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Common Assessment #1

Last updated over 1 year ago
14 questions
Note from the author:
Includes an excerpt from Ch. 1 of TKAM
Read each text and answer the questions that follow.
Excerpt from To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

When he was nearly thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow. When it healed, and Jem’s fears of never being able to play football were assuaged, he was seldom self-conscious about his injury. His left arm was somewhat shorter than his right; when he stood or walked, the back of his hand was at right angles to his body, his thumb parallel to his thigh. He couldn’t have cared less, so long as he could pass and punt.
When enough years had gone by to enable us to look back on them, we sometimes discussed the events leading to his accident. I maintain that the Ewells started it all, but Jem, who was four years my senior, said it started long before that. He said it began the summer Dill came to us when Dill first gave us the idea of making Boo Radley come out.
I said if he wanted to take a broad view of the thing, it really began with Andrew Jackson. If General Jackson hadn’t run the Creeks up the creek, Simon Finch would never have paddled up the Alabama, and where would we be if he hadn’t?
We were far too old to settle an argument with a fist-fight, so we consulted Atticus. Our father said we were both right.
Being Southerners, it was a source of shame to some members of the family that we had no recorded ancestors on either side of the Battle of Hastings. All we had was Simon Finch, a fur-trapping apothecary from Cornwall whose piety was exceeded only by his stinginess. In England, Simon was irritated by the persecution of those who called themselves Methodists at the hands of their more liberal brethren, and as Simon called himself a Methodist, he worked his way across the Atlantic to Philadelphia, thence to Jamaica, thence to Mobile, and up the Saint Stephens. Mindful of John Wesley’s strictures on the use of many words in buying and selling, Simon made a pile practicing medicine, but in this pursuit, he was unhappy lest he be tempted into doing what he knew was not for the glory of God, as the putting on of gold and costly apparel. So Simon, having forgotten his teacher’s dictum on the possession of human chattels, bought three slaves and, with their aid, established a homestead on the banks of the Alabama River some forty miles above Saint Stephens. He returned to Saint Stephens only once to find a wife and, with her, established a line that ran high to daughters. Simon lived to an impressive age and died rich.
It was customary for the men in the family to remain on Simon’s homestead, Finch’s Landing, and make their living from cotton. The place was self-sufficient: modest in comparison with the empires around it, the Landing nevertheless produced everything required to sustain life except ice, wheat flour, and articles of clothing supplied by riverboats from Mobile.
Simon would have regarded with impotent fury the disturbance between the North and the South, as it left his descendants stripped of everything but their land, yet the tradition of living on the land remained unbroken until well into the twentieth century, when my father, Atticus Finch, went to Montgomery to read law, and his younger brother went to Boston to study medicine. Their sister Alexandra was the Finch who remained at the Landing: she married a taciturn man who spent most of his time lying in a hammock by the river wondering if his trotlines were full.
When my father was admitted to the bar, he returned to Maycomb and began his practice. Maycomb, some twenty miles east of Finch’s Landing, was the county seat of Maycomb County. Atticus’s office in the courthouse contained little more than a hat rack, a spittoon, a checkerboard, and an unsullied Code of Alabama. His first two clients were the last two persons hanged in the Maycomb County jail.
Required
7

What happened to Jem's arm when he was nearly thirteen? (DOK1)

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7

According to the passage, why was Jem seldom self-conscious about his injury? (DOK2)

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7

What does the passage suggest about the relationship between Jem and the narrator? (DOK3)

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8

Why did Simon FInch come to America? (DOK3)

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7

What was the occupation of Atticus Finch's younger brother? (DOK4)

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7

Based on the context of the passage, what is the denotation of the word "assuaged"? (DOK2)

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7

Which word best describes Simon Finch's attitude towards the persecution of Methodists in England? (DOK2)

Informational Text Excerpt: "The Importance of Pollinators"

Pollinators, such as bees, butterflies, and birds, play a vital role in our ecosystem. They are responsible for the reproduction of many plants by transferring pollen from one flower to another. This process not only helps plants produce fruits and seeds but also contributes to the biodiversity of our environment. Unfortunately, pollinator populations are declining due to habitat loss, pesticides, and climate change. Protecting these essential creatures is crucial for maintaining healthy ecosystems and food supplies.
Required
7

What is the primary role of pollinators in the ecosystem? (DOK1)

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7

Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a reason for the decline of the pollinator populations? (DOK2)

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7

How does the decline of pollinators affect biodiversity? (DOK3)

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8

Analyze the potential impact on human food supplies if pollinator populations continue to decline. (DOK4)

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7

According to the informational text, which of the following actions is crucial for protecting pollinators? (DOK2)

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7

In the text, the word "essential" is used to describe pollinators. What is the denotation of the word "essential"? (DOK2)

Required
7

How does the connotation of the word "declining" in the context of pollinator populations affect the reader's understanding? (DOK3)