Historical Context Unit 1: Anglo-Saxon & Medieval Periods 1. Complete the following KWL Chart for the Anglo-Saxon and Medieval Periods. Know Want to know Learned 1) 1) 1) 2) 2) 2) 3) 3) 3) 2. Complete the Learned column of your Warm-up 1 KWL Chart. 3. Create your own epic! Answer the following: a. A well-known hero or superstar of our time: b. Examples of their superhuman strength: c. Setting that spans the continent, other realms, or even worlds: d. A supernatural element: e. Something the omniscient narrator knows, that no one else knows: Now, combine this into an epic, ornate, fancy voice and style of writing. Hail! This is epic hero (a), and he/she is famous for their well-known (b). For example, one time he/she (c) in these really cool places: (d),, and. The most challenging thing he/she had to do was defeat (e). Little did he/she know (f). 4. Which phrase is a kenning for the word sea? a. Blackness of night b. This noble place c. Hammered/Mail d. Whale-road 5. Which phrase is a kenning for Grendel? a. Peace-weaver b. Sin-stained demon c. Shelterer of warriors d. Twilight-spoiler 1
6. In line 45 of Beowulf, the alliteration begun a bitter feud helps to a. Clarify the meaning of words b. Create rhythm and unify ideas c. Convey a sensory experience d. Explain metaphors and similes Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow. A boy in a green shirt yelled, I can t find my sister. She went underwater right there, and she never came up! As a lifeguard, Sue knew exactly what to do. Racing into the ocean, she leaped and crashed through the waves. Sue swam to the spot where the boy had pointed. Taking a deep breath, she dove to the bottom, opened her eyes, and began searching everywhere. As she surfaced, a wave buried her and shoved her under again. When Sue finally resurfaced, she saw a crowd of people on shore. Here she is! they called. Sue saw a girl standing in the sand, calmly eating a sandwich. Her little brother had gone back to his sand castle. 7. In this story, who or what is Sue in conflict with? a) Sue is in conflict with the ocean. b) She is in conflict with the missing girl. c) Sue is in conflict with the boy. d) She is in conflict with the people on the shore. 8. This type of conflict is a) Character vs. Character b) Character vs. Nature c) Character vs. Society d) Internal conflict Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow. Seeing an anaconda up close for the first time changed my life, says animal expert Rowena Lewis. Anacondas are some of the biggest snakes in the world. On average, they are about 20 feet long and 300 pounds. Members of the boa constrictor family, these reptiles make their homes in the wet jungles of the Amazon in South America. 9. What is the author s main purpose for writing this passage? a. To inform you about Rowena Lewis s life b. To entertain you with snake stories c. To inform you about anacondas d. To persuade you to study anacondas 2
10. Why do you think the writer included the quotation by Rowena Lewis? a. To tell a story about anacondas b. To get readers interested in anacondas c. To persuade readers to become animal experts d. To describe the life of an animal expert 11. The author s purpose in writing a handbook teaching people how to negotiate would be to because the author is providing readers with on how to do something. 12. The author s purpose in writing a public service announcement telling kids to stay in school would be to because the author is attempting to the reader in this text. 13. Olivia froze. There was a large dog a few feet in front of her on the sidewalk. The dog wagged its tail as its handler talked to an elderly man, but still Olivia s heart pounded in her chest. Olivia couldn t bring herself to walk near the dog. She crossed the street and continued on her way. What do Olivia s actions indicate? a. The dog behaved threateningly toward Olivia. b. Olivia does not get along with the dog s handler. c. Olivia is afraid of dogs. d. Olivia needs to go someplace that s on the other side of the street. 14. Ann finished her driving test and headed for the parking lot. She couldn t help grinning as she walked up to her father. I guess things went well this time? he asked. Yes! Ann jumped up and down, holding her temporary driver s license. I m so happy! You should be, her father said. But I knew you could do it. I think it s the lucky socks that did the trick. She looked down at the license. I m so happy! You should be, her father said. But I knew you could do it. I think it s the lucky socks that did the trick. She looked down at the bright green socks peeking out between the tops of her sneakers and her jeans. Her father squeezed her shoulder. I don t know. I think all those hours of practice helped more. Then, he climbed in on the passenger side of the car and smiled at Ann as she sat down behind the wheel. What do the actions and words of Ann s father reveal about him? a. He is proud that Ann s hard work resulted in a driver s license. b. He is surprised that Ann did well on her exam. c. He believes the green socks helped Ann get her license. d. He thinks Ann is overemphasizing her success. 3
15. The dictionary definition for each of the following words is curious. Which word has a positive connotation? a. Prying c. Snoopy b. Inquisitive d. Nosy 16. Which word would you use to describe a stubborn person in the most negative way? a. Firm c. Pig-headed b. Rigid d. Willful 17. Which of the following words has the most positive connotation? a. Beam c. Smirk b. Grin d. Smile 18. If you wanted to describe an honest person in a negative way, which word would you use? a. Blunt c. Candid b. Assertive d. Frank 19. What does tone refer to in a piece of writing? a. The symbolism in the text. b. The writer s attitude toward a character or subject. c. The meaning the writer is trying to convey d. The style of language the writer uses 20. How do we identify tone in a piece of writing? a. We study the plot, or story line. b. We work it out from the imagery, which might remind us of things we know. c. We look mainly at the descriptions of the characters appearance. d. We look at the writer s word choice, use of imagery, and direct statements. 21. The man knelt down and placed the roses carefully in the vase. He traced the name on the gravestone with his fingers. He had come here every Sunday since the funeral, and he remembered that day as if it were yesterday. The tears streamed down his face. He stayed there a long time, thinking about everything that had changed. Choose the word or phrase that best describes the tone of the passage. a. Suspenseful b. Hopeful c. Sad d. Instructional 4
Historical Context Unit 2 Warm-ups 22. Complete the Know and Want to know columns in the following KWL Chart for Unit 2: The English Renaissance. Know Want to know Learned 1) 1) 1) 2) 2) 2) 3) 3) 3) 23. Complete the Learned column of your Warm-up 1 KWL Chart. 24. Which of these is the best definition of imagery? a. Anything that is literal b. Giving a human trait to something non-human c. Language that appeals to the reader s five senses d. Descriptions that are not literally true 25. Which of the following statements is true of imagery? a. It is always visual. b. It often uses figurative language. c. It can only appeal to one sense at a time. d. It can only be understood if explained by the writer. 26. Read this excerpt from Alfred, Lord Tennyson s The Lady of Shalott: In the stormy east wind straining, The pale yellow woods were waning, The broad stream in his banks complaining, Heavily the low sky raining Over towered Camelot; What imagery does Tennyson use in this excerpt from the poem? a. Imagery of sight and touch b. Imagery of smell, taste, and touch c. Imagery of taste and touch d. Imagery of sight, touch, and sound 5
27. Which of the following lines contains an example of hyperbole? a. Shall I compare thee to a summer s day/thou art more lovely and more temperate. b. Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,/And summer s lease hath all too short a date: c. Haply I think on thee, and then my state,/like to the lark at break of day arising d. Let me not to the marriage of true minds/admit impediments; love is not love 28. Which of the following lines contains an example of hyperbole? a. When in disgrace with Fortune and men s eyes/i all alone beweep my outcast state b. And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,/and look upon myself and curse my fate c. Wishing me like to one more rich in hope,/featur d like him, like him with friends possess d d. Desiring this man s art, and that man s scope,/with what I most enjoy contented least 29. Which of the following is the best definition of a shift in poetry? a. The writer s attitude toward the subject of the poem, felt by the reader due to specific word choices. b. During the English Renaissance, Shakespeare redefined the Petrarchan sonnet by creating a new form, and naming it for himself. c. Introduces a change in the speaker s understanding of what he is narrating, signaling to the reader he has reached an insight. d. A subtle change in the setting of a poem that must be determined through careful analysis of sensory imagery. 30. Which of the following is NOT a way to determine a shift in a poem? a. Remembering that a Shakespearean sonnet often shifts in the rhyming couplet. b. Scanning for transition words. c. Noticing a change in the rhyme scheme. d. Making an inference relating to your own life based on the author s perspective. 31. Which end rhyme is a slant rhyme? a. Forth/worth c. More, bore b. Be, thee d. Grow, so 32. Which figure of speech uses like or as in its comparison? a. Metaphor c. Simile b. Personification d. Exaggeration 33. Choose which figure of speech appears in this sentence: The raindrops danced and jumped on the window. a. Exaggeration c. Metaphor b. Simile d. Personification 6