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World War I Recruiting Poster for African American Soldiers, 1918 | This poster is provided courtesy of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.
In this poster, “Colored Man Is No Slacker,” against a background of African American patriotism, self-sacrifice, and courage, a Black soldier takes his leave. | 1,190 | 6-7 | Social Studies: U.S. History | According to the poster, who is "no slacker"? | A. colored man
B. World War I soldier
C. African American soldier
D. American citizen | A | What does the text describe? | A. the techniques used by an artist to create the poster
B. the time period in which the poster was created
C. the way African Americans in 1918 reacted to the poster
D. the scene and themes depicted in the poster | D | The poster shows African American patriotism. What evidence from the poster supports this conclusion? | A. the blue color of the woman's dress
B. the flowers surrounding the couple in the foreground
C. the American flag held by an African American soldier
D. the trees behind the marching soldiers | C | What is the purpose of this poster? | A. to describe the duties required of soldiers serving in World War I
B. to convince African American men to become soldiers and join the United States Army
C. to make people appreciate the beauty and comfort of their homes and families
D. to convince members of the United States government that African American men sh... | B | What is a theme of the poster? | A. It can be exciting to try something new.
B. It is important to serve your country.
C. The future can be scary when it is uncertain.
D. It is important to help people who are weaker than you are. | B | Why might the artist have included the words "Colored Man Is No Slacker" in this recruitment poster? | A. to cause African American viewers to feel a strong sense of duty, hard work, and self-sacrifice
B. to suggest that African American women are less hardworking and patriotic than African American men
C. to convince African American men that they are more hardworking and strong than other people
D. to convince all Ame... | A | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. __________ African American soldiers march to war in the background, the man in the foreground takes his leave. | A. Although
B. Because
C. However
D. While | D |
The Birth of Romulus, Remus, and Rome | Rome is known as the Eternal City, but that’s an exaggeration. Rome may be old, but it hasn’t been around forever. It was founded in or around the 8th century BCE. According to legend, the date of its founding is 21 April 753 BCE.
Rome’s age doesn’t matter as much as its history. The city began as a village in western ... | 700 | 6 | Social Studies: World History | Whose account of Rome’s founding is provided in the text? | A. A Roman king named Faustulus's account
B. A Roman historian named Livy's account
C. An ancient historian named Amulius's account
D. A shepherd named Remus's account | B | Who are the main characters in the story? | A. Amulius and Romulus
B. Numitor and Remus
C. Faustulus and Numitor
D. Romulus and Remus | D | Amulius wanted to prevent Numitor’s descendants from reclaiming the kingdom. What evidence from the text supports this conclusion? | A. The father of Romulus and Remus was the god Mars.
B. Amulius tried to stop Numitor’s daughter from becoming a mother, then tried to kill her sons.
C. Amulius turned Remus over to Numitor for punishment.
D. Faustulus told Romulus the truth about his birth. | B | How are Romulus and Remus similar to Amulius and Numitor? | A. Both sets of brothers had children that reclaimed their kingdoms.
B. Both sets of brothers decided to establish new cities.
C. Both sets of brothers experienced loss because of uncontrolled ambition.
D. Both sets of brothers fought against the shepherds. | C | What is the main idea of this passage? | A. Much of what we know about Roman history is due to the 142 books written by Livy.
B. Amulius and Numitor ruled a great kingdom that eventually became Rome when Romulus killed his twin Remus.
C. Romulus and Remus both believed they were chosen by the gods to become ruler, leading them and their followers to fight ove... | D | Read these sentences from the text. “Faustulus had suspected from day one that the twins were royalty. . . . Numitor also discerned the truth.” As used in the passage, what does the word "discerned" mean? | A. rejected
B. misunderstood
C. recognized
D. denied | C | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. The rivalry between the twins left Remus dead. ____________, Romulus became the sovereign of Rome. | A. Otherwise
B. Consequently
C. Initially
D. For example | B |
Archaeologists Hit a Homer Run | A bloodthirsty Cyclops traps Odysseus and his soldiers in a cave. Thinking fast, the hero stabs the monster in the eye, blinding it. He and the soldiers escape unharmed.
That scene is one of the most action-packed chapters in the Odyssey, an epic, or long poem, by the Greek poet Homer. It’s also the decoration on a rar... | 960 | 6 | Social Studies: World History | According to the text, where did construction workers find the 2,500-year-old sarcophagus? | A. in the Odyssey
B. floating in the Mediterranean Sea
C. buried under a London museum
D. in a tomb in western Cyprus | D | Read this paragraph from the text. The coffin features a vivid color illustration of Odysseus’s brave act. Odysseus is one of the most famous fighters in Greek mythology. What is the purpose of this paragraph in the text? | A. to show the effect of finding an ancient coffin
B. to explain how Odysseus’s problem was solved
C. to describe the appearance of the coffin
D. to compare the coffin to the work of the Greek poet Homer | C | Read these sentences from the text. That scene is one of the most action-packed chapters in the Odyssey, an epic, or long poem, by the Greek poet Homer. It’s also the decoration on a rare 2,500-year-old sarcophagus that was found in western Asia in 2006. The coffin features a vivid color illustration of Odysseus’s brav... | A. Homer decorated the sarcophagus that was found in 2006.
B. The Odyssey is about different fighters in Greek mythology.
C. The Odyssey was popular 2,500 years ago.
D. The sarcophagus found in 2006 is very long. | C | Based on the text, what probably will happen to the coffin found in 2006? | A. The coffin probably will be housed at a museum.
B. The coffin probably will be repainted with a different story.
C. The coffin probably will be presented to the Greek poet Homer.
D. The coffin probably will be looted by construction workers. | A | What is the main idea of the text? | A. Cyprus is an island in the Mediterranean Sea where many coffins have been found.
B. Homer was a famous Greek poet who wrote an epic poem called the Odyssey .
C. Many people enjoy reading Greek mythology and visiting art museums.
D. A sarcophagus was found in Cyprus depicting a scene from the Odyssey . | D | Read these sentences from the text. Only two similar coffins have been found in Cyprus. One is housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, and the second is in a London museum. The colors on those coffins have faded and are not as vibrant as the paintings on the newly discovered sarcophagus, experts say.... | A. bright
B. boring
C. new
D. old | A | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. In the Odyssey, Odysseus ______ his soldiers become trapped in a cave with a bloodthirsty Cyclops. | A. yet
B. but
C. and
D. or | C |
The Tree House | Billy gripped tightly as he reached for the next wood plank. Each step was nailed into the large oak tree about one foot above the last. But, near the top, they thinned out with gaps left where some of the old, rotting pieces had fallen off.
Billy struggled to the top and pulled himself into the tree house, bringing do... | 850 | 6 | null | What does Billy do every time he visits his grandfather? | A. He visits the tree house.
B. He visits gnomes.
C. He goes exploring.
D. He cooks dinner for his grandfather. | C | Where does the beginning of the story take place? | A. Billy’s apartment in New York City
B. a mystical meadow in the middle of the woods
C. the inside of a tree house near Gramps’ house
D. underground, inside a magical tree | C | In the passage, the tree house’s rotting pieces of wood, spider webs, and a fading rug are described. Based on this evidence, what conclusion can be made? | A. The tree house is old.
B. The tree house is magical.
C. The tree house is high up in the tree.
D. The tree house was built by Gramps. | A | Billy feels relieved when he enters the tree house and sees a boring, empty room. What conclusion can be made from this? | A. Billy had been in the tree house before.
B. Billy was a little scared about what he might find.
C. Billy hoped to find something more interesting.
D. Billy was convinced that the tree house would be magical. | B | What is this story mostly about? | A. Billy’s disappointment over finding nothing in the tree house
B. Billy’s eagerness to find treasure
C. Billy’s adventure in an underground world
D. Billy’s relationship with his grandfather | C | Read the following sentence: “He was back in the forest, but now it was bathed in a golden light, and the autumn foliage was once again green.” As used in the passage, what word could best replace foliage? | A. plant leaves
B. forest floor
C. animals
D. lakes and rivers | A | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. Billy followed a chipmunk into a meadow _________ meeting a bearded gnome. | A. initially
B. instead
C. after
D. before | D |
Taming Sibling Rivalry | If you have a sister or brother, you have probably experienced sibling rivalry. Sibling rivalry is a fancy name for the battles that happen between brothers and sisters. Admit it. Aren't there things about your siblings that really bug you? Maybe you get angry because your sister is smarter or your brother is a better ... | 900 | 6 | Social Studies: School & Family Life | What is sibling rivalry? | A. the battles that happen between mothers and daughters
B. the battles that happen between fathers and sons
C. the battles that happen between fathers and mothers
D. the battles that happen between brothers and sisters | D | To organize this text, the author divides it into sections with subheadings. What does the author describe in the section with the subheading "Find Your Special Talents"? | A. how to focus on your interests instead of concentrating on what others are doing
B. how to calm down and negotiate in an argument so that everybody wins
C. how to talk to your parents about feelings of jealousy towards your sibling
D. how to solve disagreements with your sibling without involving parents | A | Having a successful sibling can be a good thing.
What evidence from the text supports this statement? | A. Having a successful sibling might mean that you don't see your own strengths or focus enough on your own interests.
B. You can learn from your sibling's triumphs and talents. They can pave the way for you to learn how to improve yourself.
C. You may doing the best you can, but you may never be satisfied with yoursel... | B | Involving your parents in disagreements can be a bad thing.
What evidence from the text supports this statement? | A. Parents can help explain why they treat one child differently from another child.
B. When parents get in the middle of a disagreement, you stop working on a solution and start complaining.
C. Marisa and Alex's mother stays out of the girls' spats as much as possible.
D. Experts believe that most sibling rivalries in... | B | What is the main idea of this text? | A. Pursuing different interests from your sibling can help in dealing with rivalry.
B. There are several helpful ways that experts recommend for dealing with sibling rivalry.
C. Compromising in arguments with your sibling can help in dealing with sibling rivalry.
D. Talking to your parents about feelings of jealousy to... | B | Read these sentences from the text. "Shannah Brown of Portage, Mich., and her brother John, both 10, are always trying to outdo each other. For example, if one does a flip on the trampoline, the other tries to flip higher. Constantly competing with a sibling can make you feel as if you're living in your sibling's shado... | A. feeling more skilled because your sibling is less skillful
B. feeling less skilled because your sibling is more skillful
C. feeling less skilled because your sibling is less skillful too
D. feeling more skilled because your sibling is more skillful too | B | Read these sentences from the text. “Constantly competing with a sibling can make you feel as if you're living in your sibling's shadow. A better plan is to be your own person. One way to do that is to pursue different interests.” How could you rewrite the last sentence in this excerpt without changing its meaning? | A. However, you could pursue different interests.
B. In conclusion, you could pursue different interests.
C. For example, you could pursue different interests.
D. Initially, you could pursue different interests. | C |
The King Holiday: A Day to... | In 1983, fifteen years after the civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated, federal legislation was passed to create a holiday honoring him, his vision, and his legacy. The same legislation created the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Holiday Commission to oversee the observance of this holiday. The fol... | 1,300 | 5-6 | Social Studies: Civics & Government | This text comes from an annual report prepared in 1993. Who prepared this report? | A. the Martin Luther King, Jr., Federal Holiday Commission
B. the president of the United States
C. the United States Congress
D. the drum major for justice and peace | A | In the text, what does the author provide a list of? | A. a list of federal holidays in the United States
B. a list of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s accomplishments
C. a list of ways the “King holiday” pays tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr.
D. a list of communities that are divided by barriers | C | According to the Federal Holiday Commission, the King holiday is a day when "people of all races, religions, classes, and stations in life put aside their differences and join in a spirit of togetherness." Based on this, what can be concluded about the King holiday? | A. It is a positive and unifying day for Americans.
B. It is a negative and harmful day for Americans.
C. It is a confusing and difficult day for Americans.
D. It is an unimportant day for Americans. | A | Based on the information in the text, what might the Martin Luther King, Jr., Federal Holiday Commission think about Martin Luther King, Jr.? | A. He was a selfish man.
B. He was an inspiring man.
C. He was a dangerous man.
D. He was a controversial man. | B | What is the main idea of this text? | A. The American ideals of freedom, justice, and opportunity for all need to be reaffirmed.
B. The “King holiday” is a day to remember and celebrate the life and dream of Martin Luther King, Jr.
C. Martin Luther King, Jr., dreamed an inspiring vision of freedom.
D. The best qualities of the American spirit were awakened... | B | Read this sentence from the text: " [The “King holiday” is a] day for our Nation to pay tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr., who awakened in us the best qualities of the American spirit." Based on the information in the text, what might the phrase “to pay tribute to” mean here? | A. to give money to
B. to honor
C. to visit
D. to get even with | B | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence: The “King holiday” is a day for nations of the world to cease all violent actions. __________, we can demonstrate that peace is not just a dream but a real possibility, if only for a day. | A. However
B. As a result
C. Instead
D. Later on | B |
Endangered Animals at a Glance | In the United States, dozens of endangered animals have been making a comeback. Here are a few of them.
Emi is a crowd-pleasing Sumatran rhinoceros at the Cincinnati Zoo. Why is she so popular? In 2004, Emi gave birth to Suci, a healthy, wide-eyed female calf.
Although most visitors to the zoo enjoyed gazing at Emi and... | 980 | 5-6 | Science: Life Science | According to the text, what have dozens of endangered animals been doing? | A. moving west
B. making a comeback
C. passing laws
D. getting captured | B | The big problem described in the text is that many animals at one time were in danger of extinction. What efforts does the text describe that has contributed to solving the big problem? | A. passing federal laws and breeding animals in captivity
B. arresting hunters and importing animals from other countries
C. breeding animals in captivity and allowing animals to roam freely
D. importing animals from other countries and feeding them special food | A | Read the section titled “Back to the Wild.” What can you conclude about endangered animals based on the information in this section? | A. There is nothing people can do to stop animals from going extinct.
B. People can both cause animals to die out, and help them thrive.
C. Animal protection laws are not effective ways to help animals.
D. Yellowstone National Park is the only place where animals can recover. | B | Which conclusion is supported by the text? | A. Scientists do not want to breed animals in zoos.
B. Endangered animals may no longer survive.
C. Zoos should not help endangered animals.
D. People have been able to find ways to save endangered animals. | D | Which statement best describes the main idea of the text? | A. People are harming endangered animals.
B. Endangered animals need our help.
C. Scientists are trying to find a way to help animals to find safe places to live.
D. Some endangered animals are increasing in number. | D | Read this sentence from the text. As the populations of wild animals dwindle , conservationists are hoping that they can breed animals in zoos and later release them into the wild. As used in this sentence, what does the word “dwindle” mean? | A. become sick
B. go missing
C. decline
D. raise | C | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. At one time only nine wild California condors were living in that state. _________ that time, the number has increased, with more than 120 living in the wild. | A. Next
B. Now
C. Since
D. When | C |
Nothing But Firing | David De Vries was never sure what to make of his boss, William Kieft. The man’s fiery red hair and thick, long moustache, which he was constantly twirling, stood out like a flaming torch wherever he went and made De Vries want to run in the other direction. Still, he knew his place in this new land. He was under Kieft... | 1,060 | 6-7 | Social Studies: U.S. History | Why does De Vries travel to “New Netherland”? | A. because Kieft asked for him personally
B. to take part in a raid on Native Americans
C. to help develop and set up the new land
D. to attend a dinner party at Kieft’s house | C | How does the author describe the way William Kieft is developing New Netherland? | A. patient
B. ruthless
C. moral
D. intelligent | B | New Netherland is not yet developed. What evidence from the passage best supports this evidence? | A. “He could smell the sewage and rot of a country that wasn’t under any kind of proper rule and regulation.”
B. “Others back home had spoken of America as a land full of promise, rich with green fields.”
C. “There were rumors of people already living in the new land. Back home they called them savages...”
D. “No matte... | A | Why is Kieft restless during the house party? | A. because he is nervous his guests wouldn’t like the food
B. because he is bored with the party and the people
C. because he is not used to having guests in his home
D. because he is anticipating the upcoming raid | D | What is this passage mostly about? | A. the slaughter of Native Americans
B. how Kieft developed New Netherland
C. the relationship between De Vries and Kieft
D. how Kieft destroyed Native American land | A | Read the following sentences: “From the window of his small cabin, he could see all the development that Kieft had put into place. The natives stood off to the side, watching, staying on their territory but obviously unhappy with how Kieft was overrunning the land.” As used in this sentence, what does “overrunning” mea... | A. walking over something
B. invading and occupying
C. cooperating with someone
D. working hard at something | B | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. De Vries thought about talking to Kieft about the unhappiness of the Native Americans; ________, he did not take action. | A. therefore
B. for example
C. however
D. finally | C |
Madam President? | Chile. Germany. Liberia. Although those three countries are on separate continents, they have something in common. Each country has had a woman leading its government. Since the 1990s, more than 30 countries have chosen women as heads of government. Is the United States ready to join the pack?
That's a question many as... | 990 | 6 | Social Studies: Civics & Government, U.S. History | According to the text, who was the first woman secretary of state? | A. Hillary Clinton
B. Madeleine Albright
C. Condoleezza Rice
D. Nancy Pelosi | B | Read these sentences from the text. Because of the work of those leaders and others who followed, women's role in government has changed. In 2007 to 2008, a record number of women served in Congress: 71 of 435 representatives in the House and 16 of 100 senators. Which of the following describes the relationship between... | A. The second sentence describes an effect of something stated by the first sentence.
B. The sentences show both sides of an argument.
C. The sentences compare two things.
D. The second sentence explains the cause of a problem described by the first sentence. | A | Why does the author include the section titled “Playing Catch-Up”? | A. to compare the number of women in political office in the U.S. with that of other countries
B. to demonstrate that women in the U.S. still need to be encouraged to enter politics
C. to explain what a legislature is and where the U.S. ranks internationally
D. to list the ways women can make more progress | B | Read this sentence from the text. “Pretty much every barrier has been broken except the presidency and vice presidency,” adds Cain. As used in this sentence, what does the word "barrier" mean? | A. decision
B. career
C. fence
D. obstacle | D | Which statement best describes the central idea of the text? | A. Women in the United States have overcome inequalities to rise to top political jobs.
B. The United States lags behind other countries with women leaders.
C. Suffragists organized a national women’s rights movement leading to more opportunities.
D. The 1920s were a pivotal year for women in the United States since th... | A | Choose the word that best completes the sentence. _____ the 19th Amendment passed, women in the United States were able to vote. | A. Finally
B. After
C. Next
D. Before | B | null | null | null |
A Sweet Sickness | The disease known as diabetes has been around for centuries. Even the ancient Egyptians wrote about it. In its beginning stages, diabetes can cause dehydration and extreme thirst. Later, it can cause heart and blood problems, blindness, and even death.
Ancient doctors recognized one main symptom of diabetes: the passin... | 950 | 6 | Science: Life Science | According to the text, what can diabetes cause in people? | A. heart and blood problems, blindness, and death
B. a substance to be produced in the pancreas
C. weight gain and becoming strong again
D. the turning of starches and other foods into glucose | A | According to the text, what solution was most successful in helping patients that had diabetes? | A. changing a patient’s diet
B. injecting patients with insulin
C. removing a patient’s pancreas
D. increasing the amount of exercise a patient does | B | Read these sentences from the text. A major turning point came in 1889. Two European researchers, Oscar Minkowski and Joseph von Mering, removed a dog's pancreas , an organ that lies behind the stomach. They hoped to figure out the pancreas's function. A short time later, the dog developed symptoms of diabetes—thirstin... | A. Because doctors understood the symptoms of diabetes, they could treat the disease by making patients drink more water.
B. Despite the dog dying when researchers removed his pancreas, doctors developed special glasses to treat blindness for diabetics.
C. After the dog developed diabetic symptoms, researchers understo... | D | Read these sentences from the text. Doctors now know diabetes occurs when the body fails to make or properly use insulin. Insulin helps the body turn starches and other foods into glucose (a form of sugar)—a source of energy needed for daily life. In diabetics, extra glucose builds up in the blood. Insulin does not cur... | A. Another way to treat diabetes involves the removal of the extra glucose from the diabetics blood.
B. You can also treat diabetes by making sure not to consume any glucose.
C. If a diabetic does not make sure that they take their injections when they are supposed to, it will have a negative impact on their health.
D.... | C | What is the main idea of the text? | A. The ancient Egyptians were the first people to recognize diabetes, and they were also the first to develop insulin as a treatment.
B. Doctors and scientists have been aware of diabetes for centuries, but it wasn’t until 1922, with the discovery of insulin, that the disease was fully understood.
C. After researchers ... | B | Read these sentences from the text. Despite these hints, experts were clueless about the cause of diabetes and how to treat it. Doctors prescribed exercise and various diets. However, nothing helped the patient live more than a year. As used in this context, what does the word "prescribed" mean? | A. treated a disease
B. investigated a cure for a disease
C. observed symptoms of a disease
D. caused a disease | A | Choose the word or phrase that best completes the sentence. Doctors treated 14-year-old diabetic patient Leonard Thompson with insulin __________ he had diabetes and was close to death. | A. so
B. because
C. but
D. if | B |
She Gets to Go | “She gets to go? She doesn’t deserve it. She doesn’t even know what it means to go abroad. Not really; not like me or my friends. She won’t appreciate it; she’s going to complain. Look, she’s whining about it already, and you only told her about it ten seconds ago. You really want to bring that with you on an eight-hou... | 850 | 6 | null | With whom does the narrator, or the person telling the story, travel to Barcelona? | A. She travels with her best friend, Miriam.
B. She travels with her sister and her mom.
C. She travels with her cousins.
D. She travels by herself. | B | How does the narrator feel about traveling? | A. She is eager to go shopping in another country.
B. She is afraid and does not want to leave home.
C. She is excited to experience a new culture.
D. She is sad that she will not get to see her family. | C | Read these sentences from the text. As much as I envied them, though, I told myself I didn’t want to be them. Nora and Teeny were as spoiled as they came, and they didn’t seem to treasure anything. They liked shopping and when I talked to them on the phone after I found out we were going to visit, that’s all they gabbe... | A. They didn’t value the experience of living in another country.
B. They bragged about living in another country too much.
C. They don’t like the narrator.
D. They valued experiences more than they did material things. | A | Based on the story, what matters to the narrator? | A. hanging out with her cousins
B. wearing nice clothes
C. going to dance clubs
D. experiencing different cultures | D | What is the story mainly about? | A. The narrator learns to appreciate her family even when they fight.
B. The narrator finds the importance of experiencing new cultures through travel.
C. The narrator learns to love fashion and shopping.
D. The narrator finds European culture to be disappointing. | B | Read this sentence from the text. I’d spent the night listening to travel stories and noticing, over pumpkin pie, the little indications that I was in another country. As used in the text, what does the word “indications” mean? | A. benefits
B. words
C. disadvantages
D. signals | D | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. Nora and Teeny love to shop, ____________ the narrator does not think that shopping matters. | A. but
B. before
C. moreover
D. so | A |
Braking Bad | On Aug. 20, 2005, a Toyota Scion driven by Amir Sitafalwalla suddenly sped up. No matter how hard he tried to stop the car, Sitafalwalla says, it kept going faster. It hit an embankment and a tree. Sitafalwalla, an emergency room doctor who lives in Port Washington, N.Y., suffered permanent hand injuries.
Three years l... | 950 | 6 | Science: Technology & Engineering | Psychology professor Richard Schmidt compares pressing the brake pedal to | A. trying a foul shot in basketball
B. hitting a ball in a tennis tournament
C. throwing a football down a field
D. scoring a goal in a soccer game | A | The passage shows two sides of this argument: Did defective technology cause a wave of accidents in Toyotas? Which of the following is the author’s point of view? | A. Amir Sitafalwalla should have won his lawsuit against Toyota.
B. Toyota’s cars did not have defective technology.
C. The Toyota Scion’s sticky gas pedals caused the accidents.
D. Toyota should stop selling cars with defective technology. | B | Why does the writer include the fourth paragraph (“The phenomenon of unintended acceleration…”) in the passage? | A. to offer an expert opinion that supports the author’s viewpoint
B. to persuade people that own Toyota cars to switch to Audis instead
C. to describe why Richard Schmidt is so interested in psychology
D. to warn people about the dangers of unintended acceleration | A | Read this sentence from the passage: Three years later, Sitafalwalla alleged that a design defect caused the car to accelerate suddenly. In this sentence, the word alleged means | A. stated without proof
B. extend a welcome
C. shared with an audience
D. continued to go forward | A | Which statement best describes the main idea of the passage? | A. Some people argue human error, not car defects caused recent accidents.
B. Amir Sitafalwalla suffered permanent hand injuries due to a car accident.
C. Toyota has lost hundreds of millions of dollars in sales from negative attention.
D. Most of today’s cars have electronic throttles that have several fail-safes. | A | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Many new cars have a backup feature that only activates the brake signal _______ a driver presses both the gas pedal and the brake pedal at the same time. | A. and
B. for
C. but
D. if | D | null | null | null |
High and Dry | The state of Nebraska gets its name from the Native American Sioux word for the “shallow water” that flows across its plains. Today we call that water the Platte River. Turns out the state name is more fitting than those early Nebraskans imagined. The state sits atop a vast pool of underground H2O known as the High Pla... | 1,020 | 6 | Science: Earth & Space Science, Technology & Engineering | According to the text, how thick is the High Plains aquifer? | A. It is between 5 million and 20 million feet thick.
B. It is between a few feet to 1,000 feet thick.
C. No one knows how thick it is.
D. It is all the same thickness. | B | Farmers are facing a problem of decreasing water levels in the High Plains aquifer. According to the text, which of the following is one of the possible solutions to this problem of dwindling water supply? | A. find another aquifer in the area to use
B. pump more water from the aquifer
C. switch from corn to other crops that require less water
D. continue to use traditional irrigation systems | C | Read this paragraph from the text. Where does all that water go? “Over 95 percent of the water that’s pumped is for irrigation,” McGuire said. Nineteen percent of the country’s wheat, 19 percent of its cotton, and 15 percent of its corn are grown in fields overlying the aquifer. The High Plains states make up the heart... | A. The reason that the water is running out is because the climate is dry and people need to drink a lot of water.
B. Most of the water in the aquifer is being used to water the crops that grow in that area.
C. The lands around the aquifer are called “America’s Breadbasket” because it takes a lot of water to make bread... | B | Based on the text, what will most likely happen if people continue to pump water from the High Plains aquifer? | A. Farmers do not need to worry because nature can replace the water very quickly.
B. There will be more water that can be found in another aquifer nearby.
C. The aquifer would need more than 6,000 years of rainfall to replace the water.
D. The water in the aquifer can be replaced by rainfall very. | C | What is this text mostly about? | A. farmers who are planting different varieties of corn
B. the High Plains aquifer that is running out of water
C. the High Plains aquifer that will never run out of water
D. how tectonic plates create mountains and aquifers | B | Read this sentence from the text. Without irrigation , the High Plains crops would wither and die. As used in the sentence, what does the word "irrigation" mean? | A. a source of water
B. a source of sunlight
C. removing rocks from the ground
D. a source of soil | A | Choose the word that best completes the sentence. _________ the High Plains aquifer’s water supply is dwindling, farmers and researchers are looking for ways to save the water. | A. Although
B. Because
C. However
D. Usually | B |
Why Is It Colder in the Winter Than in the Summer? | The earth's axis of rotation is tilted relative to the earth's path around the sun. As a result we are tilted towards the sun in the summer and away from the sun in the winter. Read on for a more detailed explanation.
Fact 1. The earth rotates about its axis once every 24 hours. In the morning we are facing towards the... | 920 | 5-7 | Science: Earth & Space Science | What is tilted relative to the earth's path around the sun, according to the article? | A. the sun's position in space
B. Mars's axis of rotation
C. the sun's axis of rotation
D. the earth's axis of rotation | D | How does the earth's tilt in the summer contrast with its tilt in the winter? | A. The earth is tilted away from the sun in the summer but towards the sun in the winter.
B. The earth is tilted slightly towards the sun in the summer and much farther towards the sun in the winter.
C. The earth is tilted towards the sun in the summer but away from the sun in the winter.
D. The earth is tilted slightl... | C | Read Fact 1 and look at the image next to it. "The earth rotates about its axis once every 24 hours. In the morning we are facing towards the sun, and at night we are facing away from the sun." Based on this information, what can you conclude about the curved arrow in the diagram? | A. The arrow represents the earth's rotation.
B. The arrow represents the earth's axis.
C. The arrow represents the earth's tilt.
D. The arrow represents the earth's equator. | A | Look at the two diagrams of the earth at the end of the article. What might the red line in each diagram represent? | A. a place on the earth that receives less light in winter than in summer
B. the earth's rotation
C. the earth's axis
D. the earth's path around the sun | C | What is the main idea of this text? | A. The earth rotates around the sun approximately every 365 days.
B. The earth rotates around its axis once every 24 hours.
C. The axis around which the earth rotates is tilted by 23.5 degrees relative to the earth's path around the sun.
D. Winter is colder than summer because earth's axis of rotation is tilted. | D | Read these sentences from the text. "The earth rotates about its axis once every 24 hours. In the morning we are facing towards the sun, and at night we are facing away from the sun." What is the meaning of "rotates" as it is used here? | A. rises
B. falls
C. shrinks
D. turns | D | Read these sentences from the text. "The earth's axis of rotation is tilted relative to the earth's path around the sun. As a result we are tilted towards the sun in the summer and away from the sun in the winter." Which word or phrase could replace "as a result" without changing the meaning of these sentences? | A. consequently
B. primarily
C. for example
D. however | A |
Tugboats: Pushers and Pullers | There are many boats to watch in the sea. People enjoy looking at sailboats because they move peacefully from the power of wind and sometimes have colorful sails. Speedboats, instead, are fun to watch because they move really fast and bounce up and down on waves. There are long, flat boats called barges. A barge is oft... | 1,140 | 6 | Science: Technology & Engineering | How are tugboats able to move through the water? | A. They use the power of wind and sails.
B. They bounce up and down on the waves.
C. They use powerful engines.
D. They are pushed and pulled by larger barges or boats. | C | How does the author describe a barge? | A. A barge is a long, flat boat that is used to move goods.
B. A barge is a short boat with a long sail.
C. A barge is a tall boat that transports tourists.
D. A barge is a small but powerful boat. | A | Tugboats can move large barges, carry hoses to fight fires, and move boats that lose power. Based on this evidence, what can be concluded? | A. Tugboats look beautiful on the water.
B. Tugboats are as fast and fun to watch as speedboats.
C. Tugboats can help in many different ways.
D. Tugboats carry large loads of cargo. | C | The passage states, “The tugboat will power up its big engine and push the barge that cannot move on its own in the direction the tugboat wants it to.” Based on this information, what can be concluded? | A. The tugboat is very powerful.
B. Barges and tugboats always travel together.
C. Barges break down a lot.
D. The tugboat gets in the way of the barges and causes them to break down. | A | What is the main idea of this passage? | A. Barges are bigger and more powerful than tugboats.
B. Tugboats are too small to be strong vehicles.
C. Tugboats are small, but they are very useful.
D. Tugboats need barges to move around in the water. | C | Read the following sentence: “Tugboats can be seen out in the ocean or in narrow rivers.” What is the author trying to do by mentioning both oceans and narrow rivers? | A. The author is saying that tugboats do not work on land.
B. The author wants to show that the tugboat functions in different environments.
C. The author is demonstrating that the tugboat cannot work in a lake.
D. The author is suggesting that the tugboat can get stuck in rocks. | B | Tugboats can direct barges __________ tugboats are smaller than barges. Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. | A. even though
B. certainly
C. otherwise
D. meanwhile | A |
Waste Woes | School tests can be stressful. But they might also inspire you to help change the world. That’s what happened to three girls from the Island Trees school district in New York. Kristen Dethlefsen, Jenna Morlock, and Marisa Wetzel learned about a growing problem from a reading section on a test they took. That problem is... | 930 | 6 | Science: Technology & Engineering | What is e-waste, or electronic waste? | A. a national student competition
B. damage to the nervous system
C. a facility that burns trash
D. junk with electronic parts | D | E-waste pollution is a growing problem because it causes health problems and is harmful to the environment. What is a solution to this problem? | A. to throw away phones, computers, MP3 players, and radios
B. to ship e-waste to other countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America
C. to properly recycle e-waste instead of tossing it in the trash
D. to break apart old electronics and sell the parts | C | Read this sentence from the text. "[The E-Waste Girls] helped fellow students and the community learn about properly recycling e-waste instead of tossing it in the trash." Based on this evidence, what conclusion can be made? | A. Some students and the community did not know how to recycle e-waste properly.
B. The E-Waste Girls disposed of dangerous chemicals by themselves.
C. E-waste from the recycling drive was shipped overseas.
D. Some students and the community were not interested in e-waste. | A | Read this sentence from the text. "Marisa hopes recycling e-waste will soon be as easy as taking out the trash." Based on this evidence, what can you infer about the current process of recycling e-waste? | A. It is not as important as taking out the trash.
B. It is more difficult than taking out the trash.
C. It only needs to be done once a year.
D. It takes less time to recycle than it does to take out the trash. | B | What is the main idea of this text? | A. A sculpture in London is made out of the amount of waste one person might throw out during his or her lifetime.
B. Three girls held a recycling drive to help reduce e-waste and to educate people about this growing problem.
C. Some computer companies have already pledged to remove toxic chemicals from their products.... | B | The author includes a chart that lists four substances that are particularly dangerous, their sources, and the health risks they have. Why might the author have included this chart? | A. to educate readers about the harmful effects of substances found in e-waste
B. to encourage readers to stop using TVs, computers, and other electronics
C. to demonstrate that there are no safe ways to use the products in the chart
D. to convince readers that nothing can be done to prevent these substances from escap... | A | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. The girls learned that e-waste causes health problems __________ kidney damage, liver damage, and nervous system damage. | A. such as
B. despite
C. unlike
D. since | A |
Take the Plunge | Mike Garis, 10, of California, says he is different now than when he first joined a swim team three years ago. "When I started swimming, I was very skinny," says Mike. "Now I am much more self-confident because I am strong."
Mike swims year-round, competing in meets and even in the Junior Olympics. His regular training... | 900 | 6 | Social Studies: Sports, Health & Safety | Which is NOT a health benefit of swimming? | A. increased endurance
B. stronger muscles
C. better eyesight
D. improved mood | C | How does the author introduce the topic of this passage? | A. by recommending that the reader take up swimming
B. by defining “buoyancy” and “endorphins”
C. by explaining why swimming is good for the heart and lungs
D. by focusing on a specific person who likes to swim | D | If a swimmer wanted to strengthen his or her legs, which stroke would be LEAST helpful? | A. the freestyle stroke
B. the backstroke
C. the breaststroke
D. the butterfly stroke | D | Read the following sentence: “You will have better endurance so that you can play longer without getting tired.” The word endurance most nearly means | A. hand-eye coordination
B. reaction speed
C. ability to move faster
D. ability to keep going | D | The main purpose of this article is | A. to explain how water baseball is played
B. to convince people that swimming is safer than running
C. to describe some health benefits of swimming
D. to prove that swimming is good for people who are often sad | C | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. _______ its name, water baseball is not played with a baseball. | A. Because of
B. However
C. As a result of
D. Despite | D | null | null | null |
Lightning and Fire | Florida receives the most lightning strikes in North America. Scientists have recorded over 20 million lightning strikes in the continental United States, and Florida gets more than any other state. Florida is mostly surrounded by water, with the Gulf of Mexico to the west, the Straits of Florida to the south, and the ... | 1,060 | 6 | Science: Earth & Space Science | Which state in the United States receives more lightning strikes than any other? | A. Texas
B. Florida
C. New York
D. California | B | Fires are an effect. What is one cause? | A. lightning
B. wiregrass
C. gopher tortoises
D. the Gulf of Mexico | A | Many plants and animals in Florida depend on fire. What evidence from the passage supports this statement? | A. Forest fires and grassfires can cause a lot of damage when they reach where people live and work.
B. Prescribed Fire Crews set carefully planned fires with clear start-and-end points.
C. Florida is mostly surrounded by water, with the Gulf of Mexico to the west, the Straits of Florida to the south, and the Atlantic ... | D | How do Prescribed Fire Crews fight fire with fire? | A. They find homes for mice, frogs, and snakes during wildfires.
B. They find homes for skunks, coyotes, and owls during wildfires.
C. They live in a state with lots of lightning strikes.
D. They light carefully planned fires to prevent larger wildfires. | D | What is this passage mostly about? | A. differences between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean
B. how thunderstorms are created from a mix of heat and humidity
C. fires in Florida and how they affect life there
D. why Florida is known as the Lightning Capital of the World | C | Read the following sentence: “Many plants and animals in Florida depend on fire, and they have adapted to the constant presence of fire.” What does the word adapted mean in the sentence above? | A. burned to the ground
B. changed in order to live with
C. set carefully planned fires
D. surrounded by water on all sides | B | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. Lightning often strikes Florida; ______, fires are sometimes started. | A. consequently
B. otherwise
C. such as
D. previously | A |
Wired World | “Everyone who uses the Internet, please stand up!” If that message could be heard all over the world at the same time, how many people do you think would stand up?
The answer is almost two billion, or nearly one-third of all human beings on the planet. That number comes from the International Telecommunication Union (... | 970 | 6 | Science: Technology & Engineering | According to the text, which of the following countries comes first on the list of digital leaders? | A. South Korea
B. Luxembourg
C. United States
D. Sweden | D | What does the text describe? | A. how the Internet works on cell phones
B. companies that provide access to the Internet
C. Internet use around the world
D. how people can protect themselves on the Internet | C | The internet can have negative impacts on kids. What does Professor Takahashi say that supports this conclusion? | A. “In general, though, for kids, the Internet has shrunk the world. It does not seem like such a big place anymore.”
B. “But the Internet can be harmful, they say, because it leaves them open to cyberbullying and other harmful things.”
C. “And an increasing number of American kids are ... learning about pop culture in... | B | Read these sentences from the text. A growing percentage of the world’s Internet users access the Internet not through their computers, but with their cell phones. . . . The wealthier nations of the world have the most people using the Internet. Poorer nations have the fewest Internet users. The biggest difference in I... | A. People in wealthier nations access the Internet through their computers, but people in poorer nations access the Internet through their cell phones.
B. People in wealthier nations access the Internet through their cell phones, but people in poorer nations access the Internet through their computers.
C. More and more... | D | What is the main idea of this text? | A. The Internet can be accessed from anywhere in the world.
B. The global digital divide is getting smaller.
C. The Internet is used by many people around the world.
D. The Internet was originally ARPANET and other networks. | C | Read these sentences from the text. Kids can ... communicate with each other using the Internet. ... National boundaries are no barrier. As used in the text, what does the word "communicate" mean? | A. see
B. travel
C. talk
D. ignore | C | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. Students in Asia use their cell phones to research and write papers ______ there isn’t a lot of public access to the Internet in those countries. | A. after
B. but
C. because
D. so | C |
Never Too Late | If you’re reading this, then probably you’re a student working on improving your proficiency as a reader. But you may already have more skills than some people much older than you. Some adults would have a hard time in your class because they never learned to read, or because they never learned to read well.
Art Elliso... | 1,130 | 6 | Social Studies: Geography, Societies & Culture | According to the text, what do adults who have difficulty reading often do? | A. move to another country
B. try to hide their problem from others
C. hire expensive tutors
D. discourage their kids from reading | B | The effects of low reading proficiency among adults are explained in the passage. Which of the following is one of these effects explained in the passage? | A. They can lose their jobs.
B. They are unable to ever learn how to read.
C. They are not allowed to graduate from high school.
D. They are unable to go to the doctor. | A | Read the following paragraph: “Often, adults with difficulty reading try to hide their problem from others. For example, Mr. Ellison explains, it’s not uncommon for someone applying for a job to ask if he or she can take home an application. There, the applicant can ask a friend or even a daughter or son to help fill o... | A. Some people who can’t read are embarrassed by their inability to read.
B. Picture menus are better than printed menus.
C. Young people are skilled at filling out applications.
D. Older people feel indecisive in restaurants. | A | The reading skills of a parent can make an impact on the learning of his/her child. What evidence in the text supports this conclusion? | A. Parents who can’t read can’t buy their children books.
B. Parents who can’t read can’t talk to teachers about homework.
C. Parents who can’t read can’t help with or check their children’s homework.
D. Parents who can’t read can’t help their children get jobs. | C | What is this passage mainly about? | A. the rising number of high-school dropouts in America
B. changes in the United States manufacturing industry
C. job training programs for welders and X-ray technicians
D. the challenges faced by adults with low reading proficiency | D | Read the following sentences: “Not being able to read well as a grown-up can make life very difficult and cause complications at work and at home. There is also an emotional toll.” What does the word “complications” mean based on the passage? | A. solutions
B. problems
C. behaviors
D. diseases | B | Choose the answer that best completes the sentences below. For many jobs nowadays, you must fill out an application, understand a training manual or use a computer. _______, it can be hard for you to get and keep jobs if you can’t read. | A. Even though
B. Otherwise
C. For instance
D. Consequently | D |
Becoming a Baker | A baker’s day begins early. So early, in fact, that for many people it would still be considered night. At 4 a.m., the only light typically comes from the stars, and even the birds are still asleep. The prospect of waking at 4 a.m. every day scares off many a would-be baker. But Diana Rodriguez didn’t mind. She was in ... | 760 | 6 | null | Where does Diana arrive early on a Tuesday morning? | A. a bakery
B. a culinary school
C. a community college
D. a seaside resort | A | What problem does Diana face in this story? | A. Diana is supposed to take on an apprenticeship, but she cannot find a baker who will accept her as an apprentice.
B. Diana is supposed to learn all of the customers' names, but she can only remember some of them.
C. Diana is supposed to do all the baking alone, but there is too much for her to do by herself.
D. Dian... | C | Read these sentences from the text. That’s right,' Pierre responded. 'Today is the first exam. If you do well, you will move on to more difficult tasks and will receive more responsibility. If not...' He looked at her seriously. 'If you do not pass this exam, you will continue your apprenticeship at another bakery.' Di... | A. Diana probably feels nervous.
B. Diana probably feels confident.
C. Diana probably feels eager.
D. Diana probably feels angry. | A | What conclusion does Diana draw after calling Marie for help? | A. Diana concludes that she has failed the exam.
B. Diana concludes that Marie will be sent to another bakery.
C. Diana concludes that she should go back to the United States.
D. Diana concludes that she has passed the exam. | A | What is a theme of this story? | A. If you are not kind to other people, they will not be kind to you.
B. You should put other people before yourself.
C. You should always tell the truth, even if it hurts someone's feelings.
D. If you work hard enough, you can accomplish anything on your own. | B | Read these sentences from the text. Diana had first heard about Pierre’s bakery when she was watching television at home in the United States. There was a show that toured the world, highlighting the best foods to be found. Diana had watched the host’s face light up when she tasted one of Pierre’s buttery croissants. D... | A. suddenly express happiness
B. suddenly turn on
C. slowly start to sweat
D. slowly change color | A | Read this sentence from the text. Baking was precise; it required attention. How could this sentence be rewritten without changing its meaning? | A. Baking was precise, yet it required attention.
B. Baking was precise before it required attention.
C. Baking was precise; however, it required attention.
D. Baking was precise, and it required attention. | D |
It Would Be Hard to Smile at a Smilodon | Ten thousand years ago, planet Earth was experiencing rapid change, especially in its climate. Over the course of the previous hundred thousand years, a large portion of the globe was covered in glaciers, which are incredibly large sheets of ice that can be the size of continents. This occurred because the earth’s temp... | 1,150 | 6 | Science: Life Science | Based on recent studies, Smilodons can be best described as what? | A. tigers
B. cats
C. elephants
D. lions | B | Smilodons became extinct about 10,000 years ago. What possible cause of this extinction was explained in the passage? | A. they were hunted by humans
B. disease that killed the Smilodon
C. climate change
D. competition over food from other hunters | C | Read the following sentences from the passage: “And their living prey was probably not very fast or large. The Smilodon used to wait for another animal to come close to them without realizing it before they would attack. The Smilodon would not run far for prey to eat, many times choosing small, slow, and possibly you... | A. Smilodons didn’t have to be sneaky to catch their prey.
B. Smilodons were not fast hunters.
C. Smilodons preferred to eat larger animals.
D. Smilodons had a hard time finding food. | B | Based on the passage, which of the following is true about the Smilodon? | A. They got along well with other Smilodons.
B. They were very aggressive animals.
C. They did not look very threatening.
D. They were located in one section of the Earth. | B | What is this passage mainly about? | A. why the Smilodon became extinct
B. the canine teeth of a Smilodon
C. an extinct mammal known as the Smilodon
D. climate change that occurred 10,000 years ago | C | The author ends the passage with the following paragraph: “Though they might not have been very smart or fast, they had those dangerous, long and sharp teeth, which made them one of the most feared creatures on the planet when they lived. If a person were to find one today, it would be hard to smile at a Smilodon!” Why... | A. to inform the reader that Smilodons could be found living on Earth today
B. to emphasize that Smilodons had canine teeth
C. to indicate that although Smilodons looked scary, they were probably harmless
D. to emphasize how scary the Smilodon would be, and to entertain the reader with the word “smile” when talking abo... | D | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. Smilodons were probably not very fast or large ________ many times they hunted prey that was slow and small. | A. so
B. although
C. but
D. however | A |
All the Pieces Matter | Jason stared at the whiteboard at the front of the classroom, trying to make sense of what he saw there. Mr. Freamon had drawn a complicated diagram of all the creatures living in the nearby Ho Tep Wildlife Reserve. Every type of living thing, from trees and insects to mammals and birds, was written down and circled on... | 940 | 6 | Science: Life Science | According to Mr. Freamon, creatures within an ecosystem compete for which resources? | A. shelter and plants
B. water and animals
C. food, water, and shelter
D. plants and animals | C | What is the setting at the beginning of the story? | A. Jason’s school
B. Ho Tep Wildlife Reserve
C. a desert
D. Africa | A | When Jason gets home he looks up “ecosystem resilience” on the Internet. Which conclusion can you draw from this evidence? | A. All the students looked up “ecosystem resilience” when they got home from school.
B. Jason is trying to understand the concept Mr. Freamon introduced in class.
C. Jason is rarely allowed to use the Internet at home.
D. Jason has an assignment on “ecosystem resilience” in another class. | B | Based on the passage, what is an ecosystem? | A. the living things and environment of a certain area
B. only the living things of a certain area
C. only the environment of a certain area
D. a forest | A | What is the passage mainly about? | A. the ecosystem in the Ho Tep Wildlife Reserve
B. Jason learning about how everything in nature is connected
C. the relationship that develops between Jason and his dad on their camping trip
D. how Ho Tep changed from a desert to a forest | B | Read the following sentences from the second paragraph of the story: “He’d never thought about how the amount of rainfall affected the amount of moisture in the soil, which affected how well plants could grow, which affected the ability of the animals that ate those plants to survive. It was enough to make his head sw... | A. Jason loves swimming.
B. Jason does not like learning about nature.
C. Jason understands the new information perfectly.
D. Jason is confused. | D | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. Everything in nature is connected; _________, sea otters, sea urchins, and kelp populations all affect each other. | A. on the other hand
B. earlier
C. for example
D. but | C |
Intertwining Memories | Debra holds tightly to the railing as she walks down the stairs. These stairs belong to her 90-year-old grandmother, Nana Kay. Debra has been coming to this house since the week she was born. Nana has lived in this house for over 60 years.
The railing's cherry wood is smooth and reflective. At the end of the railing is... | 670 | 6 | null | What is Debra doing throughout the story? | A. eating ice cream in the hospital
B. unpacking Nana Kay’s furniture
C. imagining her life in the future
D. recalling different memories | D | What is the setting of the story? | A. Pine Bluffs
B. Nana Kay’s old home
C. a hospital
D. Debra’s new home | B | Read the following sentences: “‘I wish I had been here to help you when you fell, Nana,’ Debra says out loud to herself. ‘You were always there for me, to stop me from getting hurt. But now, you are the one who ended up needing me.’” Based on Debra’s statement, how does she most likely feel about Nana Kay’s fall? | A. Debra feels guilty about not having been able to prevent Nana Kay from falling.
B. Debra feels it was Nana Kay’s fault that she slipped and fell down.
C. Debra feels indifferent about not having been able to prevent Nana Kay from falling.
D. Debra feels horrified about not having been able to prevent Nana Kay from f... | A | What makes Debra recall different memories from her life? | A. a conversation she has with her dad
B. a conversation she has with Nana Kay
C. objects in Nana Kay’s home
D. sounds in Nana Kay’s home | C | What is this story mainly about? | A. the changes one experiences in old age
B. Debra’s relationship with her family and her reflections on the nature of memory
C. the dangers Debra and her family members have faced throughout their childhoods
D. how roles reverse among different family members with the progression of time | B | Read the following sentences: “She runs her hand along the walls and wonders how different her memories must be from someone else's, or how similar. Every day in her life was also a day in someone else's life. Their worlds intertwine .” As used in the passage, what does the word “intertwine” most nearly mean? | A. to connect closely
B. to stay far apart
C. to start conflict
D. to grow quickly | A | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. After reminiscing about her childhood, her father, and Nana Kay, Debra _________ realizes that everyone’s different memories of Nana’s house are intertwined. | A. initially
B. ultimately
C. yet
D. instead | B |
Wings in the Dark | Some people might think Geraldine Griswold is batty. Some say she has bats in her belfry.
Griswold doesn't mind the jokes. She loves bats. All types of bats: big bats, small bats, brown bats, fruit bats, even vampire bats. In fact, she currently has about 20 bats hanging around at her home.
She doesn't live in a bat ca... | 910 | 6 | Science: Life Science | What does Geraldine Griswold run at her house in Connecticut by night? | A. a bat cave
B. a radio station
C. a "bat hospital"
D. the traffic report | C | The author divides the text into sections using subheadings. What does the author describe in the section with the subheading "A Bat Rap"? | A. the decline in the number of bats worldwide
B. Griswold's experience with caring for bats
C. correct information people generally believe about bats
D. incorrect information people generally believe about bats | D | Read this sentence from the text: "Bats pollinate plants, spread seeds, and, most important, eat insects--including pesky, disease-carrying mosquitoes." What inference about bats does this information support? | A. Bats can be very helpful to other species, including humans.
B. Bats can be very harmful to other species, including humans.
C. The number of bats worldwide is in serious decline.
D. The 20 million to 50 million bats that live in Bracken Cave near San Antonio eat 250 tons of insects a night. | A | What will probably happen to the populations of insects bats normally eat as the bats' habitats are threatened? | A. The populations of insects will probably decrease.
B. The populations of insects will probably increase.
C. The populations of insects will probably stay the same.
D. The populations of insects will probably disappear. | B | What is this text mostly about? | A. Griswold's "bat hospital"
B. bats and Griswold's efforts to help them
C. dangers bats face
D. incorrect information people believe about bats | B | Read these sentences from the text: "Griswold is no stranger to bats. She grew up on a farm where bats were a common sight. So it was no surprise how quickly she took to an orphaned baby bat she found squeaking on the ground outside her house ten years ago. She took in the bat and fed it milk from a goat on her farm." ... | A. moved to another place
B. became afraid of
C. grew to hate
D. grew to like | D | Read these sentences from the text: "Many people associate bats with Dracula, the evil vampire who transforms himself into a bat before sucking the blood from unsuspecting victims. Bats aren't evil, however." What word could replace "however" in the final sentence without changing its meaning? | A. therefore
B. though
C. thus
D. then | B |
Save the Whales | “Save the whales!” That’s what the bumper sticker on the Smiths’ car read. It was an abstract idea, of course. Jake liked having the sticker make a statement. He just never expected to get a chance to save a real whale, one right in his own neighborhood. It was a Saturday morning when the newspaper first reported the ... | 730 | 6 | Science: Life Science | How did Jake’s family first learn of the whale sightings? | A. They saw a story about the sightings on television.
B. They read about the sightings in the newspaper.
C. They heard about the sightings from a neighbor.
D. They read about the sightings on the Internet. | B | The passage describes the problem of a whale becoming beached. All of the following were ways the problem was solved EXCEPT | A. some people shined their headlights on the beach when it got dark
B. Jake and his family brought the rescuers sandwiches and tea
C. Jake and his family helped push the whale into the surf
D. an animal rescue squad heaved the whale back into the sea | C | After reading the passage, what can you conclude about Jake? | A. He is afraid of being so close to whales.
B. He has done whale rescues before.
C. He does not know how to swim.
D. He is a helpful and caring person. | D | Read this sentence from the passage: “It came in with the waves, and when the waves receded, it stayed.” Based on the text, the word receded means | A. came forward
B. stopped working
C. moved back
D. became warmer | C | The primary purpose of this passage is to describe | A. why a pod of whales would swim so close to the shore
B. how people react when facing a challenging problem
C. how Jake’s family helped to save a whale
D. the training needed to become an animal rescuer | C | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. _____ the whale headed back to sea, it jumped out of the water in what looked like a leap of joy. | A. Yet
B. But
C. As
D. For | C | null | null | null |
Puss in Boots | There was once a Miller, who, at his death, had nothing to leave to his three sons except his mill, his donkey, and his cat. The eldest son took the mill, the second took the donkey—and as for the youngest, all that remained for him was the cat.
The youngest son grumbled at this. "My brothers," said he, "will be able t... | 1,120 | 6 | null | What did the Miller leave to his youngest son? | A. his mill
B. his donkey
C. his rabbit
D. his cat | D | What is the main problem that the youngest son faces? | A. He does not know how to run the mill his father left him.
B. He is poor and thinks he has no way to earn an honest living.
C. A robber stole all his clothes while he was bathing.
D. He cannot swim and might drown while bathing in the river. | B | The Cat is very clever. What evidence from the text supports this inference? | A. The Cat asked his master for boots and a bag.
B. The Cat tricked the Ogre into turning into a small animal that the Cat could eat.
C. The Cat knocked on the door of the Ogre's castle.
D. The Cat happened to hear that the King was going to take a drive on the banks of the river. | B | Based on the evidence in the text, what might have motivated the Cat to trick the King and get a castle for his master? | A. The Cat hated the King and wanted to fool him.
B. The Cat was angry and wanted to scare the laborers.
C. The Cat was hungry and wanted to eat the Ogre.
D. The Cat wanted to prove his worth to his master. | D | What is the theme of this story? | A. Treat others as you wish to be treated.
B. Do not underestimate others.
C. Do not make promises you cannot keep.
D. It is important to be forgiving. | B | Why might the author have used the word "grumbled" to describe the youngest son's reaction to what his father left him? | A. to draw the reader's attention away from what the father left his other sons
B. to clarify why the other sons may not have heard the youngest brother
C. to suggest that the youngest son was displeased with what his father left him
D. to convince the reader that the youngest son is being ungrateful | C | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence: The Cat scared the haymakers into telling the King that the meadow belonged to the Marquis of Carabas. _________, the King became very astonished at the vast possessions of the Marquis of Carabas. | A. As a result
B. On the other hand
C. As an illustration
D. On the contrary | A |
Broken Hearts | Serious heart defects can kill without warning — but they are very rare.
Sept. 15, 2006: That was the day that Matt Nader’s heart stopped, his athletic dreams ended, and he got a second chance at life. The Texas teen was an all-American football player headed for the University of Texas Longhorns. But at a game during ... | 990 | 6 | Science: Life Science | All of the following happen during cardiac arrest EXCEPT | A. the blood pressure drops
B. a loss of consciousness occurs
C. the pulse rate drops
D. the heart beats faster | D | The passage describes the problem of undiagnosed heart defects in teen athletes. What is one way that Dr. Theodore Abraham is working to solve the problem? | A. He is traveling to schools across the country to speak about heart disease.
B. He launched a program that offers free screenings to high school athletes.
C. He bought defibrillators and other lifesaving devices for hundreds of schools.
D. He is making sure that all Americans receive electrocardiograms. | B | After reading the passage, what can you conclude about cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)? | A. It takes years to learn how to perform CPR.
B. The average person doesn’t need to learn CPR.
C. Only medical experts should perform CPR.
D. Anyone can learn this life-saving technique. | D | Read this sentence from the passage: “His heart had stopped beating, condemning him to almost certain death.” In this sentence, the word condemning means | A. rewarding for good behavior
B. examining very carefully
C. sentencing to punishment
D. extending help to someone | C | Which statement best expresses the main idea of this passage? | A. Every second counts once the brain and other organs lose their oxygen supply.
B. Matt Nader has not been able to play football since his cardiac arrest.
C. A small number of teens experience sudden cardiac arrest each year.
D. Most children with serious heart defects don’t exhibit any symptoms. | C | The question below has an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Eighteen-year-old Connor Gwinn collapsed _______ he was jogging on an indoor track. | A. while
B. and
C. but
D. than | A | null | null | null |
Adventure on a Hot Air Balloon | The wind is starting to blow stronger, and when you’re riding in a basket under a hot air balloon, just 400 feet above ground, that’s not necessarily a good thing. Keith Rodriguez looks to the horizon and squints. He had planned to take off from Scioto Downs, a horse racetrack south of Columbus, Ohio, fly a few miles n... | 950 | 5-6 | Science: Technology & Engineering, Physical Science | What makes landing the hot air balloon a challenge for Keith Rodriguez? | A. the gondola
B. the wind
C. the parking lot
D. the time of day | B | What problem does Keith Rodriguez solve? | A. how to fly from Ohio to Pennsylvania in his hot air balloon
B. how to increase the altitude of his hot air balloon
C. how to safely land his hot air balloon
D. how to change direction on his own in his hot air balloon | C | A hot air balloon floats because the air inside the balloon is warmer than the air outside of it. What information from the story supports this statement? | A. Hot air is lighter than cold air.
B. One cubic foot of air weighs about an ounce.
C. The air inside the balloon swirls in complicated, invisible patterns.
D. The hot air balloon is sinking, but still flying forward. | A | Based on information in the text, what would make a good landing area for a hot air balloon? | A. a large, open space with no buildings
B. a large space with lots of tall buildings
C. a small, narrow space near a highway
D. a small space, such as the roof of a building | A | What is this story mainly about? | A. a hot air balloon that scares lots of people when it lands in a parking lot
B. a hot air balloon that does not work properly
C. a person who gets stuck up in the air and does not know what to do
D. a person trying to land a hot air balloon in difficult conditions | D | Read these sentences from the text. To drop in altitude , Rodriguez can pull a cord attached to a parachute valve at the very top of the balloon. Since the hottest air sits at the top, this releases the balloon’s most buoyant air, which makes the balloon descend. What does the word "altitude" mean in the sentence above... | A. length
B. width
C. height
D. volume | C | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. Keith Rodriguez was planning to land in a cornfield; _______, he changes his mind because of the wind. | A. previously
B. however
C. as a result
D. for example | B |
Jumping Bodies | This is the story of how I convinced my best friend I could jump bodies.
The first time it happened, I was sitting in Ms. Perry’s sixth grade English class. We were reading a story about a man who had died but still believed he was alive. It was supposed to be a metaphor for something or other. Ms. Perry was going on a... | 680 | 6 | null | What does the narrator of the story convince his best friend he can do? | A. jump bodies
B. find a metaphor
C. see ghosts
D. drive a bus | A | What is a conflict in this story? | A. The narrator notices a crack in the window next to his desk that splinters into a web of shattered glass.
B. The narrator sees a flock of seagulls overhead while jogging around the track.
C. The narrator is telling the truth, but his best friend does not believe him.
D. The narrator’s best friend nudges him and asks... | C | Read the following paragraphs from the story: “It didn’t happen again for another two weeks. This time, I was in gym class. I was jogging around the track talking to Sammy. I didn’t particularly want to be running. It was cold outside. A flock of seagulls was overhead, squawking loudly. I watched them soar above us. Fl... | A. The narrator went from being in the body of a seagull to being in his own body and then back to being in the body of a seagull.
B. The narrator went from being in his own body to being in the body of a seagull and then back to being in his own body.
C. The narrator went from being in Sammy’s body to being in his own... | B | What happens when the narrator jumps bodies? | A. The narrator recognizes the difference between metaphors and similes.
B. The narrator starts telling lies, which the people around him do not believe.
C. The narrator thinks of a story about a man who died but believed he was still alive.
D. The narrator’s mind enters another person’s mind and body. | D | What is the theme of this story? | A. In order to convince people of something, it may be necessary to show them rather than tell them.
B. If a person becomes known for telling lies, other people will never believe him or her again.
C. Turning the stove off after cooking is an important safety procedure that should be followed by everyone.
D. Being able... | A | Read the following sentences from the story: “It wasn’t that I was incapable of focusing, but I had noticed a small crack in the window next to my desk. The crack ran the length of the window, and right in the center, it splintered into a giant spider’s web of shattered glass .” What does the phrase “right in the cente... | A. The crack was bigger at the edges of the window than it was in the middle.
B. The crack looked like a big spider’s web in the middle of the window.
C. A spider had crawled across the window and made a web in the middle of it.
D. The window had not been cleaned for a while and was extremely dirty. | B | Select the word that best completes the sentence. First, the narrator jumps out of his body into Ms. Perry’s body; ___________, he jumps out of his body into a seagull’s body. | A. obviously
B. earlier
C. second
D. last | C |
Uninvited Guests | You’re Never Alone. Sleeping in your bedroom. Taking a shower. No matter where you go, you have company. A lot of company, in fact: wriggling parasites, a bounty of bacteria, and other assorted stowaways that call your body home sweet home.
You’ve spent your whole life with those miniature minions hiding inside you. Is... | 950 | 6 | Science: Life Science | What is one type of tiny organism that calls your body home sweet home? | A. mice
B. bacteria
C. cats
D. eggs | B | What does the author describe in this text? | A. the effects of microscopic organisms living on the body
B. the effects of certain diets on developing cancer
C. the effects of illnesses such as colds and the flu
D. the effects of practicing bad hygiene | A | Bacteria can be good for the body.
What evidence from the text supports this statement? | A. Just as there are four major blood types, there are three (or maybe more) different “gut types.”
B. Bacteria on your skin and inside your gut prevent other, more harmful bacteria from moving in and making you sick.
C. Some experts think that without worms to fight, our immune systems have gotten confused and turned ... | B | Based on the information in the text, what can you infer about a person living with a parasite in his or her body? | A. A person can feel the parasite crawling on or in his or her body.
B. A person may be infected with a parasite without even knowing it.
C. A person will never be able to tell if he or she is infected with a parasite.
D. A person will only know if he or she was infected with a parasite after the parasite is dead. | B | What is the main idea of this text? | A. Rates of allergies and autoimmune diseases have skyrocketed.
B. Scientists believe there are three or more different “gut types.”
C. Our immune systems have gotten confused and turned on our bodies.
D. The human body is home to many tiny organisms. | D | Read these sentences from the text. "You’ve gotten to know just a handful of the thousands of species that live inside (and on) you. Are you freaked out yet? Don’t be." Why might the author have used the phrase "freaked out" here? | A. to frighten readers about the thousands of species living in the body
B. to comfort readers by using familiar and funny language
C. to make fun of readers who may be disgusted by bacteria
D. to emphasize to readers how serious a topic this is | B | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. For most of human history, people were home to all kinds of worms. __________, worm infections are relatively rare in the developed world today. | A. However
B. As a result
C. Specifically
D. Consequently | A |
Civil War Recruiting Poster (1) | This poster is provided courtesy of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.
After the enactment of the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, posters such as this broadcast a national call for Black men to enlist in the Union army. Frederick Douglass (third name, left column) and other African American... | 1,500 | 6 | Social Studies: U.S. History | Whom does this poster address? | A. men of color
B. women of color
C. white men
D. white women | A | What did posters such as the one in the text try to persuade African American men to do? | A. end the war
B. support the Confederate army
C. enlist in the Union army
D. enact the Emancipation Proclamation | C | The poster suggests that African Americans have a personal interest in making sure the Union army wins the war.
What evidence supports this claim? | A. The poster has a line that reads, “FAIL NOW & OUR RACE IS DOOMED.”
B. The poster has a line that reads, “Three Years’ Service!”
C. The poster has a line that reads, “TO ARMS! TO ARMS!”
D. The poster has a line that reads, “ARE FREEMEN LESS BRAVE THAN SLAVES.” | A | What kind of tone is used in this poster? | A. a relaxing tone
B. a mournful tone
C. a joyful tone
D. an urgent tone | D | What is the message of this poster? | A. African American men should enlist in the Union army.
B. Frederick Douglass is serving in the Union army.
C. The terms of service for the Union army have been lowered to three years.
D. The Emancipation Proclamation has been enacted. | A | The second line of text in the poster reads as follows: “TO ARMS! TO ARMS!”
Based on the information in the text and poster, what might the phrase “to arms” mean? | A. to reach for the sky
B. to prepare to fight
C. to put on clothing
D. to ask a question | B | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. According to the poster, men of color should enlist in the Union army. ___________, the black race race may be doomed, it warned. | A. Instead
B. However
C. Therefore
D. Otherwise | D |
Debate: Are Zoos Bad News? | The phone call reached zoo director Manuel Mollinedo shortly after 5 p.m. as darkness was falling on San Francisco. One of his tigers was on the loose! She had escaped her enclosure and attacked a teenager and two other young men before bounding into the zoo's dense foliage and winding paths.
As Mollinedo rushed to wor... | 1,020 | 6 | Social Studies: Geography, Societies & Culture | According to the text, what did one of zoo director Manuel Mollinedo's tigers do? | A. declared the entire zoo a crime scene
B. found a resting tiger after some searching
C. escaped her enclosure and attacked a teenager
D. keep animals from being bored or becoming neurotic | C | What does the author compare zoos to in the section titled “Zoos Deserve Boos”? | A. vacation
B. prison
C. a backyard
D. the wild | B | Read these sentences from the text. "Getting rid of zoos would be a tragedy for all animals," says Steve Feldman, senior vice president of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. He says zoos play a major role in educating people about animals and promoting wildlife conservation. Based on this evidence, what can you con... | A. Zoos are to blame for the deaths of many people and animals.
B. Without zoos, people would research wild animals on their own.
C. Zoos shouldn’t have to worry about how they treat animals.
D. Without zoos, the public would care less about conservation. | D | What can be inferred from the text? | A. Not everyone agrees on whether or not zoos are good.
B. It is okay to taunt the animals.
C. Animals are always dangerous.
D. Some zoos are more fun to visit than others. | A | What title best describes the two sides of the argument presented in the text? | A. My Favorite Animals to Visit at the Zoo
B. Tigers Are Dangerous
C. Educational or Cruel? A Debate about Zoos
D. The Best Zoos to Go To | C | Read this sentence from the text. PETA is firmly opposed to keeping wild animals in captivity . As used in the text, what does the word "captivity" mean? | A. in a human home
B. in the natural habitat of the animal
C. in a zoo
D. in a national park | C | Choose the word or phrase that best completes the sentence. Some animals in zoos get bored in captivity, ______ they become neurotic, pacing in circles or grooming their fur over and over again. | A. but
B. after
C. so
D. before | C |
City of Broken Records | They came from all over Dubai, a Persian Gulf city in the United Arab Emirates. They were young and old, tall and skinny, short and squat. But all of them had one thing in common: They were all named Mohammed.
Between 1,500 and 2,000 Mohammeds gathered in Dubai in February 2005, hoping to break the world record for the... | 970 | 6 | Social Studies: Geography, Societies & Culture | What colors make up the United Arab Emirates flag? | A. white, black, yellow, and red
B. red, white, and blue
C. red, white, black, and green
D. white, green, red, and blue | C | How does the author describe Dubai? | A. as a city where everyone is named Mohammed
B. as a city famous for breaking world records
C. as a place where many wildfires break out
D. as an area known as a vacation hotspot | B | How would you conclude the people of Dubai feel about breaking world records? | A. nervous
B. embarrassed
C. upset
D. proud | D | Read this sentence from the passage. After that, the city hoped to break records for the largest charity box and the biggest mosaic made from drink cans. As used in this sentence, what does the word “charity” mean? | A. the act of becoming well-known by breaking a record
B. a container used to hold drinking water and other beverages
C. the giving of money or help to those in need
D. expensive possessions, including jewelry and gold | C | The primary purpose of this passage is to describe | A. why so many people are named Mohammed
B. the reason the people of Dubai built the world’s longest sofa
C. how the city of Dubai is famous for its world records
D. where the United Arab Emirates is located | C | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Once the city of Dubai breaks one record, it sets its sights ________ breaking another record. | A. on
B. yet
C. but
D. and | A | null | null | null |
Seeing Stars | Have you ever gazed at the night sky and guessed that it held thousands of stars? Well, think again! Scientists have determined that the number of visible stars in the universe is 70 sextillion. (That's 7 followed by 21 zeros!) According to scientists, there are ten times more stars in the universe than grains of sand ... | 950 | 6 | Science: Earth & Space Science, Technology & Engineering | What did scientists recently determine? | A. Scientists recently determined that the number of visible stars in the universe is 70 sextillion.
B. Scientists recently determined the number of grains of sand on all the deserts and beaches in the world.
C. Scientists recently determined the number of visible moons in the universe.
D. Scientists recently determine... | A | The text describes the process by which scientists counted the visible stars in the universe. What was the first step in that process? | A. Scientists estimated the number of sections of sky in the entire universe.
B. Scientists multiplied the number of sections of sky in the universe by the number of stars in one of those sections.
C. Scientists counted each star one by one.
D. Scientists used telescopes to count the stars in one section of the sky. | D | Read these sentences from the text. "According to scientists, there are ten times more stars in the universe than grains of sand on all the deserts and beaches in the world. Luckily for the scientists, they did not have to count each star. They used powerful telescopes to count the stars located in one section of sky. ... | A. Scientists prefer doing things slowly to doing things quickly.
B. Scientists like doing multiplication more than addition.
C. Counting each star would have taken a long time.
D. Counting grains of sand is more enjoyable than counting stars. | C | Read this sentence from the text. "Scientists recently determined that the number of visible stars in the universe is 70 sextillion." Based on this information, what can you infer about the total number of stars in the universe? | A. The total number of stars in the universe might be greater than 70 sextillion if invisible stars were to be counted too.
B. There may be fewer than 70 sextillion stars in the universe because scientists were not counting stars one by one.
C. Scientists were surprised that the total number of stars in the universe wa... | A | What is the main idea of this text? | A. There are more stars in the universe than grains of sand on all the deserts and beaches in the world.
B. Scientists recently calculated the number of visible stars in the universe.
C. The number 70 sextillion is 7 followed by 21 zeros.
D. A telescope is a device used to observe distant objects, such as stars. | B | Read these sentences from the text. "Scientists recently determined that the number of visible stars in the universe is 70 sextillion. (That's 7 followed by 21 zeros!) According to scientists, there are ten times more stars in the universe than grains of sand on all the deserts and beaches in the world." Why might the ... | A. to help readers comprehend how many stars there are in the universe
B. to make clear the importance of protecting the world's deserts and beaches
C. to suggest that most people care more about grains of sand than stars
D. to prove that counting stars is easier than counting grains of sand | A | Read these sentences from the text: "Luckily for the scientists, they did not have to count each star. They used powerful telescopes to count the stars located in one section of sky." How could the second sentence be rewritten to show the relationship between both sentences? | A. For example, they used powerful telescopes to count the stars located in one section of the sky.
B. In conclusion, they used powerful telescopes to count the stars located in one section of the sky.
C. Instead, they used powerful telescopes to count the stars located in one section of the sky.
D. Additionally, they ... | C |
Alexander Graham Bell | Alexander Graham Bell was in his laboratory, working on a device that would allow people to talk to one another through wires, even when they were not in the same room, or even the same city. Today, we take for granted that we can communicate in real time with people around the corner and around the globe. But in the 1... | 1,070 | 6 | Science: Technology & Engineering | How did Alexander Graham Bell revolutionize communications? | A. He invented the telephone.
B. He invented the hearing aid.
C. He invented the grain mill.
D. He invented the television. | A | What does the author describe in the passage? | A. how Bell’s mother overcame her difficulties
B. why Bell chose to tutor deaf students
C. how the telephone was invented
D. the rules of the United States patent system | C | Bell and Watson were not expecting the telephone to work the day that the first telephone call was made. What evidence from the text supports this conclusion? | A. “But in the 1870’s, when Bell was experimenting with his new project, such an idea was like a fantasy.”
B. “Watson heard those words and was startled. They had come crackling across the earpiece of what the two inventors had labeled the telephone.”
C. “Alexander Graham Bell was in his laboratory, working on a device... | B | If Bell had not invented the telephone, what would probably have happened? | A. Someone else would have registered a similar device with the United States patent office.
B. The modern telephone would not have been invented for another hundred years.
C. Mabel Hubbard would have married Watson instead of Bell.
D. The parents of Bell’s deaf students would have hired someone to replace Watson as Be... | A | What is this passage mostly about? | A. the life of Thomas Watson, Alexander Graham Bell’s assistant
B. the challenges faced by deaf people
C. the invention of the telephone
D. Alexander Graham Bell’s childhood in England | C | Read the following sentence: “The perseverance and success of his mother in the face of such adversity taught young Alexander that problems were surmountable and that he could help people to overcome them.” What does “surmountable” mean? | A. able to be solved
B. able to be warmed up
C. able to fly
D. able to survive underwater | A | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. Elisha Gray attempted to file a patent for his telephone design; _______, the idea had already been patented. | A. moreover
B. as a result
C. however
D. later on | C |
Why Do Boats Float and Rocks Sink? | When an object is placed in water, there are two primary forces acting on it. The force of gravity yields a downward force and a buoyancy force yields an upward force. The gravitational force is determined by the object's weight, and the buoyancy force is determined by the weight of the water displaced by the object wh... | 1,020 | 6 | Science: Physical Science | When an object is placed in water, how many primary forces are acting on it? | A. two
B. four
C. three
D. one | A | Placing an object in water can be thought of as a cause. What is an effect of placing an object in water? | A. Water is displaced to “make room” for the object.
B. The upward buoyancy force on the object decreases.
C. The amount of water decreases to "make room" for the object.
D. The downward force of gravity on the object increases. | A | Read these sentences from the text. If the downward gravitational force is weaker than the upward buoyancy force, then the object floats; otherwise, it sinks. That is, if an object weighs less than the water it displaces, then it floats; otherwise, it sinks. […] the more water that is displaced, the heavier [the water'... | A. The lighter the weight of an object, the more likely it is to sink.
B. The weight of an object depends on the amount of water it displaces.
C. The strength of the upward buoyancy force on an object is related to the weight of the object.
D. The strength of the downward gravitational force on an object is related to ... | D | Why do rocks sink when placed in water? | A. because rocks weigh more than the water that they displace
B. because rocks weigh less than the water that they displace
C. because water does not exert a buoyancy force on rocks
D. because rocks do not displace water | A | What is the main idea of this text? | A. When an object is placed in water, the force of gravity and a buoyancy force both act on the object.
B. If the gravitational force on an object in water is less than the buoyancy force, then the object floats; otherwise, it sinks.
C. Any object is attracted downward due to the force of gravity, which increases with ... | B | Why might the author have included the diagram at the end of the text? | A. to introduce new information to the text
B. to persuade the reader to agree with the author
C. to illustrate the main idea of the text
D. to give evidence to support a claim made by the author | C | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. If an object weighs less than the water it displaces, then it floats; otherwise it sinks. ________, a boat floats because it displaces water that weighs more than its own weight. | A. In contrast
B. For example
C. However
D. Meanwhile | B |
The Latest Buzz | Your day got off to a sweet start with a chocolate bar during the morning. Then at lunch you had an iced tea. After school, you downed a can of Coke. At dinner, you drank another iced tea. Now it's bedtime and you're tossing and turning. You just can't get to sleep.
Your problem might be too much caffeine. "But I don't... | 900 | 6 | Social Studies: Sports, Health & Safety | Caffeine is a stimulant. What is a stimulant? | A. a chemical that temporarily increases any function in your body
B. a chemical that permanently increases any function in your body
C. a chemical that temporarily decreases any function in your body
D. a chemical that permanently decreases any function in your body | A | One of the effects of having caffeine in small doses is temporarily feeling more awake and energetic. According to the text, what is an effect of having too much caffeine? | A. Having too much caffeine can make it difficult for people to concentrate.
B. Having too much caffeine can help people concentrate.
C. Having too much caffeine can make it difficult for people to fall asleep.
D. Having too much caffeine can help people fall asleep. | C | Caffeine has some helpful effects. What evidence in the text supports this statement? | A. Caffeine can make you sleepless because it is a drug.
B. A stimulant is a chemical that temporarily increases any function in your body.
C. In small doses, caffeine can help people concentrate and study longer.
D. Caffeine affects the way your body works, which makes it a true drug. | C | Read these sentences from the text. "In small doses, caffeine can temporarily make you feel more awake and energetic. Most people use caffeine to help them wake up in the morning and feel alert throughout the day. "Too much caffeine can also give you the 'jitters,' making you feel anxious even though you have nothing t... | A. Consuming small doses of caffeine can be harmful, but consuming too much caffeine can be harmful too.
B. Consuming small doses of caffeine can be helpful, and consuming too much caffeine can be helpful too.
C. Consuming small doses of caffeine can be helpful, but consuming too much caffeine can be harmful.
D. Consum... | C | What is the main idea of this text? | A. Caffeine is a dangerous drug with negative effects that should never be taken.
B. Caffeine is generally considered safe but can have some negative effects.
C. Caffeine is generally considered dangerous but can have some positive effects.
D. Caffeine is a great stimulant that should be taken regularly in large doses. | B | Read these sentences from the text. "Sometimes body size can determine how much caffeine a person can handle. Suppose Ed, a big eighth grader, and Amy, a petite fourth grader, each drink a supersized Cola. Ed may feel no different afterward, but Amy may be bouncing off the walls!" Why might the author have included inf... | A. to persuade readers to avoid consuming caffeine
B. to show that caffeine's effect on Amy is better than its effect on Ed
C. to prove to readers that caffeine is a safe drug
D. to illustrate how caffeine can affect people differently | D | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. In small doses, having caffeine can help people wake up in the morning, __________ having too much of it can make falling asleep at night difficult. | A. if
B. but
C. like
D. also | B |
Debate: A Moment of Silence, Please | For one minute every morning, public school classrooms across Illinois go silent. The teachers don't have a choice—in 2007, the state's lawmakers mandated, or required, a moment of silence at the start of every school day. A dozen states have similar practices.
Supporters say a moment of silence gets students to calm d... | 940 | 6 | Social Studies: Civics & Government | When did Illinois lawmakers mandate a “moment of silence” law? | A. in 2010
B. in 2007
C. in 2004
D. in 2000 | B | The passage shows two sides of this debate: Should the school day start with a moment of silence? What is one argument against the issue? | A. It gives students a chance to pray.
B. It gives students an opportunity to focus.
C. It violates the U.S. Constitution.
D. It gets students calm before class. | C | After reading the passage, what can you conclude about the “moment of silence” law? | A. Not everyone agrees with the law.
B. The moment of silence will be banned.
C. Teachers will become more religious.
D. More students will join debate clubs. | A | Read this sentence from the passage: A moment of silence is crucial to the start of the school day. In this sentence, the word crucial means | A. very important
B. not necessary
C. loudly debated
D. quite considerate | A | The primary purpose of this passage is to describe | A. why students needs to be able to exercise their religions
B. how the moment of silence is a good way to start the day
C. both sides of a debate about the “moment of silence”
D. the importance of understanding the U.S. Constitution | C | The question below has an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Some people are for the “moment of silence” ________ they say it helps students calm down. | A. before
B. when
C. however
D. because | D | null | null | null |
Penobscot Nation | Maine has a varied landscape, which includes hills, forests, rivers, streams, mountains, and coastline. The Penobscot Indians, a tribe native to a large portion of what is now the state of Maine, adapted to and used many parts of the land.
For centuries before the state of Maine was created, Penobscot Indians lived mai... | 1,140 | 6-7 | Social Studies: Geography, Societies & Culture | Which geographic feature did the Penobscot Indians build their lives around? | A. the forest
B. the river
C. the sea
D. the plains | B | What does the author describe throughout the text? | A. how Penobscot Indians adapted to Maine’s landscape
B. how the Penobscot River Basin has impacted the populations that live near it
C. how Penobscot Indians are similar to and different from other American Indian tribes
D. different industries that have developed throughout Maine | A | The Penobscot Indians adapted to Maine’s landscape. What evidence from the passage supports this statement? | A. “The Penobscot people crafted their own tools, including arrowheads, baskets, boats, and snowshoes.”
B. “Penobscot Indians, like American Indians all over the United States, suffered a great deal when European settlers arrived.”
C. “Both the main river and its smaller branches provided a means of transportation, and... | C | Why might Penobscot Indians continue to make their own tools? | A. because modern tools are of a lower quality
B. because they do not have access to modern amenities
C. because they cannot afford to buy mass-produced tools
D. to preserve their unique cultural traditions | D | What is this passage mostly about? | A. how the Penobscot Indians suffered after European settlement
B. why the Penobscot Indians continue to make their own tools
C. how the Penobscot Indians used Maine’s resources
D. how the Penobscot Indians preserve their cultural traditions | C | Read the following sentences: “Rivers are known to be fundamental for civilizations. They provide a resource of utmost importance: water! The Penobscot Indians built their lives around the river and all that it supported.” What does “fundamental” mean as used in this sentence? | A. destructive
B. essential
C. unimportant
D. ideal | B | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. The Penobscot Indians hunted a variety of animals for their pelts, ________ bears, otters, and beavers. | A. especially
B. therefore
C. ultimately
D. such as | D |
Holy Cow! | Everyone knows that belching is rude, but cows do it all the time—every 40 seconds, in fact! The noisy burst of gas is more than just bad manners. It's bad for the environment.
Each belch releases methane, a colorless, odorless gas. Methane is one of the gases that contribute to global warming, or the gradual increase ... | 950 | 6 | Science: Earth & Space Science, Life Science | According to the text, how much methane does a single cow release a day? | A. up to 150 gallons of methane
B. 20 percent of methane emissions in the U.S.
C. about one-third of the world's emissions
D. 4 to 6 percent of emissions in Europe | A | The text describes several solutions to a problem. Putting garlic into the diet of cows and giving cows a pill to help digestion are two solutions. What is the problem as described by the author? | A. Cows supply a lot of the world's protein.
B. A lot of pollution in the environment comes from cows.
C. Cows get a lot of their energy from their food.
D. The actions of people harm the environment. | B | Read the section titled “A Cow 'Cure.'” Based on the evidence, what can you conclude about pollution from cows? | A. Pollution from cows mostly affects Europe.
B. Pollution from cows affects the whole world.
C. Pollution from cows mainly affects Germany.
D. Pollution from cows is not a problem. | B | Based on the text, what happens when the demand for cow meat and milk increases? | A. There would be more carbon dioxide in the world.
B. There would be no more pollution in the world.
C. There would be less pollution in the world.
D. There would be more pollution in the world. | D | What is the main idea of the text? | A. Methane in cows comes from billions of microorganisms that live in cows' stomachs, where the microorganisms help the cows digest hay and grass.
B. Although cattle and other livestock supplied about one-third of the world's protein in 2006, the market for cattle and other livestock has been increasing.
C. Scientists ... | C | Read these sentences from the text. The research on improving cows' digestion might have other benefits too. Jess Miner, an animal nutritionist at the University of Nebraska, says it could help the animals get more energy from their food. That would mean cows wouldn't have to eat as much. "We could produce more cows wi... | A. effective
B. confusing
C. expensive
D. interesting | A | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. Cattle may seem harmless; ________, the gas they release is harmful to the environment. | A. because
B. despite
C. since
D. however | D |
Don't Know Much about Liberty | When it comes to the First Amendment, most Americans don’t know their rights from their wrongs!
Only one in 20 Americans can list all five freedoms protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, according to a survey done in 2023. The rights are: freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press,... | 1,150 | 6 | Social Studies: Civics & Government | According to a survey, how many Americans can list all five freedoms protected by the First Amendment? | A. one in 5
B. one in 100
C. one in 20
D. one in 77 | C | The text lists five freedoms that are part of the First Amendment. What is the first freedom? | A. freedom of the press
B. freedom of religion
C. freedom of speech
D. freedom of the assembly | B | The First Amendment protects the American people from the government. What evidence from the text supports this conclusion? | A. “When it comes to the First Amendment, most Americans don’t know their rights from their wrongs!”
B. “No matter how old you are or what state you live in, you exercise First Amendment freedoms every day.”
C. “The Colonists’ rocky relationship with Great Britain made them determined to prevent their new government fr... | C | The Colonists came up with the First Amendment because of their relationship with Great Britain. Based on the text, what kind of relationship did the Colonists’ have with Great Britain? | A. The Colonists were worried that Great Britain might use its power against them.
B. The Colonists wanted to keep Great Britain happy because they needed help.
C. The Colonists were thankful that Great Britain helped them write the Bill of Rights.
D. The Colonists wanted Great Britain to have a good relationship with ... | A | What’s the main idea of this passage? | A. The First Amendment protects five important freedoms for Americans, though many Americans don’t know about all five.
B. The founders of the United States wrote the Bill of Rights, or the first ten amendments of the Constitution, in 1791.
C. The freedom of press makes sure that the United States government can’t cont... | A | Read the following sentences from the text. “The nation’s founders feared that if the government controlled the nation’s newspapers, it could violate the Constitution without anyone finding out. This clause allows U.S. newspapers, magazines, and other media to report on whatever they want, as long as they don’t print f... | A. give away as a gift
B. make money from
C. memorize or sing
D. break or go against | D | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Americans can practice their chosen religion _________ the First Amendment prevents the government from stopping them. | A. because
B. however
C. initially
D. in the end | A |
First Ladies | Chile, Liberia, and Germany don’t seem to have much in common. The three countries lie on different continents. They do not have a shared language, currency, culture, or history.
But on closer examination, those different nations are more similar than they appear. All three nations have elected women leaders. Michelle ... | 980 | 6-7 | Social Studies: World History | According to the text, which three countries have elected women to lead them? | A. Italy, France, and Liberia
B. Canada, Liberia, and Germany
C. Chile, Liberia, and Germany
D. Cuba, Liberia, and Germany | C | Read these sentences from the text. Chile, Liberia, and Germany don’t seem to have much in common. The three countries lie on different continents. They do not have a shared language, currency, culture, or history. Which of the following describes the relationship of these sentences? | A. The sentences present three items in sequence.
B. One sentence gives a cause, and the others give effects.
C. The sentences describe problems and solutions.
D. The sentences compare three countries. | D | Read these sentences from the text. Johnson-Sirleaf is Africa’s first elected female head of state, but she is not new to politics. She served as Liberia’s Finance Minister until 1980 and made an unsuccessful run for the presidency in 1997. What conclusion can you draw based on this information? | A. Johnson-Sirleaf has been president twice, once in 1980 and once in 1997.
B. Johnson-Sirleaf was not elected president in 1997 because of her poor performance as finance minister.
C. Johnson-Sirleaf did not win the presidency the first time she ran for the position in 1997, but did not give up and tried again.
D. Joh... | C | Based on the text, what might have best prepared the three women to lead their countries? | A. meetings with other leaders
B. trips to other countries
C. their families
D. their past experiences | D | What is the main idea of the this text? | A. Three women leaders worked very hard to become leaders of their countries.
B. Three countries elected women leaders to solve major economic and social problems.
C. Chile and Liberia have serious social problems that need to be resolved.
D. Three countries have to solve major economic and social problems. | B | Read this sentence from the text. She was praised for helping to heal lingering distrust between Chilean citizens and the military. As used in the text, what does the word "lingering" mean? | A. lasting
B. rising
C. increasing
D. growing | A | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. The bloody civil war in Liberia ended in 2003, ______ scars still mark the African nation. | A. mostly
B. next
C. after
D. but | D |
What's Bugging Everyone? | They’ve been seen in all the best places—brand-name clothing stores, five-star hotels, luxury cruise ships, movie theaters. But these socialites are uninvited and far from welcome. They’re bedbugs.
The tiny travelers are fearless, ready to seek out a quiet spot in even the nicest locations. “They love dark, protected, ... | 1,020 | 6 | Science: Life Science | According to the text, what are about the size of apple seeds and travel by crawling, consuming only human blood? | A. ticks
B. mosquitoes
C. bedbugs
D. wasps | C | What solution to the problem of bedbug infestations could be used without a professional’s help? | A. the Fume Cube
B. diatomaceous earth
C. zippered vinyl cover
D. heat treatment | C | It can be harder to get rid of bedbugs today than it was in the past. What evidence from the text supports this conclusion? | A. “Zippered vinyl covers provide an airtight seal around mattresses and box springs, preventing even tiny bedbugs from invading.”
B. “Today’s bugs survive doses 1,000 times stronger than what would have killed them 10 years ago. “It’s survival of the fittest,” Merchant observes.”
C. “Fortunately, unlike ticks and mosq... | B | The text says that bedbugs were nearly wiped out during the past century with the pesticide DDT. Based on the text, why wouldn’t DDT be used again to eliminate bedbugs completely? | A. DDT is also harmful to humans, so the solution to kill bedbugs would cause health problems to people too.
B. DDT might not work because bedbugs have evolved so that no chemicals can kill them.
C. DDT is too expensive to use, and people do not want to pay that much money for that solution.
D. DDT has been replaced by... | A | What is the main idea of the text? | A. Bedbugs are most likely to thrive in messy rooms, so a good way to prevent them is to clean up.
B. Bedbugs are actually harmless, and people should not worry about trying to get rid of them.
C. Bedbugs were almost extinct in the 1970s when DDT was legal, but after it was banned, they became harder to control.
D. Bed... | D | Read these sentences from the text. Close to home, “messy rooms are bedbug heaven,” Merchant says. Keep personal items away from your bed. But if you do get an infestation , the cleaner the room, the easier it is to treat, he adds. As used in these sentences, what does the word "infestation" mean? | A. invitation to a place
B. exit of a place
C. takeover of a place
D. furniture at a place | C | Choose the word or phrase that best completes the sentence. Bedbugs are great hitchhikers in boxes and luggage, _______ you should keep your suitcase away from the bed when you are in a hotel . | A. but
B. because
C. so
D. yet | C |
Jenna and the Black Cat | “Eek! That’s bad luck!” Jenna said when Erica walked under the ladder that leaned up against the card-store wall. “Quick! We’ve got to find some salt to shake over your right shoulder.”
Erica was used to her friend’s superstitions. Jenna had many of the usual ones, like not stepping on cracks. She also had a slew of s... | 760 | 6 | null | What does Jenna say they need to find when Erica walks under a ladder that is is leaning up against the card-store wall? | A. wood so she can knock on it
B. a black cat so she can pet it
C. salt to shake over her right shoulder
D. sage so they can smell it | C | Why does Erica describe Jenna as thoughtful and helpful in the text? | A. because she volunteers as a tutor and works at an animal shelter
B. because she won't wear the same-color shirt two days in a row
C. because she wants to find salt after Erica walks under a ladder
D. because she goes walking to fun and interesting places with her | A | Read the following sentences from the text. "Their route took them through the park, where a soccer game was going on. That meant that they had to take a longer route, around the field and past the “ghost” tree....Jenna usually stayed away from the tree. It gave her the creeps. Jenna quickened her pace." What conclusio... | A. Jenna is worried that Erica will go near the tree and then they will have to get more salt to throw over her shoulder.
B. Jenna isn't scared of the ghost tree but she walks past it quickly because she knows that Erica is scared of it.
C. Jenna doesn't like the ghost tree because she usually tries to stay away from i... | C | What caused Jenna to overcome her fear of the ghost tree? | A. She saw that the kitten was scared and needed help.
B. She knew Erica wouldn't leave the kitten in the tree.
C. She realized it was actually another tree.
D. She already had the salt ready in her pocket this time. | A | What is the main idea of this text? | A. Two common superstitions are that it's bad luck to walk under a ladder or step on cracks when walking.
B. Some trees are called ghost trees because their branches look like arms reaching to the sky with fingers at the ends.
C. Many people believe that you should not wear the same color two days in a row because you ... | D | Read the following sentences from the text. “Erica was used to her friend’s superstitions. Jenna had many of the usual ones, like not stepping on cracks. She also had a slew of superstitious beliefs that were unique .” As used in this excerpt, what does the word “unique” most closely mean? | A. funny and entertaining
B. unusual, not common
C. loud and exciting
D. creepy or scary | B | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Jenna screamed, “That’s bad luck!” __________ she saw Erica walk under a ladder. | A. and
B. unless
C. until
D. when | D |
BFF | Dear Lexie – Wassup? We got to Venice early this morning. I think I have jetlag or something. It’s morning, and I feel like going to bed—except that this place is so strange I couldn’t sleep even if it was nighttime, so that’s why I’m e-mailing you. The hotel has internet access, and we can’t get into our room yet, ... | 490 | 6 | null | Where is Maura? | A. California
B. at school
C. Venice
D. at home | C | What is the relationship between Lexie and Maura? | A. They are sisters.
B. They work together.
C. They are best friends.
D. They are neighbors. | C | Read the following sentences from the text. “ Hi, Lex – It’s about 7 at night here, so what time is it there? Probably you’re at school right now. We went to this big plaza called San Marco today. There’s like a billion pigeons. There was this guy who put bird seed on his jacket, and all these birds landed on him. When... | A. Maura is really interested in the things she is seeing on her trip.
B. Lexie wants to become best friends with Sydney and Benny.
C. Maura is tired from the long plane ride it took to get to Venice.
D. Maura went to Venice with her family to go birdwatching. | A | How can you tell that Lexie and Maura have a close relationship? | A. Both of their families are traveling to Venice together for the summer.
B. They have to do a project on Michelangelo and they decided to be partners.
C. They are emailing each other pictures of what they are doing every day.
D. They are telling each other about the things happening in their lives while they are apar... | D | What is the text mostly about? | A. Michelangelo is an artist that lived in Venice but has passed away.
B. Lexie and Maura are good friends who are writing to each other as Maura travels.
C. Maura's family uses a film camera and doesn't have a microwave.
D. There is a new kid in Maura's and Lexie's class from California who is named Sydney. | B | Read the following sentences from the text. “ We got to Venice early this morning. I think I have jetlag or something. It’s morning, and I feel like going to bed . . . . ” As used in this sentence/excerpt, what does the word/phrase “jetlag” most closely mean? | A. the realization that you are in a new country and not familiar with its ways of life
B. a feeling of happiness that happens when a person finally gets to take a vacation
C. a type of pain that you feel in your back after being on an airplane for a long time
D. being tired after a long flight because the times of the... | D | Choose the word that best completes the sentence. ________ Maura was in Venice, she saw a man put bird seed on his jacket to feed the pigeons. | A. Since
B. For
C. While
D. Because | C |
Escape from Kiev | In 1941, during World War II (1939-1945), German troops invaded the Soviet Union. One of the Soviet cities targeted was Kiev, where 9-year-old Abram Shlyapnikov lived. Abram, a Jew, knew the Nazis wanted to kill his family. This is his story as told to his granddaughter Nicole.
Q: What do you remember about the first d... | 630 | 6 | Social Studies: World History | Where is the city of Kiev? | A. Germany
B. the Soviet Union
C. the United States
D. France | B | German troops invaded Kiev during World War II. What was the effect on Abram Shlyapnikov’s life? | A. He joined the Soviet army along with his father.
B. He was separated from his mother and father.
C. He had to take care of his younger brother.
D. He fled Kiev with his mother and brother. | D | Which of the following conclusions about Abram’s story is supported by the passage? | A. Abram’s brother was a lieutenant in the Soviet underground army.
B. Most Nazi soldiers became Communists after arriving in the Soviet Union.
C. Nazi troops wanted to capture Abram’s father but not the rest of the family.
D. Abram’s family would have been killed if the Nazis had caught them. | D | Read these sentences from the passage: “In 1943, the Soviet army liberated Kiev. We were among the first to return home.” In this sentence, the word liberated means | A. adopted
B. fought
C. freed
D. captured | C | The primary purpose of this passage is to | A. compare and contrast the experiences of Abram and his brother
B. share Abram’s story of survival during World War II
C. persuade other survivors of World War II to share their stories
D. explain how the Red Cross helped reunite people after the war | B | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Abram’s family home was still standing after Kiev was liberated, __________ the windows and doors were missing. | A. because
B. when
C. but
D. since | C | null | null | null |
Homo Sapiens | It was about four months after I graduated from college that I finally got a job working at the zoo. The pay wasn’t bad: all the chicken nuggets I could stomach and my own room in the cage where they kept the human beings.
I’ve always been a little nervous starting anything new, but I remember that first day being part... | 880 | 6 | null | Where does the narrator of the text work? | A. at a library
B. at a zoo
C. at a movie theater
D. at an amusement park | B | From which point of view is this story told? | A. first-person point of view (“I”)
B. second-person point of view (“you”)
C. limited third-person point of view (“he” or “she”)
D. omniscient, or unlimited, third-person point of view (“he/she/they”) | A | Read the following sentences from the text. It wasn’t so bad at the zoo, either. I liked our habitat. It reminded me a lot of home. The part of our habitat that faced the visitors was kind of like a backyard. Behind the backyard was the fake house where we each had our own little room; we could always go nap there when... | A. The narrator does not like working at the zoo very much.
B. The zookeepers are not taking good care of the narrator.
C. The narrator is a human being on display at a zoo.
D. The narrator has spent his or her whole life working at the zoo. | C | How does the narrator’s attitude about being at the zoo change throughout the story? | A. laid-back at first, then thoughtful, and finally nervous
B. laid-back at first, then nervous, and finally thoughtful
C. nervous at first, then laid-back, and finally thoughtful
D. thoughtful at first, then laid-back, and finally nervous | C | What is a theme of this text? | A. true love
B. religious belief
C. the horrors of war
D. human nature | D | Read these sentences from the text. “You look a little green ,” Emily said. “First day,” I replied. Based on the sentences, what might the word “green” mean? | A. inexperienced or sick
B. healthy or confident
C. friendly or very happy
D. old or exhausted | A | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. The human beings at the zoo have special talents, _______ composing music, writing poetry, and dancing. | A. consequently
B. otherwise
C. earlier
D. such as | D |
Ig Nobel Winners | 860 | 6 | Science: Life Science | What is ornithology? | A. the study of cheese
B. the study of insects
C. the study of birds
D. the study of monkeys | C | The author of this passage lists examples of people who won the Ig Nobel Prize. What do the winners have in common? | A. They hate the nails-on-a-chalkboard sound.
B. They are all researchers.
C. They don’t like stinky cheese.
D. They are fascinated by insects. | B | After reading the passage, you can conclude that the Ig Nobel Prize winners | A. did their work so they could win an Ig Nobel Prize
B. made up their study results to make people laugh
C. were not expecting to win an Ig Nobel Prize
D. also won Nobel Prizes for their achievements | C | Read this sentence from the passage: “Bart Knols and Ruurd de Jong won the prize in biology for showing that female mosquitoes of the species Anopheles gambiae are attracted to the smells of sweaty feet and stinky Limburger cheese.” In this sentence, the word species means | A. an encyclopedia in Latin
B. a family of hungry insects
C. a category of living things
D. an insect’s country of origin | C | Which statement best describes the main idea of this passage? | A. Dung beetles roll animal poop into balls and lay their eggs inside them.
B. Scientists work very hard to find the answer to unknown questions.
C. Ig Nobel winner achievements are funny and make people think.
D. Humans hate the nails-on-a-chalkboard sound more than any other noise. | C | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Mosquitoes are equally attracted to the smells ________ stinky cheese and stinky feet. | A. for
B. of
C. and
D. but | B | null | null | null | |
Lonely | When the bell rang for lunch, instead of going to the outdoor cafeteria to meet Morgan like she usually did, Jessica took her lunchbox and retreated to the library. The rest of the school was rushing past her, relieved for a 50-minute break after the first day back from winter vacation—like she didn’t exist. And today,... | 800 | 6 | null | When the bell rings for lunch, where does Jessica take her lunchbox? | A. to the library
B. to the cafeteria
C. to the gym
D. to a classroom | A | When do the events of the story take place? | A. on Jessica’s very first day of school
B. on the day before Jessica leaves school for winter vacation
C. on the day after Jessica returns to school from winter vacation
D. during the two weeks that make up Jessica’s winter vacation | C | Jessica feels lonely at school. What evidence from the story supports this conclusion? | A. “She turned around and saw that the pink and orange, four-foot-tall, stuffed dragon that had lived in that exact corner of the library ever since she had started at the school (almost six years ago) was stretching its wings and yawning.”
B. “Jessica turned around slowly. The dragon was standing in front of her, one ... | C | Why might Jessica have told the dragon that she is not lonely? | A. Jessica does not feel lonely.
B. Jessica does not want to admit that she is lonely.
C. Jessica does not like the dragon very much.
D. Jessica does not have time to talk to the dragon. | B | What is the theme of the story? | A. Being honest is more important than being kind.
B. Friendships with people far away are more valuable than friendships with people nearby.
C. Young people should spend more time by themselves than with others.
D. A small effort at being friendly is all it takes to overcome loneliness. | D | Read the following sentences from the story: “‘You are lonely,’ the dragon said, leaning forward on the table to look at Jessica close in the eye. ‘I can see it in your face. You haven’t smiled all day.’ Jessica felt a wave of sadness settle over her limbs. If a stuffed dragon could even sense her loneliness, she didn’... | A. a wave of water that splashes Jessica and makes her sad
B. a heat wave that comes out of the dragon’s mouth
C. a sound wave that hurts Jessica’s ears
D. a strong feeling of sadness | D | Select the word that best completes the sentence. Jessica has a lot of friends; ___________, they all live far away. | A. however
B. for example
C. primarily
D. consequently | A |
Dirty Job | I stood on the brink of a vast landfill. Below me, workers piled soil onto sealed containers. Trucks labeled Caution: radioactive material” rumbled by. In the distance, windowless buildings loomed above the bleak landscape.
It looked like the set for a movie about a nuclear wasteland. But it was real—the Hanford Site i... | 920 | 6 | Science: Earth & Space Science | This passage explains why the cleanup of nuclear waste in Hanford, Washington, is | A. only of interest to people living near the plant
B. so complicated and so important
C. going to be finished in the next ten years
D. famous around the world | B | How does “Dirty Job” explain what makes the cleanup so difficult? | A. It tells the history of the site.
B. It lists the different kinds of waste that exist at Hanford today.
C. It presents information about the cost of the cleanup.
D. It describes the dangers of nuclear waste. | D | Which of the following conclusions is supported by the passage? | A. If Hanford is not cleaned up, millions of people will die.
B. If Hanford is not cleaned up, it will eventually not be a problem.
C. If Hanford is not cleaned up, it will be harmful to the environment.
D. If Hanford is not cleaned up soon, it will never be cleaned up. | C | Read the following sentence: “Hanford is also a gargantuan grab bag of solid waste—hundreds of old buildings plus scores of underground burial sites.” In this sentence, the word gargantuan means: | A. ordinary
B. gigantic
C. smelly
D. old | B | The primary purpose of this passage is to | A. present both sides of the argument for cleaning up, or not cleaning up, Hanford
B. describe the dangerous situation that exists at Hanford today
C. present a list, in order, of events that happened at Hanford
D. compare and contrast Hanford with other polluted sites in the world | B | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. The scientists are working hard to pump Hanford’s water to the surface, bury some of its waste in a landfill, and, turn some of its poison liquids into glass, but ___________ they want to ensure that none of these dangerous ... | A. around
B. sometimes
C. most importantly
D. maybe | C | null | null | null |
How Soccer Can Help Us Understand Physics | Sports provide a great way to understand some concepts in physics. Physics, after all, is the study of matter, motion, force, and energy. And since sports like soccer, swimming and cycling involve bodies moving through space, they can help us understand how the principles of physics work.
Imagine that you’re looking at... | 1,060 | 6 | Social Studies: Sports, Health & Safety | Once it is in motion, what does an object like a soccer ball have a natural tendency to do? | A. It has a natural tendency to keep moving.
B. It has a natural tendency to stop.
C. It has a natural tendency to change direction.
D. It has a natural tendency to slow down. | A | What does the author explain in this passage? | A. The author explains the force of friction, using different kinds of music as examples.
B. The author explains the sport of soccer, using examples of current teams and players.
C. The author explains the idea of motion, using different sports as examples.
D. The author explains the importance of bike safety, using he... | C | Swimmers wearing full-body suits that reduced underwater friction were able to swim faster than other swimmers. What evidence from the passage supports this statement? | A. Some swimmers shaved their entire bodies to reduce friction caused by hair and increase their speed.
B. After losing contests by a tenth of a second, some swimmers started ridding their bodies of hair to reduce friction.
C. Swimmers wearing full-body suits swam at the same speed as swimmers wearing shirts and shorts... | D | Based on the information in the passage, how can friction be described? | A. Friction can be described as a force that acts on an object in motion and can cause the object to stop.
B. Friction can be described as a force that acts on an object in motion and can cause the object to speed up.
C. Friction can be described as the path an object takes after a force acts on it and causes it to mov... | A | What is the passage mainly about? | A. why swimmers and cyclists move at different speeds
B. the motion of bodies and objects
C. the movement of an object inside a vacuum
D. the scientific discoveries of Sir Isaac Newton | B | Read the following sentence: “Newton suggested that objects like the soccer ball have a natural tendency to keep moving. The only reason they stop, he believed, is because an unbalanced force acts on them.” What does the word tendency mean? | A. a very small chance of something happening
B. a fifty-fifty chance of something happening
C. the fear of doing something or acting in a certain way
D. the way something normally behaves or acts | D | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. Newton suggested that a ball has a natural tendency to keep moving _______ others believed that a ball has a natural tendency to stop. | A. although
B. because
C. before
D. later on | A |
Inheritance of Traits | Everyone has traits: characteristics and qualities that make us who we are. We have physical traits, like brown hair, blue eyes, long legs, freckles and funny-looking toes. We also have personality, or character traits. Those include things like being great at telling jokes, compassion, intelligence, warmth, creativity... | 1,110 | 6-8 | Science: Life Science | What are traits? | A. interactions with an individual’s environment
B. characteristics and qualities that make us who we are
C. gray areas between two extremes
D. people with brown hair, blue eyes and long legs | B | How does the author compare inherited traits with learned traits? | A. by explaining the difference between inherited physical traits like hair color and learned traits like video game skills
B. by explaining the similarities between inherited traits like hair color and learned traits like video game skills
C. by explaining the differences and similarities between inherited physical tr... | A | In the passage, the author writes that people are genetically predisposed to their body type. But once diet becomes a factor, environment begins to play a major role in how the body develops. Based on this evidence, what conclusion can be made? | A. If one changes one’s diet, one can avoid looking like one’s parents.
B. Body type is a trait influenced by both genetics and environment.
C. People raised in the same environment will all look alike.
D. Body type is a trait that one cannot control. | B | Video game skills can only be learned, not inherited. What evidence in the text supports this conclusion? | A. People who are good at video games get this ability from their parents.
B. People who are good at video games have to practice and memorize moves.
C. People who are good at video games can only come from certain countries.
D. People who are good at video games also do well in school. | B | What is this passage mainly about? | A. how to play video games
B. different types of traits
C. why red hair is rare
D. how environment affects people’s inherited traits | B | Read the following sentences: “Of course, there are ways our brains can form that are more advantageous to advanced video game playing. Say you were born with an extra-large, extra-powerful section of your brain that commands hand-eye coordination. That’s inherited. What you do with it, how you choose to develop that a... | A. harmful
B. useful
C. cheerful
D. difficult | B | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. Traits like red hair and knobby knees are inherited. _________, many of our most defining traits, such as the ability to play video games well, have been learned, rather than inherited. | A. For example
B. On the other hand
C. As a result
D. In conclusion | B |
Held Up | It was beautiful but doomed. For 800 years the Leaning Tower of Pisa had been slowly keeling over. During the 20th century the rate of the tilt accelerated, and by 1990 the situation had reached a crisis.
“The tower was at the point of falling,” says John Burland of Imperial College in London. Burland is a civil engine... | 1,010 | 6 | Science: Technology & Engineering | According to the text, for how many years has the Leaning Tower of Pisa been slowly falling? | A. 900 years
B. 20 years
C. 800 years
D. 1,990 years | C | Which of the following describes the earliest solution to the tower’s leaning problem? | A. Engineers extracted soil from the ground.
B. Planners attached helium balloons to hold the tower up.
C. Architects made the upper stories thicker on one side.
D. People poured concrete into the stone foundations. | C | Read this paragraph from the text. Then Burland discovered one more factor pushing the tower south. “I noticed that its motion accelerated every autumn, around the time of heavy rainfall,” he says. He found that the water table (the level to which groundwater rises) is slightly higher under the tower’s northern side. E... | A. Extra rain does not impact how much the tower leans.
B. The heavy rains in the autumn cause the tower to lean even farther.
C. If there were a time of no or little rainfall, the tower would stop leaning.
D. The rainfall is the only factor in the tower leaning. | B | What can be inferred from the text? | A. People don’t really care about saving the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
B. Saving the Leaning Tower of Pisa took a lot of time and effort.
C. There was only one problem that caused the tower to lean.
D. It was easy to fix the tower’s leaning problem. | B | What is this text mostly about? | A. how best to build a tower that doesn’t lean
B. best places to visit when you are in Italy
C. ways to save the Leaning Tower of Pisa from falling
D. how the tower was built | C | Read this sentence from the text. That problem has been fixed using pipes and wells to drain excess water from the north side. As used in the text, what does the word "excess" mean? | A. dirty
B. cold
C. too little
D. extra | D | Choose the word that best completes the sentence. The tower is no longer in danger of falling over on visitors during storms, ______ an earthquake could cause it to fall. | A. so
B. but
C. because
D. after | B |
World Wide Web of Hurt | One day last year, Jake H., of Chicago, was shocked by what he saw on his Facebook page. “Some girls had made a video yelling things like ‘you’re ugly,’ ‘you’re fat,’ ‘no one’s ever going to like you,’ and ‘you’re stupid,’” says Jake, who was 13.
Even worse, other people had clicked Like on the video. The girls, along ... | 950 | 6 | Social Studies: School & Family Life | According to the text, who are scary and hurtful on purpose? | A. face-to-face bullies, but not cyberbullies
B. cyberbullies, but not face-to-face bullies
C. both face-to-face bullies and cyberbullies
D. parents, teachers, and counselors | C | What does the text list in the section titled “What might a cyberbully do”? | A. reasons that someone might start cyberbullying
B. examples of methods of cyberbullying
C. examples of different ways that targets might respond
D. different ways to steal someone’s password online | B | It can be hard to forget about being cyberbullied even long after it happened. What evidence from the text supports this conclusion? | A. “‘What you put online is never truly anonymous,’ says Jeff Lanza, a retired FBI special agent.”
B. “And because some posts stay online forever, the bully’s words may affect the person for a long time.”
C. “‘If all of a kid’s friends are picking on someone online, they might try to encourage that kid to do it too,’ s... | B | What is one important thing to do if you're being cyberbullied? | A. Respond to all the mean messages.
B. Tell a trusted adult.
C. Ignore the bullying.
D. Start cyberbullying the person back. | B | What is the main idea of the text? | A. Face-to-face bullying is more problematic than cyberbullying because it is in person.
B. The website WiredKids helps kids that are cyberbullied by telling them what to do.
C. Cyberbullies often feel bad and apologize when they are caught.
D. Cyberbullying is an online form of bullying that is hurtful and should be s... | D | Read this sentence from the text. Threatening, humiliating, or harassing another person using a computer, a cell phone, or another electronic device is cyberbullying. As used in the sentence, what does the word "harassing" most nearly mean? | A. complimenting someone
B. encouraging someone
C. attacking someone
D. helping someone | C | Choose the word or phrase that best completes the sentence. Cyberbullying doesn’t cause physical pain, __________ victims feel anger, sadness, fear, and embarrassment. | A. so
B. unless
C. but
D. because | C |
The Ex Factors | “Get off your rear and get some exercise!” How many times have you heard that from one of your parents? Like it or not, it’s excellent advice—even more than your mom or dad probably knows.
Regular exercise helps you stay fit and maintain a healthy weight. That much is certain. Recently, however, scientists have discov... | 1,010 | 6 | Social Studies: Sports, Health & Safety | According to the text, how many different myokines have Professor Bente Pedersen identified? | A. 15
B. 6,000
C. 6
D. 600 | D | The text describes the different roles that myokines play throughout the body. According to the text, which of the following does the myokine IL-8 help the body form? | A. liver cells
B. more insulin
C. abdominal fat
D. new capillaries | D | Read this sentence from the text. Constant, low levels of inflammation that occur throughout the body are tied to more serious problems, including dementia, heart disease, and diabetes—virtually all the diseases that are linked to a lack of exercise. What can you conclude about inflammation based on this information? | A. A lack of exercise may be linked to constant low levels of inflammation.
B. Depression is the most common disorder caused by inflammation and is cured with exercise.
C. The best kind of exercise to avoid heart disease and diabetes is to jog for 5 miles every day.
D. It has been proven that there is no link between d... | A | Based on the text, which of the following types of myokine might people be missing if their body has a lot of abdominal fat? | A. IL-15
B. IL-8
C. IL-6
D. IL-30 | A | What is the main idea of this text? | A. Mice that do not have IL-6 develop insulin resistance, which may lead to type 2 diabetes.
B. People should exercise because working muscles release certain compounds that benefit overall health.
C. A lack of exercises causes diseases that all result in chronic inflammation of the body’s tissues.
D. There are over 60... | B | Read these sentences from the text. When muscles work, they somehow communicate with the brain, liver and other organs. Until recently, scientists weren’t sure how muscles sent those messages. As used in the text, what does the word "communicate" mean? | A. use IL-6
B. fight with
C. trade cells
D. be in touch with | D | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. Researchers know the role of some myokines in the human body, ____ there are many more that are still a mystery. | A. but
B. so
C. because
D. after | A |
Where Did King Tut Get His Eyebrows? | In 1922, English archaeologist Howard Carter discovered something spectacular. In Egypt's Valley of the Kings, an underground passage led to an empty room, long ago looted by grave robbers. But searching along the walls of the room, Carter’s team found something strange: a secret panel that opened a hidden chamber. Ins... | 1,110 | 6 | Social Studies: Geography, Societies & Culture, World History | What are the eyebrows on King Tut’s mask made of? | A. copper from Cyprus
B. solid gold
C. papyrus
D. lapis lazuli | D | What does the author describe in the first half of the passage? | A. different uses of lapis lazuli by the Ancient Egyptian ruling class
B. the ancient trade routes that led from Badakhshan toward the Middle East and Egypt
C. the similarities between the founding of Ancient Egypt and the founding of Ancient Rome
D. the discovery and importance of King Tut’s tomb and the mask from his... | D | Read the evidence below and answer the following question. (1) Although it was very difficult to extract lapis lazuli and transport it to Egypt, traders would risk anything to bring the stone to market. (2) The people who made King Tut’s golden mask used real lapis lazuli for the eyebrows but used cheaper, fake lapis l... | A. Ancient Egyptians preferred using imitation lapis lazuli to using real lapis lazuli.
B. Ancient Egyptians were unable to get as much lapis lazuli as they desired.
C. Ancient Egyptians were able to get as much lapis lazuli as they desired.
D. Ancient Egyptians did not want to use lapis lazuli. | B | Based on the passage, what can be concluded about the value of lapis lazuli in Ancient Egypt? | A. Lapis lazuli was not very valuable in Ancient Egypt.
B. Lapis lazuli was less valuable than copper in Ancient Egypt.
C. Lapis lazuli was valuable only to pharaohs in Ancient Egypt.
D. Lapis lazuli was very valuable in Ancient Egypt. | D | What is this passage mostly about? | A. the story of King Tut’s life and the impact of his death on Egyptian culture, trade, and crafts
B. the importance of the eyes and eyebrows to Ancient Egyptian culture and mythology
C. the ways in which the discovery of King Tut’s tomb and golden mask affected Western culture
D. the discovery of King Tut’s tomb and g... | D | The passage ends with these two sentences: “Today, you can see the mask on display at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, Egypt. The eyebrows are as vibrantly blue as they were when Howard Carter discovered them in 1922—and most likely as blue as they were when they were pulled from the earth in Afghanistan, more than 3,000 ... | A. to demonstrate the durability of lapis lazuli and reinforce its value in Ancient Egyptian and present-day Western cultures
B. to direct the reader to visit Egypt in person to learn more about the history of King Tut, his mask, and the lapis lazuli eyebrows
C. to connect the present-day reader to the two main histori... | C | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. King Tut’s tomb was filled with hundreds of beautiful and impressive artifacts; ______, it contained his death mask. | A. in particular
B. on the contrary
C. as a result
D. although | A |
Puppet Power! | When most people think about puppets, images from childhood come to mind: Kermit the Frog and Elmo from Sesame Street, perhaps. Today, however, puppets seem to be getting out of hand, popping up in TV commercials, and on Broadway and on the Japanese stage.
In New York City, puppets are singing opera. They are reciting ... | 870 | 6 | Arts: Music & Performing Arts | The author gives examples of puppets doing all of the following EXCEPT | A. starring in TV commercials
B. reciting Shakespeare
C. singing opera
D. giving political speeches | D | In this passage, what does the author try to convince the reader of? | A. All stage productions should feature puppets.
B. The use of puppets is getting out of hand.
C. Marionettes are the most interesting puppets.
D. People should go see more puppet productions. | B | After reading the passage, you can conclude that the author | A. has strong opinions about puppets
B. has never watched Sesame Street
C. was once a puppeteer
D. is a fan of Broadway shows | A | Read this sentence from the passage: “They can be simple cardboard cutouts or elaborate foam-rubber forms.” Based on the text, the word elaborate means | A. complicated
B. important
C. average
D. inexpensive | A | The primary purpose of this passage is to | A. convince the reader of the author’s point of view
B. persuade people to see more puppet theater shows
C. describe the stage production of The Lion King
D. compare and contrast different kinds of puppets | A | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Some puppets are being featured in Broadway shows _______ New York City. | A. in
B. on
C. and
D. or | A | null | null | null |
In the Enemy's Grip | In 1975, North Vietnamese troops rolled into Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, ending decades of conflict. The North Vietnamese captured Peter Hoang, who tells his story to his niece Jacquelynn.
My uncle was a Republic of South Vietnam officer. He joined the army in 1972 during the Vietnam War, which pitted the Com... | 830 | 6 | Social Studies: World History, U.S. History | Who was an ally of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War? | A. the Soviet Union
B. North Vietnam
C. China
D. the United States | D | Which of the following was an effect of Peter Hoang being sent to a concentration camp? | A. He became a doctor and helped injured and sick prisoners.
B. He was given a house and a plot to grow his own vegetables.
C. He had to do hard labor and was not given enough to eat.
D. He was paid for his hard work and had plenty of food to eat. | C | Which of the following conclusions about Peter Hoang is supported by the passage? | A. He is planning to move back to Saigon.
B. He is glad to be living in the United States.
C. He does not like living in the United States.
D. He wishes he could move back to Vietnam. | B | Read this sentence from the passage: “My uncle lived through the painful ordeal.” In this sentence, the word ordeal means | A. an annoying relative
B. a difficult experience
C. a predictable moment
D. an unlikely achievement | B | The primary purpose of this passage is to describe | A. the decades of conflict between North and South Vietnam
B. how the North Vietnamese took over the capital of South Vietnam
C. why Jacquelynn Nguyen decided to write about her uncle
D. Peter Hoang’s experience as a POW in Vietnam | D | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. _______ Peter’s finger became infected, a fellow POW helped treat his wound. | A. Though
B. However
C. Before
D. When | D | null | null | null |
Song and Dance | Cross the United States and you'll hear a chorus of regional accents. Some people say car; others say cah. Some say butter; others buttah. Even the country's songbirds have their own dialects, says Duke University biologist Erich Jarvis.
Songbirds learn to express themselves vocally by imitating adults, just as people ... | 930 | 6 | Science: Life Science | What is vocal learning? | A. learning to internally express oneself by ignoring adults
B. learning to vocally express oneself by imitating adults
C. learning to vocally express oneself by ignoring adults
D. learning to internally express oneself by imitating adults | B | The text is divided into sections with subheadings. What does the section with the subheading "Bird Brains" describe? | A. Jarvis's comparison of the drive required to pursue both science and dance
B. Jarvis's discovery of a gene in birds that is similar to the human gene FOXP2
C. Jarvis's decision to become a scientist instead of a professional dancer
D. Jarvis's research on gene expressions and the genes that control vocal learning | D | Read this sentence from the text. "Humans and birds react similarly when the FOXP2 gene is randomly altered." What evidence from the text supports this conclusion? | A. When the FOXP2 gene is damaged, songbirds can develop vocalization problems similar to those that affect people with FOXP2 mutations.
B. Genes are the basic units that determine how a body functions. When a gene is functioning, it produces telltale by-products in the form of proteins.
C. Many researchers who study h... | A | Jarvis's research on bird brains could have a huge impact on our understanding of human brains. What evidence in the text supports this conclusion? | A. "Wings have evolved multiple times on wildly different creatures—pterosaurs, bats, birds, and insects."
B. "Three types of birds exhibit vocal learning: songbirds, parrots, and hummingbirds."
C. "Jarvis hopes his work will someday help stroke victims who lose the ability to say what they are thinking."
D. "Jarvis tu... | C | What is this passage mostly about? | A. Erich Jarvis and his research on vocal learning through his study of birds
B. Constance Scharff and her discovery of a gene in birds similar to the human FOXP2
C. the ways in which songbirds, parrots, and hummingbirds differ from each other
D. the ways in which young male zebra finches learn songs from their mothers | A | Read these sentences from the text. "Above all, Jarvis's work has shown that, brain-wise, birds are not the featherweights they've always been labeled. 'Being called a birdbrain,' he says, 'should not be an insult.'" When Jarvis says, "Being called a birdbrain should not be an insult," what might he mean? | A. Birds' brains are so different from human brains that calling someone a birdbrain does not make much sense.
B. Birds' brains are so similar to human brains that calling someone a birdbrain does not make much sense.
C. Birds' brains are actually very simple, and so calling someone a birdbrain could be rude.
D. Birds'... | D | Read these sentences from the text. "Not all genes are active at the same time. When a gene is functioning, though, it produces telltale by-products in the form of proteins. Those by-products are called gene expressions." What word could replace the word "though" without changing the sentence's meaning? | A. previously
B. therefore
C. however
D. obviously | C |
Thanksgiving in London | They didn’t even have turkey on the airplane. The coach cabin was long and wide, and it smelled like a stuffy old minivan. The lights were off even though it was just past sunset. This had something to do with helping the passengers get used to the time change, but it just made Carrie feel sad. Back home it was Tuesday... | 760 | 5-6 | null | Why is Carrie’s family going to London? | A. to tour a different country
B. to visit Carrie’s brother
C. to visit Carrie’s cousins
D. to make Carrie miserable | B | What main problem does Carrie face? | A. She does not want Thanksgiving to be different this year.
B. She does not want Jessica to join them in London.
C. She does not want to visit her brother in London.
D. She does not want her brother to study abroad. | A | Carrie is not looking forward to Thanksgiving in London. What evidence from the story supports this conclusion? | A. “She could think of no reason to go overseas, unless it was to marry someone whose family members wore crowns.”
B. “Carrie laughed a funny kind of laugh, very sure that this Thanksgiving was not going to be awesome at all.”
C. “The trouble began that spring, when her older brother announced he was going to “study ab... | B | How does Carrie feel about things that are new to her or different? | A. She doesn’t like them.
B. She finds them interesting.
C. She does not have an opinion.
D. She is excited by them. | A | What is this story mostly about? | A. a girl who does not like Thanksgiving food
B. a trip to London that does not go as planned
C. a boy who studies abroad in London for a semester
D. how Carrie feels about having Thanksgiving in London | D | Read the following sentences: “Carrie seethed . She clenched her fists and screwed up her eyes and breathed loudly through her teeth. Since Brian left for college, she had gotten very good at seething.” In this sentence, what does “seethed” mean? | A. was hungry
B. was angry
C. was sad
D. was tired | B | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. Carrie loves Thanksgiving dinner; _________, she does not like the sound of an English Thanksgiving. | A. namely
B. especially
C. however
D. finally | C |
Driven to Distraction | Lindsey Harden had just turned 18 and was looking forward to graduation in six months when her world turned upside down. After fighting with her boyfriend one cold January morning, she stormed out on him. The fight continued by text messaging as she drove away. “We were feuding through text,” she recalls.
With her eyes... | 1,010 | 6 | Science: Technology & Engineering, Life Science | According to the text, what percentage of all car accidents each year is caused by talking on the phone while driving? | A. 14%
B. 21%
C. 12%
D. 20% | B | Which of the following is the strongest of evidence the author uses to persuade the reader not to text while driving? | A. The NSC estimates that 1.2 million crashes a year involve talking on a phone, including hands-free calls, while driving.
B. Many Americans text while driving because they are afraid they will miss out on something.
C. In 2009, Americans sent more than 1.56 trillion text messages, according to wireless industry stati... | D | The reason you cannot successfully text and drive at the same time is because your brain is incapable of doing both things at once. What evidence from the text supports this conclusion? | A. “The NSC estimates that 1.2 million crashes a year—about 21 percent of all auto accidents—involve talking on a phone, including hands-free calls, while driving. In 2009, distracted driving led to accidents that injured half a million people and killed another 5,500, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation... | D | How would the author likely describe a person who texts and drives? | A. focused and thoughtful
B. reckless and irresponsible
C. foolish but harmless
D. busy and rushed | B | What is the main idea of this text? | A. Scientific tests are a useful way of measuring distractibility while driving.
B. Texting and talking on the phone is dangerous and should be outlawed.
C. Driving while distracted is inevitable.
D. Texting and talking on the phone will undoubtedly cause death. | B | Read these sentences from the text. The fight continued by text messaging as she drove away. “We were feuding through text,” she recalls. In these sentences, what does the word "feuding" mean? | A. chatting
B. writing
C. arguing
D. discussing | C | Choose the word that best completes the sentence. ______ Lindsey Harden survived her car crash, she realized how reckless texting while driving is and would never do it again. | A. Before
B. Although
C. Meanwhile
D. However | B |
Tea Time! | “Honey!” Robbie’s mother called from upstairs. “If you’re making tea, can you make me some?”
Robbie wasn’t making tea, and he suspected his mother knew that. She had just brought him home from school, and tea was the last thing on his mind. She should have realized that he wanted to pull off his shoes, flop down onto ... | 810 | 6 | null | What does Robbie want to do when he gets home from school? | A. start his homework
B. make tea for his mother
C. watch some television
D. take his afternoon nap | D | What does the author describe in the middle section of the text? | A. why Robbie first started drinking and making tea
B. why Robbie started taking naps in the afternoon
C. why Robbie’s mother always asks Robbie to make tea
D. why Robbie’s mother first started drinking tea | A | Read these sentences from the text. “The last thing he wanted was to be hustling around the kitchen, fiddling with spoons and teapots, and fussy little bags of tea. Making tea was the opposite of a nap, and after a long day at school, Robbie knew there was nothing that would make him happier than a nice little nap.” Ba... | A. Robbie cannot decide between taking a nap and making tea.
B. Robbie thinks making tea will help him go to sleep.
C. The school day has made Robbie feel very tired.
D. The school day has filled Robbie with energy. | C | Robbie thinks that making tea is not a simple process. What evidence from the text supports this statement? | A. “The last thing he wanted was to be hustling around the kitchen, fiddling with spoons and teapots, and fussy little bags of tea.”
B. “Every time he was about to sit down to do homework, watch TV, or take a nap, she would call from upstairs: ‘Honey? If you’re making tea, could you make me some?’”
C. “He liked green t... | A | What is the main idea of this text? | A. Robbie decides to help his mother out by making tea instead of doing his homework.
B. Robbie makes tea for his mother and himself, even though he wants to take a nap.
C. Robbie makes tea in order to wake himself up and feel more energetic after school.
D. Robbie decides to take a nap instead of making tea for his mo... | B | Read these sentences from the text. “It would take four minutes for the tea to steep. Four minutes when Robbie could be taking a nap. Four minutes when…boy, his eyes were getting heavy.” Why might the author have interrupted the last sentence with “…boy, his eyes were getting heavy”? | A. to imply that Robbie has a short attention span
B. to show that it takes four minutes for Robbie to fall asleep
C. to indicate that Robbie is caught up in the task of making tea
D. to emphasize just how tired Robbie feels | D | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. ______ Robbie made tea and brought it to his mother, he flopped back down onto the couch and shut his eyes. | A. Although
B. While
C. Because
D. After | D |
News Debate: Pajama Game | A government official in one Louisiana community is tired of seeing pajamas on parade. Michael Williams, a commissioner in Caddo Parish (a Louisiana parish is similar to a county), is pushing for a ban on wearing sleepwear in public. Williams got the idea for the law after spotting several shoppers at a local departmen... | 990 | 6 | Social Studies: Geography, Societies & Culture, U.S. History | What is government official Michael Williams pushing to ban? | A. wearing sleepwear in public
B. wearing business attire in public
C. wearing uniforms in public
D. wearing swimwear in public | A | In the passage, the author presents two sides in the argument about the issue of banning pajamas in public. What is one reason for opposing the ban? | A. Wearing pajamas or other kinds of revealing clothing in public is offensive.
B. A certain level of formality should be required in public places.
C. Pajamas can be inappropriate and revealing.
D. Banning pajamas in public violates people’s freedom of expression. | D | People who wear pajamas in public might be thought of as rude. What evidence from the text supports this conclusion? | A. "This country has freedom of expression, and restricting what clothing people can wear is taking away some of that freedom."
B. "The way in which one dresses can also reflect their behavior. Well-dressed individuals usually have better manners and exhibit better behavior."
C. "Clothing gives people a way to communic... | B | According to the text, why might banning pajamas in public be dangerous? | A. It could make it easier for the government to take more freedom away from people.
B. It could encourage people to wear other kinds of inappropriate clothing in public.
C. It could force people to pay more money for other kinds of clothing.
D. It could make people be responsible with the things they wear in public. | A | What is the main idea of this text? | A. Michael Williams is pushing for a ban on wearing pajamas in public.
B. Pajamas offend the sentiments of people who do not expect to see such a sight when they step outside.
C. There is a debate about whether people should be banned from wearing pajamas in public.
D. Restricting what clothing people can wear takes aw... | C | Read these sentences from the text. "Have you ever seen someone wear a swimsuit to a business meeting? No. Then why wear pajamas to a public place where they do not belong?" Why might the author have asked these questions? | A. to emphasize that certain clothes are not appropriate in certain situations
B. to suggest that wearing pajamas in public is a form of freedom of expression
C. to draw the reader's attention away from the ban on wearing pajamas in public
D. to encourage the reader to choose the clothes he or she wears in public caref... | A | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. Many people think that a certain level of formality should be required in public places. __________, other people think that no one should be able to tell you what to wear when you go out. | A. Since
B. However
C. Although
D. Because | B |
Alone in the Universe | Tell yourself as much as you want to that you don’t believe in aliens, UFOs, or extraterrestrials, but until you’ve spent one night camping out in the desert near the airfield outside of Roswell, New Mexico, sleeping under an open sky so immense and glittering that the ground beneath you seems like little more than a s... | 1,060 | 6 | null | Who claims that he “certainly wasn’t a ‘believer’” at the beginning of the story? | A. a pilot flying to an airfield near Roswell, New Mexico
B. Jesse, the narrator
C. Dillon, one of Jesse’s friends
D. Jesse’s fifth-grade teacher | B | What are the two main settings in this story? | A. Jesse’s house and an airfield near Roswell, New Mexico
B. a school bus and an airfield near Roswell, New Mexico
C. a school bus and the desert near Roswell, New Mexico
D. the desert near Roswell, New Mexico, and Jesse’s house | C | While on the bus to the campsite, Jesse recalls that he didn’t sleep for a week after hearing about a TV show in which aliens kidnap a little girl. But he tells his friends that he’s too old to believe in aliens. What conclusion can you draw from this information? | A. Jesse doesn’t believe in aliens at all.
B. Jesse doesn’t think he should believe in aliens.
C. Jesse definitely believes aliens exist.
D. Jesse thinks everyone should believe in aliens. | B | Before Jesse and his friends see anything unusual while camping, how does Jesse feel about the idea of aliens? | A. disbelieving and bored
B. confident and interested
C. uncertain and scared
D. curious and excited | C | What is the main idea of this story? | A. A boy goes camping near Roswell, New Mexico, with his classmates.
B. A gullible boy thinks a regular airplane is actually a UFO.
C. A boy becomes convinced that aliens, UFOs, and extraterrestrials are real.
D. A boy tries to convince his friends that aliens and UFOs exist. | C | The passage begins with the following paragraph: “Tell yourself as much as you want to that you don’t believe in aliens, UFOs, or extraterrestrials, but until you’ve spent one night camping out in the desert near the airfield outside of Roswell, New Mexico, sleeping under an open sky so immense and glittering that the ... | A. to express that the narrator of the story doesn’t trust the reader
B. to give the reader a hint about what might happen later in the story
C. to force the reader to think about the dust in auditoriums
D. to convince the reader to go camping in the desert near Roswell, New Mexico | B | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. Dillon firmly believes in aliens. ______, Dylan doesn’t believe in aliens at all. | A. In contrast
B. Simliarly
C. Even though
D. For example | A |
China Under Attack | Japan attacked China in 1937, launching the second Chinese-Japanese War. At first, Japanese forces overpowered the Chinese. But when Japan bombed the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor in 1941, China gained a powerful ally—the United States. The United States dropped two atomic bombs on Japan in 1945, forcing the country ... | 900 | 6 | Social Studies: World History | Where did Mary Yu Chang live before the Chinese-Japanese War? | A. Shanghai
B. Hong Kong
C. North Vietnam
D. Chongqing | A | How was Mary Yu Chang's family affected by the war? | A. Some of her family members had to join the army and fight.
B. Her family helped dig tunnels for soldiers to hide in and fight from.
C. Her family was one of the few families that did not have to move.
D. Her family had to flee to Chongqing and live in scary conditions. | D | Read the following sentences from the text. “ During her time in Chongqing, there were many air raids. The city had a detailed plan in the event of an air raid. If the siren went off and only one ball was placed on top of the pole on the mountain, it meant school was over. If a siren went off and two balls were on top ... | A. Everyone in China survived the war.
B. The war only affected the people in Chongqing.
C. The war was a scary and dangerous time.
D. The war was over quickly and didn’t do much damage. | C | According to the text, what are some of the ways that war can change everyday life? | A. War can change the place you live, what you eat, and your safety in school.
B. War can change the names of the places, like cities and countries.
C. War can change the types of sports you play and the uniforms you wear.
D. War can change the songs you sing and the books you read. | A | What is the main idea of this text? | A. Air raids were a common occurrence in China during the second Chinese-Japanese War and World War II.
B. Life was difficult for Mary Yu Chang and her family during the second Chinese-Japanese War and World War II.
C. Chongqing was bombed thousands of times during the second Chinese-Japanese War and World War II.
D. P... | B | Read the following sentences from the text. “But when Japan bombed the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor in 1941, China gained a powerful ally —the United States. The United States dropped two atomic bombs on Japan in 1945, forcing the country to surrender and ending World War II and the Chinese-Japanese War.” As used in... | A. device
B. weapon
C. friend
D. enemy | C | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. ________ the war ended in 1945, Mary Yu Chang and her family returned to their hometown. | A. After
B. Instead
C. Yet
D. However | A |
Stalled Out | Mom thinks it’s gorgeous, but the Solomon Parkway is just a too-windy road through a long patch of grass. There’s a dirty, shallow creek that mimics all of the turns of the pavement, and some trees line the sidewalk and shade a few playgrounds along the stretch. I hardly ever see people play on those swing sets when we... | 980 | 6 | null | Where were Margot and her family driving? | A. at a hospital parking lot
B. the Solomon Parkway
C. along the lake to Chicago
D. the road in front of her house | B | What led to the traffic completely stopping on the parkway? | A. There were too many cars.
B. A man had a heart attack in his car.
C. There was an accident.
D. There was construction work being done on the road. | B | Margot is an impatient person. What evidence from the text supports this conclusion? | A. Margot ran to the cafeteria for lunch but didn’t get there in time to beat the line.
B. Margot complains to her mom about waiting at lunch and waiting for the cars to move in traffic.
C. Margot asks the cop what happened when they drive to the intersection.
D. Margot is curious as to why the traffic on the Solomon P... | B | What can be concluded about the effect the man’s death had on Margot? | A. The man’s death did not affect Margot.
B. The man’s death affected Margot.
C. The man’s death made Margot angry.
D. The man’s death made Margot confused. | B | What is the theme of this text? | A. People don’t care about the misfortune of strangers.
B. Life is filled with moments of waiting.
C. Sitting in traffic can be a very unpleasant and frustrating experience.
D. Death can happen at any time or place, despite any inconvenience it may cause. | D | Read these sentences from the text. Some old man decided to die right there, at a red light, with a road full of people getting off of shifts at the hospital or getting out of school for the day, their cars piling up. He ignored all of the honks from angry doctors behind him, doctors who were off the clock and sick of ... | A. ran away
B. woke up
C. died
D. bled | C | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. Traffic usually slowed on the Solomon Parkway, _________ it never came to a stop as it did the day the man’s heart stalled out. | A. because
B. so
C. and
D. but | D |
Crash! | If you think you can handle driving after drinking alcohol, talk to Kenny Bollier. When he was 17, the Texas resident (pictured below) made a choice that still haunts him. “I let my friend drive my truck even though we’d all been drinking,” he says. “I was sure we could handle it.” The friend crashed the truck.
Althou... | 1,010 | 6 | Social Studies: Sports, Health & Safety | According to the text, what do most teens who drink alcohol and drive probably think? | A. that they can let their friend drive
B. that they can drink and drive safely
C. that they can make bad decisions
D. that they can save people's lives | B | The author presents some solutions to a problem. One of the solutions is “to steer clear of situations where alcohol is present.” What is the problem? | A. people crashing their friends cars
B. teenagers drinking alcohol and driving
C. young people making smarter choices
D. parents giving their children rides | B | Read these sentences from the text. What’s more, teens are more vulnerable to alcohol’s effects than adults are. Haggerty explains that the brain’s decision-making frontal lobe doesn’t mature until people are in their 20s. “Teens are more prone to blackouts and less likely to have an adult’s warning system of ‘acting d... | A. Alcohol affects teenagers more strongly than adults.
B. Alcohol affects adults more strongly than teenagers.
C. Alcohol affects teenagers but not adults.
D. Alcohol affects adults but not teenagers. | A | After reading the text, what is probably true about drinking and driving among teenagers? | A. It is not such a big a problem.
B. It can be stopped completely by lowering the drinking age.
C. It remains a problem, and people continue to seek solutions.
D. It will no longer be a problem in the future. | C | What is this text mainly about? | A. how the teenage brain is affected by alcohol
B. the importance of not going to parties where alcohol is served
C. the danger of teen drinking and driving and how to stay safe
D. how the legal drinking age today has saved lives | C | Read these sentences from the text. “Teens are more prone to blackouts and less likely to have an adult’s warning system of ‘acting drunk,’ like weaving or staggering,” he says. “Teens are also more likely than adults to become uninhibited and to make bad decisions.” As used in these sentences, what does the word “pron... | A. interested in
B. lying down
C. happy about
D. likely to have | D | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. Many teens estimate the number of kids who drink is 90 or 95 percent _________ evidence that the real percentage is much, much lower. | A. for example
B. because
C. despite
D. around | C |
Music Inside of Us | When I was four years old, I wanted nothing more in life than to play the piano. My best friend Bethany had a piano, but she didn't play it very often. I could barely contain my jealousy. I felt something tingle inside me when I played it. The piano was important. It was meant to be. Bethany hardly played it at all. Sh... | 550 | 6 | Arts: Music & Performing Arts | What instrument does the author want to own? | A. clarinet
B. piano
C. flute
D. guitar | B | This passage describes the sequence of events that led to the author owning a piano. Which instrument did the author receive first? | A. recorder
B. flute
C. piano
D. clarinet | A | The author’s mother supported the musical development of her children. What information from the passage supports this conclusion? | A. The author’s mother could not afford to buy the author a piano when she was very young.
B. The author’s mother would find her son’s flute lying around the house.
C. The author’s mother clipped an ad out of the newspaper when the author was in seventh grade.
D. The author’s mother bought her kids different instrument... | D | Based on the information in the passage, what can be concluded about the author’s musical ability? | A. The author is a good musician who can play multiple instruments.
B. The author is only good at playing the recorder.
C. The author is only good at playing the piano.
D. The author is not a good musician. | A | What is the main idea of this passage? | A. how every person can enjoy making music if they find the right instrument
B. how to play the piano
C. why every person should play the piano
D. why the guitar is a better instrument than the flute | A | Read the following sentences from the passage: “Do you struggle with music? Have you been given an instrument to play, but you just can't play it?” As used in the passage, what does the word “struggle” mean? | A. physically fighting against something
B. easily learning a new skill
C. having difficulty mastering something
D. facing an impossible task | C | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. The author played different instruments when she was young, __________ it was the piano which she longed for. | A. finally
B. but
C. initially
D. for instance | B |
Ice Picks | When physicist Jim Madsen goes to work in Antarctica during the South Pole summer, he enjoys sunlight 24-7. That’s ironic because his project, a giant telescope called IceCube, requires total darkness. But the round-the-clock sunshine doesn’t affect IceCube, because it’s located deep within the Antarctic ice. “You don’... | 1,000 | 6 | Science: Physical Science | According to the text, what is IceCube? | A. tiny invisible particles from space
B. a giant telescope that requires total darkness
C. some of the smallest particles in the universe
D. most of the matter in the universe | B | What is the most detailed and informative description of IceCube as used in the text? | A. It detects muons, which are particles that cannot be broken down into smaller pieces.
B. It took the scientific team seven years to create IceCube because it is the largest telescope of its kind.
C. It detects neutrinos and is made of over 5,000 digital optical modules ( DOMs ) arranged on long cables.
D. It is loca... | C | It would be impossible to detect neutrinos in places where there are a lot of people and light. What evidence from the text supports this conclusion? | A. “Neutrinos are released by high-energy events. Some neutrinos are created on Earth by the nuclear reactions in nuclear power plants.”
B. “The DOMs record data about every neutrino hit, enabling the scientists to see what direction the neutrinos came from and how much energy they carried.”
C. “Most neutrinos zoom thr... | D | How would the author most likely describe the IceCube scientists? | A. intelligent but stubborn
B. persistent and pioneering
C. excited and hardworking
D. foolish but daring | B | What is the main idea of the text? | A. A new giant telescope called IceCube was designed to find tiny invisible particles from space called neutrinos.
B. Neutrinos can move easily in space and can even move through planets and our bodies.
C. A supernova is an explosion from a star, and a gamma-ray burst releases electromagnetic radiation.
D. IceCube is m... | A | Read these sentences from the text. Neutrinos are very hard to detect, says Madsen. To sense their presence, complete darkness and a large expanse of something clear are essential . Antarctica’s deep, clear ice fits the bill perfectly. As used in these sentences, what does the word "essential" mean? | A. interesting
B. helpful
C. necessary
D. unimportant | C | Choose the word that best completes the sentence. The Antarctic ice is very clean and clear; ______, IceCube can detect the blue glow created by muons through the Antarctic ice. | A. therefore
B. instead
C. however
D. obviously | A |
Honeymoon in Havana | On Jan. 1, 1959, revolutionary leader Fidel Castro and his rebel soldiers seized control of Cuba, ousting dictator Fulgencio Batista. Castro turned the small island nation into a communist state, with all property belonging to the government. Molly Rossi interviewed her grandmother, Monica Rossi, who was traveling in C... | 770 | 6 | Social Studies: World History | According to the text, who was traveling in Cuba during the revolt? | A. Molly Rossi of Grassland Middle School
B. the concierge at the hotel in Havana
C. Molly's grandmother, Monica Rossi
D. Cuba's dictator Fulgencio Batista | C | What does the text describe? | A. the wedding of Molly's grandparents, Monica and Frank Rossi
B. Molly's grandmother's experience of the revolt in Cuba
C. Cuba's leaders leading up to Fulgencio Batista
D. the various groups involved with the Cuban revolution | B | Read these sentences from Molly's grandmother's story in the text. "When I got in bed that night, I heard lots of loud explosions. Since it was New Year’s Eve, I thought they were fireworks, so I said, ‘These Cubans sure know how to celebrate!’ Little did we know that these noises were actually cannonball fires and gun... | A. Molly's grandmother was not aware of the danger outside.
B. Molly's grandmother was nervous during the Cuban revolt.
C. Molly's grandmother was ready to fight in the Cuban revolt.
D. Molly's grandmother never knew what made the loud sounds outside. | A | Based on the text, what does Molly's grandmother probably think about her honeymoon in Cuba? | A. It was a lovely, relaxing time.
B. It was a happy, exciting memory.
C. It was a boring, forgetful trip.
D. It was a stressful, scary nightmare. | B | What is the main idea of the text? | A. Molly Rossi is a student at Grassland Middle School, and her grandparents left for their honeymoon in December 28, 1958.
B. Molly Rossi hears about Cuba's capital of Havana, like how the country's most popular nightclub is located there.
C. Molly Rossi encourages other kids to ask their grandparents about their expe... | D | Read these sentences from the text. On Jan. 1, 1959, revolutionary leader Fidel Castro and his rebel soldiers seized control of Cuba, ousting dictator Fulgencio Batista. Castro turned the small island nation into a communist state, with all property belonging to the government. As used in these sentences, what does the... | A. forcefully took
B. kindly asked for
C. quickly threw away
D. carefully planned | A | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. Molly Rossi wanted to learn about her grandmother's life, ______ Molly interviewed her grandmother. | A. because
B. so
C. although
D. despite | B |
A Hole in the Planet! | Back in March of 2007, a team of 12 British scientists set sail aboard the RRS James Cook to find out why a large chunk of Earth's crust, or outer layer, is missing three miles below the surface of the Atlantic Ocean. In its place is a large, exposed stretch of mantle—the deep inner layer of Earth.
The crew departed fr... | 980 | 6-7 | Science: Earth & Space Science | Review the graphic of the inside of Earth. Which layer makes up the center of Earth? | A. crust
B. mantle
C. outer core
D. inner core | D | As described in the passage, what is Toby, the robotic device, helping scientists uncover? | A. why Earth is made up of different layers
B. the size of the large gap in Earth’s crust
C. the reason why part of Earth’s surface has disappeared
D. how many more holes in Earth’s crust are out there | C | Scientist Bramley Murton says “it is like a window into the interior of Earth”.
Why might the author have chosen to include this quote in the article? He chose the quote because | A. the language illustrates how the hole offers a clear view into the crust.
B. it explains why the hole occurred in that particular spot in the Atlantic Ocean
C. it persuades more researchers to study the area
D. the language illustrates the size of the hole in the earth’s crust | A | Read the following sentence from the passage: “The crew departed from the Canary Islands, which are located off the northwestern coast of Africa.” In this sentence, the word departed most nearly means | A. arrived
B. left
C. journey
D. boarded | B | Which statement supports the main idea of this passage? | A. A robotic device is helping scientist learn about the hole.
B. Earth’s layers get hotter and hotter toward the center.
C. The gap is located 2,300 miles southwest of the Canary Islands.
D. Scientists are studying a mysterious hole in Earth’s surface. | D | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. The expedition was a rare opportunity for the scientists _______________ it isn’t often that they get to see the center of the earth! | A. but
B. finally
C. because
D. so | C | null | null | null |
That Tickles! | Have you ever tried tickling yourself? If you're like most people, it doesn't work. Scientists say there's a good reason why. They recently conducted tickling experiments and discovered that it has to do with your brain.
The cerebellum is an area of your brain that controls your body's balance and coordination. When yo... | 760 | 6 | Science: Life Science | What is the cerebellum? | A. a feeling of being tickled
B. a science experiment
C. an area of the brain
D. a kind of instrument | C | How does the author describe most people’s responses to a “self-tickle”? | A. as silly business
B. as serious
C. as uncomfortable
D. as dangerous | A | What was the author trying to convey to the reader by stating, “That’s no laughing matter”? | A. A tickle is something difficult not to laugh about.
B. It doesn’t matter if you laugh when being tickled.
C. Most people laugh too much when they are tickled.
D. A tickle may be a sign of a serious matter. | D | Read this sentence from the passage: “They recently conducted tickling experiments and discovered that it has to do with your brain.” In this sentence, the word conducted means | A. carried out
B. shared
C. listened to
D. mocked | A | Which statement best describes the main idea of this passage? | A. Most people react negatively when they are being tickled by someone.
B. Your body will probably alert you if a spider is crawling on your skin.
C. The human brain is much more complex than people once thought.
D. Scientists recently learned why people don’t respond to self-tickles. | D | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Your brain protects your body _________ only responding to tickles coming from somewhere else. | A. nor
B. and
C. yet
D. by | D | null | null | null |
Pizza Problems | Should kids be reading for pizza? A nationwide reading program is drawing criticism for putting pizza front and center. Since 1985, the restaurant chain Pizza Hut has been running the Book It program, which rewards students for reading with personal pan pizzas. Now some people are taking a slice at Book It. They say th... | 1,070 | 6 | Social Studies: School & Family Life | How many U.S. schools take part in the Book It program? | A. 200,000
B. 50,000
C. 200 million
D. 22 million | B | The passage shows two sides of this debate: Should kids be reading for pizza? What is one argument in favor of the pizza reward program? | A. The program rewards kids with fast food.
B. The program gives a company free advertising.
C. The program promotes reading skills.
D. The program teaches students healthy habits. | C | After reading the passage, what can you conclude about the Book It program? | A. Not everyone agrees that the program is a good idea.
B. Kids who take part in the program will stop eating pizza.
C. The program will start rewarding kids with fresh fruit.
D. More schools will sign up for the program in the future. | A | Read this sentence from the passage: “They say the program promotes poor eating habits and gives Pizza Hut free advertising in public schools.” In this sentence, the word promotes means | A. quickly considers
B. strongly agrees with
C. actively encourages
D. completely challenges | C | The primary purpose of this passage is to describe | A. the importance of setting reading goals for children
B. how pizza can be used to reward students for reading
C. both sides of a debate about the Book It program
D. why students need to learn healthy eating habits | C | The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose the word that best completes the sentence. More than 200 million pizzas have been rewarded to students ______ the program began. | A. since
B. finally
C. before
D. about | A | null | null | null |
The Problem Solvers | Problems—whether they are scientific, medical, creative, culinary, personal, communal, or any other type—require solutions. The best way to find a solution that fits is to first research the problem. Find out as much as you can about what the difficulty is. Say, for instance, the issue is architectural in nature. A bou... | 1,020 | 6 | Science: Technology & Engineering | What is the best way to start solving a problem? | A. test possible solutions
B. list a variety of solutions
C. brainstorm with peers
D. research the problem | D | The problem with the hotel described in the passage is that it is not accessible to handicapped people. What is one possible solution? | A. building a ramp
B. putting a throw rug in every room
C. placing potted plants in the hallways
D. removing hand-held showerheads from the bathrooms | A | A problem can have more than one solution. What evidence from the passage supports this statement? | A. The best way to begin solving a problem is to research the problem.
B. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, a wheelchair ramp should be at least 36 inches wide.
C. Throw rugs can move around on a floor, making a room less wheelchair-friendly.
D. A cook who needs a butter substitute could use canola oil, oliv... | D | Why is testing ideas for solving a problem important? | A. Testing ideas shows people that their ideas are not as good as they thought.
B. Tests can show whether an idea for a solving a problem will actually work.
C. Tests show people that wood is always a better material for building than concrete.
D. Tests make cooks feel foolish when they have run out of butter. | B | What is this passage mainly about? | A. a cook who runs out of butter
B. the U.S. Department of Justice
C. canola oil, olive oil, margarine, and shortening
D. the process of solving problems | D | Read the following sentence: “When thinking up solutions and performing tests, you must take into consideration a whole variety of variables —in this case, factors like cost, efficiency and safety levels.” What does the word variables mean? | A. problems
B. solutions
C. things that can change
D. things that stay the same | C | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. There are several steps in the process of problem solving, ______ research and brainstorming. | A. including
B. last
C. before
D. meanwhile | A |
What's Up, Doc? | —Kaitlin B., Pennsylvania
Sweat happens from the inside out. When the body gets too hot, it uses sweat to regulate its temperature. "Sweat is produced by specialized glands in the skin called eccrine glands," explains Dr. Joely Kaufman, assistant professor of dermatology at the University of Miami. When we exercise or ... | 1,020 | 6 | Social Studies: Sports, Health & Safety | According to the text, what is sweat produced by? | A. evaporate glands
B. eccrine glands
C. skin glands
D. sympathetic nerves | B | A temporary drop in blood pressure causes someone to feel light-headed. According to the text, which of the following may cause a temporary drop in blood pressure? | A. regulating body’s temperature
B. getting too hot
C. standing up too fast
D. sweating | C | Read these sentences from the text. When we exercise or spend time outside on a hot day, our bodies get hot and our sympathetic nerves (they're the part of our nervous system that deals with stress) signal the eccrine glands to release sweat to the skin. Eccrine glands are located right underneath the skin everywhere o... | A. The body can only produce sweat when it’s hot outside.
B. Often, the body produces sweat to keep from getting too hot.
C. The nervous system is more important than the eccrine glands in cooling our bodies.
D. Most people only sweat when they exercise for 30 minutes or more. | B | Based on the text, how is fainting and light-headedness connected? | A. Fainting always happens after light-headedness.
B. Fainting is a dangerous cause of light-headedness.
C. Fainting is a serious effect of light-headedness.
D. Fainting is the main sign of light-headedness. | C | What is this text mostly about? | A. how the body cools itself down
B. why humans sweat and get light-headed
C. where eccrine glands are located on the body
D. what to do if you’re feeling light-headed | B | Read this sentence from the text. When the body gets too hot, it uses sweat to regulate its temperature. As used in the text, what does the word "regulate" mean? | A. increase
B. control
C. ignore
D. record | B | Choose the word that best completes the sentence. The body cools down ______ sweat evaporates and carries the heat from the body into the environment. | A. so
B. but
C. although
D. after | D |
Weather or Not | When it comes to her favorite kind of weather, eleven-year-old Elena W. knows exactly what she likes.
“The sun is out, and there’s a cool breeze,” says the fifth grader from San Antonio, Texas.
Patrick J., also eleven, likes cold weather the best. That’s because some of his favorite outdoor activities, such as ice fish... | 1,030 | 6 | Social Studies: Sports, Health & Safety | What is Elena W.'s favorite kind of weather? | A. sunny with a cool breeze
B. humid, sticky weather
C. wet, rainy weather
D. cold and overcast | A | The text describes the effects different types of weather can have on your mood. What effect could spending at least thirty minutes a day in warm, sunny weather have on your mood? | A. It could improve your mood.
B. It could make you feel exhausted.
C. It could put you in a bad mood.
D. It could make you feel lonely. | A | Different people prefer different types of weather.
What evidence from the text supports this conclusion? | A. Some of Patrick J.’s favorite outdoor activities, such as ice fishing, take place when it’s cold out.
B. One study says that when heat and humidity go up, a person’s good mood can go down.
C. Patrick J. likes cold weather the best, but Pete S. can do without cold, overcast days.
D. Long days spent indoors make Pete ... | C | Why might someone who usually enjoys the outdoors not find it relaxing every time? | A. A person might not enjoy certain types of weather, which would make his or her experience outdoors less relaxing.
B. The outdoors is only enjoyable the first time a person experiences it.
C. The outdoors is only enjoyable during the summer.
D. Most people prefer being indoors to being outdoors. | A | What is the main idea of this text? | A. Some people use light therapy boxes to help them feel better.
B. People should stay indoors on dark winter days.
C. Henry David Thoreau did some of his best thinking outdoors.
D. The weather and the outdoors can affect a person’s mood. | D | Read these sentences from the text. "Going green has healthy benefits. People who live in nursing homes feel less depressed if there is a garden, studies have found." What does the phrase "going green" mean here? | A. to recycle plastic bottles and cans
B. to be around nature
C. to save the environment
D. to spend a lot of money | B | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. __________ weather and nature alone can't make you feel happy or sad, understanding that they do have an effect on your mood means you won't be surprised by your feelings. | A. If
B. Since
C. Because
D. Although | D |
Parasites: Kings of the World | What are the most plentiful organisms on Earth? Flies? Ants? Birds? Fish? If you guessed any of those, guess again. The most common living things on Earth are tiny organisms called parasites. Parasites are animals or plants that are usually so small that they cannot be seen without a magnifying glass or a microscope.
P... | 940 | 6 | Science: Life Science | What are the most common living things on Earth? | A. flies
B. ants
C. parasites
D. fish | C | What sequence of events does the text describe? | A. the sequence of events in the life of the lancet fluke
B. the sequence of events in the life of the leopard frog
C. the sequence of events in the life of a cow
D. the sequence of events in the life of an ant | A | Parasites affect other organisms. What evidence in the text supports this statement? | A. Scientists used to think that parasites were not very important to the world around them.
B. Parasites are more common than flies, ants, birds, and fish.
C. Parasites are usually so small that they cannot be seen without a magnifying glass or a microscope.
D. Lancet flukes are parasites than can take control of an a... | D | Read this sentence from the text. "The organisms that parasites live on or in are called hosts ." What is an example of a host organism described in this text? | A. a lancet fluke
B. a cow
C. a bird
D. a fly | B | What is the main idea of this text? | A. Parasites cause many kinds of diseases, including malaria and AIDS.
B. The organisms that parasites live on or in are called hosts.
C. Parasites are common, complex, and affect many other organisms.
D. The lancet fluke is a parasite that both lives and lays eggs inside cows. | C | Read these sentences from the text. "For years, scientists thought that parasites led simple lives and were not very important to the world around them. They are now learning that parasites are complex organisms that affect many other organisms. "Parasites may be small, but they live complicated lives. Scientists are o... | A. affect
B. circle
C. stretch
D. form | A | Read this sentence from the text. "Parasites may be small, but they live complicated lives." What word could replace "but" without changing the sentence's meaning? | A. so
B. thus
C. like
D. yet | D |
Why Is the Sky Blue? | Gas molecules in the atmosphere scatter, in all directions, the short wavelength light that appears blue to us. Longer wavelength light is largely unaffected as it passes through the atmosphere. As a result, when you look at the sky, you see blue everywhere. Read on for a more detailed explanation.
Fact 1. Light travel... | 1,000 | 6 | Science: Earth & Space Science, Physical Science | What color might short wavelength light appear to us? | A. green
B. blue
C. red
D. orange | B | This text describes what happens when light hits particles of different sizes. Why might the text include this description? | A. to persuade the reader to agree with the author about how light and particles interact
B. to present evidence for different views about how light and particles interact
C. to inform the reader about how light and particles interact
D. to compare and contrast two ideas about how light and particles interact | C | When light strikes particles that are larger than its wavelength, the light’s path may be altered. The gas molecules in Earth’s atmosphere affect the path of light with a shorter wavelength (blue light). Based on this evidence, what conclusion can be drawn about the size of the gas molecules in Earth’s atmosphere? | A. The gas particles are smaller than the wavelength of blue light.
B. The gas particles are larger than the wavelength of blue light.
C. The gas particles are larger than the wavelength of red light.
D. The gas particles are smaller than the wavelength of violet light. | B | If Earth had no atmosphere at all, what would the sky mostly look like? | A. It would look mostly red, with a very bright star.
B. It would look mostly violet, with a very bright star.
C. It would look mostly blue, with a very bright star.
D. It would look mostly dark, with a very bright star. | D | What is the main idea of this text? | A. Long wavelength light appears to us as red, while short wavelength light appears to us as blue.
B. The main reason why the sky looks blue is that our eyes are better at detecting blue light than light of other colors.
C. The sky appears blue because gas molecules in the atmosphere scatter the wavelength of light tha... | C | Why might the author have chosen to include diagrams in this text? | A. to provide interesting information that does not have to do with the main idea of the text
B. to distract readers from the discussion of some of the technical concepts in the text
C. to suggest that the information in the text can be interpreted in different ways
D. to highlight and clarify concepts that are importa... | D | Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below. The gas molecules in the atmosphere scatter shorter wavelength light, _____ the longer wavelength light is largely unaffected by the atmosphere. | A. but
B. similarly
C. then
D. therefore | A |
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