mcas 2013 ela grade 6 released items document

V. English Language Arts, Reading Comprehension, Grade 6

57

Grade 6 English Language Arts Reading Comprehension Test

The spring 2013 grade 6 English Language Arts Reading Comprehension test was based on grades 6–12 learning standards in two content strands of the Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for English Language Arts and Literacy (March 2011) listed below. Page numbers for the learning standards appear in parentheses.

■ Reading (Framework, pages 47–52)

■ Language (Framework, pages 64–67)

The Curriculum Framework for English Language Arts and Literacy is available on the Department website at www.doe.mass.edu/frameworks/current.html.

ELA Reading Comprehension test results are reported under two MCAS reporting categories, Reading and Language, which are identical to the two framework content strands listed above.

Test Sessions and Content Overview

The grade 6 ELA Reading Comprehension test included two separate test sessions. Each session included reading passages, followed by multiple-choice and open-response questions. Selected common reading passages and approximately half of the common test items are shown on the following pages as they appeared in test booklets. Due to copyright restrictions, certain reading passages cannot be released to the public on the website. For further information, contact Student Assessment Services at 781-338-3625.

Reference Materials

The use of bilingual word-to-word dictionaries was allowed for current and former English language learner students only, during both ELA Reading Comprehension sessions. No other reference materials were allowed during any ELA Reading Comprehension test session.

Cross-Reference Information

The tables at the conclusion of this chapter indicate each released and unreleased common item’s reporting category and the standard it assesses. The correct answers for released multiple-choice questions are also displayed in the released item table.

English Language ArtsReading CompRehension

DIRECTIONSThis session contains three reading selections with twenty-one multiple-choice questions and three open-response questions. Mark your answers to these questions in the spaces provided in your Student Answer Booklet.

On April 14, 1912, the passenger ship R.M.S. Titanic hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic Ocean and sank. Robert Ballard led a search for the sunken ship in 1985. At the beginning of this selection, Ballard and his team are nearing the end of their scheduled time at sea. Read the selection and answer the questions that follow.

from Exploring the Titanicby Robert D. Ballard

1 Then we had only five days left to go. The crunch had come. Suddenly the ocean seemed huge, and our doubts began to grow. Was the Titanic really in our carefully plotted search area? If so, surely something would have shown up on our monitor screens by now. Were we looking in the wrong place? Would we return empty-handed? I began to feel a rising panic.

2 In a last-ditch effort, we decided to check out a tiny portion of ocean bottom that Jean-Louis and his SAR sonar system had missed because of strong currents. We headed to that spot ten miles away.

3 But as we began to tow Argo1 back and forth across the new search area, our hopes really began to fade. There was nothing down there. By now the routine inside our control room had become mind-numbing: hour after hour of staring at video images of flat bottom mud. On top of that, we were exhausted. The strain of it all was getting to us, and the boredom was becoming unbearable. Then, with a bad turn in the weather and only four days left, we reached our lowest point. I began to face total defeat.

4 Just after midnight, on September 1, I went to my bunk for some rest, and the night shift led by Jean-Louis manned their stations. About an hour into their watch, one of the A photograph of the Argo as it works underwater

team members asked the others, “What are we going to do to keep ourselves awake tonight?” All they’d seen so far was mud and more mud, endless miles of nothing. Stu Harris, who was busy flying Argo, didn’t answer. His eyes were glued to the Argo video monitor.

5 “There’s something,” he said, pointing to the screen. Suddenly every member of the sleepy watch was alive and alert. No one could believe it wasn’t just another

1 Argo — the underwater vessel that contained a video camera

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59

ELA Reading Comprehension

false alarm, or a joke. But, no, there on the screen were clear images of things man-made. Stu yelled, “Bingo!” The control room echoed with a loud “Yeah!” from the whole team, and then wild shrieks and war-whoops. All sorts of wreckage began to stream by on the screen. Then something different appeared — something large and perfectly round. Jean-Louis checked in a book of pictures of the Titanic. He came across a picture of the ship’s massive boilers, used to burn coal and drive the engines. He couldn’t believe his eyes. He looked from book to video screen and back again. Yes, it was the same kind of boiler!

6 I scrambled out of my bunk when I got the news and ran to the control room. We replayed the tape of the boiler. I didn’t know what to say. I turned to Jean-Louis. The look in his eyes said everything. The Titanic had been found. We’d been right all along. Then he said softly, “It was not luck. Weearned it.”

7 Our hunt was almost over. Somewhere very near us lay the R.M.S. Titanic.

8 Word had spread throughout the ship. People were pouring into the control room. The place was becoming a madhouse. Everyone was shaking hands and hugging and slapping each other on the back. Wreckage of the Titanic

9 It was now almost two in the morning, very close to the exact hour of the Titanic’s sinking. Someone pointed to the clock on the wall. All of a sudden the room became silent.

10 Here at the bottom of the ocean lay not only the graveyard of a great ship, but of more than 1,500 people who had gone down with her. And we were the very fi rst people in seventy-three years to come to this spot to pay our respects. Images from the night of the disaster — a story I now knew by heart — fl ashed through my mind.

11 Out on the stern of the Knorr,2 people had started to gather for a few moments of silence in memory of those who had died on the Titanic. The sky was fi lled with stars; the sea was calm. We raised the Harland & Wolff fl ag, the emblem of the shipyard in Belfast, Ireland, that had built the great liner. Except for the shining moon overhead, it was just like the night when the Titanic had gone down. I could see her as she slipped nose fi rst into the glassy water. Around me were the ghostly shapes of lifeboats and the piercing shouts and screams of passengers and crew freezing to death in the water.

12 Our little memorial service lasted about ten minutes. Then I just said, “Thank you all. Now let’s get back to work.”

2 Knorr — the research ship used by Robert Ballard

Exploring the Titanic by Robert D. Ballard. Copyright © 1988 by Ballard and Family. Reprinted by permission of the author. Photograph of the Argo copyright © Emory Kristof/National Geographic/Getty Images. Photograph of the wreckage of the Titanic copyright © Ralph White/CORBIS.

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ID:286528 B Common

●1 According to the selection, how did crew members make certain that they had found the correct ship?

A. They sent a diver down to explore the wreckage.

B. They compared what they saw to old photographs.

C. They had an expert examine the items they picked up.

D. They saw the name of the ship on a piece of wreckage.

ID:286530 D Common

●2 What is the most likely reason paragraph 7 is so short?

A. to suggest the narrator’s doubts

B. to show how little time was left

C. to show the narrator’s exhaustion

D. to highlight the drama of the event

ID:286531 C Common

●3 Based on paragraphs 9 and 10, which reason best explains why “the room became silent”?

A. The crew members realized they had a lot of work left to do.

B. The crew members did not want to wake others who were asleep.

C. The crew members were thinking about the tragedy of the Titanic.

D. The crew members were not certain that they actually found the Titanic.

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ID:286536 B Common

●4 Read the sentences from paragraph 11 in the box below.

. . . it was just like the night when the Titanic had gone down. I could see her as she slipped nose first into the glassy water. Around me were the ghostly shapes of lifeboats and the piercing shouts and screams of passengers and crew freezing to death in the water.

Which of the following best describes the sentences?

A. The narrator is watching a movie.

B. The narrator is imagining the scene.

C. The narrator is remembering his past.

D. The narrator is reading about an event.

ID:286526 C Common

●5 Based on paragraphs 1 and 2, what is a “last-ditch effort”?

A. a deep dive into unexplored areas

B. a plan to do something dangerous

C. a final try to accomplish something

D. a way to correct a previous mistake

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Question 6 is an open-response question.

• Read the question carefully.• Explain your answer.• Add supporting details.• Double-check your work.

Write your answer to question 6 in the space provided in your Student Answer Booklet.

ID:286541 Common

●6 Based on the selection, describe the narrator’s feelings about the search for and the discovery of the sunken Titanic. Support your answer with important details from the selection.

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Students read a selection from Jonathan Livingston Seagull and then answered questions 7 through 13 that follow on pages 65 to 68 of this document.

Due to copyright restrictions, the selection cannot be released to the public over the Internet. For more information, see the copyright citation below.

Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach. Copyright © 1970 by Richard D. Bach and Leslie Parrish-Bach. Reprinted by permission of Scribner, a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Read the selection from Jonathan Livingston Seagull and answer the questions that follow.

by Richard Bach

from JonathanLivingston Seagull

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Due to copyright restrictions, the selection that appeared on this page cannot be released to the public over the Internet. For more information, see the citation on the previous page.

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ID:277409 A Common

●7 What is the most likely purpose of paragraph 1?

A. to set the mood

B. to describe a conflict

C. to foreshadow an event

D. to introduce a character

ID:277411 D Common

●8 Which two conditions are contrasted in paragraphs 2 and 3?

A. night and day

B. fear and safety

C. sorrow and joy

D. commotion and quiet

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ID:304479 A Common

●9 In paragraph 9, the phrase “you’re bone and feathers!” suggests that Jonathan’s mother believes he is too

A. skinny.

B. flashy.

C. proud.

D. timid.

ID:277425 D Common

●10 In paragraph 13, what is the most likely reason Jonathan drops food to another gull?

A. Jonathan wants the bird to stop bothering him.

B. Jonathan wants to disobey the wishes of his parents.

C. Jonathan needs more experience in fighting for his own food.

D. Jonathan has made up his mind to care more about flying than food.

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ID:277435 D Common

●11 Which of the following is the main theme of the selection?

A. the challenges of surviving in nature

B. the differences between family and community

C. the homesickness one feels when becoming independent

D. the differences between what we want and what is expected of us

ID:277439 A Common

●12 In paragraph 4, what does the word falter mean?

A. hesitate

B. change

C. worry

D. speed

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ID:277458 Common

●13 Based on the selection, explain how Jonathan is different from other seagulls. Support your answer with important details from the selection.

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Read the passage about an amazing animal and answer the questions that follow.

Flying FrogGlider in the Treetops

by Cynthia Bix and Diana Landau

1 In 1869, the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace was tromping through the rainforests of Borneo when a local man brought him a surprising animal specimen. It was a large tree frog that Wallace later described as having “come down, in a slanting direction, from a high tree, as if it flew.”

2 Wallace was fascinated. Examining the frog, he found “the toes very long and fully webbed to their very extremity, so that when expanded they offered a surface much larger than that of the body.” He concluded that this was the first known case of a “flying frog.”

3 These frogs don’t truly fly, as birds or bats do. What they do is glide—somewhat like humans piloting a hang glider. In hang gliding, the pilot jumps off a cliff or hilltop and sails through the air at a gradual downward slant, held aloft by lightweight “wings” strapped to a harness. The pilot controls the craft by shifting his or her weight, or by changing the angle of the wings.

4 Flying frogs do much the same thing. With powerful hind legs they launch their lightweight bodies from a high branch into the air. They spread out their large webbed feet and hands, as well as special flaps of skin on their legs and arms. These membranes of skin act like miniature parachutes to slow the frog’s descent.

5 Some flying frogs glide as far as 40 or 50 feet as they descend by stages from the treetops to vegetation lower down. For these little animals, gliding is an energy-efficient way to get quickly from one place to another. By moving its legs or twisting its toes, the flying frog can even turn as it glides, so it can land to the right or left of its original direction of launch.

A Bornean flying frog, its foot webs stretched wide for a parachute effect, glides down for a soft landing on a fern.

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6 The world in which these airborne frogs make their home is the rich and varied rainforest of Borneo, a large island that is part of Indonesia. Here, huge trees reach 100 feet into the air. Their leafy tops meet and mingle in a dense umbrella of green, casting the forest floor, or understory, into dim green shade. Up in the sunlit canopy thrives a colorful community of fruits and flowers, birds, animals, and insects—some of which never come down to the ground. Up here the flying frog finds plenty of insects to feed on, and plenty of moisture from the frequent rains that fall on the canopy.

Trees are spaced quite widely, so the flying frogs may glide up to 50 feet.

7 Like other tree frogs, the flying frog is uniquely adapted for its arboreal* life. Its feet have large, round toe pads that help it climb and cling to vertical surfaces. Though many people assume that these pads adhere by suction, they actually have tiny specialized cells that can penetrate microscopic cracks and irregularities in tree trunks and branches. The pads also have glands that produce a sticky secretion to help the frog hold tight—sort of like the “stickum” that football players once used to catch passes.

8 The frogs’ long legs also aid inclimbing; the strong hind legs propel their leaps through the trees. Their large, well-developed eyes help them navigate through the canopy and track down insect prey. Scientists believe frogs have good depth and color perception, as well as the ability to see in all directions at once. They can spot an insect’s slightest movement, even in the dark.

9 Frogs have a unique ability to regulate their body temperature by changing the color of their skin. Because the tree frog endures greater extremes of light and temperature than its pond-dwelling relatives, it can change even more than other frogs. Light colors reflect heat, so the frog’s skin may get lighter in hot, bright sunshine. When temperatures drop or when it gets dark, the frog’s skin grows darker to absorb warmth. These changes are caused by the movements of various pigments within the skin cells.

10 Color changes also provide camouflage. In response to signals from its hormones or nervous system, the frog’s color may change to match that of the mottled brown bark or the bright green leaf it’s sitting on. Then predators such as owls or monkeys are less likely to see it. If one does spot it, the flying frog can often glide to safety.

11 One of the few times the little frogs come down from the canopy is to breed. Their eggs, like those of all frogs, must hatch near water where the tadpoles can begin their development into adult frogs.

* arboreal — of or like a tree; living in trees

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12 The flying frog is a fascinating example of an animal that has taken its family traits to extremes in adapting to its special environment. With its parachute-like feet and extra-streamlined body, it swoops through the rainforest canopy while other frogs make their way along the ground and through the water.

13 But like all inhabitants of the world’s rainforests, the flying frog faces the threat of displacement from its natural habitat. As more and more forest is cleared for human use, and as the effects of pollution trickle into what forest is left, the frogs may face an uncertain future. One of only about a dozen kinds of flying frogs in the world, this agile creature is a valuable member of the rainforest’s community of wonders.

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“Flying Frog: Glider in the Treetops” by Cynthia Bix and Diana Landau, from Animal Athletes: Olympians of the Wild World. Copyright © 1996 by Walking Stick Press. Reprinted by permission of Andrews McMeel Publishing. Photograph 1 copyright © Stephen Dalton/Minden Pictures. Photograph 2 copyright © iStockphoto/Simon Gurney. Photograph 3 copyright © TIM LAMAN/National Geographic Stock.

Flying frogs cling to tree trunks and other surfaces with their large feet and round, sticky toe pads.

The flying frog’s skin performs many functions. Instead of drinking water, frogs absorb it through thin skin on their abdomen, called a “pelvic patch.” And besides breathing through their lungs, they draw in oxygen and release carbon dioxide through their skin. To do this the skin must stay moist, a job performed by mucous-producing glands. The mucous also gives the skin a slippery film that protects against bacteria and helps the frog give predators “the slip.”

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ID:297890 D Common

●14 How do the authors mainly introduce the subject in paragraphs 1 and 2?

A. They compare different types of flying frogs.

B. They question some myths about flying frogs.

C. They highlight extraordinary abilities of flying frogs.

D. They describe one of the earliest discoveries of flying frogs.

ID:297891 A Common

●15 How does the explanation of hang gliding in paragraph 3 most help the reader?

A. It compares frogs’ flight to something that people do.

B. It explains how flying frogs descended from birds and bats.

C. It shows what human pilots can learn by studying frogs’ flight.

D. It contrasts the abilities of flying frogs to those of birds and bats.

ID:297895 B Common

●16 What is the main purpose of the first photograph of the Bornean flying frog?

A. to highlight how tiny the frog is

B. to demonstrate how the frog moves

C. to show the frog in its natural setting

D. to compare the frog to another species

ID:297896 B Common

●17 What does the information in paragraph 6 mainly suggest about Borneo’s rainforest canopy?

A. It is remote and has rarely been studied.

B. It supports a variety of plants and wildlife.

C. It includes few species that live on and under the ground.

D. It has seen rapid changes in climate and animal populations.

ID:297900 D Common

●18 Based on the passage, tree frogs protect themselves from enemies mainly by

A. snaring them in traps.

B. frightening them away.

C. producing poison to kill them.

D. using camouflage to hide from them.

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ID:297903 B Common

●19 What is the main purpose of paragraph 13?

A. to present expert opinions about flying frogs

B. to raise concerns about the survival of flying frogs

C. to describe how flying frogs may adapt in the future

D. to explain why flying frogs receive so much attention

ID:297905 A Common

●20 Read the descriptions from the passage in the box below.

• . . . they launch their lightweight bodies from a high branch . . .

• . . . the strong hind legs propel their leaps through the trees.

• . . . the flying frog can often glide to safety.

• . . . it swoops through the rainforest canopy . . .

In the descriptions, what do the words “launch,” “propel,” “glide,” and “swoops” mainly show about the frogs?

A. how they move through the air

B. how they differ from other species

C. how they behave when under attack

D. how they change speed in different situations

ID:297906 D Common

●21 How is the information in the passage mainly organized?

A. as steps in a process

B. in chronological order

C. in order of importance

D. by topic with supporting details

ID:297909 C Common

●22 Based on paragraphs 1 and 2, a naturalist is most likely a person who

A. explores unknown areas.

B. captures animals for zoos.

C. studies animals and plants.

D. makes amazing discoveries.

ID:297911 C Common

●23 Read the sentence from paragraph 6 in the box below.

Up in the sunlit canopy thrives a colorful community of fruits and flowers, birds, animals, and insects—some of which never come down to the ground.

What is the purpose of the dash in the sentence?

A. to set off a definition

B. to show fact versus opinion

C. to set off additional information

D. to show an interesting comparison

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ID:297918 Common

●24 Read the sentence from paragraph 12 in the box below.

The flying frog is a fascinating example of an animal that has taken its family traits to extremes in adapting to its special environment.

Based on the passage, explain why the flying frog could be called “extreme.” Support your answer with important details from the passage.

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Grade 6 English Language Arts Reading Comprehension

Spring 2013 Released Items: Reporting Categories, Standards, and Correct Answers*

Item No. Page No. Reporting Category StandardCorrect Answer

(MC)*

1 60 Reading 1 B

2 60 Reading 6 D

3 60 Reading 2 C

4 61 Reading 5 B

5 61 Reading 4 C

6 62 Reading 6

7 65 Reading 6 A

8 65 Reading 4 D

9 66 Reading 4 A

10 66 Reading 3 D

11 67 Reading 2 D

12 67 Language 4 A

13 68 Reading 2

14 72 Reading 5 D

15 72 Reading 5 A

16 72 Reading 7 B

17 72 Reading 3 B

18 72 Reading 1 D

19 73 Reading 5 B

20 73 Reading 4 A

21 73 Reading 5 D

22 73 Language 4 C

23 73 Language 2 C

24 74 Reading 2

* Answers are provided here for multiple-choice items only. Sample responses and scoring guidelines for open-response items, which are indicated by the shaded cells, will be posted to the Department’s website later this year.

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Grade 6 English Language Arts Reading Comprehension

Spring 2013 Unreleased Common Items: Reporting Categories and Standards

Item No. Reporting Category Standard

25 Reading 2

26 Reading 5

27 Reading 4

28 Reading 3

29 Reading 3

30 Reading 5

31 Reading 2

32 Reading 5

33 Language 4

34 Language 4

35 Reading 2

36 Reading 1

37 Reading 1

38 Reading 6

39 Language 4

40 Language 1

mcas 2013 ela grade 6 released items document

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