1. READING ACTIVITIES

3. “A Mystery”
Directions: Read the story. Then answer the questions below.
“Something is very wrong,” says the detective.
“I know!” says Ms. Gervis. “It is wrong that someone has stolen from me!”
The detective looks around Ms. Gervis’ apartment. “That is not what I am talking
about, ma’am. What is wrong is that I do not understand how the robber got in
and out.”
Ms. Gervis and the detective stand in silence. Ms. Gervis’ eyes are full of tears.
Her hands are shaking.
“The robber did not come through the window,” says the detective. “These
windows have not been opened or shut in months.”
The detective looks at the fireplace. “The robber did not squeeze down here.”
The detective walks to the front door. He examines the latch. “And since there
are no marks or scratches, the robber definitely did not try to break the lock.”
“I have no idea how he did it,” says a bothered Ms. Gervis. “It is a big mystery.”
“And you say the robber stole nothing else?” asks the detective. “No money, no
jewelry, no crystal?”
“That’s right, detective. He took only what was important to me,” Ms. Gervis says
with a sigh. “There is only one thing I can do now.”
“And what is that?” the detective asks with surprise.
“I will stop baking cakes,” Ms. Gervis says. “They are mine to give away. They
are not for someone to steal.”
“You can’t do that!” says the detective with alarm. “Who will bake those delicious
cakes?”
“I am sorry. I do not know,” says Ms. Gervis.
“I must solve this case immediately!” says the detectiv

4. 1) Where does this story take place?
A. in a bakery
B. at the police station
C. in Ms. Gervis' house
D. in Ms. Gervis' apartment
2) Near the beginning of the story,
“Ms. Gervis’ eyes are full of tears.
Her hands are shaking.” How does
Ms. Gervis probably feel?
A. She is upset.
B. She is tired.
C. She is hungry.
D. She is confused.
3) What makes the detective sure that
the robber did not come through the
windows?
A. The windows are locked.
B. The windows face the police
station.
C. The windows have not been
used in months.
D. The windows are too small for a
person to fit through.
4) "And the robber definitely did not
use the front door." Which is the
best way to rewrite this sentence?
A. "And the robber may not have
used the front door."
B. "And the robber probably did not
use the front door."
C. "And the robber was not able to
D. "And the robber certainly did not

5. 5) What else could the detective have asked Ms
5) What else could the detective have asked Ms. Gervis in order to solve the mystery?
I. Which types of cakes does Ms.
Gervis know how to bake?
II. Does someone else have a key to the apartment?
III. Does Ms. Gervis ever leave the door unlocked?
A. I only
B. I and II
C. II and III
D. I, II, and III
6) What does Ms. Gervis do with her cakes?
A. She eats them.
B. She sells them.
C. She hides them.
D. She gives them away.Questions (continued)
7) What does the detective seem to think will happen if he solves the mystery?
A. Ms. Gervis will start baking cakes again
B. Ms. Gervis will bake him extra cakes
C. Ms. Gervis will give him her secret recipe
D. Ms. Gervis will give him money and jewels
8) What is a mystery?
A. something that is wrong
B. something that happens at night
C. something a robber leaves behind
D. something that cannot be explained
9) What else was stolen from the apartment?
A. crystal
B. jewelry
C. money
D. nothing
10) If something is said with alarm, how is it said?
A. with fear and panic
B. with bells and whistles
C. with smiles and laughter
D. with sadness and tears

6. The Yellow Ribbon
Once upon a time, in the fields of Michigan, there was a boy named Johnny, he was a very
Friendly boy , and a girl named Jenny.
Jenny was a very nice girl and she always wore a yellow ribbon around her neck.
Johnny asked Jenny, "Why do you wear that yellow ribbon?"
Jenny would say, "I can't tell you that now, maybe later."
Johnny and Jenny grew up together, but he never saw her without that yellow ribbon.
When they were teenagers, he asked her every day, "Why do you wear that yellow ribbon?"
And Jenny would say, "I can't tell you that now, maybe later."
When they were all grown up, Johnny and Jenny fell and love and got married.
On their wedding day, Jenny wore a beautiful white dress and
a yellow ribbon around her neck.
Johnny asked her, "Why do you wear that yellow ribbon?" Jenny said,
"I can't tell you that now, maybe later."
Jenny and Johnny lived together for a very long time and had a very happy life.
Jenny always wore her yellow ribbon around her neck.
One day, when they were both very, very old,
he asked Jenny, "Why do you wear that yellow ribbon?"
Jenny sighed and said, "I guess it's time to show you.
If you want to, you can untie it." Johnny's hands trembled as he reached for the ends
of the yellow ribbon and slowly untied it.
Carefully, he pulled the ends of the ribbon away from Jenny's neck…
and her head fell off!

8. Reading comprehension The Yellow Ribbon
What´s the setting of the story?
_______________________
Describe the characters:
Johnny:________________________________
Jenny:_________________________________
What´s the problem in the story?
__________________________________________________________________________________________.
How did the story end? _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________.

9. At the Movies Reading Comprehension
Directions: Read the passage. Then answer the questions below.
At the Movies
It was one of those terribly hot days in Baltimore. We always had
those for about a month between July and August. They were the days
that were so hot that they made you regret ever wishing it would be
summer. That day in particular was hotter than I could remember it being.
The weatherman on the radio said it would get up to 104°!
Needless to say, it was too hot to do anything outside. But it was also scorching in our apartment. This was 1962, and I would not live in a
place with an air conditioner for another ten years. So my brother and I decided to leave the apartment to
find someplace indoors. I suggested the drug store, because I wanted to get a soda or malt. But he reminded me that the drug store would not let you sit there all day, especially once the afternoon rush started.
My brother instead suggested we could see a movie. It was a brilliant plan.
Movie theaters were one of the few places you could sit all day and—most important—sit in air
conditioning. In those days, you could buy one ticket and sit through both movies of a double feature.
Then, the theater would show the same two movies again after that. If you wanted to, you could sit
through them twice. Most people did not do that, but the manager at our theater, Mr. Bellow, did not mind
if you did.
That particular day, my brother and I sat through both movies twice, trying to escape the heat. We
bought three bags of popcorn and three sodas each. Then, we sat and watched The Music Man followed
by The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. We’d already seen the second movie once before. It had been at
the theater since January, because Mr. Bellow loved anything with John Wayne in it. Watching it again
was better than going outside, and at least The Music Man was new to us.
We left the theater around 8, just before the evening shows began. Mr. Bellow was expecting a
big crowd for the premier of Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm, so he insisted that we leave. But we
returned the next day and saw the same two movies again, twice more. And we did it the next day too.
Finally, on the fourth day, the heat wave broke.
Still, to this day I can sing half the songs in The Music Man and quote half of John Wayne and
Jimmy Stewart’s dialogue from The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance! Those memories are some of the few
I have of the heat wave of 1962, and they’re not really my memories. They’re really memories of the
screen, not memories of my life.

10. 1) Based on its use in paragraph 2, the word scorching most nearly means
A. very hot
B. very dry
C. very humid
D. very affordable
2) According to the passage, when did the narrator first live in a place with an air conditioner?
A. 1952
B. 1962
C. 1972
D. 1982
3) It can be assumed from the passage that the narrator saw The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
A. three times
B. five times
C. six times
D. more than six time }
4) Which of the following statements best explains why the narrator and his or her brother chose to see
the same movies multiple times?
A. The drug store would not let them inside.
B. They wanted to avoid the heat outside.
C. The manager at the theater was friendly.
D. They were huge fans of John Wayne.
5) What does the narrator mean when he or she writes that the memories are “not really my memories”
in the final paragraph?
A. that he or she is remembering scenes from a film, not scenes from his or her life
B. that the only days of the summer of 1962 that he or she remembers are those days spent in the
movie theater
C. that the memories are actually those of the narrator’s brother, not the narrator himself or herself
D. that he or she saw the films too many times and now can only remember what happened in them
6) In this passage, we learn about someone who watches the same movies over and over. Is there any
movie or show that you have seen multiple times? Why did you watch it so much? Do you still
remember specific scenes or dialogue from it? What made you remember those things? Explain.

11. Directions: Read the passage. Then answer the questions below.
Fleas are perfectly designed by nature to feast on anything containing blood. Like a shark in the
water or a wolf in the woods, fleas are ideally equipped to do what they do, making them very difficult to
defeat. The bodies of these tiny parasites are extremely hardy and well-suited for their job.
A flea has a very hard exoskeleton, which means the body is covered by a tough, tile-like plate
called a sclerite.
Because of these plates, fleas are almost impossible to squish. The exoskeletons of
fleas are also waterproof and shock resistant, and therefore fleas are highly resistant to the sprays and
chemicals used to kill them.
Little spines are attached to this plate. The spines lie flat against the flea’s thin, narrow body as
the flea scurries through an animal’s fur in search of food. However, if anything (like fingers or
a self grooming pet) tries to pull a flea off through the hair coat, these spines will extend and stick to the fur like
Velcro.
Fleas are some of the best jumpers in the natural world. A flea can jump seven inches, or 150
times its own length, either vertically or horizontally. An equivalent jump for a person would be 555 feet,
the height of the Washington Monument. Fleas can jump 30,000 times in a row without stopping, and they
are able to accelerate through the air at an incredibly high rate—a rate which is over ten times what
humans can withstand in an airplane.
Fleas have very long rear legs with huge thigh muscles and multiple joints. When they get ready
to jump, they fold their long legs up and crouch like a runner on a starting block. Several of their joints
contain a protein called resilin, which helps catapult fleas into the air as they jump, similar to the way a
rubber band provides momentum to a slingshot. Outward facing claws on the bottom of their legs grip
anything they touch when they land.
The adult female flea mates after her first blood meal and begins producing eggs in just 1 to 2
days. One flea can lay up to 50 eggs in one day and over 2,000 in her lifetime. Flea eggs can be seen
with the naked eye, but they are about the size of a grain of salt. Shortly after being laid, the eggs begin
to transform into cocoons. In the cocoon state, fleas are fully developed adults, and will hatch immediately
if conditions are favorable.
Fleas can detect warmth, movement, and carbon dioxide in exhaled breath,
and these three factors stimulate them to emerge as new adults. If the flea does not detect appropriate
conditions, it can remain dormant in the cocoon state for extended periods. Under ideal conditions, the
entire life cycle may only take 3 weeks, so in no time at all, pets and homes can become infested.
Because of these characteristics, fleas are intimidating opponents. The best way to control fleas,
therefore, is to take steps to prevent an infestation from ever occurring.

12. 1) The primary purpose of the passage is to
A. educate the reader about the physical characteristics of fleas
B. compare fleas to other members of the animal kingdom
C. relate the problems that can result from a flea infestation
D. explain why a flea infestation is hard to get rid of
2) The author’s tone in the passage is best described as
A. concerned
B. passionate
C. informative
D. opinionated
3) According to the passage, fleas are resistant to sprays and chemicals because they
A. have waterproof sclerites
B. are excellent jumpers
C. reproduce very rapidly
D. can stick to fur like Velcro
4) Fleas are difficult to squish because they have
I. sclerites
II. tough spines
III. resilin in their joints
A. I only
B. I and II only
C. II and III only
D. I, II, and III
5) According to the passage, which of the following statements is true?
A. Fleas extend their little spines if threatened.
B. Fleas have the ability to jump higher than humans.
C. Humans can jump higher if they consume foods containing resilin.
D. The resilin found in fleas is used to make rubber bands

13. 6) According to the passage, fleas are able to jump
I. with a high rate of acceleration
II. up and down and from side to side
III. because the blood they eat contains resilin
A. I only
B. I and II only
C. II and III only
D. I, II, and III © Copyright Read Theory LLC, All rights reserved. 3
7) Based on information in the passage, the reader can understand that
A. fleas will die without access to blood
B. fleas survive at a higher rate in outdoor habitats
C. fleas will die after they produce 2,000 eggs
D. newly hatched fleas are the size
8) The author mentions the Washington Monument in order to
A. estimate the extreme distance that a flea is able to jump
B. illustrate a comparison made between fleas and humans
C. clarify a point made regarding fleas and acceleration
D. demonstrate the superiority of fleas over humans
9) It can be inferred that fleas will emerge from eggs as adults
A. when they outgrow the cocoon
B. after a period of 3 weeks
C. when they sense there is access to blood
D. if there is too much carbon dioxide in the cocoon
10) Using the information in the passage as a guide, it can be concluded that
A. humans do not possess the physical characteristics of the flea because they have no use for
them
B. humans do not pay much attention to fleas because they do not pose a serious threat
C. fleas have many physical advantages, although these are outweighed by their many
disadvantages
D. fleas are designed in such a way as to give them unique physical advantages in life

14. Directions: Read the passage. Then answer the questions below.
For two months, I have been trying to decide who makes the best ice cream. I have narrowed it
down to my four favorite manufacturers: Randolph Farms, Goodies, Disco, and Twinkle.
Let's start with Randolph Farms. Randolph Farms makes very good ice cream. They have lots of
different flavors, but this doesn't really matter to me. That's because I always get coffee flavor.
They make the best coffee ice cream in the world. I've never had hot coffee (the drink) but people tell me that Randolph Farms coffee ice cream tastes just like the real thing. Also, Randolph Farms uses all natural ingredients to make their ice cream. This is a good idea, I think.
Second, we have Goodies. Goodies makes excellent ice cream. Like Randolph Farms, Goodies
uses all natural ingredients. They only make three different flavors—strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate— but they make them very well. The strawberry is amazing. Every bite of it reminds me of the strawberries that I used to pick behind my old house. The vanilla is wonderful. It is very smooth and has a refreshing, creamy taste. The chocolate is outstanding. It is made with real cocoa beans from Bolivia. I didn't know where Bolivia is so I decided to look for it on a map. After hunting awhile, I discovered that it is in South America! That's a long way to go to get cocoa, so it must be good. I would say that the only drawback to Goodies ice cream is that they only make three different flavors.
Third, we have Disco. Disco ice cream is okay. They don't have many good flavors. Actually, the
only Disco flavor I like is Bubblegum. It is vanilla ice cream with little chunks of bubblegum in it. After you eat the ice cream, you can blow bubbles with the gum. That's pretty fun.
Finally, there is Twinkle. Twinkle ice cream is mediocre. The only good thing about Twinkle is that
it is relatively inexpensive. You can buy a whole carton of twinkle ice cream for $4.50. That's only two weeks' allowance for me.

15. 1) Which of the following would be the best title for this passage?
A. Strawberry, Vanilla, Chocolate, and Bubblegum Too!
B. The Four Top Ice Cream Manufacturers
C. The Finest Ice Cream in the World
D. Picking the Best Ice Cream Manufacturer
2) If the author wanted to get a scoop of coffee ice cream, where would he or she probably go?
A. Randolph Farms
B. Goodies
C. Disco
D. Twinkle© Copyright Read Theory LLC, All rights reserved. 2
3) In paragraph 1, the author uses a colon. A colon (:) looks like two dots, one on top of the other.
Colons are used to separate different parts of a sentence. The part before the colon introduces an
idea and can stand alone as a sentence. The part after the colon gives more detailed information
about this idea, often as a list. If the colon could talk, it would say, "And here they are!"
Using this information, it can be understood that which of the following sentences contains the correct
use of a colon?
A. My friends are: sweet, young, and generous.
B. I like: to talk on the phone at night.
C. I have three pets: Toto, Spot, and Rover.
D. I want a new bicycle: or new roller skates.
4) According to the passage, the author likes Randolph Farms ice cream because it
I. is all natural
II. is made in Bolivia
III. comes in many flavors
A. I only
B. I and II only
C. II and III only
D. I, II, and III
5) In paragraph 3 the author writes, "That's a long way to go to get cocoa, so it must be good." Using
this information, we can understand that the author believes that
A. Goodies loses money on sales of chocolate ice cream
B. Bolivia makes the best cocoa in the world
C. things that are hard to get must be high quality
D. cocoa from the United States is not very good

16. 6) According to the passage, the author likes Disco ice cream because it
A. is relatively inexpensive
B. has bubblegum in it
C. is made in Bolivia
D. is okay
7) According to the passage, how is Randolph Farms ice cream different than Goodies?
I. Randolph Farms has many different flavors and Goodies does not.
II. Randolph Farms uses all natural ingredients and Goodies does not.
III. Randolph Farms is very expensive and Goodies is not.
A. I only
B. I and II only
C. II and III only
D. I, II, and III © Copyright Read Theory LLC, All rights reserved. 3
8) An adjective is a word that is used to describe a thing. For example, in the sentence, "The car is
fast," the word "fast" is an adjective. Using this information, which of the following are adjectives used
in paragraph 3?
I. flavors
II. excellent
III. old
D. I, II, and III
9) According to the author, what is the only drawback to Goodies ice cream?
A. cheap ingredients
B. expensive price
C. mediocre quality
D. a lack of flavors

17. 10) How much money does the author receive in his or her weekly allowance?
B. $4.50
C. $9.00
D. Not enough information is provided
11) Given the information included in the passage, which of the following statements would the author
most likely agree with?
A. Each manufacturer has its strengths and weaknesses.
B. The best manufacturers are the ones with the most flavors.
C. Goodies is certainly not the best manufacturer, as they only have three flavors.
D. Each manufacturer is good for different reasons.
12) If the author did decide that one manufacturer is best, which one would he or she probably choose?
A. Randolph Farms
B. Goodies
C. Disco
D. Twinkle
13) How many weeks would it take for the author to save enough money to buy two cartons of Twinkle
ice cream?
A. 1 week
B. 2 weeks
C. 3 weeks
D. 4 weeks

18. Directions: Read the passage. Then answer the questions below.
Have you ever wondered what keeps a hot air balloon flying? The same principle that keeps food
frozen in the open chest freezers at the grocery store allows hot air balloons to fly. It's a very basic
principle: Hot air rises and cold air falls. So while the super-cooled air in the grocery store freezer settles
down around the food, the hot air in a hot air balloon pushes up, keeping the balloon floating above the
ground. In order to understand more about how this principle works in hot air balloons, it helps to know
more about hot air balloons themselves.
A hot air balloon has three major parts: the basket, the burner, and the envelope. The basket is
where passengers ride. The basket is usually made of wicker. This ensures that it will be comfortable and
add little extra weight. The burner is positioned above the passenger's heads and produces a huge flame
to heat the air inside the envelope. The envelope is the colorful fabric balloon that holds the hot air. When
the air inside the envelope is heated, the balloon rises.
The pilot can control the up-and-down movements of the hot air balloon by regulating the heat in
the envelope. To ascend, the pilot heats the air in the envelope. When the pilot is ready to land, the air in
the balloon is allowed to cool and the balloon becomes heavier than air. This makes the balloon descend.
Before the balloon is launched, the pilot knows which way the wind is blowing. This means that
she has a general idea about which way the balloon will go.
But, sometimes the pilot can actually control the direction that the balloon flies while in flight. This is because the air above the ground is sectioned into layers in which the direction of the wind may be different. So even though the pilot can't steer the balloon, she can fly or higher or lower into a different layer of air. Some days the difference between the direction
of the wind between layers is negligible. But other days the difference is so strong that it can actually
push the balloon in a completely different direction!

19. 1) According to the passage, balloon pilots control the balloon’s altitude by
A. moving into a different layer of air
B. regulating the air temperature inside the balloon
C. adjusting the amount of air in the envelope
D. changing the amount of weight contained in the basket
2) As used in paragraph 3, which is the best synonym for ascend?
A. move
B. fly
C. sink
D. climb© Copyright Read Theory LLC, All rights reserved. 2
3) As used in paragraph 3, which is the best antonym for descend?
A. fall
B. float
C. rise
D. Drop
4) According to the author, wicker is
I. comfortable
II. lightweight
III. durable
A. I only
B. I and II only
C. II and III only
D. I, II, and III
5) If the hot air balloon pilot wants to change directions during flight, what might he or she do to
accomplish this?
A. head toward a mountain peak
B. wait for it to rain
C. fly into a cloud
D. fly higher

20. 6) Using the passage as a guide, it can be inferred that which of the following statements is not true?
A. Air goes up and out the top of a chimney when you light a fire.
B. Cool air collects about the ceiling when you open a refrigerator.
C. Smoke from a candle rises after you blow out the flame.
D. Cold air coming from an air conditioning vent settles about the floor.
7) Based on its use in paragraph 4, it can be understood that negligible belongs to which of the following word families?
A. solemn, grave, serious
B. substantial, considerable, large
C. exhilarating, thrilling, exciting
D. insignificant, small, unnoticeable