The Skunk Ladder Test / Reading Street

Which was a result of building the skunk ladder?

• The narrator uses it to climb into the hole.

• Eddie’s father uses it to climb into the hole.

• The friends get in trouble with Eddie’s father.

• The skunk uses the ladder to escape from the hole.

How does the narrator respond to the challenge of finding the skunk in the hole?

• The narrator is courageous and stubborn.

• The narrator is fearful and determined.

• The narrator is imaginative and cruel.

• The narrator is thoughtful and kind.

Which statement from the passage best supports your answer to question 2?

• “‘Maybe it’s in the hole,’”

• “‘Think of something else.’”

• “‘We can’t fill in the hole with the skunk in there,’”

• “‘I don’t like that idea,’”

Which character trait does the narrator reveal in the passage?

• his impatience when events do not go as planned

• his willingness to follow Eddie’s lead

• his confidence in telling adventure stories

• D. his enthusiasm for inventing and building

Why do Eddie and the narrator throw the door back over the hole?

• They do not want Mr. Muldoon to see the hole.

• They want to protect the skunk in the hole.

• They are planning to leave and come back later.

• They are trying to hide the smell of the sk

The Latin prefixes “sub-” and “sus-” mean “up from under.” The Latin word “pendere” means “to hang.” Use these meanings to figure out the meaning of the word “suspended” in the last paragraph.

• floated, as if tied to a string from a ceiling

• slid down, as if on a long playground slide

• swung around in a large circle, as if tied to a rope

• vanished, as if through magic

Which detail from the passage also helped you figure out the meaning of the word?

• Mr. Muldoon disappears.

• The hat remains in the air.

• Mr. Muldoon falls into the hole.

• The hat falls into the hole.

Think about the meaning of the word “tedious” in the following sentence from the passage.

“Early the next morning, Eddie and I headed for the big hole, prepared to start the tedious task of undigging it.” Chose one antonym for the word.

"tedious".

• boring

• exciting

• tiring

• gazing

Which words in this sentence offer you the best clue to the meaning of the word “plummeted”?

“He had apparently found an open space under the door, slipped in for a look around, and plummeted the eight feet or more to the bottom of the hole.”

• “eight feet or more”

• “bottom of the hole”

• “an open space”

• “a look around”

What does the narrator mean when he says a familiar “odor” reached their nostrils?

• It was a smell the boys liked

• It was a smell the boys knew.

• It was a smell the boys did not like.

• It was a smell the boys did not know.