Summarizing
What’s dressed in all black, practices stealth, and is a master of espionage, sabotage, and assassination? You guessed it: it’s a ninja!
Perhaps the only thing more elusive than a ninja is the source of the word ninja. In Japan ninja are more often referred to as shinobi. The word shinobi, short for shinobi-no-mono, means “to steal away.” The word shinobi appears in poems as far back as the eighth century. So how did this word become ninja? Some believe that during the Edo period in Japan, the word shinobi-no-mono was transformed to the very similar word ninja. This probably happened because it was a lot quicker and easier to just say ninja. It is difficult to see how such a transformation could have occurred when we look at the words using our alphabet, but if you look at the kanji representing these words, it may make more sense to you.
What sentence best summarizes this paragraph?
A. Ninjas are dressed in all black, practices stealth, and is a master of espionage, sabotage, and assassination.
B. The origins of the word ninja and how it became that word.
C. How ninja comes from the saying " to steal away."
D. Ninjas are what all little kids aspire to be.
B. The origins of the word ninja and how it became that word.
What is theme?
The message, moral or lesson of a story.
Robert James Fischer was born in Chicago in 1943 but unlocked the secrets of chess in a Brooklyn apartment right above a candy store. In 1950 at the age of six he taught himself to play by following the instruction booklet that came with his chess board. After spending much of his childhood in chess clubs, Fischer said that, “One day, I just got good.” That may be a bit of an understatement. In 1957 at the age of 13 he won the U.S. Junior Chess Championship, becoming the youngest Junior Champion ever. At the age of 14 he won the U.S. Championship and became the youngest U.S. Champion in history. Fischer would go on to become the World Champion of chess, in 1958 he would become a chess Grandmaster.
How does the author organize this passage?
A. Cause and Effect
B. Problem and Solution
C. Compare and Contrast
D. Chronological order.
D. Chronological order
What are Ms. Cable's 3 strategies that you can use to help you figure out the meaning of an unknown word?
1. Break apart the word.
2. Look for clues in the text.
3. Put each answer choice in the sentence to see if it makes sense.
There’s only one word in the dictionary that’s spelled wrong. What is it?
wrong
W-R-O-N-G
Yellowstone National Park is mainly located in Wyoming, although three percent is located in the state of Montana. The Continental Divide of North America runs diagonally through the southwestern part of the park. The park sits on the Yellowstone Plateau, which is an average elevation of 8,000 feet above sea level. This plateau is bounded on nearly all sides by mountain ranges. There are 290 waterfalls that are at least fifteen feet in the park, the highest being the Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River, which falls 308 feet.
Which sentence best summarizes this paragraph?
A. Yellowstone National Park and what you need to know about it.
B. Yellowstone is located mostly in Wyoming.
C. There are 290 waterfalls in the park that you can go and visit.
D. The park sits on the Yellowstone Plateau.
A. Yellowstone National Park and what you need to know about it.
Once there was a mean little boy who lived in a small village. This mean little boy loved to mess with people, so one day he ran up to a sheep herder and shouted, “WOLF! WOLF! A wolf is attacking the town!” The sheep herder grabbed his staff and ran to defend the town, but realized he had been fooled when the boy started pointing and laughing at him. “Ha ha! I made you jump,” said the boy. Then the boy ran up to a farmer and shouted, “WOLF! WOLF! A wolf is attacking the town!” The farmer grabbed his pitchfork and ran to defend the town, but when the boy started pointing and laughing at him, he realized he had been tricked. As the boy went back to his family’s farm laughing about the funny trick he played, he saw a real wolf in his father’s chicken coop. As the wolf ate all of his father’s chickens, the boy screamed over and over again, “WOLF! WOLF! Please help us!” But nobody came to help him.
What is the theme of this story?
Don’t ask for help unless you really need it.
Don’t play tricks on the people around you.
Dr. Miller doesn’t want the tigers to vanish. These majestic beasts are disappearing at an alarming rate. Dr. Miller thinks that we should write to our congress people. If we let them know that we demand the preservation of this species, maybe we can make a difference. Dr. Miller also thinks that we should donate to Save the Tigers. Our donations will help to support and empower those who are fighting the hardest to preserve the tigers. We owe it to our grandchildren to do something.
How does the author organize this paragraph?
A. Problem and Solution
B. Cause and Effect
C. Compare and Contrast
D. Sequence
A. Problem and Solution.
When Rex had a bone, a warm spot to lie, and someone petting him, he was in paradise. Just like me sitting on a beach with the wind blowing through my hair.
What does paradise mean as it is used in the sentence?
A. a warm place
B. the perfect place
c. an uncomfortable place
d. in a doghouse
B. the perfect place
What has thirteen hearts, but no other organs?
A deck of cards
Tammy and Sammy were both students in Mr. Morton’s reading class. Mr. Morton wasn’t too strict about deadlines, and Sammy took advantage of that. Sammy did all his homework in his other classes. But he never bothered to complete Mr. Morton’s reading assignments. He figured that he could complete them later. Tammy, on the other hand, completed each assignment Mr. Morton had assigned every night. She had to stay up a little later, but she knew that reading was the most important subject. She knew that if she learned to read well, then she could teach herself anything. So she always worked hard in her reading class. When the end of the quarter came, Tammy and Sammy had both planned on going to the Magic Castle amusement park. They were both so excited. But then Mr. Morton called Sammy’s mother to report Sammy's grade. She grounded Sammy and that weekend was horrible for him. He stayed up until 2:00 AM each night, yet he still couldn’t complete all the assignments. Meanwhile, Tammy had a great time eating pizza at Enchanted Castle. After that she stayed up late and watched movies. She enjoyed her weekend free of stress and pressure. At the end of the quarter, Sammy was lucky to squeak by with a C minus. Tammy earned an A. Yet, Sammy still hasn’t learned his lesson. He may not complete this activity either.
What happened in this story?
Tammy and Sammy are students in Mr. Morton's class. Sammy was lazy and did not complete his assignments when he was supposed to. Tammy however completed each assignment the night it was given. At the end of the quarter, they both planned to go to the Magic Castle, but Mr. Morton called Sammy's mother to tell her his grade and he got grounded, while Tammy got to go to the Magic Castle.
Angie loved to draw. She made colorful designs of people’s names with bright hearts & flowers, but she lost own markers, so she borrowed her teacher’s. The school day was ending, but Angie wanted to keep coloring, so she took the teacher’ s markers home and lost them in her messy room. She came back to school the next day and wanted to color again, so she asked the teacher for more markers. The teacher replied, “Sure, Angie, but this is my last pack.” Angie said she would be careful, but by the end of the day the markers were scattered all over the floor and the custodian swept them up and disposed of them. When Angie came in the next day, she asked the teacher for more markers, but she was disappointed to find that there weren’t any more. “I don’t know where all of my markers went,” said the teacher, “but I don’t have them.” Angie had to draw her pictures with drab pencils.
What is the theme of the passage?
BE careful with others things.
Be considerate.
There are many theories about why the dinosaurs vanished from the planet. One theory that many people believe is that a gigantic meteorite smashed into the Earth. Scientists believe that the meteorite was very big and that the impact may have produced a large dust cloud that covered the Earth for many years. The dust cloud may have caused plants to not receive sunlight and the large plant eaters, or herbivores, may have died off, followed by the large meat eaters, or carnivores. This theory may or may not be true, but it is one explanation as to why these giant reptiles no longer inhabit the Earth.
What is the structure of this paragraph?
A. Problem and Solution
B. Cause and Effect
C. Compare and Contrast
D. Chronological Order
B. Cause and Effect
Since professional athletes have to stay in peak physical shape, most athletes seldom eat junk food.
What does the word seldom mean as it is used in the sentence?
A. regularly or all the time
B. only during the day
C. rarely or almost never
D. only at birthday parties ;)
C. rarely or almost never
I go up and down, but never move. What am I?
A staircase
A man named Alexey made Tetris in 1984. All the pieces in Tetris have four blocks. The word "tetra" means four. Alexey named his game after tetra and tennis. He made Tetris while working at a science academy in Moscow. Moscow is in Russia.
Tetris is a game about making lines. Blocks fall from the top of the screen. They fall one at a time. The player moves the blocks. Once the blocks hit the bottom, they are locked in place. Players try to make lines go across the screen with no gaps. Complete lines disappear. This gives players more room. The blocks pile up during the game. The game ends when the blocks get to the top of the screen.
What two details would you include in a summary of this paragraph?
A. Moscow is in Russia.
B. Players try to make lines go across the screen with no gaps.
C. Tetris is a game about making lines and when they're completed they disappear.
D. The word "tetra" means four.
E. A man named Alexey made Tetris in 1984.
C. Tetris is a game about making lines and when they're completed they disappear.
E. A man named Alexey made Tetris in 1984.
Jenny hated reading class. She didn’t understand point of view or figurative language, and not knowing how to do the work frustrated her. She asked the teacher for help, but he spoke so fast and used such big words that she still couldn’t understand. The teacher asked if she understood, and she nodded her head, but she didn’t. Jenny’ s friend Katie knew that Jenny was having trouble, and, rather than just giving Jenny all of the answers, Katie explained to Jenny how to solve the problems. Katie spoke clearly and at Jenny’s level, and Jenny was happy that she finally learned how to do the work. Later in the week, Katie was having trouble in math class. She didn’t understand coordinates and was really frustrated. Seeing that Katie was having problems, Jenny, who understood math very well, taught Katie coordinates. Both girls made honor roll that quarter.
We can all be successful when we work together.
Help your friends when they're in need.
Dinosaurs existed about 250 million years ago to 65 million years ago. This era is broken up into three periods known as the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. The Triassic Period lasted for 35 million years from 250-205 million years ago. Planet Earth was a very different place back then. All the continents were united to form one huge land mass known as Pangaea. The Jurassic Period was the second phase. The continents began shifting apart. The time scale for this famous period is from 205 to 138 million years ago. The Cretaceous Period was the last period of the dinosaurs. It spanned a time from 138 million to about 65 million years ago. In this period the continents fully separated. However, Australia and Antarctica were still united.
How does the author structure this paragraph?
A. Problem and Solution
B. Cause and Effect
C. Chronological Order
D. Compare and Contrast
C. Chronological Order
Alvin went to the museum every Saturday because he was so fascinated by art. He would sit for hours and sit in awe of the famous work.
What is the meaning of the word fascinated as it is used in the sentence?
A. bored
B. annoyed
C. tired
D. interested
D. interested
A group of bunnies were having a birthday party. What kind of music were they listening to?
Hip-Hop music
Even though they were sisters, Suzie and June were nothing alike. If Suzie wanted to jump rope, June wanted to play hopscotch. If June wanted to watch soap operas, Suzie wanted to watch talk shows. Tensions rose to the point that the girls could no longer stand one another’s company. It seemed that they had nothing in common, until the day that progress reports went home. On the bus the girls were startled by how upset the other looked. They realized that they were both failing a subject. Suzie was failing math and June was failing reading. Since both girls wanted to pass their classes, they agreed to help one another. So after school for the next few weeks, Suzie tutored June in reading and then June tutored Suzie in math. By the time report cards were distributed, Suzie and June were passing all their classes. The girls were delighted, but their mother was happiest of all. Not just because her daughters had passed their classes, but because they learned to be good sisters.
What was this story about?
Suzie and June were two sisters who were completely different. So different they couldn't stand each other, until the found out they were both failing a subject. So, they worked together, and both end up passing their classes.
. After setting his alarm clock for PM instead of AM, Eric woke up late for school. In his haste, he forgot to pack a lunch or bring lunch money. Eric did not mind much at first because he figured that he could eat some of his friends' food. During lunchtime, Eric explained his situation to the people at his lunch table. His friends were sympathetic to his cause. But they had only packed lunches for themselves, not Eric. Katie offered Eric a small bag of carrots. "Yuck! I hate carrots. Thanks anyway," Eric said as he declined Katie's offer. Chuck offered Eric his milk, to which Eric responded, "Is that skim milk? Ewww... I hate skim milk. Does anyone have any chocolate milk?" Some people at the table did have chocolate milk, but they did not want to give their milk to Eric. To break the silence, Ben offered Eric half of his egg salad sandwich. Again Eric refused quite rudely, "Egg salad is gross. Doesn't anyone have anything good for me?" But that was the last offer that Eric would receive that day.
What is the theme of this story?
Be grateful for any help that you are getting.
Pizza is often viewed as a junk food, and it is true that some pizzas are high in salt, fat, and calories, but there may also be some benefit to eating pizza. Some studies have found that lycopene, an antioxidant that exists in tomato products that are often used in pizza, may prevent some forms of cancer. Dr. Silvano Gallus, of the Mario Negri Institute for Pharmaceutical Research in Milan, studied the eating habits of people who developed cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, and colon. He concluded that people who ate pizza at least once a week had significantly less chance of developing these cancers. Here’s to your health.
What is the text structure?
A. Problem and Solution
B. Cause and Effect
C. Chronological Order
D. Compare and Contrast.
B. Cause and Effect
After the bird escaped, Chris tried to coax it back into the cage with bird seed. When that didn't work he went and got his favorites, grapes to try to get him back in his cage.
Part A: What is the meaning of the word coax as it is used in the sentence?
Part B: What clues helped you determine the meaning?
Part B: got bird seed, went and got his favorite treats to try to get him back in his cage.
What do elves learn at school?
the Elf-abet