A Simple Experiment

1) Look at this sentence from paragraph 6.

His racecar ha crashed into a street-sweeper with a sound of broken glass and twisted metal.

The reader can tell that -

• A. Marcus is a danger to other drivers

• B. Marcus’s video game includes realistic sounds and images

• C. Marcus and Keisha will need to sweep up the broken glass in Marcus’s bedroom

• D. Marcus’s mother will be angry when she comes home

2) Why is it important to the story that Marcus is playing a video game at the beginning of the selection?

• F. Keisha and Marcus disagree over how much time should spend studying his spelling words.

• G. Keisha thinks that Marcus’s video game is boring.

• H. Playing a video game will earn Marcus extra credit in his science class.

• J. Marcus uses his computer to conduct a video game experiment later in the story.

3) Why does Keisha feel sure that Marcus will get a good grade on his next spelling test in paragraph 11?

• A. Keisha can tell that Mr. Barnaby is planning a very easy spelling test.

• B. Marcus is a smart boy, and he enjoys studying for tests.

• C. Marcus is excited to prove that playing video games will improve his test grade.

• D. Keisha will help Marcus study his spelling words every day after school.

4) What identifies this story as realistic fiction?

• F. The author includes video gaming and a tablet computer.

• G. Marcus and Keisha are magical characters in a real-life setting.

• H. The author provides a happy ending for Marcus.

• J. The events could happen and the characters are believable.

5) The racecar, sounds of glass breaking, and grasshoppers in this selection are all -

• A. part of Marcus’s active imagination

• B. sounds and images in the video game that Marcus is playing

• C. magical elements that trick the reader

• D. included to show the reader that video games can seem realistic

6) In paragraph 16, the word puzzled means -

• F. a collection of pieces that fit together in a complex way

• G. certain, sure of oneself

• H. confused, doubtful

• J. tired and grumpy

7) The narrator in this selection is -

• A. third person, telling the story by showing the reader what the characters do and say

• B. first person, because both Marcus and Keisha speak in the story

• C. unreliable, because the reader cannot tell who is speaking

• D. a character in the story

8) In paragraph 4, the words “a smooth talker” help the reader to understand that Marcus -

• F. can be very convincing

• G. does not have trouble saying syllables and sounds correctly

• H. speaks very quickly when he is excited

• J. frequently lies to his sister

9) Look at the dictionary entry for intrigue.

Which word below rhymes with the second syllable of the word intrigue in paragraph 8?

• A. League

• B. Big

• C. Strike

• D. Win