Central Idea

Most of these immigrants were poor. Somehow they managed to scrape together enough money to pay for their passage to America. Many immigrant families arrived penniless. Others had to make the journey in stages. Often the father came first, found work, and sent for his family later.

The purpose of this excerpt is to help readers understand

• the health challenges immigrants faced.

• the homesickness immigrants felt.

• the language confusion of immigrants.

• the immigrants’ struggle to make a living.

But the journey was not yet over. Before they could be admitted to the United States, immigrants had to pass through Ellis Island, which became the nation's chief immigrant processing center in 1892. There they would be questioned and examined. Those who could not pass all the exams would be detained; some would be sent back to Europe. And so their arrival in America was filled with great anxiety. Among the immigrants, Ellis Island was known as "Heartbreak Island."

The purpose of this excerpt is to help readers understand the importance of

• the United States.

• the time period.

• taking exams.

• Ellis Island.

Now the examinations began. First the immigrants were examined by two doctors of the United States Health Service. One doctor looked for physical and mental abnormalities. When a case aroused suspicion, the immigrant received a chalk mark on the right shoulder for further inspection, L for lameness, H for heart, X for mental defects, and so on.

The purpose of this excerpt is to describe

• the doctors who worked for the United States Health Service.

• the health procedures that were part of immigration.

• the physical and mental illnesses suffered by immigrants.

• the immigrants who went through the medical exams.

Giuseppe and I held tightly to Stepfather's hands, while Liberta and Helvetia clung to Mother. Passengers all about us were crowding against the rail. Jabbered conversations, sharp cries, laughs and cheers -- a steadily rising din filled the air. Mothers and fathers lifted up babies so that they too could see, off to the left, the Statue of Liberty.

What best paraphrases the central idea of the excerpt?

• It was noisy on the ship sailing to America. Immigrant parents and children made a lot of noise, especially when they got to the Statue of Liberty.

• Immigrant families sailing to America were excited when they finally made it to the New York harbor. Everyone on board made happy noise as they reached the United States

• Everyone on board the ship was fighting to see the Statue of Liberty. Babies and mothers and fathers all cried because they couldn’t see it, because it was off to the left

• Immigrant children had to hold tightly to their parents’ hands. There was so much crowding and jostling on board the ship. If they didn’t stay close to their parents, they would fall off the boat.

Most immigrants passed through Ellis Island in about one day. Carrying all their worldly possessions, they left the examination hall and waited on the dock for the ferry that would take them to Manhattan, a mile away. Some of them still faced long journeys overland before they reached their final destination. Others would head directly for the teeming immigrant neighborhoods of New York City.

What best paraphrases the central idea of the excerpt?

• Some Ellis Island travelers took long journeys before reaching their final home.

• The ferry ride to Manhattan from Ellis Island was a one-mile journey.

• It usually took one day to get through Ellis Island if people had many possessions.

• After leaving Ellis Island, the newcomers went on to live in many different places.