The Circuit

by

Francisco Jiménez

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Miss Scalapino Character Analysis

Miss Scalapino is Francisco’s first-grade teacher. Francisco doesn’t speak English when he attends school as a first grader, so he is completely perplexed in her class since he doesn’t understand a word of what Miss Scalapino says. When she catches him talking in Spanish to a classmate, she emphatically tells him, “NO!” This makes Francisco feel even more estranged from his classmates and he dreams of escaping from school. Though Miss Scalapino’s methods are questionable, she seems to mean well and gives Francisco a prize for his art. Francisco is very proud of this, and it helps him feel like he can succeed in school after all.

Miss Scalapino Quotes in The Circuit

The The Circuit quotes below are all either spoken by Miss Scalapino or refer to Miss Scalapino. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Change and Instability Theme Icon
).
Inside Out Quotes

But when I spoke to Arthur in Spanish and Miss Scalapino heard me, she said “NO!” with body and soul. Her head turned left and right a hundred times a second and her index finger moved from side to side as fast as a windshield wiper on a rainy day. “English, English,” she repeated. Arthur avoided me whenever she was around.

Related Characters: Francisco (speaker), Miss Scalapino (speaker), Arthur
Page Number: 19-20
Explanation and Analysis:

I did not understand what she said, but I heard her say my name as she held up a blue ribbon. She then picked up my drawing of the butterfly […] and held it up for everyone to see. She walked up to me and handed me the drawing and the silk blue ribbon that had a number one printed on it in gold. I knew then I had received first prize for my drawing. I was so proud I felt like bursting out of my skin. […]

That afternoon, during our free period, I went over to check on the caterpillar. I turned the jar around, trying to see the cocoon. It was beginning to crack open.

Related Characters: Francisco (speaker), Miss Scalapino
Related Symbols: Caterpillars and Butterflies
Page Number: 24-25
Explanation and Analysis:
The Circuit Quotes

The rest of the month I spent my lunch hours working on English with Mr. Lema, my best friend at school.

One Friday during lunch hour Mr. Lema asked me to take a walk with him to the music room. “Do you like music?” he asked me as we entered the building. “Yes, I like corridos,” I answered. He then picked up a trumpet, blew on it, and handed it to me. The sound gave me goose bumps. […] I had heard it in many corridos. “How would you like to learn how to play it?” he asked. He must have read my face because before I could answer, he added: “I’ll teach you how to play it during our lunch hours.”

That day I could hardly wait to tell Papa and Mama the great news […] but when I opened the door to our shack, I saw that everything we owned was neatly packed in cardboard boxes.

Related Characters: Francisco (speaker), Mr. Lema (speaker), Papá, Mamá, Miss Scalapino
Page Number: 83
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Circuit LitChart as a printable PDF.
The Circuit PDF

Miss Scalapino Quotes in The Circuit

The The Circuit quotes below are all either spoken by Miss Scalapino or refer to Miss Scalapino. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Change and Instability Theme Icon
).
Inside Out Quotes

But when I spoke to Arthur in Spanish and Miss Scalapino heard me, she said “NO!” with body and soul. Her head turned left and right a hundred times a second and her index finger moved from side to side as fast as a windshield wiper on a rainy day. “English, English,” she repeated. Arthur avoided me whenever she was around.

Related Characters: Francisco (speaker), Miss Scalapino (speaker), Arthur
Page Number: 19-20
Explanation and Analysis:

I did not understand what she said, but I heard her say my name as she held up a blue ribbon. She then picked up my drawing of the butterfly […] and held it up for everyone to see. She walked up to me and handed me the drawing and the silk blue ribbon that had a number one printed on it in gold. I knew then I had received first prize for my drawing. I was so proud I felt like bursting out of my skin. […]

That afternoon, during our free period, I went over to check on the caterpillar. I turned the jar around, trying to see the cocoon. It was beginning to crack open.

Related Characters: Francisco (speaker), Miss Scalapino
Related Symbols: Caterpillars and Butterflies
Page Number: 24-25
Explanation and Analysis:
The Circuit Quotes

The rest of the month I spent my lunch hours working on English with Mr. Lema, my best friend at school.

One Friday during lunch hour Mr. Lema asked me to take a walk with him to the music room. “Do you like music?” he asked me as we entered the building. “Yes, I like corridos,” I answered. He then picked up a trumpet, blew on it, and handed it to me. The sound gave me goose bumps. […] I had heard it in many corridos. “How would you like to learn how to play it?” he asked. He must have read my face because before I could answer, he added: “I’ll teach you how to play it during our lunch hours.”

That day I could hardly wait to tell Papa and Mama the great news […] but when I opened the door to our shack, I saw that everything we owned was neatly packed in cardboard boxes.

Related Characters: Francisco (speaker), Mr. Lema (speaker), Papá, Mamá, Miss Scalapino
Page Number: 83
Explanation and Analysis: