STAAR Reading Practice: "A Ball to Roll Around

The primary purpose of the selection is to convince readers that — 

• many blind people are grateful they do not have sight 
• the author’s life would have been better if he had kept his sight 
• blind people deserve empathy and understanding 
• the author experienced something positive as a result of his blindness 

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.6

CCSS.RI.8.9

CCSS.RL.11-12.6

CCSS.RL.8.6

CCSS.RL.9-10.6

In paragraph 4, the expression “chair rocker” refers to someone who — 

• provides assistance to others 
• has experienced hardship 
• is mostly inactive 
• prefers being outside 

Tags

CCSS.RI.11-12.4

CCSS.RI.9-10.4

CCSS.RL.11-12.4

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.9-10.4

How did the gift of a baseball affect the author? 

• It motivated him to create a game that did not require sight. 
• It reminded him of the fun activities that he could no longer enjoy. 
• It reinforced his belief that people are often thoughtless. 
• It offered him the chance to try playing a traditional game. 

Tags

CCSS.RI.2.1

CCSS.RI.3.1

CCSS.RL.1.1

CCSS.RL.2.1

CCSS.RL.3.1

On which persuasive technique does the author most rely? 

• Vague generality
  
• Personal experience 
• Emotional appeal
  
• Scientific evidence 

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.8

CCSS.RI.11-12.5

CCSS.RI.8.5

CCSS.RI.8.8

CCSS.RI.9-10.5

In paragraph 10, the author suggests that his friends — 

• have had difficulty understanding his particular struggles 
• share many of the same challenges that he faces 
• made his invention of groundball possible 
• are very important to him 

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.11-12.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

CCSS.RI.11-12.2

In the boxed information titled “Did You Know?,” which fact about Robert Allman directly supports the selection’s theme? 

• He was the recipient of the Class of 1915 Award, bestowed annually on a member of the senior class who most closely approaches the ideal University of Pennsylvania student-athlete. 
• After college he became a successful lawyer in the Philadelphia area and worked until his death at age 75. 
• He once said, “I have done nothing more than the average American boy. . . . Courage is nothing more than doing the best you can in the good old American Way.” 
• At the University of Pennsylvania, Allman was an intercollegiate wrestling champion and captain of the Quaker wrestling squad during his senior year. 

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.11-12.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

CCSS.RL.8.2