Discovery in the Yard

Jake was playing in the front yard with his friends Nina and Paulo. They ran all over the yard and kicked a soccer ball back and forth. Then, Nina saw something moving in the grass.

"Guys, there's a frog in the yard! Come see," Nina called.

Jake and Paulo raced over. All three kids thought frogs were really cool.

"I'm going to get a box and put the frog in it. I can take him home," Nina said.

Jake shook his head. "The frog is in my yard. I should get to keep it!"

Just then, Jake's mom came outside. "Hi kids, you ready for a snack?"

"Mom, look what we found!" Jake said, picking up the frog. "We're going to put it in a box. I'm going to keep it because it's from our yard."

Jake's mom walked over to the kids, "Sorry," she replied. "But the frog belongs out here—not in a box and not in our house."

Paulo looked closely at the frog. "That makes sense to me," he said.

"Me too," said Jake and Nina in unison. And with that, Jake put the frog down and it hopped away into the tall grass.

Karmina is writing a summary of "Discovery in the Yard" Which words in the passage should she highlight as being important for her summary?

Nora sped along the sidewalk on her bike. The sweet smell of spring was in the air. That meant school would be out in two months. Nora could hardly wait. She rounded the corner and glanced into Mrs. Bob's front yard. Her name wasn't really Mrs. Bob. Her husband's name was Bob, and everyone called him that. Mrs. Bob became her nickname since their last name was impossible to say, let alone remember. Mrs. Bob was an amazing gardener. Her front yard was positively blooming in the spring. Nora always enjoyed peeking her nose through the front gate to smell the beauty. This time, though, Nora noticed that something was wrong.

Mrs. Bob's garden was a mess. Dead leaves and small branches littered the walkway. The grass was overgrown, and the hedges were in need of a trim. Nora hesitated. Then she went boldly up to the front door and knocked. Mr. Bob came to the door. Answering Nora's questions, he explained that Mrs. Bob had taken a bad fall that winter. She had broken her hip and was still recovering.

"The gardens would have to wait," he said, sighing sadly.

Nora had a plan. She talked with her parents and rallied the neighbors. The next Saturday, they descended on Mrs. Bob's front yard. They raked and hoed and weeded. They bought all of Mrs. Bob's favorite flowers and spent the afternoon planting. Neighbors who had barely seen each other all winter were chatting and laughing together. Mrs. Bob herself even came to the front window, astonished. She waved and laughed. Mr. Bob said he hadn't seen her smile like that in months. Nora was so proud of her neighborhood that day.

Which summary of the selection is correct?

Marvin loved his dog Sarah, and he loved to feed Sarah doggie treats. One day, Marvin fed Sarah human treats. Sarah's stomach grumbled. Sarah felt very sick from all of those extra human treats. She did not want to play, which worried Marvin very much.

"Mom!" Marvin called. "Sarah is sick! What do we do?"

"We will take Sarah to Dr. Woods, the veterinarian," Mom said. "Load Sarah in the car."

Marvin worried about Sarah the whole way to the vet. He petted her stomach hoping it would make her feel better. When they got to the vet's office, Dr. Woods gave Sarah some medicine. It helped her feel much better. She was ready to play! Marvin promised his mom he would not feed Sarah human treats again.

Which of the following best summarizes the story?

Drew was so happy! He finally got a puppy for his birthday. He named the puppy Skip because he looked like he was skipping when he ran.

Skip was very cute, but he was not a very good puppy. In fact, he was very naughty! He chewed on everything from clothing to people. He really liked Mom's shoes. Every time Skip did something bad, Drew got in trouble. Mom said Drew had to train Skip or he could not keep him.

Drew started training Skip right away. He did not want to lose his dog. He worked really hard with Skip. Slowly, Skip started getting better. He stopped chewing on things, and he even learned to sit and fetch. Drew was very proud of Skip. He was a good dog now!

Which of the following best summarizes the story?

Passage 1

Annie and the Bike Race

During a trial bike race with her friend, Mike, Annie is left in the dust and becomes discouraged. As she's resting, she thinks about the story of "The Tortoise and the Hare." Annie hops back on her bike and beats Mike, who has been wasting his time along the bike trail.

Passage 2

The Tortoise and the Hare

When a determined tortoise challenges a boastful hare to a race, the hare is sure he will win. As the race begins, the hare is so confident that he takes his time. In fact, he naps along the way. The tortoise plods along, slow and steady, and beats the hare to the finish line.

adapted from "The Tortoise and the Hare" by Aesop

What do the hare and Mike have in common in these stories?

"Tommy, your history teacher says you are failing this quarter," Coach Snead said. Tommy Blake was his star running back. "That's the third time he's told me. He says you aren't doing your homework."

"Ah, coach, I've got too much to do," Tommy replied. "We've got that big game with Hamden. I do a lot of stuff with my community. I'm helping my little brother with his model train. I've got other classes, too. History takes a lot of time."

Coach Snead put his hand on Tommy's shoulder. "I can see you've got too much on your plate, so I'm cutting you from the squad as of now. That way you'll have plenty of time to take care of your school work and your community responsibilities."

Tommy laughed as he said, "Right; you're going to cut the league-leading running back before the biggest game of the season."

"That's right, son, that's what I'm going to do."

"You'll lose the game."

"You are much more important to me than a game," Coach Snead said. "Besides I've got six guys out there that would love to start the biggest game of the year."

"What do you mean 'you are much more important than a game'?"

"We're a team, Tommy, and teams have rules. One of our rules is that everybody has to be passing all their classes during the season. You're not doing that, despite having several chances to bring up your grades. If I let you off just because there's a big game, then you and everybody else on the team will learn that my rules don't matter. At least they don't matter for special people, like league-leading running backs. If I let you get away with this, you'd learn the wrong lesson, and that would hurt you in the future."

Which lesson can be learned from this story?

Lawn Honors

Mr. Brooks took pride in having the nicest lawn in the neighborhood. When he purchased a new riding lawnmower, even his sons wanted to take part in the beautification of the family's property. After all, with the new mower, yard work was fun.

Much to their dismay, their father was too particular and didn't let anyone mow. He did request, however, that his two sons keep the trash and broken limbs picked up out of the yard. Raymond was faithful to the task. Every day after school, he took great care in ensuring that the lawn was perfectly clean. This pleased his father very much.

Jason, on the other hand, wasn't concerned with his father's request. He chose to wait until his father would finally let him use the riding lawnmower. Then, he would contribute to lawn care.

Mr. Brooks began to notice the commitment Raymond had to keeping the lawn in its very best shape. He realized they shared a common goal. Because of his hard work, his father would now entrust the riding lawnmower to Raymond. At last, he had earned the great honor of mowing the grass.

What is the theme of this passage?

Student of the Week

Sandra looked over her note cards and practiced her speech in her head one last time. She had to give a presentation to her class about Abraham Lincoln. Her project partner, Joey, was sitting calmly next to her. He didn't care about the project at all. He had barely helped her do the research at the library. Now, she was going to have to give the presentation all by herself. Joey was just going to show the class the poster Sandra had made.

As Sandra and Joey walked to the front of the room, the door to the classroom opened, and the principal walked in. All the students smiled at Mrs. Peters. Everyone thought she was a great principal. She had arrived to observe the class's activities for the day.

Sandra gave the presentation with the principal watching. The principal seemed impressed with how well Sandra knew the information. Then, Joey showed the class the poster. He tried to explain what the pictures meant, but he did not know the information well. When the other students asked a question about Lincoln, Joey just shrugged his shoulders. Sandra was able to give the answer from memory of what she read.

At the end of class, the principal went to Sandra's desk. "I'm very impressed with how hard you worked on your project," she said. "I'd like to make you Student of the Week."

Which lesson can be learned from this story?

A Team that Works

CHARACTERS:

E.J., teenage boy

T.J., E.J.'s younger brother

Stage Set: Outdoors in a backyard at nighttime

(E.J. is digging in a garden with a small shovel. T.J. is holding a flashlight.)

E.J.:Hold the light still.

T.J.:Hurry up! Someone might see us.

(T.J. shines the light on a back porch a few feet away.)

E.J.:You should have thought of that before you buried Grandpa's baseball cards in the backyard.

T.J.:They're worth a lot of money. I never thought that we would move to a new house.

E.J.:Next time, buy a safe and keep your valuables indoors.

(E.J. continues to dig around the flowers until he hears a clanking sound.)

T.J.:You found it! Thanks.

(T.J. kneels and uncovers a small metal box.)

T.J.:It was nice coming over here. We got to spend time together in the old backyard one last time.

E.J.:I spent most of my time working. (frowning and shaking dirt from his shoes)

T.J.:(smiling) I was the lookout. We make a good team.

E.J.:(putting his arm around

T.J.) I guess that's why it's called teamwork.

The theme of this drama is that teamwork can be a rewarding experience. Which of the following events best supports this theme?

"Tommy, your history teacher says you are failing this quarter," Coach Snead said. Tommy Blake was his star running back. "That's the third time he's told me. He says you aren't doing your homework."

"Ah, coach, I've got too much to do," Tommy replied. "We've got that big game with Hamden. I do a lot of stuff with my community. I'm helping my little brother with his model train. I've got other classes, too. History takes a lot of time."

Coach Snead put his hand on Tommy's shoulder. "I can see you've got too much on your plate, so I'm cutting you from the squad as of now. That way you'll have plenty of time to take care of your school work and your community responsibilities."

Tommy laughed as he said, "Right; you're going to cut the league-leading running back before the biggest game of the season."

"That's right, son, that's what I'm going to do."

"You'll lose the game."

"You are much more important to me than a game," Coach Snead said. "Besides I've got six guys out there that would love to start the biggest game of the year."

"What do you mean 'you are much more important than a game'?"

"We're a team, Tommy, and teams have rules. One of our rules is that everybody has to be passing all their classes during the season. You're not doing that, despite having several chances to bring up your grades. If I let you off just because there's a big game, then you and everybody else on the team will learn that my rules don't matter. At least they don't matter for special people, like league-leading running backs. If I let you get away with this, you'd learn the wrong lesson, and that would hurt you in the future."

Which lesson can be learned from this story?

A Messy Mistake

Chloe sat at the table with her arms crossed, tapping her foot impatiently. Cayden could see her jaw moving slightly and knew she was grinding her teeth again. He took the towel and tried to blot the juice that was seeping onto her homework paper.

"I told you not to put that cup so close to your hand," she barked. "Sometimes, you drive me up the wall."

Cayden's eyes stung with hot tears, but he quickly blinked them away. He was not going let his sister upset him this time. It was an honest mistake that anyone could make; that's what Mom would say.

"I don't know why you're so angry since I'm the one who doesn't have a drink now. That was the last of the juice." Cayden finished cleaning up his mess and went to put the dishrag in the kitchen sink. His nose was starting to run, and he sniffed loudly. Chloe put her pencil down with a sigh, walked into the kitchen behind him, and then opened the refrigerator. She peered through the refrigerated contents, moving bottles, bags, and packages.

"Well, there's no use crying over spilt milk," she said, rummaging through the vegetable bin, "even if it is juice. We have some lemons. How about I make lemonade?"

Cayden smiled and said, "Sure." As Chloe began pulling out a pitcher and the necessary ingredients, she frowned at Cayden, who was leaning against the sink with his arms leisurely crossed. "Hey, you want to give me a hand here?" she snapped, causing Cayden to jump at her sharp tone.

"What is wrong with you?" he snapped back. "Why are you so impatient with me today?"

Chloe set the sugar bowl on the counter and took a deep breath. "I have been very impatient. I'm sorry, but I'm still upset over a grade I received on my math test today, and I think I'm giving you all my frustration."

Cayden sliced a lemon in half and began to squeeze it into the pitcher. "Well, you know what Mom always says."

"When life gives you lemons," Chloe said.

They both giggled and said, "Make lemonade!"

Select ALL the correct answers.

Which two themes can be found in the passage?

The Ant and the Cocoon

On a sunny day, an ant was searching for food and came across a cocoon that was about to change. At the end of the cocoon, the ant could see a tail moving. The movement attracted the ant who then saw that there was something alive and said, "I pity such a creature that has to live inside such a thing, while I can move freely about at my pleasure. If I want I can climb a tree, while you lie inside in a shell. You can only move a little bit of your tail!"

The creature in the cocoon heard every word but said nothing. A few days later, the ant happened by the same place. It noticed the cocoon and inspected it. There was nothing inside. "I wonder what happened to the poor creature inside," the ant said.

At that moment the ant felt a cool breeze as shade covered him. He looked up and saw a beautiful butterfly. "Who are you?" asked the ant.

"Don't you recognize me?" said the butterfly. "I am the creature you pitied because I was locked inside the cocoon. You may boast of your ability to run freely, but I won't listen very long." With that, the butterfly flapped its wings and rose up until it caught a breath of wind and was soon out of the ant's sight.

adapted from The Ant and the Chrysalis by Aesop

What is the theme of "The Ant and the Cocoon"?

Jimmy had a big problem: he had waited till the last minute to do his research paper. Although his teacher had given the class a full six weeks to get it done, Jimmy had played with his friends every afternoon. He never cracked a book or even did an online search of the subject. Now, he had two days to get it done.

When he asked his mother for help, she asked how long he'd known about the assignment. He considered lying to her and blaming his teacher for not giving them enough time. He decided against that strategy because he knew his mother would call Mrs. Ransom and ask. She'd done that before, and he had gotten grounded for lying.

"I've had six weeks," he answered.

"You know Jimmy, it's not really my job to save you from your own bad decisions," she said. "You're going to have to do this on your own. I think that's the only way you're ever going to learn not to put things off. Haven't you ever heard the saying 'don't put off till tomorrow what you can do today'?"

"Oh, Mom, I can do it in two days if you'll help me."

"Sorry, son, I've got other things to do," she said. "You're on your own."

Which of the following might be a story with a similar theme to this one?

Waldo McWillerbee: Magician

Waldo McWillerbee wanted to be a magician. With a funny name like Waldo McWillerbee, what else could he be besides a magician? A banker? Certainly not a banker! With a name like Waldo McWillerbee, he was meant to entertain the world, and he was determined to do just that with his wondrous, wonderful magic.

For his first trick, he would make his mother's prized antique vase float in the air. The vase was simply beautiful! It was over a hundred years old, and it had tiny blue and gold flowers painted all over it. He covered the vase in his magical handkerchief. He took the vase in his hands—one hand holding the top, and the other hand supporting the bottom. He chanted, "Scmoozy, Foozy, Kitten Hairy! Make this vase float in the air-y!" He released the vase. BAM! Tiny glass pieces with blue and gold flowers showered the floor.

Then Waldo McWillerbee knew he must perform a magician's most important trick of all: make himself disappear! Off Waldo McWillerbee ran to hide under the bed!

Which of these best summarizes the second paragraph?