Paired Passage: Fall 2020 Benchmark

31. Which sentence from the selection best conveys the author’s main message? (8.8Di, R, RC3)

• A. One man set out to determine how these plastics are affecting our oceans and how we might combat this growing problem. (paragraph 1)

• B. Ben Lecomte is a French, 53-year-old, long-distance swimmer. (paragraph 2)

• C. Rather than set a record, Lecomte wanted to gather data and water samples as well as raise public awareness of the trash problem. (paragraph 3)

• D. Lecomte also hopes that the companies that send boats into the oceans will use better equipment that will do less damage to ocean life and produce less waste. (paragraph 7)

Tags

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

32. How does the image add information about the topic? (8.9C, S, RC3)

• F. It clarifies how large the Pacific Ocean is relative to the size of the United States.

• G. It shows how the debris in the patch is organized by layers.

• H. It illustrates the path that Lecomte swam through.

• J. It highlights the types and amounts of trash in the garbage patch.

Tags

CCSS.RI.1.5

CCSS.RI.2.5

CCSS.RI.K.5

33. The information in paragraph 3 helps the reader understand that Ben Lecomte — (8.5F, R, RC3)

• A. is more interested in science than swimming

• B. does not have room to sit with his crew in the boat

• C. cares deeply about the health of the ocean

• D. wants to discover a way to decompose different kinds of plastics

Tags

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

34. Which sentence from the selection supports the idea that plastics harm sea life? (8.6C, R, RC3)

• F. As he swam, Lecomte saw a lot of plastic detergent bottles, bags, water bottles, and lids. (paragraph 3)

• G. Instead, they break down into tiny microplastics that are hard to see from the surface but are destructive to the ecosystem. (paragraph 3)

• H. Lecomte’s team dragged a net through the water for thirty minutes, but not much water passed through. (paragraph 5)

• J. Known as ghost nets, they entangle sea lions, fish, turtles, and even whales. (paragraph 6)

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

35. Read this sentence from paragraph 4.

^{“If I am confused by microplastics, I understand easily that sea life is}

^{confused, too.”}

The author includes this information to show —

(8.9A, R, RC3)

• A. how humans and sea animals are similar

• B. why Ben Lecomte is concerned about plastics

• C. what happens to a sea animal that eats plastics

• D. that Ben Lecomte is an expert on sea life

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.2

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

36. By telling the story from the first-person point of view, the author helps the reader understand — (8.5F, R, RC2)

• F. why Jolene feels proud as she waits for her friends

• G. why Dale and Benito haven’t arrived at the swimming hole

• H. the history behind the term rat rod

• J. how Cody’s uncle feels about helping his nephew

Tags

CCSS.RL.1.6

CCSS.RL.5.6

CCSS.RL.6.6

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.RL.8.6

37. Paragraphs 1 through 3 are important to the story because they — (8.7D, S, RC2)

• A. introduce the characters and the skills they will use to solve a problem

• B. relate meaningful events from the narrator’s past

• C. establish the importance of the setting

• D. foreshadow the discovery that the junked cars are valuable

Tags

CCSS.RL.2.10

CCSS.RL.2.2

CCSS.RL.2.3

CCSS.RL.4.3

CCSS.RL.4.4

38. Which sentence best expresses a theme in the story? (8.7A, S, RC1)

• F. “And thanks to us, it will stay clean for a long time.” (paragraph 1)

• G. “You might make a fortune off those rat rods,” Dale added. (paragraph 7)

• H. “It’s a real dumping ground that has edged closer and closer to the swimming hole.” (paragraph 14)

• J. I guess even adults want to be teenagers again. (paragraph 19)

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.9

CCSS.RL.6.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

39. The narrator contributes to the development of the plot by — (8.7C, R, RC2)

• A. suggesting that the story has a happy ending

• B. elaborating on how Benito persuaded the adults to help

• C. including details about the equipment used in the cleanup

• D. relating the events of a year ago in a flashback

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.6

CCSS.RL.6.6

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.RL.8.6

40. What is the best summary of the story?

(8.6D, R, RC2)

• F. Jolene, Benito, and Dale are friends who like to swim at a local swimming hole. Benito suggests that they clean out the junked cars and other things dumped near the hole. The cleanup makes money for them to spend.

• G. As Jolene waits for friends to arrive for a day at the swimming hole, she describes the beauty of the surroundings and then recalls the steps that she and her friends took a year ago to clean up the area. The steps included recruiting adults to help remove several junked cars called rat rods. The recycling efforts raised enough money to make improvements to the area, such as adding steps and railing down to the water, which Jolene and her friends now call the Blue Pearl.

• H. The swimming hole has been used by teenagers for generations as a place for a cool dip in a deep pool of water. Unfortunately, it became a dumping ground and is now a dangerous place to swim. Teens who dive from the ledge above the water may be hurt from the junked cars resting at the water’s edge. Dale makes a joke about the cars and calls them rat rods.

• J. The local swimming hole is a beautiful place in Texas that is now named the Blue Pearl because of the cleanup efforts of three teenagers named Benito, Dale, and Jolene. They asked Dale’s uncle Cody to help them, and he brought a friend of his. The teens sold the junk they hauled up and made quite a bit of money. They were proud of their efforts when they saw other people enjoying the special swimming hole deep in the heart of Texas.

Tags

CCSS.RI.6.3

CCSS.RI.7.3

CCSS.RI.8.3

CCSS.RI.9-10.3

CCSS.RL.5.3