SPM 2015

Based on the novel that have you studied, describe a life changing event that happens to a character
and what it taught you. Provide a close reference to the text.
Suggest one character in the novel you have read who you think is a good role model for
teenagers.
Briefly describe the character and give reasons for your choice with close reference to the text.

The novel that I read was ‘Dear Mr Kilmer’ by Anne Schraff. A good role model for
teenagers was Richard. Richard was 15 years old. He was tall, pale and slender. Richard was Mr
Knight’s son. He was Angie and Gus’s younger brother. He was Mr Kilmer’s penpal and Hannah’s
best friend. He loved poetry. There were three reasons why I chose Richard.

Firstly, he was kind. One day, Mrs Hansen asked her class to sign a card for the Schermers.
Someone vandalised the tavern owned by Hannah’s parents. They painted “Dirty Huns” all over the
walls. Mrs Hansen brought a card to express regret for what had happened. The troublemakers like
Abner, Harry, Blanche and Peggy refused to sign the card. They warned other classmates not to sign
the card. The boys were afraid Abner and Harry would hit them. The girls worry that popular girls
like Peggy and Blanche would not speak to them. However, Richard was the only student who
signed the sympathy card for Hannah Schermer. After school, Richard took the card from Mrs
Hansen. He wanted to give the card to Hannah. Hannah accepted the card reluctantly. Later, Hannah
apologised to Richard for being rude. This was the beginning of their friendship.

Secondly, Richard was brave. This was shown when Richard told his family he wrote poetry.
Before telling his secret to his family, Richard wrote a letter to Mr Kilmer. Mr Kilmer was
Richard’s penpal. Richard learnt about Mr Kilmer when Richard’s English teacher, Mrs Hansen read
a poem to the class. The title of the poem was “Trees” by Joyce Kilmer. In his letter, Richard told Mr
Kilmer that he wrote poems too. However, he kept this as a secret from everyone. Richard asked for
Mr Kilmer’s advice. He wanted to know whether he should tell his secret to everybody. One day,
Richard received a letter from Mr Kilmer. Mr Kilmer advised Richard to overcome his fear. Mr
Kilmer advised Richard to share his poetry with people around him. Nobody was interested when
Richard told his family about Mr Kilmer’s letter and his secret. Gus did not believe that Mr
Kilmer was famous. Pa did not believe that Richard wrote poetry. Richard asked whether his family
members wanted to read his poems. Nobody was interested. Richard was sad. Gus advised Richard
not tell anyone he wrote poetry. He wanted Richard to fit in with other people. Everyone called him a
Hun Lover after he signed the card for Hannah.

Thirdly, he was supportive. Hannah and Richard won the roles of Lady Liberty and the
Doughboy respectively because they wrote the best essays. Mrs Hansen asked the class to write an
essay as one of the activities for a patriotic programme which helped sell Liberty bonds. Many
students were angry when Hannah won the role. They regarded Hannah as an unpatriotic German
although she was an American citizen. Hannah told Richard that her essay started a little war in
Turtle lake. She did not want to cause any more problems. So she declined the role of Lady Liberty.
Richard wanted to support Hannah. Therefore, Richard declined his part as the Doughboy. His family,
his schoolmates and the Turtle Lake People criticized him for turning down his role. They called him
unpatriotic and a traitor. These criticisms never stopped Richard from standing up for what was right.

In conclusion, Richard was a good role model for teenagers because he had good
personalities.