Inferencing Practice

Flowing bands of cool blue, bold red, and buttery yellow meander over miles of steep cliffs and rolling hills. They collide with streaks of glowing green and burnt orange as if they are painted onto the mountainous canvas by an artist's brush. This picturesque landscape is not an imaginative painting. Instead, it is located in China and is a natural wonder of the world.

What is the most likely reason the author includes this paragraph in the selection?

• To show the reader the effects tourists have on the Rainbow Mountains

• To explain to the reader how the Rainbow Mountains are painted by artists

• To provide the reader with a visual image of the Rainbow Mountains

• To describe to the reader how the Rainbow Mountains were formed

Why might the author have included this image in his article about the Rainbow Mountains in China?

• Environmentalists will be inspired to protect the natural beauty and rare species of the Rainbow Mountains.

• The unique features depicted in the photographs will persuade viewers to visit the Rainbow Mountains.

• Interesting aspects, such as formations and colors, will draw aspiring artists to the Rainbow Mountains.

• Adventurers will be motivated to conquer the challenging pillars and peaks of the Rainbow Mountains.

For days, the faint smell of sulfur had awakened me. The sky had been a blanket of gray clouds billowing from the mountaintop all week, but today was different. Plumes of hot ash rose into the sky, and fiery flames appeared to pierce the atmosphere. It was as if the mountain was announcing its menacing presence and preparing everyone for what was to come. The shaking ground cautioned that it was only a matter of time before the roiling volcano would unleash its fury. Within hours, the entire town was covered with ash, and the smoky air was burning my lungs.

The author includes this paragraph most likely to --

• provide background information about the author

• include scientific details that introduce the selection about volcanos

• express an opinion about the main idea of the selection

• share an experience that initiated an interest in the topic of volcanos

When friends meet my mom for the first time, they are often taken aback, and when they get me alone for a second, they scold me for not telling them my mom is in a wheelchair. It shocks them, and initially they don't want this emotion to show on their faces when they shake her hand and say hello. In my defense, I never think to mention that my mom is in a wheelchair. She has been paralyzed from the waist down for most of her life, and all of mine.

What is the most likely reason the author does not tell her friends that her mother is paralyzed?

• She does not want people to judge her mother because of her disability.

• She prefers to let her mother explain her own situation to others.

• She does not think it is an important characteristic of her mother.

• She thinks that most people already know her mother uses a wheelchair.

Read this sentence.

After a shopping trip, during which nothing caught her eye, Maddie decided to create her own locker magnets.

The author included this sentence most likely to show --

• Maddie was a forward thinker who could visualize her end product.

• Maddie had a plan to start her own business.

• Maddie had natural talents and refused to buy things she could create herself.

• Madde was a wise shopper who recognized when she was getting a bargain.