Read each passage carefully and answer the questions that follow. Use evidence from the text when required. This Unit 3 test checks reading craft/structure, vocabulary, conventions, and writing skills aligned to Arkansas Grade 8 ELA standards.
Unit 3 Test — Selected and Short Response
Article
Read the following article. Then, answer the question(s).
(1) It all started with a seed. In 2008 a bright young student named Katie Stagliano was in the third grade in Summerville, South Carolina. As part of a nationwide program run by Bonnie Plants, Katie was one of millions of third graders who received a cabbage seedling. She planted her seedling in her garden at home. She took great care in watering and fertilizing it and weeding around it. She even worked with her grandfather to build a cage for it when deer began nibbling on its leaves.
(2) Katie watched that summer as her cabbage grew, growing an enormous head five times bigger than her own head! By the time she harvested it, it weighed an astounding 40 pounds because of her great care. This was a bit of a challenge since a single family cannot possibly eat a 40-pound cabbage. So Katie began looking for places where she could donate it. She was connected to a local soup kitchen through an organization that helps farmers get crops to organizations that feed the hungry. Not only did Katie donate the cabbage, but she also chopped, cooked, and served the delicious cabbage over rice to 275 people. Katie got to see first-hand what a large issue hunger was in her community, which caused her to start thinking.
(3) Another seed was planted, this one in Katie’s brain. If her one cabbage could feed 275 people, how many people could an entire garden feed? With a lot of hard work and support from her family and friends, "Katie’s Krops" was born. She convinced her school to donate a large plot of green land for a garden. As a result, the entire student body now participates in planting and harvesting the garden and donating the produce. Katie’s Krops kept growing and growing, and in 2015 there were 83 Katie’s Krops gardens across the United States. Young people ages 9 to 16 can apply for grants to start their own Katie’s Krops gardens. Through her amazing generosity and dedication, Katie has made a difference. She is well on her way to realizing her dream of eliminating hunger and impacting even more lives.
The following questions pertain to the roots, prefixes, and suffixes that you have studied this quarter.
~ful
~mis
~just
Read the following paragraph from an article on smartphone use. Then answer the question(s).
(1) Thirty years ago, students writing research papers used the school library. They would wade through encyclopedias and articles from newspapers and magazines to find information. They were at the mercy of what was available in their school library. No more. With the Internet and smartphones, students have access to nearly every piece of information imaginable. Instantaneously. As the problem of access to information has faded, a new one has arisen in its place—a lack of attention.
Using context clues, what can you most logically conclude is the meaning of the word access in the paragraph?
Julia is writing an argument. Read the draft of her introduction and her notes, and then complete the task that follows.
Say Yes to School Uniforms
School uniforms are typically worn in private schools, but they are making their way into public schools, too. Whether school uniforms should be worn in all schools is often debated. Many feel that forcing students to wear school uniforms takes away your individuality. They are concerned that students will not have a way to express themselves. Others argue that school uniforms are expensive and make it more difficult for families that struggle financially. Still others argue that uniforms are ugly, uncomfortable, and unhelpful. There are, however, many more pros than cons to wearing school uniforms. The advantages to students, teachers, and administrators are great. In places where uniforms have become the norm, the results have been dramatic. In Long Beach, California, for example, absences are down and attendance is at an all-time high.
American students should have to wear school uniforms from kindergarten through high school.
Julia made these notes for her argument.
School uniforms even the playing field. Kids do not bully each other about clothing choices. Those who cannot afford designer clothes are not teased.
Students pay better attention in class and focus more on learning when they are not distracted by the fashion choices of others.
School uniforms promote school spirit.
School uniforms are more economical for parents—fewer clothes to buy, tend to be well made, and last longer than regular clothes.
Relieves teachers and administrators from enforcing dress code.
Drawing on details from Julia’s notes, write the rest of the 8 part paragraph that begins with the underlined sentence (That is your topic sentence). Include elements such as reasons, evidence, and examples that support your claim.
Also, introduce and address a counterclaim, or opposing position. Use a logical organization and a formal style.
Part A From the details in the article, what inference can you make about Katie?
Part B Which sentence from the article is the best evidence for the answer to Part A?
Part A From the information in paragraph 3, which adjectives can you infer best describe Katie?
Part A What can you infer about how the author feels about Katie?
Which sentences from the article include sensory details that help you visualize what the author is describing? Choose two options.
Articles
Read the two passages. Then answer the question(s).
Article 1: At Your Fingertips
(1) One need only enter a coffee shop, restaurant, or library, or step onto a busy street to see just how distracted society is by mobile technology. But one need only step inside a high school classroom for the many advantages of mobile technology to become clear.
(2) A huge percentage of high school students have smartphones. One might argue that this is a bad thing, particularly in school. Some might even think that letting students use smartphones puts those without smartphones at a disadvantage. But many educators say allowing students to use their smartphones in class supports learning, cooperation, and discussion. Students with cell phones can always share their devices with students who don’t own them. If a group is researching a topic for a presentation and a member of the group has a smartphone, the entire group now has immediate access to information. The number of educational apps is growing quickly, too. With access to cell phones, students will learn more effectively and be able to find historical documents or view animations of cell division at the touch of a finger. Denying eager students their smartphones is disempowering them, for we all know information is power.
(3) It is easy for teachers to make sure students are using smartphones in appropriate ways in the classroom. Teachers should hang out with their students! Teachers should move away from the front of the classroom and into their students’ space. They should interact with their students and check on their progress. Teachers should engage students in conversation. Students aren’t likely to be texting their friends if they are actively involved in a lesson. They are also going to make sure they are using their phones appropriately if their teacher may appear over the shoulder at any time. Although it might seem counterintuitive, loosening restrictions on smartphones in the classroom can actually lead to greater cooperation on the part of students. The bottom line is that technology continues to evolve whether we want to evolve with it or not. Its positives, inside and outside the classroom, far outweigh its negatives.
Article 2: Smarter Without Smartphones
(1) Thirty years ago, students writing research papers used the school library. They would wade through encyclopedias and articles from newspapers and magazines to find information. They were at the mercy of what was available in their school library. No more. With the Internet and smartphones, students have access to nearly every piece of information imaginable. Instantaneously. As the problem of access to information has faded, a new one has arisen in its place—a lack of attention.
(2) Students can get any information they want from a smartphone. But how do students learn what to do with that information? Students need critical thinking skills so they can analyze, interpret, and apply the information they find. Historically, they have learned these skills in a classroom environment. So what happens when smartphones invade the classroom? Students get distracted. (Just in writing this article, I’ve checked my email no fewer than 10 times!) A major challenge faced by every teacher is holding his or her students’ attention. A teacher’s job is made many times more difficult when a smartphone is added into the mix.
(3) The classroom has long been a place where students learn much more than just what is in the curriculum. They learn how to interact with one another, how to take turns, how to explain their thinking. Unfortunately, for all of the “connecting” smartphones do, they keep us separated. The more time students spend on their phones, the less they spend communicating with and learning from people around them. Students gain so much from those right next to them in a classroom, often more than they do from studying. If students spend time at school peering at their cell phones, they will never learn how to relate to other people. Isolated and alone, deprived of social interaction, trapped in their glowing screens, they may well end up without the social skills they need to succeed in life and work. The distraction from focusing on learning and the loss of social interaction are more than enough reasons to keep cell phones out of classrooms.
Part A What is the author’s argument in “At Your Fingertips”?
Which statement from “At Your Fingertips” is an example of an appeal to reason?
Part A What main claim does the author of “Smarter Without Smartphones” make?
Part A Read this sentence from paragraph 1 of “Smarter Without Smartphones.”
What connotation does the word wade have in this sentence?
“They would wade through encyclopedias and articles from newspapers and magazines to find information.”
Which of the following is a persuasive technique that is most clearly used in paragraph 3 of “Smarter Without Smartphones”?
Which answer choice is an example of a slippery slope logical fallacy in “Smarter Without Smartphones”?
What fact does the author present in “Smarter Without Smartphones” to support the claim that people are too preoccupied with checking their phones?
Which best describes the different opinions of the authors of “At Your Fingertips” and “Smarter Without Smartphones”?
Compare the two arguments in “At Your Fingertips” and “Smarter Without Smartphones” by answering these questions:
What fact about smartphones do both authors agree on? How do their opinion about this fact differ?
Part A Which of the following is the meaning of the Old English suffix -ful?
Part B The Latin prefix dis- means “not.” Given the answer to Part A, what can you conclude is the meaning of disrespectful?
Part A Which of the following is one meaning of the Old English prefix mis-?
Part A Which of the following is one meaning of the Latin root -just-?
Look at the thesaurus entry below for instantaneously and then reread the passage. Write one or two sentences explaining in your own words what the word means and what it is referring to in the passage.
instantaneously (adverb)
Synonyms: on the dot, instantly, soon, rapidly, shortly, in a flash, without hesitation
Read this sentence from the argument.
Many feel that forcing students to wear school uniforms takes away your individuality.
Which is the best way to revise this sentence for pronoun-antecedent agreement?
Part B What type of information in paragraph 3 provides the strongest basis for the answer to Part A?
Part B Which sentence from the article is an example of direct characterization that supports the answer to Part A?
Part B Which sentence from the article is the best evidence for the answer to Part A?
Part B Which sentence from the article is the best evidence for the answer to Part A?
Part B Based on your answer to Part A, why did the author of “Smarter Without Smartphones” most likely use the word wade when describing library research?
Part B Given the answer to Part A, what can you conclude is the meaning of misspoke?
Part B The suffix -ness means “state or quality.” Given the answer to Part A, what can you conclude is the most likely meaning of justness in the following sentence?
The justness of the judge’s decisions reflected her commitment to understand all points of view.