1. The boys are very upset that the girls may carry the water because they don’t want to give up their power. They are used to basing their size and strength on who carries the bucket, which was important to them because it meant they were tough and everyone would know it. It also provided them with the opportunity to leave the school for a while and do something “real”. It was something that was theirs and the girls being able to participate would take some of that away from them.

2. To try and convince the girls to give up their plan, the boys use agression and intimidation, locking them in an outhouse and keeping the girls from playing softball with them. They even convince Alma’s cousin to try convince Alma otherwise. This backfires and only results in causing the girls to become even more determined.

3. A girl is telling the story, a side character who simply watches the events come one after the next. She was Alma Niles seat mate, who was just surprised at the idea of carrying the water at first but she and the rest of them grew more and more sure with what they wanted as the story went on.

4. The setting is in a small school house in Rural Ontario,“Like driving a tractor or playing hockey for the Toronto Maple Leafs.” It it close to the railway where they retrieve the water, “the water for our school came from a pump near the railway station.” By being in a small town, the students are less used to change, this is why the possibility of change results in such an uproar. The conflict between the girls and the boys is person vs. person because they are going against each other in a sort of war between the genders. The conflict between Alma(the girls) and the idea that girls should not carry the water and stray from tradition is person vs. Society because it is Alma against everyone and the simple thought that her idea is wrong.

5. Alma Niles is the Protagonist because she is the one going against everyone’s opinions. She is the one standing up for what she believes.
Alma goes through a change from the beginning when she was unsure of herself to becoming more confident and forcing change on the school and everyone in it.

6. The change that comes on Friday is that the girls are finally considered more equal to the boys and just as capable. For the girls it is a great victory because it is as though they get to prove themselves. When Miss Ralston hits the ball out of the park it teaches the boys a lesson about underestimating someone just because of their gender (Gender Equality). Her decision to allow the girls to carry the water is important for everyone, especially for the boys to understand that they truly aren’t much better than everyone else.