1. Why did Sherman Alexie love books? A. because he could buy books by the pound B. because his father loved books C. because he went to a reservation school D. because he had a non-indian teacher Edge Level B Unit 4 Cluster 2 Superman and Me The correct answer is B. Options A, C, and D are incorrect because they represent details that do not support the main idea. Option A is incorrect because it was Sherman Alexie s father who bought books by the pound as the reader learns on pages 332 and 333, He (Alexie s father) bought his books by the pound at Dutch s Pawn Shop, Goodwill, Salvation Army, and Value Village. Option B is correct because Alexie loved his father who loved books as the reader learns on page 333, My father loved books, and since I loved my father with an aching devotion, I decided to love books as well. Option C is incorrect because the fact that he went to a reservation school is irrelevant to his love of books which came from his home when he was very young. As the reader learns in The Writer and His World on page 330, He developed an early love of books and later decided to attend high school off the reservation, where he says, I was the only Indian, besides the mascot. Option D is incorrect because the fact that he had a non-indian teacher (page 335) is irrelevant to his love of books which came from his home when he was very young. 2. According to the essay, Alexie read everything EXCEPT F. library books G. the backs of cereal boxes H. magazines I. computer manuals The correct answer is I. Options F, G, and H are incorrect because they represent plausible distractors included in the text. Option F is incorrect because as the reader learns on page 336, I read the books I borrowed from the library. Option G is incorrect because as the reader learns on page 336, I read the backs of cereal boxes. Option H is incorrect because as the reader learns on page 336, I read magazines. Option I is correct because the essay does not mention computer manuals, although the reader learns on page 336, I read auto-repair manuals. 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.
3. Read the sentence from the story that describes life on the reservation. We were poor by most standards, but one of my parents usually managed to find some minimum-wage job or another, which made us middle-class by reservation standards. Which statement is NOT true when describing life on the reservation? A. There were lots of good-paying full-time jobs available on the reservation. B. On the whole, reservation Indians earned very little money. C. Alexie s family had more money than most other Indians. D. Alexie s parents tried to work so that the family could afford what they needed. LA.910.6.2.2 The correct answer is A. Options B, C, and D are incorrect because they represent facts and details from the text. The excerpt is found on page 332. Option A is correct because there were not good, full-time jobs available. As the reader learns on page 332, We were poor by most standards, but one of my parents usually managed to find some minimum-wage job or another, which made us middleclass by reservation standards. Option B is incorrect because as the reader learns on page 332, being poor by non-reservation standards was considered middle-class on the reservation. Option C is incorrect because as the reader learns on page 332, Alexie s family usually had an income from some kind of minimum-wage job. Option D is incorrect because as the reader learns on page 332, Alexie s parents tried to find jobs in order to provide for the family s needs. 4. Who taught Alexie to read? F. the non-indian Tribal School teacher G. his father taught him H. he taught himself using a comic book I. a Catholic school teacher LA.910.1.7.4 The correct answer is H. Options F, G, and I are incorrect because they represent incorrect causal relationships based on the text. Option F is incorrect because a non-indian Tribal School teacher did not teach him to read; he was reading when he came to school. As the reader learns on page 334, This might be an interesting story all by itself. A little Indian boy teaches himself to read at an early age and advances quickly. He reads Grapes of Wrath in kindergarten when other children are struggling through Dick and Jane. Option G is incorrect because his father did not teach him to read, although his father s love of books and the fact that the house was filled with books contributed to Alexie s love of reading. Option H is correct because Alexie taught himself to read as the reader learns on page 332, I learned to read with a Superman comic book. Option I is incorrect because it was Alexie s father who attended a non-reservation school. As the reader learns on page 332, My father, who is one of the few Indians who went to Catholic school on purpose, was an avid reader Hampton Brown Edge Level B, Unit 4, Cluster 2 2 of 6
5. If the essay were published in a newspaper, which would be the best headline for the article? A. Life on the Reservation B. Indian Motivates All C. Reading for Success D. Tribal School Graduate Prospers The correct answer is C. Options A, B, and D are incorrect because they represent incorrect interpretations of the main idea. Option A is incorrect because the essay does not describe daily life on a Spokane Indian Reservation. Option B is incorrect because although Alexie s goal is to give Indian children a better future only some of the students care as the reader learns on page 337, Then there are the sullen and already defeated Indian kids who sit in the back rows and ignore me with theatrical precision. Option C is correct because Alexie wants the students to read and write. As the reader learns on page 337 speaking of the students who resist his motivation, They refuse and resist. Books, I say to them. Books, I say. I throw my weight against their locked doors (their closed minds). The door holds. I am smart. I am arrogant. I am lucky. I am trying to save our lives. Option D is incorrect because although Alexie was a tribal school graduate and he has prospered, the purpose of the essay is to tell other Indians that Sherman Alexie taught himself to read using comic books. He was determined not to fail in life. As an adult, Alexie inspires young people to strive for their goals and to keep reading. Edge Level B Unit 4 Cluster 2 A Smart Cookie and It s Our Story, Too 6. Why did Yvette Cabrera enjoy reading The House on Mango Street? F. she met and became a friend of Sandra Cisneros G. she likes to eat fresh mangos H. it reminded her of when she was a child I. the setting was Los Angeles where she grew up The correct answer is H. Options F, G, and I are incorrect because they represent incorrect inferences or conclusions based on details found in the text. Option F is incorrect because Cabrera met Cisneros at Valley High School in Santa Ana, California. The reader learns that they had a conversation, but not whether they became friends. Option G is incorrect because although she likes to eat mangos, it is the connection to her life as Hampton Brown Edge Level B, Unit 4, Cluster 2 3 of 6
a young Latina that helps her make the connection to the story. Option H is correct because just the word mango reminds Yvette Cabrera of her childhood as the reader learns on page 341, Mango. The word alone evoked memories of childhood weekends. Option I is incorrect because as the reader learns on page 342 the setting of The House on Mango Street was Cisneros s hometown of Chicago may have been hundreds of miles away from the palm-tree lined streets of Santa Barbara, California, where I grew up. 7. Read this sentence from A Smart Cookie. She borrows opera records from the public library and sings with velvety lungs powerful as morning glories. What literary device does the author use in this sentence? A. She uses symbolism with the public library representing all city services. B. She uses imagery to describe her mother s smooth voice to velvet. C. She uses a simile to compare her mother s voice to beautiful flowers D. She uses irony to say that velvet lungs could make a powerful noise. LA.901.2.1.7 The correct answer is C. Options A, B, and D are incorrect because they represent inaccurate interpretations of descriptive language or figurative language. The excerpt is found on page 340. Option A is incorrect because the excerpt does not contain an example of symbolism. Symbol is as 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 851, Literary Terms). The public library represents itself, not all city services. Option B is incorrect because the excerpt does not contain an example of imagery. Imagery is figurative language that communicates sensory experience, and that does not occur in the sentence being assessed (page 846, Literary Terms). Option C is correct because the excerpt contains 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 850, Literary Terms). Option D is incorrect because the excerpt does not contain an example of irony. Irony is defined at length on page 846, Literary Terms or in dictionary.reference.com as the use of words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of its literal meaning. 8. Yvette Cabrera felt connected to The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros in many ways EXCEPT F. as a child Yvette also had her name mispronounced in school G. neither Cisneros nor Cabrera went to fresh fruit stands with their families H. both are Latino, and, as children, were in the minority in their home towns I. Cabrera and Cisneros both became writers to share their lives with readers The correct answer is I. Options F, G, and H are incorrect because they represent incorrect summary statements. Hampton Brown Edge Level B, Unit 4, Cluster 2 4 of 6
Option F is incorrect because both had their names mispronounced. The reader learns on page 342, On the first page, Esperanza explains how at school they say her name funny But like Esperanza, I could remember how differently my last name sounded when it was pronounced melodically by my parents but so haltingly by everyone else. Option G is incorrect because Yvette Cabrera went to get fresh fruit as the reader learns on page 341, For my sisters and me, the treat for behaving ourselves was a juicy mango on a stick sold at a fruit stand in the plaza. The reader does not know if Cisneros went to a fresh fruit stand. Option H is incorrect because as a child Yvette was a minority in her home town. Cisneros wrote using her home town of Chicago and her Latino neighborhood as the setting for The House on Mango Street, and as the reader learns on page 342, Cisneros s hometown of Chicago may have been hundreds of miles away from the palm-tree lined streets of Santa Barbara, California, where I (Yvette) grew up. But in her world I was no longer the minority. Option I is correct because both women are writers. The reader learns in the byline on page 341 that It s Our Story, Too is written by Yvette Cabrera and was published in The Orange County Register in Santa Ana, California. The reader learns in the caption on page 343 that The House on Mango Street is a book by Sandra Cisneros. In addition, in About the Writer on page 344, the reader learns that Cisneros has published two novels, a collection of short stories, and three books of poetry. 9. Read the paragraph from the memoir. Cisneros provided an hour of humorous storytelling that had the students busting with laughter. They crowded in line afterward, giddily waiting to get her autograph. Which statement by Sherman Alexie, author of Superman and Me expresses similar feelings by students? A. They have read many other books. They look at me with bright eyes and arrogant wonder. B. A little Indian boy teaches himself to read at an early age and advances quickly. C. They were monosyllabic in front of their non-indian teachers, but could tell complicated stories and jokes at the dinner table. D. They carry neither pencil nor pen. They stare out the window. They refuse and resist. LA.910.6.2.2 The correct answer is A. Options B, C, and D are incorrect because they represent incorrect interpretations of information found in the text. The excerpt is found on page 343. Option A is correct because both excerpts show the enthusiasm that an articulate, motivated author can evoke from an audience. The excerpt in the option is found on page 336. Option B is incorrect because the excerpt which is found on page 334 is about how Alexie learned to read as a little boy; it does not relate to Cisneros entertaining an audience of students. Option C is incorrect because although both excerpts mention how a speaker can amuse his/her audience, the excerpts are not related. The excerpt which is found on page 335 tells how Indian students acted dumb in class, yet could remember Indian stories to tell to other Indians. Option D is incorrect because the excerpt from Superman and Me which is found on page 337 is about resistant, closed-off students whereas the excerpt from It s Our Story, Too is about very engaged, enthusiastic students. Hampton Brown Edge Level B, Unit 4, Cluster 2 5 of 6
10. Sandra Cisneros and Sherman Alexie are alike in several ways EXCEPT F. both want to inspire readers with their stories G. both speak to students who share their ethnic heritage H. both became successful novelists I. both grew up poor homes in New York LA.910.1.7.7 The correct answer is I. Options F, G, and H are incorrect because they represent facts and details drawn from the text. Option F is incorrect because both are authors who want to inspire their readers. Cisneros has written novels, short stories, and poetry. As Alexie says in The Writer and His World on page 330, There s a kid out there, some boy or girl who will be that great writer, and hopefully they ll see what I do and get inspired by that. Option G is incorrect because both want to inspire their readers especially those who share their cultural background Cisneros wants to reach students in the Latino community and Alexie wants to reach out to Indian students. Option H is incorrect because both have authored novels, short stories, and poetry. The reader learns on page 344 that Cisneros has published two novels, a collection of short stories, and three books of poetry and the reader learns on page 336 about Alexie that These days, I write novels, short stories, and poems. Option I is correct because Alexie grew up on the Spokane Indian Reservation in eastern Washington state while Cisneros grew up in Chicago, Illinois. Hampton Brown Edge Level B, Unit 4, Cluster 2 6 of 6