Excerpt from “Bee Season”

Read the following paragraph from the story.

When Number 127 is being asked to spell LOQUAT, Eliza closes her eyes and feels her

mind empty out. L fills her head, a glowing yellow the color of molten metal. This is what

Dad meant. She's surprised at how easy it is. Inside Elly’s head, L grows longer, its edges

curving inward to form an O. Her body loosens. When the edge of O grows a tail to

become Q, Eliza feels the change in her fingertips. Q's top evaporates and its tail

disappears, U settling warm in her belly. Elly feels a tickle as U flips and grows a line

through its middle to become an A. When A’s legs slide together as its arm floats up T fills

Eliza, straightening her spine. Eliza opens her eyes. She feels as if she has just woken

from a deep sleep. Number 127 is walking offstage to the sound of vigorous applause.

What does this paragraph most reveal about Eliza?

• She has a strong imagination.

• She seldom misspells a word.

• She thinks her father knows best.

• She gets easily distracted.

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Read the following paragraph from the story.

As she stands, Elly hazily recalls her nightmare: the expectant silence, the feeling she is

holding up time, the endless path from her seat to the microphone. She decides that if she

can get this next word, whatever it may be, her chances of winning are practically

guaranteed. From the moment she rises from her chair, she locks eyes with Saul, whose

gaze practically steers her to the microphone.

In this paragraph, how does the description of the nightmare mainly affect the tone of the

story?

• It suggests that Eliza doubts she will win the bee.

• It suggests that the bee seems unreal to Eliza.

• It suggests that Eliza is unwilling to compete in the bee.

• It suggests that the bee is stressful for Eliza.

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Which quotation best expresses a central idea of the story?

• “She wants to win with a word so difficult her father will have to admit that he was wrong,

  that the letters are already guiding her.”

• “Eliza finds herself bracing for the next blow, but none comes.”

• “The judge’s voice is ever neutral, revealing nothing.”

• “Eliza wants to see herself through the judge’s eyes.”

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This is a two-part question. First answer Part A. Then, answer Part B.

Part A: Read the following paragraphs from the story.

Eliza wants to see herself through the judge's eyes. Does he have favorites? Is she one of

them? Or are they interchangeable, one long blur of nervous hands and voices? Her

placard suddenly reminds her of the stickers affixed to new underwear: INSPECTED BY

59.

At first it is a struggle to empty her mind which keeps conjuring up fresh images: her

father’s face, a conveyer belt laden with tagged children, but eventually all is black and

blank. D, D, D, D, D, D, Eliza thinks until D, proud and foreboding appears in her mind’s

eye. Then, its top disappears. The letters are showing her the way.

The ideas in these paragraphs mostly contribute to the reader’s understanding of Eliza by

revealing

• her inability to understand the judges

• her discomfort standing in front of the audience

• her concern about impressing her father

• her difficulty with spelling the assigned word correctly

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This is a two-part question. First answer Part A. Then, answer Part B.

Part B: Click on the detail that best supports the answer to Part A.

Eliza wants to see herself through the judge's eyes. Does he have favorites? Is she one of

them? Or are they interchangeable, one long blur of nervous hands and voices? Her

placard suddenly reminds her of the stickers affixed to new underwear: INSPECTED BY

59.

At first it is a struggle to empty her mind which keeps conjuring up fresh images: her

father’s face, a conveyer belt laden with tagged children, but eventually all is black and

blank. D, D, D, D, D, D, Eliza thinks until D, proud and foreboding appears in her mind’s

eye. Then, its top disappears. The letters are showing her the way.

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Read the following paragraph from the story.

Time moves so slowly. The silence lasts so long Eliza is sure it means she is correct. Her

heart begins to pound faster. Walter Cronkite and the loving cup are practically hers.

What does this paragraph mainly reveal about Eliza? Select two options.

• her patience

• her desire to win

• her intelligence

• her confidence

• her enthusiasm

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Which detail would be most important to include in a summary of the story?

• Eliza knows that difficult words follow easy words at spelling bees.

• Eliza gets a word that means a kind of fabric with a twill weave.

• Eliza empties her mind and sees the letters come up as images.

• Eliza is one of seventeen spellers in this round of the spelling bee.

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How does the point of view most influence the tone of the story?

• The descriptions of the contestants competing builds suspense.

• The references to unusual words add humor.

• Eliza’s distant observations of her father develop conflict.

• Eliza’s interior monologue creates a sense of strangeness.

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