Reading Gains Form 3, sections 2 & 3 - fourth quarter of the year for ELD II (12/3/2025) (12/4/2025)

Directions:
Read the paragraph and complete the statement.

In early 2007, an unlikely celebrity made his world debut. But it wasn't a person. It was a polar bear. The bear is named Knut. He was born at a zoo in Berlin, Germany, in December 2006. After Knut was born, his mother rejected him and his brother. When the brother died, zoo workers decided to take Knut away from his mother. They cared for him themselves. When Knut was shown to the public a few months later, he captured the attention of the world. But many people were opposed to the zoo's actions. They felt that it was cruel for humans to raise a polar bear as a pet.

Directions:
Read the paragraph and complete the statement.

In Oxford, England, there's a sculpture that attracts a lot of attention. On a quiet street in the Headington neighborhood, there is a 25-foot shark. It looks like it is ripping into a house. Bill Heine, the owner of the house, commissioned the sculpture. He wanted to make a statement. He wanted to show how it feels to be unable to help people in need. He said that he felt like ripping a hole in his roof out of desperation. The sculpture was created 41 years after the atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, Japan in World War II. It is a memorial to the victims of the nuclear bomb. The sculpture is now known as the Headington Shark.

Directions:
Read the paragraph and complete the statement.

A finger run around the edge of a wine glass can produce a haunting sound. In France, Benjamin Franklin attended concerts performed this way. It was a sound that Benjamin Franklin enjoyed. So he invented the armonica, which is a series of glass bowls lined up on a wooden dowel. Franklin's armonica had a foot pedal that allowed him to spin the bowls. That way, he could run dampened fingers along the spinning edges to create sound. It sounded much like a series of wine glasses would, except one could play more notes at a time. Its popularity spread until even Beethoven and Mozart had composed for the armonica.

Directions:
Read the paragraph and complete the statement.

The world's largest photograph was taken by an unused airport hangar! In a camera obscura, a small hole is opened to expose a light-sensitive paper. The image outside of the camera is imprinted onto the paper, which is then developed. Six photographers used a huge, seamless piece of fabric covered in a light-sensitive chemical. They used a 6mm pinhole in the door of the hangar to expose the fabric to light, just like the hole in a camera obscura. They developed the fabric like they would a photograph. The image showed the airport outside of the hangar, and the San Joaquin Hills in the background. The photograph is three stories high and eleven stories long.

Directions:
Read the paragraph and complete the statement.

Of the many kinds of guitars, the lap steel guitar is one of the most exceptional. The lap steel is played differently than other guitars. Instead of being held in the arms, the lap steel is placed in the player's lap. Most guitars are played by pressing the strings to the fret board with one hand. This shortens the strings to produce different notes and chords while the other hand plucks or strums the strings. On the lap steel, a steel bar is pressed against the strings. This creates a distinctive sound. The lap steel guitar originated in Hawaii in the 1800s and has recently experienced an increase in popularity because of its intriguing sound.

Directions:
Read the passage about the dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov. Complete the statement with the word for each question

    Mikhail Baryshnikov is considered the greatest living male ballet dancer. Known as a powerful, perfect dancer, Mikhail attracts large crowds to his performances. He helped make ballet popular with men as well as women. He helped pave the way for male ballet dancers all over the world. His ___6___ has been great.

    Baryshnikov was born in Russia on January 27, 1948. His father was an engineer and his mother was a seamstress. He lived an ordinary life. He played soccer with the neighborhood boys. Baryshnikov's mother liked ballet dancing. She enrolled him in a dance class when he was 12 years old. She ___7___ his dancing. He studied at the school of the Theatre Opera Ballet. At this school, he learned to speak French, play concert piano, and dance. At first, Baryshnikov was most interested in his piano classes. He wanted to be a famous concert pianist. Eventually, though, he fell in love with ballet, and he was good at it. Despite being shorter than other male dancers, he was very powerful and his technique was perfect. Baryshnikov had a great deal of ___8___ .

    When Baryshnikov was 15 years old, he entered the Vaganova Ballet Academy. He started training more seriously. Three years later, he joined the Kirov Ballet in Leningrad. Normally, when dancers join ballet companies, they are apprentices. This means that they train with the company and have small parts in the performances. Baryshnikov was so talented that he skipped this step. He was immediately a soloist. Audiences loved watching him dance alone on the stage. He seemed to fill the whole room with his movements and presence. He began winning ballet competitions and other medals of honor. He was an immediate star. He was a ____9___.

    Baryshnikov moved to Canada in 1974 and then to the United States. He danced with the American Ballet Theater and the New York City Ballet. By this time, he was world-famous. Along with dancing, Baryshnikov has been a ballet teacher and choreographer. He has also been an actor. Mikhail Baryshnikov has not only had a successful career, but he has truly danced through life! Baryshnikov has had an ___10___ life.

Directions:
Read the passage about Maggie's summer. Complete the statement with the word for each question number.

    Maggie opened her eyes and smiled at the sunlight filling her room. School had ended yesterday. She had the whole summer ahead of her. She imagined it as a meadow full of wildflowers, waiting for her. It was quiet and relaxing, just how she liked it. Summer was ___11___ .

    After eating a toaster waffle, Maggie rushed through her farm chores to get them out of the way. She slapped another coat of paint on the barn doors. Retrieving a hammer and nails from the barn, she fixed some wooden boxes that had fallen apart. Her family filled the boxes with tomatoes and asparagus every Saturday morning to sell them at the market. She completed her ___12___.

    Once finished, she made a sandwich and wandered down to the river that ran along the edge of the farm. The swift water had cut a deep trench over the years. It was a two-foot drop from where Maggie stood on the bank to the water. She strolled idly along the edge. She ___13___ along the river.

    Suddenly the bank shifted beneath her sneakers. Before she could react, a great chunk of the bank collapsed. Maggie tumbled into the water amid red clay and scrub grass. She scrabbled at the bank and found a handhold. Once she caught her breath, Maggie noticed many strange-looking rocks that had been buried in the bank. Turning them over in her hands, she discovered imprints of odd shells in the rocks. She filled her pockets with as many rocks as she could. They had ___14___ shapes.

    When she got back home, Maggie showed the fossils to her mother. Her mother looked at the fossils for a long time and didn't say anything. Then she went to the telephone and made a few calls. Her mother described the shapes of the shells in great detail to someone. When she hung up she told Maggie that the fossils were very rare and that a team of scientists wanted Maggie to show them where she had found them. “This summer may be more exciting than I thought,” Maggie marveled. The scientists wanted to ___15___.

Directions:
Read the passage about the history of the bicycle. Complete the statement with the word for each question number.

    The first bicycle with a practical use was the high wheel bicycle. There were earlier types of bicycles, but none of them became as popular as the high wheel bicycle.

    These bicycles did not have gears like modern bikes. The wheel only spun as fast as the pedals could be cranked. To achieve fast speeds, the front wheel was made very large, up to five feet around. The back wheel was much smaller. The cyclist rode high up in the air because of the large front wheel. The cyclist was ____16____.

    Many inventors worked to improve upon the basic design. At first, wheels were made of iron and wood. Later designs included solid rubber tires, metal spokes, ball bearings, and hollow steel frames. These bicycles were used in Europe, but it was not until the latter part of the nineteenth century that they became popular in the United States. Bicycles became more ____17____.

    Thomas Stevens rode a high wheel bicycle from San Francisco to Boston in 1884. He was the first cyclist to cross the United States. Eventually he rode a bicycle around the world. His ride was a major ____18____.

    With a large front wheel bicycle, the rider had to be very strong and have legs long enough to reach the pedals. The safety bicycle was developed in the 1880s. It was similar to the modern bicycle, with two equally sized wheels and a chain that connected the pedals to the rear wheel. This was the first type of bicycle that used an inflated tire. It quickly grew more popular than the high wheel bicycle. Inventors continued to improve it by adding brakes, gears, and other adjustments. Bicycles became more ____19____.

    With the improved models, cycling became quite popular in both the United States and Europe. In the United States, a bicycle club called the League of American Wheelmen formed in 1880. This organization was crucial in the development of better roads throughout the country. The group had ____20____.
 

Directions:
Read the paragraph and complete the statement.

The ocean is vast and uncompromising. Countless vessels have succumbed to its wrath. They are lost forever beneath its waves. But sometimes it's not the ships that disappear, but the people on board. In November 1872, a ship namedMary Celesteset sail from New York for Genoa, Italy. The captain of the boat brought along his wife, daughter, and a crew of seven. One month later, theMary Celestewas spotted drifting in the Atlantic Ocean, off the southern coast of Spain. When the crew of another ship boarded theMary Celeste, they found no sign of foul play or piracy. They also found no one on board. The mystery of what happened to the captain, his family, and the crew has never been explained.

Directions:
Read the paragraph and complete the statement.

The puppy ran around the dog park, his tail high and waving. He stopped to sniff at every tree and branch, and picked up the best sticks for chewing. These, and any tennis balls he could find, he carried over and laid down in front of his owner. Whenever he saw another dog come near his stash of toys, he ran over to distract them. Before the other dog knew it, he had them playing on the other side of the dog park. When it was time to go home, he circled his toys and looked at the other dogs. It was as if he was telling them not to touch his things while he was gone.

Directions:
Read the paragraph and complete the statement.

On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson made history. He became the first African American to play Major League Baseball. For many years, baseball was a segregated sport. Owners of baseball teams refused to hire non-white players. When Robinson began playing, many fans and even other players verbally abused him. But Robinson's sportsmanship and poise on and off the field soon earned him respect. In 1997, on the fiftieth anniversary of Robinson's debut, Major League Baseball retired the number 42, which Robinson had worn throughout his career. Today he is still seen as a hero by many for helping to break the color barrier in professional sports.

Directions:
Read the paragraph and complete the statement.

The Tower Bridge has become a symbol and landmark of London, England. The bridge is famous for its two Victorian Gothic towers and combined bridges. A high-level suspension bridge runs between the tops of the towers while a bascule bridge spans the lower area. A bascule bridge is a drawbridge with two sections that open upward to allow boats to pass underneath. When the drawbridge is down, road traffic is allowed to cross the bridge. The high-level suspension bridge is only open to pedestrian traffic. The Tower Bridge's two spans make it one of the most recognizable bridges in the world.

Directions:
Read the paragraph and complete the statement.

“Well, it sounds to me like Rigsby has kennel cough,” Dr. John said, as he tucked the chestpiece of his stethoscope back into his pocket. He wrote on Rigsby's chart as he explained the prescriptions he was giving us and only looked up again when he was done. He must have noticed my concern because he walked over and pulled a chair up in front of me. “Don't worry,” he said. “Kennel cough is like a cold for dogs, and Rigsby could probably get over it himself, but I'd hate for him to pass it on to your other dog.”

Directions:
Read the passage about Kimmy and Emily. Complete the statement with the word for each question number.

    The photographer situated the girls in front of a backdrop painted like a beach. It had colorful umbrellas and sand dunes, and the girls were dressed in matching shorts and T-shirts. The photographer settled Kimmy on a beach towel before setting one-year-old Emily on her lap. Kimmy tried to keep the squirming baby from wiggling off. However, Emily seemed more interested in grabbing the backdrop, the beach towel, or Kimmy's hair, than posing for a picture. Emily was ____26____ .

    Now Kimmy stared at the photographer as he tried to engage her little sister. He had a bright yellow bird that he held above his head. He kept calling to the girls, “Look at the birdie! Look at the birdie!” Kimmy was certain that Emily, who had many electronic toys at home, would not be interested.

    “Emily!” the photographer called out. He raised his voice dramatically as he talked to her. “Emily, I need you to look here.” Kimmy giggled because he sounded like he was yodeling. But the photographer's silly voice made Emily look at him. His voice was ____27____.

    “Good job, girls,” he said, and the next thing they knew, it was as if the bird was talking. It turned its head from side to side, as though it was looking around. The photographer's face was hidden behind the camera, so they couldn't see him talking anymore. He ____28____ himself.

    “Where is that pesky photographer?” the bird asked. Its voice raised and lowered so quickly Kimmy had a hard time understanding what it was saying. Emily pointed to the photographer and laughed. The bird gasped, and its head twisted to look down. The bird dropped suddenly and pecked the photographer's head. The bird was ____29____ .

    Kimmy and Emily had so much fun watching the puppet show, they forgot that the photographer was taking their picture. Ten minutes later, Kimmy was actually sad to hear the photographer say, “That's a wrap! You two have been fantastic models.” He had been ____30_____ .

Directions:
Read the passage about Komodo dragons. Complete the statement with the word for each question number.

    The Komodo dragon isn't actually a dragon. It's a lizard. But it is the largest species of lizard in the world. It lives on a few Indonesian islands including Komodo. Because of the limited number of predatory species on those islands, it has grown to be the dominant predator there. Komodo dragons typically grow to be about seven feet long and weigh 150 pounds. Komodo dragons are ____31____ . The largest documented Komodo dragon was over ten feet long and weighed more than 350 pounds. Part of this weight, though, was the weight of undigested food.

    Komodo dragons swallow large chunks of their food without chewing and swallow it slowly. It can take up to 20 minutes for a Komodo dragon to swallow a goat. The Komodo dragon is able to eat 80 percent of its body weight in one meal. The dragon's meals are often ____32____ . The dragons may only eat twelve meals per year. They will consume nearly any prey available to them, including humans, though this doesn't often happen. The dragons can be ____33____ .

    Komodo dragons possess lethally harmful bacteria in their saliva. If their victim does not die immediately of a bite, it will usually die within days. The bacteria in the Komodo dragon's saliva will cause the victim to contract septicemia. Traveling septicemia is an illness caused by harmful bacteria moving throughout the bloodstream. The disease ____34____ the victim. When the victim of the Komodo dragon dies, the lizard can detect the smell of the carcass from as much as six miles away.

    Though Komodo dragons seem to be fearsome and loathsome, those observed in captivity have displayed somewhat playful behavior. A female Komodo dragon at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. would take various objects into her mouth and shake them. She was not interested in eating any of the objects but seemed to enjoy finding them and playing with them. She would bury her head in them, in the case of boxes or shoes, or shake them in her mouth, in the case of blankets or soda cans. She had little ____35____ .

    Most people will not encounter a Komodo dragon in their natural environment. But these animals remain fascinating because they are so large, so threatening, and so rare.

Directions:
Read the passage about part-time jobs. Complete the statement with the word for each question number.

    Saving for college can be a real challenge. Some students work after school to save money for their college education. A part-time job can be the perfect way to earn some extra money. It's also a great way to get “real-life” work experience. Besides helping with college expenses, a part-time job can give you a chance to try out a career without a long-term commitment. It can be an ____36____ .

    Let's say you think you might want to become a pharmacist. Pharmacists spend several years in school beyond the traditional undergraduate study programs. That means you could be in school for six or seven years before you ever get to be that pharmacist you dreamed of being. If you worked in a drugstore during high school, you'd have a better understanding of the career path you were considering. It can be a good ____37____of the profession.

    Maybe you find that you enjoy working with people. This might lead you to consider a career in medical sales instead of in a pharmacy. On the other hand, you might find that you're fascinated by the science behind the way that the drugs and medicines work. In this case, careers that focus more on the development and testing of new drugs might be more interesting to you. There are chances to ____38____ your interests.

    This same idea holds true for many professions. For example, a part-time job or internship at your local newspaper could provide a lot of information. It could give you the chance to see how writers, editors, photographers, salespeople, and graphic designers all work together to produce the paper. Seeing how all the pieces fit together could help you focus on the career path that will bear the most fruit for you. It helps a person see the ____39____ of a workplace.

    Even if a part-time job isn't directly related to your career interests, the chances are good that you will pick up skills or knowledge that will pay off when you finally finish college and start your job search. These skills may be ____40____ .