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Common Test Questions & Vocab
Common Test Questions & Vocab
Reading the
Passages
Multiple Choice Test Questions
Short Answer Questions & The Essay
100
What is the THEME of a story?
the message, moral or lesson
100
"Which of the following details least supports the central idea of the passage?" In this question I have to find the answer choice that does NOT really ______________the central idea.
support
100
What are at least 2 things you should do BEFORE reading each passage?
1. Read the directions 2. Read the questions you will have to answer. 3. Read the title of the article, story or poem 4. Read the subheadings 5. Look at any pictures and captions
100

What should you do if you are not sure what answer choice is the correct one? a) Don't bubble in any answer and leave it blank b) Spend 15 minutes trying to decide on an answer c) Eliminate the obvious wrong answer choices and then make an educated guess

C

100

How can you get full credit on your short answer questions? In other words, what should you do when you are answering the short answer questions?

RACE

200

"How does paragraph 4 CONTRIBUTE to the development of ideas in the text?" In this question, I am being asked how paragraph 4 _____________ the development of ideas in the passage.

adds to, builds on

200
"What do the character’s actions in paragraph 3 REVEAL about him?" The word reveal means ______________.
shows, uncovers, unveils
200
True or False: you shouldn't chunk and code the passages as you read because it is distracting and wastes time.
FALSE! You SHOULD annotate the text because it helps you better understand what you are reading and will help you answer the questions. Also, the test is not timed, so you can take as long as you need to!
200

Why should you underline or circle key words in the questions?

To help you understand EXACTLY what each question is asking you and help you know what to focus on when you read the passage. The questions are often tricky and if you don't read them carefully and focus on the key words you might make a careless mistake when answering the question!

200
True or False: You should always reread what you wrote before moving on to the next question. Why or why not?
TRUE! You should always reread what you wrote as your answer to make sure that... 1. You didn't make any careless mistakes in spelling, punctuation or grammar that would make it difficult for someone to understand. 2. You made an inference in your answer and provided TWO pieces of evidence. 3. You actually answered the EXACT question you are being asked to answer
300

"Which of the sentences from the passage best supports the author’s central idea?" In this question the word best tells me that all the answer choices could be _____________, but I have to find the ______________ answer.

correct best

300
“What can you INFER about the main character based on the information in paragraph 3?" The word infer means _________________________
to make an education guess or conclusion based on evidence, prior knowledge (background knowledge), and logical reasoning.
300

What are at least 3 things you can do to annotate/code the passages you are reading?

1. Underline or highlight important words and sentences. 2. Circle words you don't know and use context clues to try to figure out what the words mean. 3. Write questions and notes in the margins.

300

True or False: You should read all the answer choices, even if the first or second answer sounds correct to you.

TRUE! Almost every question will have 2 answer choices that are somewhat easy to eliminate and then 1 answer choice that is there to trick you! So you should read and reread each answer choice carefully and check back to the text to make sure you are choosing the correct answer and not the trick answer!

300
What are some ways you can use your planing page before starting to write your essay?
(1) Make a T-chart, a Venn Diagram or a 3-Column chart for compare & contrast essays. (2) Jot down notes about what you plan to write in each paragraph of your essay. (3) Look back at the text and then write down all the possible pieces of evidence you might want to use (that way you can choose from those pieces of evidence while writing your essay). 4. Students may offer another option (as long as it sounds reasonable/logical, answer may be accepted and points granted)
400

"How does the author’s ALLUSION to Pandora’s Box contribute to the meaning of paragraph 4?" The word allusion means _________________

Allusion means "reference". Eg: In a story one of the characters may ask his friend, "Why did you jump off the roof? Were you trying to be Superman?!" The character is making an ALLUSION or reference to another story/movie (Superman). You may also see a question that uses the word "alludes". ("Why does the author allude to Pandora’s Box in paragraph 4?"). This is the verb form of allusion.

400
"Which sentence from the article best reveals the author's POINT OF VIEW?" The authors "point of view" means the author's __________
perspective, viewpoint, opinion
400

What is a tool that you can use to read text on any of the tests (reading, math, grammar/writing)?

Text to speech

400

What strategy do I NOT want you to use on the test? If you are going to do it (which I know you are 🙄) what do you need to do before using that strategy?

Eeny, meeny, miny, moe. And before you do that strategy, you need to use the eliminator tool and eliminate 2 and then do Eeny, meeny, miny, moe with only 2 answers.

400

How many paragraphs should your essay have? What kinds of paragraphs are they?

The number of paragraphs will vary depending on the question; however, you should have an introduction, at least 1 body paragraph (using TREEE!!!), and a conclusion. If the essay question asks you to compare and contrast two texts, then you should have 2 body paragraphs. If the essay question asks you to state an author's argument, and then evaluate whether the author provided sufficient evidence, then you should also have 2 body paragraphs (the first paragraph to talk about the author's argument, and the second paragraph to discuss whether the author provides sufficient evidence).

500

"Why did the author include the comparison of the two kinds of tap in paragraph 4?" The word comparison means _______________

Bonus 100: What is the opposite of comparing, and what does it mean?

Comparing: Explaining how things are similar and how they connect to each other

Contrasting: How things are different from each other

500

What is the difference between a theme, main idea and summary? How long are each of them?

Theme: Universal idea, 1-2 sentences

Main idea: Quick description of the overall text, 1-2 sentences

Summary: More detailed description of the text in order, 3-5 sentences

500

If you are stuck on a passage or question, what should you do?

Make a guess, bookmark the question and come back to it.

500

Your teachers always tell you to "go back and check your work" when you are done. How should you "check your work" on the state test?

Reread each question carefully and the answer you chose, and check the text again to make sure you still think that is the right answer. Also, make sure you have bubbled in ALL the questions on your scantron

500
What are AT LEAST 5 things you need to make sure you have in your essay response or that you need to pay attention to when you're writing 

-Text Evidence

-Intro

-Conclusion

-Transition phrases between paragraphs

-Correct spelling

-Capitalization

-Punctuation

-Claim/Thesis