The Fall of the Giants

Read the sentence from the text.

These trees grow only in the special geology of the slopes of the Sierra Nevadas.

The root of geology is geo, which means “earth.” What is studied in geology?

• animals

• land

• people

• trees

Read the paragraph.

The sequoia trees that line the Trail of 100 Giants have stood for generations. Many of these botanical wonders started growing in the Middle Ages. The trees watched the first Europeans settle in California, and they grew while America fought its revolution and its civil war. They grew through the Gold Rush in the mid-1800s and two world wars. The trees were declared a national monument in 2000.

Which detail would best support the main idea of the paragraph?

• The trees grow taller and taller every day

• Sequoias have seen much of our country’s history.

• The Gold Rush was responsible in part for the migration west

• The Sierra Nevada Mountains are in the western part of the U.S.

Part A: Read the paragraph from the article.

Then, in October 2011, two of the giants fell. There were only a few tourists nearby. One photographer from Germany used a video camera to record the trees crashing to the ground. Luckily, nobody was hurt, but watchers were astonished that these enormous trees could topple like babies trying to take their first steps. One explanation was that the summer had been very wet, and the ground was quite hydrated. The earth might have been too soggy to hold the shallow roots of the trees.

What is the main idea of the paragraph?

• A German photographer took a video of a sequoia falling.

• Walking through the sequoias can be dangerous.

• Two sequoias fell down recently in the park.

• Sequoias fall down easily when they get old.

Part B: Which sentence from the paragraph best states the main idea?

• “Then, in October 2011, two of the giants fell.”

• “There were only a few tourists nearby.”

• “One photographer from Germany used a video camera to record the trees crashing to the ground.”

• “Luckily, nobody was hurt, but watchers were astonished that these enormous trees could topple like babies trying to take their first steps.”

Determine the meaning of the Greek root in the underlined word.

Many of these botanical wonders started growing in the Middle Ages.

• water

• circle

• plant

Determine the meaning of the Greek root in the underlined word.

One explanation was that the summer had been very wet, and the ground was quite hydrated.

• water

• circle

• plant

Determine the meaning of the Greek root in the underlined word.

It might be, though, that the trees were simply old and that it was the time in their life cycle to die.

• water

• circle

• plant

Part A: What is the central idea of the article?

• People should do more to help save the sequoias.

• It is lucky nobody was hurt when the sequoias fell.

• The death of a sequoia is an important natural event.

• Not many people have the chance to see a sequoia fall

Part B: Read the sentence.

The earth might have been too soggy to hold the shallow roots of the trees.

How does the sentence support the central idea of the article?

• It provides details about what happened after the sequoias fell.

• It shows how giant sequoias are able to grow as large as they do.

• It gives information about what the Sequoia National Forest looks like.

• It suggests a reason why two giant sequoias fell in the Sequoia National Forest.

True or False:

This text is an expository text because it supports a topic with reasons and evidence.

• True

• False