CULTURE SHOCK

1. CULTURE SHOCK QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT

2. CHAPTER 1 • Why didn’t Paloma want to move to England? She didn’t want to leave her best friend, Eva. She was enjoying school, and everything was starting to go well. • What do we learn about Marta and the relationship between her and Paloma? Marta never complained about anything. She was a year older than Paloma, and she was much more mature than her. The sisters were very different, and had very different friends. • Describe Paloma’s relationship with Daniel? She had liked Daniel for years and now he had asked her to work with him on their science project. They had to spend time together and they often met after school. • Why does Marta think that it would be good for Paloma to leave Eva? Eva is very arrogant and she tries to control Paloma. She’s a bad influence on Paloma.

3. CHAPTER 2 • How did Paloma try to stop the move and how did her family react to her behaviour? She complained, shouted and cried, but that didn’t help. Her father was upset and her mum was angry with her. Even Marta was losing patience with Paloma. • What do we learn about Eva from her phone call with Laia? How does the phone call affect Paloma? Although she doesn’t like her, Eva is friendly to Laia because she’s getting her tickets to see the Amazons in concert. Paloma feels sad because she won’t be able to see them. • What made Paloma understand that Daniel liked her? He kissed her and said that he was sorry she was leaving. He wanted to keep in contact.

4. CHAPTER 3 • Why did Eva give Paloma on the last day of school, and what did Paloma think of it? Eva gave Paloma a diary and a card. Paloma thought the diary was great but that the card was a little depressing. • How did Paloma’s dad react when David chased Rex round the boxes and why did Paloma find this surprising? He laughed. Paloma hadn’t seen her dad laugh like that for a long time. He always seemed to be tense and worried when he was at home. • What facts did Marta tell Paloma about their parents? They didn’t want to move to England, but there was no other option. They had to move and it was causing problems in their marriage. They might even get divorced if things didn’t go well in London. • How did the conversation with Marta affect Paloma’s plans? She had planned to make a big scene at the airport. But after her conversation with Marta, she tried to be strong and positive.

5. CHAPTER 4 • In what ways was Paloma trying to be less selfish and more positive towards her family? She talked to Marta more often, and she tried to be more patient with David. • Why did Paloma’s dad decided to bring the family to London and why had this been a sacrifice for her mum? He was going to lose his job in the company, but his good English saved him. They offered him a new job in England and he accepted it immediately. Paloma’s mum had been offered a promotion in the school where she taught and she couldn’t accept it. • Describe Paloma’s feelings when her dad came and spoke to her one night? She felt guilty when her dad thanked her for being mature. She was shocked that her mum might leave him and go back to Spain. She was upset at seeing her father cry. • What kind of school was Paloma going to and why was this good for Paloma? It was an international school, with students from all over the world and some English kids whose parents travelled a lot. Paloma could study some subjects in Spanish.

6. CHAPTER 5 • Whydidthestudentswork so hard in the 11th year? They were studying for their A level exams, which were difficult. No one could get into a British university without good A level marks. • HowhadPaloma’sattitudetoher new schoolchangedbytheend of themorning? She thought her new classmates weren’t so bad and it would be nice to know them better. She thought the school was going to be OK.

7. CHAPTER 6 • Describe Paloma’s feelings and thoughts on the way home from school. She was feeling ignored and she was angry because nobody was paying any attention to her. She thought her mother didn’t care about her or how she had survived her first day. • Why was Marta worried about Alexa? She thought Alexa sounded a little like Eva. She thought that Eva liked to control her friends too much, especially Paloma, and that she was false and manipulated people. • What shows that the relationship between Paloma and Marta was now better? When Mum called them down for dinner, they had been talking for more than two hours. They had never done that in Spain.

8. CHAPTER 7 • How did Paloma feel during dinner that night? She felt that something was wrong. Her parents were being too polite to each other and she could feel tension in the air. • Why did Daniel think that Eva wasn’t Paloma’s friend? Eva told Daniel that Paloma had a new boyfriend, that she liked him very much and that she was too busy to write to him. • What did Paloma think of Alexa, and what worried her? Paloma liked Alexa but the other girls in her class didn’t seem to like her and Paloma didn’t know why. • Why was Marta worried? It was 11.30 on Saturday night and Dad wasn’t home yet.

9. CHAPTER 8 • What was strange about Paloma’s friendship with Alexa? Several times Paloma invited Alexa to her house or suggested that they do something together at the weekend, but Alexa always said no. Alexa never invited Paloma to her house. • What happened at home that evening and what did Paloma think was the cause of it? Mum told David to stop playing his CDs. When David protested, Mum got really angry and told him to go to bed. Paloma thought that Mum was worried about Dad. • What news did the teacher give the class and what was the class’s reaction? She was planning to take them all on a field trip at the beginning of the half-term holiday in October. Everyone was very excited.

10. CHAPTER 9 • What did Alexa tell Paloma about her sister Katie? Katie was severely mentally handicapped. She was two years older than Alexa, but she acted very strangely sometimes. • Describe what happened when Alexa invited her friend to her house in Valencia. Her friend was very frightened when she saw Katie and told everyone terrible stories about Alexa’s family. • What was the result of the conversation between Paloma and Alexa? Paloma invited Alexa to her house the next day after school and they did their homework together. Alexa had a very nice time and enjoyed meeting her family.

11. CHAPTER 10 • Whatdid Paloma do tomake Alexa feelbetter and howdid Alexa reacttothis? She told Alexa that her family had problems, too. Alexa said it had helped her talking to Paloma about Katie. Maybe if Paloma told Alexa about her problem, Alexa could help her, too. • Howdidthingschangefor Alexa afterthat? The students became much friendlier to Alexa and Susan and Karin accepted Alexa into all their activities. • Whatinformationdidthestudentsgetaboutthefieldtrip? They could do all kinds of activities there. There would be a midnight hike on Saturday night and a disco on Sunday evening. The students had to choose their groups for the rooms they would sleep in.

12. CHAPTER 11 • WhywereMr and Mrs Santos sendingtheirchildrento Madrid? Mr Santos was having problems because his job wasn’t going so well. Mr and Mrs Santos wanted to be alone to try and solve their problems. • Whatsuggestiondid Gary make? Paloma could go on the field trip and then go to Madrid on Tuesday morning.

13. CHAPTER 12 • How did the girls react when Paloma started to cry? They looked at each other in surprise and Alexa put her arm round Paloma. They told her they would help her as much as they could. • Why was Paloma happy to spend so much time with Gary and Steve on the hike and at the disco? She was beginning to like Gary more and more. It was good for her ego that a handsome, popular boy like Steve was paying her so much attention and he was a fantastic dancer. • What happened to Paloma at breakfast the next morning? There was no room for her and Alexa at Susan and Karin’s table. Julia didn’t say good morning and Susan and Karin looked very embarrassed. Paloma could feel the students’ eyes on her and was horrified to see the looks on some of their faces.

14. CHAPTER 13 • What was Gary’s explanation for the girls’ behaviour? He said that Julia was responsible. She had fancied Steve for a long time and was envious that he was so attentive to Paloma on the hike and danced with her all the time at the disco. • What information did Grandma give the girls about their parents’ problems? Their father had a drinking problem. He had been an alcoholic for a long time and that was causing the problems in their parents’ marriage. • What had their father been doing to try to solve his problem and how did Grandma say the girls could help? He had been going to meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous and also to special clinics. The girls would have to give him a lot of compassion and understanding.

15. CHAPTER 14 • Why was Paloma’s meeting with Daniel good for her? She told him all her problems. He was a good listener and also gave her excellent advice. By the end of the lunch, Paloma felt a lot better. • Why was Paloma happy after her conversation with Eva? She was finally free of Eva. Maybe she was becoming more mature, like Marta. • Why was Mrs Santons feeling nervous, and what did Marta do when she saw her mother? Mrs Santos wasn’t sure what her daughters’ reaction would be to their grandmother’s explanations. Marta gave her a kiss and said that they would help her as much as they could.

16. CHAPTER 15 • Was Mrs Santos optimistic or pessimistic about her family’s future? Give a reason for your answer. She was optimistic. She said it would be a long, difficult process for Dad and it wouldn’t be easy for them either, but if they worked together as a family, she was sure everything would be OK. • What surprise did Paloma get when she arrived at school and what was the explanation for this? Everybody came running towards her. Alexa had explained everything to them and they were sorry they had been horrible to her. • Three positive things happened to Paloma at the end of the story. What were they? Her friends said they would do everything they could to help her. Gary invited her to go to the Amazons’ concert with him on Saturday night. The therapists thought that Dad was finally beginning to make progress.

17. THE END