ELA Unit Test Review - Rising to the Challenge

Read the excerpt from The Call of the Wild. Then an old wolf, gaunt and battle-scarred, came forward. Buck writhed his lips into the preliminary of a snarl, but sniffed noses with him, Whereupon the old wolf sat down, pointed nose at the moon, and broke out the long wolf howl. The others sat down and howled. And now the call came to Buck in unmistakable accents. He, too, sat down and howled. This over, he came out of his angle and the pack crowded around him, sniffing in half-friendly, half-savage manner. The leaders lifted the yelp of the pack and sprang away into the woods. The wolves swung in behind, yelping in chorus. And Buck ran with them, side by side with the wild brother, yelping as he ran. Which theme does this passage illustrate? -A good leader is strong and intelligent and treats his followers well. -Only the strong survive in the wilderness. -The only way to learn something is to try it. -The desire to fight for power is an instinct.

A

Read this excerpt from The Call of the Wild by Jack London. Pike, who pulled at Buck's heels, and who never put an ounce more of his weight against the breast-band than he was compelled to do, was swiftly and repeatedly shaken for loafing; and ere the first day was done he was pulling more than ever before in his life. The first night in camp, Joe, the sour one, was punished roundly—a thing that Spitz had never succeeded in doing. Buck simply smothered him by virtue of superior weight, and cut him up till he ceased snapping and began to whine for mercy. The general tone of the team picked up immediately. It recovered its old-time solidarity, and once more the dogs leaped as one dog in the traces. At the Rink Rapids two native huskies, Teek and Koona, were added; and the celerity with which Buck broke them in took away Francois's breath. How does the team's behavior support the theme "effective leaders generate success"? -The team responds favorably to Buck's leadership. -The team works better with the addition of new dogs. -The team cooperates to honor Spitz's memory. -The team enjoys the rewards Francois offers for hard work.

A

In The Call of the Wild, how does the dogs' owner at the beginning of the selection differ from Hal and Charles in how he feeds the dogs? -He feeds the dogs too little, while Hal and Charles feed them too much. -He regularly feeds the dogs the right amount of food, while Hal and Charles do not. -He often feeds the dogs too much, while Hal and Charles feed them too little. -He usually feeds the dogs a double ration, while Hal and Charles do not.

B

Read the excerpt from The Call of the Wild. Skeet was a little Irish setter who early made friends with Buck, who, in a dying condition, was unable to resent her first advances. She had the doctor trait which some dogs possess; and as a mother cat washes her kittens, so she washed and cleansed Buck's wounds... Nig, equally friendly, though less demonstrative, was a huge black dog, half bloodhound and half deerhound, with eyes that laughed and a boundless good nature. This passage is important to the story because it shows that Buck -has left behind his old friends and ways of life. -has become part of a new family of dogs. -has started to feel strong and healthy again. -has given up his need to be a leader.

B

Read this excerpt from Chapter Two of Jack London's The Call of the Wild. Two minutes from the time Curly went down, the last of her assailants were clubbed off. But she lay there limp and lifeless in the bloody, trampled snow . . . . The scene often came back to Buck to trouble him in his sleep. So that was the way. No fair play. Once down, that was the end of you. Well, he would see to it that he never went down. What is a good prediction question to ask after reading this excerpt? - will buck remember curly? -will buck encounter more violence? -does buck have bad dreams? -does buck try to learn from what he sees

B

Read this excerpt from The Call of the Wild. A hundred yards ahead the path turned and sloped steeply into the main street. It would have required an experienced man to keep the top-heavy sled upright, and Hal was not such a man. As they swung on the turn the sled went over, spilling half its load through the loose lashings. The dogs never stopped. . . . They were angry because of the ill treatment they had received and the unjust load. Buck was raging. He broke into a run, the team following his lead. What do readers learn in this excerpt that they might not know if Hal narrated the story? -the role that the shape of the path plays in the sled turning over -the real reason why the dogs continue to run after the sled turns over -the difficulty that a driver has in keeping a sled upright on sharp turns -the role that the loose lashings play in the sled losing its load

B

Read this excerpt from a short story. Ana's family had relocated to Hawaii when her mother accepted a job at the naval base. Her classmates at her new school were welcoming, but Ana had not made any close friends yet. One afternoon, a classmate skated by on her way to the beach. "Hey, Ana! I'm meeting Kia to surf Paia Bay. The waves are solid, and there's a luau at Mama's at 6:00. Wanna come?" Ana responded with a smile and called to her mom, "Mom! I'm going to the beach to surf for a while. I'll call you later." Then she grabbed her own surfboard and followed her new friend, wondering how the afternoon would unfold. Which line from the story contains dialect? - Her classmates at her new school were welcoming, but Ana had not made any close friends yet. -"Hey, Ana! I'm meeting Kia to surf Paia Bay. The waves are solid, and there's a luau at Mama's at 6:00. Wanna come?" - Ana responded with a smile and called to her mom, "Mom! I'm going to the beach to surf for a while. I'll call you later." - Then she grabbed her own surfboard and followed her new friend, wondering how the afternoon would unfold.

B

How does Buck change in The Call of the Wild once he begins a new life with John Thornton? -He starts to rely more on his natural instincts. -He begins to think about life in the wilderness. -He becomes affectionate and fiercely loyal. -He becomes trusting of anyone who is kind.

C

Read these examples of ideas based on part 3 of The Call of the Wild. 1. After Buck kills Spitz and becomes the team's leader, he is able to whip the other dogs into shape. 2. As leader, Buck is able to get Pike to stop loafing and do more of his fair share of the work. 3. Buck is also able to punish Joe to get results, something that Spitz was never successful in doing. Which conclusion best supports the ideas based on the text? -Buck is a strong and scary leader. Pike and Joe listen to him and do what he wants because they are afraid of what will happen if they do not. -Buck has natural leadership skills. These skills enable him to easily and gracefully take over Spitz's position and get the dogs to do what he wants. -Buck is an effective and strong leader. This is why he is able to gain the respect of the other dogs and get them to work in such a way as they did not work for Spitz. -Buck is a vicious and strong leader. This is evidenced by the fact that he first kills Spitz and then scares Pike and Joe into working and acting the way he feels they should be.

C

Read this excerpt from The Call of the Wild by Jack London. Billee wagged his tail appeasingly, turned to run when he saw that appeasement was of no avail, and cried (still appeasingly) when Spitz's sharp teeth scored his flank. But no matter how Spitz circled, Joe whirled around on his heels to face him, mane bristling, ears laid back, lips writhing and snarling, jaws clipping together as fast as he could snap, and eyes diabolically gleaming—the incarnation of belligerent fear. So terrible was his appearance that Spitz was forced to forego disciplining him; but to cover his own discomfiture he turned upon the inoffensive and wailing Billee and drove him to the confines of the camp. What theme does the excerpt convey? - meekness is respected in the wild - good leaders admit their weaknesses - strong leaders know how to hide their fear - teamwork cannot be achieved through violence

C

Read this excerpt from The Call of the Wild, and consider the context clues. But a cold snap was on, the thermometer registering fifty below zero, and each time he broke through he was compelled for very life to build a fire and dry his garments. What is the meaning of the underlined word? -encouraged or suggested -taught or instructed -obligated or forced -informed or explained

C

Read this excerpt from The Call of the Wild. Sometimes [Buck] thought of Judge Miller's big house in the sun-kissed Santa Clara Valley, and of the cement swimming-tank, and Ysabel, the Mexican hairless, and Toots, the Japanese pug; but oftener he remembered the man in the red sweater, the death of Curly, the great fight with Spitz, and the good things he had eaten or would like to eat. The third-person-omniscient point of view in this excerpt helps readers understand -the story's setting. -the story's historical context. -Buck's thoughts. -the other dogs' thoughts.

C

Which excerpt from The Call of the Wild shows how the third-person-omniscient point of view provides readers with a historical context for the story? -"The driver was perplexed. His comrades talked of how a dog could break its heart through being denied the work that killed it, and recalled instances they had known where dogs, too old for the toil, or injured, had died because they were cut out of the traces." -"In less than five months they had travelled twenty-five hundred miles, during the last eighteen hundred of which they had had but five days' rest. When they arrived at Skaguay they were apparently on their last legs." -"But so many were the men who had rushed into the Klondike, and so many were the sweethearts, wives, and kin that had not rushed in, that the congested mail was taking on Alpine proportions; also, there were official orders." -"Four times he had covered the distance between Salt Water and Dawson, and the knowledge that, jaded and tired, he was facing the same trail once more, made him bitter. His heart was not in the work, nor was the heart of any dog."

C

Which excerpt from The Call of the Wild best shows that Buck is entering into a new episode in his life? -And amid all this bursting, rending, throbbing of awakening life, under the blazing sun and through the soft-sighing breezes, like wayfarers to death, staggered the two men, the woman, and the huskies. -Buck made no effort. He lay quietly where he had fallen. The lash bit into him again and again, but he neither whined nor struggled. Several times Thornton started, as though to speak, but changed his mind. -This was the first time Buck had failed, in itself a sufficient reason to drive Hal into a rage. He exchanged the whip for the customary club. Buck refused to move under the rain of heavier blows which now fell upon him. Like his mates, he was barely able to get up, but, unlike them, he had made up his mind not to. -He was still limping slightly at the time he rescued Buck, but with the continued warm weather even the slight limp left him. And here, lying by the river bank through the long spring days, watching the running water, listening lazily to the songs of birds and the hum of nature, Buck slowly won back his strength.

D

Which line from The Call of the Wild offers an indirect characterization of one of the dogs? - "Dub, an awkward blunderer who was always getting caught, was punished for Buck's misdeed." - "Dave was fair and very wise." - "He was a civilized dog, an unduly civilized dog, and of his own experience knew no trap and so could not of himself fear it." - "When he marched slowly and deliberately into their midst, even Spitz left him alone."

D