Schooled Informational Text Questions

What is the most likely reason the author chose to include the first three paragraphs of the text?

• The author wanted to guilt the reader about not knowing exactly how many hippie communes there were or how many people lived on them.

• The author wanted the reader to understand that the hippies had strong beliefs that motivated them to leave the comforts of society for a simpler life on a commune.

• The author wanted to show the reader that hippies left the comforts of home because they didn’t like being criticized for their beliefs.

• The author thought it was very important that hippies didn’t like the fact that some people were rich and others were poor.

Which piece of evidence best supports your answer to Part A? (RI 6.1)

• A. “...hippies dropped out of main-stream society and congregated in communes for the opportunity to pursue a lifestyle that valued people more than things.” (Paragraph 3)

• B. “...which they believed shifted power and wealth into the hands of a few, leaving the vast majority to work for the rich or live in poverty.” (Paragraph 3)

• C. “No one knows… There might have been thousands, both rural and urban.” (Paragraph 1)

• D. “Judged and criticized for their beliefs…” (Paragraph 3)

What is the central idea of the text? (RI 6.2)

• Living on a 60’s rural hippie commune was difficult.

• Hippies desired to be accepted by society.

• The rural hippie communes didn’t last very long - only around a decade.

• The reasons hippies left society to form communes and a description of how the communes operated.

Which two pieces of evidence best support the answer to Part A? (RI 6.1)

• B. “They wanted to separate themselves from a society that they thought was bad for people and for the Earth itself.” (Paragraph 2)

• C. “The residents shared possessions, resources, work, and income.” (Paragraph 4)

• E. “... a problematic task when materials and skilled workers were in short supply.” (Paragraph 7)

• A. “When compared to the comforts of the modern homes and middle class incomes that numerous hippies left behind, life on a typical rural commune was primitive.” (Paragraph 1)

• D. “Setting up a new commune required the quick construction of some sort of housing…” (Paragraph 7)

The section “Life on the Commune” fits into the overall structure of the text

• comparing life on different communes

• providing the reason why people joined communes

• stating the solution of how to fit so many people on one commune

• describing what life was like on a commune

Select three details from the passage that best support the answer to Part A.

• Hippies were often brought together by a desire to live a harmonious existence with nature.

• They wanted to separate themselves from a society that they thought was bad for people and for the Earth itself.

• They took on the labor-intensive task of cultivating the land and growing their own food.

• The residents shared possessions, resources, work, and income.

• Some communes had group-approved plans that kept the residents focused on common purposes, but mainly they avoided creating rules and appointing leaders.

Which statement best summarizes the text?

• Though communes were appealing to many in the 1960s because of the freedoms they offered, the difficult labor and primitive conditions made them short lived.

• Many people joined communes because of the hippie lifestyle that was popular at the time, and communes continue to flourish today.

• Hippies were a movement of people in the 1960s and 1970s who believed in individual freedom and had a strong desire to protect the earth and its natural resources.

• Living on a commune required strenuous work to maintain the dwellings and care for the land.