Anne of Green Gables Homeschool Literature Study Guide

Students should identify specific imaginative strategies Anne uses: she renames places (the Avenue of trees, the pond), she narrates her surroundings aloud to herself as though describing a story, and she finds beauty in ordinary things to distract herself from fear or grief. Strong answers will point to a particular moment — such as Anne's rapt attention to the blossoming trees on the drive to Green Gables — and explain how focusing on that beauty keeps her from despair. Students may also note that imagining a better future is different from denying reality; Anne knows she may be sent away but chooses to absorb wonder while she can.

Students might choose the white blossoming trees Anne calls 'the Avenue,' the gleaming pond she immediately renames 'the Lake of Shining Waters,' or the description of the farmhouse itself. The follow-up tests setting analysis rather than character inference. A strong answer will connect the detail to tone or expectation — for example, the flowering trees suggest beauty, possibility, and something almost magical, signaling that even a difficult situation (being an unwanted orphan) will be seen through a hopeful lens in this novel.

Students should connect Anne's name-giving habit to her belief that the right name captures the true spirit of a thing or person. She resists 'Ann without an e' because the spelling feels like a reduction of who she is; she renames Avonlea landmarks because she finds the existing names too plain to hold the beauty she sees. Strong answers will distinguish between two ideas: names as labels (practical, external) and names as expressions of inner character (imaginative, meaningful). Students may also observe that Marilla's practical acceptance of plain names contrasts with Anne's approach, establishing an important character difference.

This follow-up tests character comparison rather than theme analysis. Students might choose Marilla's reaction to Anne's renaming of places, Marilla's matter-of-fact response to Anne's emotional outbursts, or the conversation about Sunday-school attendance. A strong answer will describe a concrete action or spoken attitude for each character and draw a conclusion — for example, that Marilla values order and practicality while Anne values feeling and beauty — without simply repeating that they are 'different.'

Students should recognize that pride works two ways for Anne. It motivates her to excel at school and to defend her sense of self-worth (as when she breaks a slate over Gilbert's head after he mocks her hair). At the same time, it locks her into a grudge that lasts far longer than the original offense and prevents reconciliation with Gilbert. Strong answers will use at least one example of pride helping Anne (showing her drive) and one of it harming her (showing her stubbornness), and may note that Montgomery presents both sides without fully condemning Anne.

This follow-up tests inference about character history rather than plot-level conflict. Students should connect Diana's friendship to Anne's orphan background — she has never had a stable, chosen friend before. Strong answers will point to specific expressions of Anne's feelings (her ceremonial seriousness about the friendship, her intense loyalty) and explain them in light of what readers already know: that Anne has moved from household to household with no lasting bonds. Students need not over-sentimentalize; the friendship is also simply joyful and humorous.

For the hair-dyeing episode: Anne's desire to have beautiful, non-red hair leads her to buy dye from a peddler, with disastrous results. The consequence (hair that must be cut short) is a physical, visible reminder that vanity can backfire. Anne learns, at least temporarily, to accept what she cannot change. For the liniment cake: Anne's inattention in the kitchen causes her to flavor a cake with anodyne liniment instead of vanilla; Mrs. Allan becomes ill. Anne is devastated not by embarrassment alone but by the thought that she has hurt someone she respects and wanted to impress. This may be the more emotionally instructive mistake. Strong answers will identify the specific lesson and provide evidence from the chapter rather than a general moral statement.

This follow-up tests character development over time and asks for prediction or inference beyond the current reading — an appropriate stretch for grades 4–5. Students should describe the pattern (intense grief or self-reproach, then gradual recovery and even humor) and offer a reasoned opinion about whether it is softening. Strong answers will avoid simply saying 'yes, she grows up' and instead point to a specific moment of emotional response and compare it to an earlier or later one, noting what is similar or different.

Students should move beyond general statements ('she feels happy') to name particular details: Anne's attachment to her bedroom window and the view of the cherry tree, her knowledge of the farm's rhythms and seasons, her ease with Marilla's routines, and her deep connection to named places like the Lake of Shining Waters and Lover's Lane. Strong answers will observe that belonging is shown through specific knowledge and attachment, not just emotion — Anne knows the place the way only someone who has truly lived there would. Students might also note that Marilla's increasing warmth (even if rarely expressed openly) is part of what makes Green Gables home.

This follow-up tests literary analysis of setting as craft rather than comprehension of plot. Students might choose a description of the orchard, a seasonal change, or a specific outdoor place Anne visits with Diana. A strong answer will name the image, describe its mood or sensory quality, and connect it to what is happening emotionally in the scene — for example, a bright spring description accompanying a moment of happiness and security. Students should distinguish between what they see (the image) and what it makes the reader feel (its effect).

Likely candidates include Anne's role in caring for or responding to situations that affect Marilla, her schoolwork and academic competition with Gilbert affecting the classroom dynamic, or social situations involving Diana and other Avonlea characters. Strong answers will clearly identify who is affected, what Anne did or chose, and what the consequence was — distinguishing between intentional choices and unintended effects. Students should be specific rather than vague; an answer like 'Anne helped someone' is less useful than describing the situation and its result.

This follow-up tests inference from action rather than dialogue, and character analysis of a secondary character. Students should identify a specific action — supporting Anne's education, making practical preparations for Anne's success, or quietly advocating for her — and explain why it is significant given Marilla's usual reserve. Strong answers will note that showing care through action rather than words is itself a character trait: Marilla expresses love the way she does most things, practically and without fanfare.

Anne still wants academic success, but she now combines ambition with disciplined work, perspective, and concern for the people who support her. Strong answers use a specific moment from the examinations, concert, or departure for Queen's. Marilla's worsening eyesight and Anne's decision to remain home become central in Chapters 37–38, so they should not be used as evidence for this week.

This follow-up tests character development across a long arc and theme analysis. Students should observe that the rivalry began as personal antagonism (Anne's grudge) but has become a more mutual, respectful academic competition. By these later chapters there are hints that Gilbert's respect for Anne is genuine, and Anne's rigid refusal to acknowledge him is beginning to look more like stubbornness than justified pride. Montgomery may be suggesting that competition is most valuable when it pushes both parties toward their best rather than toward contempt. Students should avoid inventing plot events beyond their reading.

This is the review week; students may draw on the full novel. Likely changes include: Anne's impulsiveness becomes more tempered by consideration for others; her need for external beauty and imagination as an escape becomes a creative strength she has integrated into her life; her relationship with Marilla matures from wariness on both sides to genuine mutual love; her academic ambition gives her a concrete direction; her grudge against Gilbert resolves. Strong answers will identify a specific early-chapter moment (showing who Anne was) and a specific late-chapter moment (showing who she has become) for each change, rather than offering general statements. Students should note that change does not mean Anne loses her essential character — her imaginative, expressive self remains.

This final follow-up is intentionally open to interpretation and tests evidence-based opinion — a key grades 4–5 skill. Anne's decision to stay at Green Gables and give up the scholarship to care for Marilla can be seen as consistent with her growth (she has learned to put love before ambition) or as a surprising sacrifice for a girl so full of dreams. There is no single correct answer; students should commit to a position and support it with at least one specific detail. Strong answers will acknowledge the complexity — that the decision is both surprising and, on reflection, believable — rather than treating it as entirely predictable or entirely out of character.