Spaceshuttle Columbia

What is the Columbia?

• a space shuttle

• a star formation

• a plastic toy

• a comet

When do the events of this story take place?

• in 2002

• around the time that people first landed on the moon

• in the late '90s

• around the time of the Columbia's launch

Joey is very interested in outer space.

What evidence from the text supports this statement?

• "For his project in last year's science fair, Joey had plugged twinkle lights in the shape of recognizable star formations into an empty refrigerator box, painted black. He had particularly enjoyed creating the Orion formation-the hunter-one of the most visible in the Milky Way."

• "The next day, Joey and his friend Marcus went to their usual spot by the outer wall of the biology department to eat lunch. They got comfortable on the curb, leaning back against the building and listening to Mrs. Funk's voice carry out through an open window as she talked about mitochondria."

• "Joey noticed it before the reporter did: something was definitely wrong with this picture. Three bright flashes of something were hurtling toward earth, when it should have only been one. He looked at Marcus, whose mouth was agape, and then at Mr. Jonas, whose hands were twisting."

• "Joey and Marcus shrugged and sat at their desks. They played hangman until the tech assistant came in, wheeling a bulky television on a dolly, followed by the rest of the class."

Read these sentences from the text.

But for some reason, Joey had a special feeling about this particular Columbia mission. The last time the shuttle had been up in space, just last year in 2002, it had gone up for a routine servicing of the Hubble Telescope-a noble cause, to be sure, but nothing too spectacular. This mission, on the other hand, was going to be conducting experiments in space.

Based on this information, what can you conclude about Joey's expectations of this Columbia mission?

• Joey expects this Columbia mission to be a disaster.

• Joey expects this Columbia mission to be spectacular.

• Joey expects this Columbia mission to be boring.

• Joey expects this Columbia mission to be expensive.

What is the main idea of this story?

• A boy obsessed with space and planets has glow-in-the-dark stars and planets on his bedroom ceiling.

• A boy who loves outer space follows the Columbia mission from launch to disintegration.

• There are seven crew members on the Columbia shuttle, including Ilan Ramon, the first person from Israel to enter space.

• Two students offer to help a teacher set up equipment for viewing the launch of the Columbia shuttle.

Read these sentences from the text.

Joey and Marcus shrugged and sat at their desks. They played hangman until the tech assistant came in, wheeling a bulky television on a dolly, followed by the rest of the class. Twenty minutes later, everything was set up, and a female reporter was talking into a microphone in front of the launch site at Kennedy Space Center, in Florida. Most of the class was whispering and passing notes, but Joey and Marcus were leaning forward in their desks, eyes glued to the screen.

What does the author mean when he writes that Joey's and Marcus's eyes were "glued to the screen"?

• Joey and Marcus were staring at the screen.

• Joey and Marcus were so close to the screen that their eyes were almost touching it.

• Joey and Marcus had gotten glue in their eyes.

• Joey and Marcus could not open their eyes.

Read these sentences from the text.

Joey had followed every space mission he could in the late '90s and early 2000s, learning about why they were going up, and sitting regularly in front of NASA Watch, a special TV station that showed footage of the shuttles launching into space. But for some reason, Joey had a special feeling about this particular Columbia mission. The last time the shuttle had been up in space, just last year in 2002, it had gone up for a routine servicing of the Hubble Telescope-a noble cause, to be sure, but nothing too spectacular. This mission, on the other hand, was going to be conducting experiments in space. As a result, Joey had learned everything he could about it.

What word or phrase could replace "As a result" without changing the meaning of these sentences?

• Meanwhile

• Therefore

• On the contrary

• Most importantly