About
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.
Read one section at a time, then discuss the questions to review understanding. These questions are a starting place for conversation, not a complete test of the chapter.
Chapter 1
Comprehension questions
Why was Harry up in the middle of the night doing his homework?
Page 3 — He wasn’t supposed to have his school books
3
Who did he receive birthday presents from?
Page 7 — Ron, Hermione and Hagrid
7
Why were the Weasley’s in Egypt?
Page 8 — Their father had won a grand prize and they wanted to visit their son Bill in Egypt
8
Why was Harry finally like everyone else?
Page 15 — He was glad it was his birthday
15
Chapter 2
Comprehension questions
Describe the man who escaped and was on the news?
Page 17 — His name is Sirius Black, he has long black hair, he’s a prisoner, armed and dangerous, gaunt face
17
Why did harry hide his presents and send Hedwig away?
Page 21 — To look as normal as possible while Aunt Marge was in town so his uncle would sign his Hogsmeade permission form
21
Why was having Aunt Marge around so difficult for Harry?
Page 23 — She was very rude to him all the time
23
What did Harry do to Aunt Marge when she spoke badly of his father?
Page 29 — Made her blow up like a balloon
29
Chapter 3
Comprehension questions
Why was Harry worried that he might go to Azkaban?
Page 40 — He’s broken laws, like blowing up his aunt
40
How did Harry travel to London after leaving the Dursleys?
Page 34 — the Knight Bus
34
What was Aunt Marge’s outcome?
Page 44 — She was deflated and her memory was altered
44
Why did Harry think his conversation with the Minister of Magic was strange?
Page 45 — 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
45
Chapter 4
Comprehension questions
What item did Harry want to spend his gold on, but knew he couldn’t?
Page 51 — the Firebolt broomstick
51
How did Harry feel about staying at the Leaky Cauldron? Why?
Page 49 — 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
49
What did Hermione end up buying with her birthday money?
Page 60 — A very large ginger colored cat
60
Why does Mr. Weasley and the Ministry of Magic think Black is after Harry?
Page 66 — Black would say “He’s at Hogwarts” in his sleep
66
Chapter 5
Comprehension questions
What did Mr. Weasley tell Harry when he was about to get on the Hogwarts Express?
Page 72 — About Sirius Black
72
What saved Harry and his friends from getting in a brawl with Malfoy on the train?
Page 80 — The kids had a professor of Hogwarts in their train car
80
What happened to Harry when he saw the dementor on the train?
Page 83 — He heard screaming, got cold, saw white fog and fainted
83
Why was Hagrid crying after Dumbledore announced he was a new teacher?
Page 93 — Hagrid was so happy
93
Chapter 6
Comprehension questions
Describe what Divinations is going to teach?
Page 103 — Fortune telling
103
What types of things did Professor Trelawney say that made the students tense and tremble?
Page 103 — Things about their futures, mostly bad
103
How did Professor McGonagall feel about Professor Trelawney’s prediction for Harry’s future?
Page 109 — That it’s not going to happen; Professor Trelawney’s not reliable
109
Why did Hagrid think he was going to get fired?
Page 120 — Malfoy got hurt during his class by a hippogriff because he insulted it
120
Chapter 7
Comprehension questions
Why was Professor Snape so upset when Hermione helped Neville with his potion?
Page 128 — He had previously told her not to help him
128
What does “practical” mean in this sentence on page 130, “today’s will be a practical lesson”?
Page 130 — learning by application or personal experience
130
Why was Harry deflated after leaving Professor Lupin’s class?
Page 140 — He didn’t get to fight the boggart and felt Professor Lupin didn’t have faith in him
140
How did the rest of the class feel about Lupin’s lesson?
Page 140 — They were excited; felt it was the best lesson they’d ever had in that class
140
Chapter 8
Comprehension questions
Why were Hermione and Ron not speaking to each other?
Page 147 — Crookshanks tried to catch Scabbers
147
What did Professor Trelawney predict that happened on October 16th?
Page 148 — Lavender got a letter saying her rabbit died
148
Why didn’t Professor McGonagall give permission to Harry to go to Hogsmeade?
Page 150 — His parent or guardian didn’t sign the permission form
150
What was a positive outcome from Harry staying home from Hogsmeade?
Page 155 — He got to talk to Professor Lupin and clear up what had been bothering him
155
Chapter 9
Comprehension questions
Why are all the students sleeping in the Great Hall on Halloween night?
Page 162 — 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
162
What was Professor McGonagall going to do so Harry could still practice Quidditch with his team?
Page 168 — Have Madam Hooch oversee the training sessions
168
How did Ron get detention?
Page 172 — He spoke out of turn and was disrespectful to Snape
172
Why did Harry miss the snitch during the Quidditch match?
Page 179 — He saw dementors on the field and fainted again
179
Chapter 10
Comprehension questions
Why do the dementors affect Harry so badly?
Page 187 — He has horrors in his past that others don’t
187
How did Harry find his way to Hogsmeade?
Page 195 — A magical map Fred and George gave him that has secret passages to Hogsmeade
195
Why was Hermione upset that Harry came to Hogsmeade?
Page 198 — She was worried about his safety and about getting caught
198
Why were Ron and Hermione lost for words after the professors and minister of magic left the Three Broomsticks?
Page 210 — They had overheard how Sirius Black betrayed Harry’s parents to the Dark Lord
210
Chapter 11
Comprehension questions
What did Harry want to do with Black?
Page 215 — Kill him; go after him
215
Why was Hagrid so upset?
Page 219 — His hippogriff was under trial and could be executed
219
What was Harry’s most exciting Christmas present and who gave it to him?
Page 223 — The Firebolt; he doesn’t know who gave it to him
223
Who did Hermione think gave the broom to Harry?
Page 232 — Black
232
Chapter 12
Comprehension questions
What happy memory finally worked when Harry was practicing with Professor Lupin?
Page 241 — When he learned he was leaving the Dursleys for Hogwarts
241
Who did Professor Lupin attend Hogwarts with as a child?
Page 243 — Harry’s mom and dad
243
Why would Professor Lupin be suspicious of Harry when he gave him butterbeer?
Page 246 — He wondered how Harry would get some when it’s only found in Hogsmeade, and he’s not supposed to go there
246
Did Mrs. McGonagall find any curses on the Firebolt?
Page 248 — No
248
Chapter 13
Comprehension questions
What did Harry notice about Ravenclaw’s seeker before the Quidditch match?
Page 259 — She’s really pretty
259
What did Harry do when he saw the three dementors below him?
Page 262 — He pulled out his wand and cast the spell he’d been practicing with Professor Lupin
262
Why did Ron cry out in the night?
Page 266 — He awoke to Black looming over him with a knife
266
Where did Black get Gryffindor’s passwords?
Page 268 — Neville wrote them down and lost them
268
Chapter 14
Comprehension questions
What did Hagrid summon Ron and Harry?
Page 274 — He wanted to tell them that Hermione is lonely and overwhelmed from school and needs a friend
274
Why did Harry have to race back to the castle from Hogsmeade?
Page 281 — Draco and his friends saw him and were going to tell on him
281
What did Professor Lupin do for Harry in Snape’s office?
Page 290 — Covered for him so he wouldn’t get in trouble
290
Why wasn’t Lupin going to cover for Harry again?
Page 290 — 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
290
Chapter 15
Comprehension questions
Why did Hermione punch Draco?
Page 293 — He was mocking Hagrid
293
Why was the Gryffindor house so anxious for the Quidditch game?
Page 301 — They knew they had to win by a certain amount to win the Cup
301
During the Quidditch match, what did Harry do to distract Draco from seeing the snitch?
Page 308 — He knew Draco was following him, so he led him away from it
308
Who won the Quidditch Cup?
Page 313 — Gryffindor
313
Chapter 16
Comprehension questions
Why was Cornelius Fudge at Hogwarts?
Page 320 — Buckbeak’s appeal and execution and to check on the Black situation
320
What did Harry say he saw during his final in Divinations?
Page 323 — A hippogriff flying away
323
What happened to Professor Trelawney during Harry’s final?
Page 324 — She was possessed and spoke of a servant of the Dark Lord breaking free and joining the Dark Lord that night
324
Why didn’t Hagrid want the kids present during the execution?
Page 328 — He didn’t want them to see it and he didn’t want them to get caught
328
Chapter 17
Comprehension questions
Where did the dog take Ron?
Page 335 — Into the secret tunnel under the Whomping Willow
335
Where did the tunnel lead?
Page 337 — Hogsmeade in the Shrieking Shack
337
What can Professor Lupin turn into?
Page 345 — A werewolf
345
Who is Scabbers?
Page 348 — Peter Pettigrew
348
Chapter 18
Comprehension questions
What were the precautions Dumbledore took so Professor Lupin could attend Hogwarts as a child?
Page 353 — 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
353
What did Lupin’s friends learn and why?
Page 354 — How to shape shift; to help Lupin when he turned into a werewolf
354
Why doesn’t Snape trust Lupin?
Page 357 — He knows what he is and thinks he was in on the joke that almost had him killed as a student at Hogwarts
357
How did Snape get Harry’s invisibility cloak?
Page 357 — Harry and Hermione had thrown it off at the willow tree so they could chase Ron and he saw it when he followed them
357
Chapter 19
Comprehension questions
How did Lupin and Black prove Peter Pettigrew was Scabbers?
Page 366 — They used a spell that turned him back into a human
366
How did Black survive and escape Azkaban?
Page 371 — 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
371
Why did Black expect Peter to have died rather than betray his friends?
Page 375 — Because they would have died for him
375
Why did it offend Ron to know that Scabbers really was Peter Pettigrew?
Page 377 — Peter had used Ron’s family to hear word of the Dark Lord and he betrayed Harry and his parents
377
Chapter 20
Comprehension questions
How did Harry feel about the prospect of living with Sirius instead of the Dursleys?
Page 379 — He was thrilled and couldn’t wait
379
How did Pettigrew get away as the group headed to the castle?
Page 381 — The full moon came out from behind the clouds, Lupin changed into a werewolf and Pettigrew turned back into a rat and scampered away
381
What saved Harry, Hermione and Black from the dementors?
Page 385 — Someone else had cast the Expecto Patronum spell and protected them
385
Chapter 21
Comprehension questions
Why is Sirius going to be receiving the dementors Kiss?
Page 391 — Snape has convinced Fudge that Sirius is guilty and that the children are delusional
391
What can the hourglass do on Hermione’s chain?
Page 395 — time travel
395
What innocent lives did Harry and Hermione save?
Page 396 — Buckbeak, Sirius Black, and their own
396
Who really saved Harry and his friends?
Page 411 — Harry did when he went back in time
411
Chapter 22
Comprehension questions
Why was Fudge going to remove the dementors from Hogwarts?
Page 421 — They almost killed Harry
421
Why did Lupin need to resign?
Page 423 — Parents wouldn’t stand for a werewolf teaching their children; he knows he could have hurt Harry and his friends
423
Why was Harry so upset he stopped Black and Lupin from killing Pettigrew?
Page 426 — He’s the Dark Lord’s servant and now the Dark Lord will come back again
426
What did Sirius give Harry permission to do the next year?
Page 433 — Go to Hogsmeade
433
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