selective questions

• It can be inferred from the passage that Louis Armstrong went to Chicago for which of the following reasons?

• According to the passage, which of the following Black bands was the first to make a significant set of jazz recordings?

• As used in line 12, the word “note” could best be replaced by which of the following?

• The nickname “Duke” belonged to which of the following bandleaders?

• The passage supports which of the following conclusions?

• Which of the following cities is NOT mentioned in the passage as a center of jazz?

• What is the main idea of the passage?

• The author mentions all of the following as results of a blackout EXCEPT

• Why does the author mention electric eels?

• How many volts of electricity can an electric eel emit?

• It can be inferred from the passage that the longer an eel is the

• Which of the following is the best title for this passage?

• According to the passage, women pilots were successful in all of the following EXCEPT

• What can be inferred from the passage about the United States Air Force in 1938?

• In their efforts to compete with men, early women pilots had difficulty in

• According to the passage, who said that flying was done with no expectation of reward?

• The poet uses the words “gale” and “storm” as metaphors. What might these words represent?

• Hope is important and helpful in times of pain, sorrow, or difficulty. Which lines from the poem best supports this statement?

• The poet says that hope “sings the tune without the words.” Why might the poet have written that the tune has no words?

• What is the theme of this poem?

• Read these lines from the poem:
  And sore must be the storm
  That could abash the little bird
  That kept so many warm.
• What does the word “abash” most nearly mean, based on these lines?

• Read these lines from the poem:And sore must be the storm
  That could abash the little bird
  That kept so many warm.

  I’ve heard it in the chillest land,
  And on the strangest sea;
  Yet, never, in extremity,
  It asked a crumb of me.

What does “it” refer to in the last line?

• What does the old man in this poem wonder?

• In which part of the year is the scene in this poem set?

• Read these lines from the poem:And an old man totters past with a cane

  Wondering if he’ll see spring again.

  Based on these lines, what can you conclude about how the old man feels about autumn and winter?

• Where does this poem take place?

• What is this poem mainly about?

• The poem begins with the sentence “The air breathes frost.” Why might the poet have begun the poem with this sentence?

• Read these lines from the poem:

  A snowflake falls like an errant feather:
  A vagabond draws his cloak together,

  Why might the poet have used a colon (:) at the end of the first line?

• Where does Emine go for a two-week vacation?

• What is the climax of this story?

• Cairo is not as easy to handle as Emine expects.

  What evidence from the story supports this statement?

• How can Emine be described?

• What is a theme of this story?

• Read the following sentences: “Emine had grown up in New York City and thought
  she could handle anything. No street was too crowded, no skyline too bright, and no
  parade too loud. She owned the city, and she was in command.”

  What does the author mean by writing that Emine owned the city?

• Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below.Emine can see a lot of stars in the desert; ______ she can only see a few stars in New
  York City

• What has left tons of “space junk” in orbit around the earth?

• Countries around the world have agreed to limit the time their space tools stay in orbit
  to 25 years. As explained in the passage, what problem does this solution address?

• Trash has become a problem in outer space too.
  What evidence from the text best supports this statement?

• Why have countries agreed to build space tools that must fall safely into the earth’s
  atmosphere?

• What was the passage mostly about?

• Read the following sentences: “‘In our opinion the problem is very challenging and it’s
  quite urgent as well,’ said Marco Castronuovo, an Italian Space Agency researcher who
  is working to solve the problem. One reason that it’s urgent is that countries are
  sending more and more objects into space. Many of these objects are tools that help
  people use their cell phones or computers.”
  What does the word urgent most nearly mean?

• Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below.
  Years of space exploration have left tons of “space junk,” _______ many scientists are
  trying to find a way to clean up outer space.

Passage 4

          Insects’ lives are very short and they have many enemies, but they must survive long enough to breed and perpetuate their kind. The less insect-like they look, the better their chance of survival. To look “inedible” by resembling or imitating plants is a deception widely practiced by insects. Mammals rarely use this type of camouflage, but many fish and invertebrates do.

          The stick caterpillar is well named. It is hardly distinguishable from a brown or green twig. This caterpillar is quite common and can be found almost anywhere in North America. It is also called “measuring worm” or “inchworm.” It walks by arching its body, than stretching out and grasping the branch with its front feet then looping its body again to bring the hind feet forward. When danger threatens, the stick caterpillar stretches its body away from the branch at an angle and remains rigid and still, like a twig, until the danger has passed.

         Walking sticks, or stick insects, do not have to assume a rigid, twig-like pose to find protection; they look like inedible twigs in any position. There are many kinds of walking sticks, ranging in size form the few inches of the North American variety to some tropical species that may be over a foot long. When at rest their front legs are stretched out. heightening their camouflage. Some of the tropical species are adorned with spines or ridges. imitating the thorny bushes or trees in which they live.

          Leaves also seem to be a favorite object for insects to imitate. Many butterflies can suddenly disappear from view by folding their wings and sitting quietly among the foliage that they resemble.

• What is the main subject of the passage?