Author:  Michele Maria Surat

Illustrator:  Vo-Dinh Mai

Discussion Guide by:   Pat Bowes

Setting:  America

Topics:
: Vietnam
: Refugees
: Culture clash
: Respect
: Empathy
: Family love
: Understanding

Prereading Activities
: Look at the cover and try to determine what the story is about.  Concentrate on the
  girl’s eyes.
: If not already done, review a map for the location of Vietnam.
: Use slides or an actual example to explain what an ao dai is.
   (See enclosed information.)
: Ask students how they would treat a new student if he or she came to school
  dressed in their native clothing.
: Discuss empathy and have students give examples from their lives.
: Ask what the title means.
 

1) What does the title of story mean to you?

2) How does Ut feel on her first day of school?  Have you ever felt like her?

3) Why do the children make fun of what Ut and her sisters are wearing?  How did this
     make Ut and her sisters feel?

4) When Ut looks at the picture of her mother, why does she say, “Her listening face
    smiled.”?

5) How important is Little Quang to Ut?  Why?

6) Ut referred to the trees as “angry.”  What are angry trees?

7) What is your opinion of the punishment that the principal gave Raymond?  Was it
     good?  Was it fair or unfair?  Why didn’t he just send Raymond home? Is there
    such a thing as good punishment?  If so, give an example.

8) How do Ut and Raymond become friends?  (What does she have that he doesn’t?)

9) When the girls were wearing their ao dais at the fair, why didn’t the kids yell
    “pajamas”?

10) After the fair, how long did it take for Ut’s mother to get home?

11) How did you feel at the end of this story?

12) What did you learn from reading this story?

Pronounced 'ao yai' in the south, but 'ao zai' in the north. In Viet Nam, the ao dai is the traditional dress for women.   Developed from Chinese court clothing in the 1930s, this style of clothing went out of fashion in the north in 1954 and in the south in 1975.   Recently, however, it has made a comeback and is regaining popularity in the south among schoolgirls and office workers, and is being worn at formal functions. An indication of social standing, the ao dai is worn by women who work as shop assistants or who have a higher social status, while manual workers typically wear a loose top and baggy pants called an ao ba ba.

The ao dai is considered to be an elegant, yet demure, garment. Traditionally, long, wide- legged trousers are worn under a high-necked, long-sleeved, fitted tunic with slits along each side. The outfit’s pants reach to the soles of the feet, often trailing along the ground. Over time, the dress tunic has evolved, keeping with fashion trends, and has grown shorter and shorter until it now falls just below the knees. The ao dai can also be identified by its mandarin-style or boat-neck collar.  The color is indicative of the wearer's age and status.  Young girls wear only pastel colored or white garments while married women wear either dark or bright tunics over black or white trousers.

Historically, Vietnamese men dressed in mandarin style suits. With a tunic shorter and fuller than the ao dai, the suit’s color was traditionally determined by the man’s class and social rank. For example, a purple suit denoted a high rank while blue denoted a low rank. Status was also indicated through a variety of embroidered symbols. Today the mandarin suit is rarely worn except for in traditional dance or music performances.

In general, Vietnamese people dress conservatively. Although some young women wear more close-fitting, Western-style clothing, it is considered inappropriate to wear revealing clothes during the day. One Westerner teaching English in Viet Nam was advised to tuck her shirt into her trousers if she expected respect from her students. It is considered inappropriate for educated people to wear their shirts untucked.

NOTE:
The majority of this information is courtesy of web site: http://www.pathfind.org/html/Worldwide/Journey/viet%20nam/ao_dai.htm