- 1. Read the following paragraph.
The Labrador Retriever is a breed of dog known for _ (1) _ warm affection to humans, intelligence, and devotion to tasks. The Labrador has a gentle temperament and is often used as a guide dog, police dog, or search and rescue dog. It is strongly built to be an active dog. The _ (2) _ coat is usually short, dense, and waterproof. The waterproof coat allows the dog to move _ (3) _ water well. The Labrador Retriever ranges in color from black to yellow.
Choose the word or words that correctly complete the questions that follow.
A) threw
B) thru
C) through
D) thorough
- 2. Information Social Science from Item Central Benjamin Banneker
by Johanna Johnston
1
Tick, tock. The clock worked. Ding! Ding! When the hands marked the hour it chimed. Benjamin Banneker had made the clock all by himself. “That is a wonderful clock,” said a man who lived near the Banneker farm. “I really think that it is the first chiming clock that anyone has ever made in America. How did you learn to make it?”
2
What could young Benjamin Banneker say? He had not learned how to make it from anyone. He had figured it out for himself, looking at how clocks worked, thinking about what kinds of gears and wheels were needed. Then he had made the gears and wheels for himself. And after that, he had fitted them together, first this way, then that way—over and over—until at last, they moved back and forth as they should. Tick, tock, tick, tock, DING!
3
“You are a remarkable young man,” said the neighbor. “Have you gone to school at all?” Yes, Benjamin had been lucky . . . He had learned to read and write. But then he had read all the books in the school. He could not find any more books to read anywhere. He wanted to study. He wanted to learn more. But he couldn’t. So he worked on his father’s farm. But even though he had to work hard with his hands, he would not give up and stop using his mind. He figured out ways to improve the farm tools. He figured out ways to do many things better than they had been done before. Then he went to work on the clock and made it work! “A young man like you deserves help,” said the neighbor. “What can I do to help you?”
4
“Could you lend me books to read?” asked Benjamin Banneker. The neighbor could lend him books and did. They were hard books about mathematics, and surveying land, and astronomy. But Benjamin Banneker read them all and learned everything in them. He learned how to do the hardest problems. He learned about the stars and the heavens. And he learned how to survey land. The neighbor was so impressed by what Benjamin Banneker had learned that he talked to Thomas Jefferson, the man who had written the Declaration of Independence. The war was over by this time and Jefferson and George Washington and many others were working to build a new nation of the United States. Thomas Jefferson thought of how the brilliant Benjamin Banneker could help. Then Jefferson asked Banneker to join the men who were surveying land for the new capital city of Washington, D.C. So Benjamin Banneker traveled to Washington and helped to lay out and plan that city.
5
Today when we visit Washington, D.C., we can remember a boy who would not give up—who made a clock when he had no books to read—Benjamin Banneker.
Which statement best shows that Benjamin Banneker wanted to learn everything he could?
A) As a young man, Benjamin worked hard on his father’s farm.
B) When his neighbor offered to help, Benjamin asked for books to study.
C) Benjamin joined other men in planning the capital city.
D) Benjamin tried to read and write while at school.
- 3. Mirror Writing
1
Lewis Carroll is the pen name of Charles Dodgson. A pen name is a different name used by a writer. We know Lewis Carroll as the author of Alice in Wonderland. He lived in the 1800s. He had an amazing imagination and enjoyed the friendship of children. He made up fun games for them to play, such as word games. Sometimes he wrote secret messages. One way that he did this was to use mirror writing.
2
You can use mirror writing with a friend. You’ll each need a small mirror. As the writer, you’ll also need a piece of paper and a pencil or pen. If you choose a pencil, then you can erase any mistakes you make.
3
Put the paper next to the mirror. Line up the edge of the paper with the edge of the mirror. Tip the mirror up so that you can see the paper while looking at the mirror. Write your message slowly and carefully on the paper. Instead of moving from left to right as usual, look at your letters in the mirror as you write. You might need to practice a few times before you can do it easily.
4
When you finish, look at the paper. Your message will be upside down! When your friend puts your message up to a mirror, though, it will become clear.
The message described in this passage is secret because
A) someone needs a mirror to read it.
B) it uses special code letters.
C) no one knows you are writing it.
D) you are drawing pictures instead of writing words.
- 4. Daddy Day Care
by Ruth Musgrave
1
When you think “tough,” you may think of sharks, grizzly bears, or professional wrestlers, but you probably don’t think of male penguins. Emperor penguins may not look it, but the males are tough enough to take on the deadly Antarctic winter and survive.
2
And they do it—without eating—while taking care of their eggs! When other animals head north in March to avoid the Antarctic winter, emperor penguins head south.
3
Antarctica is surrounded by a huge mass of sea ice in the winter. This ice floats on the ocean in the southernmost part of the Earth. Harsh and frigid, it is here where emperor penguins choose to mate and lay their eggs.
4
All the other animals, even other penguins, leave months before the Antarctic winter sets in. The only living things left above the ice are the emperors and the humans watching them.
Foothold For Family
5
At the breeding colony, all the males and females find mates. After courtship, the female lays one egg and gives it to her mate. Nesting in this barren, ice-covered world isn’t a problem because emperors don’t build nests. The male incubates the one-pound egg on his feet, covering it with a featherless fold of skin called a “brood patch.”
6
Each male emperor penguin holds his egg throughout the brutal, Antarctic winter months of May and June. Nestled against a dad’s warm, protective body, the softball-size egg remains untouched by the frozen world.
7
Meanwhile, the female travels to the sea to feed. She won’t be back until just about the time the egg hatches—in about two months.
All For One
8
Not only is it unbelievably cold while the emperor dad stands holding his egg all winter, it’s also dark. Nevertheless, he keeps the egg warm, without stopping for anything, even food. He loses up to a half of his body weight before his mate comes back from feeding at sea in July. She takes over the egg, which then hatches. The male finally gets to go eat. When he gets back, the parents take turns holding the chick on their feet to keep it warm for the next eight weeks. At that point it’s old enough to safely stand on the ice by itself.
Snack Time
9
These older chicks gather together in large groups while their parents feed at sea. When adults return with food for their young, they locate their chicks by their calls. Emperors may look alike, but they don’t sound alike. Each individual has a unique call that is recognized by other penguins.
10
Looking like toddlers in overstuffed snowsuits, hungry chicks scurry to parents returning from sea. As they race toward the adults—and dinner—they chirp, letting their parents know “I’m over here!”
Independence Day
11
By the time the chicks are finally ready to fend for themselves, it’s December. This is summertime in the Antarctic. During the winter, the nearest open water could be 50 miles from the rookery. In summer, the ice that the chicks hatched on has begun to break up, so the chicks don’t have far to go to the sea.
12
The chicks are on their own now. The adults leave to start the cycle again, so the young emperors must learn to swim and find food by themselves. Winter day care is over; it’s time for summer independence!
Emperor Penguins
1. Emperors are the largest of the 17 penguin species.
2. Emperors eat fish, squid, and shrimp like krill.
3. These penguins can live 20 years or more in the wild.
4. One colony can number as many as 60,000 penguins.
5. Parents feed chicks every three to four days.
How do male emperor penguins differ from other animals living in Antarctica?
A) They feed on sea creatures from areas other than Antarctica.
B) They work together to build nests with materials from Antarctica.
C) They remain in Antarctica throughout the winter months.
- 5. The Making of Shoes
by Karin Luisa Badt
Straw, Wood, or Leather?
1
If you were going to make a shoe, what would you use? Gold and emeralds? Pizza crust? How about a piece of paper?
2
Today, you could go to the store and choose from many different materials to make your shoes. But that has not always been the case. Until a few hundred years ago, transportation was very difficult. People could not trade as easily as they can today. They had to make their shoes out of the materials they could find in their own environment.
3
For example, the Inuit by the Arctic Ocean made boots out of sealskin, Scandinavians made shoes out of tree bark, and the Japanese made sandals out of rice straw.
4
In the past, people could tell something about the environment you lived in by looking at your shoes. Your shoes told clues about what kinds of materials were available in your land, and what the climate was like. If your shoes were made of wood, you were probably from a land covered with dark forests. If they were made of fur, your land was cold and full of wild animals. Straw shoes? Why, that would mean you’re from a sunny place where grass grows plentifully!
Don’t Go Out Without Your Boots!
5
The sandal was the first shoe invented after the Stone Age, during the early days of recorded history. That is because civilization began in the warm part of the globe. The sandal kept the foot cool under a hot sun. People’s shoes fit the weather! Ancient Egyptians wore sandals made of palm leaves and papyrus. The sandals were tied to their feet with straps.
6
Ancient Greeks and Romans also lived in a warm climate. They wore sandals that looked a lot like the early Egyptian sandal. They were made of leather and tied up the leg.
7
Even today, people often wear the traditional shoes of their country. On some mornings in Russia, children are told to put on their valenki because it is snowing outside. A valenki is a boot made completely of felt. Have you ever touched felt? It is soft and warm. Even the soles of the valenki are made of felt.
8
Up high in the Himalaya Mountains, Tibetans keep warm with boots made from the hide of the hairy yak. Yaks are big, shaggy animals that live only in central Asia, where Tibet is located.
9
In the Philippines, you would never find a shoe made of yak fur. There, a popular shoe is the sapato, which is made of coconut shells. The climate in the Philippines is hot and wet, and coconuts grow easily there. In Mexico, which is hot and dry, the Nahua people, a Native American group, keep cool with sandals made of yucca leaves.
10
The Japanese have a traditional shoe called the yuki geta. It has two “stilts” on the bottom, which makes it useful for walking in wet, muddy, or snowy areas.
11
In Ireland, some people wear shoes called brogues, which completely cover the foot. Brogues have holes in them so that water can drain out after a person walks across a marshy bog.
12
Shoes from two distant cultures can sometimes look very much alike—even though the two cultures may never have had any contact with each other! How is this so? Because people who live far apart, but in the same kind of climate, tend to invent the same kind of shoes. For example, the yuki geta looks a lot like the Spanish wooden shoe. Both are a piece of wood with stilts on the bottom—and both were designed to lift one’s feet above wetness and dirt.
Which of these was not important in the making of early shoes?
A) walking surfaces
B) climate
C) materials available
D) appearance
- 6. How the Postage Stamp was Invented
1
People have sent letters to one another since the invention of writing. For a long time there were no post offices for mailing. People asked traders and travelers to carry a letter to the town where the letter was being sent. Soon people learned that the way letters were sent could be better.
2
Government officials wanted to make it easier to send letters so they started the first post office. This meant that people had to pay for their letters. At first, the person receiving the letter had to pay for it. That might have been a good idea, but it did not work. People could say that they did not want the letter. If they did not want the letter, they did not have to pay for it. Someone had to think of a better way to pay for the letters.
3
That someone was a schoolteacher who lived in England. His name was Rowland Hill. He thought the person sending the letter should pay for it. It seemed possible, but how would someone prove that they had paid for the letter to be sent?
4
Hill suggested putting a small piece of colored paper on the outside of the letter. People would have to buy the small piece of paper. It would show that the person had paid for the letter to be sent.
5
In 1840, the first postage stamp was used in Great Britain. It was a small black square of paper that cost one penny. It was decorated with a picture of Queen Victoria. It was called the Penny Black.
6
Stamps were so useful in England that other countries made them too. When you look at a postage stamp, you will see the name of the country that made the stamp. You will also see how much the stamp cost. Sometimes you can tell if a stamp is from Great Britain because it is the only country in the world that does not print the name of the country on its stamp and it always has a picture of the current monarch. You will find that examining stamps is interesting!
What does the reader know about sending letters after reading Paragraph 2?
A) Letters were costing too much to receive.
B) People decided it was a good idea to pay for stamps.
C) Officials wanted to find a way to open a post office.
D) The way of delivering letters needed to improve.
- 7. Some Points About Horns and Antlers
by Guy Belleranti
1
Do you have hair growing out of the top of your head? So do many animals. Some animals also have horns or antlers.
2
Animals with horns include sheep, goats, cattle, bison, and antelope. The horns on these creatures are permanent and continue to grow throughout the animal’s life.
3
Horns have a two-part structure. The inside is bone nourished by blood vessels. The outside is a hard surface produced by the outer layer of skin. This hard surface contains a substance called keratin. Keratin is also found in hair, nails (including your own fingernails and toenails), claws, hooves, and beaks.
4
There are different kinds of horns. For example, a pronghorn antelope has a horn that branches in two. Also, the pronghorn sheds the hard outer part of its horn every year.
5
A rhino has different types of horns. They are actually not horns at all. They are made from densely packed hair, not bone. They can be broken off and will grow back just like your own hair or fingernails.
6
Unlike horns, antlers are not permanent. Instead, they are shed year after year. Most male animals in the deer family grow antlers. Among them are deer, elk, caribou, reindeer, and moose. Female caribou and reindeer also have antlers, but they are always much smaller than those of the males.
7
Antlers are made of pure bone. Unlike horns, antlers do not have an outer hard covering. Instead, antlers are covered with velvet. The velvet provides blood to the antler. When an antler reaches full size the blood vessels in the velvet dry up and the velvet sheds. Without the blood supply, the bony antler also dies. Then, after breeding season, the antler falls off, and a new antler begins to grow.
How are antlers different from horns?
A) They fall off each year.
B) They are made of hair.
C) They have a hard outer covering.
D) They grow out of the tops of animals’ heads.
- 8. The Newt
by David McCord
The little newt
Is not a brute,
A fish or fowl,
A kind of owl:
5
He doesn’t prowl
Or run or dig
Or grow too big.
He doesn’t fly
Or laugh or cry—
10
He doesn’t try.
The little newt
Is mostly mute,
And grave and wise,
And has two eyes.
15
He lives inside,
Or likes to hide;
But after rain
He’s out again
And rather red,
20
I should have said.
The little newt
Of great repute
Has legs, A tail,
A spotted veil.
25
He walks alone
From stone to stone,
From log to log,
From bog to bog,
From tree to tree,
30
From you to me.
The little newt
By grass or root
Is very kind
But hard to find.
35
His hands and feet
Are always neat:
They move across
The mildest moss.
He’s very shy,
40
He’s never spry—
Don’t ask me why.
The speaker of the poem thinks that readers are familiar with newts because
A) newts are mild-mannered.
B) newts are spotted.
C) newts are neat.
D) newts are well-respected.
- 9. Read the sentence.
A microscope is an instrument ________ is used to magnify objects.
Which word best completes the sentence?
A) that
B) who
C) whose
D) which
- 10. Read the sentence.
One of the earliest explorations by Europeans in North America was ________ of the Colorado River.
Which best completes the sentence?
A) those
B) theirs
C) that
D) which
- 11. Read the sentence.
Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow were composed by Washington Irving, _______ considered the first great American author.
Which best completes the sentence?
A) who is
B) whom is
C) who
D) whose
- 12. Read this sentence.
The hungry horse was an apple.
Which word belongs in the space?
A) biting
B) bit
C) bite
D) bitten
- 13. Which sentence shows that the speaker has the power to complete an action?
A) I may be able to visit my cousins this weekend.
B) I will finish my homework before I play.
C) I would like to practice the piano tomorrow.
D) I might see her at the movies tonight.
- 14. Which sentence orders the adjectives according to conventional patterns?
A) Marta wanted a brown fluffy puppy for her birthday.
B) Manuel wore his wool black sweater to the concert.
C) Jackson ate a scoop of chocolate delicious ice cream.
D) Julia bought a new purple backpack for school.
- 15. Read the sentence.
The dentist looked inside my mouth and talked to me about how to brush .
A) talked to me
B) how to brush
C) The dentist
D) inside my mouth
- 16. Read the run-on sentence.
During the Great Depression of the 1930s, many workers lost their jobs and many businesses closed down, the economic crisis affected the daily lives of most American workers and their families.
A) The Great Depression of the 1930s caused an economic crisis that resulted in many workers losing their jobs and many businesses closing down; it affected the daily lives of most American workers and their families.
B) During the Great Depression of the 1930s, many workers lost their jobs and many businesses closed down: the economic crisis affected the daily lives of most American workers and their families.
C) During the Great Depression of the 1930s, many workers lost their jobs and many businesses closed down. The economic crisis affected the daily lives of most American workers and their families.
D) The economic crisis during the Great Depression of the 1930s affected the daily lives of most American workers and their families and many workers lost their jobs and many businesses closed down.
- 17. Read the sentence.
I will be on a trip from december 28 until January 3.
What is the correct way to write the underlined part of the sentence?
A) Leave as is.
B) december 28 until January 3.
C) December 28 until January.3.
D) December 28 until January 3.
- 18. Read the sentence.
“It’s hard to believe, said Stacie, that we earned so much money for the school’s fundraiser.”
Which is the correct punctuation for the underlined part of the sentence?
A) to believe,” said Stacie, that we earned
B) to believe, said Stacie, “that we earned
C) to believe,” said Stacie; “that we earned
D) to believe,” said Stacie, “that we earned
- 19. Which sentence is punctuated correctly?
A) Danni went to the park and he played soccer with his friends, all day
B) Jamal found his missing action figure and, his brother found a lost book.
C) Connor knows how to play the flute but he prefers, to play the trumpet.
D) Talia worked hard on her science project, and she hoped to win a prize.
- 20. Read the sentence.
I was startled by the loud noise.
A) amused
B) greeted
C) disgusted
D) surprised
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