Inference
Word Meaning
Reading Skills
Structure
Coach Weems Trivia
100

Read the sentence from paragraph 16.

Those who have never seen a living Martian can scarcely imagine the strange horror of its appearance.

Based on the sentence, what inference can be made?

A  The narrator believes others have seen Martians.

B  All aliens have a scary appearance.

C  The mysterious cylinder came from Mars.

D  The Martians will kill everyone.

C  The mysterious cylinder came from Mars.

100

In paragraph 13, what does the word “ungovernable” mean?

A  someone in charge of you

B   to feel a sense of fear

C  something that will happen

D  impossible to control

D  impossible to control

100

Which sentence best explains the narrator’s interest in the Martians?

A Even at this first encounter, this first glimpse, I was

    overcome with disgust and dread.

B  I turned and, running madly, made for the first

    group of trees, perhaps a hundred yards away; but

    I ran slantingly and stumbling, for I could not avert

    my face from these things.

C The common round the sand-pits was dotted with

    people, standing like myself in a half-fascinated

    terror, staring at these creatures, or rather at the

    heaped gravel at the edge of the

    pit in which they lay.

B  I turned and, running madly, made for the first

    group of trees, perhaps a hundred yards away; but

    I ran slantingly and stumbling, for I could not avert

    my face from these things.

100

What insight does the point of view provide?

A  the Martians’ actions

B   the narrator’s feelings

C  the narrator’s behaviors

D  the crowd’s fears

B   the narrator’s feelings

100

What sport did Coach Weems play in college?

Basketball

200

The dialogue in the passage leads the reader to believe the narrator -


A   fell into the pit while looking at the cylinder

B    is trying to get to the front of the crowd

C   knows the people investigating the cylinder

D   was going to help protect the cylinder

C   knows the people investigating the cylinder

200

Which word or phrase from paragraph 11 provides context that supports the meaning of the word “blundered”?

A  Somebody

B  against me

C  narrowly missed

D  being pitched

B  against me

200

Which sentence from paragraphs 16 through 17 suggests that the Martians are dangerous?  

A “There was something fungoid in the oily brown

   skin, something in the clumsy deliberation of the

   tedious movements unspeakably nasty.”

B  “I heard it give a peculiar thick cry, and forthwith

   another of these creatures appeared darkly in

   the deep shadow of the aperture.”

C “Suddenly he vanished, and I could have

    fancied a faint shriek had reached me.”

D “I had a momentary impulse to go back and

    help him that my fears overruled.”

C “Suddenly he vanished, and I could have

    fancied a faint shriek had reached me.”

200

Part A: Which word best describes the narrator’s attitude toward the Martians?

A   Critical   C   Shocked

B    Repulsed   D   Judgmental

B    Repulsed

200

When did Coach Weems meet his wife?

In College 


Bonus Question: What College did Coach Weems go to?

300

What does the descriptions of the Martians imply?


A   They will be dangerous.

B    They come in peace.

C   They are different than others.

D   They do not look attractive.

A   They will be dangerous.

300

In paragraph 13, why does the author use the word “inarticulate” to describe the crowd?

A  It shows how distressed everyone is

     feeling.

B   It explains why the narrator is so

     confused.

C  It describes what the crowd is seeing.

D  It emphasizes the feeling of

    the narrator.

A  It shows how distressed everyone is

     feeling.

300

Which sentence from the excerpt states the narrator’s main problem?

A  I half turned, keeping my eyes fixed upon the

    cylinder still, from which other tentacles were now

    projecting, and began pushing my way back from

    the edge of the pit.  

B  I found myself alone, and saw the people on the

    other side of the pit running off, Stent among them.

C A big greyish rounded bulk, the size, perhaps, of a   

    bear, was rising slowly and painfully out of the

    cylinder.

A  I half turned, keeping my eyes fixed upon the

    cylinder still, from which other tentacles were now

    projecting, and began pushing my way back from

    the edge of the pit.  

300

Part B: Which detail from the passage supports the answer in Part A?

A Then something resembling a little grey snake  

B  wriggled in the air towards me  

C Two large dark-colored eyes were regarding me

D I was overcome with disgust and dread

D I was overcome with disgust and dread

300

What High School did Coach Weems graduate from?

Imperial Buena Vista

400

What do the actions of the people standing around the pit represent?

A   You are safe if you give some space.

B    People will always watch aliens.

C   The inability to move when scared.

D   A desire to watch something terrible.

D   A desire to watch something terrible.

400

Part A: Based on the word “tumultuous” in paragraph 16, in what way is the author presenting the Martians?

A  as dominant   C  as struggling

B  as intimidating   D   as tentative

C  as struggling

400

Which detail explains why the Martians are slow-moving?

A “the tumultuous breathing of the lungs in a strange atmosphere, the evident heaviness and painfulness of movement due to the greater gravitational energy of the earth—above all,

B the extraordinary intensity of the immense eyes—were at once vital, intense, inhuman, crippled and monstrous.

C There was something fungoid in the oily brown skin, something in the clumsy deliberation of the tedious movements unspeakably nasty.

D Even at this first encounter, this first glimpse, I was overcome with disgust and dread.” (par. 16)

A “the tumultuous breathing of the lungs in a strange atmosphere, the evident heaviness and painfulness of movement due to the greater gravitational energy of the earth—above all,

400

Part A: What is the central idea of the story?

A  Inside the cylinder are two unknown and ugly creatures.

B   Too many people crowd around the pit containing a 

     cylinder.

C  The crowd around the cylinder finally learn what is inside.

D   The mysterious cylinder opens containing terrifying Martians.

D   The mysterious cylinder opens containing terrifying Martians.

400

How many tattoos does Coach Weems Have?


9

500

Why does the author include paragraph 16?

A  to describe what the Martians look like

B   to share the narrator’s experience

C  to explain why the narrator ran and hid

D  to suggest that the Martians are

    attacking

A  describe what the Martians look like

500

Part B: Which phrase from paragraph 16 provides a clue to the meaning of tumultuous”?

A “breathing of the lungs”  

B “in a strange atmosphere”

C “evident heaviness”

D “intensity of the immense eyes"

B “in a strange atmosphere”

500

Which phrase best describes the shift in tone from the beginning to the end of the excerpt?

A  From unsure to knowing

B   From curious to repulsed 

C  From interest to terror  

D  From excited to scared

C  From interest to terror  

500

Part B: How does the author develop the central idea?

A   by explaining the events

B   by describing the Martians

C   by comparing the reactions

D   by building suspense

A   by explaining the events

500

Where is Coach Weems originally from?

Odessa TX