Reading ELA test study guide

Question 1

Read the excerpt from A Short Walk Around the Pyramids and through the World of Art.

We recognize the figure as a person, although it doesn’t look like one. Instead of copying the human body – and many African tribes could do that perfectly – it only suggests the human body. It excites our imagination, and our imagination turns the Kota figure into a person. Its triangles, cylinders, and parts of circles remind us of eyes, a neck, and hair, and our imagination tells us that we are looking at a human figure. The figure is an example of abstract art, an art that doesn’t intend things to look real. If we searched, we could find examples of abstract art the world over.

A West African wood statue.
The photograph helps readers interpret the important details in the text, because

1. it shows a realistic portrayal of a human body.
2. it illustrates the description written in the text.
3. it shows that African art is always abstract.
4. it demonstrates that Greek art differs from African art.

Answer 1

2

Question 2

Read this excerpt from the police report in “It’s My Constitutional Right!”

The police report for Claudette Colvin dated March 2, 1955.

Why is this an example of a primary source?

1. It was written by a man named Robert Clare in Montgomery.
2. It was written about the Montgomery City Lines Bus company.
3. It was written the same day Claudette was taken off the bus.
4. It was written using official police words and phrases.

Answer 2

3

Question 3

Based on the events of “Object Lesson, Part 1,” what will most likely happen in “Object Lesson, Part 2”?

1.Howard Ruffo will return the money to Miss Carpenter.
2.Miss Carpenter will find the missing envelope of money in her purse.
3The girl with the Italian haircut will confess to taking the money.
4.Ellery Queen will use clues to find the missing money.

Answer 3

4

Question 4

Why does the author of “A Student’s Guide to Global Climate Change” use a problem-solution text structure?

1. to blame people for the problems that climate change causes and to raise their awareness
2. to help people understand that climate change is not as large a problem as some people think
3. to help people understand the threats they face from climate change and to motivate them to take action
4. to scare people into acting differently when it comes to conserving energy and using less fossil fuel

Answer 4

3

Question 5

Read the excerpt from A Short Walk Around the Pyramids and through the World of Art.

This is another bronze sculpture, and it is also in a museum. Called Knife Edge Mirror Two Piece, it is a huge work by the British sculptor Henry Moore and stands at the entry of the East Building of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.

Which text feature would best help readers understand important details in this excerpt?

1. a drawing of British sculptor Henry Moore
2. a picture of Knife Edge Mirror Two Piece
3. a drawing of Henry Moore
4. a table numbering the sculptures in the East Building

Answer 5

2

Question 6

Read the excerpt from A Short Walk Around the Pyramids and through the World of Art.

This piece of sculpture is very different from ancient Greek carving, though it, too, is part of an old religious tradition. It is made of hard wood covered with small plates of brass and copper and comes from Gabon, a West African country that straddles the equator. It was made by the Kota, a group of tribes who worship in similar ways, and who have made figures such as this for a hundred years, and probably much longer.

Which text feature would best strengthen the reader’s understanding of the text?

1. a photograph of the West African sculpture
2. a map of the countries in West Africa
3. a sidebar about the West African tribe
4. a table comparing Greek and West African sculpture

Answer 6

1

Question 7

Read the excerpt from “Object Lesson, Part 1.”

This time he stared directly from David to Howard to Joey. His stare said I hate to do this, boys, but of course, I’ll have to if you think you can get away with it.

Why does the author most likely foreshadow Ellery’s future actions for readers?

1. Knowing what will happen verifies Ellery’s cleverness.
2. Knowing what will happen intensifies Ellery’s challenge.
3. Anticipating upcoming events creates a tense mood.
4. Anticipating upcoming events verifies the boys’ guilt.

Answer 7

3

Question 8

Read the excerpt from “Object Lesson, Part 2.”

“I’ll search the boys, Miss Carpenter. You roll those two bulletin boards over to that corner and search the girls.”

What inference does Ellery make?

1. that one of the girls took the missing money
2. that the girls would want a woman to search them in private
3. that the missing money is somewhere near the corner of the room
4. that one of the boys has the missing money

Answer 8

2

Question 9

Which of these is an example of a primary source?

1. a new museum painting of Martin Luther King Jr.
2. a textbook with a picture of Martin Luther King Jr.
3. a children’s book about Martin Luther King Jr.
4. a speech written by Martin Luther King Jr. in 1966

Answer 9

4

Question 10

Read this excerpt from “A Student’s Guide to Global Climate Change.”

As the Earth gets warmer, plants and animals that need to live in cold places, like on mountaintops or in the Arctic, might not have a suitable place to live. If the Earth keeps getting warmer, up to one-fourth of all the plants and animals on Earth could become extinct within 100 years. Every plant and animal plays a role in the ecosystem (for example, as a source of food, a predator, a pollinator, a source of shelter), so losing one species can affect many others.

What can people do about it?
Just like people, plants and animals will have to adapt to climate change. Many types of birds in North America are already migrating further north as the temperature warms. People can help these animals adapt by protecting and preserving their habitats.

Based on the excerpt, what conclusion can be drawn about endangered species?

1. Humans cannot help species that are already endangered.
2. Humans cannot protect the habitats of endangered species.
3. Humans can solve all problems that endangered species face.
4. Humans can help endangered species adjust to new environments.

Answer 10

4

Question 11

Read this excerpt from “It’s My Constitutional Right!”

As the bus moved east along Dexter Avenue, the seats filled up block by block with white passengers getting off work from the downtown stores and offices. The ten front seats went quickly, and soon riders were standing in the aisle, keeping their balance by clutching poles as the bus stopped and started. Just before they reached Court Square, Claudette realized that a white woman was standing in the aisle between the four seats in her row. Clearly the woman expected Claudette and her three schoolmates to vacate the entire row so she could sit down in one of the seats.

• • •

CLAUDETTE: The motorman looked up in his mirror and said, “I need those seats.” I might have considered getting up if the woman had been elderly, but she wasn’t. She looked about forty. The other three girls in my row got up and moved back, but I didn’t, I just couldn’t.

How does the reader benefit from the author’s use of both third-person and first-person points of view?

1. The reader is able to see how the incident appeared to an outsider and understand how Claudette’s friends felt.
2. The reader is able to learn what Claudette is thinking and understand the white woman’s point of view.
3. The reader is able to understand how the white passengers felt and to get the perspective of the motorman.
4. The reader is able to see how the incident appeared to an observer and understand Claudette’s feelings.

Answer 11

4

Question 12

Read the excerpt from “Object Lesson, Part 2.”

“We have twenty-eight minutes.” He raised his voice, smiling. “Naturally the thief has ditched the money, hoping to recover it when the coast is clear. It’s therefore hidden somewhere in the classroom. All right, Miss Carpenter, we’ll take the desks and seats first. Look under them, too — chewing gum makes a handy adhesive. Eh, class?”

What implication does Ellery make?

1. that the students want to listen, but they cannot hear him over all the activity in the room
2. that the thief will recover the money during first period while everyone is still in the room
3. that Miss Carpenter will help him carry the desks and chairs out of the classroom
4. that the thief may have stuck the stolen money to the underside of a gum-covered seat

Answer 12

4

Question 13

Read this action plan.

Lulu has chosen a goal of reducing her use of plastic. She has formulated the following action plan:

1. I want to reduce my use of plastic bags and bottles.
2. For resources, I will need reusable shopping bags and a reusable water bottle.
3. I will monitor my progress by putting a sticker on a chart each time I use my new reusable resources.

What step is missing from the plan?

1. sharing it with a friend or family member
2. reflecting on how it feels to conserve resources
3. reviewing how it is going once the plan has begun
4. identifying the actions to take to carry out the plan

Answer 13

4

Question 14

Read the excerpt from “Object Lesson, Part 2.”

The 41 boys and girls were buzzing and giggling now.

Ellery pounced. Clinging to one of the rectangles was a needle-thin sliver of paper about an inch long, a sort of paper shaving. He fingered it, held it up to the light. It was not newsprint. Too full-bodied, too tough-textured . . .

Then he knew what it must be.

Less than two minutes left.

What inference is Ellery making at this point in the mystery?

1. that the boys and girls are going to lose respect for him
2. that newspapers are made with cheap paper
3. that the sliver of paper came from a dollar bill
4. that he is going to run out of time to solve the mystery

Answer 14

3

Question 15

Read the excerpt from “Object Lesson, Part 2.”

He leaned against Louise’s desk, forcing himself to relax.

It was these “simple” problems. Nothing big and important like murder, blackmail, bank robbery. A miserable seven dollars lifted by a teenage delinquent in an overcrowded classroom . . .

He thought furiously.

Let the bell ring at 9:35 and the boy strut out of Miss Carpenter’s room undetected, with his loot, and he would send up a howl like a wolf cub over his first kill.

What inference does Ellery make?

1. that he may pass out if he does not stop and relax
2. that there are harder problems to solve in the world
3. that the thief would not have committed the crime if there weren’t so many students in the class
4. that the thief has no idea that Ellery is aware of his plans to steal the seven dollars.

Answer 15

4