2. 6th Grade Semester B Test

What is conflict in a story?

• A conflict is a central theme or hidden meaning in the story.

• A conflict is a series of events that make the story realistic.

• A conflict is an obstacle that a character faces in the story.

• A conflict is a description of the central character’s personality.

Which group of words from the passage best helps the reader understand the meaning of the word extinction?

The Extinction of Dinosaurs

We all know that at one time dinosaurs roamed the surface of Earth. But it has been 65 million years since they died out. They thrived on the planet for many years, along with a vast number of other organisms and animals. How did the dinosaurs go extinct?

Scientists formed many theories about what caused the death of this entire species. They included climate change, continental shifts, and volcanoes.

Eventually, one theory began to suggest that the cause of the dinosaurs' extinction was the crash of an asteroid on Earth's surface. It was a huge asteroid (about 10 kilometers in width) that crashed against Earth. Its crash made a gigantic crater in Mexico. The crash caused total climatic shifts and changes in the temperature of the atmosphere. The crash also produced a great gas cloud around Earth that resulted in total darkness. It was this explosion that might have led to the complete extinction of the dinosaurs from the face of Earth.

• thrived on the planet

• the death of this entire species

• climate change

• gigantic crater

• total darkness

Read the story about John’s toothache. Which phrase in the passage helps identify the meaning of the word aggravated?

John had an extremely bad toothache. However, he wanted to avoid going to the dentist. So, as a means of achieving this end John decided to hide his toothache from his parents. He went about his usual way, playing and going to school, and his parents never suspected anything. His toothache, however, only grew worse with time. When alone, John would moan and cry about the horrible pain that was slowly making it difficult for him to eat, and he knew that his parents would find out about his wretched state and would definitely scold him.

One evening during dinner, John chewed on something hard, which aggravated his toothache. John suddenly cried out in pain. His parents looked at him anxiously as John dropped the food that he was eating. He clutched at his cheek and howled with pain, not bothering to conceal his discomfort this time.

"Do you have a toothache, John?” his mom asked.

John, in his miserable state, could only nod. His mom gave him an earful: “Why didn't you tell us about this earlier? If we had visited the doctor earlier, you wouldn't have to suffer so now.” As he and his parents drove to the dentist the next day, he reflected on how foolish he was to wait so long to tell them about it.

• never suspected

• making it difficult

• cried out in pain

• miserable state

• gave him an earful

"Saved by a Seal" by Theodore A. Cutting shows that wild animals want to be free. Which two parts of this excerpt show that animals have the ability to avoid being captured?

"Fish, Nab, fish, fish!" I called, and held up for inspection one of the shad I had brought. At the sound of my voice there was a sharp little bark from behind, such as Nab alone could give when I had an exceptionally delicate morsel for him. I turned quickly, and saw at a distance his shining dog-shaped head.

"Fish, Nab, a fine shad for you, fish!" I coaxed.

He came a little nearer, and I was confident the bait would prove irresistible. But my assurance was ill-founded, for in spite of all my coaxing, Nab only circled round and round me until I was dizzy trying to keep track of him. Either he had had fairly good luck fishing for himself that morning, and was not suffering very keen pangs of hunger, or else he still associated my benevolence too closely with the little square splash-tub of the seal-house.

When I had begun to grow weary from the incessant motion necessary to keep myself afloat, Nab suddenly made a dash so close that his flippers brushed my side. He snapped the fish out of my hand, and in the same instant he was again beyond reach. The fact that he had come up for one fish encouraged me to hope he would come also for the second, and I began to coax with renewed energy.

Nab was seemingly as much on his guard as before, however, and again went through his complete list of maneuvers, first rearing high out of the water, turning one side of his head and then the other toward me, then ducking into the depths with a final flourish of his tail, to reappear presently on the other side of me, as sportive as before.

By this time I had begun to feel pretty well exhausted, and when I suddenly thought of the undertow, I decided to swim back

• At the sound of my voice there was a sharp little bark from behind, such as Nab alone could give when I had an exceptionally delicate morsel for him. I turned quickly, and saw at a distance his shining dog-shaped head

• But my assurance was ill-founded, for in spite of all my coaxing, Nab only circled round and round me until I was dizzy trying to keep track of him.

• Nab suddenly made a dash so close that his flippers brushed my side. He snapped the fish out of my hand, and in the same instant he was again beyond reach.

• By this time I had begun to feel pretty well exhausted, and when I suddenly thought of the undertow, I decided to swim back.

The Bear and the Travelers

Two Travelers were on the road together, when a Bear suddenly appeared on the scene. Before he observed them, one made for a tree at the side of the road, and climbed up into the branches and hid there. The other was not so nimble as his companion; and, as he could not escape, he threw himself on the ground and pretended to be dead. The Bear came up and sniffed all round him, but he kept perfectly still and held his breath: for they say that a bear will not touch a dead body. The Bear took him for a corpse, and went away. When the coast was clear, the traveler in the tree came down, and asked the other what it was the Bear had whispered to him when he put his mouth to his ear. The other replied, "He told me never again to travel with a friend who deserts you at the first sign of danger."

What would be an appropriate thesis statement for a literary analysis of this short story?

• “The Bear and the Travelers” shows that someone is a true friend only if they are willing to face danger with you.

• “The Bear and the Travelers” tells the story about the journey of two travelers and their encounter with a bear.

• “The Bear and the Travelers” from Aesop’s Fables deals with the theme of friendship.

• “The Bear and the Travelers” shows humanity’s weakness in times of need.

• “The Bear and the Travelers” is about the clash between humans and nature.

The following slide is taken from a multimedia presentation. Which idea does the slide support?

• Chinese cuisine is popular because it is the most affordable.

• Chinese food is an extremely popular and profitable type of food.

• Chinese food uses a wide variety of tasty and healing ingredients.

• Chinese food served in the United States is very different from what is served in China.

Arrange the tasks in the correct order for developing a multimedia presentation.

1. Organize the content into three parts: introduction, body, and conclusion.

2. Review and revise the presentation

3. Search for supporting content.

4. Practice the presentation in front of family or friends.

5. Choose a topic.

6. Create a thesis statement.

Determine which type of figurative language is used in each sentence.

He fought as bravely as a lion.

• simile

• metaphor

• personification

• hyperbole

Determine which type of figurative language is used in each sentence.

The suitcase weighed a ton.

• simile

• metaphor

• personification

• hyperbole

Find the words