False
Match each character with their most prominent trait or role.
9. Coach Brody
a. The protagonist, struggles with anger
10. Castle Cranshaw
b. The stern but supportive track coach