The Color of Water Lesson Plan

What does McBride say about the torment he endured from his brothers and sisters? Why did he and his siblings treat each other the way they did? How might the circumstances McBride describes inform us about other forms of misbehavior or abuse?

Students might locate the passage in Chapter 4 in which McBride writes: "My siblings and I spent hours playing tricks and teasing one another. It was our way of dealing with realities over which we had no control." They might also point to specific examples of these tricks, including: "'The bus isn't bad,' one quipped, 'except for the snakes.'" (Chapter 2) and "Richie, knowing he had ruined my life, cackled himself to sleep"...