1. Choose the answer that best matches the word in italics.

Question

The dogs would often skulk about the camp. (1 point)
They would fight for leadership.
They would bury themselves in the snow.
They would move secretively, often looking for food.
They would walk in a bad-tempered or annoyed way.
2. Choose the answer that best matches the word in italics.

If your enjoyment of sports is vicarious, you (1 point)
take part in many different activities.
are picky in what you choose to play.
enjoy watching others play.
avoid them because you find them boring.
3. Choose the answer that best matches the word in italics.

John offered his wife a red rose as a sign of appeasement for their earlier disagreement. This means he wants (1 point)
to demonstrate the disagreement is unresolved.
to please her by giving her something she likes.
to show that he doesn't regret the fight.
to express mixed emotions after the fight.
4. Choose the answer that best matches the word in italics.

Michael scanned his clean room one last time before he left, remembering how his mother always called him fastidious. (1 point)
easy to distract
attentive to details
impulsive and hard to predict
slow and always running late
5. In The Call of the Wild, when Buck is first kidnapped, all of the following occur except (1 point)
he gets sold for money.
he gets attacked by other dogs.
he gets beaten by the man in the red sweater.
he gets caged in a train’s baggage car.
6. In The Call of the Wild, when John Thornton threatens Hal against beating Buck any further, the conflict can best be described as (1 point)
man vs. man.
man vs. himself.
man vs. nature.
man vs. society.
7. Which of the following sentences illustrates that The Call of the Wild is in third-person omniscient narration? (1 point)
“You ain’t going to take him out now?”
“I’m takin’ ‘im up for the boss to ‘Frisco.’”
“Buck did not read the newspapers, or he would have known that trouble was brewing, not alone for himself, but for every tide-water dog. . .”
“It’ll be because you was born to hang, laughed the saloon-keeper. Here, lend me a hand before you pull your freight, he added.”
8. The background detail provided in the text describing Buck hunting with the Judges’ sons is an example of which literary element? (1 point)
climax
conflict
exposition
rising action
The High School Step Team

Karla’s cousin Jade urged her to join the step team. “This afternoon you should definitely try out!” Jade suggested after the final bell rang.

“I know she wants the best for me,” Karla thought to herself, “but I’m not sure I’d be any good, and I’d feel embarrassed if I messed up in front of others.” Karla had seen step teams in action: they stomped, they clapped, and they performed all kinds of skillful, synchronized moves.

“Our team is not as amazing as professional steppers, but we have a lot of fun!” Jade said. “Also, if you join the team, you will instantly have forty new friends!”

“I like the idea of forty new friends,” Karla thought to herself. “Still, I’m worried about bringing up my math grade. I’d better play it safe for now," she decided.

“I really appreciate your concern, but I’ve got to say no thanks for now,” Karla told Jade. “I’m going for after-school help in math.”

As Karla turned away from Jade and walked down the hall towards the math class, she pictured her cousin shrugging her shoulders. “Okay, do whatever you think is best,” Jade said. “I’ll see you at home.”

Karla went to the after-school math session. The work was challenging, and she had to concentrate. The teacher said nice things to Karla about her efforts to grasp the ideas they were studying. “And yet,” Karla thought, “I still have a lot of work and study ahead of me.” When the after-school math session ended, Karla peeked into the gym.

“Hey, that’s my cousin!” Jade cried out. “Come on over here, Karla.”

Forty male and female students stopped in mid-routine to look at Karla. Too embarrassed to refuse, she joined one of the lines.

Karla soon learned that stepping requires a lot of mental energy. “It’s something like math,” she thought silently, “but not exactly the same. I have to connect my brain to my body, and make it move or stop at exactly the right moment. The key here is to execute every movement skillfully.” Very soon, Karla had mastered the team’s trademark “slap–finger snap–slap–slap–stomp.”

That night, Karla got back to work on math. At first, she felt guilty about the time spent in the gym. Then she reminded herself of the old saying, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” An English teacher once told her the origins of this cliché go all the way back to ancient Egypt.

As Karla worked, she was surprised to find that she suddenly understood her algebra problems better than she had before. “There must be some carry-over effect from step practice,” she concluded. The concentration and focus that she exercised in step team practice seemed to help her focus more clearly on her math. Karla smiled as she thought, “Who would have guessed that spending time with a step team might be more helpful to my math grade than spending time on math work?”

Later, Karla was as much a member of the step team as anybody. “I don’t feel the least bit embarrassed anymore,” she told Jade. “When I am stepping, I feel completely focused on the rhythm of the team and working together with my ‘forty new friends.’ As an added bonus, my math work now seems much easier.”
Use the passage to answer the question.
9. Which is the main way the author of "The High School Step Team" reveals Jade’s character to readers? (1 point)
by describing Jade's appearance
by describing Jade's thoughts
by what Jade says and what Karla thinks about Jade
by what other characters say to Jade and how they act around Karla
The Invitation

Before school, Michelle arrived at her locker outside Mrs. Harper’s English class. Just inside the door Aisha and Tasha were standing at the pencil sharpener. Mr. Carver was across the hall helping a student with a math problem.

“Tasha,” Aisha said. “Jeremy invited me to go sledding down Robin’s Hill with a bunch of his friends Saturday and said I could invite someone. You want to come?”

“I don't know. I hate the cold, and besides, I’m not sure I like sledding. Why don’t you ask Michelle?”

Michelle listened as she stood out in the quiet hallway.

“Michelle?” Aisha said. “Oh, I don’t know. She and Jeremy don’t get along very well.” Aisha and Tasha began walking back to their seats and out of Michelle’s earshot.

Michelle did not walk anywhere right then. Her mind was elsewhere.

At lunch Aisha and Tasha sat at a table in the cafeteria. Michelle walked up with her tray and joined them. “So, I hear you’re going sledding,” Michelle said to Aisha.

Use the passage to answer the question.
10. How does the author of "The Invitation" mainly reveal Michelle's character? (1 point)
through Aisha's actions
through Michelle's thoughts
through Tasha's thoughts
through a direct description from the narrator
11. The author of The Call of the Wild shifts the setting from California to Alaska in order to (1 point)
depict how Buck becomes a tough survivor.
illustrate how money can change a character’s perspective.
show John Thornton’s values remain unchanged even under difficult conditions.
contrast the political climate of the two states during the Gold Rush of the 1800s.
12. In The Call of the Wild, Buck’s abduction from his home in California is an example of (1 point)
dialect.
theme.
point of view.
rising action.
13. Which of the following statements would not be a main theme in The Call of the Wild? (1 point)
Always trust your gut.
Only the strong survive.
We are driven by our ancient animal instincts.
The beast within us all will come out under the right circumstance.
14. Which of the following lines from Call of the Wild best supports one of the themes? (1 point)
“For the pride of trace and trail was his, and, sick unto death, he could not bear that another dog should do his work.”
“He knew he was at last answering the call, running by the side of his wood brother toward the place from where the call surely came.”
“As twilight fell the old bull stood with lowered head, watching his mates—the cows he had known, the calves he had fathered, the bulls he had mastered—as they shambled on at a rapid pace through the fading light.”
“Here a yellow stream flows from rotted moose-hide sacks and sinks into the ground, with long grasses growing through it and vegetable mould overrunning it and hiding its yellow from the sun; and here he muses for a time, howling once, long and mournfully, ere he departs.”
15. Which of the following from The Call of the Wild most effectively conveys the development of Buck as a character? (1 point)
Buck’s actions
Buck’s dialogue
others’ feelings about Buck
others’ dialogue about Buck
16. In The Call of the Wild, Curly was killed because (1 point)
she refused to submit to the man with the club.
she was friendly and did not see the danger in the other dogs.
she could no longer keep up with the team, though she tried.
she was defending John’s camp when the intruders came and killed everyone.
17. Choose the answer that best matches the word in italics.

The Army recruit picked up his pace because he did not want the sergeant to think he was a malingerer. (1 point)
lazy person
slow person
weak person
confused person
18. Choose the answer that best matches the word in italics.

Princess Diana was loved by many because she was not seen as imperious. (1 point)
arrogant
inexperienced
exploitive
closed-minded
19. In The Call of the Wild, the man with the red sweater most likely represents (1 point)
violence.
growing older.
Alaska’s gold rush.
lust for money and power.