Feathered Friend 6th Grade Test

In the opinion of the narrator in “Feathered Friend,” why is Claribel a “sensible” choice as a pet for Sven?

• She weighs very little and takes up less space.

• She sings quite beautifully.

• She is good company for Sven.

• She gets a bit noisy when she is upset.

In “Feathered Friend,” when does the narrator first realize that Claribel is aboard the space station?

• when Sven runs in with a tiny bundle of feathers

• when Sven informs the whole crew

• when a flash of yellow flies past

• when he hears the bird singing

What happens after the crew revives Claribel in “Feathered Friend”?

• The crew waits in hushed silence.

• She flies around the space station.

• She chirps but then keels over again.

• The crew goes back to eating breakfast.

In “Feathered Friend,” why do crew members pass around an oxygen bottle?

• to celebrate Claribel's recovery

• to keep themselves from losing consciousness

• to determine how much oxygen each person needs

• to remind each other of their loyalty and friendship

As the narrator awakens on the morning described in “Feathered Friend,” he has a headache. What is the most likely reason for that headache?

• a night of bad dreams

• confusion between day and night

• lack of oxygen in the space station

• illness spread by close contact with birds

Think about the setting of “Feathered Friend.” What is the most likely reason that “early spacers” were “wiry little fellows”?

• Small people have a special love for adventure.

• Construction is a job for small but muscular people.

• Large people have difficulty adjusting to zero gravity.

• Both space and supplies on the space station are limited.

Which of these quotations from “Feathered Friend” best supports the idea that early spacers were "wiry little fellows"?

• "There's never been a regulation that forbids one to keep pets in a space station."

• "A spacesuit is not the most convenient of garbs in which to work."

• "I was sitting in the little cubbyhole laughingly called my office..."

• "A space station has more hiding places than you can count."

When the narrator of “Feathered Friend” says, “Half a million dollars’ worth of chemical and electronic engineering had let us down completely,” what does he most likely mean?

• Engineering is never an exact science.

• No one should trust his or her life to scientists.

• Despite costly technology, systems still do fail.

• The entire space program is expensive but flawed.

In “Feathered Friend,” why is Claribel said to be like a hummingbird?

• She is able to hover in midair.

• She has shiny, reflective feathers.

• She drinks from the plants in the spacecraft.

• She moves her wings in a back-and-forth motion.

In “Feathered Friend,” how do the crew members feel about Claribel?

• They ignore her as much as possible.

• They tolerate her, but she annoys them.

• They care about her as though she were their own.

• They are angry with Sven for smuggling her aboard.