Pre-Reading Questions - English

This is what we have been learning about in English. This story is about the "Yellow Brick Road". 

1. Witi Tame Ihimaera. He was the first Maori writer to publish a collection of short stories. He was born on February 7 1944 in Gisborne, New Zealand. Some of his works that have been adapted in films are Whale Rider, Mahana, and a lot more. 

2. What does “Yellow Brick Road” mean for you and have you heard about this expression before? For me, Yellow Brick Road is simply a yellow brick road. It's a road that's made out of yellow bricks.

3. What do you predict this story will be about, based on the title? I predict that this story will simply be their journey through the "Yellow Brick Road"

Post-reading questions 

1. Why does the narrator believe that they are moving to Wellington? The narrator believes that they will be moving to Wellington because that was where they were heading to. They have all of their belongings with them, all packed and ready to go. He also believes that they will be moving to Wellington because that is where all the money is; He thinks that you have to go where the money is rather than staying poor. 

2. What big difference between Waituhi and Wellington does the narrator mention? The first thing that he mentioned was when they were getting close to their destination, people seemed to be more “unfriendly”. They just drive past them without giving them any help, which is the complete opposite of Waituhi.

3. On page 3, we found out that Dad told Uncle Sam they were moving to Wellington because…? Dad said that they were moving to Wellington because he wanted to give his children everything that they need and want. He mentioned that he and Hine grew up with nothing, but that will change. He wanted to have a new start, a new life. 

4. How does the Narrator’s attitude towards moving change once they draw nearer to the city? As remembered before, the narrator was really excited about moving to Wellington because he was sure that they were going to make a lot of money there. But when they were getting closer and closer, he realised that he was the only one happy. He also started seeing the road signs which were very odd. The narrator was starting to think that there was something ahead of them that he needs to be cautious about. 

5. In my point of view, the narrator compares their experience or their journey to Wellington to the Wizard of Oz because everything that he believed was all a lie.