Unit 1 Test
(2) The lady from the agency was coming to talk to Grandpa about going to an old age
home. Grandpa is polite enough most of the time. He starts to lose his manners, though,
when that lady tries to talk him into moving. The way Grandpa sees it, she wants him to
trade his cabin in the mountains for some tiny room with people telling him what to do all day
long. And that is something he just will not do. Grandpa needs the mountains, his freedom,
all that sky around him. From the top of Pike’s Summit, the sky looks as big as the world. Up
there, you feel as if you are floating in an ocean of blue among the cloud-islands.
(3) “That’s all right, boy,” I said to Hamilton. Hearing Grandpa down below, Hamilton was
starting to get agitated himself. He isn’t that big, but when he gets restless, his claws can dig
into my arm and he can throw me off balance.
(4) Hamilton is a hawk I found injured on the mountain two winters ago. Grandpa and I nursed
him back to health as best we could. The folks at the raptor center told us, though, that he
wasn’t likely to fully recover use of his wings or his vision. He can get airborne for a short
distance, but he has difficulty steering and comes back pretty quick. I wonder sometimes if
he feels a little like he is trapped or in prison. I take him outside with me any chance I get. I
can tell, though, that Hamilton is like Grandpa. He wants his freedom, more than anything
else.
(5) “All right, Hamilton,” I said. “It sounds like Grandpa needs us back.” Grandpa is pretty much
all the family I have, and I feel I need to take care of him as best I can.
1. The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.
Part B Which sentence from the story best supports the answer to Part A?
a. The more agitated he gets, the louder the noise he makes. (paragraph 1)
b. Grandpa needs the mountains, his freedom, all that sky around him.
(paragraph 2)
c. From the top of Pike’s Summit, the sky looks as big as the world.
(paragraph 2)
d. Grandpa is pretty much all the family I have, and I feel I need to take care
of him as best I can. (paragraph 5)
2. Which sentence from the passage most clearly signals a first-person point of
view?
a. Halfway up Pike’s Pass, I could hear Grandpa halloo-ing from all the way
down by the cabin. (paragraph 1)
b. The way Grandpa sees it, she wants him to trade his cabin in the
mountains for some tiny room with people telling him what to do all day
long. (paragraph 2)
c. Up there, you feel as if you are floating in an ocean of blue among the
cloud-islands. (paragraph 2)
d. Hearing Grandpa down below, Hamilton was starting to get agitated
himself. (paragraph 3)
3. One theme of the passage is that caring for another means respecting his or her
needs. Which story detail most clearly supports this theme?
a. Hamilton can throw the narrator off balance when he is agitated.
b. The narrator realizes that Grandpa was injured last winter.
c. The narrator takes Hamilton outside as often as he can.
d. Grandpa loses his manners when talking with the lady.
4. Which of the following answer choices best explains the author’s purpose in
this paragraph?
a. to tell of a time when Louisa May Alcott disobeyed as a child
b. to explain how many friends Louisa May Alcott had
c. to show what Louisa May Alcott was like as a child
d. to show how interested in writing Louisa May Alcott was
5. Which features of this paragraph are commonly found in biographical writing?
Choose two options.
a. It tells the story of a real person.
b. It presents details from childhood journals.
c. It tells the story of a trip to visit friends in another place.
d. It tells about a time the subject was punished.
e. It presents quotations from someone who knew the subject.
6. The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first and then Part B.
Part A Which choice most accurately restates the central idea in the passage?
a. Louisa May Alcott was sometimes willing to disobey adults.
b. Louisa May Alcott should be celebrated for her generosity.
c. Louisa May Alcott had a number of attractive qualities as a child.
d. Louisa May Alcott was often too timid to share her feelings.
Part B Which detail from the passage best supports the answer to Part A?
a. “She is a beautiful little girl to look upon, and I love her affectionate
manners.”
b. A little letter carefully printed and sent home during this visit is
preserved. In it she says she is not happy… .
c. … [S]he did have one trying experience there, to which she refers in
“My Boys.”
d. … [She] was afterward very much astonished and grieved at being
reprimanded instead of praised for the deed.
(2) Millions of years ago, volcanoes erupted in this area, spewing fiery matter that settled and
fused to form a large layer of rock. The layer cooled and then cracked. Over the years, wind,
sand, rain, and other natural forces sculpted the rock into the shapes you see today. The
volcanic activity also produced hot springs in the area. The park is about 28 miles northwest
of Deming. The road that takes you to the park continues north to the Gila National Forest.
You won’t want to miss City of Rocks!
7. Why does the author describe the reader driving into City of Rocks State Park
in the first paragraph?
a. to prove that the park is a real place
b. to provide background for the reader
c. to introduce the location of the park
d. to heighten the interest of the reader
8. The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.
Part A Which is the best restatement of the central idea in the passage?
a. City of Rocks is a state park.
b. City of Rocks is an amazing sight.
c. Volcanoes erupted in this area.
d. New Mexico has many state parks.
Part B Which sentence in the passage is the best evidence for the answer to Part
A?
a. You are driving down a road off the main highway near Deming,
New Mexico. (paragraph 1)
b. Welcome to City of Rocks State Park. (paragraph 1)
c. The layer cooled and then cracked. (paragraph 2)
d. You won’t want to miss City of Rocks! (paragraph 2)
9. Which answer best explains the way the passage presents the central idea?
a. It states the central idea directly in the first sentence.
b. It expresses the central idea indirectly in the first sentence.
c. It expresses the central idea indirectly, through a variety of supporting
details.
d. It expresses the central idea indirectly, leaving the reader unsure as to
what it is.
10. Which detail from the passage is least important to the central idea?
a. The rocks were created when volcanoes erupted.
b. Wind, sand, and other forces sculpted the rocks.
c. The park road leads to Gila National Forest.
d. The rocks are amazing columns of stone.
13. The writer chose to write about this experience in poetry rather than prose.
Which is the clearest effect of this decision?
a. The scene described takes place in a short period of time.
b. Details, such as the furniture, are described at great length.
c. Line breaks emphasize phrases such as “the shadows.”
d. The scene is described logically rather than emotionally.
15. The word distraught means “deeply worried.” Which of the following answer
choices shows, in order, a synonym and an antonym for the word distraught?
a. troubled / bothered
b. happy / agitated
c. crazed / concerned
d. upset / calm
16. Given the meaning of the Old English suffix -ness, what can you conclude is
the meaning of aggressiveness?
a. without aggression
b. uncovered aggressively
c. quality of being aggressive
d. one who receives aggression
17. The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.
Part A The word gratitude appears underlined in the first paragraph. Based on
the context, what is the most likely definition of the word?
a. sleepiness
b. thankfulness
c. intelligence
d. strength
Part B Which context clue best supports the answer to Part A?
a. cutting wood for the big fireplace (paragraph 1)
b. sitting and lying before the fire (paragraph 1)
c. worked like a charm (paragraph 1)
d. a little boy’s love (paragraph 1)
18. Based on the context of the passage, what is the most likely meaning of fathom
in the second paragraph?
a. understand
b. increase
c. wonder
d. care
19. Which quotations from the passage show a common noun underlined? Choose
three that apply.
a. When Emma was growing up, her house was located right next to the
woods.
b. She loved Ainslie Woods as if it were her best friend.
c. Some days she played in the woods by herself, collecting flowers and
pinecones to make crafts.
d. Other days, she played with in the woods with her friends, her sister, or
her sister’s friends.
e. Emma, Sarah, and the other kids loved to put on make-believe plays in
the woods.
f. Activities like these were a breath of fresh air in a world where kids
don’t seem to play outside very much anymore.
20. Which of the following phrases from the passage uses a singular possessive
noun?
a. She loved Ainslie Woods
b. played in the woods
c. her sister’s friends
d. The kids’ plays
21. Which of the following phrases from the passage contains a plural
possessive noun?
a. flowers and pinecones
b. her friends, her sister, or her sister’s friends.
c. put on make-believe plays
d. The kids’ plays
22. Which of the following phrases from the passage uses a possessive pronoun?
a. She loved Ainslie Woods
b. her best friend
c. All of them worked
d. like these
23. Which of the following phrases from the passage contains a reflexive
pronoun?
a. her house was located
b. played in the woods by herself
c. Other days, she played in the woods with her friends
d. Emma, Sarah, and the other kids loved to put on make-believe plays
25. Which of the following phrases from the passage contain an adjective? Choose
all that apply
a. her best friend
b. when she woke up
c. her sister’s friends
d. put on make-believe plays
e. as a team
f. kids don’t seem to play outside
26. Which of the following phrases from the passage uses an adverb?
a. when she woke up
b. collecting flowers and pinecones
c. breath of fresh air
d. were always extremely creative
I decided I would put my research skills to work to learn about vegetable gardening.
30. Drawing on details from Dion’s notes, write the rest of the nonfiction narrative,
beginning with the underlined sentence. Use transitions as appropriate to show
the chronological order of the tasks.
Which is the most precise word that could be used in the second sentence
instead of thing?
a. activity
b. thought
c. plan
d. wish