ELA Review Central Ideas/Inference

The amount of trash that people throw away is a growing problem. In

countries all over the world, government officials must determine how and where to

dispose of garbage. Landfills are rapidly filling up and the cost of removing trash is

rising quickly. Switzerland has developed a way to minimize the amount of trash that

is thrown away while encouraging their citizens to recycle. In Switzerland, residents

must pay a special fee for trash bags in order for their trash to be collected. Swiss

households that produce a lot of trash will pay more in order to have their trash

removed, while households that recycle more will not have to pay as much.

What is the Central of the passage?

• Some countries are not equipped to recycle.

• Citizens of Switzerland must buy trash bags.

• Citizens of Switzerland are encouraged to recycle.

The amount of trash that people throw away is a growing problem. In

countries all over the world, government officials must determine how and where to

dispose of garbage. Landfills are rapidly filling up and the cost of removing trash is

rising quickly. Switzerland has developed a way to minimize the amount of trash that

is thrown away while encouraging their citizens to recycle. In Switzerland, residents

must pay a special fee for trash bags in order for their trash to be collected. Swiss

households that produce a lot of trash will pay more in order to have their trash

removed, while households that recycle more will not have to pay as much.

What inference can be made about today's passage?

• Swiss officials wanted to

  reduce the amount of

  trash.

• Swiss officials were looking

  for a way to make money.

• Most people try to recycle

  as much as possible.

Most people have accidentally thrown away something that was important.

In 2016, a woman in New York threw away an envelope that contained $5,000

that she was planning on using to pay her mortgage. Luckily, her son was a

sanitation worker and was able to get three of his coworkers to help look for the

envelope. They looked through the trash until they were finally able to locate the

money. The envelope contained nearly all of the money. Unfortunately, a couple

of bills had apparently worked their way out of the envelope during the ordeal.

The money was returned to the relieved woman who offered a reward to the

workers, but they declined it.

What is the central idea?

• Three sanitation workers looked through the trash to help a woman.

• A woman mistakenly threw

  away money, but the money was found and

  returned.

• People regularly throw away things they need.

Most people have accidentally thrown away something that was important.

In 2016, a woman in New York threw away an envelope that contained $5,000

that she was planning on using to pay her mortgage. Luckily, her son was a

sanitation worker and was able to get three of his coworkers to help look for the

envelope. They looked through the trash until they were finally able to locate the

money. The envelope contained nearly all of the money. Unfortunately, a couple

of bills had apparently worked their way out of the envelope during the ordeal.

The money was returned to the relieved woman who offered a reward to the

workers, but they declined it.

What inference can be made from the passage?

• The workers helped look for

  the money because they

  wanted to keep it.

• The workers didn’t want to

  look for the money.

• The workers looked for the

  money because they

  wanted to be helpful.

During the hottest days of summer, many people wouldn’t consider setting

foot inside a building that did not have a working air conditioner, but the air

conditioner is a relatively recent invention. Throughout history, people have used a

variety of techniques to make themselves more comfortable during the heat of the

summer. Ancient Romans pumped cool water through interior walls in their homes to

make rooms more comfortable. The Chinese used small fans for thousands of years.

In many cultures, houses were built with more windows that could be opened during

the heat of the summer. Some people even slept outside on their porches on the

hottest summer nights.

What is the central idea of this passage?

• People kept cool in many

  ways throughout history.

• The air conditioner is a

  recent invention.

• Ancient Romans used cold

  water in pipes to cool

  down their homes.

During the hottest days of summer, many people wouldn’t consider setting

foot inside a building that did not have a working air conditioner, but the air

conditioner is a relatively recent invention. Throughout history, people have used a

variety of techniques to make themselves more comfortable during the heat of the

summer. Ancient Romans pumped cool water through interior walls in their homes to

make rooms more comfortable. The Chinese used small fans for thousands of years.

In many cultures, houses were built with more windows that could be opened during

the heat of the summer. Some people even slept outside on their porches on the

hottest summer nights.

What inference can be made about today’s passage?

• Many people do not want

  air conditioners.

• The Romans solved their

  heat problems.

• Buildings can retain heat

  after the sun has set.

Calling 911 to report a fire is a logical response when someone encounters a

fire. Countries all over the world have well trained fire departments that quickly

respond to both save lives and put out fires in order to limit property damage. The

first fire departments were not always so helpful. There was a fire brigade in

ancient Rome that quickly responded to reports of buildings that were on fire.

Before any efforts were made to put out the fire, an official would discuss the price

the owner was willing to pay for the service. If a price could not be agreed on,

then the fire brigade would just let the building burn to the ground.

What is the central idea of today’s passage?

• An ancient Roman fire department charged people for their service.

• The world’s first fire department was in ancient Rome.

• Fire departments have existed for centuries.

Calling 911 to report a fire is a logical response when someone encounters a

fire. Countries all over the world have well trained fire departments that quickly

respond to both save lives and put out fires in order to limit property damage. The

first fire departments were not always so helpful. There was a fire brigade in

ancient Rome that quickly responded to reports of buildings that were on fire.

Before any efforts were made to put out the fire, an official would discuss the price

the owner was willing to pay for the service. If a price could not be agreed on,

then the fire brigade would just let the building burn to the ground.

What inference can be made from today’s passage?

• Some property owners could not afford to pay to put the fire out.

• The Ancient Roman fire department was designed to help people.

• Fire safety was not important in Ancient Rome.

It was hard to miss the videos in the summer of 2014. All over social media

networks, people posted videos of themselves being soaked by a bucket of ice

water. It was referred to as the Ice Bucket Challenge. At the end of each video,

participants challenged a number of their friends to either perform the challenge

within 24 hours or make a donation to an organization dedicated to treatment and

research for ALS. ALS is an acronym for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. In the United

States, ALS is also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. ALS is a disease that attacks

neurons and for which there is no cure.

The Ice Bucket Challenge quickly went viral. Some critics said that it did little to

raise awareness of the disease. Later, studies showed that the majority of people

who participated in the challenge did not actually donate, but many did. Over

$100 million was raised in the United States. The majority of that money went to fund

research for treatments for the devastating disease. Money also went to help

support patients currently suffering from the disease.

What is a central idea of today’s passage?

• The Ice Bucket Challenge required participants to dump a bucket of ice water on themselves.

• The Ice Bucket Challenge was popular in 2014 and raised money for ALS research.

• ALS is a devastating disease that currently has no cure.

It was hard to miss the videos in the summer of 2014. All over social media

networks, people posted videos of themselves being soaked by a bucket of ice

water. It was referred to as the Ice Bucket Challenge. At the end of each video,

participants challenged a number of their friends to either perform the challenge

within 24 hours or make a donation to an organization dedicated to treatment and

research for ALS. ALS is an acronym for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. In the United

States, ALS is also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. ALS is a disease that attacks

neurons and for which there is no cure.

The Ice Bucket Challenge quickly went viral. Some critics said that it did little to

raise awareness of the disease. Later, studies showed that the majority of people

who participated in the challenge did not actually donate, but many did. Over

$100 million was raised in the United States. The majority of that money went to fund

research for treatments for the devastating disease. Money also went to help

support patients currently suffering from the disease.

What inference can be made about most people that participated in the Ice Bucket Challenge?

• Their participation was not motivated by a desire to help ALS research.

• The majority of people that participated did so because they were personally affected by ALS.

• Most people didn’t participate in the challenge and simply donated money.