1. Where in the classroom does Wanda sit and why?
Ans: Wanda used to sit in penultimate row of benches, in room thirteen. She is from a poor family and looks untidy, her feet were normally caked with dry mud and very dirty. So in order to avoid being laughed at by her classmates, she sat there to hide herself from the class.
2. Where does Wanda live? What kind of a place do you think it is?
Ans: Wanda lives at Boggins Heights. It seems that it is a place far away from the school and the fact that her shoes are covered in mud gives an idea that Boggins Heights is not a developed area, more likely, it could be like some unplanned colony or a slum area.
3. When and why do Peggy and Maddie notice Wanda’s absence?
Ans: Peggy and Maddie notice Wanda’s absence after three days, i.e., on Wednesday because they wanted to be with her for a lot of fun. They waited for her for a long time but she didn’t turn up.
4. What do you think “to have fun with her” means?
Ans: Wanda was a quiet and shy girl. Because of her looks and dirty feet, these girls used to make fun of her. Here, “to have fun with her” means that they liked to tease Wanda .This gave them a lot of pleasure.
5. In what way was Wanda different from the other children?
Ans: Wanda was different from other children. She did not have any friends. She came to school alone and went home alone. She always wore a faded blue dress that did not fit her properly. Unlike other children, she did not talk to anybody or had different dresses to wear.
6. Did Wanda have a hundred dresses? Why do you think she said she did?
Ans: No, she did not have a hundred dresses because she was poor and wore the same faded dress to school everyday. She had an inferiority complex. In order to hide the complex and impress the other girls, she always said that she had a hundred dresses. She exaggerated this, may be because she did not want others to make fun of her.
7. Why is Maddie embarrassed by the questions Peggy asks Wanda? Is she also like Wanda, or is she different?
Ans: Maddie was embarrassed by the questions Peggy asked Wanda because she too belonged to a poor family. She usually wore old and already worn clothes, which were given by some other people. She did not feel sorry for Wanda but instead, was worried for herself that perhaps later, everyone would start teasing her too. She thought she was different from Wanda in the sense that she would never claim that she had a hundred dresses. She was notas poor as Wanda. But could understand the trauma that Wanda went through when the others mocked her.
8. Why didn’t Maddie ask Peggie to stop teasing Wanda? What was she afraid of?
Ans: Maddie didn’t ask Peggie to stop teasing Wanda because Peggie was her best friend and she had faith in Peggie that she would never do anything wrong. She was afraid that she also might be laughed at for her poor dresses.
9. Who did Maddie think would win the drawing contest? Why?
Ans: Maddie thought that Peggy would win the drawing contest because Peggy drew better than anyone else. She was a confident girl who had build a strong reputation among her classmates. She could copy a picture in a magazine, or some film star’s face so well that one could easily guess who it was.
10. Who won the drawing contest? What had the winner drawn?
Ans: Wanda won the drawing contest. The winner of drawing contest was appreciated by the judges and applauded by her fellow classmates. She made a drawing of a hundred dresses.
11. How is Wanda seen as different by the other girls? How do they treat her?
Ans: Wanda is seen as different by the other girls. She is poor and a lonely girl. They treated her as inferior to them and always made fun of her. The girls teased her by commenting on her dress and dirty feet.
12. How does Wanda feel about the dresses game? Why does she say that she has a hundred dresses?
Ans: Wanda did not show any feelings regarding the dresses game. It is most likely that she was deeply hurt.But she maintained a stoic face and showed that she was made of tough nerves. She was a girl who was very poor and came form a long distance which made her feet dirty. She wanted to draw attention of her friends. So, she felt very happy whenever she told her friend that she had hundred dresses without realizing that they were making fun of her.
13. Why does Maddie stand by and not do anything? How is she different from Peggy? (Was Peggy’s friendship important to Maddie? Why? Which lines in the text tell you this?)
Ans: Maddie always stood by and never did anything as she was afraid that if she did, she would loose Peggy’s friendship. She was a poor girl and therefore, felt that if she spoke against the others, they would target her next. Unlike her, Peggy was a rich girl. This was also the reason why Maddie could think from Wanda’s point of view, but Peggy could not. Maddie was Peggy’s best friend. It seemed as if she was in awe of Peggy. She admired her quite a lotas she said that Peggy was the most liked girl in the room and that she drew better than anyone else. She did not have the courage to go against her. Some of the lines from the text which show that Peggy’s friendship was important to Maddie are as follows.