Non-fiction: Growing Up In Darfur
Growing Up In Darfur
Sudanese Children Struggle to Survive
Sumaya’s life used to be just like other children’s lives. She went to school,
played with friends, and did chores.
But a couple of years ago, everything changed. Armed fighters attacked her
village in Darfur, a region of Sudan, killing everyone in sight. Sumaya and
her family had to run for their lives.
"We ran and ran until I felt that I couldn’t go on any longer," Sumaya, now
15, recalls.
After walking about 100 miles, they arrived at Kalma Camp, a place for
refugees in Darfur. Refugees are people who flee their homes because of
war or a natural disaster.
The camp is home to more than 70,000 refugees. As of 2011, approximately
2.6 million people have abandoned their homes to escape the fierce fighting
over Darfur’s scarce farmable land. Hundreds of thousands of those refugees
are children, according to the United Nations.
The refugees arrive at places like Kalma Camp with little more than the
clothes on their backs. Food and water are scarce, and the outlying violence
often spills into the camps. The situation is now the "world’s worst
humanitarian crisis," U.N. officials say.
"Tens, even hundreds, of thousands of people...need water, medical care,
and food," says Pauline Horrill of Doctors Without Borders, an aid group.
Everyday Struggle
Conditions in the refugee camps are bleak. Tents and mud huts are
clustered as far as the eye can see. The scorching sun beats down on the
desert landscape, pushing the temperature as high as 122 degrees
Fahrenheit.
Stephen Winter, a U.S. doctor, helped treat some of the sickest refugees at
a makeshift clinic. "Many of the people ... have to sleep on the ground," he
wrote in his journal. "They share the ground with biting insects and the
occasional snake."
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Non-fiction: Growing Up In Darfur
The refugees receive food rations twice a month. Sumaya uses the wheat,
beans, oil, salt, and powdered food mixture that her family receives to make
a brown, watery soup for her younger brothers and sisters.
"The food here is not nutritious," she told a U.N. aid worker. "In our village,
we used to eat lots of vegetables and fruits, but we can’t grow anything
here."
Hope for the Future
One bright spot in Sumaya’s life is school. She goes to English classes in the
camp. She also volunteers at a center where refugee children can play, draw
pictures, and talk about what they’ve been through.
The centers are important, explains Adolphe Mbaikouma, a UNICEF worker.
"Sharing laughter helps release some bad memories," Mbaikouma says.
However, aid workers fear that more bad memories may be inevitable.
Fighters have begun to attack refugee camps. The United Nations has cut
the number of aid workers in the area because of the danger.
Still, Sumaya stays positive by thinking about good things. She is thankful
that her parents and brothers and sisters are alive. She daydreams about
her family’s farm and the day she will be able to return home.
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®
© 2012 ReadWorks , Inc. All rights reserved.
Article: Copyright © 2006 Weekly Reader Corporation. All rights reserved.
Weekly Reader is a registered trademark of Weekly Reader Corporation.
Used by permission.
Questions: Growing Up in Darfur
Name:
____
Date: __________________
1. According to the passage, approximately how many people in Darfur have abandoned
their homes since 2011?
A
B
C
D
26 million
70,000
2.6 billion
2.6 million
2. According to the passage, what caused the fighting to start in Darfur?
A
B
C
D
scarce farmland
diamonds and other valuable gems
scarce number of houses
not enough schools for children
3. Read this sentence: “The refugees arrive at places like Kalma Camp with little more
than the clothes on their backs.” Based on the passage, why do people most likely arrive
at Kalma Camp with very little?
A
B
C
D
They
They
They
They
did not have time to take anything when the villages were attacked.
are not allowed by the camps to bring anything from the villages.
did not want to bring anything from the villages.
don’t need to bring anything to the camps.
4. Read the following sentence and answer the question below: “Conditions in the
refugee camps are bleak.”
As used in this sentence, bleak means
A
B
C
D
cheerful
gloomy
positive
clean
5. What was likely the author’s main reason for writing this passage?
A
B
C
D
to
to
to
to
show the kind of education children in Darfur receive
explain how people can help refugees in Darfur
show the conditions of refugee camps in Darfur
tell the story of how Sumaya and her family escaped
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Questions: Growing Up in Darfur
6. According to the organization Doctors Without Borders, what do the refugees in
Darfur need?
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
7. Based on the passage, why is important for the refugee camps to help children cope
with their experiences?
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
8. The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes
the sentence.
Sumaya stays positive by thinking about good things, even _________ conditions in the
refugee camps have gotten worse.
A
B
C
D
though
but
because
before
9. Answer the following questions based on the sentence below.
Sumaya and her family had to leave their village in Darfur because fighters attacked it.
Who? Sumaya and her family
(did) What? _____________________________________________________________
Where? ________________________________________________________________
Why? __________________________________________________________________
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Questions: Growing Up in Darfur
10. Read the vocabulary word and definition below and complete questions 10a, 10b,
and 11.
Vocabulary Word: scarce (scarce): not enough of something for the number of people
that need it; there is very little of something.
10a. Read the sentences below and underline the word scarce.
Medical supplies are scarce in the refugee camps, which is dangerous for the
many people who are getting sick.
1.
My class collected pencils and paper to send to Darfur because school supplies
are scarce there.
2.
3.
Water is scarce in the desert, so people often have to walk many miles to get it.
To save scarce resources like water, turn off the faucet while you are brushing
your teeth so you don’t waste it.
4.
Food is scarce in the refugee camps, so it is given out in small rations to each
family.
5.
10b. Which image shows an area scarce in vegetation?
11. What are some resources that were scarce in the refugee camps in Darfur?
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
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Teacher Guide & Answers: Growing Up in Darfur
Teacher Guide & Answers
Passage Reading Level: Lexile 860
Featured Text Structure: Cause/Effect – the writer presents the reason an event happened and its
results
Passage Summary: This passage describes the effect of war on refugees in Darfur, particularly focusing
on the challenges Sudanese children have faced because of the fighting. The passage also describes bleak
conditions of refugee camps like Kalma Camp that need water, food, and medical supplies.
1. According to the passage, approximately how many people in Darfur have abandoned their homes since
2011?
A
B
C
D
26 million
70,000
2.6 billion
2.6 million
2. According to the passage, what caused the fighting to start in Darfur?
A
B
C
D
scarce farmland
diamonds and other valuable gems
scarce number of houses
not enough schools for children
3. Read this sentence: “The refugees arrive at places like Kalma Camp with little more than the clothes on
their backs.” Based on the passage, why do people most likely arrive at Kalma Camp with very little?
A
B
C
D
They did not have time to take anything when the villages were attacked.
They are not allowed by the camps to bring anything from the villages.
They did not want to bring anything from the villages.
They don’t need to bring anything to the camps.
4. Read the following sentence and answer the question below: “Conditions in the refugee camps are
bleak.”
As used in this sentence, bleak means
A
B
C
D
cheerful
gloomy
positive
clean
5. What was likely the author’s main reason for writing this passage?
A
B
C
D
to show the kind of education children in Darfur receive
to explain how people can help refugees in Darfur
to show the conditions of refugee camps in Darfur
to tell the story of how Sumaya and her family escaped
6. According to the organization Doctors Without Borders, what do the refugees in Darfur need?
Suggested answer: According to Doctors without Borders, the refugees need water, medical care, and
food. [paragraph 7]
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Teacher Guide & Answers: Growing Up in Darfur
7. Based on the passage, why is it important for the refugee camps to help children cope with their
experiences?
Suggested answer: It is important for the camps to help children cope with their experiences because
these children have been through many challenging experiences. For example, Sumaya had to witness the
killing of many of the people in her village. She had to leave her home behind and walk about 100 miles to
get to the nearest refugee camp. [See paragraphs 2, 4, & 12]
8. The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence.
Sumaya stays positive by thinking about good things, even _________ conditions in the refugee camps
have gotten worse.
A
B
C
D
though
but
because
before
9. Answer the following questions based on the sentence below.
Sumaya and her family had to leave their village in Darfur because fighters attacked it.
Who? Sumaya and her family
(did) what? had to leave their village
Where? in Darfur
Why? because fighters attacked it
10. ReadWorks recommends that you teach this vocabulary word to the whole class out loud using the
four steps listed below.
Vocabulary Word: scarce
Step 1: Introduce the word
a. Teacher writes the word on the board and divides it into syllables: (scarce)
b. Teacher says: “This word is scarce. What is the word?” [All students reply together out loud:
“scarce.”]
Step 2: Provide a child-friendly definition
a. Teacher says: “Scarce means when there is not enough of something for the number of people that
need it, or there is very little of something.”
b. Teacher says: “The passage tells us that people started fighting over scarce farmland. That means
that there is very little farmland to grow food on. If there’s not enough land, people start to fight
over it. Also, in the refugee camps, food and water are scarce resources. Food and water are
important for survival, so it is dangerous that there isn’t enough food and water for everyone.”
c. Teacher says: “What is the word?” [All students reply together out loud: “scarce.”]
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Teacher Guide & Answers: Growing Up in Darfur
Step 3: Practice the word
Teacher provides examples and additional opportunities to repeat the word. Read the 1st sentence out loud
to your students. Begin reading it again and when you come to the vocabulary word prompt students to
say the vocabulary word out loud. Then, finish reading the sentence out loud to your students.
10a.
1.
Medical supplies are scarce in the refugee camps, which is dangerous for the many people who
are getting sick.
2.
My class collected pencils and paper to send to Darfur because school supplies are scarce there.
3.
Water is scarce in the desert, so people often have to walk many miles to get it.
To save scarce resources like water, turn off the faucet while you are brushing your teeth so you
don’t waste it.
4.
5.
Food is scarce in the refugee camps, so it is given out in small rations to each family.
10b. Which image shows an area scarce in vegetation?
11. What are some resources that were scarce in the refugee camps in Darfur?
Suggested answer: In the refugee camps, water, food and medical supplies were scarce.
Suggested Additional Vocabulary: bleak, scorching, clustered, nutritious, inevitable, bleak
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