Read the passage from "The Willow-Wren and the Bear."When the fox felt the first sting, he started so that he lifted one leg, from pain, but he bore it, and still kept his tail high in the air; at the second sting, he was forced to put it down for a moment; at the third, he could hold out no longer, screamed, and put his tail between his legs. When the animals saw that, they thought all was lost, and began to flee, each into his hole, and the birds had won the battle.Then the King and Queen flew home to their children and cried: "Children, rejoice, eat and drink to your heart's content, we have won the battle!” But the young wrens said: "We will not eat yet, the bear must come to the nest, and beg for pardon and say that we are honourable children, before we will do that.” Then the willow-wren flew to the bear's hole and cried: "Growler, you are to come to the nest to my children, and beg their pardon, or else every rib of your body shall be broken.” So the bear crept thither in the greatest fear, and begged their pardon. And now at last the young wrens were satisfied, and sat down together and ate and drank, and made merry till quite late into the night.
Read the excerpt from chapter 6 of The Travels of Marco Polo.Now that I have described the ships in which merchants voyage to and from India, let us change the subject and pass on to India itself. But first I will tell you of many islands that lie towards the east in this Ocean at which we have now arrived. We shall begin with an island that is called Japan.Japan is an island far out at sea to the eastward, some 1,500 miles from the mainland. It is a very big island. The people are fair-complexioned, good-looking, and well-mannered. They are idolaters, wholly independent and exercising no authority over any nation but themselves.
Read the excerpt from chapter 6 of The Travels of Marco Polo.This, then, I would have you know, is how they are made. They are built of the wood called spruce and of fir. They have one deck; and above this deck, in most ships, are at least sixty cabins, each of which can comfortably accommodate one merchant. They have one steering-oar and four masts. Often they add another two masts, which are hoisted and lowered at pleasure. The entire hull is of double thickness: that is to say, one plank is fastened over the top of another, and this double planking extends all the way round. It is caulked outside and in, and the fastening is done with iron nails.
Read the excerpt from "The Straw, the Coal, and the Bean.”The bean, who had prudently stayed behind on the shore, could not but laugh at the event, was unable to stop, and laughed so heartily that she burst. It would have been all over with her, likewise, if, by good fortune, a tailor who was travelling in search of work had not sat down to rest by the brook.As he had a compassionate heart he pulled out his needle and thread, and sewed her together. The bean thanked him most prettily, but as the tailor used black thread, all beans since then have a black seam.
Read the excerpt from "The Goatherd and the Wild Goats.”He gave his own goats just sufficient food to keep them alive, but fed the strangers more abundantly in the hope of enticing them to stay with him and of making them his own.When the thaw set in, he led them all out to feed, and the Wild Goats scampered away as fast as they could to the mountains.The Goatherd scolded them for their ingratitude in leaving him, when during the storm he had taken more care of them than of his own herd.One of them, turning about, said to him: "That is the very reason why we are so cautious; for if you yesterday treated us better than the Goats you have had so long, it is plain also that if others came after us, you would in the same manner prefer them to ourselves.”
Read the excerpt from "The Goatherd and the Wild Goats.”A goatherd, driving his flock from their pasture at eventide, found some Wild Goats mingled among them, and shut them up together with his own for the night.The next day it snowed very hard, so that he could not take the herd to their usual feeding places, but was obliged to keep them in the fold.He gave his own goats just sufficient food to keep them alive, but fed the strangers more abundantly in the hope of enticing them to stay with him and of making them his own.When the thaw set in, he led them all out to feed, and the Wild Goats scampered away as fast as they could to the mountains.The Goatherd scolded them for their ingratitude in leaving him, when during the storm he had taken more care of them than of his own herd.One of them, turning about, said to him: "That is the very reason why we are so cautious; for if you yesterday treated us better than the Goats you have had so long, it is plain also that if others came after us, you would in the same manner prefer them to ourselves.”
Read the passage from "The Goatherd and the Wild Goats."A goatherd, driving his flock from their pasture at eventide, found some Wild Goats mingled among them, and shut them up together with his own for the night.The next day it snowed very hard, so that he could not take the herd to their usual feeding places, but was obliged to keep them in the fold.He gave his own goats just sufficient food to keep them alive, but fed the strangers more abundantly in the hope of enticing them to stay with him and of making them his own.When the thaw set in, he led them all out to feed, and the Wild Goats scampered away as fast as they could to the mountains.The Goatherd scolded them for their ingratitude in leaving him, when during the storm he had taken more care of them than of his own herd.One of them, turning about, said to him: "That is the very reason why we are so cautious; for if you yesterday treated us better than the Goats you have had so long, it is plain also that if others came after us, you would in the same manner prefer them to ourselves.”
Which details from the text best support the central idea? Select two options.
Read the passage from "The Seven Voyages of Sindbad the Sailor.”[The porter] followed the servant into a vast room, where a great company was seated round a table covered with all sorts of delicacies. In the place of honor sat a tall, grave man, whose long white beard gave him a venerable air. Behind his chair stood a crowd of attendants eager to minister to his wants. This was the famous Sindbad himself. The porter, more than ever alarmed at the sight of so much magnificence, tremblingly saluted the noble company. Sindbad, making a sign to him to approach, caused him to be seated at his right hand, and himself heaped choice morsels upon his plate, and poured out for him a draught of excellent wine, and presently, when the banquet drew to a close, spoke to him familiarly, asking his name and occupation.
Which sentences show correct dialogue punctuation? Select three options.I won't go near the stuff, he told me with a grimace."Thanks for helping me out, Grace," she mumbled."Who took the last muffin? I was going to eat it this morning!" Anastasia groaned.Why are you staring at me, anyway?" Yasmin snapped."Don't worry, I'm not going to tell anyone. But it's not that big a deal," whispered Jayden.
Read the sentence.When cotton clothing is permeated, or soaked through, with water, it stays wet and can freeze in cold weather.Based on context clues in the sentence, what is the most likely meaning of permeated?
Read the excerpt from Robert Frost's poem "Mending Wall."He only says, "Good fences make good neighbours."Spring is the mischief in me, and I wonderIf I could put a notion in his head:"Why do they make good neighbours? Isn’t itWhere there are cows? But here there are no cows.Before I built a wall I’d ask to knowWhat I was walling in or walling out,And to whom I was like to give offence.Something there is that doesn’t love a wall,That wants it down." I could say "Elves" to him,But it’s not elves exactly, and I’d ratherHe said it for himself. I see him thereBringing a stone grasped firmly by the topIn each hand, like an old-stone savage armed.He moves in darkness as it seems to me,Not of woods only and the shade of trees.He will not go behind his father’s saying,And he like having thought of it so wellHe says again, "Good fences make good neighbours."
What are most likely the author's purposes for writing this text? Select two options.
Read the excerpt from "How the Grimm Brothers Saved the Fairy Tale."Despite difficult personal problems and meager financial support from 1805 to 1812, the brothers proved themselves to be innovative scholars in the new field of German philology by publishing articles and books on medieval literature. In fact, they would be surprised to learn that they are more famous today for their tales than for their superb philological studies, which include pioneering work on German sound shifts, and the founding of the voluminous German Dictionary in 1854. But it was their training in philology and the demands that they placed on themselves as researchers that assisted their collecting and editing the tales.
By making inferences based on analysis of a character, the reader is able to determine a character's
Which two factors combine to form an author’s purpose for writing a text?
What steps best help a reader determine the central idea of a text? Select three options.
Read the excerpt from "How the Grimm Brothers Saved the Fairy Tale."Turning to the tales of the first edition, a reader might notice that many of the stories such as "The Hand with the Knife,” "How Some Children Played at Slaughtering,” and "The Children of Famine,” have nothing to do with fairies or happy endings. Instead, these are stark narratives about brutal living conditions in the nineteenth century. For instance, "The Children of Famine” begins this way:Once upon a time there was a woman with two daughters, and they had become so poor that they no longer had even a piece of bread to put in their mouths. Their hunger became so great that their mother became unhinged and desperate. Indeed, she said to her children, "I’ve got to kill you so that I can get something to eat.”
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