Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key: Chapters 11–15

by Jack Gantos
Joey struggles with impulse control and hyperactivity. After he makes a number of poor decisions—with disastrous consequences—he is suspended from school. Will a special education program help Joey turn his life around?

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–5, Chapters 6–10, Chapters 11–15

Here are links to our lists for other works by Jack Gantos: Dead End in Norvelt, Hole in My Life
30 words 75 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. rescue
    free from harm or evil
    I told him I had dud meds and he wanted to know what doctors you had taken me to. I told him I didn’t know and that you rescued me from Grandma and he said special ed was going to help me get better.
  2. vial
    a small bottle that contains liquid medicine
    Mom reached into her purse and took out the plastic vial of medicine for me.
  3. abandon
    leave someone who needs or counts on you; leave in the lurch
    “He wanted to know how I felt after you abandoned me.”
  4. pretend
    make believe with the intent to deceive
    “Did you tell them I love you and I go to work every day at the beauty parlor and listen to everyone talk about their perfect kids and how sick that makes me because for one, I don’t believe their kids are perfect because no one is, and two, they pretend their kids are perfect so they can look down at kids like you and parents like me.”
  5. embarrassed
    made to feel uncomfortable because of shame or wounded pride
    I thought about you at work all day and I worried about you and the more I thought about what you would tell them about us the more embarrassed I was.
  6. regulate
    fix or adjust the time, amount, degree, or rate of
    Long after the doctor gets your medication regulated, you and I will be working together.
  7. disorder
    a disturbance of normal functioning
    We all feel that the meds you’re taking now aren’t doing the job and with better medication your attention disorder can be controlled.
  8. proper
    marked by suitability or rightness or appropriateness
    What we don’t know is what, medically speaking, is going on inside of you. And that we need to know before we can get you the proper medication.
  9. abuse
    treat badly
    “The doctor thought you had been abused,” Special Ed said in the same tight voice.
  10. examine
    observe, check out, and look over carefully or inspect
    “I want you to look good,” she said, and examined my head.
  11. suspect
    imagine to be the case or true or probable
    After you were gone I started asking Grandma when you were coming back and she said, ‘Any day now, I suspect.’
  12. fidget
    move restlessly
    “What? You want him to take a bath then sit nice and still and not fidget in his seat? Okay. We’ll try.”
  13. prove
    establish the validity of something
    So if the test on my brain is good then I should get a puppy because of a celebration, and if the test is bad I should get one because you have to be really nice to me because then it’ll be proven that I’m messed up in the head and nobody can fix it.
  14. doomed
    marked for certain death
    “Well, you’re not doomed,” she said sarcastically.
  15. confession
    an admission of misdeeds or faults
    “I have a confession to make,” Mom finally said.
  16. clench
    squeeze together tightly
    We’ll need you to keep your jaw and teeth clenched so we can keep your head real still while we take the pictures.
  17. afford
    have the financial means to do something or buy something
    “What I feel for you and what I can afford are two different things,” she said.
  18. revolve
    turn on or around an axis or a center
    “Fine,” I repeated, only in a different way, and stomped over to the revolving postcard rack.
  19. souvenir
    something of sentimental value
    “A card is a very nice souvenir,” she said just like a mom because the saleslady was watching us as if we were house burglars.
  20. topple
    fall down, as if collapsing
    She grabbed my arm with one hand and the wire rack with the other and it nearly toppled over but didn’t.
  21. tidy
    put in order
    “I’m afraid not,” the lady replied with a really fake smile on her face and then she began to tidy up the postcard rack.
  22. settle
    become resolved, fixed, established, or quiet
    He could be drunk, he could be sober, he could be nice, or mean as a snake. If I knew he had settled down, then we’d think about getting together.
  23. confused
    perplexed by many conflicting situations or statements
    She looked at a line of clocks on the wall and seemed confused.
  24. severe
    very bad in degree or extent
    Your problems are not neurologically severe.
  25. maintain
    keep in a certain state, position, or activity
    The goal is to give you a fighting chance to maintain a normal attention span.
  26. therapy
    the act of providing treatment for an illness or disorder
    Once you can do that, then other behavior therapies, and positive family conditions, can make a significant difference.
  27. consider
    take into account
    I only considered the wolf for a moment because I thought if Grandma returned he could swallow her whole.
  28. destined
    governed by fate
    We were destined for each other because right away he decided to sit on the windowsill and wait for me and yap at everyone who went by.
  29. snatch
    grasp hastily or eagerly
    I wanted to say that everyone’s nose was safe and not to worry, but Mrs. Jarzab snatched the microphone out of my hand and flicked off the volume.
  30. tardy
    after the expected or usual time
    “Now go see Mrs. Howard,” she replied, “before you are tardy on your first day back.”
Created on Tue Sep 30 20:54:07 EDT 2014 (updated Thu Aug 16 15:21:54 EDT 2018)

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