Dry

Reading Check and Short Answer questions on key plot points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

Part 1, Chapter 1-Snapshot

Reading Check

1. What is Alyssa’s younger brother’s name?

2. What word does Kelton’s father use to label people like their family, who can navigate between “sheep” and “wolves”?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. How is Kelton’s family’s situation different from most people’s in Alyssa’s neighborhood?

2. How does the government respond to the water crisis in California?

Part 1, Chapters 4-6

Reading Check

1. What is Kelton’s motive for helping Alyssa’s family?

2. What is Kelton’s brother’s name?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Why does Garrett run away in Chapter 5?

2. What happens when a neighbor comes to Kelton’s house asking for water in Chapter 6?

Paired Resource

Run Dry

• This digital media project by Kristine Diekman uses text, video, and images to convey key ideas from Diekman’s film of the same name.
• This resource relates to themes of Dehydration and Desperation and Being Prepared for Disaster.
• What key ideas does Diekman’s project try to communicate about water scarcity in the Central Valley? How are the situations of the ordinary people in this project similar to and different from the situations of the characters in Dry? How might factors like wealth, class, and education impact people’s ability to prepare for disasters like water shortages? Does Kelton’s family seem aware of their privilege?

Part 2, Snapshot-Chapter 11

Reading Check

1. What is the name of the activist described in the beginning of Part 2?

2. What do Kelton’s parents argue about in Chapter 7?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Why is there an angry mob waiting outside the power plant?

2. How does Jacqui end up saving Alyssa from a threat of violence?

Part 2, Chapters 12-17

Reading Check

1. During the car ride with Jacqui, what do Alyssa and Kelton realize they have in common with the mysterious woman?

2. Why does Alyssa sneak out of the McCracken house in Chapter 15?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. In Chapter 14, when Richard tells Kelton his plan to leave in the morning and says they cannot take Alyssa and Garrett, what does Kelton suddenly realize?

2. What does Alyssa believe about the violence that happens at the McCracken house in Chapter 16?

Paired Resource

“Why Water Conflict Is Rising, Especially on the Local Level”

• This article by Peter Schwartzstein from the Center for Climate and Security explores which forms of violence are more and less likely during periods of water insecurity.
• This resource relates to themes of Dehydration and Desperation and Selfishness Versus Selflessness.
• What forms of violence related to water insecurity does research indicate are the most likely? Which scenes in Dry seem realistic based on this research? What does the violence sometimes associated with water scarcity convey about the book’s themes of Dehydration and Desperation and Selfishness Versus Selflessness?

Part 3, Chapters 18-25

Reading Check

1. What disease is Kelton afraid of catching if the group stays in Dove Canyon?

2. Who gets temporarily separated from the rest of the group at the evacuation center?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What is Henry’s primary response to the water crisis, at least initially?

2. What surprises the group about the tone of the news coverage they see when they are in Dove Canyon?

Part 3, Snapshot-Chapter 29

Reading Check

1. What does Herb (Basil) find someone has left behind in his and Daphne’s room?

2. Why can’t Henry manage to siphon gas from the car he chooses when the group is low on gas?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. In Chapter 26, how does the group manage to get around the roadblock on their way to the bug-out?

2. In Chapter 29, how does Henry try to manipulate Alyssa to turn her against Kelton?

Paired Resource

“Catastrophe Compassion: Understanding and Extending Prosociality Under Crisis”

• This research summary by Jamil Zaki explains that, despite popular beliefs to the contrary, people are likely to help one another in times of disaster.
• Depending on the reading abilities of your students, this resource may be more appropriate as a teacher-facing resource; students may need to read an abridged or edited version.
• This resource relates to themes of Being Prepared for Disaster and Selfishness Versus Selflessness.
• What does this researcher say about media accounts of aggression and violence during disasters? How does he refute this depiction using historical evidence? What does Dr. Zaki say might cause “catastrophe compassion”? How can it be cultivated ahead of time, in preparation for emergencies? What light does this research shed on Charity’s commune in Dry?

Part 4, Chapters 30-36

Reading Check

1. While the group is driving to the bug-out in Chapter 30, what does the haze on the road make them think might be nearby?

2. What does Kelton take from the bug-out to remember Brady by?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. When Kelton sees the state the bug-out is in, what conclusions does he reach about who was there and what this means?

2. When the group opens the final box of water, what do they find, and what does Alyssa realize about Henry?

Part 5, Chapters 37-55

Reading Check

1. What do the men from the camper claim Henry has traded them for some water?

2. Who ends up shooting the men from the camper?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. When the group is trying to get to the reservoir on foot during the wildfire, what makes Alyssa glad that she has a gun?

2. In Chapter 55, how does Alyssa finally get some water to drink?

Paired Resource

“Land of Smoke and Fire: Documenting California’s Endless Season of Heat”

• This text and photo essay project by Jeff Frost and Lauren Markham vividly documents the 2020 wildfire season in California.
• What kind of emotional and intellectual response are the creators of this document trying to evoke in their audience? How does this compare to the authors’ purposes in Dry? What is the relationship between fire, temperature, and drought? How does engaging with “Land of Smoke and Fire” enhance your understanding of the situation the characters in Dry are facing?

Part 6, Snapshot-Chapter 56

Reading Check

1. How long has the Tap-Out been over when the Part 6 Disneyland Snapshot takes place?

2. Where has Alyssa’s father been since he disappeared?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What does the ticket-counter at Disneyland believe has brought so many people to the park?

2. At the end of the novel, where are Kelton and Alyssa waiting for Alyssa’s father to take them, and why?

Recommended Next Reads

Monument 14 by Emmy Laybourne

• After a mega-tsunami strikes, a random collection of students sheltering in a superstore work together to try to survive the disaster.
• Shares themes of Being Prepared for Disaster and Selfishness Versus Selflessness
• Shares topics of climate change, survival, and forging community
• Monument 14 on SuperSummary

Breathe by Sarah Crossan

• In a world where oxygen has become a valuable commodity, three teenagers from different backgrounds journey into the Outlands with two days’ worth of oxygen and serious questions about their own society.
• Shares theme of Selfishness Versus Selflessness
• Shares topics of climate change, survival, the commodification of vital resources, and forging community