The Wonderful Life of Ants

Which sentence best describes the author's perspective on ants?

• Ants are amazing little creatures whose activities benefit the earth.
• Ants are dangerous pests whose social communities threaten people.
• Ants are smarter than other insects such as bees and butterflies.
• Ants are endangered creatures whose survival is threatened by technology.

According to the article, why are ants sometimes compared to people?

• They both dig holes and tunnels
• They both live in underground homes
• They both work together to solve problems
• They both choose jobs when they are adults

Why does the author include a timeline at the beginning of the article?

• to show that dinosaurs lived longer than ants.
• to show that dinosaurs are more important than ants
• to show that people have not been on Earth as long as ants
• to show that ants have not been on Earth as long as people

Why does the author include a thermometer in one of his drawings of an anthill?

• to show why anthills are more active in the heat
• to show why some ants freeze to death in the winter
• to show how anthills reflect the sun's heat away from the nest
• to show how anthills absorb and transfer the sun's heat to the nest

Where are you most likely to find an ant nest?

• near tall grass
• under a rock or log
• next to a lake or pond
• beside a brick building

What purpose do the captions on the author's diagrams have?

• They summarize the main ideas in the text.
• They provide additional facts related to the topic.
• They explain how the author learned to draw and study ants.
• They provide amusing details but are not related to the topic.

Under which heading would you look to find information about the different jobs that ants have?

• "A Life of Work"
• "A Dangerous World"
• "Masters of the Earth"
• "Grass Root Highway"

How does the author support his claim that an ant is one of the strongest creatures on Earth?

• with a picture of an ant next to an elephant.
• by comparing ants to human weight lifters
• by describing a forest path built entirely by ants
• with the fact that ants life objects 5 times their body weight

Why does the author include a diagram of a giant anteater in the text?

• to show how much bigger it is than an ant
• to show that it is not a very intelligent animal
• to show how its body parts help it hunt for ants
• to show its resemblance to aardvarks and armadillos

Which sentence below does NOT describe a way that ants help plants to grow?

• They recycle soil nutrients by digging.
• They spread plant seeds as they transport food.
• They spread flower pollen as they feed on plants. 
• They recycle leaves by breaking them down to grow fungus.