My Perspectives: The Wizard of Oz

According to the selection from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, why have Aunt Em’s eyes, cheeks, and lips become gray?

• She is becoming an elderly woman.

• She lives a life that is difficult and dull.

• Raising a child is quite stressful for her.

• Her husband demands too much from her.

In the selection from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Dorothy lives with her aunt and uncle. When Dorothy first came to live with them, Aunt Em “would scream and press her hand upon her heart” when she heard Dorothy laugh. Why?

• She was afraid that Dorothy was doing something risky.

• She thought that the noise would upset Uncle Henry.

• She misunderstood the meaning of the noise.

• She was startled because she rarely heard laughter.

As explained in the selection from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, why does Dorothy fail to enter the cyclone cellar in time?

• She is unable to move quickly enough.

• She stops to get Toto and take him with her.

• She cannot find it in the darkness of the storm.

• She does not hear Aunt Em tell her to go there.

In the selection from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, what does the cyclone do to the house?

• It spins the house around, lifts it up, and carries it far away.

• It causes the house’s porch and roof to blow away.

• It lifts the house and sets it down gently in a nearby field.

• It destroys every part of the house except the cyclone cellar.

Based on its context, choose the meaning of broke that the author uses in this sentence from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

"Not a tree nor a house broke the broad sweep of flat country that reached to the edge of the sky in all directions."

• put an ending to

• acted against

• interrupted

• smashed

What does the context suggest is the most likely meaning of sober in this description from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz?

"[The sun and wind] had taken the sparkle from her eyes and left them a sober

gray …."

• lovely

• serious

• peaceful

• threatening

The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B. Read this passage from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

"When Aunt Em came there to live she was a young, pretty wife. The sun and wind had changed her, too .… She was thin and gaunt, and never smiled now."

Part A What does the context of the passage suggest is the most likely meaning of gaunt

• tired

• bony

• sunburned

• hard-working

Part A Answer: Gaunt means bony.

"When Aunt Em came there to live she was a young, pretty wife. The sun and wind had changed her, too .… She was thin and gaunt, and never smiled now."

Part B Which words from the passage provide context clues that most clearly support the answer to Part A?

• young, pretty

• had changed her

• She was thin

• never smiled

he following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.

Part A Which of the following best describes the prairie landscape as it is presented in the selection from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz?

• empty

• urban

• fruitful

• dense

Part A answer: the prairie landscape can best be described as "empty."

Part B Which quotation from the passage best supports the answer to Part A?

• [I]n case one of those great whirlwinds arose, mighty enough to crush any building in its path.

• Not a tree nor a house broke the broad sweep of flat country that reached to the edge of the sky in all directions.

• [Aunt Em] still looked at the little girl with wonder that she could find anything to laugh at.

• Uncle Henry and Dorothy could see where the long grass bowed in waves before the coming storm.