Edge Level A Unit 4 Cluster 3 He Was No Bum 1. Read this sentence from the eulogy. They found his body in a flophouse on West Madison Street, Chicago s Skid Row. Skid Row can be defined in many ways EXCEPT A. a run-down urban area with a large, impoverished population B. a section of a slippery city street where the buildings are lined up side-by-side C. a city district frequented by vagrants, addicts, and/or alcoholics D. a particularly neglected section of a city characterized by shabby or abandoned buildings LA.910.1.6.3 The correct answer is B. Options A, C, and D are incorrect because they represent correct meanings of the assessed term. The excerpt is found on page 318. Dictionary.reference.com defines skid row as a slang phrase meaning a dilapidated section of a city inhabited by vagrants, etc. Option A is incorrect because this option could describe Skid Row. An urban area is in a city; a run-down urban area can be inhabited by vagrants. A vagrant is defined as an idle person without visible means of support, as a tramp or beggar. Option B is correct because skid in skid row does not have any relationship to whether the streets are slippery. Option C is incorrect because this statement is part of the definition of Skid Row. Another definition of skid row on dictionary.reference.com is an area of cheap barrooms and run-down hotels, frequented by alcoholics and vagrants. Option D is incorrect because this is a description of a run-down urban area. Websters-onlinedictionary.org defines Skid Row as a North American term for a run down or dilapidated area of a city. Dictionary.reference.com defines dilapidated as reduced to or fallen into partial ruin or decay, as from age, wear, or neglect. 2. Which pair are most opposite in meaning? F. placed, released G. conservator, guardian H. laughter, snickering I. hit the ground, drop LA.910.1.6.8 The correct answer is F. Options G, H, and I are incorrect because they represent words that are similar in meaning. Option F is correct because placed (found on page 319) and released (found on page 319) are most opposite in meaning. Macmillan-dictionary.com defines placed as put something Copyright 2010 The Hampton-Brown Company, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of The National Geographic Society, publishing under the imprints National Geographic School Publishing and Hampton-Brown. Teachers are authorized to reproduce this material in limited quantities and solely for use in their own classrooms.
somewhere and released as stop holding something. Option G is incorrect because the legal definitions of conservator and guardian (both found on page 320) are similar in meaning. Dictionary.reference.com defines conservator as a guardian; a custodian and guardian as a person who is entrusted by law with the care of the person or property, or both, of another, as a minor or someone legally incapable of managing his or her own affairs. Option H is incorrect because laughter and snickering (found on page 321) are similar in meaning. Dictionary.reference.com defines laughter as an expression or appearance of merriment or amusement and snickering as to laugh in a half-suppressed, indecorous or disrespectful manner. Option I is incorrect because hit the ground (found on page 321) and drop (found on page 319) are similar in meaning. Websters-online-dictionary.org defines hit the ground as touch down; come down and dictionary.reference.com defines drop as to sink or fall to the ground, floor, or bottom as if inanimate. 3. As an adult, why did Arthur Joseph Kelly want to live in the fire station at Aberdeen and Washington? A. when he was a little boy he wanted to be a fireman or a soldier B. he was happy there as a child when he visited the firemen C. to be near to where his adult sisters lived D. to be with his childhood friends, the Sullivan brothers LA.910.1.7.3 The correct answer is B. Options A, C, and D are incorrect because they represent incorrect inferences or conclusions based on details found in the text. Option A is incorrect because this statement is half true. All the reader knows is that on page 318, Growing up, he wanted to be a firefighter. Although he grew up to be a soldier, there is no mention of him wanting to be a soldier as a child. Option B is correct because he had a good time visiting there as a child. As the reader learns on page 318, When he was a child he would go to the firehouse at Aberdeen and Washington, the home of Engine 34. His two sisters would go with him sometimes. The firefighters were nice to the kids. Later, on page 319 the reader learns that he went back to the only place that he remembered as being a place of happiness. He went back to the fire station at Aberdeen and Washington. Option C is incorrect because the reader is not told where his sisters live as adults. Option D is incorrect because the Sullivan brothers were not his childhood friends. As the reader learns on page 320, But there was always at least one firefighter at the station who would take responsibility for Arthur Joseph Kelly. For a long time it was the Sullivan brothers 4. According to the eulogy, as a shell-shocked World War II veteran, Kelly reacted as if a bomb went off or a cannon had been fired when he heard many sounds EXCEPT F. any sudden, loud noise G. the rumbling of the L overhead H. a car backfiring I. the cheering of the crowd at a Cubs game Hampton Brown Edge Level A, Unit 4, Cluster 3 2 of 6
LA.910.1.7.4 The correct answer is I. Options F, G, and H are incorrect because they represent correct causal relationships based on the text. Option F is incorrect because loud noises would scare him as the reader learns on page 319, A loud noise and he would drop." Option G is incorrect because the sound of the train would scare him as the reader learns on page 319, suddenly the L train would come rumbling overhead and Arthur Joseph Kelly would dive to the ground. Option H is incorrect because the noise of a car backfiring would scare him as the reader learns on page 321, A car backfired. He hit the ground. Option I is correct because Arthur Joseph Kelly never made it into the game to hear the crowd as the reader learns on page 321, Once Arthur Joseph Kelly went to a Cubs game. A car backfired. He hit the ground After that, Kelly stayed close to the firehouse. 5. Kelly made many decisions that dramatically changed the course of his life EXCEPT A. He left the care of a veterans hospital in 1954. B. He enlisted in the Army as a private in World War II. C. He found a room for himself in a flophouse on Madison Street. D. He returned to the fire station at Aberdeen and Washington. LA.910.1.7.3 The correct answer is C. Options A, B, and D are incorrect because they represent correct details based on the text. Option A is incorrect because he made a decision to leave the hospital as the reader learns on page 319, He walked away from a veteran s hospital in 1954. He decided that he had to live in the real world. Option B is incorrect because he was in the Army as the reader learns on page 318, He did make it into the Army. He was a private in World War II, serving in the European Theater of Operations. Option C is correct because it was not his choice to move to Madison Street as the reader learns on page 322, So the last firefighter to take care of him George Grant, a fifty-one-year-old father of eight found Arthur Joseph Kelly a place to live. It wasn t much it was the room on Madison Option D is incorrect because he went back to the firehouse where he was happy as a child as the reader learns on page 319, then he went back to the only place that he remembered as being a place of happiness. He went back to the fire station at Aberdeen and Washington. 6. Read the lines from the poem. i say Edge Level A Unit 4 Cluster 3 Miss Rosie Hampton Brown Edge Level A, Unit 4, Cluster 3 3 of 6
when i watch you you wet brown bag of a woman who used to be the best looking gal in georgia What literary device does the author use in the third line above? F. She uses symbolism to imply that Miss Rosie is an old bag of a woman. G. She uses a metaphor to say that Miss Rosie is drab and fragile like a wet brown bag. H. She uses hyperbole to say that a bag is a woman. I. She uses a simile to compare an old woman to a paper bag. LA.910.2.1.7 The correct answer is G. Options F, H, and I are incorrect because they represent inaccurate interpretations of descriptive language or figurative language. The excerpt is found on page 325, lines 11-14. Option F is incorrect because the excerpt does not contain an example of symbolism. Symbol is a word or phrase that serves as an image of some person, place, thing, or action but that also calls to mind some other, usually broader, idea or range of ideas (page 763, Literary Terms). Option G is correct because the excerpt contains an example metaphor. Metaphor is a type of figurative language that compares two unlike things by saying that one thing is the other thing (page 759, Literary Terms). Option H is incorrect because the excerpt does not contain an example of hyperbole. Hyperbole is figurative language that exaggerates, often to the point of being funny, to emphasize something (page 758, Literary Terms). Option I is incorrect because the excerpt does not contain an example of simile. Simile is figurative language that compares two unlike things by using a word or phrase such as like, as, than, similar to, resembles, or seems (page 762, Literary Terms). 7. Read the lines from the poem. sitting, waiting for your mind like next week s grocery What was the author s purpose in writing these lines? A. to show that Miss Rosie has problems with her mind; she has a mental condition B. to indicate that Miss Rosie sits in the same place, like products on a grocery shelf C. Miss Rosie always seems to be sitting waiting for something good to happen to her D. the author felt every poem should contain a thought-provoking simile LA.910.1.7.2 The correct answer is A. Options B, C, and D are incorrect because they represent incorrect interpretations of the author s purpose of perspective. The excerpt is found on page 325, lines 9 and 10. Option A is correct because she wanted to indicate that Miss Rosie has a mental condition. Option B is incorrect because although Miss Rosie is sitting, the reader is not told that she is always seated in the same place, like groceries on the shelf in the store. Option C is incorrect because although Miss Rosie is sitting, the reader Hampton Brown Edge Level A, Unit 4, Cluster 3 4 of 6
is not told what her expectations are whether, in her mind, she is waiting for something. Option D is incorrect because the reader is not told about the author s writing habits. 8. What do the illustrations from He Was No Bum on page 317 and miss rosie on page 325 have in common? F. They show the layered clothing worn by homeless people. G. They illustrate sadness and loneliness which is a theme of the texts. H. They show the people in the selections; the photo on page 317 is of Arthur Kelly and the drawing on page 325 is of Miss Rosie. I. Each was selected to depict how age and a tough life affect older homeless people. LA.910.2.2.1 The correct answer is G. Options F, H, and I are incorrect because they represent incorrect analysis and interpretation of text features. Option F is incorrect because although they show the clothing of two homeless people, the illustrations do not allow the reader to conclude that the clothing is worn in layers. Option G is correct because the illustration on page 317 shows a man, sitting alone, slumped over which usually indicates sadness and loneliness, and the picture on page 325 shows a sad looking old lady who is alone in the picture. Option H is incorrect because the reader is not given the names of the people in the illustrations. The name of the painting on 325 is Old Woman and is not of Miss Rosie. Option I is incorrect because the pictures were chosen to reflect the mood of the text, but not selected to specifically show how age and a tough life can affect an older homeless person. 9. The author had many purposes in writing this poem EXCEPT A. to convince people to donate their belongings or time to homeless shelters B. appeal to the mental health community to institutionalize confused homeless people C. to show that even young, beautiful people can become old, confused, and homeless D. to arouse reader s awareness of the devastating plight of homeless people LA.910.1.7.2 The correct answer is B. Options A, C, and D are incorrect because they represent incorrect analysis or evaluation of the impact of the author s purpose or perspective on the text. This poem may be summarized: The speaker of this poem is a witness to the misfortune for Miss Rosie. At one time she was beautiful, but now she sits alone in the street. She is an old homeless woman, wrapped in rags amid the odor of garbage. Option A is incorrect because this could be a purpose for writing this poem. Miss Rosie is dressed in rags, and if people donated clothing to homeless shelters, then people like Miss Rosie could be better clothed. Option B is correct because the purpose of the poem is to focus on the injustice in the world. The poet s message may be that mentally ill homeless people need help and care, not to say that they should be institutionalized. Option C is incorrect because the poet tells the reader that Miss Rosie used to be a young, beautiful woman, and that she has become a confused, old homeless woman. Option D is incorrect because the poet wishes to draw attention to the dilemma of the homeless. Hampton Brown Edge Level A, Unit 4, Cluster 3 5 of 6
The reader learns the poet s feelings on page 326, All that may be needed is that the injustice in the world be mentioned so that nobody can ever say, Nobody told me. 10. According to the poem, the reader learns about Miss Rosie s current appearance EXCEPT F. She is bundled up in layers of clothing. G. She wears men s shoes that are too small. H. She lives in a damp, brown cardboard box. I. She smells like old produce and garbage. LA.910.1.7.3 The correct answer is H. Options F, G, and I are incorrect because they represent correct inferences or conclusions based on details found in the text. Option F is incorrect because the reader is told in line 2 that Miss Rosie is wrapped up, indicating that she is wearing layered clothing. Option G is incorrect because the reader is told in lines 7 and 8 that Miss Rosie is wearing men s shoes and that the shoe is cut out where the little toe is, presumably because the shoe did not fit her comfortably. Option H is correct because the reader is not told where Miss Rosie lives. Option I is incorrect because the reader is told in lines 3 and 4 that Miss Rosie is surrounded by the smell of too old potato peels. Hampton Brown Edge Level A, Unit 4, Cluster 3 6 of 6