MAIN IDEA
What's Beneath Your Plane?
As Shane Loeffler, a geology student at the University of Minnesota, was flying home from Europe, he looked down at the landscape and began to wonder what he was flying over. He realized that a plane flight would be a good opportunity for people to learn about the geological features of the earth below them. As a result of this experience, with a grant from the National Science Foundation, he created a free app called Flyover Country. The app provides users with information on natural formations, man-made features like dams, and even where fossils can be found. The features are pinpointed on a map that corresponds to the landscape below the plane.
What is the central/main idea of the passage?
Shane Loeffler's experience in a plane led him to create an app that would provide information to flyers about the land below them.
Mr. and Mrs. Wilkerson usually see eye to eye, but not when it comes to the controversial mayoral race.
What does the idiom "usually see eye to eye" mean?
They usually agree, but not this time.
Where should a comma be added in the sentence below?
While First Lady Michelle Obama was visiting Bejing in March 2014 she toured the Forbidden City, which served as the emporor's home for almost five hundred years.
A comma should be added after 2014.
high:low as near: _______
far
Before becoming a dentist, a candidate must successfully complete a number of tasks. First, at least two years of college is required. Many future dentists enroll in pre-dentistry science courses during college. Next, an aspiring dentist must attend a four-year dental school. There, students usually take two years of coursework, followed by practical training with patients under the supervision of a dentist. After completing dental school, the graduate must pass both a written test and a practical test demonstrating dental skills in order to obtain a dental license and work as a licensed dentist.
What text structure did the author use to organize the passage?
sequential/chronological order
AC vs. DC
In the 1880s, the War of the Currents began. Thomas Edison developed direct current, or DC, a type of electricity that flows in one direction. By 1887, DC was in use around the United States. It had some drawbacks, though. Converting it to lower or higher voltages was difficult; that is, the current's force couldn't be changed easily. Transmitted at the low voltage needed for use in homes and businesses, it lost power after traveling only a mile. Meanwhile, Nikola Tesla was working with alternating current, or AC. AC reverses direction many times per second and can be changed to different voltages. At high voltage, it can be transmitted efficiently, traveling hundreds of miles with little energy loss. Because of its advantages, AC triumphed by the end of the nineteenth century.
What is the main or central idea of the passage?
AC has distinct advantages over DC, so AC won the War of the Currents.
A Good Samaritan identified only as Mr. Li captured the world's attention in May 2014 when he rushed across a street in China to catch a baby falling from a window.
What does the allusion "A Good Samaritan" mean?
The man generously helped a stranger. They did it only to be kind, not for fame or a reward.
As an actor, it is your job to deliver lines in a realistic way. However, you must first memorize them.
To begin, handwrite your lines, copying them exactly and focusing on every word. Then, record yourself reading them out loud and play them back repeatedly. You can listen while doing other activities. Next, cover the lines with a scrap of paper, say them, and check them.
Finally, ask someone to "run" your lines with you. Have the person hold the script and read the other roles as you recite your lines. Move around, experiment with your delivery, and allow yourself to make mistakes. Now, you are ready to perform!
What was the author's purpose for writing this text?
To teach (inform) readers how to learn lines for a play.
nickel: coin as shirt: ______
clothing
Fluoride is a mineral that is added to public drinking water supplies in much of the United States in order to reduce levels of tooth decay. When a tooth is forming, fluoride strengthens the enamel, or outside coating of the teeth. The fluoride mixes with the enamel, making it harder. In addition, when fluoride mixes with saliva, it can protect teeth from sugars, further reducing tooth decay. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) states that drinking fluoridated water provides additional protection even for people who simply brush with fluoride toothpaste. Reports on the impacts of fluoridated drinking water have concluded that it reduces tooth decay by about twenty-five percent.
What text structure did the author use to organize the passage?
cause and effect
African Wild Dogs: Ultimate Predators?
Many books, papers, and television shows have created an image of the African wild dog as the ultimate predator. According to these sources, the dogs' coordinated teamwork and their unusual endurance help them catch about eighty percent of their prey. A 2012 study tested that notion. Researchers fit a pack of wild dogs with special collars that recorded the dogs' positions and speeds. The data that the collars recorded allowed the researchers to learn what the dogs did when they weren't being observed. The results provided a surprising contrast with the dogs' fierce reputation. The dogs never used teamwork in their hunts; they chased their prey over short distances as opposed to long runs; and instead of eighty percent, they brought down only about sixteen percent of their prey.
What is the central/main idea of the passage?
African wild dogs have a reputation as fierce hunters who work in teams, but new data suggests otherwise.
"Conscience is a man's compass."
What does the metaphor mean?
Your conscience guides you to act the right way, because a compass points you in the right direction.
Have you noticed anything amiss when driving down Oak Street recently? Where are the oaks? The city has been busily and methodically removing the big, beautiful trees that have lined the street for decades. Some of these trees are more than a century old, predating many businesses along this lovely cobblestone thoroughfare. Why are these magnificent trees being felled? Are they diseased or dying? Do they present a danger to people along the street? No, the disturbing reason the city gives for the tree removal is money: Apparently, the annual pruning and mulching needed to maintain the trees is too expensive. It's cheaper to just chop them down.
This short-sighted decision to destroy these majestic giants is disastrous for the character of the city. These long-lived trees could and should grace Oak Street for generations to come. Please go to the "Save the Oaks" website to find out how you can join the effort to halt this tree-mendous tragedy.
What is the author's point of view about the trees on Oak Street? (What does the author think/feel)
The trees are beautiful, historic treasures, and the city should stop cutting them down.
declare: say as ask: _______
question
The United States National Park Service is seeking to reduce the amount of waste going from national parks into landfills. The parks' remote locations make this a challenge because they don't have nearby recycling facilities. But the parks are making progress. For example, working with the companies that provide food to park visitors, the parks have succeeded in reducing the amount of disposable food packaging used. So, less trash is generated.
What text structure did the author use to organize this passage?
problem & solution
What's Beneath Your Plane?
As Shane Loeffler, a geology student at the University of Minnesota, was flying home from Europe, he looked down at the landscape and began to wonder what he was flying over. He realized that a plane flight would be a good opportunity for people to learn about the geological features of the earth below them. As a result of this experience, with a grant from the National Science Foundation, he created a free app called Flyover Country. The app provides users with information on natural formations, man-made features like dams, and even where fossils can be found. The features are pinpointed on a map that corresponds to the landscape below the plane.
What is the main/central idea of the passage?
Shane Loeffler's experience in a plane led him to create an app that would provide information to flyers about the land below them.
Carla submitted her suggestions to Bert; now the ball is in his court.
What does the idiom, "the ball is in his court" mean?
Bert needs to act next. It is time for Bert to step it up.
If you want to work in this chemistry lab, you must follow all the safety rules.
Which definition from the dictionary matches the meaning of "follow" in the sentence above?
follow 1. to go after someone: He followed Julian outside. 2. to go along a path or road: We followed Route 66 into California. 3. to act in agreement with: Please listen carefully and follow all instructions.
3
little: small as smart: ______
intelligent, bright, any word that means smart
A blacksmith makes objects such as tools, decorative items, horseshoes, and weapons from iron or steel. Before working with the metal, the blacksmith will first heat it. To do this, he or she places it in a fire or furnace, often holding it with tongs until it turns red hot. Then the metal is ready to work, and the blacksmith can hammer it flat, bend it, or twist it. As soon as the object is shaped just right, the blacksmith plunges it into a container of water. This quenches the metal, solidifying it quickly and hardening it.
What text structure did the author use to organize this passage?
sequential/chronological order
The First "Newspaper" War
The Crimean War was fought in the 1850s between Russia on one side and Britain, France, and Turkey on the other. Although it was a major conflict, it is perhaps best remembered as the first war in which journalists were present on the battlefield. News dispatches from William Howard Russell, a reporter for the Times of London, exposed military blunders and revealed the filthy conditions that existed in military hospitals and camps. Photographers such as James Robertson and Roger Fenton made hundreds of photographs of soldiers on the battlefield. These news reports and photographs provided an uncensored look at life on the frontlines. The Crimean War marked the first time in history that people back home were exposed to the horrors of war.
What is the main/central idea of the passage?
The Crimean War was the first war to be documented for civilians.
When Lee Mellon finished the apple he smacked his lips together like a pair of cymbals.
What does the simile in this text suggest?
Lee Mellon made a loud noise with his lips.
The Great Pyramid of Giza is the largest of the ancient Egyptian pyramids. When completed around 2560 BCE, it stood 481 feet high, as tall as a modern 44-story building. The Great Pyramid was the world's tallest building for more than three thousand years. More than two million huge stone blocks were used to construct it. The builders of the pyramid positioned it meticulously so that it perfectly faces true north. Scientists aren't sure how the ancient Egyptians knew how to place the base. Experts also disagree about how those huge blocks were moved into place. They don't even fully understand the design of the inside of the pyramid. More work must be done to solve these mysteries.
What is the meaning of the word meticulously as used in the passage above?
carefully, with attention to detail
scent: smell as cost:______
price
Martin Luther King Jr. and Thurgood Marshall were both great African American civil rights leaders, but they endorsed differing approaches. King, a preacher, advocated civil disobedience (peaceful protest) and was jailed for his efforts. Thurgood Marshall, a lawyer, brought legal actions in court instead. Marshall filed numerous lawsuits on behalf of African Americans who were denied their rights, taking many cases to the Supreme Court. Marshall was the winning lawyer in Brown v. Board of Education, the 1954 case declaring school segregation unconstitutional. When King began leading protests and boycotts, Marshall disapproved of his breaking the law. But Marshall, who worked for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), used NAACP funds to bail out King's followers.
Which text structure did the author use to organize this passage?