Comprehension Questions – #3 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

J.K. Rowling

Grades 5-8; Genre - Fantasy; GRL V; AR pts: 18.0

When Harry and his best friends go back for their third year at Hogwarts, an escaped mass murderer is on the loose, and the sinister prison guards of Azkaban have been called in to guard the school. The plot contains profanity.

Comprehension Questions

Chapter 1

  1. Why was Harry up in the middle of the night doing his homework? He wasn’t supposed to have his school books p.3
  2. Who did he receive birthday presents from? Ron, Hermione and Hagrid p.7
  3. Why were the Weasley’s in Egypt? Their father had won a grand prize and they wanted to visit their son Bill in Egypt p.8
  4. Why was Harry finally like everyone else? He was glad it was his birthday p.15

Chapter 2

  1. Describe the man who escaped and was on the news? His name is Sirius Black, he has long black hair, he’s a prisoner, armed and dangerous, gaunt face p.17
  2. Why did harry hide his presents and send Hedwig away? To look as normal as possible while Aunt Marge was in town so his uncle would sign his Hogsmeade permission form p.21
  3. Why was having Aunt Marge around so difficult for Harry? She was very rude to him all the time p.23
  4. What did Harry do to Aunt Marge when she spoke badly of his father? Made her blow up like a balloon p.29

Chapter 3

  1. Why was Harry worried that he might go to Azkaban? He’s broken laws, like blowing up his aunt p.40
  2. How did Harry travel to London after leaving the Dursleys? the Knight Bus p.34
  3. What was Aunt Marge’s outcome? She was deflated and her memory was altered p.44
  4. Why did Harry think his conversation with the Minister of Magic was strange? He didn’t get punished for what he’d done, the minister didn’t usually deal with underage magic, the minister made everything right with Aunt Marge p.45

Chapter 4

  1. What item did Harry want to spend his gold on, but knew he couldn’t? the Firebolt broomstick p.51
  2. How did Harry feel about staying at the Leaky Cauldron? Why? He enjoyed it; it was great not having anyone telling him what to do or when to do it; he could do his homework in the sunshine; he could explore the shops on Diagon Alley p.49
  3. What did Hermione end up buying with her birthday money? A very large ginger colored cat p.60
  4. Why does Mr. Weasley and the Ministry of Magic think Black is after Harry? Black would say “He’s at Hogwarts” in his sleep p.66

Chapter 5

  1. What did Mr. Weasley tell Harry when he was about to get on the Hogwarts Express? About Sirius Black p.72
  2. What saved Harry and his friends from getting in a brawl with Malfoy on the train? The kids had a professor of Hogwarts in their train car p.80
  3. What happened to Harry when he saw the dementor on the train? He heard screaming, got cold, saw white fog and fainted p.83
  4. Why was Hagrid crying after Dumbledore announced he was a new teacher? Hagrid was so happy p.93

Chapter 6

  1. Describe what Divinations is going to teach? Fortune telling p.103
  2. What types of things did Professor Trelawney say that made the students tense and tremble? Things about their futures, mostly bad p.103
  3. How did Professor McGonagall feel about Professor Trelawney’s prediction for Harry’s future? That it’s not going to happen; Professor Trelawney’s not reliable p.109
  4. Why did Hagrid think he was going to get fired? Malfoy got hurt during his class by a hippogriff because he insulted it p.120

Chapter 7

  1. Why was Professor Snape so upset when Hermione helped Neville with his potion? He had previously told her not to help him p.128
  2. What does “practical” mean in this sentence on page 130, “today’s will be a practical lesson”? learning by application or personal experience p.130
  3. Why was Harry deflated after leaving Professor Lupin’s class? He didn’t get to fight the boggart and felt Professor Lupin didn’t have faith in him p.140
  4. How did the rest of the class feel about Lupin’s lesson? They were excited; felt it was the best lesson they’d ever had in that class p.140

Chapter 8

  1. Why were Hermione and Ron not speaking to each other? Crookshanks tried to catch Scabbers p.147
  2. What did Professor Trelawney predict that happened on October 16th? Lavender got a letter saying her rabbit died p.148
  3. Why didn’t Professor McGonagall give permission to Harry to go to Hogsmeade? His parent or guardian didn’t sign the permission form p.150
  4. What was a positive outcome from Harry staying home from Hogsmeade? He got to talk to Professor Lupin and clear up what had been bothering him p.155

Chapter 9

  1. Why are all the students sleeping in the Great Hall on Halloween night? For safety; The fat lady in Gryffindor’s password portrait was missing and she wouldn’t let in Black, so the teachers looking for Black p.162
  2. What was Professor McGonagall going to do so Harry could still practice Quidditch with his team? Have Madam Hooch oversee the training sessions p.168
  3. How did Ron get detention? He spoke out of turn and was disrespectful to Snape p.172
  4. Why did Harry miss the snitch during the Quidditch match? He saw dementors on the field and fainted again p.179

Chapter 10

  1. Why do the dementors affect Harry so badly? He has horrors in his past that others don’t p.187
  2. How did Harry find his way to Hogsmeade? A magical map Fred and George gave him that has secret passages to Hogsmeade p.195
  3. Why was Hermione upset that Harry came to Hogsmeade? She was worried about his safety and about getting caught p.198
  4. Why were Ron and Hermione lost for words after the professors and minister of magic left the Three Broomsticks? They had overheard how Sirius Black betrayed Harry’s parents to the Dark Lord p.210

Chapter 11

  1. What did Harry want to do with Black? Kill him; go after him p.215
  2. Why was Hagrid so upset? His hippogriff was under trial and could be executed p.219
  3. What was Harry’s most exciting Christmas present and who gave it to him? The Firebolt; he doesn’t know who gave it to him p.223
  4. Who did Hermione think gave the broom to Harry? Black p.232

Chapter 12

  1.  What happy memory finally worked when Harry was practicing with Professor Lupin? When he learned he was leaving the Dursleys for Hogwarts p.241
  2. Who did Professor Lupin attend Hogwarts with as a child? Harry’s mom and dad p.243
  3. Why would Professor Lupin be suspicious of Harry when he gave him butterbeer? He wondered how Harry would get some when it’s only found in Hogsmeade, and he’s not supposed to go there p.246
  4. Did Mrs. McGonagall find any curses on the Firebolt? No p.248

Chapter 13

  1. What did Harry notice about Ravenclaw’s seeker before the Quidditch match? She’s really pretty p.259
  2. What did Harry do when he saw the three dementors below him? He pulled out his wand and cast the spell he’d been practicing with Professor Lupin p.262
  3. Why did Ron cry out in the night? He awoke to Black looming over him with a knife p.266
  4. Where did Black get Gryffindor’s passwords? Neville wrote them down and lost them p.268

Chapter 14

  1. What did Hagrid summon Ron and Harry? He wanted to tell them that Hermione is lonely and overwhelmed from school and needs a friend p.274
  2. Why did Harry have to race back to the castle from Hogsmeade? Draco and his friends saw him and were going to tell on him p.281
  3. What did Professor Lupin do for Harry in Snape’s office? Covered for him so he wouldn’t get in trouble p.290
  4. Why wasn’t Lupin going to cover for Harry again? Harry’s gambling his parents’ sacrifice for a bag of tricks and he’s not going to support him if he’s going to be foolish p.290

Chapter 15

  1. Why did Hermione punch Draco? He was mocking Hagrid p.293
  2. Why was the Gryffindor house so anxious for the Quidditch game? They knew they had to win by a certain amount to win the Cup p.301
  3. During the Quidditch match, what did Harry do to distract Draco from seeing the snitch? He knew Draco was following him, so he led him away from it p.308
  4. Who won the Quidditch Cup? Gryffindor p.313

Chapter 16

  1. Why was Cornelius Fudge at Hogwarts? Buckbeak’s appeal and execution and to check on the Black situation p.320
  2. What did Harry say he saw during his final in Divinations? A hippogriff flying away p.323
  3. What happened to Professor Trelawney during Harry’s final? She was possessed and spoke of a servant of the Dark Lord breaking free and joining the Dark Lord that night p.324
  4. Why didn’t Hagrid want the kids present during the execution? He didn’t want them to see it and he didn’t want them to get caught p.328

Chapter 17

  1. Where did the dog take Ron? Into the secret tunnel under the Whomping Willow p.335
  2. Where did the tunnel lead? Hogsmeade in the Shrieking Shack p.337
  3. What can Professor Lupin turn into? A werewolf p.345
  4. Who is Scabbers? Peter Pettigrew p.348

Chapter 18

  1. What were the precautions Dumbledore took so Professor Lupin could attend Hogwarts as a child? He had the Whomping Willow planted, the secret tunnel made, the Shrieking Shack made with the tunnel leading to it; all so Lupin could go there during the full moon p.353
  2. What did Lupin’s friends learn and why? How to shape shift; to help Lupin when he turned into a werewolf p.354
  3. Why doesn’t Snape trust Lupin? He knows what he is and thinks he was in on the joke that almost had him killed as a student at Hogwarts p.357
  4. How did Snape get Harry’s invisibility cloak? Harry and Hermione had thrown it off at the willow tree so they could chase Ron and he saw it when he followed them p.357

Chapter 19

  1. How did Lupin and Black prove Peter Pettigrew was Scabbers? They used a spell that turned him back into a human p.366
  2. How did Black survive and escape Azkaban? He knew he was innocent and would change into a dog so the dementors wouldn’t affect him as much; he escaped by turning into a dog and easily slipping passed the guards when they opened his p.371
  3. Why did Black expect Peter to have died rather than betray his friends? Because they would have died for him p.375
  4. Why did it offend Ron to know that Scabbers really was Peter Pettigrew? Peter had used Ron’s family to hear word of the Dark Lord and he betrayed Harry and his parents p.377

Chapter 20

  1. How did Harry feel about the prospect of living with Sirius instead of the Dursleys? He was thrilled and couldn’t wait p.379
  2. How did Pettigrew get away as the group headed to the castle? The full moon came out from behind the clouds, Lupin changed into a werewolf and Pettigrew turned back into a rat and scampered away p.381
  3. What saved Harry, Hermione and Black from the dementors? Someone else had cast the Expecto Patronum spell and protected them p.385

Chapter 21

  1. Why is Sirius going to be receiving the dementors Kiss? Snape has convinced Fudge that Sirius is guilty and that the children are delusional p.391
  2. What can the hourglass do on Hermione’s chain? time travel p.395
  3. What innocent lives did Harry and Hermione save? Buckbeak, Sirius Black, and their own p.396
  4. Who really saved Harry and his friends? Harry did when he went back in time p.411

Chapter 22

  1. Why was Fudge going to remove the dementors from Hogwarts? They almost killed Harry p.421
  2. Why did Lupin need to resign? Parents wouldn’t stand for a werewolf teaching their children; he knows he could have hurt Harry and his friends p.423
  3. Why was Harry so upset he stopped Black and Lupin from killing Pettigrew? He’s the Dark Lord’s servant and now the Dark Lord will come back again p.426
  4. What did Sirius give Harry permission to do the next year? Go to Hogsmeade p.433