Selection: F-6

F-6

Grade level: 6

Word count: 1783 words

Author: Mary R. Dunn

Synopsis: Flying high over the countryside, spies in hot air balloons could spot enemy troops.

Excerpt: "My husband has built at least five balloons of different sizes to use as observation posts," explained Mrs. Lowe. "Realizing the need to refuel the balloons frequently, he also invented and operated a portable gas generator that could be transported to positions near the battlefields."

The driver nodded and said, "What did I hear about your sending valuable intelligence reports about Falls Church?"

"That was an exciting encounter. I was in Arlington, Virginia, high above the countryside, and I was able to telegraph intelligence on the Confederate troops so that the Union soldiers could take aim at the enemy and maintain fire on them without even seeing them."

Question: Which two major contributions did Mr. Lowe make to the war effort?

1. He sent valuable information on enemy troop positions.
2. He invented a portable gas generator to fuel balloons.
3. He wounded his arm in a hot air balloon accident.
4. He fired on the enemy without even seeing them.
5. He spent most of his time on a barge in the river.

Selection: F-6

F-6

Grade level: 6

Word count: 1783 words

Author: Mary R. Dunn

Synopsis: Flying high over the countryside, spies in hot air balloons could spot enemy troops.

Excerpt: No excerpt is available for this question.

Question: This selection is mainly about the Civil War and

1. some brave people who help the Union spy on enemy forces.
2. some children who take a hot air balloon ride in Virginia.
3. some Confederate soldiers who are looking for deserters.
4. some farmers who hide spies in their barns.

Selection: F-51

F-51

Grade level: 6

Word count: 1334 words

Author: Barbara D. Krasner

Synopsis: Immigrants to the United States had to pass physical examinations, and a chalk mark on the shoulder indicated their result.

Excerpt: After several hours, the Palmieris approached the inspectors' desks at the back of the Great Hall. A man checked their tags and spoke to Mama in Italian.

The inspector checked her responses against the information on the ship's manifest. He seemed to be satisfied. One official handed "landing cards" to Mama, Angelina, and her sisters. Feeling relief and excitement, they made their way back downstairs and collected their bags.

Question: According to this part in the selection, what is a "landing card"?

1. a document permitting entry into the United States
2. a notation in the passenger list of a ship's manifest
3. a ticket needed to board the ferry to Ellis Island
4. an indication that an immigrant was in good health

Selection: F-15

F-15

Grade level: 6

Word count: 1649 words

Author: Mike Buchanan and Diane Lang

Synopsis: A student visits Honduras, where the water is clear and the people are friendly.

Excerpt: Before a group of classmates and I were to set foot on Roatan, many different cultures had lived there. The most famous early inhabitants of the Bay Islands (as Roatan and its neighbor islands of Guanaja and Utila are called) were the Maya, but other people (called the Paya and Lenca) lived there as well.

In the early 1500s, Christopher Columbus sailed into the area and landed on Guanaja. This was tragic for the gentle native people, who had no defense against the diseases that the explorers brought over from Europe.

For many years, Britain and Spain struggled for control of the Bay Islands, but there was another interesting group of people who lived there. Pirates had stayed on the island we were visiting.

In the following decades, people from the Cayman Islands settled on Roatan. Many of them knew how to fish and found the reefs off the coast of Roatan to be prime fishing areas.

Question: Put the following in the order in which they came to Honduras, starting with the earliest.

1. The Maya settled there.
2. Columbus landed there.
3. Pirates visited there.
4. Cayman Islanders fished there.

Selection: F-3

F-3

Grade level: 6

Word count: 1579 words

Author: Travis J. Best

Synopsis: Jeremy Lin's road to stardom on the basketball court is unique.

Excerpt: Gie-Ming would take Jeremy and his two brothers to the local YMCA to run drills every day after school. He made them practice the same things over and over to perfect them. Bird's picture-perfect jump shot. Magic's kickout passes. Kareem-Abdul Jabbar's famous overhead skyhook, something very rare for a guard to perfect. Gie-Ming pushed them hard, but the boys were game; they could not wait to hit the gym and keep getting better.

Question: Which saying characterized the training Lin received from his dad on the court?

1. Practice makes perfect.
2. First things first.
3. Nice guys finish last.
4. It's what on the inside that counts.

Selection: F-4

F-4

Grade level: 6

Word count: 1740 words

Author: Kelley Sachs

Synopsis: Some scientists believe life could exist on planets outside our solar system.

Excerpt: No excerpt is available for this question.

Question: This selection is mainly about astronomers and

1. how they are learning about newly discovered planets.
2. why they are sure life cannot exist outside our solar system.
3. when they think space travel to exoplanets will be possible.
4. what they are doing to prove all planets revolve around suns.

Selection: F-1

F-1

Grade level: 6

Word count: 1577 words

Author: Tamara Ellis Smith

Synopsis: A new idea for sneaker soles was inspired by a household item.

Excerpt: At that time, six people died while mountain climbing in the Swiss Alps, which was partly due to their improper footwear. This inspired a friend of the climbers to create a new shoe sole.

Two years later, he patented his invention of a rubber sole that resisted abrasion and provided superb traction on all sorts of surfaces. In 1954 the first successful climb of K2, the second highest mountain in the world, was made by hikers wearing shoes with these soles.

Question: Based on this selection, which shoe characteristic is most important for mountain-climbers?

1. traction
2. length
3. price
4. warmth