Unit 1: Fiction and Nonfiction Part 1 Benchmark Test 1 MULTIPLE CHOICE Reading Skill: Predicting 1. What are the two main things should you consider in order to make accurate predictions in a story? A. the author and the personalities of the characters B. the title and the names of the characters C. the plot and the cultural context of the work D. story details and your own experience 2. What is the best procedure for making predictions as you read a story? A. Make a prediction as you read, and then keep reading to see if it comes true. B. Make a prediction as you read, and then peek at the ending to see if you are right. C. Never change a prediction you make, no matter what new details the story provides. D. Read the story backwards so that you know everything that will happen before it happens. 3. What main effect does making predictions have on most readers? A. It removes all the suspense from the plot of a story. B. It cuts down on the reader s interest in the story. C. It makes the story seem more realistic and believable. D. It helps keep the reader actively engaged in the story. 4. Read these sentences from a story. Then, choose the best prediction of what will happen next. In the early morning, Cara stood at the bus stop on Round Lake Road. She clutched her textbooks to her side and stamped her feet to try to keep warm. A. Cara will greet her brother when he comes home from school on the bus. B. Cara will get on the bus, when it comes, in order to go to school. C. Cara will read her textbooks as she takes the bus to the movies. D. Cara and her family will move to a warmer climate. 5. Which of these details most clearly predict that a bad storm is coming? A. A siren sounds as a character looks out the window. B. The sky darkens and the winds begin to blow. C. A character takes a sailboat to a place called Storm Island. D. A character listens to a weather report and shakes her head. 102
Read this selection from a short story. Then, answer the questions that follow. In the ballroom, the orchestra began to play. Jorge listened, tapping a foot to the rhythm. Across the table Anna smiled, tapping a foot as well. Jorge rose from his chair at the table and smiled back at Anna. Shall we? he said, motioning toward the dance floor. The tablecloth hung low between them, and as Jorge moved forward, he stepped on it. Then, his legs in a tangle, he fell flat on his face. 6. From the details in the first five sentences of the selection, which of these predictions seems most likely to happen? A. Jorge will refuse to ask Anna to dance with him. B. Anna will refuse to dance with Jorge when he asks. C. Jorge and Anna are going to get up and dance. D. Jorge is going to trip and fall on his face. 7. Which detail in the selection should make you reconsider your first prediction and expect a different outcome than before? A. Jorge taps his foot to the music. B. Anna taps her foot to the music. C. Jorge motions toward the dance floor. D. Jorge steps on the tablecloth. Reading Skill: Using Text Aids 8. Which of these are examples of consumer documents? A. atlases and almanacs B. labels and warranties C. textbooks and encyclopedias D. newspapers and magazines 9. What does the legend on a map provide? A. the meaning of the maps symbols B. the scale to which the map is drawn C. directions (north, south, east, west) D. an old tale about places on the map 10. What is the term for a document that lists arrival and departure times in rows and columns? A. a legend B. an orientation C. a schedule D. an itinerary 103
Literary Analysis: Plot, Conflict, and Literary Devices 11. What is the term for the part of a story that provides background information about main characters and their situation? A. exposition B. flashback C. falling action D. resolution 12. Which of these choices is the best definition of the climax of a story? A. the point at which the conflict is introduced B. the point where new complications to the conflict are introduced C. the point of highest tension or suspense D. the point at which all the loose ends of a plot are tied together 13. Which of these is a good example of an internal conflict? A. A knight struggles to defeat a fire-breathing dragon. B. A lawyer struggles to prove the innocence of her client. C. A farmer struggles to bring his crops through a bad drought. D. A student struggles to come to the right decision. 14. In what part of the story are problems worked out so that the conflict is eliminated? A. exposition B. rising action C. foreshadowing D. resolution 15. What does foreshadowing usually help to create? A. suspense B. flashbacks C. external conflict D. internal conflict 16. What does it mean when a story has a chronological narrative structure? A. The narrator presents events that happened in a long-ago time. B. The narrator presents events in the order in which they happened in time. C. The narrator jumps around in time in order to provide his or her memories. D. The narrator introduces a character who goes on to tell a story within the story. 104
Read the selection. Then, answer the questions that follow. (1) Jean, a high school student, was such a good swimmer that she was able to get a summer job as a lifeguard at the local pool. (2) She had no idea that the experience would test her skill and quick thinking more than anything ever before. (3) One Thursday afternoon, Dean and Frank Rinaldo showed up at the pool. (4) Noisy and reckless, the two teenaged brothers quickly drove the other swimmers away. (5) They paid no attention when Jean told them to behave. (6) Jean was just about to phone her supervisor when she saw the brothers crash into each other and begin to sink. (7) No one was there to help as Jean dove into the pool and struggled to pull them out. (8) They were very heavy, but she finally managed to drag out first Dean and then Frank. (9) Dean was conscious but in pain. (10) Frank was unconscious, and Jean had to give him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. (11) When he finally began breathing, Jean raced to her cell phone and called an ambulance. (12) After the brothers recovered, they apologized to Jean and never behaved badly at the pool again. 17. Which part of the story is the exposition? A. sentence 1 B. sentence 2 C. sentence 3 D. sentence 12 18. Which sentence in the story is an example of foreshadowing? A. sentence 1 B. sentence 2 C. sentence 5 D. sentence 6 19. Around what conflict do the events in the story center? A. Jean and the doctors struggle to save the lives of the injured Rinaldo brothers. B. Jean s struggle to control the crowds at the swimming pool. C. Jean s struggle to get the Rinaldo brothers to behave at the swimming pool. D. Jean s struggle to be the best swimmer she can be. 20. Where does the climax of the story take place? A. sentence 3 B. sentences 4 5 C. sentences 6 11 D. sentence 12 Vocabulary: Prefixes 21. Which statement is true about the prefixes pre- and re-? A. Pre- and re- usually have similar meanings. B. Pre- and re- often have opposite meanings. C. Pre- and re- are never used with the same roots. D. Pre- is much more frequently used than re-. 105
22. Based on your understanding of the prefix pre-, where in a textbook chapter would you probably find a preview? A. before the chapter starts B. in the middle of the chapter C. at the end of every section D. at the end of the entire chapter 23. Based on your understanding of the prefix re-, when are you likely to regain something? A. when you never had it B. when you had it at least once before C. when you do not want it D. when you understand it fully 24. Based on your understanding of the prefix re-, what do you conclude the italic word in this sentences must mean? As she sang the song, the singer kept having trouble with the high notes of the refrain. A. the opening notes of a song B. an introductory part of a song that has a different tune that the rest C. the highest notes in a song D. a line or stanza that is sung over and over in a song Grammar 25. Which statement is true about common and proper nouns? A. A proper noun is more specific than a common noun. B. A proper noun is more polite than a common noun. C. A common noun usually begins with a capital letter. D. A proper noun usually does not begin with a capital letter. 26. How many proper nouns are there in this sentence? Sally Harding and her brother visited the D-Day Museum in New Orleans. A. two B. three C. four D. six 27. Which sentence below uses correct capitalization? A. Carmine saw the United Nations and a museum when he visited New York City. B. Carmine saw the United Nations and a Museum when he visited New York City. C. Carmine saw the united Nations and a museum when he visited New York city. D. Carmine saw the United Nations and a museum when he visited new york city. 106
28. Which of these spelling rules is accurate? A. To form the plural of any noun that ends in y, change the y to an i and add es. B. To form the plural of any noun that ends in y, just add s. C. To form the plural of a noun that ends in a vowel + y, change the y to an i and add es. D. To form the plural of a noun that ends in a consonant + y, change the y to an i and add es. 29. Which of these sentences uses plural nouns correctly? A. The wifes used knifes to cut bunchies of berrys from the leafs. B. The wives used the knives to cut bunches of berries from the leaves. C. The wives used the knives to cut bunchies of berries from the leavs. D. The wifes used the knifes to cut bunches of berryes from the leaves. 30. What do you call a noun that names something that can be perceived by one or more of the five sense? A. a common noun B. a proper noun C. a concrete noun D. an abstract noun 31. Which word in this sentence is an abstract noun? The child showed great kindness to the stray puppy that she found on the street. A. child B. kindness C. puppy D. street 32. Which of these sentences uses possessive nouns correctly? A. The two brothers invention was a children s game; each player s marker was an animal. B. The two brother s invention was a childrens game; each player s marker was an animal. C. The two brother s invention was a children s game; each players marker was an animal. D. The two brothers invention was a childrens game; each players marker was an animal. ESSAY Writing 33. Think of a children s story that you read or heard when you were younger. Then, on a separate piece of paper, write a very short version of the story, but give it a new ending. You can include details that help point to the new ending, or you can make it a complete surprise. 34. Think of a new experience you had that might be of interest to others. It can be something you did recently or something you recall from the past. Then, on a separate piece of paper, write a letter to a close friend in which you describe this experience. 35. Think of the people in your town or neighborhood who have made a strong impression on you. Then, on a separate piece of paper, write a short description of this person. Explain what he or she is like and why he or she has made such a strong impression on you. 107