Selection: L-22

L-22

Grade level: 12

Word count: 3260 words

Author: Stephen Crane

Synopsis: Four men struggle to survive in a small lifeboat after a shipwreck. Many hours have passed, and the men grow increasingly worried that help may never arrive.

Excerpt: As the boat swam over the great rollers, the men sat listening to this roar. "We'll swamp sure," said everybody.

If we stay out here too long, we'll none of us have strength left to swim after the boat swamps."

"If we don't all get ashore?" said the captain. "If we don't all get ashore, I suppose you fellows know where to send news of my finish?"

But no, she cannot mean to drown me. She dare not drown me. She cannot drown me. Not after all this work." Afterward the man might have had an impulse to shake his fist at the clouds: "Just you drown me, now, and then hear what I call you!"

"If I am going to be drowned...if I am going to be drowned...if I am going to be drowned, why, in the name of the seven mad gods who rule the sea, was I allowed to come thus far and contemplate sand and trees? Was I brought here merely to have my nose dragged away as I was about to nibble the sacred cheese of life?"

Question: A motif is a recurring story element that has symbolic importance. A repeated motif is often used to set a story's mood or tone. What is one motif in this selection?

1. drowning
2. sleeping
3. music
4. rebellion

Selection: L-27

L-27

Grade level: 12

Word count: 2369 words

Author: Miguel de Cervantes

Synopsis: This selection is the first chapter of a classic work by Miguel de Cervantes.

Excerpt: He debuted his first published works when he moved to Rome in 1569. Soon after, the young writer joined a Spanish military unit in Italy and served as a soldier for several years.

After laboring as a soldier, de Cervantes began working as a commissary tasked with collecting grain supplies from rural communities for the Spanish Armada. Unfortunately, he was charged with job mismanagement and was forced to spend time in prison. It was during his time in prison that de Cervantes began to work on what was to be later deemed some of literature's greatest works, and what is now considered the world's first modern novel.

Question: Put these events in the adult life of author Miguel de Cervantes in order, from first to last.

1. He moved to Rome and debuted his first published works.
2. He joined a Spanish military unit in Italy and served as a soldier for several years.
3. He worked as a commissary and collected grain supplies for the Spanish Armada.
4. He was imprisoned and began to write what would become the world's first modern novel.

Selection: L-21

L-21

Grade level: 12

Word count: 3146 words

Author: Stephen Crane

Synopsis: Four men, trapped in a small boat after their ship sinks, face an uncertain future.

Excerpt: No excerpt is available for this question.

Question: Which best describes the genre of this selection?

1. realistic fiction
2. propaganda
3. fantasy
4. supernatural fiction

Selection: L-13

L-13

Grade level: 12

Word count: 2479 words

Author: Peter Kupfer

Synopsis: Americans are great at producing, marketing, and of course eating junk food.

Excerpt: Junk food -- defined as food with high calories and little nutritional value -- has been around for hundreds of years, in many parts of the world. But no one has done a better job of creating new varieties of it, mass producing it, marketing it, making people rich off it, and, of course, eating it than Americans.

Question: Read this excerpt. What is the author implying about the American attitude toward junk food in the second sentence?

1. The second sentence uses sarcasm to congratulate Americans on excelling at something that is detrimental to health.
2. The second sentence laments the fact that Americans do not embrace new marketing.
3. The second sentence uses facts to show how junk food has no relevance in the market economy.
4. The second sentence employs understatement to argue that junk foods' recent introduction has minimal impact on nutrition.

Selection: L-16

L-16

Grade level: 12

Word count: 1930 words

Author: Erica Cirino

Synopsis: Many historical sites are fragile and need to be protected from modern human activities.

Excerpt: People also benefit from the existence of coral reefs. Coral reefs protect coastlines by absorbing the impact of rough waves before they hit land. This can help prevent erosion and flooding in seaside communities. In addition, chemical compounds found in corals can be used to formulate new types of medicines. Use of coral chemicals for medicinal purposes has led to many discoveries that have improved human health. For instance, Australian chemists have recently found a substance in some corals on the Great Barrier Reef that contains a natural "SPF 50" sunblock that could be used to protect people from skin cancer.

Question: Read this excerpt. If it were part of a news story, how might it be different?

1. It would probably include a quote from one of the Australian chemists described.
2. It would probably be written from a first-person point of view.
3. It would probably be written with a greater sense of emotion.
4. It would probably include a quote from the author of the selection.

Selection: L-8

L-8

Grade level: 12

Word count: 2551 words

Author: President John F. Kennedy

Synopsis: President Kennedy was convinced the Cold War would be won in space.

Excerpt: No excerpt is available for this question.

Question: Who was President Kennedy's real target audience for his September 1962 moon speech?

1. the Soviets
2. Rice University students and faculty
3. Texas state officials
4. astronauts