read the passage. then answer the questions that follow. spies … · read the passage. then answer...

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©Curriculum Associates, LLC Copying is not permitted.61Assessment 3

Assessment 3

Reading

Read the passage. Then answer the questions that follow.

Spies in Petticoatsby Lisa Torrey

1 During the Civil War, thousands of women served as nurses. They worked in hospitals and on the front lines for the Union and the Confederacy. These “angels of the battlefields” hold a well-known place in American history. Less known, however, is the fact that hundreds of women also served in a far different capacity. They risked their lives as undercover spies.

2 These women spies came from a variety of backgrounds—from former slaves to fashionable socialites. Yet these very different women shared some valuable traits. Each had detailed knowledge of daily activities and troop movements in the part of the country where she lived. This knowledge made the women very helpful to military leaders, both Union and Confederate. These women also shared a passion for either the Union or the Confederacy, and they were willing to die for it. Across the country, these female spies worked within carefully constructed networks, gathering information and using various means to relay messages.

3 One of the Union’s top female spies was a Southern woman named Elizabeth Van Lew. Even though Van Lew lived in the South, she was strongly against slavery. She convinced her own family to free their slaves. She was wealthy and well-educated. And she lived in Richmond, Virginia—the capital of the Confederacy. When a Union general asked Van Lew to work as a spy, she readily agreed.

4 Elizabeth Van Lew enlisted the help of other Union supporters in Richmond to become her couriers. These couriers delivered secret information from her to General Grant, who led the Union troops. She also set up relay stations for the couriers at secret meeting points between Richmond and Grant’s headquarters. Van Lew wrote her coded messages in invisible ink. And the messages were often hidden inside hollowed-out vegetables from Van Lew’s garden. Because of Van Lew’s efforts, General Grant learned how the Confederate army was defending Richmond. When General Grant and his Union troops captured Richmond, Elizabeth Van Lew proudly flew the Union flag from the roof of her house. General Grant even visited her at her home. He wanted to thank Van Lew in person for her service to the Union.

5 The former slave Harriet Tubman is celebrated for her work as a “conductor” of the Underground Railroad. She led hundreds of slaves to freedom in the North. And she was also one of the Union’s most valuable spies. Because of her work with the Underground Railroad, Tubman knew firsthand all of the land and waterway transportation routes throughout the South. With this knowledge, she was able to map territory behind enemy lines for the Union. Also because of her work with the Underground Railroad, Tubman had the great respect of many people, especially slaves and former slaves. She enlisted the help of these loyal people as scouts when she set up a vast spy ring for the Union. Led and trained by Tubman, her scouts went on dangerous missions behind enemy lines. Harriet Tubman herself led successful raids along the South Carolina coast in Confederate territory. These raids disturbed supply lines vital to the Confederate army, and they freed hundreds of slaves.

©Curriculum Associates, LLC Copying is not permitted.62 Assessment 3

6 While Elizabeth Van Lew, Harriet Tubman, and many other women worked as spies for the Union, other women were actively spying for the Confederacy. One woman in particular was the Confederacy’s master spy. Her name was Rose O’Neal Greenhow. Greenhow was a wealthy widow. She was also a charming hostess. She often invited military and political leaders to her home for social evenings. And she lived in the ideal place for secretly obtaining information about the Union—Washington, D.C. Not only was Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States, it was the headquarters of the Union Army during the Civil War.

7 Rose Greenhow considered herself a Southerner through and through. She would do anything to help the Confederacy win the Civil War. Operating from the Union capital, Greenhow soon organized the war’s largest network of Confederate spies. Writing in secret code, she sent her reports by courier. Each courier passed Greenhow’s reports to the next courier in a relay system known as the “Secret Line.”

8 Rose Greenhow’s messages were highly detailed. They described Union troop movements and strategies, or plans of action. One of these messages gave urgent information about the Union Army’s plan of attack at the First Battle of Bull Run. Greenhow’s accurate information led to a victory for the Confederate Army. In 1861, Rose was placed under house arrest by the newly formed Secret Service. Even then, the master spy managed to find out Union secrets and send them to Confederate military leaders. After Rose was released from house arrest, she tried to smuggle gold for the Confederate treasury. However, the boat she was in turned over in rough water. Rose drowned, weighed down by the heavy gold.

1 The following question has two parts. First, answer part A. Then, answer part B.

Part A

Which of the following best describes the central idea of the passage?

A Thousands of women courageously served as nurses during the Civil War.

B Harriet Tubman worked with the Underground Railroad to free hundreds of slaves.

C Spies for both the Union and the Confederacy disguised themselves as women.

D Women acted as spies for the Union and Confederate armies during the Civil War.

Part B

Which detail from the passage best supports the answer to part A?

A “One of the Union’s top female spies was a Southern woman named Elizabeth Van Lew.”

B “Also because of her work with the Underground Railroad, Tubman had the great respect of many people, especially slaves and former slaves.”

C “In 1861, Rose was placed under house arrest by the newly formed Secret Service.”

D “They worked in hospitals and on the front lines for the Union and the Confederacy. “

Go On


2 The author suggests that women spies played an important role during the Civil War. Which two sentences from the passage best support the above statement?

A “When General Grant and his Union troops captured Richmond, Elizabeth Van Lew proudly flew the Union flag from the roof of her house.”

B “Greenhow’s accurate information led to a victory for the Confederate Army.”

C “Harriet Tubman herself led successful raids along the South Carolina coast in Confederate territory.”

D “Even though Van Lew lived in the South, she was strongly against slavery.”

E “These women spies came from a variety of backgrounds—from former slaves to fashionable socialites.”

3 Read this sentence from paragraph 2 of the passage “Spies in Petticoats.”

Across the country, these female spies worked within carefully constructed networks, gathering information and using various means to relay messages.

What does the word “networks” mean as it is used in this sentence?

A systems of computers that share information

B chains of radio or TV stations linked by satellites

C structures in which cords, threads, or wires cross

D groups of people who share similar interests or goals

4 In “Spies in Petticoats,” the author believes that female spies were clever and resourceful. Which sentence from the passage best supports the author’s point of view?

A “Rose drowned, weighed down by the heavy gold.”

B “Van Lew wrote her coded messages in invisible ink.”

C “She convinced her own family to free their slaves.”

D “She led hundreds of slaves to freedom in the North.”


5 Below are three ideas from the passage.

Idea

Women spies came from many different backgrounds.

Women spies took great risks for their causes.

Women spies passed along valuable knowledge.

Circle one of the ideas. Then write two sentences from the passage that show how this idea is developed in the text.

Write your answer in complete sentences.

Go On


Read the play. Then answer the questions that follow.

from Langston Hughes: Poet of the Peopleby Sylvia Kamerman, adapted excerpts from “Langston Hughes: Poet of the People”

from The Big Book of Large-Cast Plays

SCENE 1

TIME: Summer, 1920.

1 SETTING: Study in James Hughes’s home near Mexico City. A desk, chair, and wastebasket are center. Accountant’s ledger lies closed on edge of desk. Floor vase with tall pampas grass stands nearby.

2 AT RISE: LANGSTON HUGHES sits writing at desk. SEÑORA GARCIA enters, holding feather duster.

3 SEÑORA GARCIA: Señor Langston, how can you sit in one place for hours just writing?

4 LANGSTON (Leaning back): Señora Garcia, if I could spend my whole life writing, I’d be happy.

5 SEÑORA GARCIA (Dusting vase): You are a true artist, Señor Langston. (Turns; sighs) It is too bad that your father does not understand. You two belong to different worlds. You are a dreamer, and he is such a practical man. . . . (Door slams off) . . .

(MR. HUGHES enters, frowning.)

6 SEÑORA GARCIA (Turns with big smile): Buenas días, Señor Hughes. We were not expecting you back from Toluca so soon.

7 MR. HUGHES: Hello, Señora Garcia. (As he removes his poncho) Langston?

8 LANGSTON (Rising; uncomfortably): Hello, Father. (MR. HUGHES gives poncho to SEÑORA GARCIA, who exits with it.)

9 MR. HUGHES: Well, Langston, let me see what progress you’ve made with the accounting problems.

10 LANGSTON (Hesitantly): Father, I need to talk to you.

11 MR. HUGHES (Pointing to ledger): We should go over the accounting problems first, and after dinner, we’ll work on your Spanish lessons.

12 LANGSTON (Pleading): Father, please listen to me . . .

13 MR. HUGHES: We can talk later, son. Let me see your bookkeeping. If you’re going to run this ranch someday, you’ll have to learn how to keep accounts. (Sits at desk)

14 LANGSTON (Giving ledger to MR. HUGHES): I’m afraid I didn’t get much done.

15 MR. HUGHES (Slowly turning pages; irritated): Langston, you’ve hardly done any work on these at all.

16 LANGSTON (Pleading): I tried—I really did. (Sighs) Accounting just isn’t for me. I’m more interested in other things (Paces)—like writing.


17 MR. HUGHES (Slamming ledger shut): So—just as I thought. I suppose you’ve been sitting around here since I left—daydreaming?

18 LANGSTON: Actually, I’ve been very busy.

19 MR. HUGHES (Angrily): I didn’t bring you to Mexico just to waste your life, Langston.

20 LANGSTON: I appreciate what you’re doing for me, but—

21 MR. HUGHES (Banging desk): No excuses! You can be as successful as I am. (Rises) I left the States and moved here to Mexico because here a black man can live like any other man. That’s why I insisted you move here from Cleveland . . . so you can have more opportunities! Here if a man works hard, he can be a success at whatever he wants.

22 LANGSTON (Confidently): I plan to be a successful writer.

23 MR. HUGHES: Nonsense! You’ll attend a good school and earn a degree in engineering.

24 LANGSTON (Surprised): Engineering?

25 MR. HUGHES: Of course. (Proudly) I can afford to send you to the finest schools in the world. (Thoughtfully) I hear there are excellent schools in Switzerland.

26 LANGSTON (Stunned): Switzerland! (Agitated) I don’t want to go to school halfway around the world.

27 MR. HUGHES: All right, if you feel that strongly about it. Let’s see. (Thinks) What are some schools with good engineering departments?

28 LANGSTON (Eagerly): What about Columbia?

29 MR. HUGHES: Columbia University in New York City?

30 LANGSTON: Yes! My grades were good in high school. I think Columbia would accept me.

31 MR. HUGHES (Pleased): That’s more like it. Now, forget that silly writing business, and we’ll see about getting you an application for Columbia. (SEÑORA GARCIA enters.)

32 SEÑORA GARCIA: Dinner is ready, Señor.

33 MR. HUGHES: We’ll be right there. (He turns, sees paper on the floor) What’s this?

34 LANGSTON (Hurriedly): It’s nothing. I’ll get it. (MR. HUGHES picks up paper, glances at it, and frowns.)

35 MR. HUGHES: Is this one of your poems?

36 LANGSTON (Sheepishly): Yes. (Reaches for paper, but MR. HUGHES crumples it.)

37 MR. HUGHES (Sternly): You won’t have any more time for poetry. (Drops paper into wastebasket and puts arm around LANGSTON’s shoulders.) We’ll talk later about what courses you’ll take at Columbia University next year. You’ll have to study a lot of science and math. (They exit, SEÑORA GARCIA takes crumpled paper from wastebasket, smooths it out.)

38 SEÑORA GARCIA (Sadly): Poor Señor Langston. Why can’t his father just accept him the way he is? (Puts paper in desk drawer and exits. Curtain).

Go On


6 How does Langston respond when his father suggests that he should go to a college in Switzerland?

A He suggests a university in New York City.

B He asks if he can go to college in Mexico.

C He stubbornly refuses to go to school in Switzerland.

D He agrees to study in Switzerland if he can be a writer.


Part A

What happens when Langston suggests Columbia University as a place to study?

A Mr. Hughes states that there are excellent schools for engineering.

B Mr. Hughes responds with pleasure and believes he and Langston now agree.

C Mr. Hughes points out that he can send Langston anywhere in the world.

D Mr. Hughes insists that Langston abandon his dream of becoming a writer.

Part B

Which sentence from the play best supports the answer to part A?

A “Well, Langston, let me see what progress you’ve made with the accounting problems.”

B “I can afford to send you to the finest schools in the world.”

C “I hear there are excellent schools in Switzerland.”

D “Now, forget that silly writing business, and we’ll see about getting you an application for Columbia.”


8 Which two examples of dialogue from the play best support the idea that Mr. Hughes thinks he can plan Langston’s future for him?

A “MR. HUGHES: Well, Langston, let me see what progress you’ve made with the accounting problems.”

B “MR. HUGHES (Pointing to ledger): We should go over the accounting problems first, and after dinner, we’ll work on your Spanish lessons.”

C “MR. HUGHES: Nonsense! You’ll attend a good school and earn a degree in engineering.”

D “MR. HUGHES: Of course. (Proudly) I can afford to send you to the finest schools in the world.”

E “MR. HUGHES: (Banging desk): No excuses! You can be as successful as I am. (Rises) I left the States and moved here to Mexico because here a black man can live like any other man. That’s why I insisted you move here from Cleveland . . . so you can have more opportunities!”

9 During which part of the scene does the mood become more intense?

A when Señora Garcia is dusting and talking to Langston

B when Mr. Hughes inspects Langston’s bookkeeping

C when Langston suggests going to Columbia

D when Langston and his father exit the room

Go On


10 Read the following selection from the play.

MR. HUGHES (Sternly): You won’t have any more time for poetry. (Drops paper into wastebasket and puts arm around LANGSTON’s shoulders.) We’ll talk later about what courses you’ll take at Columbia University next year. You’ll have to study a lot of science and math. (They exit, SEÑORA GARCIA takes crumpled paper from wastebasket, smooths it out.)

How do the dialogue and stage directions help convey the play’s theme?

A They express how being a dreamer is much more difficult than simply being practical.

B They show how fathers show affection for sons and underscores the importance of family.

C They make clear that respecting older family members will lead to greater happiness than defying them.

D They show that while some may be rigid about their beliefs, others may believe in poets and other dreamers.

11 The notes for a summary need to be arranged correctly into the order in which the events occur in the play.

Indicate the correct chronological order of the events below by writing the numbers 1 to 6 on the blank before each sentence.

Langston gives his father the accountant’s ledger.

Mr. Hughes agrees to let Langston study engineering at Columbia University.

Mr. Hughes is disappointed by his son’s lack of interest in accounting.

Langston writes at a desk in his father’s study.

Langston tells his father he plans to be a writer.

Mr. Hughes returns home from a trip to Toluca.



Grizzly Adams had a traveling show in the late 1800s. Adams’s specialty was wild animals of all types. P. T. Barnum was very familiar with this man’s wild stories and outright lies. In the following excerpt from his book, Barnum tells of an incident with Adams and some “golden pigeons.”

from The Humbugs of the WorldExcerpts from The Humbugs of the World: An Account of Humbugs, Delusions, Impositions,

Quackeries, Deceits, and Deceivers Generally in All Ages by Phineas Taylor Barnum, published by Carlton Publishers, 1866

1 The next, morning, “Old Grizzly Adams,” whose exhibition of bears was then open in Fourteenth street, happened to be passing through the Museum, when his eyes fell on the “Golden California Pigeons.” He looked a moment and doubtless admired. He soon after came to my office.

2 “Mr. B,” said he, “you must let me have those California pigeons.”

3 “I can’t spare them,” I replied.

4 “But you must spare them. All the birds and animals from California ought to be together. You own half of my California menagerie,1 and you must lend me those pigeons.”

5 “Mr. Adams, they are too rare and valuable a bird to be hawked about in that manner; besides, I expect they will attract considerable attention here.”

6 “Oh, don’t be a fool,” replied Adams. “Rare bird, indeed! Why, they are just as common in California as any other pigeon! I could have brought a hundred of them from San Francisco, if I had thought of it.”

7 “But why did you not think of it?” I asked, with a suppressed smile.

8 “Because they are so common there,” said Adams. “I did not think they would be any curiosity here. I have eaten them in pigeon-pies hundreds of times, and shot them by the thousand!”

9 I was ready to burst with laughter to see how readily Adams swallowed the bait, but maintaining the most rigid gravity, I replied:

10 “Oh well, Mr. Adams, if they are really so common in California, you had probably better take them, and you may write over and have half a dozen pairs sent to me for the Museum.”

11 “All right,” said Adams; “I will send over to a friend in San Francisco, and you shall have them here in a couple of months.” . . .

12 Six or eight weeks after this incident, I was in the California Menagerie, and noticed that the “Golden Pigeons” had assumed a frightfully mottled appearance. Their feathers had grown out, and they were half white. Adams had been so busy with his bears that he had not noticed the change. I called him up to the pigeon cage, and remarked:

13 “Mr. Adams, I fear you will lose your Golden Pigeons; they must be very sick; I observe they are turning quite pale!”

14 Adams looked at them a moment with astonishment; then turning to me, and seeing that I could not suppress a smile, he indignantly exclaimed:1 menagerie: a collection of animals

Go On


15 “Blast the Golden Pigeons! You had better take them back to the Museum. You can’t humbug2 me with your painted pigeons!”

16 This was too much, and “I laughed till I cried” to witness the mixed look of astonishment and vexation which marked the “grizzly” features of old Adams. . . .2 humbug: to trick or deceive

12 Select two quotations by Grizzly Adams in The Humbugs of the World that show how much Adams wants the Golden California Pigeons.

A “‘But you must spare them.’”

B “‘Rare bird, indeed!’”

C “‘Because they are so common there,’ said Adams.”

D “‘All the birds and animals from California ought to be together.’”

E “‘Blast the Golden Pigeons!’”

13 Read these paragraphs from The Humbugs of the World.

“But why did you not think of it?” I asked, with a suppressed smile.

“Because they are so common there,” said Adams. “I did not think they would be any curiosity here. I have eaten them in pigeon-pies hundreds of times, and shot them by the thousand!”

I was ready to burst with laughter to see how readily Adams swallowed the bait . . .

What role do these paragraphs play in relation to the rest of the passage?

A They show that Adams is joking when he says the birds are common.

B They indicate that Barnum is too polite to laugh out loud at Adams.

C They illustrate the friendly relationship between Barnum and Adams.

D They introduce the idea that Barnum is playing a trick on Adams.



Part A

What does the word “mottled” mean as it is used in the passage?

A colorful

B diseased

C unusual

D streaked

Part B

Which of these phrases from the passage best helps the reader understand the meaning of “mottled”?

A “too rare and valuable”

B “they were half white”

C “attract considerable attention”

D “must be very sick”

Go On


15 Answer parts A, B, and C below.

Part A

Circle one word that describes P. T. Barnum based on evidence from the text. There is more than one correct choice listed below.

shrewd honest successful

scientific misleading sympathetic

Part B

Find a sentence in the passage with details that support your response to part A. Write the sentence on the lines below.

Part C

Find a second sentence in the passage with details that support your response to part A. Write the sentence on the lines below.

16 Imagine you are creating an illustrated version of this passage. Which of the following would best support and complement the text?

A a poster advertising Barnum’s Museum

B an illustration of the Golden Pigeons

C a photograph of Grizzly Adams

D a map of San Francisco, California



Embers of Moonlightby Ela Banerjee, Writing Weekly Reader

1 The moon was sitting on my roof.

2 Yet it wasn’t really that bizarre.1 After all, it was the last night of the month, the Night of Rebirth. The night when the sky trickled down and the plants shriveled and the tiny creatures of Wood shuddered with one last heartbeat. The night when all things east of The Mountains died, waiting for a new birth at dawn.

3 A few falling stars had landed earlier on the top of my rickety house, which nestled precariously2 on the highest, most eastern edge of The Mountains. They had only lasted for a handful of moments, giggling uncontrollably, and then crumbling in a sudden spark of gold.

4 But the moon had never landed upon my roof. I had sat there, high in The Mountains, on the border of a strange world, every month as long as I could remember. I would watch, mesmerized,3 as the place no one else ever entered began to rot away. I watched the animals retreat and the stars tumble down, but when the feeling of death became overwhelming, I slipped back into my bed, thinking of the world on the other side of The Mountains.

5 I had heard rumors of the moon herself landing, but they were mangled and debated. But here she sat with poignant4 patience, her ivory dress delicately rippling like shattered lake water over her willowy arms and legs, a collection of folded limbs that shone with a strange and pallid5 luminescence.6 Her hair glinted like polished glass as two perfect sapphire spheres studied my face.

6 An expectant silence tinged with the distant flickering of literally dying stars followed.

7 “So, what was it like in the sky?” I began awkwardly.

8 “Like how you feel up here.” Her voice was odd. Musical and elegant, yet strangely hoarse and low. “Like why you come up here each month.”

9 Not sure how to respond, I looked out over the jagged ledge of The Mountains and into the realm where the moon came from and I did not.

10 I watched as the world died with simultaneous7 regularity. The trees yawned with their branches and collapsed heavily to the ground. Their cracked leaves fluttered to the grass, which itself curled from bright green to aged brown before my eyes.

11 Flowers savored one last brilliant hue, and then turned to ashened dust, while rich patches of soil withered into cracked gray.1 bizarre: strange, odd, out of the ordinary2 precariously: in an unsteady or uncertain way3 mesmerized: fascinated4 poignant: touching or moving, with a strong effect5 pallid: pale, white6 luminescence: glow7 simultaneous: happening at the same time, all at once

Go On


12 As the moon continued, I closed my eyes, her voice melting with the diminishing call of a nightingale. “I know you and your kin hide in these peaks. Yet you are the only one who ventures out to witness these nights. It is a strange thing how this world passes on each month, how each thing so carefully sculpted is suddenly destroyed. I know you wonder why it happens.

13 “I have died many times. I fall with the sky each month, with the stars and the clouds and the air. Is it an ending? Or is it a beginning?”

14 Something touched my arm, a surface as cold as bitter metal. My eyes snapped open to see the moon’s chalkwhite hand gently touching my own. I looked into her face and stifled a gasp. Her once-ivory skin was now crumpled in a bed of sagging wrinkles; her arm, I now noticed, was thin and interrupted by bruised veins. Yet her eyes were still pierced with sudden blue and now held my own.

15 “But there is no difference, is there? I see this night as you do. It is destruction; it is hope—a revision, a new view. But it continues, on and on. You see this, I know. This is why I have alighted on your roof, on The Mountains tonight. You always go back before the night is over—before it really ends. Now you will finally see.”

16 As she broke away from my arm, I suddenly realized that I was surrounded by a cloud of utter and endless darkness. All the stars had long since burnt out; all the creatures had been forgotten. The only light was the moon herself, her pale glow a single flicker in the dead night.

17 But she was dimming. . . . Slowly, she began to fade, her skin gaining transparency, her eyes only a twinkle of indigo. Soon, I could only see a shimmer of white.

18 I closed my eyes as the moon died, unwilling to watch her disappear.

19 After many moments, I dared to watch the world again. Blackness, lifeless and silent, enveloped me. No moon, no stars, no Wood.

20 I sighed, and was about to settle to the ground, when a glinting caught my eye. I looked down and saw a sprinkle of silvery, sparkling dust. I smiled.

21 That night, I closed my eyes to the embers of moonlight.

17 Which sentence from the story “Embers of Moonlight” best explains why the narrator has never before watched the end of the Night of Rebirth?

A “A few falling stars had landed earlier on the top of my rickety house . . .”

B “I would watch, mesmerized, as the place no one else ever entered began to rot away.”

C “. . . when the feeling of death became overwhelming, I slipped back into my bed . . .”

D “I had heard rumors of the moon herself landing, but they were mangled and debated.”



Part A

In “Embers of Moonlight,” how is the narrator’s experience different from her kin’s?

A She watches through most of the Night of Rebirth, whereas her kin do not.

B She does not stay until the end of the Night of Rebirth, whereas her kin do.

C She is the first person among her kin to have met the moon.

D She is the only person among her kin who understands why the world dies.

Part B

Which sentence from the story best supports the answer to part A?

A “I would watch, mesmerized, as the place no one else ever entered began to rot away.”

B “‘I know you and your kin hide in these peaks.’”

C “‘It is a strange thing how this world passes on each month, how each thing so carefully sculpted is suddenly destroyed.’”

D “The only light was the moon herself, her pale glow a single flicker in the dead night.”

19 Read this sentence from paragraph 19 of the story “Embers of Moonlight.”

Blackness, lifeless and silent, enveloped me.

What does the word “enveloped” convey in this sentence?

A The narrator feels joyful in the night.

B The narrator feels surrounded by darkness.

C The narrator fears her safety is in danger.

D The narrator suddenly wishes to go to sleep.

Go On


20 Which two details from “Embers of Moonlight” best support the central idea that the Night of Rebirth is a necessary part of a cycle?

A The narrator watches falling stars land on her roof and crumble away.

B The narrator has heard rumors that the moon sometimes lands, too.

C The moon says she falls each month with the sky, stars, clouds, and air.

D The moon slowly fades and then disappears into the blackness of night.

E The moon questions whether her death is an ending or a beginning.

21 Read the following stanza from the poem “Talking in Their Sleep” by Edith M. Thomas.

“You think I am dead,” The quick grass said, “Because I am parted with stem and blade! But under the ground I am safe and sound With the snow’s thick blanket over me laid. I’m still alive, and ready to shoot, Should the spring of the year Come dancing here— But I pity the flower without branch or root.”

Both the story and the poem present the theme that death and birth are part of a cycle. Compare and contrast how the texts present this theme. Use details from both texts to support your answer.

Write your answer in complete sentences.



Biomass Basicsby United States Energy Information Association

“Biomass” from http://www.eia.gov/kids, U.S. Energy Information Administration

1 Biomass is organic material made from plants and animals (microorganisms). Biomass contains stored energy from the sun. Plants absorb the sun’s energy in a process called photosynthesis. The chemical energy in plants gets passed on to animals and people that eat them.

2 Biomass is a renewable energy source because we can always grow more trees and crops, and waste will always exist. Some examples of biomass fuels are wood, crops, manure, and some garbage.

3 When burned, the chemical energy in biomass is released as heat. If you have a fireplace, the wood you burn in it is a biomass fuel. Wood waste or garbage can be burned to produce steam for making electricity, or to provide heat to industries and homes.

Converting Biomass to Other Forms of Energy

4 Burning biomass is not the only way to release its energy. Biomass can be converted to other useable forms of energy, such as methane gas, or transportation fuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel.

5 Methane gas is the main ingredient of natural gas. Smelly stuff, like rotting garbage, and agricultural and human waste, release methane gas—also called “landfill gas” or “biogas.”

6 Crops like corn and sugar cane can be fermented to produce ethanol. Biodiesel, another transportation fuel, can be produced from left-over food products like vegetable oils and animal fats.

How Much Biomass Is Used for Fuel?

7 Biomass fuels provided about 4% of the energy used in the United States in 2011. Of this, about 45% was from wood and wood-derived biomass, 44% from biofuels (mainly ethanol), and about 11% from municipal waste. Researchers are trying to develop ways to burn more biomass and less fossil fuels. Using biomass for energy may cut back on waste and greenhouse gas emissions.

Wood & Wood WasteBurning Wood Is Nothing New

8 The most common form of biomass is wood. For thousands of years people have burned wood for heating and cooking. Wood was the main source of energy in the United States and the rest of the world until the mid-1800s. Wood continues to be a major source of energy in much of the developing world.

9 In the United States, wood and wood waste (bark, sawdust, wood chips, wood scrap, and paper mill residues) provide about 2% of the energy we use today.

Using Wood and Wood Waste

10 About 80% of the wood and wood waste fuel used in the United States is consumed by industry, electric power producers, and commercial businesses. The rest, mainly wood, is used in homes for heating and cooking.

Go On


11 Many manufacturing plants in the wood and paper products industry use wood waste to produce their own steam and electricity. This saves these companies money because they don’t have to dispose of their waste products and they don’t have to buy as much electricity.

Waste-to-EnergyEnergy from Garbage

12 Garbage, often called municipal solid waste (MSW), is the source of about 6% of the total biomass energy consumed in the United States. MSW contains biomass (or biogenic) materials like paper, cardboard, food scraps, grass clippings, leaves, wood, and leather products, and other non-biomass combustible materials, mainly plastics and other synthetic materials made from petroleum.

13 Americans produce more and more waste each year. In 1960, the average American threw away 2.7 pounds of trash a day. Today, each American throws away about 4.4 pounds of trash every day. Of that, about 1.5 pounds are recycled or composted. What do we do with the rest? One option is to burn it. (Burning is sometimes called combustion.) About 85% of our household trash is material that will burn, and most of that is biogenic, or material that is made from biomass (plant or animal products). About 62% of MSW (by weight) is biogenic.

Waste-to-Energy Plants Make Steam and Electricity

14 Today, we can burn MSW in special waste-to-energy plants and use its heat energy to make steam to heat buildings or to generate electricity. There are about 76 waste-to-energy plants in the United States that generate electricity or produce steam. In 2011, these plants generated 14 million kilowatt hours of electricity, about the same amount used by 1.3 million U.S. households. The biogenic material in MSW contributed about 51% of the energy of the MSW that was burned in waste-to-energy facilities. Many large landfills also generate electricity with the methane gas that is produced as biomass decomposes in the landfills.

Waste-to-Energy Plants Also Dispose of Waste

15 Providing electricity is not the major advantage of waste-to-energy plants. It actually costs more to generate electricity at a waste-to-energy plant than it does at a coal, nuclear, or hydropower plant.

16 The major advantage of burning waste is that it reduces the amount of material that we bury in landfills. Waste-to-energy plants burned about 30 million tons of MSW in 2011. Burning MSW reduces the volume of waste by about 87%.


22 The word “micro” comes from a Greek word that means “small.” Based on this root and the text, what is the meaning of “microorganism”?

A a young and growing life form

B a rare and delicate life form

C a life form that can create tiny amounts of fuel

D a life form unable to be seen by the unaided eye

23 Which three sentences from the passage best support the author’s belief that waste is a growing concern?

A “Biomass fuels provided about 4% of the energy used in the United States in 2011.”

B “The major advantage of burning waste is that it reduces the amount of material that we bury in landfills.”

C “In the United States, wood and wood waste (bark, sawdust, wood chips, wood scrap, and paper mill residues) provide about 2% of the energy we use today.”

D “Garbage, often called municipal solid waste (MSW), is the source of about 6% of the total biomass energy consumed in the United States.”

E “The major advantage of burning waste is that it reduces the amount of material that we bury in landfills. ”

F “Using biomass for energy may cut back on waste and greenhouse gas emissions.”

24 What evidence does the author provide to support the claim that biomass can help reduce the amount of waste in landfills?

A “Biomass can be converted to other useable forms of energy, such as methane gas, or transportation fuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel.”

B “About 80% of the wood and wood waste fuel used in the United States is consumed by industry, electric power producers, and commercial businesses.”

C “Burning MSW reduces the volume of waste by about 87%.”

D “There are about 76 waste-to-energy plants in the United States that generate electricity or produce steam.”

Go On


25 Which of the following best summarizes the passage?

A Biomass is organic material that we can burn to create energy. Using different forms of biomass is a practical way to reduce waste, while also gaining electricity.

B Using different forms of biomass has many advantages for creating energy but comes at a high cost to the environment. Other forms of energy may be just as important.

C Burning biomass, an organic material, can help our environment. Many manufacturers collect their own biomass waste and burn it to create electricity.

D Using different forms of biomass to create energy helps companies. Ideally, biomass will become the main energy source used in the United States.

26 What examples does the author use to illustrate the idea that converting biomass to other forms of energy might help the environment? Use two details from the text to support your answer.

Write your response in complete sentences.


Writing and Research

This is a rough draft of an article for a school newspaper. It has some mistakes. Read the article. Then answer the questions that follow.

Cooking Club Bakes Up a Storm

Last Friday’s bake sale was a roaring success, thanks to the appetites of everyone

here at Kyle Middle School. Organizer Ruben Juarez said, “We raised over $350 for the

food bank.”

If you had been there, you would certainly understand why. The two tables set up in

the hallway looked like a bakery, covered with dozens of cookies, bars, breads, and cakes.

They were six feet long, so there was a lot to choose from. The cooking club members were

the ones who made everything. “That was our one rule,” said Ruben. “Everything had to

be homemade.”

The talented cooks had no problem following this rule. And alongside the usual

cupcakes, cookies, and brownies, there were some more exotic treats. Trina Hof fman made

Zucher Hutchen (Little Sugar Hats). As you might guess, these cute little cookies looked

like tiny hats. Troy Barzetti used his grandmother’s recipe a family secret to make

biscotti. These are crunchy cookies from Italy.

Go On


Some of the bakers had fun showing of f her decorating skills. Shanice Smith’s carrot

cupcakes were as pretty as a picture. Each one was topped with a tiny orange frosting

carrot, complete with delicate green leaves. They tasted as good as they looked.

The bakers loved seeing people enjoy their wares. And the students who bought

treats said they felt good because we took part in a good cause. Said one satisfied

customer, “ It’s great to have a treat and help the food bank at the same time!”

27 Read these sentences from the article.

The two tables set up in the hallway looked like a bakery, covered with dozens of cookies, bars, breads, and cakes. They were six feet long, so there was a lot to choose from.

How should the second sentence be revised to correct the unclear pronoun reference?

A All of those were six feet long, so there was a lot to choose from.

B The tables were six feet long, so there was a lot to choose from.

C It was six feet long, so there was a lot to choose from.

D The cookies were six feet long, so there was a lot to choose from.


28 Read this sentence from the article.

Troy Barzetti used his grandmother’s recipe a family secret to make biscotti.

On the lines below, rewrite the sentence with correct punctuation.


Some of the bakers had fun showing off her decorating skills.

Which should replace the underlined pronoun to correct the sentence?

A they

B she

C hers

D their


And the students who bought treats said they felt good because we took part in a good cause.

Which word or phrase should replace the underlined word to correct the pronoun shift in the sentence?

A our

B they

C their

D him

Go On


31 A student is writing a report for science class about the Venus flytrap and other plants. The sentences for the report need to be put into the correct order.

Indicate the correct order below by writing the numbers 1 to 8 on the blank before each sentence.

When an insect crawls onto a leaf, the Venus flytrap’s trigger hairs are stimulated.

The Venus flytrap instantly snaps closed and traps its prey in less than a second!

The pitcher plant, for example, has slippery insides that cause insects to fall into a liquid that drowns and digests them.

And the sundew has sticky tentacles that trap insects unlucky enough to land on them.

The Venus flytrap is an unusual plant in that it is carnivorous.

In other words, the Venus flytrap eats animals—in this case, insects.

All three plants eat insects to get nutrients that the soil cannot provide them.

Other plants are also carnivorous, but they do not use trigger hairs or a snapping mechanism.


32 A student wrote a report on Hollywood, California, for his history class. His teacher suggested that he add a transition sentence to connect the first two paragraphs of the report. Read the paragraphs from the report and the directions that follow.

Hollywood was not always a bustling movie capital. In 1853, the area was ranch land with only one small adobe house. By 1900, it had become a small town of 500 people. It had its own newspaper and post office. Soon came telephone, electric, and gas lines. Hollywood was rapidly growing into a small city.

In 1910, the citizens of Hollywood found a solution to the little city’s water problem. They voted to become part of Los Angeles. Joining the larger city allowed Hollywood to share its water supply. With plenty of water, the area now had everything it needed to keep growing.

Write one sentence that adds a transition between the two paragraphs.

Write your answer on the lines below.

Go On


33 A student wrote a narrative for a writing contest. Her teacher suggested that she add some descriptive details to more accurately convey story events. Read the story and the directions that follow.

Silent and still, Cat crouched in the bushes and watched the old woman finish her daily routine. A twitch of his nose and tail were all that signaled Cat’s impatience. After rinsing the shallow plastic tray, the woman balanced it on top of the cinder block and filled it with fresh water. At last, she tottered into her cottage. All was quiet. Then Cat tensed as the scene became more interesting.

Several birds flew down and lit on low branches surrounding this makeshift “birdbath,” seeking a drink or a cooling dip. Little by little, Cat crept forward. He so hoped to catch a careless robin or chickadee because, at heart, he always would be a hunter.

One brave cardinal flew down to the tray, took two sips, and flew away. Soon other birds followed his lead. Cat crept ever closer until, finally, he stopped beneath a branch by the cinder block. A small bird flew to the tray. Cat pounced but missed his target. Instead, he dumped the water on himself. Then Cat ran home.

Revise the underlined text by writing one or more sentences that use more precise details and sensory language to better describe the event.

Write your answer on the lines below.


34 The following paragraph is a draft of an essay about bicycle lanes. The teacher suggested that the writer improve it by adding additional reasons to support her claim. Read the paragraph and the directions that follow.

For many reasons, I think adding bike lanes along Danville’s main roads will improve the quality of life in our town. Right now, bicyclists weave in and out of traffic, putting themselves and others in danger. With separate lanes for vehicles and bicycles, however, the drivers and riders will be able to travel the same road safely. The lanes will also remind drivers to be alert for bicycles. Both drivers and cyclists will feel calmer, and pedestrians will have the sidewalks to themselves! Additionally, people will want to use their bicycles to run errands or travel short distances around town, which results in less car traffic and fewer smelly fumes. Less air pollution and noise mean that more people will want to enjoy the outdoors. Clearly, the citizens of our town will benefit from the addition of bike lanes on our roads.

Which revision best adds clear and relevant support for the claim?

A The need to travel across intersections will still pose problems for drivers and bicyclists who must make turns and, in the process, cross through other traffic.

B Similar to other travel lanes on a road, bike lanes indicate the “path,” or direction of movement that cars, trucks, and bikes must follow.

C Many cycling organizations can provide highway department workers with helpful guidelines for laying out bike lanes and adding special markings.

D Bike lanes encourage more people to bicycle, which is a safe, relaxing way to get exercise and spend time with friends and family.

Go On


A student is writing a research report about school lunch. She has gathered information from two articles. Read a paragraph from each article and answer the questions that follow.

A Better Lunch The lunches students eat at school are not healthy enough. Too many kids are eating

pizza and candy bars, and such food makes them tired and slow in class. To address this

critical issue, the school should immediately install a salad bar in the cafeteria and ban all

other foods. Students will insist, “But we have a right to choose our foods!” But students

cannot choose their classes. They learn about history and science because it is good for

them and will make them better citizens. So why should they be given a choice about their

food? At school, students should consume only what is good for them. This will make them

healthier, which will make them more alert students.

Important Decisions Some argue that the school should provide healthier lunches. Just as the school

chooses the subjects it students must study, so it should choose the food its students

eat. This is a bad idea because it turns students into robots, unable to think for

themselves. A school ’s mission is to educate students. As such, the school might

consider teaching about healthy foods, but it shouldn’t force students to eat them.

Students must learn to make choices for themselves. Eventually, students will became

adults, and they will have to make these important decisions. It’s better they start now,

while they are still young.


35 Select two points the student could include in her report based on evidence in the articles.

A Many students feel strongly in favor of choosing what they eat for lunch.

B At this time, the school does not choose for its students what to eat.

C Most students eat only pizza and candy bars for lunch.

D The school offers classes on how to choose and prepare healthy foods.

E Students who do not learn to make decisions can never become adults.

36 Foods found in a salad bar are mostly healthy. Which sentence from “A Better Lunch” best supports this conclusion?

A “Too many kids are eating pizza and candy bars, and this makes them tired and slow in class.”

B “Students will insist, ‘But we have a right to choose our foods!’”

C “At school, students should consume only what is good for them.”

D “This will make them healthier, which will make them more alert students.”

37 Each article gives information about the nutrition of school lunches, but they present this information in different ways. How is each article organized? Compare the way information is presented in the two texts. Use details from each text to support your answer.

STOP

Assessment XAssessment 3

Session 1: Reading 1A. A B C D

1B. A B C D

2. A B C D E

3. A B C D

4. A B C D

5. See page 64. 6. A B C D

7A. A B C D

7B. A B C D

8. A B C D E

9. A B C D

10. A B C D

11. See page 69.12. A B C D E

13. A B C D

14A. A B C D

14B. A B C D

15A. See page 73.15B. See page 73.16. A B C D

17. A B C D

18A. A B C D

18B. A B C D

19. A B C D

20. A B C D E

21. See page 77.22. A B C D

23. A B C D E F

24. A B C D

25. A B C D

26. See page 81.

Session 2: Writing and Research27. A B C D

28. See page 84.29. A B C D

30. A B C D

31. See page 85.32. See page 86.33. See page 87.34. A B C D

35. A B C D E

36. A B C D

37. See page 90.

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Ready Assessments, English-Language Arts, Grade 6 Answer Form

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Teacher Grade

School City

TEACHER USE ONLY 5. 0 12

11. 0 12

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21. 0 12

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read the passage. then answer the questions that follow. spies … · read the passage. then answer...

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