Comprehension Strategies and Constructing Meaning #6

Ted and Grandpa waited for the train. Ted had never been on a train before. He wanted to see everything on the ride.

Ted shouted, “The train is coming!”

Grandpa grinned and said, “Let’s get you a window seat!”

What will help Ted to see everything on the ride?

• talking to grandpa

• reading on the train

• sitting by the window

William Golding wrote novels, short stories, poems, reviews, essays, and even a travel book.  He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1983.  Of his novels, Lord of the Flies, published in 1954, is the most well-known.  In this wartime novel, a plane carrying British school boys is shot down over the Pacific Ocean.  The boys end up on an uninhabited island without any adult supervision.  This gripping novel should be required reading in schools.

 

Which of the sentences is an opinion?

• The boys end up on a deserted island without any adult supervision.

• He [Golding] was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1983.

• This gripping novel should be required reading in schools.

Public transportation provides many benefits to a community.  One major benefit is fewer traffic problems.  Fewer cars on the road means fewer traffic jams.  Another benefit is less demand for limited parking spaces.

 

Which additional sentence would best support the ideas in the paragraph?

• It is also a good way to reduce air pollution..

• Sometimes public transportation can be slow.

• Many cities have brightly decorated buses.

Gray whales need to breathe air at the surface of the water as they swim.  These whales follow a regular surfacing pattern.  After being submerged for three to five minutes, the whales surface to breathe.  The whales blow three to five times in fifteen- to thirty-second intervals.  At the end of the pattern, the whales raise their tales.

 

What will the whales likely do after raising their tails?

• Submerge again

• Surface to breathe

• Blow three to five times

This year, Robert’s family left for vacation earlier than usual.  The weather was still too wet for their typical adventures.  They did not get to spend pleasant days fishing and boating.  Instead, they made the best of enjoying indoor activities and visiting local monuments.

 

When could Robert’s family have taken vacation to avoid the rainy weather?

• Much earlier in the spring

• A litter later in the season

• During the early winter

Which would have the most current information about this afternoon’s weather?

• The weather section from the morning’s newspaper.

• The report on a news website that is updated hourly.

• The television forecast from early in the week

Pete calls out, “Emma!  Look up at the airplane.”  Emma does not hear him.  The airplane makes too much noise.

 

Why can’t Emma hear Pete?

• There is too much noise.

• Emma does not look up.

• Pete sees the airplane.

Not much rain falls in the desert.  It is a very hot, dry place.  The animals that live in the desert sleep during the day.  They hunt for food at night when it’s cooler.  They must be able to live on very little water.

 

When do desert animals hunt for food?

• during the night

• when its warmer

• after it rains

The following is an old nursery rhyme:

 

Oh I can play on a big bass drum,

And this is the way I do it.

Boom, Boom, Boom goes the big bass drum,

Boom, Boom, Boom goes the big bass drum,

And this is the way I do it.

 

What helps the reader to know what the drum sounds like?

• The words big bass drum

• The words Boom, Boom, Boom

• The words this is the way

“Did you see my toy?” I asked

Ana said, “No.”

“Did you see my toy?” I asked

Troy said, “No.”

No one had seen my _____.

 

What word comes next.

• toy

• dog

• cat