Cody liked the freedom that came with his first summer job. He worked at Mitchell's Farm, where people could come and pick their own corn, berries, and tomatoes out in the fields. Then they'd bring their produce to the checkout stand, where Cody would weigh it and charge the appropriate price. Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell were usually busy somewhere else, so Cody was trusted to manage the stand by himself.
For the most part, Cody enforced the Mitchells' rules. When someone asked for a discount or a sample, Cody said no. But he did sometimes bend the rules for friends, much to their delight.
"Go ahead, taste a few berries before I weigh 'em," he'd say when it was someone he knew. It was against the rules to eat something before you bought it, but everyone wanted to.
One day, a man came to the stand with a bushel of corn he had picked. Cody weighed the ears of corn and told the man how much it cost. The man looked confused.
"But I was here yesterday, and you told someone that for every five ears you buy, you get one free," he said.
Cody remembered. He had indeed offered that deal to the Thomases, who happened to be his neighbors. Now he regretted it. He saw Mrs. Mitchell baling hay close by. How was Cody going to explain that he had given a deal to those he knew while he made everyone else pay full price?
The man saw that Cody was looking at Mrs. Mitchell. "Is that the owner? May I speak to her?" he asked.
Cody thought about offering the man the same discount, but there were people in line behind him, and they were carrying corn, too. Cory hung his head and walked over to see Mrs. Mitchell.
Which of the following best describes the main theme or lesson of the story?
(1 point)
Responses
Hard work pays off.
Hard work pays off.
Rules should be applied fairly.
Rules should be applied fairly.
People should mind their own business.
People should mind their own business.
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7 answers
The best description of the main theme or lesson of the story is:
Rules should be applied fairly.
The story highlights Cody's struggle with applying the rules inconsistently, as he offers discounts to friends but not to others, leading to a sense of unfairness.
The sentence that displays correct subject-verb agreement is:
My collection of stamps is extensive.
In this sentence, "collection" is a singular subject, and the verb "is" correctly agrees with it.
The student's text is not considered plagiarized, but it does closely resemble the source material. Here are some key points to consider:
Paraphrasing: The student has rephrased the original sentence from the source, changing "Anyone who has experienced firsthand the overwhelming power of the life-sized painted bulls and horses" to "If you've seen the ancient paintings." While the essence of the idea is maintained, the language and structure have been altered.
Originality: Although the student text captures the main idea of the original source, it does not use the exact wording, which is a sign of paraphrasing. However, it may still be viewed as too similar to the original text without a citation.
Attribution: The student text does not provide a citation or reference to Jared Diamond's work. To avoid plagiarism, it would be essential for the student to either properly cite the source or significantly distill the information further into their own original writing.
In summary, while the student's text is not verbatim from the source, it lacks proper attribution, which is critical for avoiding plagiarism. The best practice would be to include a citation or credit the source when using the ideas, even if phrased differently.
The sentence that uses a comma to separate two independent clauses is:
Stu likes cake, but I like brownies.
In this sentence, "Stu likes cake" and "I like brownies" are both independent clauses, and the comma before "but" correctly separates them.
