A Voice for Freedom and Song

Marian Anderson was a world-class singer. By the year 1939, Marian had sung for people around the world, including kings and presidents. Her dream was to sing at Constitution Hall, but, in her mind, she viewed it as something that would never happen. The owners, the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR), would not allow her to sing because she was African-American. 

Marian was used to dealing with people who only saw her for her skin color. When she was younger, she applied to become a student at a music school. She was denied entrance because of her race. In the early 1900s, when Marian began her singing career, segregation still kept African-American people from achieving their goals and dreams. 

Marian performed in 1925 in a voice contest in New York and won. She was able to sing with the New York Philharmonic! She thought doors would start opening for her in the United States, but instead, people foolishly turned her away. Marian traveled to Europe in 1928, and there she became quite popular. 

In 1939, she returned to the United States, but she was still subject to the cruelty and unfairness of racism and segregation. When Marian attempted to sing at Constitution Hall, the DAR had many excuses for why she couldn’t perform. They tried telling her that the dates weren’t available, or that they weren’t booking new performers. Eventually, they told Marian the truth: she couldn’t perform because they only allowed white musicians.

This rejection inspired thousands of people to rally together against the horrible segregation laws that prevented many from hearing Marian’s beautiful voice. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt resigned from the DAR and publicly shamed them for their treatment of African-American performers. Mrs. Roosevelt and her staff arranged a concert at the Lincoln Memorial for Marian to perform. Seventy-five thousand people attended, standing against discrimination and getting to hear Marian sing.

After the DAR incident, Marian took a stand and refused to sing for segregated crowds. She finally achieved her dream of singing at Constitution Hall when the DAR reversed its policy on allowing African-American performers. Marian retired from performing in 1964, the same year that the Civil Rights Act was signed. Along with other brave activists, she used her talents to advocate for justice, and her voice helped create lasting change against racism and segregation in the United States.

What information does the author include to support the inference that the DAR had an issue with African-American performers?

Wanderlust

When I was seven, my father brought home from a business trip, a wooden boomerang painted with images of the Australian flag. All summer long, I carried that gift with me. I was fascinated by this piece of a continent all the way on the other side of the world.  Despite promises that if I threw it would immediately return, I had no intention of throwing it, only carrying and admiring it.  What if it became stuck in a tree or carried away by a stiff wind? There would go my connection to the magical land of kangaroos, barrier reefs, and untold other pieces of wonder.

As I walk the shores of Bondi Beach or watch the tourists purchase kangaroo-themed apparel in my adopted hometown of Sydney, I often think back to that boomerang and the world to which it opened my eyes.  As an airline pilot, I am fortunate to live out my childhood dream – inspired by that boomerang – of exploring faraway lands. Whenever I do, I bring home a trinket for my young daughter such that she might be similarly struck by wanderlust.

What inferences can you make about what the character might do next? What evidence from the text supports your reasoning?

Adapted from Aesop’s The Lion and the Mouse (620-560 BCE)

A Lion lay asleep in the forest, his great head resting on his paws. A timid little Mouse came upon him unexpectedly, and in her fright and haste to get away, ran across Lion's nose. Roused from his nap, the Lion laid his huge paw angrily on the tiny creature to kill her.

"Spare me!" begged the poor Mouse. "Please let me go and someday I will surely repay you."

The Lion was much amused to think that a Mouse could ever help him. But he was generous and finally let the Mouse go.

Some days later, while stalking his prey in the forest, the Lion was caught in the toils of a hunter's net. Unable to free himself, he filled the forest with his angry roaring. The Mouse knew the voice and quickly found the Lion struggling in the net. Running to one of the great ropes that bound him, she gnawed it until it parted, and soon the Lion was free.

"You laughed when I said I would repay you," said the Mouse. "Now you see that even a Mouse can help a Lion."

Which piece of text evidence supports the following inference?

Lion thinks he is better than Mouse.

Adapted from Aesop’s The Lion and the Mouse (620-560 BCE)

A Lion lay asleep in the forest, his great head resting on his paws. A timid little Mouse came upon him unexpectedly, and in her fright and haste to get away, ran across Lion's nose. Roused from his nap, the Lion laid his huge paw angrily on the tiny creature to kill her.

"Spare me!" begged the poor Mouse. "Please let me go, and someday I will surely repay you."

The Lion was much amused to think that a Mouse could ever help him. But he was generous and finally let the Mouse go.

Some days later, while stalking his prey in the forest, the Lion was caught in the toils of a hunter's net. Unable to free himself, he filled the forest with his angry roaring. The Mouse knew the voice and quickly found the Lion struggling in the net. Running to one of the great ropes that bound him, she gnawed it until it parted, and soon the Lion was free.

"You laughed when I said I would repay you," said the Mouse. "Now, you see that even a Mouse can help a Lion."

What inference about Mouse is supported in this passage?

Adapted from "From a Railway Carriage" in A Child's Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson (1885)

Faster than fairies, faster than witches,
Bridges and houses, hedges and ditches;
And charging along like troops in a battle,
All through the meadows the horses and cattle:
All of the sights of the hill and the plain
Fly as thick as driving rain;
And ever again, in the wink of an eye,
Painted stations whistle by.

Here is a child who clambers and scrambles,
All by himself and gathering brambles;
Here is a tramp who stands and gazes;
And there is the green for stringing the daisies!
Here is a cart run away in the road
Lumping along with man and load;
And here is a mill and there is a river:
Each a glimpse and gone for ever!

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Adapted from "Snow Dust" by Robert Frost in The Yale Review (January, 1921)

The way a crow
Shook down on me
The dust of snow
From a hemlock tree

Has given my heart
A change of mood
And saved some part
Of a day I had rued.

The poem "From a Railway Carriage" primarily consists of which of the following?

Passage 1: Adapted from "The Busy Blue Jay" in True Bird Stories from My Notebooks by Olive Thorne Miller (1903). 
The following passage is from a book in which the author talks about raising and releasing into the wild birds that had been captured and sold as pets. 

One of the most interesting birds who ever lived in my Bird Room was a blue jay named Jakie. He was full of business from morning till night, scarcely ever a moment still.

Jays are very active birds, and being shut up in a room, my blue jay had to find things to do, to keep himself busy. If he had been allowed to grow up out of doors, he would have found plenty to do, planting acorns and nuts, nesting, and bringing up families. Sometimes the things he did in the house were what we call mischief because they annoy us, such as hammering the woodwork to pieces, tearing bits out of the leaves of books, working holes in chair seats, or pounding a cardboard box to pieces. But how is a poor little bird to know what is mischief?

One of Jakie’s amusements was dancing across the back of a tall chair, taking funny little steps, coming down hard, “jouncing” his body, and whistling as loud as he could. He would keep up this funny performance as long as anybody would stand before him and pretend to dance, too.

My jay was fond of a sensation. One of his dearest bits of fun was to drive the birds into a panic. This he did by flying furiously around the room, feathers rustling, and squawking as loud as he could. He usually managed to fly just over the head of each bird, and as he came like a catapult, every one flew before him, so that in a minute the room was full of birds flying madly about trying to get out of his way. This gave him great pleasure.

Wild blue jays, too, like to stir up their neighbors. A friend told me of a small party of blue jays that she saw playing this kind of a joke on a flock of birds of several kinds. These birds were gathering the cherries on the top branches of a big cherry tree. The jays sat quietly on another tree till the cherry-eaters were busy eating. Then suddenly the mischievous blue rogues would all rise together and fly at them, as my pet did at the birds in the room. It had the same effect on the wild birds; they all flew in a panic. Then the joking jays would return to their tree and wait till their victims forgot their fear and came straggling back to the cherries, when they repeated the fun.

Which of the following best summarizes the passage?

Passage and table adapted from "Why Leaves Change Color" on "Northeastern Area," a website by the USDA Forest Service. <https://www.na.fs.fed.us/fhp/pubs/leaves/leaves.shtm>.

There are two main types of trees: coniferous trees and deciduous trees. Coniferous trees have small, needle-like leaves. They keep these leaves all year. One example of a coniferous tree is a pine tree, which has green needles during all seasons. In contrast, deciduous trees lose their leaves every autumn. Before these leaves drop and blow away, they change from green to colors like red, orange, yellow, and brown.

Have you ever wondered why deciduous leaves change color in the fall? This color change is caused by a chemical process in the cells of tree leaves.

Green leaves are green because they contain a green molecule, chlorophyll. This is a very important molecule in the natural world. Leaves use this molecule to turn carbon dioxide, sunlight, and water into sugar and oxygen in a process called “photosynthesis.” So, chlorophyll lets the plant store energy as sugar, which it can use as food. It also lets the plant provide food for anything that eats it, like a cow, a bird, or even a human! 

So, what does chlorophyll, a green molecule, have to do with autumn leaf colors? Deciduous leaves also contain molecules of other colors, but the chlorophyll in the leaves covers them up in the summer. In the fall, deciduous trees stop making chlorophyll. Eventually there is no more chlorophyll in their leaves. The colors of the other molecules show through. The colors of these other molecules are the colors we see in autumn leaves. The next time you see colorful leaves in the fall, you’ll know more about the chemistry at work!

Which of the following statements best states the main idea of this passage?

Passage One

Ecuador, in South America, is home to 417 types of frogs and toads. Many of these species, or types of frogs, are at risk of dying out. In the last 50 years, many amphibian species have gone extinct. Salamanders, frogs, and toads are all amphibians. Amphibians are animals that spend part of their life in water and part on land, and have backbones. Amphibians must live near water. Amphibian habitats can be found in forests, woodlots, meadows, springs, wetlands, streams, rivers, lakes, ponds, bogs, marshes. Frogs and toads are in trouble because their habitats are being destroyed as trees are being cut down to make room for farms and roads. Wetland spaces where frogs live are being drained and paved over. As these spaces are removed, the places frogs, toads, and salamanders can live shrink. 

Amphibians also absorb pollution easily, because they breathe through their skin. Amphibians are usually the first to disappear when an environment is under threat from pollution. Due to pollution, some frogs are born with deformed, or wrongly shaped, body parts, such as extra legs and eyes. Frogs with deformed body parts are a clue for scientists that an environment is suffering. Between the destruction of their habitats and risks to frogs from pollution, frogs are at risk of endangerment and extinction. Scientists are working to save amphibians. Scientists want the government to pass laws that protect amphibian habitats and limit pollution. 

Passage Two

My name is Maria and I am an amphibian conservation biologist. This means I am a scientist who studies and protects frogs, toads, and salamanders.  My job is to protect amphibians and their natural habitats, share this knowledge with the public,  and research ways to help reintroduce frogs in captivity back into the wild. I have the best job in the world.  I work in a zoo, but I often travel to places like Brazil to observe amphibians in their natural habitats in the wild. Brazil, for example, has 1,022 different types of frogs, toads and salamanders! In my work at the zoo, I specialize in only a small portion of that number. Here in the zoo, we have many amphibians in our care because some or all of their natural habitats, or homes, were destroyed.  We are not alone in our work to protect amphibians. Many people, in many kinds of jobs, are helping protect amphibians and their habitats. I partner with other scientists and lawyers, like my friend Fernanda,  to help create laws that best support the conservation, or protection, of amphibians. Fernanda is an environmental lawyer who works to create laws that protect diverse wildlife. She, in turn, needs to partner with government workers to help get laws passed. Together, our goal is to work together to build a world where these amphibians have safe space to live outside of the zoo, in their natural habitat, protected from pollution or loss of space. We are working with a facility in Brazil to build a safe wild space for amphibians to be released from the zoo and into a space where they can thrive. The new habitat will be a protected wetland for these amphibians.

What sentence best shows the main idea of passage 1?

Passage One

Ecuador, in South America, is home to 417 types of frogs and toads. Many of these species, or types of frogs, are at risk of dying out. In the last 50 years, many amphibian species have gone extinct. Salamanders, frogs, and toads are all amphibians. Amphibians are animals that spend part of their life in water and part on land, and have backbones. Amphibians must live near water. Amphibian habitats can be found in forests, woodlots, meadows, springs, wetlands, streams, rivers, lakes, ponds, bogs, marshes. Frogs and toads are in trouble because their habitats are being destroyed as trees are being cut down to make room for farms and roads. Wetland spaces where frogs live are being drained and paved over. As these spaces are removed, the places frogs, toads, and salamanders can live shrink. 

Amphibians also absorb pollution easily, because they breathe through their skin. Amphibians are usually the first to disappear when an environment is under threat from pollution. Due to pollution, some frogs are born with deformed, or wrongly shaped, body parts, such as extra legs and eyes. Frogs with deformed body parts are a clue for scientists that an environment is suffering. Between the destruction of their habitats and risks to frogs from pollution, frogs are at risk of endangerment and extinction. Scientists are working to save amphibians. Scientists want the government to pass laws that protect amphibian habitats and limit pollution. 

Passage Two

My name is Maria and I am an amphibian conservation biologist. This means I am a scientist who studies and protects frogs, toads, and salamanders.  My job is to protect amphibians and their natural habitats, share this knowledge with the public,  and research ways to help reintroduce frogs in captivity back into the wild. I have the best job in the world.  I work in a zoo, but I often travel to places like Brazil to observe amphibians in their natural habitats in the wild. Brazil, for example, has 1,022 different types of frogs, toads and salamanders! In my work at the zoo, I specialize in only a small portion of that number. Here in the zoo, we have many amphibians in our care because some or all of their natural habitats, or homes, were destroyed.  We are not alone in our work to protect amphibians. Many people, in many kinds of jobs, are helping protect amphibians and their habitats. I partner with other scientists and lawyers, like my friend Fernanda,  to help create laws that best support the conservation, or protection, of amphibians. Fernanda is an environmental lawyer who works to create laws that protect diverse wildlife. She, in turn, needs to partner with government workers to help get laws passed. Together, our goal is to work together to build a world where these amphibians have safe space to live outside of the zoo, in their natural habitat, protected from pollution or loss of space. We are working with a facility in Brazil to build a safe wild space for amphibians to be released from the zoo and into a space where they can thrive. The new habitat will be a protected wetland for these amphibians.

Which sentence shows evidence that supports the main idea of passage 1?

Passage One

Ecuador, in South America, is home to 417 types of frogs and toads. Many of these species, or types of frogs, are at risk of dying out. In the last 50 years, many amphibian species have gone extinct. Salamanders, frogs, and toads are all amphibians. Amphibians are animals that spend part of their life in water and part on land, and have backbones. Amphibians must live near water. Amphibian habitats can be found in forests, woodlots, meadows, springs, wetlands, streams, rivers, lakes, ponds, bogs, marshes. Frogs and toads are in trouble because their habitats are being destroyed as trees are being cut down to make room for farms and roads. Wetland spaces where frogs live are being drained and paved over. As these spaces are removed, the places frogs, toads, and salamanders can live shrink. 

Amphibians also absorb pollution easily, because they breathe through their skin. Amphibians are usually the first to disappear when an environment is under threat from pollution. Due to pollution, some frogs are born with deformed, or wrongly shaped, body parts, such as extra legs and eyes. Frogs with deformed body parts are a clue for scientists that an environment is suffering. Between the destruction of their habitats and risks to frogs from pollution, frogs are at risk of endangerment and extinction. Scientists are working to save amphibians. Scientists want the government to pass laws that protect amphibian habitats and limit pollution. 

Passage Two

My name is Maria and I am an amphibian conservation biologist. This means I am a scientist who studies and protects frogs, toads, and salamanders.  My job is to protect amphibians and their natural habitats, share this knowledge with the public,  and research ways to help reintroduce frogs in captivity back into the wild. I have the best job in the world.  I work in a zoo, but I often travel to places like Brazil to observe amphibians in their natural habitats in the wild. Brazil, for example, has 1,022 different types of frogs, toads and salamanders! In my work at the zoo, I specialize in only a small portion of that number. Here in the zoo, we have many amphibians in our care because some or all of their natural habitats, or homes, were destroyed.  We are not alone in our work to protect amphibians. Many people, in many kinds of jobs, are helping protect amphibians and their habitats. I partner with other scientists and lawyers, like my friend Fernanda,  to help create laws that best support the conservation, or protection, of amphibians. Fernanda is an environmental lawyer who works to create laws that protect diverse wildlife. She, in turn, needs to partner with government workers to help get laws passed. Together, our goal is to work together to build a world where these amphibians have safe space to live outside of the zoo, in their natural habitat, protected from pollution or loss of space. We are working with a facility in Brazil to build a safe wild space for amphibians to be released from the zoo and into a space where they can thrive. The new habitat will be a protected wetland for these amphibians.

What sentence from passage 1 best supports the idea that frogs are amphibians?