Text Structures Practice - Missed Questions

Read the text.

Malaria and Zika are both diseases spread by mosquitos. Malaria is deadly, and people have been fighting it for centuries. Zika, though, emerged more recently. Although symptoms of a Zika infection are usually milder than those of a malaria infection, Zika is associated with birth defects in the babies of infected mothers. Malaria and Zika are spread by two distinct types of mosquitos: malaria by the Anopheles mosquito, and Zika by the Aedes mosquito. This means that different prevention techniques are recommended. Because Anopheles bite at night, using mosquito netting over beds can help people avoid malaria. Aedes, however, bite during the day. In areas where Zika is a concern, experts recommend using insect repellents and covering the skin with clothing.

Which organizational structure does this text primarily use?

• sequential

• problem/solution

• compare/contrast

• description

Read the text.

Of the 1.3 billion residents of China, approximately 850 million speak Mandarin Chinese as their first language. For more than 60 million others, Cantonese Chinese is their first language. Although both languages are sometimes called "Chinese," the two sound so different that a Mandarin speaker and a Cantonese speaker cannot understand one another. Mandarin, spoken in Beijing and much of northern China, is the official language of mainland China. Cantonese, however, is more common in southern China and Hong Kong. Both languages are tonal, meaning that when pronouncing words, the voice must rise or fall in certain ways. However, Mandarin has four tones, while Cantonese has nine different ones.

Which organizational structure does this text primarily use?

• sequence

• cause/effect

• problem/solution

• compare and contrast

Read the text.

In October 2012, Hurricane Sandy swept onto the East Coast of the United States with peak winds hitting one hundred miles per hour. In addition to the strong winds, the storm generated heavy rain and flooding and resulted in more than one hundred deaths. Sandy also contributed to storm surges and rising water levels all along the coast, from Florida to Maine. Parts of New York experienced tides more than twelve feet above normal. More than eight million people lost their electricity. Dunes, boardwalks, and homes were destroyed. Overall, the storm produced more than fifty billion dollars in property damage and other losses.

Which organizational structure does this text primarily use?

• cause/effect

• problem/solution

• description

Read the text.

In the 1990s, a group of women in the African country of Gambia organized to take action on plastic bags. Lacking any recycling programs, people had been throwing their used plastic bags on the ground, along with other trash. Because plastic doesn't decompose the way other waste does, piles of bags accumulated. What could they do? The women came up with a novel answer for the plastic bag puzzle. They collected and cleaned old bags, then reused them by cutting them into strips and crocheting or knitting items such as purses from the plastic. Selling their handiwork at markets, the women raised money for additional recycling programs, which enabled them to further reduce plastic litter.

Which organizational structure does this text primarily use?

• sequential

• problem/solution

• compare/contrast

• description

Read the text.

The two main types of clouds that form low in the atmosphere, that is, below 6,500 feet, are cumulus and stratus. Stratus clouds develop horizontally, whereas cumulus clouds are formed vertically. Stratus clouds are flat, uniformly gray in appearance, and tend to fill the sky with layers of gloom. White, fluffy cumulus clouds, on the other hand, often float in a bright blue sky and have been called "fair weather clouds." Unlike stratus clouds, cumulus clouds are individual structures. They're flat on the bottom and more puffy toward the top. Given the right conditions in the atmosphere, cumulus clouds may also turn dark with rain, signaling the coming of a thunderstorm.

Which organizational structure does this text primarily use?

• compare/contrast

• description

• cause/effect