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Read the passage and answer the questions that follow.
Bessie's Show
"Ah-chool" A young boy sneezed as a strong gust of wind kicked up some dust. He stood
in a cow pasture, mesmerized by the plane buzzing overhead. The small Curtiss Jenny plane,
which people described as little more than a bunch of parts flying in formation, performed
graceful figure eights over an amazed crowd. "Look at Brave Bessie gol" rhe boy exclairned to
no one in particular.
In the cockpit of the piane, the aviator, Bessie Coleman, laughed in delight as she
straightened the plane. The young woman was doing exactly what she had always wanted
to do. She was making her living as a barnstormer, which rn,as quite unusual for an African
American woman in the 1920s.
Next, Bessie decided to attempt a stall. Smlls aluays intpress audiences, she thor"rght.
She positioned the plane directly over the crowd and turned off the engine, She imagined
the collective gasp of the spectators as they heard the engine go silent, causing the plane to
glide at oniy forty-five miles per hour.
Bessie was low enough to detect expressions of relief as she restarted the engine. A blast
of exhaust fumes hit her nostrils and a splat of oil sprayed out as she coaxed herJenny to
reach its top speed of sevenry-five miles per hour.
Brave Bessie entertained her admirers rn'ith more figure eights, barrel rolls, and dives.
Then sire prepared for the grand finale, wirich included a new feat. Sire had recently spiced
up her show with parachute jumps to maintain the interest of her audiences.
Bessie examined dre herd of cattle at rhe far end of the pasture. An advanage of flying
over farmland was being able to use cows as weathervanes since the animals tuni their tails
to the wind. After checking rhe wind direction, she increased the altitude of the plane.
"Ready?" she yelled over the engine's buzz to Eliza Dilworth, rvho was cramlned into the
miniature plane with her.
Eliza climbed out of the cockpit and cautiously crept to a iarge canvas bag, which r.vas
tied to the wing with a rope. The wind was strong, knocking off her hat and tr.rrning her
fingers into icicles, as she tried to grip the wing. The bag contained the parachute that
would transport her to the ground. She donned the parachute, sat doq'n on the wing, and
jumped. "Snapl" went the rope that had secured the package to the wing. Eliza's parachute
billowed open and foared her downward to the ground as the crowd stared in amazement.
The pilot warched with satisfaction and then circled back over the field, scouting fbr a
suitable landing location. She decreased her speed, knowing the importance of coming in
very slorvly because the Jenny had no brakes.
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Benchmark Assessment
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The plane ianded smoothly and chugged safely to a srop. The boy who had been
ivatching Bessie lvith rapt artention was the first to approach when she jumped our of
the plane. His eyes sparkled upon seeing the woman in her aviaror ourfir. He could not
contain his excitetnent as he blurted out: "l have to learn how to do that! Ir's the most
exciting thing I have ever seen!"
Bessie sniiled kindly and replied, "My dream is ro srarr a flight school, bur you are a
bit too young to take lessons just yet. In the rneanrirne, would you like to go for a ride?"
Bessie expected the boy to agree eagerly, but instead he looked very disappointed.
"I don't have the 6r,e dollars," he said dejectedly, pointing to rlie posrer advertising the
fee
for rides.
"\fhat if I
take you up for free and you pay me back when you become a famous
aviator?" she offered lvith a twinklc in her eyes.
The boy's face broke into a huee grin as he said,
where I'm going."
"watch our,"
Bessie called after
"I'll
be
right back after I rell rny dad
him, laughing. "once flying is in your blood, it's
almost impossible ro ger it out."
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Benchrhark Assessment
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1.
Which of the following details fi'om the
lilZhat is the theme of the passage?
passage BEST supports the idea that
Eliza was on the wing of the plane while
ir rn'as flying?
A.
A.
"The bag contained the parachute
that would transport her to the
ground."
B.
"'Ready?"' she yelled over the
engine's buzz to Eliza Dilworth,
who rvas crammed into the
miniature plane with her."
C.
"The pilot watched with satisfaction
and then circled back over the
field, scouting for a suimble landing
location."
D.
"Eliza clirnbed out of the cockpit
and cautiously crept to a large
canvas bag, which was tied to the
wing with a rope."
\Mhat is the point of view of the
A. first person
B. second person
C. third person, limited
D. third person, omniscient
passage?
Friends can help you overcome
your fears.
B. Share what you love with others.
C. Practice makes perfect.
D. I)on't let anyone stop you from
being yourself.
4.
Read this sentence from the passase.
The wind was strong, knocking
offher hat and turning her
ftngers into icicles, as she tried
to grip the wing.
In rhis sentencet the author is trying to
A.
show readers how Eliza has ner.er
jumped with a parachute.
B.
encourage readers to learn to do
plane stunts.
C. cause readers to have a feeling
of suspense.
D. suggest to readers that Bessie
doesn't care about Eliza's safery.
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\What is the setting of the passage?
A. an airport
B. a flying school
C. a cow pasture
D. a small farm
6.
\Mhy does Bessie look at the herd of carrle? Use
derails from the passage ro snpport,vour
answer.
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Read the passage and answer the questions that follow.
excerpted and adapted
frorn
The Hound of the Baskervilles
by
Arthu.r Conan Doyle
Mr. Sherlock Holmes was seated at the
I stood upon the hearthrug
and picked up the stick that our visitor had left behind him the night before. It was a fine,
thick piece of wood. Just under the head was a broad silver band, nearly an inch across.
"ToJames Morrimer, M.R.C.S., from his friends of the C.C.H." was engraved upon it,
rvith the dare "1884." It was just such a stick that an old-fashioned Family practitioner
used to carry-dignified, solid, and reassuring.
"\7ell, \fatson, what do you make of our visitor's stick? Let me hear you reconstruct
the man by an examination of it."
"I rhink," said I, "rhar Dr. Mortimer is a successful, elderly medical man and
well-esteemed since those who know him gave him this mark of their apprreciation."
"Good!" said Holmes. "Excellenf!"
"l rhink also rhat the probability is in favor of his being a country practitioner who
does a great deal of his visiting on Foot."
"\(/hy so?"
breakfast table.
"Because this stick, though originally a ve{y handsome one, has been so knocked
about that I can hardly imagine a town practitioner carrying it. The thick iron tip on the
bottom is r,vorn down, so it is evident that he has done a great amount of walking lvith it."
"Perfectiy sound!" said Holmes.
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"And then again, there is the 'friends of the C.C.H.' i should guess rhar to be the
Something Hunt, the local hunting club, to whose rnembers he has possibll' given some
surgical assisrance and which has made him a small presentarion in rerurn."
"Realll', \7atson, you excel yourself," said Holmes, pushing back his chair. "It rnay be
that you are not yourself luminous, but you are a conducror of light. Some people without
possessing genius have a remarkable power of stirnulating ir."
He had never said as much before. I was proud to think tirat I had so far rnastered his
systern as to apply it in a way that earned his approval. He now took the stick from rnv
hands. Then, with an expression of interest, he carried rhe cane to the window and looked
it over again with a hand lens.
"Interesting, though elementary," said he as he returned to his favorire corner.
"Has anything escaped me?" I asked rvith some self-importance.
"I am afraid, my dear \fatson, that most of your conclusions \Arere erfoneous. \fhen
I said that ),ou stimulated me, I meant, to be frank, that in noring your misrakes, I was
guided toward the truth. Not that you are entirely wrong. The man is certainly a counrry
practitioner. And he walks a good deal""
"Then I was right."
"To that extent."
"But that was all."
"No, no, mv dear \(/atson, not all-by no m€arls all. I would suggesr, for exarnple,
that a presentation to a doctor is more likely to come from a hospital than from a hunting
club, and that when the initials 'C.C.' are placed before that hospiral, the words 'Charing
Cross' very naturally suggest themselves,"
"You ntav be right. Supposing that 'C.C.H.' does stand for Charing Cross Hospital,
what further inferences may we draw?"
"Do none sugsesr thenrselves? You know my methods. Apply rheml"
"I can only think of the obvious conclusion that the man has practiced in rown before
going to the counrry."
"I think that we might venture a little farther. Look at it in rhis light: \When would
his fiiends unite to give him a gift of- their good will? Obviously, at the momenr when
Dr. Mortimer withdrew from the service of rhe hospital in order to srarr a counrry pracrice
for himseif."
"It certainly
seems probable."
"Now, you rvill observe that he could not have been on rhe staffof rhe hospiral.
Only a well-established London doctor couid hold such a position, and such a one rvould
not drift into the courlt{f. If he was in the hospital and yet nor on the staff, then he
could only have been a house surgeon-little more than a student. And he left five years
ago-the date is on the stick. So, yoLlr grave, middle-aged family pracririoner vanishes
into thin air, my dear \fatson, and there emerges a young fcllow under rhirry, amiable,
unambitious, absent-minded, and the possessor of a favorite dog, which I should describe
roughly as being larger than a terrier and smaller than a masriff."
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Benchmark Assessment
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I laughed incredulously
Sherlock Holmes leaned back.
Hohnes had a mischievous smile and said, "l think that I arn fairly justified in mv
inferences. As to the adjectives, it is my experience that it is only an amiable man in this
world who receives restimonials, only an unambitious one who abandons a London cateer
for rhe counrry, and only an absent-minded one who leaves his stick and not his visitingcard after rvaiting an hour in your room."
"And the dog?"
"Has been in the habir of carrying this stick. The marks of his teeth are plainly visible.
The dog's jaw, as shown in the space berween these marks, is too broad in my opinion for
a rerrier and not broad enough for a mastiff. It may have been-yes, by Jove, it is a curlyas
haired spaniel."
He halted by the window.
"My dear fellow, how can you possiblv be so sure?"
"For dre very simple reason that I see the dog himself or1 our very door-step, and
there is rhe ring of its owner. What does Dr. James Mortimer, the man of science, ask of
Sherlock Holmes, the specialist in crime? Come in!"
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\Which line of dialogue BEST
demonstrates the relarionship between
Holmes and \Watson?
9.
What is the BEST summarv of the
passage?
A.
A. "l am afiaid, my dear \7arson,
He thinks rhat the doctor is a
country docror who walks a lot.
Also, he thinks that the cane was
a gift.
that most of your conclusions were
e
rroneoLls. "
B. "l rhink that I am fairly justified in
nry
C.
B.
ir6tatt..r."
8.
"\(har
does Dr. James Mortimer,
the man of science, ask of Sherlock
Holmes, rhe specialisr in crime?"
Sherlock Holmes looks at rhe cane
closely rvith his eyes and then with
a hand lens.
B.
Sheriock Holmes says 11r", \Tatson
is "a conductor of light" but thinks
Watson has made several mistakes.
C. Vatson thinks the'H'stands
for
"hunt," but Sherlock Holmes
thinks rhe'H' stands for "hospital."
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D. Sherlock Holmes knows about the
doctor's dog by looking our rhe
room's window.
The docor left his cane. \(/arson
and Sherlock Holmes draw
conclusior"rs about the doctor,
based on the cane. Then the doctor
refurns.
\X/hich is an example of situational irony
in the passage?
A.
Sherlock Holmes explains to
\Tatson why he rhinks the do*or
is young, not old. Also, he explains
why he thinks the doctor has a dog.
"The man is certainly a counrry
practitioner. "
D.
\Watson looks ar rhe doctor's cane.
D.
10.
Sherlock Holmes thinks the doctor
is young, friendly, absent-rninded,
and has a dog. Bur \Watson doesn'r
believe that the doctor has a dog.
Read these sentences from the passage.
'lVell, Watson, what do you
make of our visitor's stick? Let
me hear you feconstruct the man
by * examination of it."
The author uses the word reconsirucr to
-ilZamon
suggest thar
should
A.
form a mental picture of the
doctor.
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B. build a sculpture of the doctor.
C. use rvood to make a new stick.
D. look outside to find the doctor.
C'
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Benchmark Assessrnent
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