PSSA Prep!

For my research paper, I studied the giant sculptures on exibit at the museum.

Which change would correct a spelling mistake in the sentence?

• Change research to reserch

• Change giant to giante

• Change sculptures to sculpters

• Change exibit to exhibit

Read the Paragraph:

(1) Plants, just like animals, need certain things to stay alive. (2) Water is one thing that is needed to stay alive by both plants and animals. (3) If a plant does not have water, it will start to look droopy, and its leaves will dry up and eventually fall off the stems. (4) If the plant goes without water for too long, it will die. (5) Plants need other things too, such as air and light. (6) Most plants, but not all, also need soil. (7) Those that do not need soil can get the nutrients, or food, that they need in other ways instead.

Which revision that combines sentences 1 and 2 into one sentence best improves the style of the paragraph?

• Plants and certain animals are the same in that they need water to survive.

• By plants and animals, water is needed by both to stay alive.

• Water, by both plants and animals, is needed to stay alive.

• Plants, just like animals, need water to stay alive.

Read the paragraph:

(1) Some people think bananas, which are available at many grocery stores, make good desserts. (2) They are healthier than many other sweet foods. (3) Many people believe, that sugary desserts should be avoided. (4) Eating fruits like bananas may be a great way to enjoy a healthy dessert.

Which revision should be made to the paragraph?

• Remove the comma after stores

• Add a comma after healthier

• Remove the comma after believe

• Add a comma after fruits

Read the paragraph:

(1) Monarch butterflies, like many other animals, migrate south for the winter. (2) Butterfly lovers flocks to Michocán, Mexico, every year to see the millions of monarchs that spend the winter there. (3) These monarchs hatched somewhere in the north the previous spring, and because monarchs have a short lifespan, no single monarch lives long enough to make the return trip. (4) That task is left to their offspring, who somehow find their way north.

Which change should be made to the paragraph to correct the error in agreement?

• Change migrate to migrates

• Change flocks to flock

• Change lives to live

• Change find to finds

Read the paragraph:

(1) Jamie collected stones for a wall he wanted to build carefully he put each one into place. (2) He wanted the wall to look as if it had been there for many years without any changes. (3) He had carefully selected stones to make the new wall look just as old as the other nearby walls did. (4) Jamie stood back and admired the work that he had already accomplished.

Which sentences is a run-on and should be written as two sentences?

• Sentence 1

• Sentence 2

• Sentence 3

• Sentence 4

Which sentence needs an additional comma?

• Please check to see that the newspaper has the correct month, the correct day, and the correct year.

• My friends and I talked about what we would write about for our project, what resources we would use, and where we would find the information.

• Do you plan to read a book, watch a play at the community center, or walk to the park?

• Are you planning to walk, ride your bicycle take the bus, or get a ride to the library?

Read the sentence from the newspaper article.

The seventh-grade basketball team lost the district championship game at the last second.

Which sentence could be added to best fit the style of this sentence?

• The players felt down in the dumps afterward.

• Later on, the kids were all totally happy.

• The team members were greatly disappointed.

• After that, the guys were completely crushed.

Read the paragraph:

(1) Although robots are used for an increasing number of activities, scientists who program them says that there are many things they cannot do well. (2) One of those things is communicating through conversation. (3) Human beings naturally detect meaning in words that robots do not. (4) Programmers of robots hope to make advances, but for now, humans are the better communicators.

Which change should be made to the paragraph to correct the error in subject-verb agreement?

• Change says to say

• Change is to are

• Change detect to detects

• Change hope to hopes

Read the paragraph:

The carrier crab is an interesting sea creature. Its back legs are designed to help it carry large objects. The crab uses these objects to defend itself.

Which sentence could be added to best fit the style of the paragraph?

• It’s awfully rare to see a carrier crab.

• Carrier crabs carry seaweed and other stuff.

• This behavior is not common among sea creatures.

• Scientists aren’t totally sure how many of these crabs exist.

Read the sentences.

(1) When asked to summerize his thoughts about his favorite book, Alan explained why he thought the main character Pip was fascinating. (2) Pip was not only observant but also courteous to others.

Which change should be made to correct the error in spelling?

• Change summerize to summarize

• Change fascinating to fassinating

• Change observant to obzervant

• Change courteous to curteous