Open Up - Grade 6 - ELA - Module 4 - End of Unit 1 Assessment - Formative Library | Library

Directions: Read “An Argument against the Moon Mission,” and answer the following questions.

An Argument against the Moon Mission
On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin took humankind’s first steps on the moon. Across the world, people huddled around radios and TVs, listening to fuzzy recordings of the lunar broadcast. The United States had done it! It seemed like celebration was in order. After all, the Apollo 11 mission had ended the Space Race. The United States had been elevated as the world’s leader in space exploration. A new frontier had been uncovered, and science had prevailed. 

Meanwhile, almost a quarter of a million miles away and back on Earth, black men and women were fighting for their lives in the American Civil Rights movement. Peaceful protests for human rights were being met with fire hoses, dogs, and police batons. Poverty, hunger, and lack of opportunity were hurting black communities. Neil Armstrong famously declared the moon landing as a “giant leap for mankind,” but at the moment it happened, mankind was suffering on Earth. The Apollo 11 mission was not a victory for humankind; instead, it was an expensive and painful reminder of the limits of humans’ empathy and imagination. 

The moon landing required an incredible investment of money and manpower. Overall, the Apollo program cost about $25 billion. That amount today would be more like $175 billion! The Apollo program also required the ideas and hard work of some of the most brilliant minds on Earth—400,000 minds, to be exact. Nearly half a million engineers, scientists, and technicians contributed their time to the program. That money and thinking could have instead gone toward solving social problems. Imagine if 400,000 brilliant minds—teachers, activists, and lawmakers—had collaborated to address issues of inequality. That would have come with a cheaper price tag, too. The United Nations, for example, estimated in 2008 that it would cost $30 billion in today’s money to solve world hunger. That’s a fraction of what it cost to go to the moon! By investing so much in the moon, and so little in the Earth, the United States sent a clear message that people matter less than competition.

That message suggests a profound lack of empathy. When John F. Kennedy delivered a speech in 1961, urging the United States to support his plan to send humans to the moon, national attention moved away from issues on the ground. Also in 1961, black people still did not have the right to vote in America. Schools in the south still separated their black and white students. The Civil Rights Act, which made discrimination based on gender or race illegal, was still three years away. There were problems that required immediate attention and resources. Essentially, the United States chose intergalactic success over basic care for its people. 

Although a trip to the moon might be seen as a symbol of humans’ imagination and pioneering spirit, the Apollo 11 mission is actually evidence of the opposite. As Civil Rights leader Ralph Abernathy put it, there was “more distance between the races of man than between the moon and the earth.” Instead of supporting America’s twinkly-eyed obsession with space travel, Abernathy asked, “Why is it less exciting to the human spirit to enlarge man by making him brother to his fellow man?” If America wanted an exciting challenge, solving inequality would have been challenge enough. The Civil Rights movement was complicated. Its success required a combination of legal, social, and philosophical considerations. Solving inequality and eliminating discrimination would have been, in many ways, a more ambitious aim than space travel. A true pioneer would have seen the fight for equality, with all its complexity and impact, as the true goal. 

The most famous images of the 1969 moonwalk depict two astronauts in puffy space suits. They are surrounded by their own lined footprints: the first footprints the moon had ever seen. An American flag planted in the moon’s soil stands tall and proud. But pride is not what Americans should feel toward the moon landing. We only deserve the glory of the moon if we first take care of the people on Earth.

Below are statements that paraphrase possible claims made in the text. Evaluate the extent to which each of the listed claims is made and supported by reasons and evidence in the text. Match each possible claim to the evaluation text.

Because of the Apollo 11 mission, we’ll now be able to put a human on Mars.
America values technological advancement more than it values its people.
The moon landing is an extraordinary event and source of national pride.
The success of Apollo 11 ended the Space Race, and the United States was the winner.
The citizens of America should be willing to sacrifice for space exploration.
Solving inequality would have been enough of a challenge to undertake.

Claim is made in the text and is supported by reasons and evidence.
Claim is made in the text but is not supported by any reasons or evidence.
Claim is not made in the text.

Part A

Which claim from question 1 best describes the main claim in this text? 

Part B 

In which paragraph does the author introduce the main claim from Part A? (RI.6.1)

paragraph 1

paragraph 2

paragraph 3

paragraph 4

Part A

Which two of the following sentences are reasons that the author uses to support the main claim? (RI.6.8)

Solving the problems at home was much more difficult than reaching the moon.

There is the promise of knowledge in exploring the distant reaches of space.

There was much suffering in America that was ignored and allowed to continue.

The United States spent a lot of money and human capital on space exploration.

Part B

Which paragraph provides evidence and/or reasoning for the author’s first reason as chosen in Part A? (RI.6.1)

RL.6.1

Part C
Which paragraph provides evidence and/or reasoning for the author’s first reason as chosen in Part A? (RI.6.1)

RL.6.1

Which sentence best describes the author’s point of view toward the Apollo 11 mission? (RI.6.6)

The Apollo 11 mission wasted resources that could have helped people on Earth.

The Apollo 11 mission was something amazing and awe-inspiring to observe.

The Apollo 11 mission enabled valuable research about our solar system.

The Apollo 11 mission was too dangerous and put the astronauts’ lives at risk.

RL.6.6

Which two pieces of evidence from the excerpt best help to convey that point of view? (RI.6.1, RI.6.4)

“Across the world, people huddled around radios and TVs, listening to fuzzy recordings of the lunar broadcast.” (paragraph 1)

“They are surrounded by their own lined footprints: the first footprints the moon had ever seen.” (paragraph 6)

“Imagine if 400,000 brilliant minds . . . had collaborated to address issues of inequality.” (paragraph 3)

“Peaceful protests for human rights were being met with fire hoses, dogs, and police batons.” (paragraph 2)

“. . . a trip to the moon might be seen as a symbol of humans’ imagination and pioneering spirit . . .” (paragraph 5)

“Essentially, the United States chose intergalactic success over basic care for its people.” (paragraph 4)

RL.6.4

RL.6.1

Source: Open Up Resouces (Download for free at openupresources.org.)