4B STAAR - Marbles: Plenty of Fun for Everyone

Which sentence from the selection is an opinion?

• Long ago, people played games that are similar to marble games played today. (paragraph 2)

• Different types of marbles have been found in places all around the world. (paragraph 2)

• They were beautiful, and each one was unique. (paragraph 4)

• Others had swirls of one color or many different colors. (paragraph 4)

Which phrase in paragraph 11 helps the reader understand the meaning of annual?

• fun of it

• very seriously

• This competition

• Each year

Read this sentence from paragraph 2. To make marbles, people used items that could roll such as nuts, fruit pits, or round pebbles. Based on information in this sentence, the reader can conclude that early marbles were —

• difficult to find

• made by children

• much smaller in size than marbles are today

• created from a variety of available materials

Paragraphs 5 and 6 are mainly about how —

• inventions lowered the cost of marbles

• glassmakers figured out how to cut marbles easily

• glass is melted in order to make a marble

• the shape of marbles has improved over time

Which sentence in the selection is best supported by the photographs between paragraphs 9 and 10?

• No one really knows where and exactly when they were invented. (paragraph 2)

• Now, more people could buy them. (paragraph 5)

• Marbles are placed inside a circle that is drawn on the ground. (paragraph 9)

• Players may lose some of their favorite marbles. (paragraph 10)

In which part of the selection would the reader find information about the history of marbles?

• The introductory paragraph

• The section titled “Marbles through Time”

• The caption under the first photograph

• The section titled “Marble Games”