Judy Moody Gets Famous! Part 2 Study Guide

What Happens in Part 2

Judy’s first big idea is simple: if spelling made Jessica Finch famous, then Judy will get famous by becoming an even better speller! Full of determination, she sets out to memorize long, tricky words, drilling them over and over. But it is not long before Judy discovers something disappointing: spelling is genuinely hard, and it is simply not her special talent. The tricky words tangle her up, and no matter how much effort she pours in, she keeps making mistakes. Judy grows more and more frustrated. Her very first fame scheme has flopped! But if there is one thing Judy Moody is not, it is a quitter. If spelling will not make her famous, she will simply have to think of something else — something bigger, bolder, and much more Judy Moody.

What We Will Learn

Focus	What It Means
Motivation & Goal	Judy’s plan to get famous by spelling
Attempt and Fail	The first scheme that flops
Theme (Finding Your Gift)	Discovering what you are — and aren’t — good at

Chapter Summary

Pages	Key Events
pp. 16–30	Judy decides to get famous by becoming a champion speller like Jessica; she drills tricky words but finds spelling genuinely hard and not her talent, growing frustrated — her first fame scheme flops, but she refuses to quit

💭 Before You Read · Warm-Up (not scored)

There are no wrong answers here — just think, guess, and talk:

Judy tries to be famous by copying exactly what Jessica did. Why might copying someone else’s path not work for you?
Judy discovers spelling is not her special talent. How do people figure out what they ARE good at?
Predict: spelling didn’t work. What kind of bigger, bolder scheme might Judy dream up next?

Copyright Notice

This is an independent study guide created by Garden Heights Academy to support reading comprehension and literary analysis. It contains original analysis questions and does not reproduce any text from the novel. Judy Moody Gets Famous! is a work by Megan McDonald. This guide is not affiliated with, authorized by, or endorsed by the author or any associated rights holder.

Part 1

Vocabulary

Study 10 key words from pages 16–30, then answer each question.

🧠Knowledge Bank · Words of Trying Hard

Education History · Spelling BeesA spelling bee is a contest in which students spell hard words aloud, letter by letter; miss one and you are out. The biggest is the Scripps National Spelling Bee, held every year since 1925. English is unusually tricky to spell because it has borrowed words from Latin, Greek, French, and dozens of other languages, so one sound can be written many different ways. That is why champion spellers train for months, studying word roots, prefixes, and patterns instead of memorizing lists. Real skill almost always comes from that kind of patient work. Winning a bee and landing in the local paper is an old, classic form of small-town fame.

A young girl stands at a microphone on a stage wearing a numbered contestant card, one hand raised as she spells a word aloud to the judges — Photograph taken in February 2020 at the grand finale of the Ghana Spelling Bee, of a young speller at the microphone with her contestant number pinned on. The *Knowledge Bank* explains that a spelling bee is a contest in which students spell hard words aloud, letter by letter, and that missing one puts a speller out. Look at the number card and the single microphone: everyone hears every letter, which is what makes the contest so nerve-racking. This is a real bee in Ghana, not the one in the book.
Grand finale of the 2020 Ghana Spelling Bee, February 2020; photograph by the U.S. Embassy in Ghana. Source: Wikimedia Commons, public domain.

determinationn.p.17

Firmness in sticking to a goal

“With great determination, Judy began to study.”

memorizev.p.18

To learn something so you can recall it exactly

“She tried to memorize a huge list of words.”

effortn.p.20

Hard work put into doing something

“No amount of effort seemed to help her spell.”

frustratedadj.p.22

Upset because you cannot do what you are trying to do

“Judy grew frustrated with the tricky words.”

practicen.p.19

Doing something again and again to get better

“Spelling well takes months of practice.”

talentn.p.23

A natural ability to do something well

“Spelling was simply not Judy’s talent.”

strugglev.p.21

To try hard against difficulty

“She struggled with the long, tangled words.”

flopn.p.24

A complete failure

“Her spelling plan was a total flop.”

quitv.p.25

To stop trying; to give up

“Judy was not about to quit.”

difficultadj.p.20

Hard to do or understand

“The spelling words were surprisingly difficult.”

🧠Knowledge Bank question

1According to the Knowledge Bank, the biggest spelling bee has been held every year since ___.Pages 16–30

2‘Effort’ is —Pages 16–30

3Fill in each blank with the correct word.Pages 16–30

Word choices:determinationfrustratedcalmlazy- some words will not be used

Judy studies with fierce

When she keeps failing, she feels .

4To ‘practice’ is to —Pages 16–30

5To be ‘eager’ is to be keen and excited.Pages 16–30

6A ‘talent’ is —Pages 16–30

7Fill in each blank with the correct word.Pages 16–30

Word choices:strugglequitwinrest- some words will not be used

Judy has to ___ with the hard words

But she refuses to ___ and give up .

8To ‘flop’ is to —Pages 16–30

9Something ‘difficult’ is —Pages 16–30

10To ‘succeed’ is to fail completely.Pages 16–30

Part 2

Comprehension

How well do you understand pages 16–30?

🧠Knowledge Bank · The Try-and-Fail Pattern

Reading Skill · Cause & EffectStories move because one thing makes another happen; that is cause and effect. The cause is why something occurs, and the effect is what follows. Real news travels the same way: a reporter hears a small item, a paper prints it, then people repeat it on screens until the story has grown far bigger than it started. Each retelling is an effect that becomes the next cause, which is exactly why rumors swell. Judy’s plans behave like that too — one wish leads to a scheme, the scheme leads to a mess, the mess leads to another scheme. Tracing the chain is how a reader learns to predict.

🧠Knowledge Bank question

1The Knowledge Bank says news travels the same way a story does, because ___.Pages 16–30

2How does Judy try to become a great speller?Pages 16–30

3What does Judy discover about spelling?Pages 16–30

4Judy grows frustrated as she keeps making mistakes.Pages 16–30

5Write the numbers 1–5 in the boxes to show the correct order across Part 2. Number 1 = what happens first.Pages 16–30

Judy grows frustrated as she keeps making mistakes.
Judy decides to become a spelling champion.
Judy tries to memorize the whole dictionary.
Judy’s first plan to get famous flops.
Judy discovers English spelling is very hard.

6Judy’s first fame scheme flops.Pages 16–30

7How does Judy respond to this failure?Pages 16–30

8What lesson does Judy’s struggle show?Pages 16–30

9Judy turns out to be a natural speller.Pages 16–30

10What does this chapter show about Judy?Pages 16–30

Part 3

Literary Elements

Understanding HOW and WHY Megan McDonald tells the story across pages 16–30.

🧠Knowledge Bank · McDonald’s Word-Craft: Painting with Idioms

Language · Figurative-Language SpotlightAn idiom is a phrase that does not mean exactly what the words say. If someone is ‘on cloud nine,’ they are not really on a cloud — they are very happy. Megan McDonald sprinkles idioms and playful sayings through the book to make it fun and full of life. These bits of figurative language paint pictures in your mind. When you meet a phrase that sounds odd, stop and ask what feeling it is really showing. Idioms are like little riddles, and figuring them out makes you a stronger, sharper reader.

Visual AidA phrase that does not mean what it says

Diagram for the Knowledge Bank on idioms. Card 1 is what the words literally say, card 2 is what the phrase actually means, and card 3 is the idiom itself — the Knowledge Bank’s own example of being on cloud nine. Notice that nothing joins the two halves except habit: that is exactly why an idiom has to be learned whole.

How an idiom works, as set out in the Knowledge Bank. Drawn for Garden Heights Academy.

📚 Literary Devices in This Part · definitions & examples

A character’s goal is what they want (fame); their motivation is why (envy of Jessica). A story often shows the hero attempt and fail before they succeed, which builds both comedy and suspense. Figurative language — idioms like ‘green with envy’ — paints feelings vividly instead of stating them plainly.

🧠Knowledge Bank question

1According to the Knowledge Bank, an idiom is a phrase that ___.Pages 16–30

2Motivation is the reason a character acts.Pages 16–30

3Fill in each blank with the correct word.Pages 16–30

Word choices:motivationplotsuspensesetting- some words will not be used

Judy’s wish for fame, which drives her, is her

The tense wait to see if her plan works builds .

4The tense feeling as we wait to see if Judy succeeds is —Pages 16–30

5Suspense is the tense feeling of not knowing what will happen.Pages 16–30

6Fill in each blank with the correct word.Pages 16–30

Word choices:suspensemotivationplotmood- some words will not be used

The reason a character acts is their

The tense not-knowing as we wait builds .

7Judy’s goal of fame is the reason she acts — her —Pages 16–30

8The chain of Judy’s schemes forms the story’s —Pages 16–30

9Fill in each blank with the correct word.Pages 16–30

Word choices:motivationsuspenseplotsetting- some words will not be used

The reason Judy acts is her

The tense wait to see if she wins builds .

10The suspense of Judy’s spelling plan mainly makes readers feel —Pages 16–30

Part 4

Think Deeper

Four deeper challenges — no single-word recall. Read, weigh the evidence, and reason it through.

🧠Knowledge Bank · Failing Forward

Psychology · ResilienceNobody gets everything right the first time. When Judy’s plans flop, she feels foolish, but each flop teaches her something — that is failing forward, using a mistake as a step toward doing better. Inventors, doctors, and athletes stumble many times before they succeed. There is a second lesson hiding here, though. Sometimes you practice patiently and still find that a particular contest is not your gift, and that is perfectly fine, because everyone is good at different things. The wise move is to keep trying, notice what you truly love, and aim your effort there. Both halves of that lesson add up to real persistence.

1Claim: “Judy tries to copy Jessica’s path to fame instead of finding her own.” — choose the two details that best prove it.Claim & Evidence

2Shows Judy copying Jessica’s path, or just a detail of the plan? Tap each item to sort it — tap again to switch sides. You can keep tapping to change your answer.Sort into two

◄ Copying Jessica’s pathJust a detail ►

3Match each cause to its result. For each cause, pick its result.Cause & Effect

Spelling made Jessica famous→

Judy wants to out-spell Jessica→

She drills them over and over→

The plan is just copying Jessica→

🧠Knowledge Bank question

4Fill both blanks to complete the reasoning.Build the Argument

The Knowledge Bank calls it failing forward when a person , which is how .

Part 5

Standardized Test

Key Details & Inference — SAT & TOEFL-style practice

Why English Spelling Is So Hard

A spelling bee is a contest as old as the classroom, in which spellers take turns spelling words aloud, and anyone who makes a mistake is out, until a single champion remains. It sounds simple, but spelling English well is famously difficult, and the reason is history. English has borrowed words from dozens of other languages — Latin, Greek, French, and many more — and each often kept its original spelling, so the same sound can be written many different ways. That is why enough, through and though all look alike but sound different. To master such a tangle, champion spellers do not simply memorize long lists; they practice for months, learning the roots and patterns that reveal how a word is likely built. When they meet an unfamiliar word, they can ask for its language of origin and reason out the spelling. Winning a bee, then, is less about luck and more about patient preparation.

Original passage written for Garden Heights — not a quotation from the novel.

1In a spelling bee, a speller is “out” when they —TOEFL · Factual Information

2In the passage, something difficult is ___.SAT · Words in Context

3Why is English spelling so hard?TOEFL · Factual Information

4The passage suggests English spelling is hard because its words come from —SAT · Inference

5The passage mainly presents winning a spelling bee as a result of —SAT · Rhetorical Purpose

6In the passage, to memorize is to ___.SAT · Words in Context

7What can a speller ask about an unfamiliar word to help?SAT · Inference

8In the passage, to practice is to ___.SAT · Words in Context

9This TOEFL task lists six sentences; choose the THREE that best capture the passage’s main ideas. The other three do not belong — they state minor details or ideas the passage does not present.TOEFL · Prose Summary

10This passage helps us understand Judy because she —TOEFL · Rhetorical Purpose

Part 6 · Optional

Creative Writing

A bonus challenge to practice your English. Take your time and have fun with it.

About This Section

This writing task is optional and is not part of your auto-graded score. The feedback below checks only the basics — length, spelling, and grammar — not whether your ideas are right or wrong. It is meant for classroom discussion and creative practice, so feel free to use your imagination!

Writing Task — Part 2 “Something I’m Good At”

Judy learns spelling is not her talent — but everyone is good at something. Write about a talent or skill YOU have, or one you would love to build. How did you discover it, or how would you practice to get better? Write at least 40 words.

You can start with: “One thing I am good at (or want to get good at) is…”

0 / 40 words minimum

🗣 Teach It · Just for Fun (optional)

No right or wrong — close the screen and tell someone nearby about Judy’s first fame plan and why it flopped. Can’t find anyone? Tell yourself out loud. The moment you teach it, you truly understand it.

Part 2 Complete!

You finished pages 16–30 of Judy Moody Gets Famous!.

Here are your auto-graded results:

-

points out of 100

Teach it to someone

The best last step is to teach it. In your own words, explain what happened — retell a favorite scene, teach a character’s big choice, or sum up the main idea for a parent, friend, or classmate. When you can teach it clearly, you truly own it.

Move on to Part 3 →

Independent study guide by Garden Heights Academy. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the author or any rights holders. Contains original analysis only; no text from the novel is reproduced.