1. Akiak: A Tale From the Iditarod by Robert J. Blake
Reading Comprehension Skills:
* Story Structure
* Words in Context/Vocabulary
Turning Point by Teresa Parrott, North Salisbury Elementary School, 2006

2. The ________ are the people or animals in the story.10
Setting
Plot
Characters
Problem
Solution

3. The ________ is the time and place in which the story occurs.10
Setting
Plot
Characters
Problem
Solution

4. The ________ is the series of story events.10
Setting
Plot
Characters
Problem
Solution

5. Who are the main characters in the story Akiak?10
Buddy and Mick
Akiak and Max
Sandy and Mitch
Akiak and Mick
Clifford and Makita

6. What is the setting of Akiak?10
Alaska
British Columbia
California
Michigan
North Dakota

7. 1,151 miles of wind, snow, and rugged trail lay ahead, from Anchorage to Nome. In the sentence above, rugged means: 10
Piece of thick cloth that covers a floor
Attractive, strong features
Having a rough, uneven surface

8. The driver of a dogsled team
Mick was the musher, but the team followed the lead dog. In the sentence above, musher means: 10
The driver of a dogsled team
Soft food that is part solid and part liquid
The dogs that follow the lead dog

9. English letters a,e,i, o, and u. Promised Yelled
“She’ll be waiting for you at Nome!” Mick vowed. In the sentence above, vowed means: 10
English letters a,e,i, o, and u.
Promised
Yelled

10. By the Ophir checkpoint, Akiak was limping
By the Ophir checkpoint, Akiak was limping. In the sentence above, checkpoint means: 10
Snow-capped mountain ridge
Place along a route where a check or count is made
An occasion when a doctor examines you to see if you are healthy

11. Someone who has been forced to leave their country
While Mick and the team took refuge in Galena, seven hours ahead, Akiak burrowed into a snowdrift to wait out the storm. In the sentence above, refuge means: 10
A safe or covered place
Someone who has been forced to leave their country
A break or time of rest

12. Dug a hole as a small animal would
While Mick and the team took refuge in Galena, seven hours ahead, Akiak burrowed into a snowdrift to wait out the storm. In the sentence above, burrowed means: 10
A small donkey
Stood on top of
Dug a hole as a small animal would

13. Mick squinted through the snow, looking for a sign
Mick squinted through the snow, looking for a sign. In the sentence above, squinted means: 10
Walked quickly and briskly
Searched seeking to locate something
Looked with eyes partly closed in order to see better

14. Some friendly reminders when you come to a word you don’t know:
Look carefully at the word.
Look for word parts you know and think about the sounds for the letters.
Blend the sounds to read the word.
Ask yourself, “Is it a word I know? Does it make sense in what I am reading?”
If not, ask yourself, “What else can I try?”