Q1 Exam

Click on the image to the left and review the paragraphs. After reading the paragraphs, find three sentences which show the narrator is open and willing to living at "the back of beyond" or in her new home. Find the best three sentences below:

• 1. Dad told me the real estate agent had mentioned that coyotes, mountain lions, rattlesnakes, and even bears roamed these hills.

  2. Our oak tree, I thought; I was settling in.

  3. You have to make a careful list and check it twice.

• 1. You don’t just zip over to the local convenience store anytime

  2. You have to make a careful list and check it twice.

  3. I saw two horned toads, a red-tailed hawk, and some deer tracks.

• 1. 1. Mom wiped a layer of grime off the kitchen counter and muttered.

  2. You have to make a careful list and check it twice.

  3. I wondered what else I might find deeper and higher in the canyon.

• 1. Our oak tree, I thought; I was settling in;

  2. To my surprise, I found I couldn’t wait to see them;

  3. I felt my feet taking root in the earth, claiming this place as home.

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Click on the box to the left. After reviewing the paragraph, which two sentences do you think best support the inference that the narrator's expectations for moving to California were based on a fantasy and not reality. Answer below:

• 1.  I’d forgotten about my parents’ penchant for the unconventional

  2. They’re definitely “the road less traveled” kind of people.

• 1. My mind immediately went to thoughts of Disneyland and Hollywood, glitz and glamour.

  2. I imagined a Rodeo Drive shopping spree to pick out a bikini for the endless days

• 1. These are not city folk.

  2. 2. My mind immediately went to thoughts of Disneyland and Hollywood, glitz and glamour.;

• 1. Dad was never happier than when he was climbing near-vertical cliffs

  2. They’re definitely “the road less traveled” kind of people.

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The narrator implies that living at the “back of beyond” helps her to connect to the natural world. Which details from the text best support this idea?

• 1. “But this was no camping trip where you could go home to civilization after a few days of roughing it; this was home…”

• 1. “Dad told me the real estate agent had mentioned that coyotes, bobcats, mountain lions, rattlesnakes, and even bears roamed these hills.”

• 1. “Over the next few months, I began to count the passage of time in full moons rather than by the pages of a calendar….”

• 1. “Soon, I will have to leave home for college, and I’m a little afraid of the culture shock I’m sure I will feel when I move back to civilization.”

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The following question has two parts. First, answer Part A. Then, answer Part B.

PART A: Which statement best express the theme of this story?

• Home may be found in an unexpected place.

• Nature is the best educator of young children.

• Turning your back on civilzation is the only way to live.

• You must leave your past behind in order to find yourself.

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PART B: Which sentence from the text best supports your answer in part A?

(The answers from Part A are to your left if you need to review them to answer this question.)

• "When I first saw where we were going to live, I vacillated between feeling terrified and excited."

• "On my first walk around the property, I saw two horned toads, a red-tailed hawk, and some deer tracks."

• "With no street lights timed to turn on at sunset, when night came it was darker than anything I had ever experienced."

• "I've been going to school in the valley, but I feel most at home up here with my wild fellow canyon dwellers."

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The following is a quote from the story, the narrator states,

"When I first saw where we were going to live, I vacillated between feeling terrified and excited." 

What does the author communicate to the reader with the use of “vacillated?”

SELECT THE BEST THREE OPTIONS.

• 1. 1. The narrator's emotions were in conflict.

  2. 2. The narrator had trouble deciding how to feel.

  3. 3. The narrator kept changing her mind about the situation.

• 1. 1. The narrator was scared and thrilled at the same time.

  2. 2. The narrator stopped being scared and began to feel happy.

  3. 3. The narrator was not happy and upset with your parents for the move.

• 1. 1. The narrator needed quiet time because her previous life was too wild.

  2. 2. The narrator stopped being scared and began to feel happy.

  3. 3. The narrator was tired from all of the travel.

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The following questions have a Part A and Part B like before.

Click on the paragraph to the left and answer the question below:

PART A:

Based on your reading of the paragraph to the left,

what is most likely the author's intent by mentioning the "Rodeo Drive shopping spree?"

• 1. To show that the narrator comes from a family that is used to spending money

• 1. To reveal the narrator as someone who is shallow and cares only for nice things 

• 1. To contrast the narrator’s grand dreams with the simple life her parent have in mind

• 1. To emphasize the narrator’s nervousness about moving to a place so far removed from civilization

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PART B:

Which sentence from the text best supports your answer from Part A?

(To the left, you can review the list of possible answers which you picked from.)

• “On the stone staircase that led to the front door, black lizards interrupted their push-ups to twist their heads and eye us as we passed.”

• “Our new home consisted of one bedroom, one bathroom, and one big room for everything else.”

• “Dad told me the real estate agent had mentioned that coyotes, bobcats, mountain lions, rattlesnakes, and even bears roamed these hills.”

• 1. “In the city, or even in the suburbs where I had lived before, you could see only the brightest stars in the sky.”

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There are many aspects of this story that the reader could define as ironic. Read the following answers and choose the best example of irony.

• The narrator believes that her parents are unconventional and like "the road less traveled."

• The narrator's parents chose a 900-square-foot cabin under a 250-year-old oak tree.

• The narrator claims that no cars, radios, neighbors, or human were nearby.

• The narrator expected to live a lavish and "rodeo drive" live in California, but ended up in the mountains.

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Which paragraph below shows the strongest example of imagery describing the narrator's new home? (Remember, you want the strongest description engaging the five senses)

• "Up and up we went, until finally we turned down a dirt road and headed into a canyon full of towering Coulter pines, blue-green sagebrush, and ancient canyon live oaks. I didn’t know the names of these plants then, of course; I learned them later. That first day all I saw then was a million shades of green."

  
  

• "No cars roared past. No radios blared from a neighbor’s house. There were no neighbors—no human neighbors, anyway."

  
  

• "Our new home consisted of one bedroom, one bathroom, and one big room for everything else. A fireplace in the corner of the big room would be our sole source of heat in the winter. A swamp box (cooler) would blow a breeze over a big damp pad to keep us cool all summer, or so my father said."

• "Eventually, I moved into the bedroom and Mom and Dad got a foldout bed for the living room. Over the next few months, I began to count the passage of time in full moons rather than by the pages of a calendar, and for the first time I really noticed the days growing shorter in winter and longer in summer."

  
  

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