Reading Informational Texts - Fighting Cholera

Based on the selection, what was the most likely way cholera got to North America?

• It was brought by immigrants from the British Isles.

• It developed in swamps and river mud.

• It was carried from Britain by ocean currents.

• It arrived in a shipment of pump handles from Britain.

What caused people in specific London neighborhoods to become sick from cholera?

• Ships brought cholera to the London neighborhoods.

• Contaminated food was sold in butcher shops.

• Bad air from river mud spread cholera.

• People go their water from contaminated water pumps.

What statement expresses cause and effect?

• Dr. John Snow research cholera by making maps.

• The pump on London's Broad Street was contaminated.

• People drank dirty water and got cholera.

• Some people didn't believe Dr. John Snow's theory.

Which statement supports the idea that Dr. John Snow was right about the cause of cholera?

• When the Broad Street pump's handle was removed, there were few new cases of cholera.

• In ten days, more than 500 people in one London neighborhood died from cholera.

• British soldiers and ships carried cholera to new places.

• People who are sick from cholera suffer from diarrhea and vomiting.

Based on the context of the last paragraph what does the word epidemic mean?

• advertising campaign

• new law

• protest movement

• disease outbreak

Which word best matches the connotation of persuaded as it is used in paragraph 4?

• coerced

• coaxed

• convinced

• argued

What is the main idea of the selection?

• In the 1800s, no one knew what caused the outbreaks of cholera.

• Based on his theory that dirty water caused cholera, a doctor used a map to fight the disease.

• The British were concerned about the spread of cholera from India to London in the 1800s.

• Medical geographers want to know why a disease occurs in a particular place .