Nonfiction STAAR Review

IDENTIFY THE MAIN IDEA

Being a clown isn't all fun and games. Rodeo clowns expose themselves to great danger every time they perform. When cowboys dismount or bulls buck them off, rodeo clowns jump in front of the bulls and motion wildly to get their attention. In this way rodeo clowns provide an alternate target, and in doing so protect the rider. Of course, this is a very dangerous thing to do. So you see, sometimes clowning around can be serious business.

• Sometimes clowns can mean serious bussiness.

• Rodeo clowns protect cowboys by putting themselves in danger.

• Cowboys and Rodeo Clowns are constantly in danger.

• A Rodeo bull's attention is easily caught by Rodeo clowns.

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CCSS.RI.4.2

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IDENTIFY THE MAIN IDEA

Sometime in December of 1891, Dr. James Naismith was teaching gym at the YMCA College in Springfield, Massachusetts. It was raining, and Dr. Naismith was trying to keep his students active. He wanted them playing a rough game that would keep them moving. He didn't like a few ideas that were too rough. Then Naismith had his breakthrough. He wrote out the rules for a game with peach baskets fixed to ten-foot elevated tracks. Naismith's students played against one another, passing the ball around and shooting it into the peach baskets. Dribbling wasn't a part of the original game. Also it took a while to realize that the game would run more smoothly if the bottoms of the baskets were removed. But this game grew to be one of the most popular sports in America today. Can you guess which one?

• The most popular sport in America

• Dr. James Naismith's career in teaching

• The invention of Basketball

• How to get students active

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IDENTIFY THE MAIN IDEA

Before you put on that skeleton costume and rove door-to-door pandering for candy, take a minute to reflect on this tradition. Halloween is believed to have come from an ancient Celtic festival dating back some 2,000 years. November 1st was the Celtic New Year and marked the end of summer to the Celts. They celebrated on its eve by wearing costumes made of animal skins and dancing around bon fires. Over the next two millennia, this primitive celebration grew to be the candy fueled costume ball that we know today.

• The origins of Halloween

• The New Celtic Year

• Primitive traditions

• Why the skeleton costume is the best for Halloween

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CCSS.RI.4.2

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IDENTIFY THE MAIN IDEA

You might think that all automobile fuels are the same, but they aren't. Automobiles can run on one of three types of fuel: gasoline, diesel, and biodiesel. All these fuels are burned inside of the engine, which creates the heat and energy that is used to power the car. But there are important differences between these fuels. Gasoline and diesel are more common than biodiesel. But each burns differently. Diesel fuel is heavier and less flammable than gasoline, so it has to be compressed before it will burn. Gasoline may be lighter than diesel, but both fuels are made from crude oil. On the other hand, biodiesel fuel is made from vegetables. Both biodiesel and diesel fuels must be burned in diesel engines, which only use diesel fuel. If gasoline is pumped into a diesel engine, it will have to be pumped out. These fuels may look pretty similar at the gas station, but remember that there are important differences between them or it may cost you.

• Which fuel is best to use for your car

• Gasoline, diesel, and biodiesels area all fuels, but they have important differences in how they are made and used.

• The benefits of biodiesel

• How fuels change the way we drive

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CCSS.RI.4.2

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IDENTIFY THE MAIN IDEA

Yellowstone National Park is mainly located in Wyoming, although three percent is located in the state of Montana. The Continental Divide of North America runs diagonally through the southwestern part of the park. The park sits on the Yellowstone Plateau, which is an average elevation of 8,000 feet above sea level. This plateau is bounded on nearly all sides by mountain ranges. There are 290 waterfalls that are at least fifteen feet in the park, the highest being the Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River, which falls 308 feet.

• Why to visit Wyoming

• Yellowstone Park's beautiful water falls

• The continental Divide of North America

• Physical features of the Yellowstone Park

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CCSS.RI.4.2

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Read the passage and determine its text structure!

You may think it’s bad to forget your homework, but what if you forgot who you were? Amnesia is a condition where a person loses some of their memories, like details about their personal identity, but still may remember how to do things, like play a piano. One type of Amnesia is called post-traumatic amnesia. Post-traumatic amnesia is usually due to a head injury (like a serious fall or knock on the head). The degree of memory loss may be related to the force of the injury. A simple whiplash may cause a person to forget the moments before the accident, but a more severe injury may cause a greater loss. For example, the victim may not remember who certain people are or may forget details about their own identities.

• Compare and Contrast

• Cause and Effect

• Sequential

• Problem and Solution

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CCSS.RI.2.5

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Read the passage and determine its text structure!

Ansel Bourne was a preacher, carpenter, and most likely an inspiration for the name “Bourne” in the movie and novel series, The Bourne Identity. Up until 1857, Bourne had been a carpenter, until he was called to religion. After 1858, he worked as an evangelical preacher, until 1887. He set up shop in Norristown, Pennsylvania, as a candy maker using the name A.J. Brown. Three months later, he woke up not knowing where he was, with no memory of the previous months. The case of Mr. Bourne has fascinated psychologists, and some film makers, for years.

• Compare and Contrast

• Cause and Effect

• Sequential

• Chronological

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CCSS.RI.3.5

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Read the passage and determine its text structure!

The term Amnesia refers to complete or partial memory loss. Almost all of us will experience some form of Amnesia in our lives, even if it’s just a simple case of verbal amnesia, like forgetting someone’s name. Fortunately, there are things that you can do to prevent amnesia. Here is a list of foods that you can eat to improve your memory: almonds, walnuts, bananas, honey, apples, and black pepper. Though these foods may not reverse post-traumatic amnesia, they should improve your memory in daily life if you eat them regularly enough.

• Compare and Contrast

• Cause and Effect

• Sequential

• Problem and Solution

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CCSS.RI.2.5

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Read the passage and determine its text structure!

What do Finding Nemo and Robocop have in common? Not much, except that they both feature characters who suffer amnesia. Amnesia is a common plot device in movies and TV shows, but how accurate are these depictions? In television and movies, memory loss caused by a knock to the head (post-traumatic amnesia) is shown as fairly common, when it is actually quite rare. Unlike in movies and television shows that feature amnesia, most knocks to the head will not produce memory loss. In reality, memory loss or amnesia is much more likely to occur as the result of a stroke, brain infection, or brain surgery. So while amnesia causes people or characters to lose memories in both film and reality, characters are usually “fixed” by taking another knock to the head. In reality, people are not cured so simply.

• Compare and Contrast

• Cause and Effect

• Descriptive/Spatial

• Problem and Solution

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CCSS.RI.2.5

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Read the passage and determine its text structure!

Automation is the use of machines to reduce the need for human labor. In other words automation is when jobs done by people become jobs done by robots. Automation can be a good thing. Because of automation, clothing, cars, and other manufactured products are available at good prices and in large supply. But automation can also be a bad thing. Because of automation, there are over 700,000 robots in America alone that do jobs once performed by humans. The way of automation may not be best for humanity, but it is the course we are taking.

• Compare and Contrast

• Cause and Effect

• Problem and Solution

• Sequential

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