Stories
Today was a special day in Ms. Smith's class. After coloring a flame on the side of his racecar mailbox, Johnny strutted over to Veronica's desk and dropped a small white envelope into her mailbox. Veronica blushed and played with her hair. While this was happening, Bart was frantically trying to put a small white envelope into everyone's mailbox. After giving one to everyone, he pulled a medium sized red envelope from his pocket, blushed and tried to put it in Veronica's mailbox but it couldn't quite fit. Bart struggled with it a few seconds then ran off with the envelope. Veronica rolled her eyes and popped her gum.
Bart ran off with the envelope because he was________.
a. afraid
b. nervous
c. shy
d. upset
b. nervous
Many fish swim and feed during the day and hide in the reef at night. Parrotfish cover themselves with a kind of mucus sleeping bag when they retire for the evening. The bag seats in their smell so hunting eels can’t find them.
The bag is mainly for___________
a) Hunting
b) Protection
c) Comfort
d) Warmth
b) Protection
He helped plan the city by using a pattern of crossing streets, called a grid, that would be copied throughout the new land. He gave numbers to all the streets that went in one direction; the streets that went the other way he gave tree names, like Pine and Chestnut and Walnut. Philadelphia is still thought of as a fine example of town planning.
He _____ the city.
a. respected
b. organized
c. cleaned
d. visited
b. organized
Indigenous Peoples' Day is gaining ground as a holiday as more states and cities add it to their calendars. These celebrations have become a rallying event of pride and aspiration for Indigenous nations as Native American communities continue to take back their history and heritage after many generations of loss and tremendous hardship.
Indigenous People are_______
a. Concerned
b. Joyful
c. Inspired
d. Defeated
c. inspired
What are keywords?
The most important words in the sentence. They are clues to help you figure out what you are reading about.
"Tommy!" Mom called out as she walked in the front door. "Tommy," she continued shouting, "I sure could use some help with these groceries. There was still no reply. Mom walked into the kitchen to put the grocery bags on the counter when she noticed shattered glass from the window all over the living room floor and baseball not far from there. "I'm going to kill you, Tommy!" Mom yelled to herself as she realized that Tommy's shoes were gone.
The window was broken with _______.
a. Tommy's hands
b. the baseball bat
c. The groceries
d. the mom
b. the baseball hat
Cirrocumulus clouds may look puffy or rippled, and they sometimes appear to be in rows. Cirrocumulus clouds are common in winter. Put on your sunglasses if you see these clouds, because they usually mean that the weather will be nice for a while, even though it might be cold outside.
Cirrocumulus clouds form when the weather is ________.
a. Warm
b. Cool
c. Rainy
d. Freezing
b. cool
The Bermuda Triangle is an area of the Atlantic Ocean that has mystified travelers and observers for decades. There have been a number of ships and planes that have gone missing or encountered unusual circumstances there, which has led many to believe that there is something incredible about the area. While there have been a number of mysterious tales about the place, there are also many people that believe there is nothing unusual about the Bermuda Triangle at all.
Ideas about the Bermuda Triangle are_________.
a. confirmed
b. mixed
c. understood
d. confusing
b. mixed
What is a setting?
A location/place where the writing takes place.
Today was a special day in Ms. Smith's class. After coloring a flame on the side of his racecar mailbox, Johnny strutted over to Veronica's desk and dropped a small white envelope into her mailbox. Veronica blushed and played with her hair. While this was happening, Bart was frantically trying to put a small white envelope into everyone's mailbox. After giving one to everyone, he pulled a medium sized red envelope from his pocket, blushed and tried to put it in Veronica's mailbox but it couldn't quite fit. Bart struggled with it a few seconds then ran off with the envelope. Veronica rolled her eyes and popped her gum.
Veronica wanted a letter from_______.
Ms. Smith
b. Bart
c. Johnny
d. herself
c. Johnny
Sometimes people hurt earthworms. They put poisons on the ground and on plants. The poisons kill harmful bugs. But the poisons also hurt earthworms. People can help earthworms by using fewer poisons on the soil.
People should be more _____ .
a. Interested
b. Kind
c. Cautious
d. Concerned
c. Cautious
Deep beneath the city of Paris, there are large tunnels known as the Paris Catacombs. Many people call the Paris Catacombs the “World’s Largest Grave,” due to the fact that it holds the remains of more than six million people. Millions of tourists visit the catacombs each year.
Tourists visit the Paris Catacombs because they are __________.
a. scared
b. informed
c. amazed
d. curious
c. amazed
But making the world more accessible for wheelchair users is a public policy issue controlled by government officials, so Alex recently met with his local lawmakers face-to-face. The eighth grader challenged the Tennessee House of Representatives to spend a day in wheelchairs. And 10 men and women took him up on it! For a full day, they worked at their desks and attended all their regular meetings in wheelchairs. The lawmakers had the same eye-opening experiences that Alex's school pals had.
The government officials felt _______
a. Insulted
b. Courageous
c. Sympathy
d. Hopeful
c. sympathy
What is tone and mood?
Mood is the way the writing makes you FEEL (example: sad, happy, frustrated).
Her mother sat her down on the toadstool couch and said, "Patti, when caterpillars know that it is the right time, they each go and spin their own white cocoon. Then they slip inside and fall asleep. While they sleep, they dream the dreams of the Dream Tree. When they wake up, they have been transformed into beautiful butterflies."
Caterpillars rely on _____ to spin their cocoons.
a. Instinct
b. Instructions
c. Dreams
d. neighbors
a. instinct
For many centuries, scientists could only look up at the sky with their eyes. It was impossible for them to see that the Milky Way was made of stars, or that the Magellanic Clouds were galaxies. But when the telescope was invented, sky watchers were able to see farther than ever before.
Their knowledge was _______ by technology.
a. Broadened
b. Overlooked
c. Confirmed
d. Concealed
a. Broadened
Robert E. Lee worked as a scout, exploring enemy territory to get information. He also directed the building of bridges that could support heavy army guns being dragged into battle. In the Battle of Veracruz, he helped plan some of the fighting. He was in the thick of the battles for Cerro Gordo and Mexico City. At one point, he was on his horse, riding and fighting, for thirty-six straight hours.
Robert E. Lee had many _____ .
a. responsibilities
b. regrets
c. delays
d. instructions
a. responsibilities
Was it wrong to make the Cherokee move? The United States Supreme Court thought so in a decision in 1832. But President Andrew Jackson ignored that decision. He ordered soldiers to force the Cherokee from their homeland. For the next decade, the U.S. Army forced the Cherokee and four other tribes—the Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Seminole—to relocate west of the Mississippi.
The Cherokee homeland was _______.
a. Ignored
b. Forgotten
c. Governed
d. Taken
What does the RI test stand for?
a. Reading Inferences
b. Reading Inventory
c. Reading Inside
d. Reading Internet
b. Reading Inventory
Every day after work Paul took his muddy boots off on the steps of the front porch. Alice would have a fit if the boots made it so far as the welcome mat. He took off his dusty overalls and thre them into a plastic garbage bag. Alice left a new garbage bag tied to the porch railing for him every morning. On his way in the house, he dropped the garbage bag off the washing machine and went straight up the stairs to the shower as he was instructed. He would eat dinner with her after he was 'presentable' as Alice had often said.
Alice was a ________ person.
a. rude
b. specific
c. neat
d. bossy
c. neat
A hard-boiled egg is a solid. It spins easily. A raw egg contains a liquid. Liquid requires more force than a solid to spin. Since you apply only one force to the egg when you spin it, the liquid inside the raw egg does not move as rapidly as the solid shell. This creates a drag between the inside of the shell and the surface of the liquid, which slows down and eventually stops the movement of the egg.
Solids _____ faster.
a. melt
b. rotate
c. fracture
d. fall
b. rotate
One thing, however, still hampered explorers. Normally, they fixed their position by looking at the North Star, but when they were south of the equator, the North Star disappeared. Only when they sailed close to the shore did they feel safe—in sight of land and the stone markers that previous explorers had set up along the way. But sometimes they were driven into the open sea, and then what?
They had no _____
a. guidance
b. destination
c. courage
d. protection
a. guidance
John White was the leader of the colonists. The colonists invaded the United States to take over Native American land. John White and the colonists attempted to change the cultures of the local Native Americans that lived nearby, and the Native Americans fought back. This brought difficult experiences for both the Colonists and the Native Americans. After some challenging months, John White went back to England to find new ways to change Native American's minds.
John White and the colonists returned to England because the Native Americans were not _________.
a. giving up
b. paying attention
c. happy
a. giving up
What does inference / infer mean?