TEST NAME:Reading Lit. 4.3 4.4 TEST ID:1960832 GRADE:04 - Fourth Grade SUBJECT:English Language and Literature TEST CATEGORY: School Assessment Reading Lit. 4.3 4.4 Page 1 of 8
10/20/17, Reading Lit. 4.3 4.4 Student: Class: Date: Energy Story: The Tale of Fern Energy Story: The Tale of Fern Once upon a time, a beautiful fern tree grew in a swamp. All day, she soaked up sunlight and stored it in her fronds. 1 The sun s energy helped her grow tall. The biggest frond was Fern. Every day she stretched closer to the sun. She was proud to be the tallest frond on the tree. One day, the sky grew dark, and a strong wind blew. The other fronds huddled together. They gave each other strength. But Fern was too high. She was all alone. There were no fronds tall enough to help her. The wind blew harder, and Fern s stem snapped. She fell from the tree into the dark water. Fern sank to the bottom of the swamp. She thought her journey was over. Nature had a different plan for Fern. For a long time, she lay in the swamp. More plants fell into the water. They covered Fern like a blanket. After many years, the water dried up, and the swamp turned into land. Dinosaurs roamed over the earth. Fern lay under the ground, buried deeper and deeper. The weight of the dirt and the heat of the earth changed Fern. She was no longer green. She lost her leafy shape. But she still had the sun s energy stored in her. Fern had turned into a shiny black rock full of energy. She was a piece of coal. Fern and many other plants were now a big seam 2 of coal buried under the ground. One day, a big machine dug into the earth. It took away the dirt on top of the coal. It lifted Fern from the earth and put her into a huge truck. She was taken to a building where she was washed, then put on a train. The train chugged through the night to a power plant. Fern was put into a boiler and burned. Her energy produced a lot of heat. The power plant used Fern s energy to make electricity. It traveled through a power line to a house. A little boy turned on a light so that he could read. The energy that Fern had gotten from the sun millions of years ago was lighting the night. Fern had traveled a long way. 3 1 2 3 fronds: large leaves seam: a line boiler: a heat source that generates steam or other vapors for energy National Energy Education Development Project. Reading Lit. 4.3 4.4 Page 2 of 8
http://need.org/needpdf/january2001newsletter.pdf (03/18/2013). 1. Which detail from the selection shows that Fern s journey was not over when she fell into the swamp? A. Nature had a different plan for Fern. B. After many years, the water dried up, and the swamp turned into land. C. One day, a big machine dug into the earth. D. The train chugged through the night to a power plant. 2. Based on the selection, what did Fern keep throughout her journey? A. her fronds B. the sun s energy C. her very tall stem D. the dirt and heat of the earth 3. Based on the series of events in the selection, what had Fern become when she was dug out of the earth? A. a piece of coal B. a clump of dirt C. a beautiful tree D. a miniature leaf Reading Lit. 4.3 4.4 Page 3 of 8
4. Which detail from the selection shows how Fern felt when she landed in the swamp? A. Fern thought her journey was over. B. Fern was all alone when the wind blew. C. Fern was proud to be the tallest frond on the tree. D. Fern drew her strength from the energy stored inside her. 5. Which sentence from the selection describes the time setting? A. All day, she soaked up sunlight and stored it in her fronds. B. One day, the sky grew dark, and a strong wind blew. C. After many years, the water dried up, and the swamp turned into land. D. The energy that Fern had gotten from the sun millions of years ago was lighting the night. 6. Based on the selection, which event caused Fern to fall to the bottom of the swamp? A. The plants fell into the water and covered Fern. B. The wind blew harder, and Fern s stem snapped. C. The water dried up, and the swamp turned into land. D. The heat and dirt of the earth changed Fern from green. Grandpa Joe Grandpa Joe by J.T. Waite Grandpa? Jake said shyly. Jake wasn t usually shy when it came to asking his grandfather about how things Reading Lit. 4.3 4.4 Page 4 of 8
were back in the olden days. But asking his grandfather about his grandfather seemed strange. Way back when you were little, did you have a grandpa too? Sure, Grandpa laughed. Even way back then, we had grandparents. All we were waiting for was someone to invent uncles and aunts! That s silly! Jake said. I suppose it is, Grandpa admitted, but it s true. Uncle Sam didn t come along for years and years. And Aunt 2 Jemima wasn t even in the planning stages. Grandpa! Grandpa smiled, Sure, he said, I had a grandpa. I had two grandpas, just like you. But Pop and Nana, my dad s folks, lived in Michigan, and I only saw them in the summer. My Grandpa Joe and my Grandma Jean were right here in town. I saw them almost every day. Like I see you? Jake said. Yup. Was he like you, Grandpa? Jake asked. Your Grandpa Joe? You mean old and wrinkled? 1 No! Jake laughed. I mean nice. He was the nicest man I ever knew, Grandpa said without a moment s hesitation. Everybody liked my Grandpa Joe. Why, he could make a weeping willow dry its tears and laugh out loud. 3 C mon! Jake said. That s impossible. For you or me maybe, Grandpa said. But my Grandpa Joe had a way with people. Made em smile. Was he a comedian? Jake asked. Like on TV? No, Grandpa chuckled. Besides, they didn t have TV back then. No TV? Jake cried. Hard to believe, isn t it? Grandpa said. But somehow they survived. What did he do? You mean without TV? No! Jake laughed. What did he do for a living? Lots of different things, Grandpa said. He was a glass maker as a young man, then a mechanic, and finally a night watchman. A glass maker? He made glass for windows in a factory downtown in Pennsylvania. Spent almost a dozen years there doing that. Sent most of what he earned back home to his mom. Then he moved up here, married my grandmother, and got a job as a mechanic for the Electric Company. He could fix pretty near anything mechanical, my Grandpa Joe. And when he got too old for that, he became the night watchman at the same plant. A night watchman isn t a very important job, is it? To some, maybe not, Grandpa said. But Grandpa Joe did lots of important things. He taught me how to fish. He taught me how to whistle with two fingers in my mouth. He taught me how to make a fort out of old boxes in Reading Lit. 4.3 4.4 Page 5 of 8
the backyard. You liked him a lot, didn t you? Jake said. Grandpa smiled. Not a day goes by that I don t think about him. And the thing I remember most is that he always had time for me. You always have time for me, Grandpa. Jake smiled. You see, Grandpa said, reaching down to tousle Jake s unruly hair, I guess my Grandpa Joe taught me that s a grandpa s most important job. 1 2 3 Uncle Sam: a symbol from the 1800s used to represent the United States Aunt Jemima: a symbol from the 1900s used to represent pancake mix weeping willow: a tree with branches that droop Grandpa Joe by J.T. Waite from Boys Quest, February/March 2006, Vol. 11. Copyright 2006. Reprinted by permission of Boys Quest magazine. 7. In paragraph 14, what does Grandpa mean when he says, But my Grandpa Joe had a way with people. Made em smile? A. Grandpa Joe was a dentist who repaired smiles. B. Grandpa Joe was always smiling at others. C. Grandpa Joe s magic made people excited. D. Grandpa Joe was friendly and made people happy. 8. Based on paragraph 10, which word is similar to mean? A. angry B. unkind C. intend D. cause 9. Which statement supports the main idea of this selection? A. People should spend more time working than with family. B. People should spend more time with family than working. C. People should spend more time fishing than building forts. D. People should spend more time building forts than fishing. Reading Lit. 4.3 4.4 Page 6 of 8
10. In paragraph 14, what does Grandpa mean when he says, But my Grandpa Joe had a way with people. Made em smile? A. Grandpa Joe was a dentist who repaired smiles. B. Grandpa Joe was always smiling at others. C. Grandpa Joe s magic made people excited. D. Grandpa Joe was friendly and made people happy. 11. Which word describes Jake s Grandpa? A. busy B. shy C. lazy D. caring 12. How does Jake feel about his Grandpa spending time with him? A. irritated B. angry C. fortunate D. bored 13. How are Grandpa Joe and Jake s grandpa alike? A. Both spent a lot of time with their grandsons. B. Both worked as glass makers and mechanics. C. Both wanted someone to invent aunts and uncles. D. Both had important jobs when they were young. Reading Lit. 4.3 4.4 Page 7 of 8
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