What the Sign Promised

Trace a theme through a family’s choices and summarize the story objectively.

Answer Key

Read

Read the story. Notice what the family risks with each decision.

What the Sign Promised

1From the window of her family’s food truck, Zerin could see the evening crowd leaving the office buildings. Her father warmed flatbreads while her older brother, Navid, assembled chickpea wraps. Zerin took orders beside a sign she had written: FULL WRAP, SIX DOLLARS. Beneath the counter, a loose metal drawer rattled whenever anyone moved.

2They were saving for a replacement refrigerator, and Zerin recorded each sale in a notebook. Every full page made the purchase seem closer. She had calculated how many wraps they needed to sell that evening to meet their weekly goal. When her father suggested closing early because supplies were low, she pointed to the unfinished column.

3Navid lifted the chickpea container and frowned. They had enough filling for four full wraps, but six people were waiting. Zerin suggested spreading it across six flatbreads. The wraps would look nearly the same once folded, she explained. Navid set down his spoon. “But they wouldn’t be what the sign says.”

4Zerin glanced at the notebook. Six sales would finish the column; four would leave them short. She pictured customers opening thin wraps after walking away, too far from the truck to complain. Slowly, she turned the sign over. On the blank side she wrote: FOUR FULL WRAPS LEFT. She announced the limit before taking another payment.

5The fifth customer stepped out of line, checking his watch, and the sixth followed him. Neither argued, but Zerin watched twelve possible dollars disappear into the crowd. Her father did not tell her the refrigerator could wait. Instead, he said they would need another evening of work. Then he handed her the four remaining paper sleeves.

6After serving the last wraps, they counted their earnings. Zerin wrote the total without rounding it up. Navid wiped the counter, and her father packed the unused flatbreads. The drawer rattled as Zerin closed it. Nothing about the truck had improved, and the refrigerator fund was below its target.

7Before they drove home, her father asked whether she wanted to erase the number in her notebook. There was room to leave it blank until tomorrow. “It’s what we earned,” Zerin said, keeping the total on the page. She tucked the notebook beside the register. Then she placed the sign where she could reach it the next evening.

Analyze and Summarize

Use the story to answer each question. For written responses, include important details without adding personal judgments.

Which theme is developed most fully in the story?

A. Customers appreciate good service more than generous portions.
B. Financial goals become easier when families divide their work fairly.
C. Acting honestly can mean accepting a loss rather than hiding it.
D. Careful planning can prevent difficult choices in a family business.

Which pair of details best supports the theme in question 1?

A. Zerin announces the limited supply, and the family remains below its earnings goal.
B. Zerin watches the office crowd, and her father warms the flatbreads.
C. Navid assembles the wraps, and he later wipes down the counter.
D. The drawer rattles during work, and Zerin stores her notebook near the register.

How does the notebook initially create pressure that helps develop the theme?

A. It makes Zerin worry that her father will stop letting her take orders.
B. It shows Zerin that her brother has miscounted the available supplies.
C. It makes Zerin focus on reaching a sales target despite the shortage.
D. It reminds Zerin that customers have already paid for six wraps.

Underline the sentence from paragraph 2 that most directly shows Zerin using the sales record to resist stopping work.

They were saving for a replacement refrigerator, and Zerin recorded each sale in a notebook.Every full page made the purchase seem closer.She had calculated how many wraps they needed to sell that evening to meet their weekly goal.When her father suggested closing early because supplies were low, she pointed to the unfinished column.

How does imagining the customers in paragraph 4 move the story toward its theme?

A. It leads Zerin to believe the family should stop selling wraps entirely.
B. It makes Zerin think the waiting customers will prefer a smaller meal.
C. It convinces Zerin that customers will return to complain about the price.
D. It shifts Zerin’s attention from meeting a target to what buyers would receive.

Which detail from paragraph 4 best supports the answer to question 5?

A. Zerin knows that four sales will leave the column unfinished.
B. Zerin pictures people discovering thin wraps after leaving the truck.
C. Zerin uses the blank side of the sign to write a new message.
D. Zerin glances down at the notebook before making her choice.

What does the final paragraph add to the theme beyond Zerin’s decision to sell only four wraps?

A. She accepts an accurate record of disappointment instead of concealing it.
B. She learns that her father no longer cares about the savings goal.
C. She decides that recording sales matters more than serving customers.
D. She expects tomorrow’s customers to make up the missing money.

Underline the sentence from paragraph 7 that most directly supports the answer to question 7.

Before they drove home, her father asked whether she wanted to erase the number in her notebook.There was room to leave it blank until tomorrow.“It’s what we earned,” Zerin said, keeping the total on the page.She tucked the notebook beside the register.Then she placed the sign where she could reach it the next evening.

Which is the best objective summary of the whole story?

A. While trying to reach a savings goal, Zerin suggests stretching four portions into six wraps. After considering the customers, she announces that only four full wraps remain. The family misses its goal, and she keeps the actual earnings in her notebook.
B. Zerin keeps a notebook while working in her family’s food truck. Her father warms flatbreads, Navid fills wraps, and customers arrive from nearby offices. After the family finishes serving, they clean the truck and prepare to drive home.
C. Zerin nearly makes a selfish choice when her family’s food truck runs low on filling. Fortunately, Navid gives her excellent advice. She finally behaves responsibly, proving that disappointing sales are better than her terrible original plan.
D. Zerin’s family needs a new refrigerator but runs low on chickpeas during its evening shift. Zerin persuades the family to divide the remaining filling among six wraps. They reach their goal, although she later worries about the customers.

10.

Which detail best supports including an unmet financial goal in a summary, rather than saying the family’s problem is completely solved?

A. Zerin’s father hands her four paper sleeves for the wraps.
B. The family packs unused flatbreads before driving home.
C. Zerin has calculated the number of sales needed that evening.
D. The refrigerator fund remains below its target after the last sale.

11.

A student has room for one more sentence in a brief summary. Which sentence adds an important part of the conflict rather than a minor background detail?

A. The evening customers come from office buildings near the truck.
B. The family is trying to earn enough money for a replacement refrigerator.
C. Zerin stands beside a handwritten sign while taking customers’ orders.
D. A loose metal drawer makes noise when the family moves around.

12.

Paragraph 6 says that nothing about the truck has improved. Explain why this unresolved material problem matters to the theme. Use a detail from earlier in the story and a detail from the ending.

The unchanged truck shows that honesty does not immediately solve the family’s money problem. Earlier, Zerin wants six sales to complete her notebook column, so she considers giving customers less filling than promised. After announcing the true limit, she loses two possible sales. At the end, she keeps the disappointing total on the page. Her choice matters because she accepts the cost of honesty without receiving an immediate reward.

13.

Write an objective summary of the story in three or four sentences. Include the family’s goal, the shortage, Zerin’s decision, and the outcome. Leave out personal opinions and minor details.

Zerin works in her family’s food truck and tracks sales toward a replacement refrigerator. When only four portions remain for six waiting customers, she suggests spreading the filling across six wraps. After thinking about what customers would receive, she announces that only four full wraps are available, and two customers leave. The family misses its savings target, but Zerin keeps the actual earnings recorded in her notebook.