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- The Ocean's Plastic Problem: Understanding The Great Pacific Garbage Making Connections, Predictions And Summarizing
The Ocean's Plastic Problem: Understanding the Great Pacific Garbage - Making Connections, Predictions and Summarizing -
Passage
•
English
•
6th Grade
•
Practice Problem
•
Hard
Angela Lock
FREE Resource
10 questions
Show all answers
1.
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION
30 sec • 1 pt
What is the connection between plastic's properties and its long-term impact on the ocean?
Because plastic is colorful, it attracts fish that help clean it up.
Because plastic floats, it is easy for cleanup crews to find and remove it.
Because plastic does not biodegrade, it breaks into microplastics that remain in the ocean for a very long time and harm animals.
Because plastic comes from land, it mostly stays near the coastlines and does not affect the deep ocean.
Answer explanation
The passage connects the cause (plastic's properties) and effect (its impact) by stating, 'The biggest problem with plastic is that it does not biodegrade... Instead, sunlight and waves break it into smaller and smaller pieces. These tiny fragments, called microplastics, are especially dangerous.'
2.
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION
30 sec • 1 pt
Which of the following best summarizes how the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is formed?
Trash from ships is dumped in one spot, creating an island of garbage twice the size of Texas.
Plastic from land and sea is pulled in and trapped by a large, rotating system of ocean currents called a gyre.
Microplastics from all over the world float together to form a large patch in the Pacific Ocean.
Lost fishing nets get tangled together, creating a base for other trash to build upon.
Answer explanation
The passage states, 'The patch is formed by a huge, rotating system of ocean currents called the North Pacific Gyre. This gyre acts like a giant whirlpool, pulling in trash from across the ocean and trapping it.' It also mentions the trash comes from both land and sea.
3.
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION
30 sec • 1 pt
What is the central idea of the entire passage?
The Ocean Cleanup project is the only hope for solving the plastic problem.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a huge area of plastic pollution caused by human activity that harms wildlife, and solving it requires both cleanup and prevention.
Microplastics are the most dangerous form of pollution and come mainly from lost fishing nets.
Ocean gyres are powerful currents that are solely responsible for creating garbage patches.
Answer explanation
This option best summarizes all the main points of the passage: the patch's existence and size, its cause (human activity and gyres), its impact (harm to wildlife), and the solutions (cleanup and prevention).
4.
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION
30 sec • 1 pt
Based on the text's description of bioaccumulation, what is a logical prediction about the marine food web?
Smaller animals will be harmed by plastics, but larger animals will be unaffected.
Larger predator animals, like sharks, might become sick from eating smaller fish that have consumed microplastics.
The ocean will develop new organisms that can biodegrade plastic.
Microplastics will eventually dissolve in the ocean water.
Answer explanation
The passage explains that plastic moves up the food chain: 'When larger animals eat the smaller ones, the plastic moves up the food chain, harming more and more wildlife.' This supports the prediction that top predators would be affected and contradicts the idea that they would be unaffected.
5.
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION
30 sec • 1 pt
According to the passage, where does most of the plastic waste in the ocean come from?
Garbage from ships and lost fishing nets.
Litter on beaches and trash from rivers.
Plastic that breaks down from large islands of trash.
Countries that do not have recycling programs.
Answer explanation
The passage explicitly states, 'Over 80% of it starts on land, such as litter on beaches or trash that flows down rivers into the sea.' This makes it the primary source mentioned.
6.
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION
30 sec • 1 pt
Based on the information in the passage, what is a likely challenge that cleanup organizations face?
Finding enough volunteers to help operate the cleanup barriers.
Getting permission from different countries to clean the ocean.
Figuring out how to recycle the plastic that is collected.
Removing the existing plastic fast enough to keep up with the new plastic entering the ocean.
Answer explanation
The passage describes the patch as 'enormous' and mentions that over 80% of the debris comes from land-based activities. This implies a continuous flow of new pollution, making it a race against time for cleanup efforts.
7.
MATCH QUESTION
1 min • 1 pt
Match each key term from the passage with its function or effect.
Human-made trash in the ocean
Bioaccumulation
Process of toxins moving up the food chain
Marine Debris
Rotating current that traps debris
Microplastics
Tiny plastic pieces that harm wildlife
Ocean Gyre
Answer explanation
The passage explains that 'Microplastics' are dangerous fragments eaten by animals. The 'Ocean Gyre' is the 'rotating system of ocean currents' that traps trash. 'Marine debris' is defined as 'any trash created by humans that ends up in the ocean.' 'Bioaccumulation' is the process where plastic moves 'up the food chain.'
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