Poison ivy and poison oak are woody plants that grow in almost any habitat and are very similar in appearance. Both poison oak and poison ivy have berrylike fruit and brown stems. But poison ivy acts more like a vine than a bush and can grow high in trees. The fruit of poison ivy is gray and smooth. On the other hand, poison oak acts more like a bush than a vine. The fruit of poison oak is hairy instead of smooth.

How are poison ivy and poison oak different?

Reptiles have scales and their toes have claws; amphibians have moist skin and their toes do not have claws. Both reptiles and amphibians lay eggs. However, reptile eggs have a thick hard shell and are laid on land, but amphibian eggs have no shell and are laid in water. Young reptiles are miniature replicas of their parents and are born with lungs, but young amphibians start out with gills. Once amphibians have matured to adults they have lungs.

When comparing reptiles and amphibians:

Reptiles have scales and their toes have claws; amphibians have moist skin and their toes do not have claws. Both reptiles and amphibians lay eggs. However, reptile eggs have a thick hard shell and are laid on land, but amphibian eggs have no shell and are laid in water. Young reptiles are miniature replicas of their parents and are born with lungs, but young amphibians start out with gills. Once amphibians have matured to adults they have lungs.

When contrasting reptiles and amphibians,

In the track of the hurricane much damage was done. Fences and stone walls were blown down, and the stalks of Indian corn were bent over and broken off near the ground. Hay in the fields was suddenly whisked up, and scattered over adjoining territory for a mile away, being lost. As the wind increased in force many large apple and other kinds of trees were torn up by the roots ; in some instances enclosing animals in such a manner that they could not get away by their efforts alone, though they were not injured.

A large portion of the roof of the church, and boards from tile roofs and sides of several other buildings were carried away. Several dwelling houses were shattered, and two or three buildings were entirely destroyed. In the space covered by the wind was a house, with a wing which was barricaded. The whirlwind swept down upon the wing with such violence that it was instantly demolished, three of its sides falling to the ground.

The first passage focuses more on the rain, whereas the second passage (a firsthand account) focuses on...

Tana and Lua like to go hiking. While Lua loved to bring her dog and walk the trail, Tana loved to bike. Both girls really enjoyed finding natural waterfalls to swim in. Tana and Lua also really loved eating fresh fruit along the trails. Tana loved the hike up, while Lua loved the trek back down.

In what ways can you compare the two girls?

Mary and Tracey are twin sisters. They are fourteen years of age.

This is an example of:

Janet and Kylie were best friends, they liked to do everything together. Kylie loved horseback riding and so did Janet. Janet loved swimming, and although Kylie did not know how to swim she loved the water. Janet enjoyed vacationing in tropic areas while Kylie liked arctic zones.

In what ways do the two girls contrast?

How does the setting of passage 1 differ from the setting of passage 2?

Passage 1

Living in France was nothing like I thought it would be. There were dozens of Jewish children hidden in the monastery west of town, waiting for their families to come to them, but Benjamin and I lived with the Laurent family. Our family sent us there to protect us from the Nazis, and I thought I would hate it, but it wasn’t so bad—I even started to like it, after a while. I missed my parents, but I knew they would come soon and take us home.

Monsieur and Madame Laurent had just one child of their own, Clara, a twelve-year-old girl, just like me. It was a lot of fun having someone to play with that wasn’t as little as Benjamin, but I promised Mama and Papa I would take care of him, so I did.

Passage 2

“Papa,” I whispered as he tightened and knotted the laces on my boots, “please don’t send us to France without you.”

“My dear child,” he said, standing up and kissing the top of my head, “it is for the best.” He picked up our suitcase, which had clothes and one picture of our family inside of it, nothing else; I couldn’t even pack Ayelet, my favorite doll, or my silver Star of David necklace. We took one last look at our home.

“Mama,” I said in the quietest voice I had, hoping she would still hear me.

“Hush, Sarah,” she replied, “and put this on.” She handed me my overcoat, the only one I had left.

I reached out and grabbed my sister’s hand. Esther was thirteen and refused to cry, but her hand was sweating. She squeezed my fingers twice which meant, “I love you.”

Soon, we were on a train speeding through the countryside, on our way to safety, but Papa and Mama had to stay in Germany