The Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“Picturing Francisco Jiménez: A Visual Exploration of the Author”

In this activity, students will take a closer look at the childhood of Francisco Jiménez by examining archival family photos from the Jiménezes. Students will put faces and scenes to the real-life people and places described in The Circuit and come up with a dramatized scene inspired by a photo of their choice.

As part of the website for the movie adaptation of Francisco Jiménez’s Breaking Through, the film producers made available a gallery of photos from the author’s life—his childhood, his family, and scenes from growing up. Photos can be found here. As you will see, many of the characters and locations in the photos will be familiar to readers of The Circuit.

Select one of the photos in the collection and write a short scene inspired by the picture. It can be a dialogue between characters, an inner monologue, or a combination of the two, but regardless of what you choose, it should be written in a tone and style that emulate those of The Circuit. Refer to these questions to guide you as you craft your scene:

• What was happening immediately before the picture was taken?
• What happened immediately after the picture was taken?
• Take in the surrounding area of the photo. What are some of the sounds, smells, and sights that the characters are experiencing?
• Who is in the picture? Consider how the characters feel about each other and explore any closeness/tensions in the relationship.
• Who is just out of the frame of the picture? Think about members of the family who might be on the characters’ minds, even if they are not directly pictured.

The Circuit, notably, is written from the point of view of Francisco “Panchito” Jiménez; in this exercise, however, please write from the point of view of one of the other characters.

Your final piece should be 1-2 pages long. When you are finished, share your work with your class. Discuss common tropes, symbols, and motifs that appeared across your and your classmates’ work.

Teaching Suggestion: Before students embark upon writing their scene, consider spending time as a class reviewing each of the pictures, talking through what you’re seeing in the pictures, reading carefully through the captions, and discussing the pictures to generate ideas. Additionally, before students begin writing, consider reminding students that they will want to touch upon at least one of the major themes in the book (The Value of Family, The Challenges of the Immigrant Experience, and The Importance of Education) in their work.

Differentiation Suggestion: For students who may struggle to write a full scene, students who demonstrate visual-spatial intelligences and/or artistic abilities and interests, and English-language learners, consider allowing these students to create an annotated storyboard of their chosen scene and present it to the class in lieu of the writing assignment. As an extension for students interested/talented in drama, consider allowing them to work in small groups to dramatically reenact their scenes in front of the class. Consider allowing students who are interested/talented in cinematography or film production to produce a script and short video of their scene in lieu of the writing assignment.

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. In “To Have and to Hold,” the narrator loses his cherished librito, which he uses to record what he learns in school.

• What does the librito symbolize to the narrator? (topic sentence)
• How do the narrator’s experiences with the librito mirror his broader experiences of education as an immigrant?
• In your conclusion, discuss how the loss of the librito contributes to the development of The Importance of Education as a theme.

2. Though Papá and Mamá can’t often give their children literal gifts, they do pass on their value systems to their children.

• What are the primary values that Papá and Mamá try to instill in their family? (topic sentence)
• How does the narrator demonstrate that he shares these values? Cite no fewer than three moments in the text when the narrator demonstrates his parent’s family values.
• In your conclusion, explain how Mamá and Papá’s teachings reflect The Value of Family itself.

3. Though Jiménez lives in close quarters with his large family, he is often lonely.

• What are a few moments in the text when the narrator expresses his loneliness? How does the narrator seek to connect with others in these moments? (topic sentence)
• In these moments, in what ways does the narrator succeed and in what ways does he fail?
• In your conclusion, explain how the narrator’s isolation from his family (emotionally), his classmates, and even from himself develops the theme of The Challenges of the Immigrant Experience.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by textual details, and a conclusion.

1. How does using a first-person child’s perspective affect the narration of the stories? What impact does it have on the works’ tone, and how does this influence the work’s exploration of its themes—particularly The Challenges of the Immigrant Experience? What does the narrator’s relative naivete lend to this subject?

2. Consider the role of animals and nature in the stories. How are these elements depicted? How do they help to illustrate the story collection’s key themes and ideas? Is the narrator’s relationship to his pet parrot the same as his relationships to other animals, like the caterpillar and the gray fish? How do different animals illuminate different facets of his character or experience?

3. Explore the role of languages—both Spanish and English—in the stories. What role does language play in terms of heritage and culture? How does this intersect with the immigrant experience—e.g., in the narrator’s experiences at school? Given all of this, what is the significance of how the work itself blends English and Spanish? What Spanish terms does it employ, and why?

Multiple Choice and Long Answer questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, unit exam, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. When the narrator and his family first arrive in California in “Under the Wire,” Papá learns from the foreman that it will be how long before he can begin work picking strawberries?

A) Two weeks

B) Two days

C) Two months

D) Two years

2. Which of the following best explains why the narrator observes Roberto’s reaction to finding out that they only have $7 to live on for their first two weeks in the US?

A) He knows his brother will take the discovery particularly hard.

B) He does not trust his brother to respond appropriately to the news.

C) He looks to his brother for clues as to the circumstances his family is in.

D) He hopes his brother will know what to do next.

3. The narrator is proud to show his family the bag of cotton he picked in “Soledad.” Why, then, is Mamá upset?

A) Mamá didn’t want the narrator to have to work because he is still so young to be doing such intense labor.

B) The amount of cotton the narrator picked does not meet the minimum amount that the foreman needs to be paid.

C) The narrator didn’t actually pick cotton—he accidentally picked Gossypium flowers, which closely resemble cotton plants.

D) The narrator left Trampita, who is just an infant, alone all afternoon. Trampita is found crying, with his diaper soiled.

4. In “Soledad,” there is a tragic irony in the reason why the narrator feels such a deep loneliness in this chapter. Which of the following best describes the irony?

A) The narrator is lonely because he misses Mexico, which is ironic because they came to America searching for a better, happier life.

B) The narrator is lonely because he has no friends, which is ironic because he is a friendly, sweet soul.

C) The narrator is lonely because he wants to be with his family, which is ironic because they are off doing intensive, difficult labor.

D) The narrator is lonely because he feels misunderstood by his family, which is ironic because they are the only ones—as he shall soon see—who actually understand the full weight of his plight.

5. When the principal sees the narrator shivering in the recess yard in the story “Inside Out,” how does he respond?

A) He calls Child Protective Services and reports the narrator’s parents for not adequately clothing the narrator.

B) He offers the narrator a coat from the school’s lost and found.

C) He tells the narrator to buck up and that temperatures are colder in this part of the US compared to Mexico.

D) He ignores the narrator.

6. Mamá has another baby in “Miracle in Tent City,” a little boy they nickname “Torito.” What does the name mean?

A) Little bull

B) Little horse

C) Little donkey

D) Little lion

7. The narrator and Mamá spend their days inside admiring the neighbor’s goldfish in “El Angel de Oro.” What does Mamá call this fish?

A) Pez feliz

B) The golden angel

C) Blancacita

D) The little mermaid

8. What is the main thing that the narrator wishes to receive as a gift for Christmas?

A) A toy car

B) A book

C) A jump rope

D) A ball

9. When El Perico dies, the narrator is only able to visit his gravesite for two weeks because after that period, the family is moving to Corcoran. What does this moment symbolically suggest?

A) El Perico is symbolic of the narrator’s last hope, his last chance for a “good’ life. In moving, the narrator is unable to mourn the loss of a “good” life.

B) El Perico is one of the narrator’s few “friends.” When his family moves, it encapsulates the effect their transient existence has on his ability to maintain relationships.

C) When the narrator moves, he completely forgets El Perico. This demonstrates the connection between moving and the suppression of emotion.

D) El Perico is symbolic of the narrator’s innocence, which is lost acutely in this chapter. When the narrator moves, he fully becomes a man.

10. In “The Circuit,” why must Roberto wait until February to start school?

A) Roberto broke his arm picking cotton and needs to take time off from school to heal.

B) Roberto needs to serve as Mamá’s home aide to help her perform basic tasks.

C) Roberto needs to help Papá pick cotton to help the family earn more income.

D) Roberto cannot go to school because the school has been shut down by flooding.

11. In “Learning the Game,” Gabriel is a man who has just come from Mexico to pick strawberries. What is his primary reason for coming to the US?

A) To feed his family back in Mexico

B) To save enough money to buy a car

C) To help his ailing mother

D) To become rich, once he achieves the “American Dream”

12. In “The Circuit,” why are the narrator and Roberto forced to hide when the school bus drives by the field where they are picking strawberries?

A) The school bus driver is a racist, elderly woman who harasses the boys.

B) There is one student on the bus in particular—the class bully—who makes fun of the boys for having to pick strawberries.

C) It is, technically, illegal for the boys not to attend school regularly.

D) The boys heard a rumor that the school bus driver is actually la migra in disguise.

13. What type of precious penny did Carl give to the narrator?

A) An Indian Head penny

B) A Copper Wheat penny

C) A Flying Eagle penny

D) A penny from 1909

14. “To Have and to Hold” ends with the narrator’s family home burning to the ground. In response, Mamá makes what hopeful remark?

A) “The darkest light comes before the dawn.”

B) “Hope floats.”

C) “It is not all lost.”

D) “God works in mysterious ways.”

15. Why is Roberto disappointed after interviewing with the owner of a shoe store?

A) Because the owner declines his application on the spot

B) Because the owner turns out to be racist and, without thinking, says a series of slurs in front of Roberto

C) Because Roberto finds retail work boring and longs to do something more meaningful with his time

D) Because the owner wants Roberto to mow his lawn, not work at the counter

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating textual details to support your response.

1.  What role do cardboard moving boxes play in “The Circuit”? How do they contribute to the work’s depiction of home and The Challenges of the Immigrant Experience?

2. The Importance of Education is an important theme in the book. What does school symbolize for the narrator?