Text Evidence Assessment

An ant's head is very interesting. Ants have compound

eyes like flies, which help them see movement very easily.

Ants have two feelers to help them communicate about

where to find food. An ant also has two strong pinchers for

carrying food, for digging and for defending themselves.

Just inside an ant's mouth is a small pocket where ants can

store food. Sometimes ants give this food to other ants in

need. The trunk of the ant is where all 6 legs are attached. At the end of each leg are two hooked claws.

What type of information would ants communicate?

• Where to find food.

• How to carry food.

• That they have 6 legs.

• The movement they see.

Beavers are the largest rodents in North America and

the second largest in the world, behind the South American

capybara. Beavers are powerful swimmers that can swim

underwater for up to 15 minutes. Beavers have waterproof

fur, a paddle-like tail, front feet that are nimble, and

webbed hind feet that make them well suited to living on

either the land or in water. On land, the beaver's tail helps it

to sit up and in the water, it acts like a rudder.

Which part of the beaver's body is helpful

on land and in the water?

• Their waterproof fur

• Their tail

• Their front feet

• Their webbed hind feet

Costa Rica is a small country in Central America. It is

filled with tropical rainforests and is home to over 2,000

species of trees and 9,000 different kinds of flowering

plants. This includes over 200 species of reptiles, most of

which are snakes. In Costa Rica you can see brightly colored

toads and frogs, including the poison arrow frog. The

country is also home to hundreds of mammals including bats,

and insects, such as butterflies and leaf-cutter ants.

What can you find a lot of in Costa Rica?

• Butterflies

• Frogs

• Trees, flowering plants, reptiles, and mammals

• Oceans

Starfish are echinoderms, which means they have a

spiny structure on the outside. On the underside of a

starfish, you can see hundreds of little tubes on each arm.

Those tubes can attach to an object, suck in, and help the

creature move. The tube feet are very helpful when it's time

to eat. Starfish use those little tubes to attach to the shell of

their prey. Since the suction is so strong, they can slowly

open the shell of the mussel, for example and eat the insides.

When are the starfish' tube feet especially helpful?

• When it is time to eat

• When it is time to move

• To attach to the shell of their prey

• To help them suck in prey

Although Australia has many natural resources and

fertile land, more than one-third of Australia is desert, much

of it found in the famous outback, in the center of Australia.

The outback is known for scorching temperatures, little

water, and almost no vegetation. Most Australian cities and

farms are near the coast, where the climate is more

comfortable. In the northeast part of Australia, there are

dense rainforests.

List three reasons the outback would be a difficult place to live.

• Too much rain, lots of mud, and slippery slopes

• Comfortable climates, dense rainforests, many natural resources

• Scorching temperatures, little water, and almost no vegetation

• The outback is an easy place to live

A star is a huge ball of plasma, made from hydrogen

and helium that gives off light. The stars you see in the night

sky may be a few hundred light years away or thousands of

light years away. The sun, our closest star, is the center of

our solar system and all the planets revolve around it. Not all

stars have solar systems spinning around them though. Some

stars are all by themselves, while other stars have a

companion star nearby. These "twin" stars are called binary

stars.

What are two pieces of information about the sun?

• A star is a huge ball of plasma and gives off light

• The sun is our closest star and is the center of our universe

• The sun is a "twin" star and is called a binary star

• The sun is by itself and has no solar system spinning around it

A tornado is a violent rotating column of air that

extends from a thunderstorm to the ground. The strongest

tornadoes are extremely destructive with wind speeds of up

to 300 mph. Although they last from several seconds to

about ten minutes, they can destroy large buildings, uproot

trees and pick up vehicles hundreds of yards. They are also

known to drive straw into trees. In an average year, there

are approximately 1,000 tornadoes in the United States.

Destroying buildings, uprooting trees and

picking up vehicles are evidence of what?

• Tornadoes

• Violent thunderstorms

• Earthquakes

• Windy weather

China is a large country in Asia with varied landscapes

including mountains, high plateaus, sandy deserts, and dense

forests. One-third of China is covered by mountains. The

tallest mountain on Earth, Mount Everest, sits on the border

between China and Nepal. China also has thousands of

rivers. One of the rivers, the Yangtze, is the world's third

largest river. Because of its diverse habitats, hundreds of

species of animals and plants can be found in China.

For what reason are there so many

different species of plants and animals in

China?

• Because it has the earth's tallest mountain

• Because one-third of China is covered by mountains

• Because of it's diverse habitats

• Because it has the world's third largest river

Bullfrogs are amphibians, which means they spend

their entire lives in or near water. Bullfrogs live in

freshwater ponds, lakes, and marshes. Males are protective

of their territory and guard it against other males, even

wrestling other bullfrogs to defend it. Bullfrogs are nocturnal

hunters, leaping at their prey with open mouths. Their prey

includes all kinds of insects, mice, snakes, fish, and other

small creatures.

What proof does the author give to say

that bullfrogs are protective of their

territory?

• The live in freshwater ponds, lakes, and marshes

• Because they are amphibians

• They are nocturnal hunters and leap at their prey

• Males are protective of their territory and guard it against other males

Bullfrogs are amphibians, which means they spend

their entire lives in or near water. Bullfrogs live in

freshwater ponds, lakes, and marshes. Males are protective

of their territory and guard it against other males, even

wrestling other bullfrogs to defend it. Bullfrogs are nocturnal

hunters, leaping at their prey with open mouths. Their prey

includes all kinds of insects, mice, snakes, fish, and other

small creatures.

Which of the following is NOT a prey of the bullfrog?

• insects

• snails

• fish

• mice