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7R1 textual evidence and inferences

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Question 1 of 120

2026 Practice Test A English, question 7
Passage Snowy Mountains

Snowy Mountains

by John Gould Fletcher

Higher and still more high,
Palaces made for cloud,
Above the dingy city-roofs
Blue-white like angels with broad wings,
Pillars of the sky at rest
The mountains from the great plateau
Uprise.

But the world heeds them not;
They have been here now for too long a time.
The world makes war on them,
Tunnels their granite cliffs,
Splits down their shining sides,
Plasters their cliffs with soap-advertisements,
Destroys the lonely fragments of their peace.

Vaster and still more vast,
Peak after peak, pile after pile,
Wilderness still untamed,
To which the future is as was the past,
Barrier spread by Gods,
Sunning their shining foreheads,
Barrier broken down by those who do not need
The joy of time-resisting storm-worn stone,
The mountains swing along
The south horizon of the sky;
Welcoming with wide floors of blue-green ice
The mists that dance and drive before the sun.

“Snowy Mountains” by John Gould Fletcher—Public Domain

Question

Which quotations from the poem support the theme that nature’s unspoiled beauty is splendid, and which quotations support the theme that human creations detract from natural wonder?

Move each answer to the correct box.

Choose one answer in each row, then check. The DOE has not published how answers with several parts are scored; this site counts one right only when every part is right.

Nature’s Unspoiled Beauty is SplendidHuman Creations Detract from Natural Wonder
“Above the dingy city-roofs / Blue-white like angels with broad wings,” (lines 3–4)
“Pillars of the sky at rest / The mountains from the great plateau / Uprise.” (lines 5–7)
“Tunnels their granite cliffs, / Splits down their shining sides,” (lines 11–12)
“Wilderness still untamed, / To which the future is as was the past,” (lines 17–18)
“The south horizon of the sky; / Welcoming with wide floors of blue-green ice” (lines 24–25)
Show the answer

Correct answer: “Above the dingy city-roofs / Blue-white like angels with broad wings,” (lines 3–4): Human Creations Detract from Natural Wonder; “Pillars of the sky at rest / The mountains from the great plateau / Uprise.” (lines 5–7): Nature’s Unspoiled Beauty is Splendid; “Tunnels their granite cliffs, / Splits down their shining sides,” (lines 11–12): Human Creations Detract from Natural Wonder; “Wilderness still untamed, / To which the future is as was the past,” (lines 17–18): Nature’s Unspoiled Beauty is Splendid; “The south horizon of the sky; / Welcoming with wide floors of blue-green ice” (lines 24–25): Nature’s Unspoiled Beauty is Splendid

The question identifies two themes and asks which quotations from the poem support each theme. Each quotation should be moved to one of the two boxes: “Nature’s Unspoiled Beauty is Splendid” or “Human Creations Detract from Natural Wonder.”

“Above the dingy city-roofs / Blue-white like angels with broad wings,” (lines 3–4)

This quotation supports the theme that human creations detract from natural wonder. The lines describe the city-roofs as “dingy,” suggesting that they mar the lovely background of the blue-white mountains, which are compared to angels, a simile that vividly conveys the wonder of nature. The description in the lines primarily serves to create a contrast between the city’s unsightly appearance and the beauty of the mountains, thereby providing support for the theme that human creations (i.e. the city) detract from natural wonder.

“Pillars of the sky at rest / The mountains from the great plateau / Uprise.” (lines 5–7)

This quotation supports the theme that nature’s unspoiled beauty is splendid. By describing the mountains as “pillars of the sky” that “uprise” dramatically from a large plateau, the lines primarily convey a sense of the mountains’ dramatic and impressive size. The description suggests that the mountains are holding up the sky, a powerful image of an unspoiled, natural landscape.

“Tunnels their granite cliffs, / Splits down their shining sides,” (lines 11–12)

The quotation supports the theme that human creations detract from natural wonder. The words “tunnels” and “splits” emphasize that human intervention in nature is destructive, breaking apart the “shining sides” of the mountain. These lines suggest that human creations—such as building a tunnel through a mountain—detract from natural wonder, diminishing its beauty and serenity.

“Wilderness still untamed, / To which the future is as was the past,” (lines 17–18)

The quotation supports the theme that nature’s unspoiled beauty is splendid by indicating that the natural mountainous landscape is both splendid and unspoiled (“wilderness still untamed”). The phrase “to which the future is as was the past” suggests that nature in its unspoiled state is timeless or eternal, further supporting the theme.

“The south horizon of the sky; / Welcoming with wide floors of blue-green ice” (lines 24–25)

The quotation supports the theme that nature’s unspoiled beauty is splendid. The reference to the “wide floors of blue-green ice” emphasizes that the landscape is beautiful, and the description in the lines conveys the grandiose splendor of nature, conveying an image of the “south horizon of the sky” majestically “welcoming” one’s eye, inviting appreciation of its unspoiled beauty.

Question analysis

This sorting question on the poem “Snowy Mountains” gives two themes, the splendor of unspoiled nature and the way human creations detract from natural wonder, and asks students to place five quotations under them. The quotations come from all three stanzas. Students make five separate judgments, and a line’s most vivid image is not always the best guide to where it belongs.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Matching quotations to a stated theme is routine grade 7 evidence work, and both themes are given. The added demand is volume: five separate judgments on lines from all three stanzas of old-fashioned verse, each of which must land in the right box.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: 161 words (a poem; reading level not measured); question and choices: about grade 9, 34 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Most tiles sort quickly once a student asks whether people appear in the lines. The first tile is the hard one: its angel simile is pure splendor, yet the “dingy city-roofs” beneath it set the city against the peaks, and only that contrast fits the second theme. The tunneling lines hide their human actor outside the tile. With five placements that must all be right, one hasty tile loses the question.

  1. Much to keep track of moderate Working it out

    Five tiles from all three stanzas go into two boxes and every placement must be right, so a student holds both themes in mind while judging each quotation on its own. (Sweller, 1988; Carpenter, Just & Shell, 1990)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    Two tiles name no person: in lines 3–4 the human presence is only the “dingy city-roofs,” and in lines 11–12 the subject, “The world,” sits back in line 10, outside the tile. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Figurative or literary language minor Understanding the question

    The splendor is carried by images rather than statements, the mountains as “angels,” “Pillars of the sky” and “wide floors of blue-green ice,” which students must read as praise of untouched nature. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Read each quotation to the end and ask whether it shows something people have made or done; then sort it by what the lines as a whole are about, not by one word.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Taking figurative language literally: A choice reads a figure of speech or image at face value.
  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is a sorting question. You get two themes. A theme is a big idea a poem keeps coming back to. The first theme says nature that people have not spoiled is splendid, which means grand and beautiful. The second says things people make detract from nature, which means they take away from its wonder. For each quotation, ask: does it show something people made or did?

  2. Sort the lines about the city

    Lines 3 and 4 say “Above the dingy city-roofs / Blue-white like angels with broad wings.” The angel picture is beautiful. But right under the mountains are “dingy city-roofs.” Dingy means dirty and dull. City roofs are something people built. The lines set the dirty city against the shining mountains. So this quotation shows a human creation taking away from nature’s wonder.

  3. Sort the lines about the pillars

    Lines 5 to 7 say “Pillars of the sky at rest / The mountains from the great plateau / Uprise.” Pillars are tall posts that hold something up. A plateau is a high, flat stretch of land. The mountains rise up like giant posts holding up the sky. No people appear here. This quotation shows how splendid untouched nature is.

  4. Sort the lines about tunnels

    Lines 11 and 12 say “Tunnels their granite cliffs, / Splits down their shining sides.” These lines do not say who does this. Look back at line 10: “The world makes war on them.” So “the world,” meaning people, cuts tunnels and splits the mountains. The cliffs shine, but people are breaking them. This quotation shows human creations hurting nature.

  5. Sort the last two quotations

    Lines 17 and 18 say “Wilderness still untamed, / To which the future is as was the past.” Untamed means not controlled or changed by people. The second line means the mountains will stay as they always were. Lines 24 and 25 say “The south horizon of the sky; / Welcoming with wide floors of blue-green ice.” That is a picture of sky and ice, with no people in it. Both praise unspoiled nature.

  6. Place each quotation in its box

    • Lines 3–4 (the city roofs): Human Creations Detract from Natural Wonder
    • Lines 5–7 (the pillars): Nature’s Unspoiled Beauty is Splendid
    • Lines 11–12 (the tunnels): Human Creations Detract from Natural Wonder
    • Lines 17–18 (the wilderness): Nature’s Unspoiled Beauty is Splendid
    • Lines 24–25 (the ice): Nature’s Unspoiled Beauty is Splendid

    Drag each tile into its box. All five must be right to get the point.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

Lines 3 and 4 are the hardest tile. The angel image alone would fit the first box. But that box is about beauty that is unspoiled. These lines put the dingy city right under the shining peaks. The dirty roofs spoil the view, so the tile belongs in the second box.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 7 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 10 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test A English, page 10, question 7.
The passage “Snowy Mountains” as printed (page 142)The passage “Snowy Mountains” as printed on page 142 of the DOE handbook.

Question 2 of 120

2026 Practice Test A English, question 8
Passage The Best Laid Plans of Ravens

The Best Laid Plans of Ravens

In Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “The Raven,” a raven visits a lonely man’s home and responds to the man’s pleading questions with only the word “nevermore.” The poem’s narrator interprets the word as a prediction of doom for his future. A talking, prophetic raven may seem to be the wild imaginings of the poet, but a new study published in the journal Science hints that one particular idea behind the poem might not be as far-fetched as it seems. For most of human history, people assumed that animals do not understand the passage of time in the same way people do. Some people believed that animals might remember events from the past and that instinct might drive them to make preparations in order to guarantee survival, but most people did not think that animals had the ability to plan. At Lund University in Sweden, researchers argue that ravens may be able to think ahead and even plan for the future.

It can be difficult to test an animal’s ability to plan because human observers must be certain they are not mistaking instinctual behavior for intentional planning. For example, many animals hoard food so that they will not run out later, but scientists who study animals would not call hoarding a decision to plan for the future. This action is merely instinctual. Cognitive scientists argue that in order for an animal’s behavior to qualify as preparing for the future, the animal must use specific decision-making skills to solve a problem.

To avoid mistaking instinctual behavior for evidence of decision-making, the Lund University researchers designed two experiments to test ravens’ ability to plan. Ravens belong to the corvid family, a group of birds known for their intelligence. A study in 2007 showed that corvids have the tendency to save only certain types of food, which suggests that they are planning for the future rather than acting on instinct. In order to investigate that theory, the researchers had to design experiments that would achieve results that could not be explained by an instinctual behavior of food hoarding. Therefore, the ravens were taught two behaviors that they do not normally perform in the wild.

For the first experiment, the researchers showed the birds how to use a small stone to open a box and get treats. Once the ravens learned the behavior, the researchers presented the birds with four stones. Only one stone was the right size to open the box. The birds learned to select that stone and set it aside until the researchers presented the box. The second experiment involved bartering. A researcher would trade the ravens a large treat for a bottle cap. Later, the researchers presented the ravens with a group of items, including small treats and the bottle cap. The ravens chose the bottle cap over the treats and waited for the original researcher to trade with them again so that they could get more treats. In both experiments, the ravens waited patiently for up to seventeen hours for the researcher to return.

The results of these experiments are exciting, but more evidence needs to be gathered before scientists can fully conclude that ravens can plan for the future. Some scientists argue that the ravens might be choosing the stone and bottle cap because the ravens have been trained to do so, not necessarily because the ravens are thinking ahead. Regardless, like other recent advances in animal science, these experiments show that ravens could be much smarter than first believed, and scientists now believe that ravens do actually think about their own future.

Question

Read this sentence from paragraph 1.

At Lund University in Sweden, researchers argue that ravens may be able to think ahead and even plan for the future.

Which sentence from paragraph 4 provides support for this argument?

  • A“Once the ravens learned the behavior, the researchers presented the birds with four stones.”
  • B“A researcher would trade the ravens a large treat for a bottle cap.”
  • C“Later, the researchers presented the ravens with a group of items, including small treats and the bottle cap.”
  • D“The ravens chose the bottle cap over the treats and waited for the original researcher to trade with them again so that they could get more treats.”
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks which sentence from paragraph 4 supports the argument presented in the sentence from paragraph 1.

A. Incorrect. This sentence from paragraph 4 refers to the ravens’ ability to adapt and learn but not to plan and think ahead.

B. Incorrect. This sentence from paragraph 4 relates the actions of the researcher rather than the actions of the ravens and does not provide evidence in support of the argument that ravens have the ability to think and plan ahead.

C. Incorrect. This sentence from paragraph 4 does not describe a behavior of the ravens that would support the argument in the sentence from paragraph 1; instead it relates the actions of the researchers without giving any information about the ravens’ responses.

D. CORRECT. This sentence from paragraph 4 shows that the ravens seem to make a decision, which involves a thought process. The ravens chose to wait for the researcher rather than take the treats, suggesting that the ravens understood that the researcher would trade a larger treat for the bottle cap.

Question analysis

This evidence question on the science article “The Best Laid Plans of Ravens” quotes the claim from paragraph 1 that ravens may be able to think ahead and plan for the future. Students choose the sentence from paragraph 4, where two experiments are described, that supports it. Every choice comes from the same experiments, so each must be weighed against the claim.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Choosing the sentence that backs a quoted claim is standard grade 7 evidence work. The claim is printed in the question and all four choices come from one paragraph, so the search is short, though each sentence must be tested against the claim.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 599 words; question and choices: about grade 8, 107 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The claim is about what ravens can do, and only one of the four sentences shows the birds deciding anything. Students who read quickly accept any sentence about the experiments, especially the one where the ravens have just learned a skill, because learning sounds like intelligence. Asking who acts in each sentence, the birds or the researchers, settles the question in seconds.

  1. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The right sentence never says “plan”; students must see that choosing the cap over the treats and waiting “so that they could get more treats” is acting now for a later reward. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    All four sentences come from paragraph 4’s experiments, and three of them report what the researchers did, so each must be checked for a decision made by the ravens. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Underline “think ahead” and “plan” in the quoted claim, then ask of each sentence whether it, on its own, would convince a doubter that ravens can do that.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for evidence: the sentence that best supports a claim. The claim is that ravens “may be able to think ahead and even plan for the future.” To plan is to decide now what you will do later, so you get something you want. You need a sentence from paragraph 4 that shows ravens doing that.

  2. Ask who acts in each sentence

    Only something the ravens do can prove what ravens can do. So check each choice for its doer. In A, B and C, the researchers do most of the acting. They hand out stones, offer a trade and set out items. Only one sentence shows the ravens making a choice of their own.

  3. Find the ravens’ choice

    Paragraph 4 says “The ravens chose the bottle cap over the treats and waited for the original researcher to trade with them again so that they could get more treats.” The ravens could have eaten a small treat right away. Instead they took a bottle cap, which is worthless by itself. They kept it because the researcher would trade a large treat for it later.

  4. Explain why this shows planning

    The words “so that” give the reason for the choice. The ravens gave up something now to get something better later. That is exactly what planning ahead means. You do the same thing when you save your allowance for a bigger toy next month.

  5. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. The ravens have only learned a skill. The rest of the sentence tells what the researchers did next.
    • B does not fit. It tells what a researcher offered, not what the ravens decided.
    • C does not fit. It is the setup of the test, before the ravens choose anything.
    • D fits. The ravens choose now and wait for a later reward.

    Watch out: A sounds smart because the ravens “learned the behavior.” But being taught a skill is not the same as thinking ahead.

  6. Choose the answer

    Only one sentence shows the ravens making a choice now for a reward later. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong choice, because learning a skill sounds clever. But learning to open a box shows only that the birds can be taught. It says nothing about the future. In D, the ravens pass up treats today to get more treats later. That is planning.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 8 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 13 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test A English, page 13, question 8.
The passage “The Best Laid Plans of Ravens” as printed (page 12)The passage “The Best Laid Plans of Ravens” as printed on page 12 of the DOE handbook.

Question 3 of 120

2026 Practice Test A English, question 10

Uses the passage above: “The Best Laid Plans of Ravens”.

Question

In the first experiment described in paragraph 4, which of the ravens’ behaviors provides the strongest evidence for the claim that the birds are capable of planning?

  • AThey accepted treats from the box.
  • BThey set aside the stone that would open the box.
  • CThey learned which stone could open the box.
  • DThey waited for researchers to bring the box.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks which of the ravens’ behaviors in the first experiment described in paragraph 4 most strongly supports the claim that the birds are capable of planning.

A. Incorrect. While “the researchers showed the birds how to use a small stone to open a box and get treats” (paragraph 4), the acceptance of the treats does not demonstrate planning.

B. CORRECT. Once the ravens learned which stone would open the box, they consistently selected only that stone.

C. Incorrect. Although the birds learned which stone opened the box, this behavior demonstrates not their ability to plan but rather their intelligence.

D. Incorrect. The birds’ patience shows their anticipation for and understanding of the future gain of a treat but does not provide the strongest evidence of their ability to plan.

Question analysis

This evidence question on “The Best Laid Plans of Ravens” asks which of the ravens’ behaviors in the first experiment, the one with a stone and a box of treats, gives the strongest evidence that the birds can plan. Several behaviors seem to fit, so students must weigh them against the passage’s own idea of what planning is.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 evidence questions usually ask which detail supports a claim. This one asks which of the ravens’ behaviors gives the strongest support, and several seem to fit, so students must apply paragraph 2’s test for planning to paragraph 4.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 599 words; question and choices: about grade 5, 58 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Every choice describes something the ravens really did, so the work is ranking, not finding. The passage’s dramatic detail, birds waiting up to seventeen hours, draws attention away from the quieter act of keeping the right stone ready, which is the behavior that most clearly prepares for the future. Students who weigh each behavior against paragraph 2’s idea of decision-making, rather than against how impressive it sounds, separate the two.

  1. A very close wrong answer major Choosing the answer

    Setting the stone aside and waiting for the box both come from one sentence, “set it aside until the researchers presented the box”; only the first is an action taken now for a later need. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The passage never says which behavior counts as planning, so students must apply paragraph 2’s test, that the animal “must use specific decision-making skills to solve a problem,” to each one. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    The waiting that tempts students is stressed at the end of paragraph 4, “up to seventeen hours,” well after the stone sentence, and paragraph 2 holds the standard for judging both. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Use paragraph 2’s description of what counts as planning as a yardstick, then rank the four behaviors by how well each meets it instead of taking the first that seems clever.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks which thing the ravens did in the first experiment, the one with the stone and the box, is the strongest evidence that they can plan. More than one choice really happened. You must rank them and pick the best one.

  2. Decide what counts as planning

    Paragraph 2 gives a test. To count as preparing for the future, “the animal must use specific decision-making skills to solve a problem.” In plain words, planning means doing something now to get ready for something later. Use that as your measuring stick.

  3. Find the key sentence

    Paragraph 4 says “The birds learned to select that stone and set it aside until the researchers presented the box.” To set something aside is to put it away to use later. When the birds did this, the box was not there yet.

  4. Explain why this is planning

    The ravens had nothing to open at that moment. Still, they picked the one stone that would work and saved it. They did this because they expected to need it later. It is like packing an umbrella in the morning because rain is coming in the afternoon. That is a choice made now to solve a future problem.

  5. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. Taking treats is the reward. Any trained animal does that.
    • B fits. Saving the right stone gets the bird ready for a box that comes later.
    • C does not fit. Learning which stone works shows the birds can be taught. Knowing the right tool is not the same as keeping it ready.
    • D does not fit as well. Waiting shows the birds expected the box. But waiting is doing nothing, so it is weaker proof.

    Watch out: D is tempting because the passage stresses waiting “up to seventeen hours.” Long waiting is impressive, but it is not an action.

  6. Choose the answer

    Setting the stone aside is the clearest act of getting ready for the future. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong choice. Waiting and setting the stone aside come from the same sentence. But while a bird waits, it does nothing. Setting the stone aside is a choice. The bird keeps the right tool ready for a box that is not there yet. That act of getting ready makes B stronger evidence.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 10 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 15 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test A English, page 15, question 10.

Question 4 of 120

2026 Practice Test A English, question 13

Uses the passage above: “The Best Laid Plans of Ravens”.

Question

With which statement would the author of the passage most likely agree?

  • AScientists are unlikely to be able to conduct an experiment that can genuinely distinguish between instinctual and learned behaviors in animals.
  • BScientists should continue researching to determine whether or not animals can demonstrate advanced intelligence.
  • CScientists should be careful about making conclusions about animal intelligence based on experiments that rely on training animals.
  • DScientists can confirm data on whether animals have the ability to plan by performing experiments on additional species known for their intelligence.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks the reader to choose the statement with which the author of the passage would most likely agree.

A. Incorrect. It is very likely that additional experiments or changes to the experiments presented can help scientists tell the difference between the types of behavior that the animals are showing. The current research supports “other recent advances in animal science” and also shows that ravens are “much smarter” (paragraph 5) than previously believed, making them excellent candidates for further research.

B. CORRECT. As paragraph 5 notes, “more evidence needs to be gathered before scientists can fully conclude that ravens can plan for the future.” The evidence is not yet considered definitive because “some scientists argue that the ravens might be choosing the stone and bottle cap because the ravens have been trained to do so, not necessarily because the ravens are thinking ahead” (paragraph 5). Therefore, more research is needed in order to draw a complete conclusion as to whether or not the animals are demonstrating advanced intelligence or simply the results of training.

C. Incorrect. The passage shows that the scientists did not draw conclusions based on one experiment alone. The passage also states in paragraph 5 that additional research and experiments are necessary in order to obtain conclusive evidence of ravens’ abilities to think and plan ahead.

D. Incorrect. The passage claims that more evidence must be gathered in order to make a claim that animals can definitely plan for the future. The evidence presented helps scientists “believe that ravens do actually think about their own future” (paragraph 5), but more confirmation is needed. The passage does not discuss performing experiments on additional species.

Question analysis

This inference question asks which statement the author of “The Best Laid Plans of Ravens” would most likely agree with. Students must work out the author’s own view of the raven experiments and of research into animal thinking. The article reports more than one viewpoint, so students have to keep track of which ideas belong to the author.

NYS standards
  • 7R6 point of view and author position
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Inferring which statement an author would accept is common grade 7 work. The author’s view is stated fairly plainly in the last paragraph, but that paragraph also reports what other scientists argue, so students must separate the author’s position from theirs.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 599 words; question and choices: about grade 15, 87 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The passage reports several opinions, and the hard part is telling which one is the author’s. Students who notice the training objection in paragraph 5 often adopt it as the author’s warning, but “Regardless” shows the author weighing it and moving on to a hopeful view that still calls for more evidence. The other wrong choices either turn “difficult” into “unlikely” or bring in research the article never mentions.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The author’s view is never stated as advice; it has to be read from paragraph 5, where “more evidence needs to be gathered” is followed by “Regardless” and a hopeful conclusion. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The choice about caution with experiments that train animals shares the right one’s careful stance and differs in one detail, training, the objection the author raises only to set aside. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  3. Much to keep track of minor Working it out

    The article mixes four voices, what people long assumed, the Lund researchers, “some scientists” who doubt them and the author, and each statement must be traced to the right one. (Sweller, 1988; Carpenter, Just & Shell, 1990)

Strategy: Find the sentences where the author speaks in their own voice, especially in paragraph 5, and pick the statement that follows from them without adding claims the article never makes.

Traps

  • Wrong tone or attitude: Misjudges the tone, attitude or point of view, such as reading admiration as criticism, or taking a character's or subject's feelings for the author's.
  • Too broad or too strong: A choice overstates, generalizes, or uses absolute words the text does not support.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks which statement the author would most likely agree with. You must find the author’s own view. The article also reports what other people think, so keep those ideas apart.

  2. Sort out the voices in paragraph 5

    Paragraph 5 says “Some scientists argue that the ravens might be choosing the stone and bottle cap because the ravens have been trained to do so.” That is what other scientists think. The author’s own words are “The results of these experiments are exciting, but more evidence needs to be gathered.”

  3. Put the author’s view in plain words

    The author thinks the research is promising but not finished. After the doubt, the author says “Regardless,” which means “even so,” and stays hopeful. So the author wants scientists to keep studying until they can be sure.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. The author never says a good test is unlikely. The author finds the results exciting.
    • B fits. The author says more evidence must be gathered.
    • C does not fit. The worry about training belongs to “some scientists.” The author sets it aside with “Regardless.”
    • D does not fit. The article never mentions testing other kinds of animals.

    Watch out: C sounds careful, like a scientist. But it repeats the other scientists’ view, not the author’s.

  5. Choose the answer

    The author wants scientists to keep gathering evidence before anyone decides. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong choice. It sounds careful, and the author is careful too. But the warning about training comes from “some scientists.” The author answers it with “Regardless” and stays hopeful. The author’s own point is that “more evidence needs to be gathered.” That matches B.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 13 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 18 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test A English, page 18, question 13.

Question 5 of 120

2026 Practice Test A English, question 15
Passage Excerpt from A Voice in the Wilderness

Excerpt from A Voice in the Wilderness

by Grace Livingston Hill

With a lurch the train came to a dead stop and Margaret Earle, hastily gathering up her belongings, hurried down the aisle and got out into the night.

It occurred to her, as she swung her heavy suit-case down the rather long step to the ground, and then carefully swung herself after it, that it was strange that neither conductor, brakeman, nor porter had come to help her off the train, when all three had taken the trouble to tell her that hers was the next station; but she could hear voices up ahead. Perhaps something was the matter with the engine that detained them and they had forgotten her for the moment.

The ground was rough where she stood, and there seemed no sign of a platform. Did they not have platforms in this wild Western land, or was the train so long that her car had stopped before reaching it?

She strained her eyes into the darkness, and tried to make out things from the two or three specks of light that danced about like fireflies in the distance. She could dimly see moving figures away up near the engine, and each one evidently carried a lantern. The train was tremendously long. A sudden feeling of isolation took possession of her. Perhaps she ought not to have got out until some one came to help her. Perhaps the train had not pulled into the station yet and she ought to get back on it and wait. Yet if the train started before she found the conductor she might be carried on somewhere and he justly blame her for a fool.

There did not seem to be any building on that side of the track. It was probably on the other, but she was standing too near the cars to see over. She tried to move back to look, but the ground sloped and she slipped and fell in the cinders1^1, bruising her knee and cutting her wrist.

In sudden panic she arose. She would get back into the train, no matter what the consequences. They had no right to put her out here, away off from the station, at night, in a strange country. If the train started before she could find the conductor she would tell him that he must back it up again and let her off. He certainly could not expect her to get out like this.

She lifted the heavy suit-case up the high step that was even farther from the ground than it had been when she came down, because her fall had loosened some of the earth and caused it to slide away from the track. Then, reaching to the rail of the step, she tried to pull herself up, but as she did so the engine gave a long snort and the whole train, as if it were in league against her, lurched forward crazily, shaking off her hold. She slipped to her knees again, the suit-case, toppled from the lower step, descending upon her, and together they slid and rolled down the short bank, while the train . . . ran giddily off into the night.

The horror of being deserted helped the girl to rise in spite of bruises and shock. She lifted imploring hands to the unresponsive cars as they hurried by her—one, two, three, with bright windows, each showing a passenger, comfortable and safe inside, unconscious of her need.

A moment of useless screaming, running, trying to attract some one’s attention, a sickening sense of terror and failure, and the last car slatted itself past with a mocking clatter, as if it enjoyed her discomfort.

Margaret stood dazed, reaching out helpless hands, then dropped them at her sides and gazed after the fast-retreating train, the light on its last car swinging tauntingly, blinking now and then with a leer in its eye, rapidly vanishing from her sight into the depth of the night.

She gasped and looked about her for the station that but a short moment before had been so real to her mind; and, lo! on this side and on that there was none!

The night was wide like a great floor shut in by a low, vast dome of curving blue set with the largest, most wonderful stars she had ever seen. Heavy shadows of purple-green, smoke-like, hovered over earth darker and more intense than the unfathomable blue of the night sky. It seemed like the secret nesting-place of mysteries wherein no human foot might dare intrude. It was incredible that such could be but common sage-brush, sand, and greasewood wrapped about with the beauty of the lonely night.

No building broke the inky outlines of the plain, nor friendly light streamed out to cheer her heart. Not even a tree was in sight, except on the far horizon, where a heavy line of deeper darkness might mean a forest. Nothing, absolutely nothing, in the blue, deep, starry dome above and the bluer darkness of the earth below save one sharp shaft ahead like a black mast throwing out a dark arm across the track.

As soon as she sighted it she picked up her baggage and made her painful way toward it, for her knees and wrist were bruised and her baggage was heavy.

A soft drip, drip greeted her as she drew nearer; something plashing down among the cinders by the track. Then she saw the tall column with its arm outstretched, and looming darker among the sage-brush the outlines of a water-tank. It was so she recognized the engine’s drinking-tank, and knew that she had mistaken a pause to water the engine for a regular stop at a station.

1^1cinders: track bed made from the residue of burnt coal

From A VOICE IN THE WILDERNESS by Grace Livingston Hill—Public Domain

Question

Which sentence from the excerpt best supports the idea that Margaret is unaccustomed to traveling to new places by train?

  • A“With a lurch the train came to a dead stop and Margaret Earle, hastily gathering up her belongings, hurried down the aisle and got out into the night.” (paragraph 1)
  • B“Perhaps something was the matter with the engine that detained them and they had forgotten her for the moment.” (paragraph 2)
  • C“Did they not have platforms in this wild Western land, or was the train so long that her car had stopped before reaching it?” (paragraph 3)
  • D“She could dimly see moving figures away up near the engine, and each one evidently carried a lantern.” (paragraph 4)
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks for evidence from the excerpt that best supports the idea that Margaret is unfamiliar with traveling to new places by train.

A. Incorrect. Margaret’s actions in the sentence from paragraph 1 are decisive as she gathers her belongings to exit the train; she is familiar with rail travel.

B. Incorrect. In the sentence from paragraph 2, Margaret is using her knowledge about trains to attempt to interpret the actions of others; she is familiar with trains, even if a particular destination has not been mentioned.

C. CORRECT. If Margaret has never traveled to this region by train before, she must guess or attempt to interpret what she sees. This idea is best represented in the sentence in paragraph 3 where she questions whether the stations in the West have platforms.

D. Incorrect. While the sentence from paragraph 4 shows that Margaret is trying to better understand her situation in the darkness, her ability to identify the train’s engine and the figures carrying lanterns indicates some familiarity with her mode of travel.

Question analysis

Students choose the sentence from Grace Livingston Hill’s A Voice in the Wilderness that best supports the idea that Margaret is unaccustomed to traveling to new places by train. The four choices come from paragraphs 1–4, as she steps down from the train into the dark. Each reveals something about her, so students must test them against this one idea.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 A typical grade 7 evidence task: the four quotations come from the opening paragraphs and carry paragraph numbers. The challenge is that several show Margaret unsure of herself, so students must match the specific idea in the claim, not any sign of doubt.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 8, 981 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 113 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Uncertainty runs through all four quotations, so the general mood of the opening cannot pick the answer. The claim is specific, a traveler new to such places, and only one sentence ties her confusion to the region itself rather than to a delay, the darkness or her haste. Students who match feelings instead of the claim usually settle on her guess about engine trouble.

  1. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    All four quotations, from paragraphs 1 to 4, show Margaret unsure in the dark, so each has to be tested against the narrower idea of someone new to this kind of journey. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    No sentence says Margaret is new to the West; students must infer it from her puzzled question whether stations in “this wild Western land” lack platforms. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Restate the claim in your own words, then ask of each quotation whether it proves that idea specifically or only shows some other feeling Margaret has at that moment.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for evidence: the sentence that best supports an idea. The idea is that Margaret is unaccustomed to traveling to new places by train. Unaccustomed means not used to something. So look for a sentence where a new place puzzles her.

  2. Notice what the choices share

    All four sentences come from paragraphs 1 to 4, just after Margaret steps off the train at night. In most of them she is unsure. So feeling unsure is not enough. The right sentence must tie her confusion to the strange place itself.

  3. Look closely at paragraph 3

    Paragraph 3 asks “Did they not have platforms in this wild Western land, or was the train so long that her car had stopped before reaching it?” A platform is the raised floor beside the tracks where people get on and off. Margaret wonders if stations out West even have them. She does not know how things work in this region. That shows she is not used to traveling here.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. She is “hastily gathering up her belongings,” which means in a hurry. She knows what to do when her stop comes.
    • B does not fit. Guessing about engine trouble is how someone who knows trains would think.
    • C fits. She does not know what stations are like in this new land.
    • D does not fit. The dark makes it hard to see. Yet she still picks out the engine and the lanterns.

    Watch out: B begins with “Perhaps,” so it sounds unsure. But her doubt is about the train, not the place.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only the question about platforms shows that this place is unfamiliar to her. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong choice, since Margaret is unsure in it too. But there she reasons like an experienced rider: maybe the engine broke down. In C, she wonders what stations are like in “this wild Western land.” Only C shows a traveler who is not used to new places.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 15 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 23 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test A English, page 23, question 15.
The passage “Excerpt from A Voice in the Wilderness” as printed (pages 128–129)The passage “Excerpt from A Voice in the Wilderness” as printed on page 128 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from A Voice in the Wilderness” as printed on page 129 of the DOE handbook.

Question 6 of 120

2026 Practice Test A English, question 17

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from A Voice in the Wilderness”.

Question

How do Margaret’s earlier interactions with the conductor, brakeman, and porter affect the plot?

  • AThey prompt Margaret to get off the train without further assistance.
  • BThey cause Margaret to think that she knows what to do once she gets off the train.
  • CThey compel Margaret to wonder whether the train has not pulled all the way into the station.
  • DThey lead Margaret to believe that train stations in rural areas lack platforms.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how Margaret’s earlier interactions with the conductor, brakeman, and porter affect the plot.

A. CORRECT. Because the conductor, brakeman, and porter have all “taken the trouble to tell her that hers was the next station” (paragraph 2), Margaret assumes that the next time the train stops, she will have reached her station. This assumption causes Margaret to get off the train at the next stop without waiting for help or confirmation, but the stop turns out to be just “a pause to water the engine” (paragraph 15). This mistaken assumption creates the main problem that Margaret confronts in the passage.

B. Incorrect. Although Margaret’s earlier interactions with the three railroad employees cause her to think that she knows when to get off the train, it is clear from paragraph 4 that Margaret is deeply confused and does not know what to do once she has exited the train car. She muses uneasily, “Perhaps she ought not to have got out until some one came to help her. Perhaps the train had not pulled into the station yet and she ought to get back on it and wait” (paragraph 4).

C. Incorrect. Margaret wonders in paragraph 3 whether the train is “so long that her car had stopped before reaching [the station]” and speculates in paragraph 4 that “the train had not pulled into the station yet.” These thoughts reflect her assumption (based on her interactions with the three railroad employees) that the next stop is her station. However, Margaret’s speculation that the train has not fully pulled into the station does not significantly affect the plot.

D. Incorrect. Margaret wonders in paragraph 3 whether they “have platforms in this wild Western land” and is expecting to see a platform because her interactions with the three railroad employees have led her to believe that she has reached a station. However, it is unclear whether Margaret really believes that rural stations all lack platforms, and her speculation on this point is not further developed in the passage and does not affect the plot.

Question analysis

This plot question on A Voice in the Wilderness asks how Margaret’s earlier dealings with the conductor, brakeman and porter, mentioned only in passing in paragraph 2, affect what happens to her. Students must connect that brief remark to later events in the excerpt. Several choices describe things that do happen, so students must judge which one those conversations truly cause.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 plot questions ask how story elements affect one another, usually through an event and its result. Here the cause is a clause inside a long sentence of century-old prose, and students must trace its effect across the excerpt rather than within one paragraph.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 8, 981 words; question and choices: about grade 7, 72 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The talks with the trainmen are mentioned once, in the middle of a long sentence, and the question asks students to see them as the start of the whole plot. Several choices describe thoughts Margaret really has right after she steps down, which makes them feel connected, but those thoughts change nothing. The point goes to students who trace cause to consequence: told her stop was next, she gets off alone at a water tank.

  1. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The cause sits in paragraph 2, where all three men had told her “hers was the next station,” and the effect shows only in paragraph 15, when the stop proves to be a water tank. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The excerpt never says the men’s words made her step off; students must infer that their assurance is why she left the train at the first stop without waiting for anyone. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

    The interactions appear in a 66-word sentence in paragraph 2, tucked into a “when” clause after a run of commas, so they read as a passing detail rather than a cause. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: Reread paragraph 2 to find what the three men told Margaret, then trace how that information shapes the events that follow, and choose the effect that matters most to the plot.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks how something from earlier affects the plot. The plot is the chain of events in a story. What did the three train workers tell Margaret, and what did that cause?

  2. Find what the workers told her

    Paragraph 2 says it was strange that “neither conductor, brakeman, nor porter had come to help her off the train, when all three had taken the trouble to tell her that hers was the next station.” A conductor, a brakeman and a porter are all people who work on a train.

  3. Trace what happened because of it

    Three workers told her that her stop was next. So when the train stopped, she was sure she had arrived. She got off alone, without waiting for anyone to help. But in paragraph 15 she learns it was only “a pause to water the engine.” Their words set off the whole problem: she is left alone in the dark.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits. Their words led her to get off by herself.
    • B does not fit. They told her when to get off, not what to do next. In paragraph 4 she is lost: “Perhaps she ought not to have got out until some one came to help her.”
    • C does not fit. She does wonder this, but the thought changes nothing in the story.
    • D does not fit. She only asks a question about platforms. She never decides anything about country stations.

  5. Choose the answer

    The workers’ words made Margaret step off the train on her own at the wrong stop. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong choice. The workers’ words do make her guess that the train has not reached the station yet. But that guess goes nowhere. What changes the story is that she gets off alone at a stop that is not a station. That is A.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 17 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 25 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test A English, page 25, question 17.

Question 7 of 120

2026 Practice Test A English, question 29
Passage Excerpt from “The Spirit of the Herd”

Excerpt from “The Spirit of the Herd”

by Dallas Lore Sharp

In this excerpt, published in 1914, author and professor Dallas Lore Sharp describes a summer cattle roundup in Oregon. The heat and dust had been relentless for three days. The cowboys were exhausted, and the cattle were restless. The ranch boss, Wade, had led the drive to a watering place, only to find it empty.

Along with the wagon had come the fresh horses—one of them being Peroxide Jim, a supple, powerful, clean-limbed buckskin, a horse, I think, that had as fine and intelligent an animal-face as any creature I ever saw. Wade had been saving this horse for emergency work. And why should he not have been saved fresh for just such a need as this? Are there not superior horses as well as superior men—a Peroxide Jim to complement a Wade?

The horse knew the cattle business and knew his rider perfectly; and though there was nothing like sentiment about the boss of the P Ranch riders, his faith in Peroxide Jim was complete. . . .

The desert, where the herd was camped, was one of the highest of a series of tablelands, or benches; it lay as level as a floor, rimmed by sheer rock, from which there was a drop to the bench of sage below. The herd when overtaken by the dusk had been headed for a pass descending to the next lower bench, but was now halted within a mile of the rim rock on the east, where there was a perpendicular fall of about three hundred feet. . . .

In the taut silence of the stirless desert night, with the tension of the herd at the snapping-point, any quick, unwonted sight or sound would stampede them. The sneezing of a horse, the flare of a match, would be enough to send the whole four thousand headlong—blind, frenzied, trampling—till spent and scattered over the plain.

And so, as he rode, Wade began to sing. The rider ahead of him took up the air and passed it on until, above the stepping stir of the hoofs rose the faint voices of the men, and all the herd was bound about by the slow plaintive measures of some old song. It was not to soothe their savage breasts that the riders sang to the cattle, but rather to preempt the dreaded silence, to relieve the tension, and so to prevent the shock of any sudden startling noise.

So they sang and rode and the night wore on to one o’clock, when Wade, coming up on the rim-rock side, felt a cool breeze fan his face, and caught a breath of fresh, moist wind with the taste of water in it.

He checked his horse instantly, listening as the wind swept past him over the cattle. But they must already have smelled it, for they had ceased their milling, the whole herd standing motionless, the indistinct forms close to him in the dark showing their bald faces lifted to drink the sweet wet breath that came over the rim. Then they started on again, but faster, and with a rumbling now from their hoarse throats that tightened Wade’s grip on the reins.

The sound seemed to come out of the earth, a low, rumbling mumble, as dark as the night and as wide as the plain, a thick, inarticulate bellow that stood every rider stiff in his stirrups. . . .

Then the breeze caught the dust and carried it back from the gray-coated, ghostly shapes, and Wade saw that the animals were still moving in a circle. He must keep them going. He touched his horse to ride on with them, when across the black sky flashed a vivid streak of lightning.

There was a snort from the steers, a quick clap of horns and hoofs from far within the herd, a tremor of the plain, a roar, a surging mass—and Wade was riding the flank of a wild stampede. Before him, behind him, beside him, pressing hard upon his horse, galloped the frenzied steers, and beyond them a multitude borne on, and bearing him on, by the heave of the galloping herd.

Wade was riding for his life. He knew it. His horse knew it. He was riding to turn the herd, too, back from the rim, as the horse also knew. The cattle were after water—water-mad—ready to go over the precipice to get it, carrying horse and rider with them. Wade was the only rider between the herd and the rim. It was black as death. He could see nothing in the sage, could scarcely discern the pounding, panting shadows at his side. He knew that he was being borne toward the rim, how fast he could not tell, but he knew by the swish of the brush against his tapaderos and the plunging of the horse that the ground was growing stonier, that they were nearing the rocks.

To outrun the herd was his only chance for life. If he could come up with the leaders he might not only escape, but even stand a chance of heading them off upon the plain and saving the herd. There were cattle still ahead of him; how many, what part of them all, he could not make out in the dark. But the horse knew. The reins hung on his straight neck, where his rider had dropped them, as, yelling and firing over the wild herd, he had given this horse the race to win, to lose.

They were riding the rim. Close on their left bore down the flank of the herd, and on their right, under their very feet, was a precipice, so close that they felt its blackness—its three hundred feet of fall! . . .

. . . Then Wade found himself racing neck and neck with a big white steer, which the horse, with marvelous instinct, seemed to pick out from a bunch, and to cling to, forcing him gradually ahead, till, cutting him free from the bunch entirely, he bore him off into the swishing sage.

The steers coming on close behind followed their leader, and in, after them, swung others. The tide was turning from the rim. More and more were veering, and within a short time the whole herd, bearing off from the cliffs, was pounding over the open plains.

Whose race was it? It was Peroxide Jim’s, according to Wade, for not by word or by touch of hand or knee had the horse been directed in the run. From the flash of the lightning the horse had taken the bit, had covered an indescribably perilous path at top speed, had outrun the herd and turned it from the edge of the rim rock, without a false step or a tremor of fear.

From “The Spirit of the Herd” by Dallas Lore Sharp—Public Domain

tablelands: plateaus, flat areas of land sharply elevated from the surrounding area
tapaderos: leather covers for stirrups

Question

Which sentence from the excerpt best explains why Wade reserved Peroxide Jim for “emergency work” (paragraph 1)?

  • A“Are there not superior horses as well as superior men—a Peroxide Jim to complement a Wade?” (paragraph 1)
  • B“Before him, behind him, beside him, pressing hard upon his horse, galloped the frenzied steers, and beyond them a multitude borne on, and bearing him on, by the heave of the galloping herd.” (paragraph 10)
  • C“He knew that he was being borne toward the rim, how fast he could not tell, but he knew by the swish of the brush against his tapaderos and the plunging of the horse that the ground was growing stonier, that they were nearing the rocks.” (paragraph 11)
  • D“From the flash of the lightning the horse had taken the bit, had covered an indescribably perilous path at top speed, had outrun the herd and turned it from the edge of the rim rock, without a false step or a tremor of fear.” (paragraph 16)
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks which sentence from the excerpt best explains why Wade reserved Peroxide Jim for “emergency work” (paragraph 1).

A. Incorrect. While the sentence from paragraph 1 refers to Peroxide Jim as being a superior horse, it does not tell why he would be useful in an emergency. The mention of Peroxide Jim’s superiority does not describe the attributes that would make him an appealing choice for use in an emergency.

B. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 10 does not describe the actions of Peroxide Jim. The sentence describes what Wade and the horse were experiencing, but it does not include any reference to how Peroxide Jim was responding to the situation.

C. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 11 describes Wade’s experiences and does not focus on the actions of Peroxide Jim. It reveals Wade’s awareness of the danger he was in, but the only reference to Peroxide Jim in this sentence is the description of the horse having to work harder to run on the stonier ground as they neared the edge: from “the plunging of the horse,” Wade knew “that the ground was growing stonier, that they were nearing the rocks.” This quotation does not show that Peroxide Jim was the right horse to use for emergency work because it does not indicate, at this point in the text, that he was responding in a way that saved the herd or Wade.

D. CORRECT. The sentence from paragraph 16 describes Peroxide Jim’s high level of skill and ability to perform in a life-and-death situation. Not only did Peroxide Jim recognize the emergency immediately (“From the flash of the lightning the horse had taken the bit”), but the horse also proved to have the physical capability (“had covered an indescribably perilous path at top speed, had outrun the herd and turned it from the edge of the rim rock”) and the mental toughness (“without a false step or a tremor of fear”) required to respond appropriately to the dangerous situation.

Question analysis

This evidence question on Dallas Lore Sharp’s “The Spirit of the Herd,” a 1914 account of a night stampede on an Oregon cattle drive, asks which sentence best explains why the ranch boss Wade kept his horse Peroxide Jim for “emergency work.” The four quoted sentences come from different parts of the excerpt and are long, so the choice takes careful reading.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Finding the sentence that best explains a detail is regular grade 7 evidence work. The four quotations, though, are long sentences from across a dense excerpt written in 1914, so the reading load is heavier than usual.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 8, 1160 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 160 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The question links the start of the excerpt to its end, and the nearest quotation is the most tempting: the narrator’s rhetorical question about “superior horses” sits beside the phrase and seems to explain it. It praises the horse without showing what he can do. The two stampede sentences show the emergency itself, so the point goes to students who look for the horse acting on his own and find it in the final paragraph.

  1. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The phrase “emergency work” is in paragraph 1, but the proof of the horse’s worth comes only at the very end, in paragraph 16, after the stampede has been turned. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  2. A lot to read minor Understanding the question

    Three of the quotations run 33 to 46 words, and two of them describe the stampede in vivid detail without saying what the horse does, so sorting them takes time. (Kintsch, 1998; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

  3. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    Students must decide what an emergency horse needs, speed, nerve and judgment without a rider’s guidance, before the last sentence reads as an answer to paragraph 1. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Decide what a horse saved for emergencies would need to be able to do, then pick the quotation that gives the clearest proof that Peroxide Jim can do it.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for evidence. In paragraph 1, Wade was saving Peroxide Jim for “emergency work.” Which sentence best explains why? You need a sentence that shows what this horse can do when something goes wrong.

  2. Decide what to look for

    An emergency is a sudden, dangerous event. A horse saved for one should be fast, steady and smart. It should act quickly when things go wrong. So look for the sentence that shows the horse himself doing that.

  3. Read the last sentence of the excerpt

    Paragraph 16 says “From the flash of the lightning the horse had taken the bit, had covered an indescribably perilous path at top speed, had outrun the herd and turned it from the edge of the rim rock, without a false step or a tremor of fear.”

  4. Put the sentence in plain words

    The bit is the metal bar in a horse’s mouth that the reins attach to. A horse that “had taken the bit” runs on its own. Perilous means dangerous. A tremor is a small shake. So the moment the stampede began, the horse took charge. He raced along a dangerous path, got ahead of the herd and turned it from the cliff. He never stumbled or showed fear.

  5. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. It calls him “superior,” but it shows no skill.
    • B does not fit. It shows the stampede, but not how the horse handles it.
    • C does not fit. It is about Wade sensing the rocks ahead.
    • D fits. It shows the horse saving the herd in a real emergency.

    Watch out: A sits right next to “emergency work” in paragraph 1, so it seems to explain it. But praise is not proof.

  6. Choose the answer

    The last sentence shows exactly why the horse was worth saving for emergencies. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong choice. It sits beside the words “emergency work” and praises the horse. But calling a horse “superior” does not say what it can do. D shows the horse in action: fast, sure-footed and fearless in a real emergency. That explains why Wade saved him.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 29 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 42 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test A English, page 42, question 29.
The passage “Excerpt from “The Spirit of the Herd”” as printed (page 41)The passage “Excerpt from “The Spirit of the Herd”” as printed on page 41 of the DOE handbook.

Question 8 of 120

2026 Practice Test A English, question 35

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “The Spirit of the Herd””.

Question

Which sentence from the excerpt best reveals the mood on the drive before the lightning struck?

  • A“The herd when overtaken by the dusk had been headed for a pass descending to the next lower bench, but was now halted within a mile of the rim rock on the east, where there was a perpendicular fall of about three hundred feet.” (paragraph 3)
  • B“It was not to soothe their savage breasts that the riders sang to the cattle, but rather to preempt the dreaded silence, to relieve the tension, and so to prevent the shock of any sudden startling noise.” (paragraph 5)
  • C“He checked his horse instantly, listening as the wind swept past him over the cattle.” (paragraph 7)
  • D“Then the breeze caught the dust and carried it back from the gray-coated, ghostly shapes, and Wade saw that the animals were still moving in a circle.” (paragraph 9)
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks which sentence from the excerpt best reveals the mood on the drive before the lightning struck.

A. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 3 describes the setting but does not contain words that create a strong mood. In fact, this sentence shows that while there were dangerous surroundings, the riders and the herd were “now halted.”

B. CORRECT. The sentence from paragraph 5 describes the riders singing “to preempt the dreaded silence, to relieve the tension” and to prevent “shock” from any sudden noise. These words provide a strong sense of the tense, heavy mood in which a terrible event such as a stampede could quickly happen.

C. Incorrect. In the sentence from paragraph 7, Wade has become aware of a change in the weather (“caught a breath of fresh, moist wind with the taste of water” [paragraph 6]) and is seeking to verify it. Even though a rainstorm was one concern the riders had, the words describing Wade’s immediate reaction to his discovery do not best convey the mood of dread and foreboding that the men and horses feel just before the lightning strike.

D. Incorrect. While the words “ghostly” and “still moving in a circle” in the sentence from paragraph 9 create a strange and mysterious image, the mood before the lightning struck was not one of mystery or suspense. Instead, these descriptive words are used to indicate Wade’s faint ability to see the herd moving in the dark.

Question analysis

This mood question on “The Spirit of the Herd” asks which sentence best reveals the mood on the cattle drive before the lightning struck and set off the stampede. Students compare four long quotations from paragraphs 3, 5, 7 and 9. All four describe the night leading up to it, so students must weigh which one’s wording does the most to set a mood.

NYS standards
  • 7R4 word meaning and choice
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Picking the sentence that best reveals a mood is ordinary grade 7 work on word choice. The four quotations are long, come from four different paragraphs and are written in 1914 English, so the main demand is reading them closely.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 8, 1160 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 143 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Only one quotation names a feeling outright, and once students notice “dreaded silence” and “tension,” the question is easy. The losses come from mood-sounding words elsewhere: the “ghostly shapes” of paragraph 9 suggest an eerie mystery, and Wade’s sudden stop in paragraph 7 suggests alarm. Neither captures the strained waiting that hangs over the whole drive.

  1. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    The right sentence is the hardest to read: “preempt” and the old saying about soothing “savage breasts” surround the plain mood words “dreaded” and “tension.” (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

  2. A lot to read minor Understanding the question

    The quotations from paragraphs 3 and 5 run 44 and 37 words, and all four describe the night before the stampede, so each must be read for words that carry feeling. (Kintsch, 1998; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Underline the words in each quotation that carry feeling, then pick the one whose wording most directly captures the mood of the drive before the lightning.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Wrong tone or attitude: Misjudges the tone, attitude or point of view, such as reading admiration as criticism, or taking a character's or subject's feelings for the author's.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks about mood, the feeling a piece of writing gives you. Which sentence best shows the feeling on the drive before the lightning struck? Look for words that name or carry a feeling.

  2. Read the sentence from paragraph 5

    Paragraph 5 says “It was not to soothe their savage breasts that the riders sang to the cattle, but rather to preempt the dreaded silence, to relieve the tension, and so to prevent the shock of any sudden startling noise.”

  3. Work out what it means

    “Soothe their savage breasts” is an old saying about calming wild feelings with music. To preempt something is to act early to stop it. So the singing was not meant as soothing music. The riders sang to fill a silence they dreaded, or feared, and to ease the tension. They also wanted to keep any sudden noise from scaring the herd. The mood is tense and nervous.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. It tells where the herd stopped and how far the drop was. It gives facts, not feelings.
    • B fits. Words like “dreaded” and “tension” name the feeling.
    • C does not fit. Wade stops to listen. That is one quick action, not the mood of the night.
    • D does not fit. “Ghostly shapes” sounds spooky, but it describes cattle seen dimly through dust.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only one sentence names the tense feeling of the night. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong choice, because “ghostly” sounds eerie. But that word only describes how the cattle looked in the dark and the dust. B names the feeling outright: a “dreaded silence” and “tension.” That is the mood on the drive before the lightning struck.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 35 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 48 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test A English, page 48, question 35.

Question 9 of 120

2026 Practice Test A English, question 38
Passage Massachusetts: Lowell National Historical Park

Massachusetts: Lowell National Historical Park

During the first half of the 19th century, Lowell, Massachusetts, quickly transformed itself from a farm town to a bustling industrial city. In time, Lowell became a model of industry, gaining global recognition for its state-of-the-art technology, innovative canal and dam system, mill architecture, boardinghouses, churches, and ethnic neighborhoods. Young Yankee women, immigrant families, and European tourists all flocked to Lowell to find work at one of the many textile mills, or visit the industrious city that was becoming a popular tourist destination. As one Scottish traveler observed during his visit to America, “Niagara and Lowell are the two objects I will longest remember in my American journey, the one the glory of American scenery, the other of American industry.” Today, Lowell National Historical Park welcomes visitors to enjoy the sights of Lowell and learn about the history of one of America’s most significant industrial cities.

The Boston merchants who founded Lowell in 1821 and named it after Francis Cabot Lowell chose to locate the town along Massachusetts’s Merrimack River to take advantage of the kinetic energy offered by the Pawtucket waterfalls. Over six miles of canals powered the waterwheels of Lowell’s mills, whose massive five- and six-story brick buildings dominated the city’s landscape. . . . The most recognized of these buildings are the Lowell Manufacturing Company chartered in 1821, the Suffolk or Wannalancit Mill completed around the 1880s, the Boott Mill Company established in 1835, and the Boott Mill Boardinghouse that opened in 1838. By the 1850s, 40 textile mills employing over 10,000 workers stretched for about a mile along the river. . . .

The city’s female workforce was significant in the history of Lowell. From the early to mid-1800s, women left the constricted lifestyle of small rural towns and rural areas for independent industrial city life. Most were young single Yankee girls, who were tired of the limited opportunities offered by their domestic work. Women found that Lowell’s mills offered monthly wages for their services and provided them room and board. Although these women gained economic independence in Lowell, the mill boardinghouse keepers constantly supervised their social activities, for which they hardly had any time, considering their daily 12- to 14-hour work schedules. At the end of the day, the factory bell signaled the “mill girls” to return to their boardinghouses. They were expected to adhere to the strict code of conduct respecting curfew and attending church.

Yankee “mill girls” continued to dominate the Lowell workforce until the 1840s, when the city began to find it difficult to compete with the growing industrial development in other New England communities. As profits fell, the mill industry cut wages. These wage cuts, deteriorating working conditions, and long workdays led the “mill girls” to protest and organize strikes. When their demands went unheard, the women left Lowell, and immigrant groups replaced them in the workforce. Despite the low wages and unhealthy work conditions, immigrants were eager to find work.

The immigrants replacing the Yankee “mill girls” during the 1840s were predominantly Irish Catholics, who traveled to America during the Great Potato Famine. Although Lowell received an influx of Irish families during this time, the Irish were a part of the city’s history from its birth, and before the “mill girls” arrived, they built Lowell’s historic canals, mills, and boardinghouses. Initially, Lowell’s Protestant community was slow to welcome Irish immigrants, but the hostility between Yankee Protestants and Irish Catholics eventually disappeared. Irish immigrants dominated the industrial scene until the Civil War, when other immigrant groups began to work in the city mills.

Like the Irish, the French-Canadians, Greeks, Poles, Portuguese, Russian Jews, and Armenians who came to work in Lowell’s mills faced long work hours, low wages, and poor living conditions in the city’s crowded tenements. By the time Lowell’s industry declined, the city had become an ethnic melting pot, where each group claimed its own distinct neighborhood, like the Irish immigrants’ “New Dublin” or “Acre,” and the French-Canadians’ “Little Canada.” The city officially began to close down its mills in the 1920s and ’30s after Lowell’s outdated mills could no longer compete against the state-of-the-art cotton mills in other communities and working conditions continued to decline as Lowell’s companies stopped reinvesting in their mills. . . . Despite a brief resurgence during World War II, the city shut down its last surviving mill by the mid-1950s.

From “Massachusetts: Lowell National Historical Park”—Public Domain/National Park Service

Yankee: native to New England
Niagara: a town in northwestern New York State well known as the location of Niagara Falls, a series of waterfalls on the Canadian border
domestic work: household duties like cooking and cleaning

Question

Which sentence from paragraph 2 best supports the idea that Lowell became “a bustling industrial city” (paragraph 1) in a short period of time?

  • A“The Boston merchants who founded Lowell in 1821 and named it after Francis Cabot Lowell chose to locate the town along Massachusetts’s Merrimack River to take advantage of the kinetic energy offered by the Pawtucket waterfalls.”
  • B“Over six miles of canals powered the waterwheels of Lowell’s mills, whose massive five- and six-story brick buildings dominated the city’s landscape.”
  • C“The most recognized of these buildings are the Lowell Manufacturing Company chartered in 1821, the Suffolk or Wannalancit Mill completed around the 1880s, the Boott Mill Company established in 1835, and the Boott Mill Boardinghouse that opened in 1838.”
  • D“By the 1850s, 40 textile mills employing over 10,000 workers stretched for about a mile along the river.”
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks for the sentence in paragraph 2 that best supports the idea that Lowell became “a bustling industrial city” (paragraph 1) in a short period of time.

A. Incorrect. While the sentence provides details on when the town of Lowell was founded and the natural features of the area, it does not support the idea that the city became “a bustling industrial city” in a short period of time.

B. Incorrect. Although this sentence indicates that the mill buildings were a noticeable feature of the city and provides details on how the mills worked, it does not specifically show that Lowell had become “a bustling industrial city” in a short period of time.

C. Incorrect. While this sentence lists some recognizable mill buildings along the river and notes when their associated businesses were established, it does not support the idea that Lowell had become “a bustling industrial city” in a short period of time.

D. CORRECT. This sentence indicates that within only a few decades of the city’s founding, it experienced massive industrial growth, with “40 textile mills employing over 10,000 workers,” supporting the idea that Lowell became “a bustling industrial city” in a short period of time.

Question analysis

Here students choose which sentence from the second paragraph of an article about Lowell, Massachusetts, best supports the claim that the town became a bustling industrial city in a short period of time. All four sentences describe Lowell's founding, mills or canals, and several carry dates, so students must weigh what each one actually shows about how fast the city grew.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Picking the sentence that best supports a claim is standard grade 7 evidence work. The claim carries a time condition as well as a description, and all four choices come from one short paragraph, so the demand is typical of grade 7.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 15, 764 words; question and choices: about grade 14, 131 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The claim has two parts, a bustling industrial city and a short time to get there, and most sentences in paragraph 2 meet only one. The list of mills with their founding dates is the strongest pull, because its dates seem to answer the time half, yet they run into the 1880s and show four buildings, not a busy city. The question rewards pairing the 1850s figures with the 1821 founding.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The 1850s sentence shows speed only beside the founding date in the paragraph's first sentence: getting from 1821 to 40 mills and 10,000 workers took about thirty years, a span students must work out. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    All four sentences come from paragraph 2 and describe Lowell's mills or canals, and three carry dates, so each must be tested for both the scale and the speed of growth. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Split the claim into its two parts, a busy industrial city and a short span of time, and check each sentence for evidence of both rather than accepting one that fits only half.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Split the claim into two parts

    This is an evidence question. You need the sentence that best supports a claim, and the claim has two parts. First, Lowell became “a bustling industrial city,” a busy factory town. Second, it happened “in a short period of time.” The best sentence must support both parts, not just one.

  2. Find the starting date

    Paragraph 2 opens with the town’s start. The Boston merchants “founded Lowell in 1821.” That gives you a starting point. Now look for a sentence that shows how big Lowell got, and by when.

  3. Work out how long it took

    The last sentence of paragraph 2 says: “By the 1850s, 40 textile mills employing over 10,000 workers stretched for about a mile along the river.” From 1821 to the 1850s is only about 30 years. In that time, Lowell went from a new town to 40 mills and over 10,000 workers. That is fast growth, and it is clearly bustling.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. It tells why the town was built by the waterfalls. It says nothing about how the city grew.
    • B is wrong. Six miles of canals and “massive five- and six-story brick buildings” do sound busy. But there is no date, so it can’t show speed.
    • C is wrong. It has dates, but they run from 1821 to the 1880s, about 60 years. And it names just four buildings, not a whole busy city.
    • D is right. It shows a big city of mills and workers only about 30 years after Lowell began.

    Watch out: C is tempting because it is full of dates. But dates alone don’t prove speed, and these are spread over decades.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only one sentence shows both a busy industrial city and a short time to get there. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer, since its dates seem to answer the time part. But they stretch from 1821 to the 1880s, and they cover only four buildings. D gives the size of the whole mill city, 40 mills and over 10,000 workers, about 30 years after the founding.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 38 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 53 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test A English, page 53, question 38.
The passage “Massachusetts: Lowell National Historical Park” as printed (page 50)The passage “Massachusetts: Lowell National Historical Park” as printed on page 50 of the DOE handbook.

Question 10 of 120

2026 Practice Test A English, question 42

Uses the passage above: “Massachusetts: Lowell National Historical Park”.

Question

The reason Lowell lost its status as an industrial leader is best illustrated through the

  • Adescription of poor living and working conditions.
  • Bexplanation for why some immigrant groups struggled to live together.
  • Ccomparison with other mills that used modern methods.
  • Dinformation about the mills opening temporarily during World War II.
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks for the reason that best illustrates why Lowell lost its status as an industrial leader.

A. Incorrect. While the passage discusses the “long work hours, low wages, and poor living conditions in the city’s crowded tenements” (paragraph 6) in Lowell, these details highlight the living and working conditions of immigrant groups. The author does not state that poor living and working conditions are the reason Lowell lost its status as a “model of industry.”

B. Incorrect. Paragraph 5 in the passage acknowledges that there was some tension between the different ethnic and religious groups in Lowell, but this idea is not what led to Lowell’s decline as a “model of industry.”

C. CORRECT. When Lowell was initially established, the mills in the city thrived because of their advanced manufacturing methods (“gaining global recognition for its state-of-the-art technology, innovative canal and dam system, [and] mill architecture” [paragraph 1]). However, manufacturing technology changed and improved over time, and many mill owners chose to close the mills rather than modernize them, resulting in Lowell’s loss of status as a “model of industry” (“The city officially began to close down its mills in the 1920s and ’30s after Lowell’s outdated mills could no longer compete against the state-of-the-art cotton mills in other communities” [paragraph 6]).

D. Incorrect. The details about the temporary revival of the mills during World War II do not show why Lowell is no longer considered a “model of industry.” The mills were used briefly during wartime because of an increased need for supplies, but this use of the mills was short-lived.

Question analysis

Why did Lowell lose its place as an industrial leader, a decline that ended with its last mill closing by the mid-1950s? This evidence question asks which part of the article best illustrates the reason, so students must find where the passage explains the cause and match it to a choice worded in general terms, while other late details compete for attention.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Using a text to explain a cause is typical grade 7 work. The reason is stated directly near the end of the passage, but the choices name it in abstract terms, so a careful match is needed, as in ordinary grade 7 reading.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 15, 764 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 50 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The reason is stated, but in a sentence that pairs it with worsening working conditions, and conditions get far more space in the passage, from paragraph 4's wage cuts to paragraph 6's crowded tenements. Students who match the choices to familiar words land on the conditions, which the passage presents as a result of companies not reinvesting. The key has to be recognized in new wording, as a comparison with modern mills elsewhere.

  1. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    The key's “comparison with other mills that used modern methods” rewords “could no longer compete against the state-of-the-art cotton mills,” while wrong choices repeat the text's “poor living conditions,” “working conditions” and “World War II.” (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  2. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

    The 47-word sentence that gives the reason joins two clauses under one “after,” outdated mills that “could no longer compete” and working conditions that “continued to decline,” so both can look like causes. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

  3. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    The cause echoes earlier hints, paragraph 1's “state-of-the-art technology” and paragraph 4's trouble competing with “other New England communities,” which confirm that competition is the passage's explanation. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Find the sentence that tells why Lowell's mills shut down, restate the cause in your own words, then choose the description that matches that cause rather than a detail that merely appears nearby.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This evidence question asks why Lowell lost its place as an industrial leader. First find where the passage gives the reason. Then pick the choice that matches it, even if it uses different words.

  2. Find the reason in paragraph 6

    Look near the end of the passage, where the mills close. Paragraph 6 says the city began to close its mills “after Lowell’s outdated mills could no longer compete against the state-of-the-art cotton mills in other communities.” This is the reason the passage gives.

  3. Put the reason in plain words

    Outdated means old-fashioned. State-of-the-art means the newest and best. To compete is to keep up with rivals. So mills in other places had newer machines, and Lowell’s old mills couldn’t keep up. That is a comparison: Lowell’s mills next to more modern mills elsewhere. It is a big change, too. In paragraph 1, Lowell was famous for its own “state-of-the-art technology.”

  4. Rule out the working conditions

    Choice A is the hard one to rule out. The same sentence says working conditions got worse “as Lowell’s companies stopped reinvesting in their mills.” Reinvesting means putting money back in, for repairs and new machines. Mills that get no new money also fall out of date. So the worse conditions came along with the decline. Falling behind modern mills elsewhere is what cost Lowell its lead. The passage’s longer descriptions of poor conditions, in paragraphs 4 and 6, tell how hard life was for workers. They don’t explain why the mills closed.

  5. Check the other choices

    • B is wrong. The passage tells of tension between Yankee Protestants and Irish Catholics, which “eventually disappeared.” It never links this to the mills closing.
    • C is right. It matches the reason: Lowell’s mills fell behind more modern mills.
    • D is wrong. The World War II “brief resurgence” was a short comeback. It doesn’t explain why Lowell fell behind.

    Watch out: A repeats words from the passage, so it feels safe. But matching the words is not the same as matching the reason.

  6. Choose the answer

    The passage says Lowell’s outdated mills could not keep up with modern mills in other places. Choice C names that comparison. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong answer, because the closing sentence also says “working conditions continued to decline.” But the passage ties that to the companies no longer spending on their mills. A leader loses its place when others get ahead. C names that: other mills used modern methods, and Lowell’s did not.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 42 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 57 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test A English, page 57, question 42.

Question 11 of 120

2026 Practice Test B English, question 10
Passage A Miracle Mile

A Miracle Mile

In the 1950s people compared running one mile in four minutes to scaling Mount Everest and nicknamed the feat a “dream mile.” Although such an accomplishment was considered humanly impossible, several elite runners aimed to break that supposedly impenetrable barrier. One of them was a twenty-five-year-old medical student named Roger Bannister.

Roger Bannister had tasted failure during the 1952 Olympics. There, he was favored to win the 1,500-meter competition, a distance slightly shorter than a mile, but he finished in a dismal fourth place instead. Bannister’s performance was a disappointment for him and his country, Great Britain. Determined to redeem himself, Bannister postponed his plans to retire from racing and focused on the ultimate prize—breaking the four-minute-mile barrier.

Bannister attacked the elusive milestone with a positive attitude and logical planning. The amateur athlete decided to use intensive interval training to develop endurance and speed. For these workouts, Bannister ran an interval of ten consecutive laps on a quarter-mile track, aiming for sixty seconds each lap. In between intervals, he let his body recover for two minutes.

By early 1954, Bannister had succeeded in lowering his quarter-mile pace to sixty-one seconds, but he had to shave off at least one more second in order to reach his target. Frustrated by the plateau he had reached, Bannister took a break from training and went mountain climbing for three days. The rest from running permitted his muscles to recuperate and left him feeling refreshed. When Bannister returned to the track, he completed ten quarter-mile-long intervals at fifty-nine seconds each. He finally felt prepared to attempt to break the world record.

As a member of the Amateur Athletic Association (AAA), Bannister joined the AAA team for a track meet against Oxford University. The event took place on a cinder track in Oxford on May 6, 1954. Bannister and his two AAA teammates, Chris Chataway and Chris Brasher, were close friends and frequent running partners. Chataway and Brasher agreed to help Bannister accomplish his goal by being his “rabbits.”

In track and field, rabbits are runners who enter the race solely to pace a teammate for a segment of the course. Typically, a runner settles in behind the rabbit and allows the rabbit to set an appropriate tempo. Additionally, by running behind the rabbit, the runner conserves about 15 percent of his or her effort. When the starting pistol fired, Brasher pounced into the lead, and Bannister followed behind his first rabbit.

Propelled by the excitement, Bannister lost his instinctive feel for his pace and shouted “Faster!” at Brasher. Brasher, however, remained composed and maintained his current steady but grueling pace, completing the first two laps in a desirable one minute and fifty-eight seconds. Then Chataway surged forward, leading Bannister at this same punishing rate for another lap and a half. At the beginning of the back straightaway of the track, Bannister bolted past Chataway. Bannister said, “I felt that the moment of a lifetime had come. There was no pain, only a great unity of movement and aim.” Bannister crossed the finish line in 3 minutes 59.4 seconds. The ecstatic crowd erupted the moment the timekeeper announced the word “three.”

Soon after Bannister’s achievement, four other athletes matched his performance. A new mindset had taken root among runners. Over the years, the record continued to fall. However, the current record, 3 minutes 43.13 seconds, has stood unbroken since 1999. Some question whether this record represents the limits of human ability. But perhaps there is another Bannister, an athlete who, with willpower and dedication, will accomplish the miraculous.

Question

Which sentence best supports the idea that Bannister needed an alternative to “logical planning” (paragraph 3) in order to accomplish his goal?

  • A“Bannister’s performance was a disappointment for him and his country, Great Britain.” (paragraph 2)
  • B“The amateur athlete decided to use intensive interval training to develop endurance and speed.” (paragraph 3)
  • C“For these workouts, Bannister ran an interval of ten consecutive laps on a quarter-mile track, aiming for sixty seconds each lap.” (paragraph 3)
  • D“Frustrated by the plateau he had reached, Bannister took a break from training and went mountain climbing for three days.” (paragraph 4)
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks which sentence best supports the idea that Bannister needed an alternative to “logical planning” (paragraph 3) in order to accomplish his goal.

A. Incorrect. The outcome of the 1952 Olympics, referenced in the sentence from paragraph 2, is what prompted Bannister to seek a new goal: “Determined to redeem himself, Bannister . . . focused on the ultimate prize—breaking the four-minute-mile barrier” (paragraph 2).

B. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 3 does not show an alternative to Bannister’s training plan to “develop endurance and speed” (paragraph 3) and his focus on using logical planning in order to accomplish his goal.

C. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 3 focuses on details of his training plan, explaining the “intensive interval training” (paragraph 3) that Bannister used to build his endurance and speed, not an alternative form of preparation.

D. CORRECT. The sentence from paragraph 4 explains that Bannister reached a point where he could not improve his time despite the strict training plan he had created. Taking a break from his training to spend time mountain climbing “permitted his muscles to recuperate and left him feeling refreshed” (paragraph 4).

Question analysis

This textual evidence question on “A Miracle Mile” asks which sentence best supports the idea that Roger Bannister needed an alternative to the “logical planning” described in paragraph 3. Students must understand what his plan was before they can recognize a departure from it. The four sentences come from paragraphs 2 to 4, which cover his Olympic loss and his training.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Matching a sentence to an idea is standard grade 7 evidence work, and the four sentences come from three short, plain paragraphs. The idea itself is worded abstractly, so students must first decide what an alternative to “logical planning” would look like.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 587 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 92 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A wrong paragraph number in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The question turns on one decision: the interval training is the logical plan, so a sentence describing it cannot show an alternative to it. Once that is settled, three days of mountain climbing stand out as the only break from the plan. Students lose the point when they read “alternative” loosely and pick the sentence that introduces the training, or when they treat the Olympic disappointment as the moment his methods had to change.

  1. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The stem never says what the “logical planning” was; students must see that it is the interval training of paragraph 3, so the alternative has to be a step away from that training. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    The stem points to paragraph 3, where two of the four sentences sit, but the departure from the plan comes in paragraph 4, after Bannister stalls at sixty-one seconds a lap. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: First reread paragraph 3 to see what Bannister’s “logical planning” was, then ask of each sentence whether it shows that plan or something different from it.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The DOE’s explanation of Option C begins “The sentence from paragraph 4 focuses on details of his training plan.” Option C quotes a sentence from paragraph 3 (“For these workouts, Bannister ran an interval of ten consecutive laps on a quarter-mile track, aiming for sixty seconds each lap”) and labels it “(paragraph 3),” and the explanation goes on to describe the “intensive interval training” of paragraph 3. The site now says “The sentence from paragraph 3.” The DOE’s 2021–2022 guide, where this question first appeared, has the same slip.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for evidence: the sentence that best supports an idea. The idea is that Bannister needed an alternative to his “logical planning.” An alternative is a different way of doing something. So first find out what his plan was. Then look for a sentence where he steps away from it.

  2. Find the logical plan in paragraph 3

    Paragraph 3 says “Bannister attacked the elusive milestone with a positive attitude and logical planning.” The next sentence tells what the plan was: “The amateur athlete decided to use intensive interval training to develop endurance and speed.” Interval training means running hard for a set stretch, resting, then running hard again.

  3. Find where the plan stopped working

    Paragraph 4 says he got down to sixty-one seconds a lap, but he needed sixty. Then “Frustrated by the plateau he had reached, Bannister took a break from training and went mountain climbing for three days.” A plateau is a point where you stop getting better. Climbing was not part of his plan. Afterward, he ran each lap in fifty-nine seconds.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. It is from paragraph 2. It tells why he chose the goal, before he had any plan.
    • B does not fit. Interval training is the logical plan, not an alternative to it.
    • C does not fit. It is from paragraph 3. It gives details of the same plan: ten laps, sixty seconds each.
    • D fits. He stops training, does something else, and it works.

    Watch out: B is tempting because it describes a choice Bannister made. But that choice was the plan itself.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only D shows Bannister trying something outside his plan. So the answer is D, “Frustrated by the plateau he had reached, Bannister took a break from training and went mountain climbing for three days.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong choice. It names a decision Bannister made. But that decision, interval training, was his logical plan. The question asks for a step away from the plan. Only D shows him leaving training behind. The rest “permitted his muscles to recuperate,” which means recover.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 10 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 16 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test B English, page 16, question 10. This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.
The passage “A Miracle Mile” as printed (page 13)The passage “A Miracle Mile” as printed on page 13 of the DOE handbook.

Question 12 of 120

2026 Practice Test B English, question 11

Uses the passage above: “A Miracle Mile”.

Question

Which sentence from the passage indicates that Bannister nearly made a mistake that would have cost him the world record?

  • A“By early 1954, Bannister had succeeded in lowering his quarter-mile pace to sixty-one seconds, but he had to shave off at least one more second in order to reach his target.” (paragraph 4)
  • B“When the starting pistol fired, Brasher pounced into the lead, and Bannister followed behind his first rabbit.” (paragraph 6)
  • C“Propelled by the excitement, Bannister lost his instinctive feel for his pace and shouted ‘Faster!’ at Brasher.” (paragraph 7)
  • D“At the beginning of the back straightaway of the track, Bannister bolted past Chataway.” (paragraph 7)
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks which sentence indicates that Bannister nearly made a mistake that would have cost him the world record.

A. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 4 describes a challenge Bannister faced during his training period, when he used “intensive interval training to develop endurance and speed” (paragraph 3). Bannister ran laps on a “quarter-mile track” (paragraph 3) and was able to control his pace at this time—unlike during the actual race to break the record.

B. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 6 describes the start of the race and Brasher’s role as “first rabbit” for Bannister. Bannister was behind Brasher, following their plan for breaking the record.

C. CORRECT. If Bannister had begun running faster than the “steady but grueling pace” (paragraph 7) set by his “rabbit,” he would likely not have had enough energy to finish the race. As paragraph 6 notes, “the runner conserves about 15 percent of his or her effort” by allowing the rabbit to set the pace. Bannister had “lost his instinctive feel for his pace” (paragraph 7) in the excitement of the race. If he had given in to his impulse to run faster and bypassed the rabbit at that point in the race, it would have cost him energy, and, in turn, the record.

D. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 7 describes how Bannister leaped ahead of Chataway, his second “rabbit,” at the appropriate time in the effort to break the record. Chataway had “surged forward, leading Bannister at this same punishing rate for another lap and a half” (paragraph 7) before Bannister moved past him.

Question analysis

This textual evidence question asks which sentence from “A Miracle Mile” shows that Roger Bannister nearly made a mistake that could have cost him the world record. The passage never says outright that he slipped, so students must use what it explains about running a race to judge which moment was a real danger. The four choices span both his training and the race itself.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Grade 7 evidence questions usually match a sentence to an idea the text states. This mistake is never named as one, so students must infer which moment put the record at risk, a typical grade 7 inference within a short, clear passage.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 587 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 102 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The near mistake is easy to miss because it never happens: Brasher ignores the shout, and the race goes on at the planned pace. Students must see that losing his feel for the pace put the record at risk, using what paragraph 6 explains about rabbits. The sudden surge past Chataway sounds rash and the training plateau sounds like a near failure, so students who look for drama or for falling short land on the wrong moment.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The passage never calls the shout of “Faster!” a mistake; students must infer it from “lost his instinctive feel for his pace” and from Brasher’s refusal to change his steady pace. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    Why running faster would have cost the record is explained a paragraph earlier, in paragraph 6, where following a rabbit saves a runner about 15 percent of his or her effort. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  3. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    Each sentence shows a setback or a bold move, from the training plateau to the final surge, so each has to be judged against the idea of a near mistake. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: For each quoted sentence, ask whether it shows Bannister doing something that could have hurt his chances, and use what the passage explains about racing to judge how serious it was.

Traps

  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for a sentence that shows a near mistake. That is something that almost went wrong. It would have cost Bannister the record. So look for a moment when he did something that could have ruined the race.

  2. Learn how a rabbit helps

    Paragraph 6 explains rabbits. They are teammates who run in front to set the speed. It says “Typically, a runner settles in behind the rabbit and allows the rabbit to set an appropriate tempo.” Tempo means speed. Also, “by running behind the rabbit, the runner conserves about 15 percent of his or her effort.” Conserves means saves.

  3. Find the moment that went wrong

    Paragraph 7 begins “Propelled by the excitement, Bannister lost his instinctive feel for his pace and shouted” at Brasher to go faster. He lost his natural sense of how fast to run. If Brasher had sped up, Bannister could have used up his energy too soon. But Brasher “remained composed,” which means calm. He kept the steady pace, and that saved the race.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. The training plateau was a setback, not a mistake. A rest fixed it.
    • B does not fit. Following a rabbit was the plan. Paragraph 6 shows that it saves effort.
    • C fits. Bannister wanted to go faster too early, which could have worn him out.
    • D does not fit. Passing Chataway near the end was the right move. It won him the record.

    Watch out: D is tempting because “bolted” sounds wild. But he waited until his rabbits had paced him for three and a half laps.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only C shows Bannister almost doing something that could have cost him the record. So the answer is C, “Propelled by the excitement, Bannister lost his instinctive feel for his pace and shouted ‘Faster!’ at Brasher.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong choice, since bolting past Chataway was a bold, sudden move. But it came at the right time, and it led to the record. In C, Bannister lost his sense of pace and wanted to speed up too early. Only his rabbit’s calm saved him. That is a near mistake.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 11 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 17 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test B English, page 17, question 11.

Question 13 of 120

2026 Practice Test B English, question 12

Uses the passage above: “A Miracle Mile”.

Question

Bannister’s loss in the 1952 Olympics influenced his decision to pursue breaking the four-minute-mile barrier by

  • Aallowing him to recognize his weaknesses and improve his running ability.
  • Bprompting him to take a different approach to his regular training.
  • Cmotivating him to prove to himself that he could set and achieve a goal.
  • Dgiving him the opportunity to reach a goal no runner had ever accomplished.
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks how Bannister’s loss in the 1952 Olympics influenced his decision to pursue breaking the four-minute-mile barrier.

A. Incorrect. While Bannister recognized the weaknesses that led to his poor performance in the Olympics and worked “to develop endurance and speed” (paragraph 3), the loss made him “determined to redeem himself” (paragraph 2). The desire for redemption influenced Bannister to focus specifically on running a mile in under four minutes, rather than on winning other races or training for other distances.

B. Incorrect. Although Bannister developed an “intensive interval training” plan to improve his “endurance and speed” (paragraph 3), he applied a different approach only after his progress toward a four-minute mile reached a “plateau” (paragraph 4) in 1954. It was his desire to “shave off at least one more second in order to reach his target” (paragraph 4) that prompted him to take a break from interval training and go mountain climbing for three days.

C. CORRECT. Bannister sought to redeem himself after “he finished in a dismal fourth place” at the Olympics (paragraph 2). He thought that his performance “was a disappointment for him and his country, Great Britain,” and he responded by setting a goal to successfully conquer the four-minute mile, which was considered the “ultimate prize” (paragraph 2).

D. Incorrect. Bannister’s loss at the 1952 Olympics motivated him to change his training focus to reaching the “ultimate prize” (paragraph 2) of breaking the four-minute-mile barrier, which no other runner had accomplished. His loss at the Olympics did not present him with a specific opportunity to reach this goal.

Question analysis

This cause-and-effect question on “A Miracle Mile” asks how Roger Bannister’s disappointing finish at the 1952 Olympics shaped his decision to chase the four-minute mile. Students trace how one event led to a choice. The passage gives the reason in a single phrase, and the choices restate it alongside effects that sound believable for any athlete after a loss.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Explaining how one event influenced a person’s decision is standard grade 7 work, and the cause is set out in one short paragraph. The choices put the passage’s ideas in new words, so students must match meaning rather than phrases.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 587 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 64 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The answer sits in a single phrase, but the choices compete with stories that fit any athlete after a loss, such as learning from weaknesses or changing a routine. Both sound right because Bannister did train hard afterward, yet the passage ties the loss only to his wish to redeem himself, and the change of routine comes later, from the 1954 plateau. Students who keep to the question’s focus, the decision to chase the record, find a motive rather than a method.

  1. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    Paragraph 2 says the loss left Bannister “determined to redeem himself”; the right choice recasts this as proving to himself he could set and reach a goal, while a wrong one reuses the passage’s word “training.” (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  2. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    “Redeem himself,” to make up for a failure, is the key phrase, and a student unsure of it may not see that the loss gave him a reason rather than a lesson. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Find the sentence in paragraph 2 that tells how Bannister responded to the 1952 loss, restate it in your own words, and compare each choice with your restatement.

Traps

  • Half right: One half of a two-part choice is right and the other is not.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.
  • Wrong part of the text: A choice is true of another paragraph, stanza or speaker than the one asked about.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks about cause and effect. The cause is Bannister’s loss at the 1952 Olympics. The effect is his decision to chase the four-minute mile. You need to find how the first led to the second.

  2. Read paragraph 2

    Paragraph 2 says he “finished in a dismal fourth place instead.” Dismal means very disappointing. Then it says “Bannister’s performance was a disappointment for him and his country, Great Britain. Determined to redeem himself, Bannister postponed his plans to retire from racing and focused on the ultimate prize.” The prize was breaking the four-minute mile.

  3. Understand what redeem himself means

    To redeem yourself means to make up for a failure. You show that you are better than your worst moment. Bannister had let himself down. So he set a huge new goal to prove what he could do. The loss gave him a reason to try, which is a motive.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. Paragraph 2 never names any weaknesses he found.
    • B does not fit. He changed his routine in paragraph 4, in 1954. That was because of a plateau, not the Olympic loss.
    • C fits. He wanted to make up for the loss by reaching a big goal.
    • D does not fit. Losing did not give him a chance at the record. It gave him a reason.

    Watch out: A sounds like a common sports lesson: losing shows you what to fix. But the passage does not say that.

  5. Choose the answer

    The loss made Bannister “determined to redeem himself” with a new goal. So the answer is C, “motivating him to prove to himself that he could set and achieve a goal.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong choice. Athletes often learn from a loss, so it sounds right. But paragraph 2 never says what Bannister was bad at. It says the loss made him “determined to redeem himself.” That is about motivation, so C fits better.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 12 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 18 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test B English, page 18, question 12.

Question 14 of 120

2026 Practice Test B English, question 13

Uses the passage above: “A Miracle Mile”.

Question

How did interval training affect Bannister’s performance?

  • AIt helped him learn how to moderate his pace while running.
  • BIt helped him conserve effort when running with teammates.
  • CIt helped him improve his pace and stamina while running.
  • DIt helped him decrease his recovery time after an intense run.
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks how interval training affected Bannister’s performance.

A. Incorrect. The moderation of his pace was achieved through the use of “rabbits,” described in paragraph 6, more than through his method of interval training.

B. Incorrect. Bannister worked individually during the interval training period and then paced himself with a two-person team of “rabbits,” which were introduced in paragraph 5 and explained in paragraph 6. It was the use of “rabbits” during the race that helped him conserve some of his effort, not the interval training.

C. CORRECT. As paragraph 3 states, the goal of Bannister’s training program was to “develop endurance and speed,” which are synonyms of the words “stamina” and “pace.”

D. Incorrect. Although Bannister “let his body recover for two minutes” (paragraph 3) during interval training, this was not the primary effect of the training on Bannister’s performance. Instead, interval training allowed him to develop greater endurance and speed.

Question analysis

This question asks how interval training affected Roger Bannister’s performance as he prepared to run a mile in under four minutes, according to “A Miracle Mile.” It tests finding a detail the passage states and recognizing it in a choice that may use different words. The passage describes several parts of his preparation and race, so students must keep track of which one the question is about.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 6 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Below grade 7 Below typical grade 7 demand: the passage states the purpose of the training in a single sentence. A grade 7 student only needs to locate it and compare the choices with it, without inferring anything.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 587 words; question and choices: about grade 7, 48 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • The DOE’s 2026 explanations appendix skips this question; the explanation and answer key here are the DOE’s own, from its 2021–2022 guide (question 40), relettered.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Paragraph 3 states what the training was for, so the task is to match that sentence and ignore details from elsewhere. The rabbits of paragraph 6, who set Bannister’s tempo and save his effort, supply two tempting effects that belong to the race, not the workouts. The two-minute rests sit in the training paragraph itself, so a student skimming for “recover” can mistake part of the method for its result.

  1. A very close wrong answer minor Choosing the answer

    The choice about moderating his pace and the right one both concern pace; only the right one matches the training’s stated aim, to “develop endurance and speed.” (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer

    The right choice turns “endurance and speed” into stamina and pace, while two wrong ones reuse the passage’s own words, “conserves” effort from paragraph 6 and “recover” from paragraph 3. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

Strategy: Find the paragraph that introduces interval training, note what the training was meant to develop, and pick the choice that means the same thing.

Traps

  • Wrong part of the text: A choice is true of another paragraph, stanza or speaker than the one asked about.
  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation and answer key: The 2026 printable test includes this question (Passage Set 2, Item 6), but the explanations appendix skips it: it explains only five of the six questions on “A Miracle Mile.” The question is question 40 of the DOE’s NYC Guide to the SHSAT for 2022 Admissions (the 2021–2022 guide, page 165), with the same stem and options lettered E–H. The explanation is the guide’s (page 218) and its key is G; both are relettered E–H to A–D here, so the key is C.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks what interval training did for Bannister’s running. So find the paragraph that first describes interval training. Look for what it was meant to build.

  2. Find interval training in paragraph 3

    Paragraph 3 says “The amateur athlete decided to use intensive interval training to develop endurance and speed.” In each workout he ran ten laps, aiming for sixty seconds a lap. Then he rested for two minutes and ran again. That is what an interval is here: a hard stretch of running between rests.

  3. See what the training did

    Endurance means being able to keep going for a long time. Another word for it is stamina. Speed is how fast you run, which is your pace. Paragraph 4 shows the result. By early 1954, he had lowered “his quarter-mile pace to sixty-one seconds.” He was getting faster.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. To moderate your pace means to keep it steady and not too fast. In the race, his rabbits did that for him. He even lost his feel for his pace.
    • B does not fit. Saving effort came from running behind rabbits in the race (paragraph 6).
    • C fits. Stamina and pace are other words for endurance and speed.
    • D does not fit. He rested two minutes between runs. Nothing says that rest got shorter.

    Watch out: D is tempting because paragraph 3 mentions rest: “he let his body recover for two minutes.” But the rest is part of the workout, not a result of it.

  5. Choose the answer

    Interval training built Bannister’s speed and endurance. So the answer is C, “It helped him improve his pace and stamina while running.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong choice, because it is also about pace. But the training aimed “to develop endurance and speed,” not to keep his pace in check. In the race, Bannister “lost his instinctive feel for his pace,” and Brasher had to keep it steady. C matches what the training was for.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 13 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 19 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test B English, page 19, question 13. This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 15 of 120

2026 Practice Test B English, question 15
Passage Excerpt from In Search of the Unknown

Excerpt from In Search of the Unknown

by Robert W. Chambers

It was at that time the policy of the trustees and officers of the Zoological Gardens neither to employ collectors nor to send out expeditions in search of specimens. The society decided to depend upon voluntary contributions, and I was always busy, part of the day, in dictating answers to correspondents who wrote offering their services as hunters of big game, collectors of all sorts of fauna, trappers, snarers, and also to those who offered specimens for sale, usually at exorbitant rates.

To the proprietors of . . . mangy lynxes, moth-eaten coyotes, and dancing bears I returned courteous but uncompromising refusals—of course, first submitting all such letters, together with my replies, to Professor Farrago.

One day towards the end of May, however, just as I was leaving Bronx Park to return to town, Professor Lesard, of the reptilian department, called out to me that Professor Farrago wanted to see me a moment; so I . . . retraced my steps to the temporary, wooden building occupied by Professor Farrago, general superintendent of the Zoological Gardens. The professor, who was sitting at his desk before a pile of letters and replies submitted for approval by me, pushed his glasses down and looked over them at me with a whimsical smile that suggested amusement, impatience, annoyance, and perhaps a faint trace of apology.

“Now, here’s a letter,” he said, with a deliberate gesture towards a sheet of paper impaled on a file—“a letter that I suppose you remember.” He disengaged the sheet of paper and handed it to me.

“Oh yes,” I replied, with a shrug; “of course the man is mistaken—or—”

“Or what?” demanded Professor Farrago, tranquilly, wiping his glasses.

“—Or a liar,” I replied.

After a silence he leaned back in his chair and bade me read the letter to him again, and I did so with a contemptuous tolerance for the writer, who must have been either a very innocent victim or a very stupid swindler. I said as much to Professor Farrago, but, to my surprise, he appeared to waver.

“I suppose,” he said, with his near-sighted, embarrassed smile, “that nine hundred and ninety-nine men in a thousand would throw that letter aside and condemn the writer as a liar or a fool?”

“In my opinion,” said I, “he’s one or the other.”

“He isn’t—in mine,” said the professor, placidly.

“What!” I exclaimed. “Here is a man living all alone on a strip of rock and sand between the wilderness and the sea, who wants you to send somebody to take charge of a bird that doesn’t exist!”

“How do you know,” asked Professor Farrago, “that the bird in question does not exist?”

“It is generally accepted,” I replied, sarcastically, “that the great auk has been extinct for years. Therefore I may be pardoned for doubting that our correspondent possesses a pair of them alive.”

“Oh, you young fellows,” said the professor, smiling wearily, “you embark on a theory for destinations that don’t exist.”

He leaned back in his chair, his amused eyes searching space for the imagery that made him smile.

“Like swimming squirrels, you navigate with the help of Heaven and a stiff breeze, but you never land where you hope to—do you?”

Rather red in the face, I said: “Don’t you believe the great auk to be extinct?”

“Audubon saw the great auk.”

“Who has seen a single specimen since?”

“Nobody—except our correspondent here,” he replied, laughing.

I laughed, too, considering the interview at an end, but the professor went on, coolly:

“Whatever it is that our correspondent has—and I am daring to believe that it is the great auk itself—I want you to secure it for the society.”

When my astonishment subsided my first conscious sentiment was one of pity. Clearly, Professor Farrago was on the verge of dotage—ah, what a loss to the world!

I believe now that Professor Farrago perfectly interpreted my thoughts, but he betrayed neither resentment nor impatience. I drew a chair up beside his desk—there was nothing to do but to obey, and this fool’s errand was none of my conceiving.

Together we made out a list of articles necessary for me and itemized the expenses I might incur, and I set a date for my return, allowing no margin for a successful termination to the expedition.

“Never mind that,” said the professor. “What I want you to do is to get those birds here safely. Now, how many men will you take?”

“None,” I replied, bluntly; “it’s a useless expense, unless there is something to bring back. If there is I’ll wire you, you may be sure.”

“Very well,” said Professor Farrago, good-humoredly, “you shall have all the assistance you may require. Can you leave to-night?”

The old gentleman was certainly prompt. I nodded, half-sulkily, aware of his amusement.

“So,” I said, picking up my hat, “I am to start north to find a place called Black Harbor, where there is a man named Halyard who possesses, among other household utensils, two extinct great auks—”

We were both laughing by this time. I asked him why on earth he credited the assertion of a man he had never before heard of.

“I suppose,” he replied, with the same half-apologetic, half-humorous smile, “it is instinct. I feel, somehow, that this man Halyard has got an auk—perhaps two. I can’t get away from the idea that we are on the eve of acquiring the rarest of living creatures. It’s odd for a scientist to talk as I do; doubtless you’re shocked—admit it, now!”

But I was not shocked; on the contrary, I was conscious that the same strange hope that Professor Farrago cherished was beginning, in spite of me, to stir my pulses, too.

“If he has—” I began, then stopped.

The professor and I looked hard at each other in silence.

“Go on,” he said, encouragingly.

But I had nothing more to say, for the prospect of beholding with my own eyes a living specimen of the great auk produced a series of conflicting emotions within me which rendered speech profanely superfluous.

From IN SEARCH OF THE UNKNOWN by Robert W. Chambers—Public Domain

Audubon: John James Audubon, an ornithologist and artist who created scientific illustrations of birds
dotage: a loss of reasoning brought about by old age

Question

Read this sentence from paragraph 3.

The professor, who was sitting at his desk before a pile of letters and replies submitted for approval by me, pushed his glasses down and looked over them at me with a whimsical smile that suggested amusement, impatience, annoyance, and perhaps a faint trace of apology.

What does the phrase “a faint trace of apology” convey about the professor?

  • AIt indicates that the professor feels bad that he has to call the narrator to his office after work.
  • BIt shows that the professor is hesitant to share his opinions with the narrator.
  • CIt implies that the professor is uncomfortable criticizing the narrator’s work.
  • DIt suggests that the professor knows that the conversation will be frustrating for the narrator.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks what the phrase “a faint trace of apology” in paragraph 3 conveys about the professor.

A. Incorrect. The fact that the narrator had intended to leave the office for the day is not the source of the professor’s faintly apologetic manner, which is instead caused by the professor’s understanding that their conversation about the letter and the expedition is likely to cause an argument (“with a whimsical smile that suggested amusement, impatience, annoyance” [paragraph 3]). In paragraph 29, the professor asks the narrator if he can leave on an expedition that same evening, which indicates that the professor does not feel bad about taking up the narrator’s time after work.

B. Incorrect. The paragraphs that follow the sentence from paragraph 3 show the professor sharing his opinions without pause, even when his opinion of the narrator is unflattering (“ ‘Like swimming squirrels, you navigate with the help of Heaven and a stiff breeze, but you never land where you hope to—do you?’ ” [paragraph 17]).

C. Incorrect. The professor knows that the narrator will push back regarding the letter, but the professor is not uncomfortable challenging the narrator. Professor Farrago seems perfectly at ease and comfortable as he begins the discussion with the narrator.

D. CORRECT. The professor is both amused and annoyed by the narrator’s dismissal of the possibility that great auks still exist, and the professor knows that the narrator is likely to react negatively to being sent on what the narrator considers a “fool’s errand” (paragraph 25).

Question analysis

This question focuses on a single phrase in the excerpt from Robert W. Chambers’s In Search of the Unknown: as the professor looks up from a pile of letters, his whimsical smile shows “a faint trace of apology.” Students must work out what that hint of apology says about him. The phrase is brief and old-fashioned, and several explanations for it seem natural.

NYS standards
  • 7R4 word meaning and choice
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 students often infer a character’s feelings from a description. Here the phrase ends a 46-word sentence of early-1900s prose, follows three other moods, and has to be interpreted from the scene as a whole, beyond typical grade 7 work.
Estimated difficulty
Among the hardest on the SHSAT: a non-obvious approach, heavy reading, or a well-hidden trap.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 1066 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 123 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The phrase comes before a word of the conversation is spoken, so the reason for the apology lies ahead in the text. Two natural guesses compete with it: the professor has called the narrator back just as he was leaving, and he is about to question one of the narrator’s replies. Only a reader who follows the scene to the narrator’s scorn for the letter and the errand sees that the professor, at ease throughout, is sorry for what he is about to put the narrator through.

  1. Reading between the lines major Working it out

    Nothing explains the apology; students must reason from the talk that follows, in which the professor sends the narrator after birds the narrator believes extinct, that the professor expects resistance. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The choice about criticizing the narrator’s work and the right one both tie the apology to the coming talk about a letter; one places discomfort in the professor, the other frustration in the narrator. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  3. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    What the professor anticipates appears only later: the narrator’s scorn for the letter in paragraphs 5–14 and his view of the trip as a “fool’s errand” in paragraph 25. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  4. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

    The phrase closes a 46-word sentence, after a clause about the pile of letters and a run of three other moods, “amusement, impatience, annoyance.” (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: Read the full sentence and then the conversation it opens, and test each choice against how the professor actually speaks and acts in that conversation.

Traps

  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Half right: One half of a two-part choice is right and the other is not.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks what one phrase shows about the professor: “a faint trace of apology.” Faint means slight, and a trace is a small sign. So his smile looks a little bit sorry. Why would he feel sorry? You find out from the talk that follows.

  2. Read the whole sentence

    Paragraph 3 says the professor looked at the narrator “with a whimsical smile that suggested amusement, impatience, annoyance, and perhaps a faint trace of apology.” Whimsical means playful. He is amused by the narrator and a bit annoyed with him. Then he picks up a letter the narrator has already turned down.

  3. See what the professor is about to do

    The professor is about to defend that letter. Then he sends the narrator after the birds in it. The narrator thinks the birds are extinct, or all dead. In paragraph 25 he calls the trip “this fool’s errand,” a pointless job. The professor seems to know the narrator will hate this. That is why his smile looks a little sorry.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. He later asks, “Can you leave to-night?” (paragraph 29). He is not sorry about taking the narrator’s time.
    • B does not fit. He shares his opinion plainly: “He isn’t—in mine” (paragraph 11).
    • C does not fit. He does challenge the narrator, but calmly. He speaks “placidly” and “coolly,” with no sign of being uneasy.
    • D fits. He knows the talk will annoy the narrator.

    Watch out: C is tempting because the professor is about to disagree with the narrator. But nothing shows that he is uncomfortable about it.

  5. Choose the answer

    The slight apology shows that the professor expects the narrator to be frustrated. So the answer is D, “It suggests that the professor knows that the conversation will be frustrating for the narrator.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong choice. Both C and D link the apology to the talk about the letter. But C puts the bad feeling in the professor, as if he were nervous. He is not. He speaks “placidly,” which means calmly. D puts the bad feeling in the narrator, and the narrator does get upset.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 15 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 23 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test B English, page 23, question 15.
The passage “Excerpt from In Search of the Unknown” as printed (page 21)The passage “Excerpt from In Search of the Unknown” as printed on page 21 of the DOE handbook.

Question 16 of 120

2026 Practice Test B English, question 19

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from In Search of the Unknown”.

Question

Which sentence from the excerpt best explains why the professor is eager to send the narrator on an expedition?

  • A“I believe now that Professor Farrago perfectly interpreted my thoughts, but he betrayed neither resentment nor impatience.” (paragraph 25)
  • B“Together we made out a list of articles necessary for me and itemized the expenses I might incur, and I set a date for my return, allowing no margin for a successful termination to the expedition.” (paragraph 26)
  • C“ ‘What I want you to do is to get those birds here safely.’ ” (paragraph 27)
  • D“ ‘I can’t get away from the idea that we are on the eve of acquiring the rarest of living creatures.’ ” (paragraph 33)
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks which sentence from the excerpt best explains why the professor is eager to send the narrator on an expedition.

A. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 25 says that the professor “perfectly interpreted” the narrator’s thoughts: in paragraph 24, the narrator suspects the professor is losing his ability to reason because his request (to secure the great auk for the society) seems impossible. The professor is excited about the discovery, but the narrator doubts whether the discovery is real. The sentence does not explain why the professor is excited, however.

B. Incorrect. Paragraph 26 shows the professor and the narrator planning the logistics of the trip, but it does not explain why the professor is eager to send the narrator on the expedition.

C. Incorrect. Although the sentence from paragraph 27 expresses the professor’s interest in having the narrator bring the birds back safely, it does not show the underlying reason why the safety of the birds is so crucial, which is that the great auk is extremely rare.

D. CORRECT. The sentence from paragraph 33 reveals the professor’s excitement to get “ ‘the rarest of living creatures,’ ” the great auk. In paragraph 14, the narrator states that “it is generally accepted . . . that the great auk has been extinct for years,” which would make a living auk incredibly rare and explains the professor’s eagerness for the narrator to go on the expedition.

Question analysis

This textual evidence question asks which sentence from In Search of the Unknown best explains why Professor Farrago is eager to send the narrator to collect a pair of great auks from a man who wrote to the zoo. Students must find the sentence that gives the professor’s reason, and the four quotations, from paragraphs 25 to 33, all concern the expedition in some way.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Choosing the sentence that best explains a character’s motive is standard grade 7 evidence work. The four quotations are short and labeled, but students must tell a reason for the professor’s eagerness apart from sentences that merely relate to the trip.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 1066 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 109 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A detail in the explanation was attributed to the wrong paragraph; it was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Every quotation concerns the expedition, so the question rests on the difference between a sentence that relates to the trip and one that gives the professor’s reason for wanting it. The order to bring the birds back safely shows his eagerness plainly and draws students who stop there. Only the sentence about “the rarest of living creatures” supplies a motive, and it gains its weight from the narrator’s earlier claim that the great auk is extinct.

  1. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The professor’s order to “get those birds here safely” and the right sentence are both his words about the birds; one says what he wants, the other why he wants it. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The right sentence never mentions the expedition, and its force depends on paragraph 14, where the narrator says the great auk “has been extinct for years.” (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    “On the eve of acquiring” is an idiom for being about to obtain, and a student who takes “eve” as evening misses that the professor feels the prize is near. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Restate the question as “Why does the professor want the narrator to go?” and ask of each quotation whether it gives a reason or only describes part of the plan.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The DOE’s explanation of Option A says “In the sentence from paragraph 25, the narrator suspects the professor is losing his ability to reason.” That suspicion is in paragraph 24 (“Clearly, Professor Farrago was on the verge of dotage,” where dotage is “a loss of reasoning brought about by old age”). The sentence from paragraph 25, which is Option A, says that the professor “perfectly interpreted my thoughts” and showed “neither resentment nor impatience.” The site now says: “The sentence from paragraph 25 says that the professor ‘perfectly interpreted’ the narrator’s thoughts: in paragraph 24, the narrator suspects the professor is losing his ability to reason.” The rest of the explanation is unchanged: Option A is still wrong because the sentence does not explain why the professor is eager to send the narrator.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for evidence: the sentence that best explains why the professor is eager to send the narrator. So look for a reason, not a plan or an order.

  2. Recall what the narrator believes

    In paragraph 14, the narrator says “that the great auk has been extinct for years.” Extinct means no longer alive anywhere on Earth. So a living great auk would be amazingly rare. The letter writer claims to have two of them.

  3. Find the professor’s reason

    In paragraph 33, the professor says, “I can’t get away from the idea that we are on the eve of acquiring the rarest of living creatures.” On the eve of means just about to. Acquiring means getting. He thinks the zoo is close to getting the rarest animal alive. That is why he is eager to send the narrator.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. It is from paragraph 25. It says the professor understood the narrator’s thoughts. Those thoughts are in paragraph 24: the professor was “on the verge of dotage,” or losing his reason in old age. A shows the professor’s calm, not his reason.
    • B does not fit. It describes planning the trip, not why.
    • C does not fit. It says what the professor wants done, but not why the birds matter.
    • D fits. It gives his reason: a chance at the rarest of creatures.

    Watch out: C is tempting because the professor is talking about the birds. But it is an order, not a reason.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only D explains what makes the trip so exciting to the professor. So the answer is D, “I can’t get away from the idea that we are on the eve of acquiring the rarest of living creatures.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong choice. In C, the professor says “What I want you to do is to get those birds here safely.” That tells what he wants. D tells why he wants it: the birds may be “the rarest of living creatures.” The question asks for the reason, so D fits better.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 19 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 27 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test B English, page 27, question 19. This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 17 of 120

2026 Practice Test B English, question 21

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from In Search of the Unknown”.

Question

Which sentence best demonstrates the professional relationship between the narrator and the professor?

  • A“He disengaged the sheet of paper and handed it to me.” (paragraph 4)
  • B“Clearly, Professor Farrago was on the verge of dotage—ah, what a loss to the world!” (paragraph 24)
  • C“I drew a chair up beside his desk—there was nothing to do but to obey, and this fool’s errand was none of my conceiving.” (paragraph 25)
  • D“ ‘Very well,’ said Professor Farrago, good-humoredly, ‘you shall have all the assistance you may require.’ ” (paragraph 29)
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks which sentence best demonstrates the professional relationship between the narrator and the professor.

A. Incorrect. Although the professor’s handing of the paper to the narrator indicates that they are beginning to discuss the letter about the great auk, the sentence from paragraph 4 does not convey the relationship between a subordinate employee (the narrator) and a superior (the professor).

B. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 24 presents the narrator’s immediate internal reaction to the professor’s words. The sentence emphasizes that the professor’s belief in the great auk’s existence is so outrageous that the narrator initially thinks the professor is starting to lose touch with reality. This is a momentary reaction to the professor’s words, not a demonstration of the professional relationship between the two.

C. CORRECT. The sentence from paragraph 25 reveals that while the narrator disagrees with the professor (“this fool’s errand was none of my conceiving”), he obeys because he works for the professor (“there was nothing to do but to obey”).

D. Incorrect. The professor’s good-humored offer of assistance in the sentence from paragraph 29 does not best demonstrate the underlying employer-employee relationship between the professor and the narrator. The narrator has to go on the expedition because the professor, his boss, told him to.

Question analysis

This textual evidence question on In Search of the Unknown asks which sentence best demonstrates the professional relationship between the narrator, who answers letters for a zoological society, and Professor Farrago. The four quotations come from different points in their conversation about a letter. Several show the two men dealing with each other, so students must weigh which one shows the relationship most clearly.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Picking the sentence that best shows a relationship between characters is typical grade 7 evidence work. The four quotations are short and labeled, and the main step is deciding what a professional relationship would look like in this scene.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 1066 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 84 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Several quotations show the two men interacting, and the professor’s offer of “all the assistance you may require” even shows him controlling the society’s resources. The best evidence is the sentence in which the employee’s position is plain: he disagrees, yet he must obey. Students who read “professional” loosely as anything that happens at work pick the handing over of the letter, and those who look only at the professor’s authority stop at his offer of help.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    Students must first decide what a professional relationship looks like here, a superior and an employee bound to carry out his orders, before they can see it in “nothing to do but to obey.” (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    All four sentences show the two men dealing with each other, from handing over a letter to granting help, so each must be weighed for what it shows about rank. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  3. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    The right sentence ends “this fool’s errand was none of my conceiving,” old-fashioned wording for saying the pointless trip was not his idea, which shows the disagreement that makes his obedience telling. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Decide first what a professional relationship between these two men involves, then ask of each quotation whether it shows that relationship or only a passing moment between them.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for the sentence that best shows their professional relationship. That means how they relate at work: who is the boss, and who must follow orders. Paragraph 3 calls Professor Farrago the “general superintendent of the Zoological Gardens.” He is the man in charge. The narrator sends him letters for approval.

  2. Look for a sign of boss and worker

    Paragraph 25 says “I drew a chair up beside his desk—there was nothing to do but to obey, and this fool’s errand was none of my conceiving.” To obey means to do what you are told. A fool’s errand is a pointless task. “None of my conceiving” means it was not his idea.

  3. Put it in your own words

    The narrator thinks the trip is silly. Still, he must do it, because the professor is his boss. A worker who disagrees but follows orders anyway shows a work relationship clearly. That is what this sentence does.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. Handing over a letter starts their talk. It shows nothing about who is in charge.
    • B does not fit. It is the narrator’s private thought that the professor is losing his reason in old age. It is a passing reaction.
    • C fits. The narrator must obey even though he disagrees.
    • D does not fit. It shows the professor in a good mood. It does not show the narrator’s duty to follow orders.

    Watch out: D is tempting because a boss is the one who offers help. But the sentence mostly shows his good humor.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only C shows the narrator following an order he does not agree with. So the answer is C, “I drew a chair up beside his desk—there was nothing to do but to obey, and this fool’s errand was none of my conceiving.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong choice. The professor does have the power to offer “all the assistance you may require.” But that sentence mainly shows him being friendly. C shows the heart of the work relationship. The narrator thinks the job is foolish, yet he has “nothing to do but to obey.”

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 21 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 29 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test B English, page 29, question 21.

Question 18 of 120

2026 Practice Test B English, question 29
Passage Using Fire to Keep a Prairie Healthy

Using Fire to Keep a Prairie Healthy

Inside the 40,000-acre Joseph H. Williams Tallgrass Prairie Preserve in northern Oklahoma, herds of bison roam on the scenic land that is home to hundreds of different species of plants and animals. While one of the greatest threats to the prairie is wildfire, the use of controlled fires is actually an effective way to protect this idyllic landscape.

Fires that are started by lightning or other natural circumstances are inevitable, and the results can be disastrous. However, hundreds of years ago the American Indian people who inhabited the Great Plains area between Minnesota and Texas realized that these fires could also be helpful. The bison in the area seemed to prefer grazing on tender new grass on the recently burned land rather than on grass in the unburned areas. The American Indian people began to deliberately burn areas of land for bison to graze on, which enticed the herds away from the people’s crops.

Today conservationists at the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve and farmers in the Great Plains continue to use controlled burns for land management. Intentionally burning a portion of land can dramatically improve the quality of the vegetation that regrows there. The fires burn away weedy undergrowth and help limit the overcrowding of shrubs and trees in the burn area, creating less competition for water and nutrients. Additionally, the process of burning excess plant matter adds nitrogen, an essential element for plant growth, to the soil.

One common target of controlled burns at the preserve and the surrounding area is the invasive red cedar tree. A single red cedar tree can consume up to 40 gallons of water per day, taking this vital resource away from other plant life. These tall trees also cast shade that prevents sunlight from reaching the plants beneath them. The fast-growing red cedar trees tend to crowd out prairie grasses, the primary food source for wild and domestic animals that make the prairie their home. An imbalance in one component of the prairie’s ecosystem affects the entire web of life. Controlled burns help maintain this ecosystem’s delicate balance.

Of course, these controlled fires are intended to burn only a portion of an area. A total burn, which is a risk with an uncontrolled wildfire, would destroy all wildlife as well as the crops farmers plant for income. The key to using controlled fires is knowing which areas of land to burn and when. Conservation experts at the preserve employ the “patch-burn” approach, meaning they rotate which portion of land is burned each year. They study the land to find out which areas would most benefit from being burned, and then they arrange about a dozen burns over one-third of the land. This patch burning contains the fire within a specific area and allows animals in the burn area to safely relocate. The following year, conservationists will burn a different section of the preserve, while the land burned the previous year regrows healthier than before.

Researchers have tracked and studied the variety of plant species and animals that live on the preserve, and their studies show that the patch-burn approach has restored biodiversity to the area by promoting the growth of species that were at risk of being crowded out. The patch-burn system is so successful that the conservationists at the preserve provide training to prairie farmers about conducting controlled burns on their own land. Burning land to make it healthy may seem counterintuitive, but strategic controlled fires have helped the prairie sustain life for hundreds of years and, with careful management, will continue to do so.

Boxed diagram titled “OVERVIEW OF THE PATCH-BURN METHOD,” introduced by the text “By using a patch-burn method, conservationists and farmers can reduce the risk of unintentional fires and control where grazing animals, such as bison, roam.” Below it, a map of one stretch of land is divided by a branching stream, labeled Stream, into three shaded areas: a dark Unburned Area across the top, a medium gray Previously Burned Area on the left, and a light gray Recently Burned Area on the lower right, where eight bison stand. Three captions under the map read “The unburned area is overrun with weeds and has the greatest risk of catching fire,” “The previously burned area is cleared of weeds, and young trees and crops grow freely and thrive,” and “The recently burned area has been cleared of all plants. Bison prefer to eat the fresh grass that will begin to grow in the recently burned area, and they will generally remain in that area until newer, fresher grass is available elsewhere.”

Question

According to the passage, how did fires started by natural causes prompt American Indians to begin practicing controlled burns?

  • Aby drawing animals in to the area to feed on the new growth sprouting from the burned land
  • Bby destroying tall trees and reducing the shade that had hindered the growth of planted crops
  • Cby burning off excess vegetation and increasing the availability of nutrients for the remaining plants
  • Dby causing changes to the bison’s migration habits as bison herds fled from the wildfires on the prairie
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how observing the effects of the fires started by natural causes prompted American Indians to begin practicing controlled burns.

A. CORRECT. In paragraph 2, the author states that American Indians observed bison “grazing on tender new grass on the recently burned land rather than on grass in the unburned areas.” These observations prompted the practice of controlled burns as a means of enticing “the herds away from the people’s crops.”

B. Incorrect. Although the author mentions in paragraph 4 that the primary targets of a controlled burn are red cedar trees and that “these tall trees also cast shade that prevents sunlight from reaching the plants beneath them,” this detail supports why conservationists use controlled burns today, not what initially prompted the use of controlled burns.

C. Incorrect. While the author states in paragraph 3 that “the process of burning excess plant matter adds nitrogen, an essential element for plant growth, to the soil” and that “intentionally burning a portion of land can dramatically improve the quality of the vegetation that regrows there,” these details do not explain the initial observations that prompted American Indians to practice controlled burning.

D. Incorrect. While paragraph 2 mentions that bison moved to a new area to graze because they preferred the “tender new grass on the recently burned land,” there is no indication in the passage that bison changed their migration habits in order to flee wildfires.

Question analysis

This key-details question about an article on controlled burns at an Oklahoma tallgrass prairie preserve asks how fires started by lightning or other natural causes led American Indians to begin burning land on purpose. Students must find the passage's account of that early practice, and since the article describes several effects of fire, each choice has to be checked against what those first observers actually saw.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Finding a stated cause in an informational text is regular grade 7 reading. The answer sits in one short paragraph, but the article describes several effects of fire, old and new, and the choices draw on them, which keeps the demand typical.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 598 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 86 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The stem points to one short paragraph, but the article goes on to list many more benefits of fire, and two wrong choices borrow them: shade cleared from under red cedars and nutrients returned to the soil. Both are true of controlled burns today, not of what the Great Plains peoples first noticed. Students who return to paragraph 2 and restate the bison’s taste for freshly burned grass find the answer quickly.

  1. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    Two wrong choices name real benefits of burning from later paragraphs, cedar shade removed in paragraph 4 and nutrients freed in paragraph 3, so each must be tested against what the early peoples saw. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    Paragraph 2 never says the bison’s grazing caused the practice; students connect “realized that these fires could also be helpful” to the preference for burned land and the deliberate burns that follow. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Go to the paragraph about the Great Plains peoples of hundreds of years ago, restate in your own words what they noticed after natural fires, and test each choice against that observation.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This question asks about a cause. Long ago, fires started by lightning gave American Indians an idea. They began to burn land on purpose. You need to find what they saw that led them to do it. A controlled burn is a fire that people set and keep inside a planned area.

  2. Find the right paragraph

    Paragraph 2 tells this part of the story. It says the people “realized that these fires could also be helpful.” Then it says what they noticed: “The bison in the area seemed to prefer grazing on tender new grass on the recently burned land rather than on grass in the unburned areas.”

  3. Put it in your own words

    Grazing means eating grass. After a fire, soft new grass grew, and the bison liked it best. So the people began to burn land on purpose. The new grass pulled the herds to that land. That kept the bison away from the crops. The paragraph says the burning “enticed the herds away from the people’s crops.” Enticed means tempted or drew.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is right. The burned land drew animals, the bison, to eat the new grass.
    • B is wrong. The shade of tall trees comes from paragraph 4. It explains why people burn red cedars today, not how burning began.
    • C is wrong. Burning off weeds and adding nutrients come from paragraph 3. Nutrients are what plants need to grow. These are reasons for burning today.
    • D is wrong. The bison moved toward the fresh grass. The passage never says herds fled from fires.

    Watch out: C is true about controlled burns. But the question asks what first gave the people the idea. Paragraph 2 says it was the bison.

  5. Choose the answer

    The early people saw bison come to burned land to eat the new grass. So the answer is A: “by drawing animals in to the area to feed on the new growth sprouting from the burned land.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer, because it names real good effects of fire. But paragraph 3 gives those as reasons people burn land “today.” The question asks how burning began hundreds of years ago. Paragraph 2 says it began when people watched bison feed on burned land.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 29 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 42 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test B English, page 42, question 29.
The passage “Using Fire to Keep a Prairie Healthy” as printed (page 41)The passage “Using Fire to Keep a Prairie Healthy” as printed on page 41 of the DOE handbook.

Question 19 of 120

2026 Practice Test B English, question 30

Uses the passage above: “Using Fire to Keep a Prairie Healthy”.

Question

Targeting red cedar trees in controlled burns affects the animals that live on the prairie mostly by

  • Aensuring that the animals’ main food source has the conditions needed for it to thrive.
  • Bendangering the animals that live near the trees scheduled for removal.
  • Cmaking sure that the water supply for the animals is sufficient.
  • Dreducing the animals’ natural source of shade and protection from the elements.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how targeting red cedar trees in controlled burns affects the animals that live on the prairie.

A. CORRECT. According to information in paragraph 4, targeting invasive red cedar trees with controlled burns affects animals that live on the prairie by ensuring that these trees do not “crowd out prairie grasses, the primary food source for wild and domestic animals that make the prairie their home.” The paragraph also states that each red cedar tree consumes “up to 40 gallons of water per day, taking this vital resource away from other plant life.” Removing red cedars thus increases the amount of water available to the prairie grasses and helps maintain favorable conditions for the animals’ main source of food.

B. Incorrect. Although the author mentions the potential danger to wildlife from an uncontrolled burn in paragraph 5, the author emphasizes that patch burning “allows animals in the burn area to safely relocate.” Therefore, the animals that live near trees scheduled for removal are not endangered by the controlled burns.

C. Incorrect. In paragraph 4, the author states that “a single red cedar tree can consume up to 40 gallons of water per day, taking this vital resource away from other plant life.” However, the author does not suggest that reducing the number of red cedar trees through controlled burns ensures a sufficient water supply for animals that live on the prairie.

D. Incorrect. In paragraph 4, the author states that “these tall trees also cast shade that prevents sunlight from reaching the plants beneath them.” However, the author does not suggest that using controlled burns to eliminate red cedar trees reduces a natural source of shade for prairie animals. The red cedar trees are invasive; therefore, the author does not consider them a “natural” part of the prairie ecosystem.

Question analysis

This question asks how burning invasive red cedar trees on purpose mostly affects the wild and domestic animals that live on the Oklahoma prairie. Students follow a chain of cause and effect through the paragraph on red cedars, which describes the trees' heavy water use, their shade and their spread, and must pick out the effect that matters most to the animals.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Grade 7 readers routinely trace how one change leads to another in an informational text. This chain stays within one paragraph, but the paragraph names several things the cedars take from the prairie, and the stem's “mostly” asks for the main effect.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 598 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 66 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Paragraph 4 lists three harms the red cedar does, drinking water, casting shade and crowding out grasses, and the wrong choices hand the water and the shade straight to the animals. In the text, all three harms fall on plants, and animals feel them only through the grasses they eat. Students who ask who suffers each harm see that protecting the food supply is the main effect the stem’s “mostly” asks for.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    Paragraph 4 never names an effect on animals; students must chain the cedars crowding out “prairie grasses,” the grasses being “the primary food source,” and the burns that remove the cedars. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Much to keep track of minor Working it out

    The paragraph names three harms at once, 40 gallons of water a day, shade over the plants below and crowding, and students must track which living things each harm reaches. (Sweller, 1988; Carpenter, Just & Shell, 1990)

  3. The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer

    The right choice speaks of “conditions needed for it to thrive” without naming grass or cedars, while the wrong ones repeat the paragraph’s vivid details of water and shade. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

Strategy: Reread the paragraph about red cedars and list each way the trees harm the prairie, then ask which of those harms reaches the animals and which would matter to them most.

Traps

  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This question asks about cause and effect. People burn red cedar trees on purpose. You need to find how that mostly helps the animals. The word “mostly” means you want the biggest effect, not just any effect.

  2. Find what the red cedars do

    Paragraph 4 is about red cedars. It names three harms. First, one tree can drink “up to 40 gallons of water per day, taking this vital resource away from other plant life.” Second, the trees “cast shade that prevents sunlight from reaching the plants beneath them.” Third, they “tend to crowd out prairie grasses, the primary food source for wild and domestic animals.”

  3. Ask who each harm hurts

    Look at who loses each time. The water is taken from “other plant life.” The shade blocks light from “the plants beneath them.” The crowding pushes out prairie grasses. So every harm falls on plants. The animals feel it through the grass, because grass is their main food. Primary means main. So burning the cedars mostly helps the animals by protecting their food.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is right. The animals’ main food source is prairie grass. With the cedars gone, the grass gets water, sunlight and room to grow.
    • B is wrong. Paragraph 5 says patch burning “allows animals in the burn area to safely relocate.” Relocate means move somewhere else.
    • C is wrong. The cedars take water from plants. The passage never says the animals run short of water.
    • D is wrong. The shade blocks light from plants. The passage never calls it shelter for animals.

    Watch out: The 40 gallons of water is a striking fact, so C is tempting. But that water is taken from “other plant life.”

  5. Choose the answer

    Burning the cedars keeps the grass healthy, and the grass feeds the animals. Thrive means grow well. So the answer is A: “ensuring that the animals’ main food source has the conditions needed for it to thrive.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer, because paragraph 4 does talk about water. But it says the cedars take water from plants, not from animals. The grass, the animals’ main food, is what suffers from all three harms. So A fits better.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 30 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 43 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test B English, page 43, question 30.

Question 20 of 120

2026 Practice Test B English, question 32

Uses the passage above: “Using Fire to Keep a Prairie Healthy”.

Question

Which sentence supports the idea that farmers and people who manage land may be concerned about using fire as a way to benefit the land?

  • A“While one of the greatest threats to the prairie is wildfire, the use of controlled fires is actually an effective way to protect this idyllic landscape.” (paragraph 1)
  • B“The American Indian people began to deliberately burn areas of land for bison to graze on, which enticed the herds away from the people’s crops.” (paragraph 2)
  • C“This patch burning contains the fire within a specific area and allows animals in the burn area to safely relocate.” (paragraph 5)
  • D“The following year, conservationists will burn a different section of the preserve, while the land burned the previous year regrows healthier than before.” (paragraph 5)
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks which sentence supports the idea that farmers and people who manage land may be concerned about using fire as a way to benefit the land.

A. CORRECT. The sentence from paragraph 1 supports the idea that farmers and people who manage land may be concerned about using fire as a way to benefit the land because it acknowledges that “one of the greatest threats to the prairie is wildfire.”

B. Incorrect. Although the sentence from paragraph 2 relates how American Indians “began to deliberately burn areas of land for bison to graze on” and to protect people’s crops, the sentence does not support the idea that farmers and people who manage land may be concerned about using fire as a way to benefit the land. Instead, it focuses on the cause-and-effect relationship between bison and newly burned areas.

C. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 5 provides details about how “patch burning contains the fire” and “allows animals in the burn area to safely relocate,” but it does not adequately support the idea that farmers and people who manage land may be concerned about using fire as a way to benefit the land, because it does not mention that wildfires can be a threat to the prairie.

D. Incorrect. While the sentence from paragraph 5 does explain how “conservationists will burn a different section of the preserve” in order to rotate the process year after year so that the burned land has time to regrow, the sentence does not support the idea that farmers and people who manage land may be concerned about using fire as a way to benefit the land because it does not mention the potential for total burns.

Question analysis

This evidence question asks which sentence from the article on controlled prairie burns supports the idea that farmers and others who manage land may be concerned about using fire to benefit it. The passage never states that concern directly, so students must infer it, and all four quoted sentences, taken from across the article, talk about burning land in some way.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R6 point of view and author position
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 evidence questions usually ask for support of an idea the text states. This idea, that people who manage land may worry about using fire, is never stated outright, so students must infer which sentence implies it, more than typical.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from one sentence or line
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 598 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 123 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The idea to support is about people’s feelings, yet none of the four sentences mentions farmers worrying, so students have to decide what would justify such worry. The opening sentence does it by naming wildfire as a great threat before praising controlled fire, a concession many students read past as background. The strongest pull is the sentence on containing the fire, which implies caution but presents patch burning as the answer, not the concern.

  1. Reading between the lines major Working it out

    No sentence mentions worry; students must see that calling wildfire “one of the greatest threats to the prairie” gives landowners a reason to fear fire, and that “actually” answers that fear. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The patch-burn sentence about containing the fire “within a specific area” also hints at fire’s danger; it differs from the right one by describing the safeguard without ever naming a threat. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  3. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    The four sentences come from paragraphs 1, 2 and 5, and each is about burning land, so each must be tested for a hint of risk rather than for its topic. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Before rereading the choices, decide what a sentence would need to say to show that landowners have reason to be wary of fire, then test each quoted sentence for exactly that.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is an evidence question. Evidence is the words in a text that back up an idea. The idea here is that farmers might worry about using fire to help land. No sentence says farmers are worried. So look for a sentence that gives them a reason to fear fire.

  2. Decide what the evidence needs

    A sentence that supports this idea must show that fire can be dangerous. If fire can harm land, people have a reason to be careful with it. So test each sentence with one question: does it say fire is a threat?

  3. Look closely at paragraph 1

    Choice A quotes paragraph 1. Its first half says “one of the greatest threats to the prairie is wildfire.” That is a reason to fear fire. Its second half says controlled fires are “actually” helpful. The word “actually” pushes back against that fear. It means: you might expect fire to hurt the land, but here it helps.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is right. It names wildfire as a great threat. That gives farmers a reason to worry about fire.
    • B is wrong. It tells how early burns drew bison away from crops. It shows no danger from fire.
    • C is wrong. It tells how patch burning keeps the fire in one area. It describes a safety step but never names a threat.
    • D is wrong. It describes burning a new section each year. It shows a benefit: land that “regrows healthier than before.”

    Watch out: C hints that fire must be contained, or kept in, so it sounds careful. But it describes the solution, not the danger.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only one sentence names fire as a danger. So the answer is A, the sentence from paragraph 1: “While one of the greatest threats to the prairie is wildfire, the use of controlled fires is actually an effective way to protect this idyllic landscape.” Idyllic means peaceful and lovely.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer, because keeping fire “within a specific area” suggests caution. But C only explains how patch burning works. It never says fire can harm the prairie. A does, by calling wildfire one of the greatest threats.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 32 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 45 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test B English, page 45, question 32.

Question 21 of 120

2026 Practice Test B English, question 34

Uses the passage above: “Using Fire to Keep a Prairie Healthy”.

Question

With which statement would the author most likely agree?

  • AIt is important to explain the purposes and the risks of controlled burns to the people living near a proposed burn area.
  • BIt is necessary to thoroughly examine a particular region in order to plan and execute a successful controlled burn.
  • CMonitoring animals’ reactions after a controlled burn on the prairie is a minor part of scientists’ research.
  • DConservationists should consider the helpful aspects of invasive species before executing a controlled burn.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks with which statement the author of the passage would most likely agree.

A. Incorrect. In paragraph 5, the author states that “patch burning contains the fire within a specific area and allows animals in the burn area to safely relocate,” and paragraph 6 states that conservationists “provide [important] training to prairie farmers about conducting controlled burns on their own land.” However, the author does not explicitly take a position about the importance of explaining the purposes and the risks of controlled burns to the people living near a proposed burn area. Therefore, the evidence in the passage does not strongly suggest that the author would agree with this statement.

B. CORRECT. In paragraph 5, the author points out that conservationists “study the land to find out which areas would most benefit from being burned, and then they arrange about a dozen burns over one-third of the land” and “rotate which portion of land is burned each year” so that animals, such as bison, can “safely relocate.” Therefore, the author would most likely agree that it is necessary to thoroughly examine a particular region in order to plan and execute a successful controlled burn.

C. Incorrect. The author of the passage would be unlikely to agree that monitoring animals’ reactions after a controlled burn on the prairie is a minor part of scientists’ research. In paragraph 5, the author explains that patch burning “allows animals in the burn area to safely relocate” and that conservationists “burn a different section of the preserve” each year to ensure that animals have an abundant area to graze while other areas are being burned.

D. Incorrect. According to the information in paragraph 4, conservationists commonly target invasive red cedar trees because they are tall trees that “crowd out prairie grasses, the primary food source for wild and domestic animals that make the prairie their home.” Since the focus is on the harm that the invasive red cedar can cause, the author would be unlikely to agree that conservationists should consider the helpful aspects of invasive species before executing a controlled burn.

Question analysis

This point-of-view question asks which statement the author of the prairie-burning article would most likely agree with. Students infer the author's position from details spread through the passage, and since some choices sound like sensible advice in general, each must be traced back to what the article actually supports.

NYS standards
  • 7R6 point of view and author position
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Inferring what an author would agree with is typical grade 7 work on point of view. The choices draw on different paragraphs, and the author's views are stated fairly plainly, so careful checking settles it without a long chain of inference.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 598 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 81 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The right statement is close to a paraphrase of paragraph 5, where the experts study the land before choosing where to burn, so careful readers settle this quickly. The risk is a statement that sounds wise in general: explaining a burn’s purposes and risks to its neighbors is good practice, but the article never raises it. The other two contradict the text, which values research on animals and treats red cedars only as a harm.

  1. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    The statements touch different parts of the article, research in paragraph 6, invasive species in paragraph 4 and safety in general, so each must be traced to what the author says, if anything. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The author never gives an opinion on planning burns; agreement must be inferred from the report that experts “study the land” before arranging about a dozen burns. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: For each statement, find the paragraph it relates to and ask whether the author says something close to it, says the opposite, or says nothing; choose only a statement the text backs.

Traps

  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This question asks which statement the author would most likely agree with. The author doesn’t state an opinion on these ideas outright. So check each statement against what the passage says. Pick the one the passage backs up.

  2. Find what the author stresses

    Paragraph 5 says “The key to using controlled fires is knowing which areas of land to burn and when.” Next it says the experts “study the land to find out which areas would most benefit from being burned.” Only after that do they plan “about a dozen burns over one-third of the land.” A dozen means 12.

  3. Put it in your own words

    The author calls knowing where and when to burn “the key.” A key is the most important part. The experts study the land before they plan a single burn. So the author thinks careful study comes first. A burn works only when people know the land well.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. This sounds like good advice. But the passage never talks about warning neighbors before a burn.
    • B is right. It matches paragraph 5. The experts study the land, then plan the burns.
    • C is wrong. Paragraph 6 says researchers “tracked and studied” the animals. The author treats that research as important, not minor.
    • D is wrong. Paragraph 4 shows the invasive red cedar only as harmful. Invasive means spreading where it doesn’t belong.

    Watch out: A is tempting because it is wise in real life. But you must pick what this author would agree with, based on the passage.

  5. Choose the answer

    The author shows the experts studying the land before they plan. Execute here means carry out. So the answer is B: “It is necessary to thoroughly examine a particular region in order to plan and execute a successful controlled burn.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong answer, because explaining a burn to the neighbors is sensible. But the passage never raises it. B matches what paragraph 5 actually says: the experts “study the land” before they plan the burns.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 34 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 47 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test B English, page 47, question 34.

Question 22 of 120

2026 Practice Test B English, question 35

Uses the passage above: “Using Fire to Keep a Prairie Healthy”.

Question

How do the diagram and its text provide additional support for the topic presented in the passage?

  • Aby depicting how the landscape in a given area changes as the patch-burn method is applied
  • Bby indicating that patch-burn fires are best suited for use in areas with certain features
  • Cby revealing that the patch-burn method is used primarily on uninhabited areas of land
  • Dby comparing the size of the area burned by the patch-burn method with that of unburned areas
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how the diagram and its text provide additional support for the topic presented in the passage.

A. CORRECT. The text of the diagram states that “by using a patch-burn method, conservationists and farmers can reduce the risk of unintentional fires and control where grazing animals, such as bison, roam.” By showing the pattern of controlled burns and the resulting bison migration in a given area, the diagram depicts how the landscape changes as the patch-burn method is applied.

B. Incorrect. Although the text mentions areas “where grazing animals, such as bison, roam,” the diagram does not depict distinctive features of the land such as trees or brush and therefore does not indicate that patch-burn fires are best suited for use in areas with certain features.

C. Incorrect. While the text mentions “grazing animals, such as bison” and the diagram shows the bison grazing in only one area, the diagram and its text do not indicate that the patch-burn method is used on uninhabited land.

D. Incorrect. While the areas of land depicted in the diagram do indicate that the sizes of the areas differ, the text provided does not compare the sizes of the areas burned by the patch-burn method with those of unburned areas or indicate that this factor is important in reducing the risk of uncontrolled fires or controlling “where grazing animals, such as bison, roam.”

Question analysis

This question asks how a diagram titled “Overview of the Patch-Burn Method,” printed with the article on controlled burns at an Oklahoma prairie preserve, supports the passage's topic. The diagram shows a stretch of land divided into three areas, each with a caption, so students must take in what the picture and its text show together and tie that to the article.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Explaining how a graphic adds to a text is a grade 7 skill. This diagram is simple and clearly labeled, but students must take in its three areas and captions together and match them to an abstract description, a typical demand.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 598 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 79 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The diagram shows three areas side by side, and the key insight is that they are one piece of land at three moments in the patch-burn cycle. Students who read it only as a map look for spatial claims instead, about land features, people or the sizes of the areas. The caption calling the unburned area “overrun with weeds” is the likeliest snare, since it sounds like advice on which land to burn.

  1. Reading a figure, table or graph moderate Understanding the question

    The diagram’s meaning is split among a map of three shaded areas, an introduction and three captions, which must be read together to see what the picture adds to the passage. (Lesh, Post & Behr, 1987; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    Nothing in the diagram mentions the passing of time; students must infer that the unburned, recently burned and previously burned areas are stages the same land passes through as the burns rotate. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. How, not what minor Working it out

    The stem asks how the diagram supports the passage, a question of function, so describing what is drawn is not enough; it must be tied to the yearly rotation of paragraph 5. (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001)

Strategy: Read the diagram's title, introduction and three captions before the choices, sum up in one sentence what the diagram shows, and check each choice against something you can actually point to in it.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This question asks how the diagram helps the passage. A diagram is a drawing that explains how something works. You need to say what it adds, not just what it shows. So read its title, its short introduction and its three captions. Captions are the short notes under a picture.

  2. Read the diagram

    The title, printed in capital letters, is “Overview of the Patch-Burn Method.” The drawing shows one stretch of land. A stream splits it into three areas, labeled “Unburned Area,” “Recently Burned Area” and “Previously Burned Area.” A herd of bison stands in the recently burned area.

  3. Read the three captions

    • The unburned area “is overrun with weeds and has the greatest risk of catching fire.”
    • The recently burned area “has been cleared of all plants.” Bison come to eat the fresh grass that grows there.
    • The previously burned area “is cleared of weeds, and young trees and crops grow freely and thrive.”

    These are three stages the same land goes through: weedy, burned, then healthy. Paragraph 5 says the experts burn a different section each year, while “the land burned the previous year regrows healthier than before.”

  4. Check each choice

    • A is right. The diagram shows land changing from weedy, to burned, to healthy as the method is used.
    • B is wrong. The captions describe each stage. They don’t say some kinds of land suit burning best.
    • C is wrong. Bison live in the drawing, and a caption mentions crops. Uninhabited means with no one living there, and nothing says that.
    • D is wrong. The areas are different sizes in the drawing. But no caption compares sizes.

    Watch out: B is tempting because “overrun with weeds” sounds like a reason to burn. But that caption describes the first stage. It is not a rule for choosing land.

  5. Choose the answer

    Depicting means showing in a picture. So the answer is A: “by depicting how the landscape in a given area changes as the patch-burn method is applied.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong answer, because the weedy unburned area does sound like land that needs a fire. But the diagram gives no rules for picking land. It shows one piece of land changing, stage by stage, as the burns rotate. That is what A says.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 35 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 48 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test B English, page 48, question 35.

Question 23 of 120

2026 Practice Test B English, question 37
Passage Letter from Brooklyn

Letter from Brooklyn

by Jacob Scheier

I can already see how this will end.
How I will grow tired of the bridge’s
steep incline, and the absent-minded tourists
wandering into the bicycle path.
The weather will turn cold.
But that all happens later.
For now it is the early edge of fall,
leaves green still while the air narrows,
is slightly crisp, almost grazing
the hair of my arm like a passing stranger,
as though the air has been forced into intimacy
by the brevity of daylight.
But when it starts darkening at 4,
this closeness, I know, will be a felt distance,
like someone drawing your attention
to their lack of intimacy.
These days I am still walking at a cathedral pace
beneath the branches bending across avenues,
brownstones like rows of lived-in chapels,
like a pop-up picture book I could have had as a child,
but didn’t. How Brooklyn makes me nostalgic
for the moment I am walking inside of.
These late afternoons filled
with a loneliness that makes me feel
distinctly myself, and an awareness
of how rare that is.

“Letter from Brooklyn” from LETTER FROM BROOKLYN: POEMS by Jacob Scheier, published by ECW Press. Copyright © 2013 by Jacob Scheier All rights reserved.

brevity: briefness
cathedral: meditative
chapels: private places of prayer or worship
nostalgic: yearning for the past

Question

Which lines support the idea that a change in the weather will lessen the speaker’s appreciation for the city?

  • A“as though the air has been forced into intimacy / by the brevity of daylight.” (lines 11–12)
  • B“But when it starts darkening at 4, / this closeness, I know, will be a felt distance,” (lines 13–14)
  • C“like someone drawing your attention / to their lack of intimacy.” (lines 15–16)
  • D“These days I am still walking . . . / beneath the branches bending across avenues,” (lines 17–18)
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks which lines from the poem support the idea that a change in the weather will lessen the speaker’s appreciation for the city.

A. Incorrect. These lines focus on the positive way the air feels to the speaker during “the early edge of fall” (line 7). They suggest that the speaker appreciates this experience currently, while being aware that the feeling might not last.

B. CORRECT. In these lines, the speaker describes the shift in the “closeness” of the air as the weather changes and “it starts darkening at 4.” The speaker clearly indicates that the positive emotions surrounding this closeness, with “leaves green still” and the air “slightly crisp” (lines 8–9), will soon be “a felt distance,” suggesting that the turn in the weather will make the city less appealing.

C. Incorrect. Although these lines compare the darkening, changing weather to a person revealing a “lack of intimacy,” that specific comparison does not focus on a diminishing appreciation for the city.

D. Incorrect. These lines describe the “cathedral pace” (line 17) at which the speaker walks, emphasizing a meditative or thoughtful experience. Such a description suggests the speaker still appreciates the city, not that the speaker’s appreciation will lessen.

Question analysis

This evidence question asks which lines from “Letter from Brooklyn” support the idea that a change in the weather will lessen the speaker's appreciation for the city. All four choices come from the middle of the poem, where the speaker describes the feel of the early-fall air through figurative comparisons, so students must read each pair of lines closely for both parts of the idea.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R4 word meaning and choice
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Choosing lines that support an idea is standard grade 7 evidence work. Here the idea is carried by figurative comparisons about the air, and the four choices sit within a few lines of one another, so separating them takes closer reading than is typical.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from one sentence or line
Reading level
Passage: 217 words (a poem; reading level not measured); question and choices: about grade 6, 74 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

All four choices come from lines 11–18, and three speak of closeness, distance or intimacy, so the vocabulary of the claim is everywhere. The idea has two parts, a change in the weather and a weaker feeling for the city, and only one pair of lines holds both. The strongest pull is the second half of the same sentence, which puts the loss of intimacy most vividly but leaves the darkening behind in the lines before.

  1. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    Lines 13–14 and 15–16 are one sentence split in two: the first half names the darkening at 4 and the coming distance, the second only describes what that distance feels like. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Figurative or literary language moderate Understanding the question

    The weaker feeling for the city is never stated; it comes through images, the air’s “closeness” turning into “a felt distance,” like a person pointing out their “lack of intimacy.” (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    Students must accept “when it starts darkening at 4” as the change in the weather the stem names, since the lines speak of daylight, not of cold or rain. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Split the idea into its two parts, a change in the weather and a weaker feeling for the city, and choose the lines that hold both on their own, without help from the lines around them.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is an evidence question. The idea has two parts. First, the weather will change. Second, the speaker will enjoy the city less. You need the lines that hold both parts by themselves.

  2. Read the lines around the choices

    Lines 9–12 describe the early-fall air now. It is “almost grazing / the hair of my arm like a passing stranger.” Grazing here means lightly touching. The speaker says the air feels close, like “intimacy.” Intimacy means a warm, close feeling between people. Lines 13–16 then look ahead to shorter days.

  3. Find both parts in lines 13–14

    Lines 13–14 say: “But when it starts darkening at 4, / this closeness, I know, will be a felt distance”. Darkening at 4 means the sun setting at 4 o’clock, as days get shorter. That is the change in the weather. “This closeness” is the warm feeling the speaker has now. It will turn into distance. So the good feeling will fade.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. Lines 11–12 describe the closeness the speaker enjoys now. Nothing has faded yet.
    • B is right. It names the change, the early dark, and the loss, closeness turning into “a felt distance.”
    • C is wrong. Lines 15–16 finish the comparison: the distance feels like a person pointing out their “lack of intimacy.” But these lines never mention the weather.
    • D is wrong. Lines 17–18 show the speaker enjoying a slow walk now. They say nothing about the weather turning.

    Watch out: C is tempting because “lack of intimacy” sounds like a lost feeling. But the change in weather is back in lines 13–14.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only one pair of lines holds both the change and the fading feeling. So the answer is B, lines 13–14, which begin “But when it starts darkening at 4”.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer, because it shows the good feeling slipping away. But lines 15–16 only describe what that distance feels like. They don’t say what causes it. Lines 13–14 give both parts: the early dark and the fading closeness.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 37 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 52 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test B English, page 52, question 37.
The passage “Letter from Brooklyn” as printed (page 50)The passage “Letter from Brooklyn” as printed on page 50 of the DOE handbook.

Question 24 of 120

2026 Practice Test C English, question 11
Passage Excerpt from “Niagara Falls”

Excerpt from “Niagara Falls”

by Rupert Brooke

The real secret of the beauty and terror of the Falls is not their height or width, but the feeling of colossal power and of unintelligible disaster caused by the plunge of that vast body of water. If that were taken away, there would be little visible change, but the heart would be gone.

The American Falls do not inspire this feeling in the same way as the Canadian. It is because they are less in volume, and because the water does not fall so much into one place. By comparison their beauty is almost delicate and fragile. They are extraordinarily level, one long curtain of lacework and woven foam. Seen from opposite, when the sun is on them, they are blindingly white, and the clouds of spray show dark against them. With both Falls the colour of the water is the ever-altering wonder. Greens and blues, purples and whites, melt into one another, fade, and come again, and change with the changing sun. Sometimes they are as richly diaphanous1^1 as a precious stone, and glow from within with a deep, inexplicable light. Sometimes the white intricacies of dropping foam become opaque and creamy. And always there are the rainbows. If you come suddenly upon the Falls from above, a great double rainbow, very vivid, spanning the extent of spray from top to bottom, is the first thing you see. If you wander along the cliff opposite, a bow springs into being in the American Falls, accompanies you courteously on your walk, dwindles and dies as the mist ends, and awakens again as you reach the Canadian tumult. And the bold traveller who attempts the trip under the American Falls sees, when he dare open his eyes to anything, tiny baby rainbows, some four or five yards in span, leaping from rock to rock among the foam, and gambolling beside him, barely out of hand’s reach, as he goes. One I saw in that place was a complete circle, such as I have never seen before, and so near that I could put my foot on it. It is a terrifying journey, beneath and behind the Falls. The senses are battered and bewildered by the thunder of the water and the assault of wind and spray; or rather, the sound is not of falling water, but merely of falling; a noise of unspecified ruin. So, if you are close behind the endless clamour, the sight cannot recognise liquid in the masses that hurl past. You are dimly and pitifully aware that sheets of light and darkness are falling in great curves in front of you. Dull omnipresent foam washes the face. Farther away, in the roar and hissing, clouds of spray seem literally to slide down some invisible plane of air.

Beyond the foot of the Falls the river is like a slipping floor of marble, green with veins of dirty white, made by the scum that was foam. It slides very quietly and slowly down for a mile or two, sullenly exhausted. Then it turns to a dull sage green, and hurries more swiftly, smooth and ominous. As the walls of the ravine close in, trouble stirs, and the waters boil and eddy. These are the lower rapids, a sight more terrifying than the Falls, because less intelligible. Close in its bands of rock the river surges tumultuously forward, writhing and leaping as if inspired by a demon. It is pressed by the straits into a visibly convex form. Great planes of water slide past. Sometimes it is thrown up into a pinnacle of foam higher than a house, or leaps with incredible speed from the crest of one vast wave to another, along the shining curve between, like the spring of a wild beast. Its motion continually suggests muscular action. The power manifest in these rapids moves one with a different sense of awe and terror from that of the Falls. Here the inhuman life and strength are spontaneous, active, almost resolute. . . . A place of fear.

One is drawn back, strangely, to a contemplation of the Falls, at every hour, and especially by night, when the cloud of spray becomes an immense visible ghost, straining and wavering high above the river, white and pathetic and translucent. The Victorian lies very close below the surface in every man. There one can sit and let great cloudy thoughts of destiny and the passage of empires drift through the mind; for such dreams are at home by Niagara. I could not get out of my mind the thought of a friend, who said that the rainbows over the Falls were like the arts and beauty and goodness, with regard to the stream of life—caused by it, thrown upon its spray, but unable to stay or direct or affect it, and ceasing when it ceased. In all comparisons that rise in the heart, the river, with its multitudinous waves and its single current, likens itself to a life, whether of an individual or of a community. A man’s life is of many flashing moments, and yet one stream; a nation’s flows through all its citizens, and yet is more than they. In such places, one is aware, with an almost insupportable and yet comforting certitude, that both men and nations are hurried onwards to their ruin or ending as inevitably as this dark flood. Some go down to it unreluctant, and meet it, like the river, not without nobility. And as incessant, as inevitable, and as unavailing as the spray that hangs over the Falls, is the white cloud of human crying. . . . With some such thoughts does the platitudinous2^2 heart win from the confusion and thunder of a Niagara peace that the quietest plains or most stable hills can never give.

From LETTERS FROM AMERICA by Rupert Brooke—Public Domain

1^1diaphanous: sheer, translucent

2^2platitudinous: clichéd, common

Question

In paragraph 4, the idea that human life and history ultimately end in the same way is illustrated mainly through

  • Athe discussion of how the rainbows visible in the Falls are like the art and beauty created by humankind.
  • Bthe comparison between the movement of water in the Falls and the human experience.
  • Cthe inclusion of details that show that every observer’s experience with the Falls is different.
  • Dthe acknowledgment that contemplating the Falls at night sparks an awareness of humankind’s destiny.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks how paragraph 4 of the excerpt mainly illustrates the idea that human life and history ultimately end in the same way.

A. Incorrect. In paragraph 4, the author compares the rainbows visible in the Falls to “the arts and beauty,” which share the rainbows’ dependence on “the stream of life”—that is, they are “caused by it, thrown upon its spray, but unable to stay or direct or affect it, and ceasing when it ceased.” This comparison does not illustrate the idea that human life and history ultimately end in the same way but rather that art and beauty, like human beings, are unable to “stay or direct or affect” their ultimate fate.

B. CORRECT. The author concludes in paragraph 4 that the movement of the Falls can be compared to people and history when he writes, “both men and nations are hurried onwards to their ruin or ending as inevitably as this dark flood.” This comparison illustrates the idea that human life and history ultimately end in the same way.

C. Incorrect. Although in paragraph 4 the author states that “One is drawn back, strangely, to a contemplation of the Falls” and provides an account of “a friend, who said that the rainbows over the Falls were like the arts and beauty and goodness, with regard to the stream of life,” the author does not provide details to show that every observer’s experience with the Falls is different. Rather, the author explains that “the Victorian lies very close below the surface in every man” (paragraph 4).

D. Incorrect. While the setting at night does provide a place of contemplation, the author notes the “dark flood” as the overall illustration of the human experience.

Question analysis

In this question on the closing paragraph of Rupert Brooke’s “Niagara Falls,” students identify the main way the author illustrates the idea that human life and history ultimately end in the same way. It is a lightly reworded version of a 2018 Test B question. The paragraph is long and reflective, mixing several images with abstract thoughts, so students must decide which of them actually illustrates this particular idea.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7L5 figurative language and word relationships
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Most grade 7 work asks how an idea is shown in plain modern prose. This paragraph is a century-old reflection in long sentences with words like “certitude” and “unavailing,” and several of its images could each seem to carry the idea.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 987 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 81 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Paragraph 4 offers three pictures, the spray as a night ghost, the friend’s rainbows and the river as a life, and only one of them shows people and nations meeting an end. The 2026 stem’s “ultimately end” makes the rainbows’ “ceasing when it ceased” more tempting, and the night-time “thoughts of destiny” sound like the idea itself. Students who ask what the paragraph uses to show the idea, rather than where it mentions endings or destiny, land on the dark flood.

  1. Complex sentences major Understanding the question

    The idea sits inside a hedged sentence, “one is aware, with an almost insupportable and yet comforting certitude, that both men and nations are hurried onwards to their ruin or ending,” and the comparison comes last: “as inevitably as this dark flood.” (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

  2. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    The key sums up the paragraph’s river-and-life likeness in its own words, “movement of water” and “human experience,” while the other choices borrow the paragraph’s vocabulary: “rainbows,” “art and beauty,” “night” and “destiny.” (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  3. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    “Multitudinous,” “certitude,” “insupportable” and “unavailing” all sit in the lines that carry the idea, and the footnoted “platitudinous” closes the paragraph, so the comparison has to be read through them. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Find the sentence in paragraph 4 that actually states the idea about life and history ending, then ask how that very sentence makes its point and match a choice to it.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks how an idea is shown in paragraph 4. The idea is that people’s lives and whole nations end in the same way: they all come to an end. You need the picture the author mainly uses to show that idea. Paragraph 4 has several pictures, so find the one tied to this idea.

  2. Find the sentence with the idea

    Paragraph 4 says “both men and nations are hurried onwards to their ruin or ending as inevitably as this dark flood.” Men means people. Nations means countries and their history. Inevitably means in a way that can’t be stopped. The “dark flood” is the river’s dark water rushing over the Falls.

  3. See how the comparison works

    Just before, the author says “the river, with its multitudinous waves and its single current, likens itself to a life.” Multitudinous means very many. A current is water flowing one way. Likens itself to means seems like. A life has many moments but moves one way, like the river. And just as the water must rush on, people and nations rush toward their end. So the idea is shown by comparing moving water with human life.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. A friend compares the rainbows to “the arts and beauty and goodness.” That picture is about art, not about lives and nations ending.
    • B fits. The river’s movement stands for human lives and history.
    • C does not fit. The paragraph never says that each visitor sees the Falls differently.
    • D does not fit. The night view and the “thoughts of destiny” tell when and where the author thinks. They do not show how lives end.

    Watch out: D is tempting because destiny, or what happens in the end, sounds like the idea itself. But the question asks what illustrates the idea, and that is the river.

  5. Choose the answer

    The author pictures people and nations rushing to their end like the river’s water. So the answer is B, “the comparison between the movement of water in the Falls and the human experience.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong choice. Paragraph 4 really does say the Falls at night stir “great cloudy thoughts of destiny.” But that only tells you the author was thinking about such things. The picture that shows lives and nations ending is the river. They are “hurried onwards to their ruin or ending as inevitably as this dark flood.”

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 11 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 19 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test C English, page 19, question 11.
The passage “Excerpt from “Niagara Falls”” as printed (pages 134–135)The passage “Excerpt from “Niagara Falls”” as printed on page 134 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from “Niagara Falls”” as printed on page 135 of the DOE handbook.

Question 25 of 120

2026 Practice Test C English, question 23
Passage Bird Talk

Bird Talk

by Carl Sandburg

And now when the branches were beginning to be heavy,
It was the time when they once had said, “This is the
  beginning of summer.”
The shrilling of the frogs was not so shrill as in the
  first weeks after the broken winter;
The birds took their hops and zigzags a little more
  anxious; a home is a home; worms are worms.
The yellow spreads of the dandelions and buttercups
  reached across the green pastures.
Tee whee and tee whee came on the breezes, and the grackles
  chuzzled their syllables.
And it was the leaves with a strong soft wind over them
  that talked most of all and said more than any others
  though speaking the fewest words.
It was the green leaves trickling out the gaunt nowhere
  of winter, out on the gray hungry branches—
It was the leaves on the branches, beginning to be heavy,
  who said as they said one time before, “This is the be-
  ginning of summer.”

We shall never blame the birds who come
  where the river and the road make the Grand Crossing
  and talk there, sitting in circles talking bird talk.
If they ask in their circles as to who is here
  and as to who is not here and who used to be here,
Or if instead of counting up last year as against
  this year, they count up this year as against next
  year, and have their bird chatter about who is here
  this year who won’t be here next year,
We shall never blame the birds.

If I have put your face among leaf faces, child,
Or if I have put your voice among bird voices,
Blame me no more than the bluejays.

“Bird Talk” by Carl Sandburg—Public domain.

Question

Which lines from the poem best contrast with the idea of winter’s scarcity and bleakness?

  • A“The shrilling of the frogs was not so shrill as in the / first weeks after the broken winter;” (lines 4–5)
  • B“The yellow spreads of the dandelions and buttercups / reached across the green pastures.” (lines 8–9)
  • C“Tee whee and tee whee came on the breezes, and the grackles / chuzzled their syllables.” (lines 10–11)
  • D“Or if instead of counting up last year as against / this year, they count up this year as against next” (lines 25–26)
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks for the identification of a description that contrasts with the scarcity and bleakness of winter.

A. Incorrect. These lines indicate that the frogs are first very excited about the shift from winter to spring, which causes them to make a loud “shrilling,” yet their sounds lessen after a time and grow weaker. As such, these lines contrast two periods of spring (early vs. later) and the response of the frogs to these two periods; the lines do not contrast the bleakness of winter with the abundance of spring or summer.

B. CORRECT. During winter, there is scarcity of plant life and a bleak landscape: trees lose their leaves, snow covers the ground, and nature appears dark and shuttered. In contrast, these lines reveal the bright “yellow spreads” of flowers and the verdant “green pastures” that are signs that winter has abated.

C. Incorrect. This description contrasts the sounds of “the breezes” of warmer air and the sounds made by grackles—a type of bird—rather than the bleakness and scarcity of winter and the abundance of the “ ‘beginning of summer’ ” (line 3).

D. Incorrect. These lines show the contrast between the two ways of looking at things in terms of past vs. present or present vs. future; in this instance, the lines reveal the way birds naturally expect and adapt to the passing of time and the change of seasons. The lines do not present a contrast between winter and spring.

Question analysis

This textual evidence question on Carl Sandburg’s poem “Bird Talk” asks which lines best contrast with the idea of winter’s scarcity and bleakness. Students compare four quotations about frogs, flowers, birdsong and the birds’ yearly counting, and the challenge is finding the one whose images most fully show the opposite of a bare, bleak season.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R4 word meaning and choice
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Choosing lines that fit an idea is routine grade 7 evidence work. The twist is that students look for the opposite of an idea, winter’s scarcity and bleakness, rather than support for it, though the quoted images are concrete.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one sentence or line
Reading level
Passage: 296 words (a poem; reading level not measured); question and choices: about grade 6, 85 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The question turns the usual evidence task around: students picture a scarce, bleak winter and then look for its opposite. The line that names winter outright is a trap, since it only compares the frogs’ noise in two stretches of spring, and the grackles’ calls show life without plenty. The flowers spreading “across the green pastures” are the one image of abundance and color.

  1. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    Every quotation carries some sign of the season, frogs, flowers, birdsong and the birds’ yearly count, so each must be tested for images of plenty and color set against a bare winter. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    The stem’s “scarcity” and “bleakness” define what to look for; a student unsure of them cannot tell that yellow and green spreading across pastures is their opposite. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: First picture what a scarce, bleak winter looks like, then read each quotation for images that show the plain opposite of that picture.

Traps

  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.
  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks you to find lines that show the opposite of winter. Scarcity means not having enough of something. Bleakness means looking bare, cold and gloomy. So picture winter: bare branches, no flowers, gray and brown fields. Then look for the lines that show plenty and bright color instead.

  2. Read lines 8–9

    Lines 8–9 say “The yellow spreads of the dandelions and buttercups / reached across the green pastures.” Dandelions and buttercups are small yellow flowers. Pastures are grassy fields. A spread is a wide area covered with something. Here, yellow flowers stretch across green fields. That is a picture of color everywhere and plenty of growth. It is the exact opposite of a bare, gray winter.

  3. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. It mentions “the broken winter,” but it only compares how shrill, or sharp and high, the frogs sounded at two times. Nothing in it shows plenty.
    • B fits. Yellow flowers spread over green fields, full of color and life.
    • C does not fit. The birdsong shows that life is back. But it gives no picture of plenty or color to set against a bare winter.
    • D does not fit. These lines compare one year with another in the birds’ talk. There is no winter and no growth in them.

    Watch out: A is the only choice that names winter, so it can seem to fit. But mentioning winter is not the same as contrasting with it.

  4. Choose the answer

    Only lines 8–9 show plenty and bright color, the opposite of a scarce, bleak winter. So the answer is B, lines 8–9: “The yellow spreads of the dandelions and buttercups / reached across the green pastures.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is a close wrong choice, since birdsong is a sign that life is back. But the question asks for a contrast with scarcity, or not having enough. Sounds alone do not show plenty. Lines 8–9 show flowers spreading wide across green fields. That picture of color and plenty is the clearest opposite of a bare, gray winter.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 23 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 36 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test C English, page 36, question 23.
The passage “Bird Talk” as printed (page 32)The passage “Bird Talk” as printed on page 32 of the DOE handbook.

Question 26 of 120

2026 Practice Test C English, question 25

Uses the passage above: “Bird Talk”.

Question

Over the course of the poem, a central idea is developed mainly through the speaker’s

  • Asense of eager anticipation as winter ends.
  • Bdescription of the changes in nature as the seasons transition.
  • Cobservation of the birds’ behavior as summer begins.
  • Dprediction of future alterations in the physical landscape.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks how the central idea about the natural acceptance of change by nature is developed by the speaker of the poem.

A. Incorrect. The speaker is an observer of the changes in nature as propelled by the seasons and shows no personal eagerness for the end of winter. Further, even though nature rejoices at the end of winter as exemplified by “the shrilling of the frogs” (line 4), the speaker merely records this and does not share in this display.

B. CORRECT. The response of nature to the “beginning of summer” (line 3) is the primary focus of the poem as revealed by the speaker through vivid descriptions of the sights, sounds, movements, and attitudes of the natural world.

C. Incorrect. The second stanza of the poem begins a reflection on birds “sitting in circles talking bird talk” (line 22) and taking a sort of attendance of who is present, but this behavioral description is largely figurative and meant to illustrate a point about the way the birds adapt quickly to change, not to develop a central idea of the poem in terms of how nature responds generally.

D. Incorrect. Seasonal changes are inevitable and cyclical per the speaker, but the speaker does not predict future changes to the landscape as a method of developing the central idea. Rather, the speaker describes nature’s response to changes that have already occurred.

Question analysis

Students decide how the speaker of Carl Sandburg’s “Bird Talk” mainly develops a central idea of the poem. The question does not name the idea, so students must work it out across the poem’s three stanzas and then weigh four accounts of what the speaker does, each tied to a different part or feature of the poem.

NYS standards
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Tracing how a central idea develops is core grade 7 work. Here the idea is never stated, so students must first infer it from 32 lines of free verse and then judge what the speaker mainly does to build it.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: 296 words (a poem; reading level not measured); question and choices: about grade 9, 48 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The title “Bird Talk” and the whole second stanza push students toward the birds, and the key differs from that choice only in taking in all of nature. Two other choices credit the speaker with something the poem gives elsewhere: the eagerness belongs to the frogs and birds, and the only look ahead is the birds’ talk of next year. Weighing what the speaker does across all 32 lines points to the description of nature changing.

  1. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The choice about the birds’ behavior as summer begins matches the key’s frame, the speaker watching nature at the turn of the season; it differs only in narrowing nature to birds. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The central idea is never stated, so students must first work out that the poem is about nature meeting the year’s turn calmly, then judge which of the speaker’s acts builds it most. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    Birds appear in lines 6–7, 10–11, 20–29 and 31–32, so the title and the second stanza make them look central until the branches, frogs, flowers and leaves are counted too. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Put the poem’s central idea into a sentence of your own, then ask which choice describes something the speaker really does and does the most to build that idea.

Traps

  • Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
  • Wrong tone or attitude: Misjudges the tone, attitude or point of view, such as reading admiration as criticism, or taking a character's or subject's feelings for the author's.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks how a central idea is mainly built. A central idea is a big point the whole poem makes. First, put that idea in your own words. Then ask what the speaker does most, across the whole poem, to build it.

  2. Find the central idea

    The poem shows nature at “the beginning of summer.” The branches grow heavy, the frogs quiet down, the flowers spread and the leaves come out. In stanza 2, the birds calmly count who has come and gone. A central idea is that nature moves through the seasons, and living things accept the change as natural.

  3. See how the speaker builds it

    Most of the poem is description. Stanza 1 fills 19 of the 32 lines with changes in nature. It shows “The yellow spreads of the dandelions and buttercups” and “the green leaves trickling out the gaunt nowhere / of winter.” Trickling out means coming out slowly, a little at a time. Gaunt means thin and bare. Detail by detail, the speaker shows the season turning. That description is the main way the idea is built.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. The frogs and birds are stirred up, but the speaker describes them calmly. The poem also starts after winter is over.
    • B fits. The speaker describes nature changing as the seasons turn.
    • C does not fit. Birds are only one part. The poem also covers branches, frogs, flowers and leaves.
    • D does not fit. The speaker predicts nothing about the land. The birds’ talk of next year is about who will be gone.

    Watch out: C is tempting because the poem is called “Bird Talk” and stanza 2 is all about birds. But the central idea is about all of nature.

  5. Choose the answer

    The speaker builds the idea mostly through details of nature changing as summer begins. So the answer is B, “description of the changes in nature as the seasons transition.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong choice. It also has the speaker watching nature as summer begins. But it narrows nature to birds. The poem’s changes come from many living things: branches, frogs, dandelions, buttercups and leaves. Only B takes in all of them, so only B describes how the whole poem builds its idea.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 25 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 38 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test C English, page 38, question 25.

Question 27 of 120

2026 Practice Test C English, question 27
Passage Serpent Mound

Serpent Mound

The Great Serpent Mound, located in Adams County, Ohio, is a human-made mound of earth that researchers believe was created between 300 B.C. and A.D. 1100 by an indigenous culture.

Ohio, 1846

Brush Creek stood low when the museum men came
with their measuring tapes and sketchbooks.
 It was winter. Fringed with ice,
 the creek doubled back on itself
as if it had forgotten something.
 Pa was in Cincinnati, or else on his way home,
  so Ma told me to lead the men
  into the marshy low grounds. It being winter,
    there was little underbrush to speak of—
    in the summer there would have been
  briars, poison ivy, biting flies. I listened
for the swish of a beaver’s heavy tail,
 the chitter of a chickadee, or the cry of a hawk,
 but the winter silence of the creek pressed
 down on all of us like a weight.
The humps in the ground were all but
invisible until you were right up on them. The figure
was even less obvious: the sinuous body,
 the tail coiled three times around,
 and at the other end, the mouth wide open.
  In the summer the creek bottom was crowded
  with so much life that you could trip over
    the ridges of earth before you saw
    anything at all. In winter you could climb
    a tree and get some idea of the whole thing:
  the serpent’s body undulating, slithering
silently across the ancient
 earth. At the mouth end, there was an oval mound
 as if the snake were about to swallow an egg—
as snakes sometimes did in our rickety
henhouse—my Pa always said, or
as if swallowing the sun, one of the museum
 men suggested, taking notes with his quill pen,
 an old-style inkhorn slung at his side.
 I liked that: swallowing the sun,
  just the sort of thing a snake might do,
  might want to do. When, later, I told my sister Ruth,
    she disagreed. It is singing to the sun,
    she insisted. That is why its mouth
  is wide open. She said, “Sometimes I think
I hear it on summer nights. Not swallowing, singing.”

Question

Which lines reveal how the setting affects the speaker and the men from the museum?

  • A“It being winter, / there was little underbrush to speak of—” (lines 8–9)
  • B“but the winter silence of the creek pressed / down on all of us like a weight.” (lines 14–15)
  • C“The humps in the ground were all but / invisible until you were right up on them.” (lines 16–17)
  • D“In the summer the creek bottom was crowded / with so much life that you could trip” (lines 21–22)
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks which lines reveal how the setting affects the speaker and the men from the museum.

A. Incorrect. The words “being winter” (line 8) work to establish the setting, but lines 8 and 9 do not describe the effect the winter setting has on the speaker and the men.

B. CORRECT. The imagery in lines 14 and 15 describes how the winter silence makes the speaker and the men feel emotional heaviness: it “pressed / down on all of us like a weight.”

C. Incorrect. Although the words “the humps in the ground were all but / invisible” describe how the setting appears to the speaker and the men, lines 16 and 17 do not describe how the setting affects them.

D. Incorrect. Although lines 21 and 22 do describe the setting, the lines do not describe how the setting affects the speaker and the men. The lines describe the setting in the summer, which is before the men from the museum show up.

Question analysis

This evidence question on the poem “Serpent Mound” asks which lines reveal how the setting, a creek in the Ohio winter of 1846, affects the young speaker and the museum men. All four quotations come from the poem’s description of the creek and the land around the mound, in winter and in summer, so the four choices look much alike at first glance.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 A routine grade 7 evidence task: the four quotations are short, numbered and in plain modern language. What takes care is that all of them describe the setting, while the question asks about its effect on particular people.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from one sentence or line
Reading level
Passage: 354 words (a poem; reading level not measured); question and choices: about grade 5, 77 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Every quotation describes the setting, so a student who checks only for setting can defend almost any of them. The question turns on the people: only one quotation says what the place does to them, in the words “on all of us.” The summer lines tempt with someone tripping over the ridges, but they describe another season, not the winter day of the visit.

  1. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    All four quotations describe the creek and the land, so each must be asked whether it shows the place acting on the speaker and the men or only tells what the place is like. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Figurative or literary language minor Understanding the question

    The answer is a simile, silence that “pressed / down on all of us like a weight,” and students must read the weight as a mood the winter quiet puts on the group. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Paraphrase each quotation, then ask whether it shows the setting acting on the speaker and the museum men or only tells what the place is like.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for evidence about setting. Setting is where and when a story or poem takes place. Here it is a creek in Ohio, in winter. You need the lines that show how this place affects the speaker and the museum men. In other words, what does the place do to them or make them feel?

  2. Read the lines that mention people

    Lines 14–15 say “but the winter silence of the creek pressed / down on all of us like a weight.” The words “all of us” mean the speaker and the museum men together. This is a simile, a comparison using “like.” The quiet felt like something heavy pressing down on them. So the silent winter creek made the whole group feel heavy and gloomy.

  3. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. Lines 8–9 say there was little underbrush, or low bushes. That describes the ground, not how anyone felt.
    • B fits. The silence “pressed / down on all of us,” so the place acts on the whole group.
    • C does not fit. Lines 16–17 tell how hard the humps are to see. They describe the land, not its effect on the group.
    • D does not fit. Lines 21–22 describe the creek in summer. The museum men came in winter.

    Watch out: D says “you could trip,” which sounds like an effect on people. But it describes another season, not the day of the visit.

  4. Choose the answer

    Only lines 14–15 show the winter creek acting on the speaker and the men. So the answer is B, lines 14–15: “but the winter silence of the creek pressed / down on all of us like a weight.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is a close wrong choice, because it has a person in it: the humps stay hidden “until you were right up on them.” But it only reports what the land looks like. B is different. The silence “pressed / down on all of us like a weight.” Only B shows the place changing how the speaker and the men feel.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 27 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 42 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test C English, page 42, question 27.
The passage “Serpent Mound” as printed (page 40)The passage “Serpent Mound” as printed on page 40 of the DOE handbook.

Question 28 of 120

2026 Practice Test C English, question 36
Passage Excerpt from “Growing Peppers on the ISS Is Just the Start of Space Farming”

Excerpt from “Growing Peppers on the ISS Is Just the Start of Space Farming”

by Melanie Canales

The author, Melanie Canales, is a first-generation Peruvian American farmer and beekeeper based in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, on lands of the indigenous Monacan and Manahoac tribes. Her work focuses on creating healthy relationships between people and their surrounding ecosystems.

Unburdened by the constraints of gravity, red and green peppers jut out at 45-degree angles inside the Advanced Plant Habitat (APH), a sort of space terrarium not much larger than a microwave. Four chile pepper plants stand effortlessly upright, despite the dozens of glossy fruits weighing them down. These plants have lived entirely in space; their leaves have never been chewed on by insects or rustled by a summer breeze, [and] their stems are unfamiliar with bending toward the sun’s arc across the sky. Scissors glint under the tank’s white and blue lights as astronaut Mark Vande Hei and his team snip the stems of those that are ready for harvest. The peppers whirl around their heads until the astronauts catch them and tape them against a board to photograph.

Back on Earth, the Plant Habitat-04 team of engineers and plant scientists are observing and conferring with the astronauts. Of the 26 peppers in this batch, only the 14 finest will stay on the International Space Station [ISS] for consumption. The rest will be wrapped in foil, sealed in a Ziploc bag, then frozen at a brisk −80 degrees, until they can come roaring back to Earth in the next cargo capsule to be studied later. Now, after a 137-day growth cycle, the astronauts remove the plants from the module and trash them. Project Plant Habitat-04 is complete. It’s taco night on the ISS.

Since 2014, NASA1 has experimented with growing lettuces, brassicas,2 and zinnias3 in space, an endeavor that relies on highly specialized technology over 50 years in the making. [Fall 2021’s] two successful pepper harvests . . . will provide data on the nutritional and psychological benefits of growing vegetables on-craft, as well as a crop’s ability to reliably produce long-term in microgravity. While controlled environmental agriculture is not new, the APH experiment represents an evolution in specialized growth habitats. It doesn’t aim to re-create Earth’s conditions, but to perfect each isolated variable of plant growth in the clinical environment of a spaceship.

“The Advanced Plant Habitat is the most complex plant growth system on orbit today,” says Lashelle Spencer, a plant scientist at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. Its more than 180 sensors control and monitor temperature, humidity, and carbon dioxide. The astronauts can adjust the color and intensity of the light, and how much moisture the plants’ roots are getting. It waters itself.

It’s the day after Thanksgiving, and Spencer has been at Kennedy since 5 a.m. to facilitate the peppers’ final harvest. As part of the project team, she played a crucial role in preparing the seeds that were sent hurtling into space in June and guiding the astronauts through maintaining the plants in orbit. . . . Though astronauts can spend upwards of 100 days in space, their on-mission meals come dehydrated and pre-packaged; their vitamins and minerals are isolated in supplements, which lose nutritional value the longer they’re stored. Spencer’s goal is to create the conditions necessary for cultivating healthy plants in space, so those plants can sustain healthy astronauts on long-term missions. Astronaut food is great, she says—“especially the shrimp cocktail. But you’re missing that crunch. You’re missing that fresh pop of flavor, the green flavor that’s not there in that packaged food.”

The sensory experience of growing productive crops can also help mitigate4 the psychological effects of long-term space travel. . . . Spencer says the team cracked open the door of the APH every day to observe their vegetable companions with all the tenderness of home gardeners. When harvest day came, they batted their bounty around the ISS, taking selfies and delighting in watching the fruits pirouetting around the spacecraft. . . .

“We were thinking no heat, so that [the peppers] wouldn’t be dangerous, but maybe the astronauts need a little spice in their life,” says Paul Bosland, who along with his colleagues at the Chile Pepper Institute genetically engineered5 the NuMex Española Improved chile pepper seeds grown in Plant Habitat-04. . . .

Working with NASA, Bosland cultivated a variety that could accommodate both the nutritional needs of astronauts as well as the logistics of growing a plant in space. . . .

. . . The experiment is helping gather the data necessary to determine the nutritional content of crops grown in space, and therefore how many people they can feed, and for how long. Though much is still unknown, Spencer is certain of one thing that future astronauts will need to do: “I think in an optimal world, a scientist like me would say that they would be growing plants from day one. From the day they left to the day they came back, they would be growing them.”

From “Growing Peppers on the ISS Is Just the Start of Space Farming” by Melanie Canales from WIRED, December 21, 2021. Copyright © 2021 Condé Nast. All rights reserved.

1NASA: National Aeronautics and Space Administration

2brassicas: a large genus of herbs, such as broccoli and cabbage

3zinnias: a genus of herbs and low shrubs that have flowers at their heads

4mitigate: to make something less severe or harmful

5genetically engineered: combined parts of DNA from different plants to produce a new plant

Question

Which statement best explains why Lashelle Spencer is a relevant source of information for the excerpt?

  • AShe works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
  • BShe is part of the APH project team.
  • CShe is sensitive to the astronauts’ need for healthy food in space.
  • DShe witnessed how astronauts aboard the APH responded when harvesting their food.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks which statement best explains why Lashelle Spencer is a relevant source of information for the excerpt.

A. Incorrect. While paragraphs 4 and 5 do mention that Lashelle Spencer works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, that fact does not explain her direct expertise on growing plants in space.

B. CORRECT. In paragraph 4, Spencer is identified as a “plant scientist” at NASA, and paragraph 5 states that she is directly involved with the Advanced Plant Habitat as “part of the project team,” making her a relevant source of information for the excerpt’s discussion of growing plants in space.

C. Incorrect. Although the details in paragraph 5 do indicate that Spencer is interested in providing better food choices to astronauts, her empathy toward the astronauts’ needs does not make her a relevant source of information for the excerpt.

D. Incorrect. Paragraph 5 does mention that Spencer helped facilitate the harvest from the Kennedy Space Center, so she likely did witness the astronauts’ reactions as they harvested the peppers; however, this inference does not explain Spencer’s relevance as a source of information for the excerpt.

Question analysis

Why is Lashelle Spencer, the NASA plant scientist quoted throughout the article on growing peppers in space, a relevant source of information? This question asks students to judge what qualifies a person quoted in an informational text to speak on its subject. Several choices state facts about her, so students must decide which one actually explains her value as a source.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Grade 7 readers often judge whether evidence is relevant, though asking why a quoted expert deserves trust is a less common form of the task. The facts about Spencer sit in two neighboring paragraphs, so the reading demand itself is typical.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 890 words; question and choices: about grade 7, 55 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A wrong paragraph number in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The pull of this question is that the first thing the excerpt says about Spencer, her job at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, sounds like a credential. Paragraph 5 gives the stronger one: she helped prepare the seeds and guided the crew, so she knows this experiment firsthand. Students lose the point by stopping at the job title, or by treating her sympathy for the astronauts or a harvest she supposedly watched as expertise.

  1. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    Her Kennedy workplace, her concern for well-fed astronauts and her role on the project all come from paragraphs 4 and 5, so truth rules out little; each must be weighed as a qualification. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The excerpt never says why Spencer is quoted; a reader must connect “part of the project team” and “guiding the astronauts” to her firsthand knowledge of this particular experiment. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    Spencer is introduced in paragraph 4 as a NASA plant scientist, but her place on the pepper project appears only in paragraph 5, after a sentence about Thanksgiving. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Find every detail paragraphs 4 and 5 give about Spencer, then ask of each choice whether it explains why her statements about this experiment deserve a reader’s trust.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook’s explanation of Option A says “paragraphs 5 and 8 do mention that Lashelle Spencer works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.” Spencer is introduced in paragraph 4 as “a plant scientist at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center,” and paragraph 5 says she “has been at Kennedy since 5 a.m.” Paragraph 8 is about Paul Bosland and does not mention her. The site now says “paragraphs 4 and 5.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    A source is a person whose words an article uses. A relevant source is one who really knows the topic. This question asks why Lashelle Spencer is worth quoting in an article about growing peppers in space. Several choices are true facts about her. You need the one that shows why she knows this subject.

  2. Find what the article says about her

    Paragraph 4 introduces her as “a plant scientist at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.” Paragraph 5 says she “has been at Kennedy since 5 a.m. to facilitate the peppers’ final harvest.” To facilitate means to help make something happen. Then comes the key sentence: “As part of the project team, she played a crucial role in preparing the seeds that were sent hurtling into space in June and guiding the astronauts through maintaining the plants in orbit.”

  3. Explain what that tells you

    Spencer didn’t just watch this project from far away. She helped run it. She got the seeds ready. She coached the astronauts as they cared for the plants. So she has firsthand knowledge, meaning she learned it by doing it herself. That is what makes her a good source for this article.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. It is true, and paragraphs 4 and 5 both say it. But many people work at Kennedy. A job there doesn’t make someone an expert on growing plants in space.
    • B is right. Being on the project team means she helped plan and guide this exact experiment.
    • C is wrong. She does care about healthy food for astronauts. But caring is not the same as knowing.
    • D is wrong. The article never says she watched how the crew reacted. Even if she did, watching a harvest wouldn’t make her an expert.

    Watch out: A is the first fact you learn about her, so it feels like her main qualification. Paragraph 5 gives a stronger one.

  5. Choose the answer

    Spencer helped prepare and guide the pepper experiment herself. So the answer is B, “She is part of the APH project team.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong answer. Working at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center sounds impressive, and it is true. But a job at a big space center doesn’t prove she knows this experiment. B does. Being on the project team means she prepared the seeds and guided the crew.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 36 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 54 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test C English, page 54, question 36. This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.
The passage “Excerpt from “Growing Peppers on the ISS Is Just the Start of Space Farming”” as printed (pages 50–51)The passage “Excerpt from “Growing Peppers on the ISS Is Just the Start of Space Farming”” as printed on page 50 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from “Growing Peppers on the ISS Is Just the Start of Space Farming”” as printed on page 51 of the DOE handbook.

Question 29 of 120

2026 Practice Test C English, question 37

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “Growing Peppers on the ISS Is Just the Start of Space Farming””.

Question

How does the author support the claim in paragraph 4 that the APH is a complex plant growth system?

  • Aby indicating how many sensors help control the variables of plant growth
  • Bby detailing how the method of growing plants has been adapted to the conditions of space
  • Cby explaining the steps required to package and return the plants to Earth
  • Dby describing how NASA has spent years experimenting with plants grown in a controlled environment
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how the author supports the claim in paragraph 4 that the APH is a complex plant growth system.

A. CORRECT. The author supports the claim that the APH is a complex plant growth system by stating that it has “more than 180 sensors” that control and monitor temperature, humidity, and carbon dioxide (paragraph 4). These details, along with the description of how astronauts can adjust light and moisture via these sensors, directly illustrate the system’s complexity.

B. Incorrect. Although paragraph 4 describes some of the APH’s features, such as monitoring “temperature, humidity, and carbon dioxide,” it does not focus on how the key elements of plant growing are adapted to space conditions. The details instead emphasize the number of sensors and the variety of variables they control.

C. Incorrect. Although paragraph 2 mentions packaging and returning plants to Earth, the process does not directly contribute to the complexity of the APH system of growing plants in space.

D. Incorrect. While paragraph 3 references NASA’s experimentation “with growing lettuces, brassicas, and zinnias in space” since 2014 and how it relied “on highly specialized technology,” there is no indication in the paragraph that the APH system existed during the same time period or that the experiments relied on the complexity of a similar system.

Question analysis

Paragraph 4 of the excerpt quotes a NASA scientist calling the Advanced Plant Habitat “the most complex plant growth system on orbit today.” This evidence question asks how the author supports that claim. Students must trace a claim to the evidence offered for it and tell that evidence apart from other true facts the article gives about the pepper project.

NYS standards
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Tracing how an author supports a stated claim is standard grade 7 work, and the stem names the paragraph where the claim appears. The technical vocabulary of the article adds some load, but the task itself is routine.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 890 words; question and choices: about grade 8, 74 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A misquotation of the excerpt in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The claim and its support sit side by side in paragraph 4, so a student who rereads it finds the sensors at once. The wrong choices come from neighboring paragraphs: the habitat that does not copy Earth’s conditions, the frozen peppers and NASA’s work since 2014. Each is true of the article, so the question rewards matching the support to the claim’s own paragraph rather than to the article’s general themes.

  1. How, not what minor Working it out

    The stem asks how the claim is supported, so the answer is the evidence in the sentences right after the quotation, the “more than 180 sensors” and the controls they run. (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001)

  2. An unfamiliar subject minor Understanding the question

    Paragraph 4 describes a growth chamber in technical terms, sensors for temperature, humidity and carbon dioxide, and adjustable light and moisture, which students must picture without having seen anything like it. (Recht & Leslie, 1988; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Find the sentence in paragraph 4 that makes the claim, read the sentences right after it, and choose the description that matches what those sentences actually offer as support.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook’s explanation of Option D says NASA’s experimentation relied “on specialized technology.” Paragraph 3 says the endeavor “relies on highly specialized technology over 50 years in the making,” so the site now quotes “on highly specialized technology.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    A claim is an idea the writer wants you to believe. Support is the proof given for it. Paragraph 4 claims the Advanced Plant Habitat (APH) is complex. Complex means it has many parts that work together. You need to find how the author backs that up.

  2. Find the claim and what follows

    Paragraph 4 opens with Spencer’s words: “The Advanced Plant Habitat is the most complex plant growth system on orbit today.” On orbit means circling Earth in space. The very next sentence gives the proof: “Its more than 180 sensors control and monitor temperature, humidity, and carbon dioxide.” Then the paragraph adds that the astronauts can change the light and the water.

  3. Explain what the proof means

    A sensor is a small device that measures something, like a thermometer. Humidity is how much water is in the air. To monitor means to keep checking. So the habitat has more than 180 measuring tools. They watch and control each condition the plants need. These conditions are called variables, things that can change, like heat and light. That big number of sensors shows how complex the habitat is.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is right. The author gives a number, “more than 180 sensors,” and says what they control.
    • B is wrong. Paragraph 4 doesn’t explain how growing methods were changed for space. It counts sensors and lists what they control.
    • C is wrong. Packing the peppers to send home is in paragraph 2. It says nothing about how the habitat works.
    • D is wrong. Paragraph 3 says NASA’s work since 2014 relies “on highly specialized technology.” But that is the program’s history, not proof about this habitat.

    Watch out: B sounds like it could describe a complex machine. But the proof sits right after the claim, and it is about sensors.

  5. Choose the answer

    The author shows the habitat is complex by counting its sensors and naming what they control. So the answer is A, “by indicating how many sensors help control the variables of plant growth.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong answer. Paragraph 3 does say the habitat “doesn’t aim to re-create Earth’s conditions.” But the question asks how paragraph 4 supports its own claim. Paragraph 4 does it with a count of sensors and a list of what they control. That matches A.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 37 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 55 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test C English, page 55, question 37. This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 30 of 120

2026 Practice Test C English, question 38

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “Growing Peppers on the ISS Is Just the Start of Space Farming””.

Question

Which two sentences in paragraphs 5–9 best support the idea that the astronauts working in space enjoyed participating in the food-growing experiment?

Select the two correct answers.

On the test you click the words in the text; here, choose them below. The DOE has not published how answers with several parts are scored; this site counts one right only when every part is right.

  • ABut you’re missing that crunch. You’re missing that fresh pop of flavor, the green flavor that’s not there in that packaged food.”
  • BSpencer says the team cracked open the door of the APH every day to observe their vegetable companions with all the tenderness of home gardeners.
  • CWhen harvest day came, they batted their bounty around the ISS, taking selfies and delighting in watching the fruits pirouetting around the spacecraft.
  • D“We were thinking no heat, so that [the peppers] wouldn’t be dangerous, but maybe the astronauts need a little spice in their life,” says Paul Bosland
  • E“I think in an optimal world, a scientist like me would say that they would be growing plants from day one.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B and C

The question asks which two sentences in paragraphs 5–9 best support the idea that the astronauts working in space enjoyed participating in the food-growing experiment.

Incorrect. Choice 1. “But you’re missing that crunch. You’re missing that fresh pop of flavor, the green flavor that’s not there in that packaged food” is incorrect because it illustrates an opinion on fresh foods of Lashelle Spencer, a plant scientist at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. Although astronauts are likely to enjoy fresh food, the statement does not describe the enjoyment of the astronauts participating in the experiment.

CORRECT. Choice 2. “Spencer says the team cracked open the door of the APH every day to observe their vegetable companions with all the tenderness of home gardeners” is a correct response. The details about the attitude of the astronauts toward the plants and their desire to observe them every day support the idea that they enjoyed participating in the experiment.

CORRECT. Choice 3. “When harvest day came, they batted their bounty around the ISS, taking selfies and delighting in watching the fruits pirouetting around the spacecraft” is a correct response. That the astronauts were taking selfies with the peppers and “delighting in watching the fruits pirouetting around the spacecraft” suggests that the astronauts enjoyed being part of the experiment.

Incorrect. Choice 4. “ ‘We were thinking no heat, so that [the peppers] wouldn’t be dangerous, but maybe the astronauts need a little spice in their life,’ says Paul Bosland” is incorrect because the quotation only gives information about the variables taken into account in the selection of peppers by a scientist at the Chile Pepper Institute. Although the observation suggests that the spicy heat of peppers might be enjoyed by astronauts in space, the sentence does not address the attitude of the astronauts toward the experiment.

Incorrect. Choice 5. “ ‘I think in an optimal world, a scientist like me would say that they would be growing plants from day one’ ” is incorrect because it emphasizes the opinion of Lashelle Spencer, a plant scientist at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, regarding the growth of plants in space. Although she suggests growing plants is a good idea, the quotation does not support the idea that the astronauts enjoyed participating in the experiment.

Question analysis

This select-two evidence question asks which two sentences in paragraphs 5–9 of the space-farming excerpt best show that the astronauts enjoyed taking part in the pepper-growing experiment. On the test students click two of five sentences highlighted in the passage, and credit comes only when both picks are right. Each sentence mentions food, peppers or plants, so each must be checked against the idea itself.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Choosing evidence for an idea is everyday grade 7 work. This item asks for two sentences out of five and gives credit only for a fully right pair, but the sentences come from a few neighboring paragraphs and the idea to support is concrete.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 890 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 143 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The harvest-day sentence, with its selfies and delight, is the easy pick. The second takes more care, because “the team” that opened the habitat every day seems at first to be Spencer’s team on Earth, and both picks must be right for credit. Students who look for the word “astronauts” or a cheerful phrase are pulled to Bosland’s “a little spice in their life” or to Spencer’s longing for crunch, which report the views of the scientists.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The second right sentence says “the team” opened the habitat’s door, right after paragraph 5 called Spencer “part of the project team,” so students must see that only the crew aboard could do it. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    All five sentences mention food, peppers or plants, and credit needs both picks, so each must be traced to its speaker: Spencer, the crew or Bosland. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  3. Figurative or literary language minor Understanding the question

    The enjoyment is shown in images rather than stated: “vegetable companions,” “the tenderness of home gardeners” and fruits “pirouetting around the spacecraft.” (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Read each of the five sentences in its paragraph and work out whose actions or opinions it reports, then keep the two that show both parts of the idea: astronauts in space, and their enjoyment.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    You need two sentences from paragraphs 5–9 that show the astronauts enjoyed the experiment. Each one must do two things. It must be about the astronauts in space, not the scientists on Earth. And it must show they liked the work. On the test you click two sentences in the passage. Here, you choose two of the five choices. Both must be right.

  2. Find who each sentence is about

    • A is Spencer, a scientist on Earth, talking about packaged food.
    • B says “the team” opened the habitat every day.
    • C says “they” played with the peppers on harvest day.
    • D is Paul Bosland, the scientist who made the seeds, talking about spice.
    • E is Spencer again, giving her own opinion.

    So only B and C could be about the astronauts. But who is “the team” in B?

  3. Work out who the team is

    Paragraph 5 calls Spencer “part of the project team,” and she works on Earth. So the team in paragraph 6 might seem to be the scientists. But look at what the team did. They “cracked open the door of the APH every day.” The APH is a plant box on the space station, so only the crew could open it. The next sentence says they batted the peppers “around the ISS,” so they were on board. Paragraph 1 also calls the crew Mark Vande Hei’s “team.” “Spencer says” only means she is telling us what they did.

  4. See how they show enjoyment

    In B, the team checked on “their vegetable companions with all the tenderness of home gardeners.” Companions are friends. Tenderness is gentle, loving care. They treated the plants almost like pets. In C, the same team “batted their bounty around the ISS, taking selfies.” Bounty means a big harvest. They were “delighting,” or taking great joy, in watching the peppers spin like dancers.

  5. Rule out the other three

    • A is wrong. Spencer is saying packaged food lacks crunch. That is her view of the food, not the crew enjoying the work.
    • D is wrong. “A little spice in their life” sounds fun. But it is Bosland explaining why the peppers have some heat.
    • E is wrong. Spencer says crews should grow plants “from day one.” That is a scientist’s advice, not the crew’s feelings.

    Watch out: D names the astronauts and sounds cheerful. But the speaker is a scientist on Earth.

  6. Choose the answers

    Both sentences show the crew in space caring for and playing with their plants. So the answers are B and C: B, “Spencer says the team cracked open the door of the APH every day to observe their vegetable companions with all the tenderness of home gardeners.” And C, “When harvest day came, they batted their bounty around the ISS, taking selfies and delighting in watching the fruits pirouetting around the spacecraft.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

The hard part is B. It says “the team,” and Spencer was on a team too. But only the crew on the station could open the habitat every day, so B is about the astronauts. D sounds fun, but Bosland is a scientist explaining spice. It says nothing about how the crew felt.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 38 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 56 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test C English, page 56, question 38.

Question 31 of 120

2026 Practice Test C English, question 40

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “Growing Peppers on the ISS Is Just the Start of Space Farming””.

Question

What is the relationship between the scientists and the astronauts in carrying out the plant-growing experiments?

Move the correct answer to each box.

Scientists on earth are primarily responsible for for conducting plant experiments in space, while the astronauts aboard the International Space Station are responsible for for the experiment.

On the test you drag tiles into the boxes; here, choose each box’s tile from its menu. Each tile can be used once. The DOE has not published how answers with several parts are scored; this site counts one right only when every part is right.

Show the answer

Correct answer: blank 1: developing the materials and systems; blank 2: growing the plants to harvest

The question asks for the two phrases that should be added to the sentence to explain the relationship between the scientists and the astronauts in carrying out the plant-growing experiments.

CORRECT. The phrase “growing the plants to harvest” should be added to the second box in the sentence. Paragraphs 1 and 2 of the excerpt show that astronauts aboard the ISS are responsible for tending to the plants in the system and harvesting them after the growth cycle is complete.

Incorrect. The phrase “documenting the nutritional goals” should not be added to either box in the sentence. While the excerpt does mention that the experiment is helping gather data about the nutritional value of the peppers, there is no evidence that either the scientists on Earth or the astronauts aboard the ISS are tasked with documenting specific nutritional goals.

Incorrect. The phrase “analyzing the environment” should not be added to either box in the sentence. Although the experiment requires control of environmental factors like light and moisture, the excerpt does not describe or primarily focus on describing how either the scientists on Earth or the astronauts aboard the ISS are responsible for formally analyzing the environment of the habitat as part of the experiment.

CORRECT. The phrase “developing the materials and systems” should be added to the first box in the sentence. The excerpt explains that the scientists on Earth create and prepare the systems, seeds, and equipment needed for the plant-growing experiments in space.

Incorrect. The phrase “determining the most nutritional plants” should not be added to either box in the sentence. Although growing nutritious plants is important, the excerpt does not focus on the scientists on Earth or the astronauts aboard the ISS evaluating or selecting plants based on their nutritional value.

Question analysis

This question asks students to complete a sentence describing how scientists on Earth and astronauts aboard the International Space Station divided the work of the pepper-growing experiment. On the test students drag phrase tiles into two boxes, choosing from five. Each group’s role must be pieced together from details spread across the excerpt, and each tile names a task in general words that must be matched to the text.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Explaining how the people in an informational text relate to one another is grade 7 work. Filling two boxes from five tiles with all-or-nothing credit adds some demand, but the excerpt shows the two groups doing clearly different jobs.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 890 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 50 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The astronauts’ box is the easy half, since the excerpt opens with the crew snipping and catching ripe peppers. The scientists’ box is where points are lost: the right tile is abstract, while the tempting ones name nutrition and the environment, both prominent in the article. Students who match a tile to a phrase they remember, rather than to everything the people on Earth are shown doing, fill the first box wrongly.

  1. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    The scientists’ tile, “developing the materials and systems,” sums up preparing seeds, engineering a variety and building the habitat in words the excerpt never uses, while the nutrition tile echoes paragraph 9. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  2. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The scientists’ work is scattered: the habitat’s technology in paragraphs 3 and 4, Spencer preparing seeds in paragraph 5, Bosland’s engineered variety in paragraphs 7 and 8; the crew’s tending and harvest fill paragraphs 1 and 2. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  3. Much to keep track of minor Working it out

    Two boxes must both be right from five tiles that cannot be reused, so each group’s whole role must be held in mind while three plausible-sounding tiles are rejected. (Sweller, 1988; Carpenter, Just & Shell, 1990)

Strategy: List what the people on Earth did and what the crew in orbit did, then fill each box with the tile that sums up its list, not one that echoes a single word of the excerpt.

Traps

  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    You need to finish a sentence about who did what. The first box tells what the scientists on Earth did. The second box tells what the astronauts in space did. On the test you drag a tile into each box. Here, you pick each box’s tile from a menu. Each tile can be used only once, and three tiles are left over.

  2. List what the scientists did

    • Spencer played “a crucial role in preparing the seeds that were sent hurtling into space” (paragraph 5).
    • Bosland and his colleagues “genetically engineered” the pepper seeds (paragraph 7). The footnote says they “combined parts of DNA from different plants to produce a new plant.”
    • Growing plants in space “relies on highly specialized technology over 50 years in the making” (paragraph 3).

    So the scientists made and got ready what the experiment needed: seeds and machines.

  3. List what the astronauts did

    • They “can adjust the color and intensity of the light” for the plants (paragraph 4).
    • “The team cracked open the door of the APH every day” to check on the plants (paragraph 6).
    • They “snip the stems of those that are ready for harvest” (paragraph 1).
    • They finish “after a 137-day growth cycle” (paragraph 2).

    So the astronauts cared for the plants until the peppers were ripe, then picked them.

  4. Match a tile to each list

    The scientists’ list is about making things: seeds, a new pepper and a high-tech habitat. The tile developing the materials and systems sums that up. Materials are the things you use, like seeds. Systems are machines with many parts, like the habitat. The astronauts’ list is about care and picking. The tile growing the plants to harvest sums that up.

  5. Rule out the other tiles

    • documenting the nutritional goals: no one in the article writes down nutrition goals.
    • analyzing the environment: the habitat’s sensors “control and monitor” conditions. The crew adjusts light and water, but that is caring for plants, not studying them.
    • determining the most nutritional plants: paragraph 9 says the data will “determine the nutritional content of crops.” But no one picks the healthiest plants. Bosland made one special kind.

    Watch out: The last tile repeats words from paragraph 9, so it is tempting for the first box. Matching a word is not the same as matching the job.

  6. Fill in both boxes

    Scientists on Earth develop the materials and systems for the experiment. Astronauts grow the plants to harvest. So the first box gets developing the materials and systems, and the second box gets growing the plants to harvest.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

The most tempting wrong tile for the first box is determining the most nutritional plants, because it echoes paragraph 9. But the scientists in the article prepared seeds, engineered a new pepper and built the habitat. That is developing materials and systems. Nobody compares plants to find the most nutritious one.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 40 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 58 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test C English, page 58, question 40.

Question 32 of 120

2026 Practice Test C English, question 43

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “Growing Peppers on the ISS Is Just the Start of Space Farming””.

Question

With which statement would the author most likely agree?

  • ASome plants are better adapted for growing in space than on Earth, and focus should be placed on them.
  • BAttempting to grow plants in space the same way they are grown on Earth would not result in success.
  • CPlants grown in space provide better nutritional value than plants grown on Earth.
  • DSuccessfully growing plants in space is a challenge, so more research must first be completed on plants grown on Earth.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks which statement the author would most likely agree with.

A. Incorrect. Although paragraphs 7 and 8 discuss plants that have been genetically engineered to “accommodate . . . the logistics of growing a plant in space,” the passage does not indicate that the plants are better adapted for growing in space rather than on Earth. Thus, the author is not likely to agree with this statement.

B. CORRECT. In paragraph 3, the author points out that growing plants in space “relies on highly specialized technology over 50 years in the making,” and in paragraph 4, the author explains that the Advanced Plant Habitat requires specialized controls and adaptations for light, moisture, and temperature. The author’s acknowledgment of the special conditions required to grow plants in space indicates that she would agree that growing methods used on Earth are unlikely to succeed in space.

C. Incorrect. Although paragraph 8 mentions that pepper plants were genetically engineered to meet “the nutritional needs of astronauts,” the passage gives no indication that astronauts have greater nutritional needs in space than they do on Earth or that plants grown in space are engineered to provide better nutrition than their counterparts on Earth. Thus, the author would not be likely to agree with this sentence.

D. Incorrect. Although the discussion in paragraph 4 of the rigorously controlled conditions indicates that growing plants in space is, indeed, challenging, the article indicates in paragraph 3 that NASA has been experimenting with growing plants in space “since 2014.” Because plant-growing experiments have already been under way in space for a number of years, it is unlikely that NASA or the author would agree that additional experiments on earth are necessary.

Question analysis

This inference question asks which statement the author of the space-farming excerpt, a Virginia farmer writing for WIRED about NASA’s pepper experiment, would most likely agree with. The author never states her view outright, so students must infer it from the way she reports the experiment, and every choice touches on a topic the article raises.

NYS standards
  • 7R6 point of view and author position
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Inferring which statement an author would accept is regular grade 7 work, but this author mostly reports facts and quotes scientists, so her own view has to be pieced together from several paragraphs of technical description, more than grade 7 usually asks.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 890 words; question and choices: about grade 6, 80 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A misquotation of the excerpt in the explanation was corrected.
  • A grammatical error in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Because the article reports facts and quotes scientists, students must build the author’s view from her descriptions, and the key is a prediction she never makes outright. The half-right choice is the main trap: it begins with a view she does hold, that space farming is hard, then adds a demand for research on Earth that ignores NASA’s work in orbit since 2014. The other two turn the engineered variety and the nutrition theme into comparisons the article never draws.

  1. Reading between the lines major Working it out

    The author never states an opinion; her view must be drawn from how she describes the work, a habitat that “doesn’t aim to re-create Earth’s conditions” and technology “over 50 years in the making.” (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The support is in paragraph 3’s description of the habitat and paragraph 4’s sensors and controls, while the wrong choices draw on paragraph 8’s engineered variety and paragraph 5’s supplements. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  3. The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer

    The key’s “the same way they are grown on Earth would not result in success” restates paragraph 3 in new words, while wrong choices reuse “nutritional” and growing “in space.” (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

Strategy: Find the sentences where the author speaks in her own voice rather than quoting a scientist, then choose the statement those sentences support most directly, without adding claims the article never makes.

Traps

  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Half right: One half of a two-part choice is right and the other is not.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook’s explanation of Option A says the plants were genetically engineered “to accommodate the logistics of growing a plant in space.” Paragraph 8 says Bosland “cultivated a variety that could accommodate both the nutritional needs of astronauts as well as the logistics of growing a plant in space”: “to” is not in the excerpt, and eight words are left out without an ellipsis. The site now says genetically engineered to “accommodate . . . the logistics of growing a plant in space.”
  • Explanation: The handbook’s explanation of Option B says “The author’s acknowledgment of the special conditions required to grow plants in space indicate that she would agree.” The subject is “acknowledgment,” so the site now says “indicates.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    You need to figure out the author’s view. She never states it outright. She mostly reports facts and quotes scientists. So look at how she describes the work. Then pick the statement her own words support best, without adding ideas she never gives.

  2. Find the author’s own words

    In paragraph 3, the author says growing plants in space “relies on highly specialized technology over 50 years in the making.” She also says the habitat “doesn’t aim to re-create Earth’s conditions, but to perfect each isolated variable of plant growth in the clinical environment of a spaceship.” In paragraph 4, she adds that its “more than 180 sensors control and monitor temperature, humidity, and carbon dioxide.”

  3. Explain what she means

    Specialized means made for one special job. To re-create means to copy. A variable is one thing that can change, like light or heat. Clinical means very clean and controlled, like a hospital. So she is saying that space is not like a garden on Earth. Plants there need special tools that control every condition, one by one. Simply copying Earth’s way of growing would not be enough.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. Paragraphs 7 and 8 show a pepper bred to “accommodate” growing in space. But nothing says some plants grow better in space than on Earth.
    • B is right. She stresses special technology and says the habitat doesn’t copy Earth. So Earth’s usual methods alone would fail.
    • C is wrong. She never says space plants are healthier than Earth plants.
    • D is wrong. She does show that growing in space is hard. But NASA has grown plants in space “since 2014.” Nothing says Earth research must come first.

    Watch out: D starts with an idea she holds, that space farming is hard. Then it adds a demand she never makes.

  5. Choose the answer

    The author shows that space farming needs special tools, not Earth’s usual ways. So the answer is B, “Attempting to grow plants in space the same way they are grown on Earth would not result in success.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong answer. Its first half fits the author: growing plants in space takes complex tools. But its second half says more research on Earth must come first. The article shows the opposite: NASA has grown plants in space for years. B sticks to what her words show.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 43 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 61 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test C English, page 61, question 43. This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 33 of 120

2026 Practice Test D English, question 2
Passage A Memory Revolution

A Memory Revolution

A high school senior logs on to a computer at the library to double-check the application due date listed on a college admissions website. Nearby, a librarian helps a group of biology students use a database to search for recent studies about mammals. In the past few decades, the Internet has become an integral component of daily life for many people. The seemingly limitless power of search engines made the Internet search extremely common, and today people increasingly rely on the Internet’s vast accumulation of sources to access all types of information. Scientists are beginning to examine how this reliance is modifying the strategies people use to store and prioritize information in their mind.

A Dependable and Valuable Asset

Psychologist Benjamin Storm from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and researchers Sean Stone and Aaron Benjamin devised an experiment to study students’ tendency to depend on the Internet for facts. To begin, the scientists divided sixty participants into multiple groups, including an “Internet” group and a “memory” group, and placed them in front of computers. The Internet group was required to use the search engine Google to answer eight challenging trivia questions. In contrast, participants in the memory group were permitted to use only their personal knowledge to answer the questions. In the second round, the researchers administered notably easier questions. This time, they allowed each group the option of using Google as they answered. Their results showed that 83 percent of the Internet group continued to consult Google in the second round, while only 63 percent of the memory group chose to do so.

People’s growing inclination to rely on the Internet in order to retrieve information, particularly facts and figures, is called cognitive offloading. Canadian researcher Evan F. Risko and British researcher Sam Gilbert, who have written extensively about the topic, say a similar process has been taking place for centuries. In the past, people used resources like encyclopedias to assist their memories; however, today the Internet, serving as a vast extended memory, allows people to digitally access and retrieve much larger volumes of information. Consequently, people’s minds are free for other cognitive feats, such as connecting data, learning new information, or solving problems.

Filing Information Away

The use of the Internet also appears to be modifying the strategies people use to store information in their mind. Researchers Betsy Sparrow from Columbia University, Jenny Liu from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Daniel Wegner from Harvard University conducted several studies to discover how people efficiently manage their information intake.

To begin, the researchers examined how people evaluate which information deserves their effort to remember. For this experiment, participants read forty trivia facts, such as “An ostrich’s eye is bigger than its brain,” and typed the statements into a computer file. Half the participants had been previously told the file would be saved, while half believed it would be erased. Next, the participants wrote down every fact they could recall. Those who believed the information would be erased and no longer available could recall 40 percent more facts than those who thought the information would be saved.

In another experiment, the same researchers tested the ability of study participants to remember where to access information. For this trial, participants read and typed trivia statements, which they saved in folders with generic names such as “Facts” and “Items.” After spending ten minutes writing down all the facts they could recall from memory, participants were asked which folder contained a particular fact based on a keyword. For example, “Which folder has the fact about ostriches?” Overall, participants recalled the information’s location more often than the content itself, correctly identifying 49 percent of the folders for specific facts while remembering only 23 percent of the actual trivia. The researchers concluded that our memory is adapting to the Internet age by prioritizing where to locate information even when the specific details are forgotten. According to Sparrow, the Internet has become an important form of transactive memory, an external source of the recollections and associative networks that constitute memory.

As the Internet’s resources continue to expand our “external” memory, some question whether the process may cause people to depend too heavily on technology. However, Steven Pinker, a professor of psychology at Harvard University, says, “Knowledge is increasing exponentially; human brainpower and waking hours are not. Fortunately, the Internet and information technologies are helping us manage, search and retrieve our collective intellectual output at different scales, from Twitter and previews to e-books and online encyclopedias. Far from making us stupid, these technologies are the only things that will keep us smart.”

Flow diagram titled “HOW MEMORY WORKS”: an arrow labeled “New Information” points down into a box labeled “Sensory Memory,” and an arrow labeled “Attention” leads down from that box to a box labeled “Short-Term Memory.” From Short-Term Memory, an arrow points right to the note “Unrehearsed information is forgotten,” and on its left a curved arrow labeled “Rehearsal” loops from the bottom of the box back into its top, beside the note “Information is maintained through repetition.” An arrow labeled “Storage” leads down from Short-Term Memory to a box labeled “Long-Term Memory,” a curved arrow labeled “Retrieval” leads from Long-Term Memory back up into Short-Term Memory, and an arrow points right from Long-Term Memory to the note “Some information may be forgotten over time.”

Question

How do the details about the experiment described in paragraph 5 convey a central idea of the passage?

  • AThey suggest that the act of repeating information by typing it on a keyboard may improve a person’s memory.
  • BThey explain that a person will forget information faster if the information is considered unimportant.
  • CThey indicate that a person may start to forget details when the amount of information becomes overwhelming.
  • DThey suggest that memory is affected by whether a person expects to have access to the information in the future.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks how the details of the experiment described in paragraph 5 convey a central idea of the passage.

A. Incorrect. Although paragraph 5 states that participants read the trivia facts and then “typed the statements into a computer file,” it does not explain the impact of repetition on memory, nor does this convey a central idea of the passage.

B. Incorrect. Paragraph 5 acknowledges that people evaluate which information is important enough to remember, but it does not describe the rate at which people forget unimportant information. According to the paragraph, information is considered less important to remember if a person believes that he or she will be able to retrieve that information easily in the future. This does not mean the information is unimportant but rather that it is readily available for future access.

C. Incorrect. Paragraph 5 specifies the number of trivia facts that study participants were given to read (forty), but it does not describe the amount of information as a factor in the participants’ memory performance. According to the paragraph, it was not the amount of information but rather the expectation of future availability that affected how much information participants were able to recall.

D. CORRECT. A central idea of the passage is that the way the human memory stores information is changing because of the Internet. The details of the experiment support this idea by indicating that study participants remembered different amounts of information based on whether they “thought the information would be saved” (paragraph 5). Those who “believed the information would be erased and no longer available” (paragraph 5) remembered 40 percent more than those who expected to be able to access the information again in a saved computer file. Therefore, paragraph 5 conveys the central idea that the expectation of future access to information is a key element in “how people evaluate which information deserves their effort to remember.”

Question analysis

Paragraph 5 of “A Memory Revolution” describes an experiment in which people typed forty trivia facts, such as one about an ostrich’s eye, into a computer file and then wrote down all they could recall. This central-idea question asks how the experiment’s details convey a central idea of the passage. Each choice offers a different lesson about memory, so the experiment’s actual result must decide.

NYS standards
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Explaining what an experiment’s results show is common grade 7 reading. The experiment in paragraph 5 is told in plain words and its result is a single comparison, so the main demand is restating that result as an idea.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 14, 763 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 88 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The experiment is short and its result fits in one sentence, so most students find the idea once they ask what differed between the two groups. The trap is the paragraph’s framing, “which information deserves their effort to remember,” which invites talk of important and unimportant facts and leads to the choice about forgetting. Others reach for what they know about studying, such as writing things down, instead of the one condition the researchers changed.

  1. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    Paragraph 5 never names the cause; students must see that both groups read and typed the same forty facts, so only what they were told about the file can explain the 40 percent gap. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. A very close wrong answer minor Choosing the answer

    The choice about forgetting unimportant information shares the key’s idea that how people regard information affects memory; it differs in the reason, importance rather than expected access, and adds a speed nobody measured. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

Strategy: Restate the experiment in paragraph 5 and its result in one sentence of your own, then reject any choice that rests on something the experiment did not set up or measure.

Traps

  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is a central idea question. It asks what the experiment in paragraph 5 shows. It also asks how that result supports a main point of the article. The article’s main point is that the Internet is changing how people remember.

  2. Find the experiment in paragraph 5

    In paragraph 5, participants, the people in the study, “read forty trivia facts” and “typed the statements into a computer file.” Then: “Half the participants had been previously told the file would be saved, while half believed it would be erased.” The result: “Those who believed the information would be erased and no longer available could recall 40 percent more facts than those who thought the information would be saved.”

  3. Work out what the result means

    Both groups read the same forty facts. Both typed them the same way. Only one thing was different: what each group expected to happen to the file. People who thought the facts would be gone remembered more. People who thought the facts would be saved remembered less. So your memory depends on whether you expect to look the facts up later. This fits the article’s point. When people know they can find facts again, they work less to remember them.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. Both groups typed the facts, so typing cannot explain why one group remembered more.
    • B does not fit. Nobody called the saved facts unimportant. They were just expected to stay available. The study also never measured how fast people forget.
    • C does not fit. Both groups read forty facts, so the amount was the same for everyone.
    • D fits. What people expected about later access changed how much they remembered.

    Watch out: B is tempting because the paragraph talks about “which information deserves their effort to remember.” But the saved facts were not judged unimportant. They were judged easy to find later.

  5. Choose the answer

    The only difference between the groups was whether they expected the file to be saved. So the answer is D, “They suggest that memory is affected by whether a person expects to have access to the information in the future.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong choice. Like D, it says that how people see information affects memory. But B gives the wrong reason and adds a speed of forgetting. The study never tested importance or speed. The one thing it changed was whether people expected to see the facts again. That is exactly what D says.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 2 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 6 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test D English, page 6, question 2.
The passage “A Memory Revolution” as printed (pages 3–4)The passage “A Memory Revolution” as printed on page 3 of the DOE handbook.The passage “A Memory Revolution” as printed on page 4 of the DOE handbook.

Question 34 of 120

2026 Practice Test D English, question 4

Uses the passage above: “A Memory Revolution”.

Question

The study described in paragraph 6 influenced researchers’ ideas about memory in the digital age by

  • Ahighlighting instances when organizing detailed information made it easier to remember.
  • Bconfirming that keywords can be remembered more easily than large amounts of information.
  • Cidentifying a shift in focus from remembering specific information to knowing where to find it.
  • Demphasizing that remembering a basic idea is more important than storing detailed information.
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks how the study described in paragraph 6 influenced researchers’ ideas about memory in the digital age.

A. Incorrect. The study required participants to organize information into folders, but the results suggest that organizing the information did not make the information easier to remember; instead, participants remembered the folder in which to find the information but forgot the information itself.

B. Incorrect. Although the participants in the study were given a keyword, such as “ostrich,” when asked to remember “which folder contained a particular fact,” the study was significant for researchers because it demonstrated that “our memory is adapting to the Internet age by prioritizing where to locate information even when the specific details are forgotten” (paragraph 6). The study confirmed that participants were remembering where the information was stored, because they were able to provide the name of the folder where the information was stored.

C. CORRECT. The study in paragraph 6 demonstrated that participants were better able to recall where to find certain information than to recall the information itself. This influenced researchers’ ideas about memory in the digital age: “Overall, participants recalled the information’s location more often than the content itself, correctly identifying 49 percent of the folders for specific facts while remembering only 23 percent of the actual trivia” (paragraph 6).

D. Incorrect. The study did not examine the relative importance of remembering basic information or storing detailed information. It examined the effect of the Internet on the information that people remember and concluded that human memory “is adapting to the Internet age by prioritizing where to locate information” (paragraph 6).

Question analysis

This development-of-ideas question on “A Memory Revolution” asks how the folder experiment in paragraph 6, where participants saved trivia statements in folders named “Facts” and “Items” and were later quizzed, influenced researchers’ ideas about memory in the digital age. Students must understand what the experiment measured and what the researchers made of it, while the choices echo its keywords, folders and details.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Explaining how a study shaped researchers’ thinking is typical grade 7 work with informational texts. The researchers state their conclusion in paragraph 6, which shortens the search, though the paragraph’s percentages and terms such as “transactive memory” need care.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 14, 763 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 67 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A mislabeled term in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The researchers state their conclusion in paragraph 6, that memory is “prioritizing where to locate information even when the specific details are forgotten,” so the question mostly rewards recognizing it in new words. The risk lies in the experiment’s moving parts: a student who mixes up the folder, the fact and the keyword can believe that filing helped recall or that keywords were the finding. The closest wrong choice keeps the downgrading of detail and swaps a basic idea in for location.

  1. A very close wrong answer minor Choosing the answer

    The choice about a basic idea mirrors the key’s first half, detailed information losing out; it differs only in what wins, a basic idea instead of knowing where the information is kept. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Much to keep track of minor Working it out

    Paragraph 6 juggles three things a participant might recall, the fact, its folder and the keyword cue, plus two percentages, so students must keep straight that 49 percent is folders and 23 percent is trivia. (Sweller, 1988; Carpenter, Just & Shell, 1990)

Strategy: Locate the researchers’ own conclusion in paragraph 6, restate it in plain words, and choose the option that matches it, not one that borrows a word from the description of the experiment.

Traps

  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The DOE’s explanation of Option B ends by saying that participants “were able to provide the name of the folder (keyword) where the information was stored.” In paragraph 6 the keyword is the cue the participants were given (the same explanation begins “the participants in the study were given a keyword, such as ‘ostrich’”); the folders had generic names such as “Facts” and “Items.” Calling the folder name a keyword makes the sentence seem to support Option B (“keywords can be remembered more easily”), the option it is rejecting. The site drops “(keyword).”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks what the study in paragraph 6 taught the researchers about memory today. The researchers state their own conclusion in the paragraph. Find it, put it in plain words, and match it to a choice.

  2. Follow the steps of the study

    Participants typed trivia facts and saved them in folders. The folders had plain names, such as “Facts” and “Items.” Later each person got a keyword, a hint word, in a question like “Which folder has the fact about ostriches?” The result: “participants recalled the information’s location more often than the content itself, correctly identifying 49 percent of the folders for specific facts while remembering only 23 percent of the actual trivia.”

  3. Read the researchers’ conclusion

    Paragraph 6 says “our memory is adapting to the Internet age by prioritizing where to locate information even when the specific details are forgotten.” To prioritize is to put first. So people now put first knowing where a fact is kept. They may forget the fact itself. That is a shift in focus, a change in what memory pays attention to.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. Filing the facts in folders did not help people remember them. They recalled only 23 percent of the facts.
    • B does not fit. The keyword, like “ostriches,” was only the hint in the question. What people remembered was the folder, such as “Facts.”
    • C fits. Memory shifted from the facts themselves to where to find them.
    • D does not fit. People remembered locations, not a basic idea of each fact.

    Watch out: D is tempting because “prioritizing” sounds like deciding what matters most. But the study ranked nothing. It found that people recalled where facts were, not what they said.

  5. Choose the answer

    The study showed people remembering where facts were kept better than the facts. So the answer is C, “identifying a shift in focus from remembering specific information to knowing where to find it.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong choice. Like C, it says detailed facts lose out. But it says a basic idea wins instead. In the study, what won was location: 49 percent of the folders against 23 percent of the facts. C names location, so C matches the researchers’ own conclusion.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 4 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 8 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test D English, page 8, question 4. This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 35 of 120

2026 Practice Test D English, question 5

Uses the passage above: “A Memory Revolution”.

Question

How does the diagram provide additional support for the topic presented in the passage?

  • AIt reveals why human brains must adapt to obtaining information from the Internet as opposed to other sources.
  • BIt indicates how people can use the Internet to help improve their long-term recollection of information.
  • CIt shows how study participants’ brains distinguished between important and unimportant details.
  • DIt depicts the idea that repetition and rehearsal are necessary to recall information when tools such as search engines are unavailable.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks how the diagram provides additional support for the topic presented in the passage.

A. Incorrect. While the diagram indicates that the human brain has the ability to maintain different types of memory, the diagram does not show the need for the brain to adapt to obtaining information from the Internet rather than from other sources.

B. Incorrect. The diagram enhances the reader’s understanding of how long-term memories are formed, but it does not provide details about how the Internet can be used to improve long-term recollection of information.

C. Incorrect. The diagram provides an understanding of how details that are important to people can become stored because of an effort made to recall them. However, the diagram does not show how people decide which information is important and which is not.

D. CORRECT. The diagram depicts the connections that the human brain maintains between the different forms of memory. It also illustrates the idea that repetition and rehearsal are important steps in creating memories, as unrehearsed information will be forgotten. This supports the passage by highlighting the idea that access to search engines and other tools leads people to skip rehearsal and repetition steps that create memories, because people know that the information is readily accessible.

Question analysis

This question pairs “A Memory Revolution” with its flow diagram, “How Memory Works,” which follows new information from sensory memory through short-term and long-term memory, and asks how the diagram supports the topic of the passage. Students must read the diagram’s boxes, arrows and notes and relate them to an article about the Internet that never refers to the diagram, so the connection has to be worked out.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 students regularly connect a diagram to a text. This flow diagram of memory never mentions the Internet, so students must build the bridge to the article’s studies themselves, and every choice claims something the diagram alone cannot show.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 14, 763 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 81 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The diagram is a general model of memory, and every choice, even the right one, goes beyond it by bringing in the Internet, search engines or the study participants. The way through is to ask which choice rests on something the diagram really shows, and only one names its rehearsal loop and the forgetting of unrehearsed information. The strongest pull uses the diagram’s long-term memory and retrieval but claims the Internet improves recollection, the opposite of what paragraph 5’s experiment found.

  1. Combines ideas moderate Working it out

    The diagram never mentions the Internet and the article never mentions the diagram, so students must join its rehearsal loop to paragraph 5’s finding that people who expected the facts to be saved remembered fewer. (Embretson, 1998; Daniel & Embretson, 2010)

  2. Reading a figure, table or graph moderate Understanding the question

    Students must follow the arrows from “Attention” into short-term memory and find the “Rehearsal” loop beside “Information is maintained through repetition,” with “Unrehearsed information is forgotten” on the other side. (Lesh, Post & Behr, 1987; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  3. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    Three choices tie the diagram to the Internet, adaptation or the study participants, and even the key mentions search engines, so each claim must be held against the boxes and arrows actually drawn. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Trace the diagram’s arrows from new information to long-term memory and say what each label shows, then ask which choice links that process to the studies without crediting the diagram with ideas it never shows.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks how the diagram supports the article. The diagram is the flow chart called “HOW MEMORY WORKS” at the end of the passage. It never mentions the Internet. So you must find what it shows, then link that to the article.

  2. Follow the arrows in the diagram

    Start at the top. An arrow labeled “New Information” goes into the box “Sensory Memory.” The “Attention” arrow leads to “Short-Term Memory.” From there, two things can happen. On the left, a loop labeled “Rehearsal” sits beside the note “Information is maintained through repetition.” On the right, a note says “Unrehearsed information is forgotten.” A “Storage” arrow leads down to “Long-Term Memory,” and a “Retrieval” arrow leads back up.

  3. Explain what the diagram means

    To rehearse information is to repeat it, the way you practice lines for a play. To maintain something is to keep it. So the diagram says that information you repeat stays with you. Information you don’t repeat is lost. Repeating takes effort.

  4. Link the diagram to the passage

    Paragraph 5 describes people who typed forty facts. Some thought the file would be saved. Others thought it would be erased. Those who thought it would be erased “could recall 40 percent more facts.” They knew they could not look the facts up later. So they made the effort to remember. The diagram shows that effort: rehearsal. When search engines are at hand, people may skip it.

  5. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. The diagram never mentions the Internet. It does not say brains must adapt.
    • B does not fit. The diagram shows nothing about using the Internet. Paragraph 5 even found that people remembered less when they expected the facts to be saved.
    • C does not fit. The diagram shows memory in general. It shows no study participants and no sorting of important facts.
    • D fits. The “Rehearsal” loop shows that repeating information keeps it. Without a tool to look things up, that repeating is what lets you recall.

    Watch out: B is tempting because the diagram has “Long-Term Memory” and “Retrieval,” and the article calls the Internet an outside memory. But the diagram is about the brain, not the Internet.

  6. Choose the answer

    The diagram shows rehearsal keeping information and unrehearsed information being forgotten. That explains why people who can’t look facts up must work to remember them. So the answer is D, “It depicts the idea that repetition and rehearsal are necessary to recall information when tools such as search engines are unavailable.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong choice. It uses the diagram’s “Long-Term Memory” and “Retrieval” labels. But the diagram never shows the Internet improving recall. The passage says the opposite: expecting the facts to be saved made people remember fewer. D rests on what the diagram really shows, the “Rehearsal” loop and the note “Unrehearsed information is forgotten.”

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 5 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 9 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test D English, page 9, question 5.

Question 36 of 120

2026 Practice Test D English, question 6

Uses the passage above: “A Memory Revolution”.

Question

Which evidence from the passage is most relevant to the claim in paragraph 7 that “ ‘far from making us stupid, these technologies are the only things that will keep us smart’ ”?

  • Athe revelation that most people opted to use the Internet to answer relatively easy trivia questions rather than relying on their own brainpower (paragraph 2)
  • Bthe assertion that the storage of information on the Internet frees people to focus on higher-order tasks such as problem solving (paragraph 3)
  • Cthe connection between how people organize information in their mind and their ability to recall that information (paragraph 5)
  • Dthe description of transactive memory as an expansive external source that people can use to store information (paragraph 6)
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks for the evidence from the passage that is most relevant to the claim in paragraph 7 that “ ‘far from making us stupid, these technologies are the only things that will keep us smart.’ ”

A. Incorrect. Whether the participants decided to use the Internet to answer easy trivia questions varied based on the options that the participants were given during the first part of the experiment and, therefore, cannot be relevant to the claim in paragraph 7. Even when given the option of using the Internet, some participants chose to recall information from memory instead.

B. CORRECT. The assertion made in paragraph 3 that states that cognitive offloading allows for “people’s minds [to be] free for other cognitive feats, such as connecting data, learning new information, or solving problems” is relevant to the claim in paragraph 7 because it indicates that the ability to store large amounts of information within the brain does not necessarily make someone smart. It also suggests that if people did not have to use so much effort simply organizing and storing information, their brain would be free to conduct higher-order tasks: “the Internet, serving as a vast extended memory, allows people to digitally access and retrieve much larger volumes of information. Consequently, people’s minds are free for other cognitive feats, such as connecting data, learning new information, or solving problems” (paragraph 3).

C. Incorrect. The discussion in the passage connecting how people organize information in their mind and their ability to recall that information focuses on the process of organizing information within human memory rather than on how technology helps keep people’s minds available for complex thoughts.

D. Incorrect. Although the passage provides an accurate description of transactive memory, it provides no indication of how using such memory would advance a person’s ability to maintain or improve intelligent thought.

Question analysis

This evidence question on “A Memory Revolution” quotes the claim, made by Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker at the end of the article, that technologies such as the Internet are the only things that will keep us smart. Students choose the finding from earlier in the passage that is most relevant to it. Each choice summarizes a point about technology or memory, so relevance, not accuracy, decides.

NYS standards
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Judging which evidence is most relevant to a claim is standard grade 7 argument work. The claim is short and quoted in the question, and each choice names its paragraph, but students must recall what each paragraph actually showed.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 14, 763 words; question and choices: about grade 14, 112 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Every choice reports something the article really says, so the question turns on relevance: which finding would persuade a reader that technology keeps us smart. The transactive-memory finding is the trap, because Pinker himself speaks of retrieving “our collective intellectual output,” and an outside store of facts sounds like his point. That finding shows only that technology holds information; paragraph 3 adds what people do with the freed space, and that step is the claim.

  1. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The transactive-memory choice and the key both describe the Internet storing information for people; only the key adds the result, minds free for “connecting data, learning new information, or solving problems,” which is what keeps us smart. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The key never says smart; students must see that freeing minds for “other cognitive feats” is exactly what Pinker means by technology that keeps us smart rather than stupid. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    The four findings come from paragraphs 2, 3, 5 and 6, and each choice’s summary has to be matched back to what its paragraph actually showed before its relevance can be judged. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Restate Pinker’s claim in your own words, then ask of each finding whether it would persuade a doubter of that claim itself or only of something related to it.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for evidence: the detail that best supports a claim. The claim comes from Steven Pinker in paragraph 7: “Far from making us stupid, these technologies are the only things that will keep us smart.” Put it in your own words first. Pinker says the Internet does not make us dumb. It helps us think better.

  2. Ask what would prove the claim

    To support this claim, a detail must show technology helping people think. A detail that only shows people using the Internet is not enough. Neither is one that only shows the Internet storing facts. Look for a result: something people can do better because of the Internet.

  3. Find that result in paragraph 3

    Paragraph 3 says the Internet, “serving as a vast extended memory, allows people to digitally access and retrieve much larger volumes of information.” The next sentence gives the result: “Consequently, people’s minds are free for other cognitive feats, such as connecting data, learning new information, or solving problems.” Consequently means “as a result.” Cognitive feats are hard thinking tasks. Since the Internet holds the facts, your mind has room for harder work.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. People choosing Google for easy questions sounds more like the worry Pinker answers. It does not show anyone getting smarter.
    • B fits. Higher-order tasks are harder kinds of thinking. Freeing minds for them is how technology could keep us smart.
    • C does not fit. It is about how well people recall facts. In paragraph 5, people even recalled fewer facts when a computer would save them.
    • D does not fit. It shows only that the Internet can store information. It does not say what people gain from that.

    Watch out: D is tempting because transactive memory sounds like the “external” memory in paragraph 7. But storing facts outside your head is only half the idea. B adds the payoff: room for harder thinking.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only paragraph 3 shows the Internet freeing people for harder thinking. So the answer is B, “the assertion that the storage of information on the Internet frees people to focus on higher-order tasks such as problem solving” (paragraph 3).

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong choice. It is true that the Internet works as an outside store of facts. But that alone does not show anyone getting smarter. B goes one step further. Because the Internet holds the facts, minds are free for “connecting data, learning new information, or solving problems.” That step is what Pinker’s claim needs.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 6 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 10 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test D English, page 10, question 6.

Question 37 of 120

2026 Practice Test D English, question 7

Uses the passage above: “A Memory Revolution”.

Question

The effect of the Internet on a person’s memory is illustrated in the passage through the presentation of studies that

  • Aexamine how the use of search engines changes the way people evaluate and store information for future access.
  • Bhighlight the difference between the capacity of the Internet and the ability of the human brain to locate information.
  • Ccompare the type of information that can be obtained from the Internet with the type of information that is stored in the human brain.
  • Demphasize the ease of obtaining information through search engines rather than remembering it without assistance.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how the studies presented in the passage are used to illustrate the effect of the Internet on a person’s memory.

A. CORRECT. The study described in paragraph 5 examined the effect of computer use on the way people evaluate information, specifically “which information deserves their effort to remember,” and determined that “those who believed the information would be erased and no longer available could recall 40 percent more facts than those who thought the information would be saved.” The study described in paragraph 2 established that the use of Internet search engines increases the “inclination to rely on the Internet in order to retrieve information” (paragraph 3), and the study in paragraph 6 examined how this reliance on technology affects the way people store information: “Overall, participants recalled the information’s location more often than the content itself.”

B. Incorrect. Although a difference in the ability of the human brain and the capacity of the Internet to locate information might seem evident, the studies cited in the passage did not examine the ability or the capacity of either. The studies did not measure what the human brain is capable of but rather how memory is affected by the use of the Internet.

C. Incorrect. While the studies explored the Internet’s effect on the way information is stored in human memory, the type of information was not described or compared. Instead, the studies indicated that location is the main difference between the information stored in the Internet and the information stored in human memory, noting that the Internet has become “an external source of the recollections and associative networks that constitute memory” (paragraph 6).

D. Incorrect. Although it is increasingly common to use the Internet to obtain information (paragraph 2) rather than try to memorize information (paragraph 5), the studies did not examine the difficulty or ease of obtaining/recalling information using either method.

Question analysis

This evidence question asks how the studies described in “A Memory Revolution” illustrate the Internet’s effect on a person’s memory. Students must recall three experiments, one with trivia questions and Google, one with trivia typed into a computer file, and one with named folders, and decide what they examine together. Each choice sounds like a fair claim about the Internet and the brain.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Summing up what a text’s evidence shows is everyday grade 7 work. Here the evidence is three studies spread over paragraphs 2, 5 and 6, which adds recall, but each one is described in plain terms.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 14, 763 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 96 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The question asks what the article’s studies show together, so a student needs a one-line summary of three experiments before reading the choices. The key is slightly loose, since only the first study uses a search engine, which can make a careful reader hesitate. The strongest pull comes from paragraph 2, where most people turned to Google even for easy questions; it sounds like proof that searching is easier, but no study weighed the effort of looking up against remembering.

  1. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The three studies sit in paragraphs 2, 5 and 6, and the key gathers them: turning to Google even for easy questions, recalling less from a saved file, and remembering folders better than facts. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    No sentence says what the studies share; students must abstract it, that expecting later access changes what people bother to store, from experiments built on Google, a computer file and named folders. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    Each wrong choice names something the studies might plausibly have measured, the Internet’s capacity, kinds of information or ease of searching, and only a check of the three experiments shows that none did. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Sum up in a phrase what the studies in paragraphs 2, 5 and 6 each tested, then pick the option that describes what they examined rather than a point made elsewhere in the article.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks what the studies in the article have in common. How do they show the Internet’s effect on memory? There are three studies, in paragraphs 2, 5 and 6. Sum up each one in a few words. Then find the choice that fits all three.

  2. Sum up the three studies

    • Paragraph 2: People who had used Google kept using it, even for easy questions. In fact, “83 percent of the Internet group continued to consult Google in the second round.”
    • Paragraph 5: People who thought a file of facts would be erased remembered more. They decided which facts deserved “their effort to remember.”
    • Paragraph 6: People remembered where facts were kept better than the facts themselves.

  3. Find what the studies share

    Each study looks at how people treat information when a computer or search engine can hold it for them. People decide what is worth the effort to remember. Judging the value of something like this is called evaluating. People also change what they store in their minds, such as where a fact is instead of the fact. That is the effect on memory.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits. The studies show people judging what to remember and storing where to find it.
    • B does not fit. No study measured how much the Internet can hold or what the brain can do.
    • C does not fit. No study sorted information into types.
    • D does not fit. No study compared how easy it is to search and to remember.

    Watch out: D is tempting because most people in paragraph 2 kept using Google. That might seem to show searching is easier. But the study never measured ease. It only counted who used Google.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only one choice describes what the studies actually tested. So the answer is A, “examine how the use of search engines changes the way people evaluate and store information for future access.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong choice. It sounds like a fair reason people use Google. But none of the studies timed or rated the effort of searching or remembering. They tested what people chose to remember and what they stored. A describes that. Only the first study used a search engine, but the other two show the same pattern with a computer file and folders.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 7 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 11 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test D English, page 11, question 7.

Question 38 of 120

2026 Practice Test D English, question 8
Passage Excerpt from “How We Made the First Flight”

Excerpt from “How We Made the First Flight”

by Orville Wright

In 1903 brothers Wilbur and Orville Wright conducted experiments related to flying machines. These experiments would eventually lead to air travel becoming a reliable form of transportation.

During the night of December 16, 1903, a strong cold wind blew from the north. When we arose on the morning of the 17th, the puddles of water, which had been standing about camp since the recent rains, were covered with ice. The wind had a velocity of 10 to 12 meters per second (22 to 27 miles an hour). We thought it would die down before long, and so remained indoors the early part of the morning. But when ten o’clock arrived, and the wind was as brisk as ever, we decided that we had better get the machine out and attempt a flight. We hung out the signal for the men of the Life Saving Station.1 We thought that by facing the flyer into a strong wind, there ought to be no trouble in launching it from the level ground about camp. We realized the difficulties of flying in so high a wind, but estimated that the added dangers in flight would be partly compensated for by the slower speed in landing.

Final Preparations

We laid the track on a smooth stretch of ground about one hundred feet north of the new building. The biting cold wind made work difficult, and we had to warm up frequently in our living room, where we had a good fire in an improvised stove made of a large carbide2 can. By the time all was ready, J. T. Daniels, W. S. Dough and A. D. Etheridge, members of the Kill Devil3 Life Saving Station; W. C. Brinkley of Manteo, and Johnny Moore, a boy from Nags Head,4 had arrived.

We had a “Richard” hand anemometer with which we measured the velocity of the wind. Measurements made just before starting the first flight showed velocities of 11 to 12 meters per second, or 24 to 27 miles per hour. . . .

Audacity—and Calculation

Wilbur having used his turn in the unsuccessful attempt on the 14th, the right to the first trial now belonged to me. After running the motor a few minutes to heat it up, I released the wire that held the machine to the track, and the machine started forward in the wind. Wilbur ran at the side of the machine, holding the wing to balance it on the track. Unlike the start on the 14th, made in a calm, the machine, facing a 27-mile wind, started very slowly. Wilbur was able to stay with it till it lifted from the track after a forty-foot run. One of the Life Saving men snapped the camera for us, taking a picture just as the machine had reached the end of the track and had risen to a height of about two feet. The slow forward speed of the machine over the ground is clearly shown in the picture by Wilbur’s attitude. He stayed along beside the machine without any effort.

Flight

The course of the flight up and down was exceedingly erratic, partly due to the irregularity of the air, and partly to lack of experience in handling this machine. The control of the front rudder was difficult on account of its being balanced too near the center. This gave it a tendency to turn itself when started; so that it turned too far on one side and then too far on the other. As a result the machine would rise suddenly to about ten feet, and then as suddenly dart for the ground. A sudden dart when a little over a hundred feet from the end of the track, or a little over 120 feet from the point at which it rose into the air, ended the flight. As the velocity of the wind was over 35 feet per second and the speed of the machine over the ground against this wind ten feet per second, the speed of the machine relative to the air was over 45 feet per second, and the length of the flight was equivalent to a flight of 540 feet made in calm air. This flight lasted only 12 seconds, but it was nevertheless the first in the history of the world in which a machine carrying a man had raised itself by its own power into the air in full flight, had sailed forward without reduction of speed and had finally landed at a point as high as that from which it started.

From “How We Made the First Flight” by Orville Wright—Public Domain/Federal Aviation Administration

1Life Saving Station: one of the rescue stations along the Atlantic coastline that provided assistance to mariners in distress

2carbide: a very hard material composed of carbon and other heavy metals

3Kill Devil: the town of Kill Devil Hills in eastern North Carolina

4Nags Head: a town in eastern North Carolina

Question

How does paragraph 1 introduce the idea that the Wright brothers knew that their flight attempt was risky?

  • Athrough the mention of a signal to notify lifesaving experts that the flight attempt was about to begin
  • Bby providing specific details about the speed of the wind and the Wright brothers’ response to the windy conditions
  • Cby suggesting that a slower landing would be necessary at the end of the flight in order to maintain safety
  • Dthrough the indication that the Wright brothers waited indoors for most of the morning because of the poor weather
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how paragraph 1 introduces the idea that the Wright brothers knew that their flight attempt was risky.

A. CORRECT. Paragraph 1 describes the Wright brothers hanging out “the signal” to notify the lifesaving crew to stand by as they attempted flight; the need for lifesaving experts to be available in case of an accident introduces the idea that the attempted flight might crash.

B. Incorrect. The specifics on the speed of the wind by themselves do not emphasize the danger of the flight. While the brothers admitted that the strong wind posed certain risks, they also noted that the windy conditions might make landing safer (“estimated that the added dangers in flight would be partly compensated for by the slower speed in landing” [paragraph 1]).

C. Incorrect. A slower landing was expected as a result of the windy conditions, but it was not part of a plan to increase the safety of the flight.

D. Incorrect. While the Wright brothers’ initial decision to wait to see whether the wind would die down does suggest they were concerned about the safety of the flight, the explanation of their decision to proceed with the flight shows that they expected one benefit from the poor weather: “the slower speed in landing” (paragraph 1).

Question analysis

This question on Orville Wright’s account “How We Made the First Flight” asks how the opening paragraph, which describes a cold, windy December morning at the brothers’ camp, introduces the idea that the Wright brothers knew their flight attempt was risky. Students must judge which of four details from the paragraph does that work, and the paragraph mentions both dangers and reasons for confidence.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Finding how a paragraph introduces an idea is grade 7 work, but this paragraph is long and old-fashioned, every choice points to something it mentions, and students must decide which detail most clearly signals that the brothers saw a risk.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 7, 816 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 93 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Paragraph 1 states the danger outright only in its last sentence, and that sentence then weighs it against a gentler landing, so the choice built on the brothers’ response to the wind is the strongest pull. The key rests on a quieter detail whose meaning comes from a footnote: men from a rescue station were signaled before the attempt. Students must decide which detail shows the brothers preparing for trouble, not just noticing the weather, and that test is narrower than most expect.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The key never says danger: students must connect “the signal for the men of the Life Saving Station” to footnote 1, rescue stations for “mariners in distress,” and see that summoning rescuers means expecting trouble. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    All four details come from paragraph 1, and its plainest admission of danger, “We realized the difficulties of flying in so high a wind,” sits inside a wrong choice, so each detail must be weighed for what it shows. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  3. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

    The paragraph’s last sentence sets danger against benefit, “the added dangers in flight would be partly compensated for by the slower speed in landing,” and students must untangle it to see the brothers playing the risk down. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: Locate each of the four details in paragraph 1, reread the sentence it sits in, and ask what that detail on its own reveals about what the brothers feared could go wrong.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks how paragraph 1 first shows that the Wright brothers knew their flight was risky. Risky means it could end badly. All four choices name details from paragraph 1. Your job is to find the detail that shows them getting ready for trouble.

  2. Find the signal in paragraph 1

    Paragraph 1 says “We hung out the signal for the men of the Life Saving Station.” The small number 1 after “Station” points to footnote 1 at the end of the excerpt. Read it. A Life Saving Station was “one of the rescue stations along the Atlantic coastline that provided assistance to mariners in distress.” Mariners are sailors. Distress means danger or trouble.

  3. Work out what the signal means

    The brothers called rescue workers before they tried to fly. People call rescuers only when someone might get hurt. So the signal shows the brothers knew the flight could go wrong. They wanted help close by in case of a crash.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits. Signaling rescuers shows the brothers planned for trouble.
    • B does not fit. The wind speeds are only numbers. The brothers’ response was to fly anyway, thinking “there ought to be no trouble in launching.”
    • C does not fit. The slower landing was a side effect of the wind. They counted it as a plus, not as a safety step they needed.
    • D does not fit. They stayed inside only “the early part of the morning,” hoping the wind would die down. Then they went out in the same wind.

    Watch out: B is tempting because the paragraph says “We realized the difficulties of flying in so high a wind.” But that same sentence weighs those dangers against a slower landing. It plays the risk down.

  5. Choose the answer

    The call to the rescue station is the detail that shows the brothers preparing for danger. So the answer is A, “through the mention of a signal to notify lifesaving experts that the flight attempt was about to begin.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong choice. The paragraph does admit the wind made flying harder. But the brothers then argue the danger down: a slower landing would partly make up for it. A shows them acting on the risk. They called in rescuers before they flew. You only do that if you think something could go wrong.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 8 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 15 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test D English, page 15, question 8.
The passage “Excerpt from “How We Made the First Flight”” as printed (pages 13–14)The passage “Excerpt from “How We Made the First Flight”” as printed on page 13 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from “How We Made the First Flight”” as printed on page 14 of the DOE handbook.

Question 39 of 120

2026 Practice Test D English, question 10

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “How We Made the First Flight””.

Question

The photograph mentioned in paragraph 4 is significant because it

  • Adocuments that the machine rose into the air as soon as the tethering wire was released.
  • Bprovides proof of the critical moment the machine took flight.
  • Cdocuments that the wind reduced the speed of the plane at the start of the flight.
  • Dprovides proof that the pilot had to gradually increase the height of the plane in the air.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks why the photograph mentioned in paragraph 4 is significant.

A. Incorrect. According to paragraph 4, the photograph was not taken immediately after the tethering wire was released but rather after an intervening period during which “Wilbur ran at the side of the machine, holding the wing to balance it on the track.” The picture was not taken until “the machine had reached the end of the track,” which occurred after a “forty-foot run” (paragraph 4).

B. CORRECT. The photograph mentioned in paragraph 4 is significant because it provides proof that the machine did, in fact, take flight: “One of the Life Saving men snapped the camera for us, taking a picture just as the machine had reached the end of the track and had risen to a height of about two feet. The slow forward speed of the machine over the ground is clearly shown in the picture by Wilbur’s attitude. He stayed along beside the machine without any effort.”

C. Incorrect. The photograph mentioned in paragraph 4 is described as showing the plane moving forward through the air at a height of two feet, but while the effect of the wind may be visible, it is not why the photo is significant. Instead, the photograph provides proof that the plane is, in fact, moving through the air (“One of the Life Saving men snapped the camera for us, taking a picture just as the machine had reached the end of the track and had risen to a height of about two feet. The slow forward speed of the machine over the ground is clearly shown in the picture by Wilbur’s attitude”).

D. Incorrect. Although the plane is shown at a height of two feet in the photograph mentioned in paragraph 4, the picture documents only one moment of the plane’s flight and does not provide proof that the pilot had to gradually increase the height of the plane in the air.

Question analysis

This question on Orville Wright’s account of the first airplane flight asks why the photograph mentioned in paragraph 4, taken by one of the Life Saving men, is significant. The photograph itself is not printed with the excerpt, so students must work from Orville’s description of the moment it was taken. Several choices describe the machine’s movement, so each must be checked against that description.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 readers often explain why a detail matters. This photograph is not printed, so students must picture it from Orville’s description, which uses “attitude” in an old sense meaning posture, and then judge why the picture mattered.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 7, 816 words; question and choices: about grade 7, 68 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The photograph is not printed, so students work from three sentences of description, and the last two tell what Orville thinks the picture shows: the machine’s slow speed, visible in Wilbur’s easy pace. That stated detail is the strongest lure. The question asks for significance instead, which the excerpt leaves unstated; students must link the moment captured, the machine just off the track at the end of its run, to paragraph 5’s closing claim that this was the first such flight in history.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    Orville never says why the picture matters; students must notice it was taken “just as the machine had reached the end of the track and had risen to a height of about two feet,” the instant of lift-off. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    The key’s “critical moment the machine took flight” appears nowhere, while the wrong choices echo the paragraph’s released wire, the slow speed Orville says the picture shows, and the “height of about two feet.” (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  3. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    Orville says the slow speed shows “by Wilbur’s attitude,” using attitude in an old sense, Wilbur’s posture as he keeps pace, which students must decode to follow the description of the picture. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Reread the three sentences about the picture in paragraph 4, note when it was taken and what Orville says it shows, then weigh which choice explains why such a picture would matter.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks why the photograph in paragraph 4 matters. The photograph is not printed with the excerpt. You have to picture it from Orville’s words. Find when it was taken. Then ask why a picture of that moment would be important.

  2. Read the description of the photograph

    Paragraph 4 says “One of the Life Saving men snapped the camera for us, taking a picture just as the machine had reached the end of the track and had risen to a height of about two feet.” The next sentences say “The slow forward speed of the machine over the ground is clearly shown in the picture by Wilbur’s attitude. He stayed along beside the machine without any effort.”

  3. Work out what the picture shows

    The machine had just left the track and was two feet in the air. So the picture caught the moment it lifted off. Here “attitude” means the way Wilbur held his body. He kept up with the machine easily, so it was moving slowly. Paragraph 5 says this flight was “the first in the history of the world” of its kind. A photo of that lift-off is proof that it really happened.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. The machine did not rise at once. It lifted “after a forty-foot run.”
    • B fits. The picture caught the moment the machine first took flight.
    • C does not fit. The picture does show the slow speed. But that is a detail in the photo, not why the photo matters.
    • D does not fit. One picture shows one moment. It cannot show a steady climb. In fact, paragraph 5 says the machine rose and dropped suddenly.

    Watch out: C is tempting because Orville himself says the slow speed is “clearly shown in the picture.” But the question asks why the picture is significant, which means important.

  5. Choose the answer

    The photo captured the very moment the first flight began. So the answer is B, “provides proof of the critical moment the machine took flight.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong choice. Orville does say the picture shows the machine’s slow speed. But slow speed is not what makes this photo special. It was taken just as the machine “had risen to a height of about two feet” at the end of the track. That is proof of the first moment of flight, as B says.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 10 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 17 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test D English, page 17, question 10.

Question 40 of 120

2026 Practice Test D English, question 12

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “How We Made the First Flight””.

Question

Read this sentence from paragraph 5.

As the velocity of the wind was over 35 feet per second and the speed of the machine over the ground against this wind ten feet per second, the speed of the machine relative to the air was over 45 feet per second, and the length of the flight was equivalent to a flight of 540 feet made in calm air.

How does the sentence help convey Orville Wright’s perspective about this first flight?

  • AIt suggests that he was frustrated by the poor flying conditions on the day of the flight.
  • BIt emphasizes that he believed the flight was successful despite its short distance.
  • CIt provides a comparison between flight distances under calm and high wind conditions.
  • DIt highlights the importance of such calculations in the success of future flights.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks how the sentence from paragraph 5 helps convey Orville Wright’s perspective about the first flight.

A. Incorrect. Although the sentence from paragraph 5 refers to the velocity of the wind during the flight, there is no indication that Orville felt a sense of frustration with the windy conditions. Instead, the sentence emphasizes the “speed of the machine relative to the air” and presents the equivalent flight length if the machine had flown through calm air (“the length of the flight was equivalent to a flight of 540 feet made in calm air”), details that emphasize the importance of the Wrights’ accomplishment.

B. CORRECT. In the sentence from paragraph 5, Orville uses the wind velocity and the machine speed to highlight the distance that the plane covered while in the air and to determine the distance that it would have flown on a day with calm winds, which emphasizes the magnitude of the accomplishment.

C. Incorrect. Since Orville does not suggest in the sentence from paragraph 5 how far the plane traveled under the actual conditions of high winds, the comparison is incomplete. Additionally, this statement does not address the reason that he would make such a comparison, which allowed him to describe the flight in more impressive terms (540 feet versus 120 feet).

D. Incorrect. Unlike the wind velocity calculations made in preparation for the flight, which might help in determining the success of future flights, the comparative calculations that Orville provides in the sentence from paragraph 5 help interpret the results of the first flight (by describing how fast and far the machine flew relative to the flying conditions) and thereby communicate its success. The calculations of the first flight’s relative speed and equivalent distance would not affect the success of future flights, but the information does provide context for understanding the Wright brothers’ accomplishment.

Question analysis

This point-of-view question quotes the long sentence from paragraph 5 in which Orville Wright works out the machine’s speed through the air and the length of an equivalent flight in calm air. Students must decide how this sentence helps convey his perspective on the first flight. The sentence is mostly numbers, from 35 feet per second to 540 feet, which makes its purpose easy to miss.

NYS standards
  • 7R6 point of view and author position
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 point-of-view questions usually rest on words that show feeling. This sentence is a chain of speeds and distances with no feeling words, so students must work out why Orville bothers with the arithmetic, a step beyond typical grade 7 work.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 7, 816 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 132 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Point-of-view questions usually turn on feeling words, and this sentence has none, only speeds and a distance. Students must ask why Orville bothers with the arithmetic, and the answer is that 540 feet in calm air makes a 12-second hop look like the achievement he believed it was. The strongest pull describes the sentence’s content accurately, a comparison of calm and windy flight, without saying what it reveals, so students who answer what instead of why lose the point.

  1. How, not what moderate Working it out

    The question asks why Orville includes this calculation, so students must see that converting a short hop into “a flight of 540 feet made in calm air” is his way of showing that it counted. (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The sentence holds no word of feeling or judgment; his view that the flight succeeded must be read from his choice to restate about 120 feet over the ground as 540 feet through the air. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

    The 61-word sentence chains four measurements, a wind over 35 feet per second, a ground speed of ten, an airspeed over 45 and the 540-foot equivalent, joined by “As,” “and” and commas. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: Work out what the speeds and distances in the sentence describe, then ask why Orville includes them at this point and what that choice tells you about his view of the flight.

Traps

  • Wrong purpose or structure: Names a purpose, structure or effect that the part does not serve, or describes what a part says when the question asks what it does.
  • Wrong tone or attitude: Misjudges the tone, attitude or point of view, such as reading admiration as criticism, or taking a character's or subject's feelings for the author's.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks about Orville Wright’s perspective, or point of view. How did he feel about the first flight? The quoted sentence is full of numbers, not feelings. So ask why Orville bothered to do this math.

  2. Sort out the numbers

    The wind blew against the machine at over 35 feet per second. The machine moved over the ground at 10 feet per second. It was flying into the wind, so the air rushed past it even faster. Add them: it moved through the air at over 45 feet per second. The flight lasted 12 seconds. Over the ground, that is 10 × 12 = 120 feet. Through the air, it is 45 × 12 = 540 feet. That is how Orville gets “a flight of 540 feet made in calm air.”

  3. Ask why Orville does this math

    Paragraph 5 says the flight ended “a little over 120 feet from the point at which it rose into the air.” That sounds short. But Orville shows it was really much more. In calm air, the same flight would have gone 540 feet. He wants you to see that the short hop was a real flight. So his view is that the flight was a success.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. There is no sign of frustration. Orville uses the wind to make the flight count for more.
    • B fits. The math turns a short flight into an impressive one.
    • C does not fit. The sentence does compare calm and windy air. But that only says what the sentence contains, not what Orville thinks.
    • D does not fit. The math measures the flight that just happened. It does not look ahead to future flights.

    Watch out: C is tempting because it describes the sentence correctly. But the question asks about his perspective. C never says how he felt about the flight.

  5. Choose the answer

    Orville does the math to show that his short flight was a real success. So the answer is B, “It emphasizes that he believed the flight was successful despite its short distance.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong choice. It is true that the sentence compares a windy flight with one “made in calm air.” But C only tells what the sentence says. The question asks why Orville says it. He turns about 120 feet into 540 feet to show the flight was a real achievement. B gives that reason.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 12 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 19 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test D English, page 19, question 12.

Question 41 of 120

2026 Practice Test D English, question 13

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “How We Made the First Flight””.

Question

Which sentence from the excerpt best supports the idea that the Wright brothers had to adapt their plans for the flight in order to accommodate the weather conditions?

  • A“When we arose on the morning of the 17th, the puddles of water, which had been standing about camp since the recent rains, were covered with ice.” (paragraph 1)
  • B“We realized the difficulties of flying in so high a wind, but estimated that the added dangers in flight would be partly compensated for by the slower speed in landing.” (paragraph 1)
  • C“After running the motor a few minutes to heat it up, I released the wire that held the machine to the track, and the machine started forward in the wind.” (paragraph 4)
  • D“The course of the flight up and down was exceedingly erratic, partly due to the irregularity of the air, and partly to lack of experience in handling this machine.” (paragraph 5)
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks which sentence from the excerpt best supports the idea that the Wright brothers had to adapt their plans for the flight in order to accommodate weather conditions.

A. Incorrect. Although the sentence from paragraph 1 mentions the rainy weather and frozen puddles, it does not specifically explain how these weather conditions forced the brothers to adapt their plans for the flight.

B. CORRECT. The sentence from paragraph 1 reveals that the Wright brothers adapted by making a risk calculation, based on the wind speed, before the flight. The high speed of the wind could cause difficulties in flight while simultaneously allowing for a slower, more controlled landing.

C. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 4 does mention wind, but it describes what Orville was doing during the attempted flight, not the factors he considered before the flight in order to adapt the plan.

D. Incorrect. Although the sentence from paragraph 5 mentions the “irregularity of the air” during the flight, the sentence does not describe how the brothers adapted their plans for the flight based on the weather.

Question analysis

This evidence question on Orville Wright’s account of the first flight asks which sentence best supports the idea that the Wright brothers had to adapt their plans for the flight to the weather conditions. The four quotations come from paragraphs 1, 4 and 5 and all mention ice, wind or air, so students must look past the weather words to what each sentence shows the brothers doing.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Choosing the sentence that best supports an idea is core grade 7 evidence work. The four quotations are printed in full with their paragraph numbers, and the idea has two parts, weather and a change of plans, so the check is careful but typical.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 7, 816 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 148 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The idea has two parts, the weather and a change in the brothers’ plans, and every quotation carries the first. Students who look only for weather words can be drawn to the erratic flight or the launch into the wind. Only one sentence shows the brothers thinking about the wind before they flew and deciding how to proceed, and once the second half of the idea is in view the choice is quick.

  1. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    All four quotations mention ice, wind or air, so the weather half of the idea rules nothing out; each must be checked for the other half, a decision the brothers made because of it. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The key never says plan or adapt; students must see that weighing “the added dangers in flight” against “the slower speed in landing” is the brothers fitting their decision to the wind. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Split the idea into its two parts, the weather and a change in the brothers’ plans, and keep only a quotation that shows both, not one that shows the weather alone.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for the sentence that best supports an idea. The idea has two parts. First, there was bad weather. Second, the brothers had to adapt, or change, their plans because of it. All four choices mention ice, wind or air. So look for the one that also shows a decision.

  2. Check each sentence for both parts

    • A shows the weather: icy puddles. But no one decides anything.
    • B shows the wind and the brothers’ thinking about it before the flight.
    • C describes the launch. It tells what Orville did, not a change of plans.
    • D explains why the flight was bumpy once it was in the air. It shows no plan.

  3. Read the sentence that fits

    Paragraph 1 says “We realized the difficulties of flying in so high a wind, but estimated that the added dangers in flight would be partly compensated for by the slower speed in landing.” To estimate is to make a careful guess. Compensated for means “made up for.” The brothers knew the strong wind made flying harder. They weighed that against a good effect: a slower landing. Then they decided to fly anyway.

  4. Explain how this shows adapting

    The brothers did not just notice the wind. They thought about how it would change the flight, the bad and the good. They also planned on “facing the flyer into a strong wind.” Making plans that fit the weather is what adapting means.

    Watch out: D is tempting because it links “the irregularity of the air” to the flight. But it tells what happened during the flight, not how the brothers planned for it.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only one sentence shows the brothers fitting their decision to the wind before they flew. So the answer is B, “We realized the difficulties of flying in so high a wind, but estimated that the added dangers in flight would be partly compensated for by the slower speed in landing.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong choice. It does connect the weather to the flight. But it describes what happened in the air, after the plans were made. The idea needs the brothers changing plans because of the weather. Only B shows them thinking through the wind’s dangers and benefits before they decided to fly.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 13 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 20 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test D English, page 20, question 13.

Question 42 of 120

2026 Practice Test D English, question 19
Passage Wolves of the Sea

Wolves of the Sea

The cool and misty landscape of the Great Bear Rainforest can be found along the coast of British Columbia, Canada, and its nearby islands, from Vancouver Island to the Alaskan border. Within this protected area, wolves roam the forests, islands, and beaches. When biologist Chris Darimont began to study these wolves, he wanted to confer with local First Nations groups, as aboriginal Canadians are known, in order to learn what they knew about these wolves. He spoke with Chester Starr, an elder of the Heiltsuk Nation that has occupied the Great Bear Rainforest for thousands of years. What Starr had to say about the wolves changed Darimont’s perception of the animals.

Starr asked Darimont which wolves he and his team were going to study—the timber wolves (mainland wolves) or the coastal wolves on the islands. The question took Darimont by surprise. Biologists had always believed that the wolves that are sometimes spotted swimming between islands and eating salmon are the same wolves that live on the mainland. Darimont was intrigued by Starr’s classification of the wolves as two different groups. At first, he was hesitant to accept the idea. The distances between the mainland and the islands are small, less than a mile. Why would the wolves on the islands be any different from the wolves on the mainland? To find out, Darimont and his research team studied the wolves on the islands and in the densely forested territory of the Great Bear Rainforest for ten years.

Throughout the study, Darimont recorded several significant, observable differences between the “sea wolves,” as they are nicknamed, and the mainland wolves. Compared with the mainland wolves, the sea wolves are smaller in size and are strong swimmers. In 1996 sea wolves were spotted on an island nearly eight miles from any other land formation. While mainland wolves almost exclusively eat meat, such as deer and elk, and teach their young to hunt for land animals, sea wolves get as much as 90 percent of their nutrition from the sea and teach their young to dig for clams and to catch fish. Sea wolves regularly swim between islands and have been known to sneak up on a seal sunning itself on a rock and make a leaping attack from the water. Some salmon-eating mainland wolves come and go from the islands with the fish-spawning season, but the sea wolves are full-time island residents. Darimont suspects that some sea wolves live their entire life on the islands.

The sea wolves displayed not only physical and behavioral differences but also genetic variations from the mainland wolves. After collecting and analyzing the DNA in 800 samples of gray fur and wolf waste, researchers could produce hard biological evidence that sea wolves had genetic markers that made them distinct from the mainland wolves. A genetic marker is a variation in a DNA sequence that can be used to identify individuals or a species because it is passed down to offspring. Darimont hypothesizes that a change in habitat led to the eventual genetic differences between sea wolves and mainland wolves. Many years ago, loss of habitat and food sources forced some mainland wolves out to the islands. They learned to eat everything from kelp and fish eggs to the remains of sea creatures that washed up on the beach. Wolves living on the islands and mainland wolves became more isolated and rarely mated with each other. Over time the two types of wolves became more distinct.

It turned out that Chester Starr was right all along. “It sounded totally bizarre at first,” admits Darimont, “that there could be two versions of the species.” But he now realizes that this skepticism “definitely reflected my ignorance of indigenous knowledge at the time.” Learning to trust the wisdom of the Heiltsuk people opened Darimont up to knowledge accumulated over millennia and positioned him so that he could gather new scientific evidence about one of British Columbia’s most elusive species, the sea wolf.

Question

Which sentence from the passage best supports the idea that sea wolves had successfully adapted to living on the islands?

  • A“While mainland wolves almost exclusively eat meat, such as deer and elk, and teach their young to hunt for land animals, sea wolves get as much as 90 percent of their nutrition from the sea and teach their young to dig for clams and to catch fish.” (paragraph 3)
  • B“Sea wolves regularly swim between islands and have been known to sneak up on a seal sunning itself on a rock and make a leaping attack from the water.” (paragraph 3)
  • C“Darimont suspects that some sea wolves live their entire life on the islands.” (paragraph 3)
  • D“Darimont hypothesizes that a change in habitat led to the eventual genetic differences between sea wolves and mainland wolves.” (paragraph 4)
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks for the sentence from the passage that best supports the idea that sea wolves had successfully adapted to living on the islands.

A. CORRECT. This sentence from paragraph 3 describes a significant difference in the diets of the mainland and sea wolves: the mainland wolves “almost exclusively eat meat, such as deer and elk, and teach their young to hunt for land animals,” whereas the sea wolves had adapted to the point where they derive “as much as 90 percent of their nutrition from the sea and teach their young to dig for clams and to catch fish.” This sentence emphasizes the dietary difference between the two groups of wolves and best supports the idea that sea wolves had successfully adapted to living on the islands.

B. Incorrect. Although this sentence from paragraph 3 describes one technique that the sea wolves used to hunt, it does not offer evidence as strong as that provided by the preceding sentence, which explains that sea wolves were able to derive “as much as 90 percent” (paragraph 3) of their sustenance from the sea alone (versus the mainland wolves, which “almost exclusively eat meat” from land animals [paragraph 3]).

C. Incorrect. Although this sentence from paragraph 3 states that “some sea wolves live their entire life on the islands,” it does not provide strong evidence of the necessary adaptations—namely, how these wolves were able to successfully live their whole lives on the islands. Living on the islands was not necessarily an adaptation in and of itself; the adaptation was the sea-based diet that enabled the sea wolves to live on the islands without access to land animals.

D. Incorrect. Although this sentence from paragraph 4 presents Darimont’s hypothesis that “a change in habitat led to the eventual genetic differences” between the wolves, the sentence does not describe any of the sea wolves’ adaptations nor best support the idea that the sea wolves successfully adapted to living on the islands.

Question analysis

This evidence question on “Wolves of the Sea” asks which sentence best supports the idea that sea wolves had successfully adapted to living on the islands. Three choices come from paragraph 3’s list of differences between sea wolves and mainland wolves and one from paragraph 4, so students must rank closely related sentences by how directly each shows the wolves thriving there.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 evidence questions often have one clearly relevant sentence. Here three neighboring sentences all describe the sea wolves’ island life, so students must decide what counts as successful adaptation and rank strong evidence against nearly as strong.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 662 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 131 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

All four sentences are about sea wolves, and three describe their island lives, so the question turns on ranking evidence rather than spotting it. The seal attack is one of the passage’s most vivid images and shows a real island skill, which makes it hard to give up for a sentence about diet. The key wins because it shows a whole way of life changing, most food from the sea and the young taught to fish, while the other sentences offer one habit, a hedged guess or a cause.

  1. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The seal-hunting sentence sits right after the key in paragraph 3 and also shows sea wolves living off the sea; it differs in showing one hunting trick instead of up to 90 percent of their food. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    No sentence uses the word “adapted,” so students must first decide what would prove an animal thrives in a new place, such as getting its food there and teaching that skill to its young. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    Three of the four sentences come from paragraph 3’s list of island habits, and all four mention sea wolves or their habitat, so none can be dismissed at a glance. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Before reading the choices, decide what would prove that an animal has adapted well to a new place, then rank the four sentences by how fully each one shows that, not merely whether it fits.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for evidence: the sentence that best supports a claim. The claim is that sea wolves “had successfully adapted to living on the islands.” To adapt is to change so you can live well in a new place.

  2. Decide what strong proof looks like

    Before you read the choices, ask what would prove an animal is doing well somewhere new. It can find its food there. It can also teach its young to live there. One clever trick is weaker proof. A guess is weaker still. So look for a sentence that shows a whole way of life built around the new home.

  3. Test the diet sentence

    Choice A comes from paragraph 3. It says “sea wolves get as much as 90 percent of their nutrition from the sea and teach their young to dig for clams and to catch fish.” Nutrition is the food a body needs. So almost all their food comes from the sea. They also pass those skills on to their pups. Mainland wolves, by contrast, “almost exclusively eat meat, such as deer and elk.” Exclusively means only.

  4. Check the other choices

    • B shows one hunting trick, a leap at a seal. It is a real island skill. But it shows less than a diet that is up to 90 percent from the sea.
    • C uses the word “suspects,” so it is only Darimont’s guess. It also tells where some wolves live, not how they manage there.
    • D gives Darimont’s idea about what caused the genetic differences. It does not show the wolves doing well.

    Watch out: The seal attack in B is the most exciting picture. But one exciting hunt is weaker proof than a whole new diet.

  5. Choose the answer

    Sentence A shows sea wolves getting most of their food from the sea and training their young to do the same. So the answer is A, the sentence “While mainland wolves almost exclusively eat meat, such as deer and elk, and teach their young to hunt for land animals, sea wolves get as much as 90 percent of their nutrition from the sea and teach their young to dig for clams and to catch fish.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong answer. It comes right after A in paragraph 3 and also shows sea wolves living off the sea. But B shows one way of hunting. A shows where nearly all their food comes from, and that they teach it to their young. That is stronger proof that they adapted well.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 19 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 29 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test D English, page 29, question 19.
The passage “Wolves of the Sea” as printed (pages 23–24)The passage “Wolves of the Sea” as printed on page 23 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Wolves of the Sea” as printed on page 24 of the DOE handbook.

Question 43 of 120

2026 Practice Test D English, question 20

Uses the passage above: “Wolves of the Sea”.

Question

How did a change in habitat most affect the wolf population of the Great Bear Rainforest over time?

  • AIt caused some of the wolves to learn new hunting techniques in order to catch increasingly scarce prey.
  • BIt caused the wolves to form smaller packs and eventually separate, establishing distinct territories.
  • CIt caused some of the wolves to gradually become a new, genetically distinct species as they adapted behaviorally.
  • DIt caused the wolves to adapt their diet as different food sources became available in the area.
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks how a change in habitat most affected the wolf population of the Great Bear Rainforest over time.

A. Incorrect. Although the island wolves learned new hunting techniques (“dig for clams and to catch fish,” “sneak up on a seal sunning itself on a rock and make a leaping attack from the water” [paragraph 3]), there is no evidence in the passage that these hunting techniques were developed in response to scarcity of prey. The most significant effect of the change in habitat was not an influence on hunting techniques but the behavior differences that evolved because of the isolation of the groups of wolves from each other.

B. Incorrect. The change in habitat did not cause the wolves to form smaller packs but rather served to create distinctive behaviors because of the isolation of one pack from another, eventually causing the groups of wolves to become distinct species.

C. CORRECT. The change in habitat caused the wolves to gradually become two distinct species. Though the “sea wolves regularly swim between islands” and “some salmon-eating mainland wolves come and go from the islands,” the “sea wolves are full-time island residents” (paragraph 3). This behavioral adaptation to their environment caused the sea wolves to become “more isolated” from the mainland wolves; as a result, the two groups “rarely mated with each other,” and “over time the two types of wolves became more distinct” (paragraph 4).

D. Incorrect. Only the sea wolves adapted their diet. They did this not because different food sources became available in the area but because they were in an entirely different area from the mainland wolves.

Question analysis

This cause-and-effect question asks how a change in habitat most affected the wolf population of the Great Bear Rainforest over time, in the article “Wolves of the Sea.” Students must follow the account in paragraphs 3 and 4 of how some wolves came to live on the islands and pick the result the passage treats as the main one, among several that sound possible.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Tracing how one event leads to another is core grade 7 informational reading. The effects here are spread over two paragraphs of science writing, and several choices mix real details with causes the passage never gives, which keeps the demand typical.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 662 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 85 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • Two grammar slips in the explanation were corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Several effects of the move are real, and the strongest wrong answer names one of them, a change of diet, but gives it the wrong cause by having food appear nearby instead of wolves being forced out to the islands. Students who stop at the first effect they recognize miss that the question asks what happened over time. The key’s “new, genetically distinct species” overstates the passage, which calls the wolves “two versions of the species,” though it is still the only choice that follows the chain to its end.

  1. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The chain of effects runs across two paragraphs: the island habits of paragraph 3, then paragraph 4’s loss of habitat, isolation, rare mating and the two types becoming “more distinct” over time. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The word “most” and the phrase “over time” point past the first changes, a new diet and new skills, to the end of the chain, genetic difference, which students must rank as the main effect. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Trace the chain of events in paragraphs 3 and 4 from the wolves’ move to the islands onward, then test each choice for who changed, why, and with what result.

Traps

  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.
  • Half right: One half of a two-part choice is right and the other is not.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The DOE’s explanation of Option B says “eventually causing the groups of wolves to became distinct species”; the site says “to become.” Its explanation of Option C says the change “caused the sea wolves to ‘became more isolated’ from the mainland wolves,” putting paragraph 4’s past-tense “became” after “to”; the site now reads “caused the sea wolves to become ‘more isolated’ from the mainland wolves.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is a cause-and-effect question. The cause is a change in habitat. A habitat is the place where an animal lives and finds food. You need the biggest effect it had “over time.” So follow the whole chain of events to its end.

  2. Find the cause in paragraph 4

    Paragraph 4 says, “Many years ago, loss of habitat and food sources forced some mainland wolves out to the islands.” There, “They learned to eat everything from kelp and fish eggs to the remains of sea creatures that washed up on the beach.” Kelp is a kind of seaweed.

  3. Follow the chain to its end

    Next, the two groups “became more isolated and rarely mated with each other.” Isolated means cut off. Then, “Over time the two types of wolves became more distinct.” Distinct means clearly different. Darimont thinks the change in habitat “led to the eventual genetic differences.” Genetic means in the DNA, passed from parents to young. So the chain ends with the two groups becoming different in their DNA.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. Lost food sent wolves to the islands. The passage never says they learned tricks to catch scarce, or hard-to-find, prey.
    • B is wrong. The passage never mentions packs or territories.
    • C is right. Some wolves changed how they live, then grew apart in their DNA. One caution: C says “species.” The passage is more careful. It speaks of “two versions of the species.”
    • D is wrong. Only the island wolves changed their diet. They did not find new food nearby. Lost food forced them to move.

    Watch out: D names a real effect, a new diet. But that is only an early step, and D gives the wrong reason for it.

  5. Choose the answer

    The biggest effect over time was that the island wolves grew different in their DNA from the mainland wolves. So the answer is C, “It caused some of the wolves to gradually become a new, genetically distinct species as they adapted behaviorally.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong answer, because the diet really did change. But D says new food “became available in the area.” The passage says the opposite: lost food forced some wolves out to the islands. A new diet is also only an early step. C follows the chain all the way to the change in their DNA.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 20 as shown on the DOE’s digital test, page 30 of its printable version.
As printed in the DOE’s printable version of 2026 Practice Test D English, page 30, question 20. This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 44 of 120

2025 Practice Test A English, question 9
Passage Excerpt from “Scribe Like an Egyptian”

Excerpt from “Scribe Like an Egyptian”

by Hilary Wilson

In ancient Egypt, literacy was the key to success. However, contrary to popular belief, not all Egyptian scribes understood hieroglyphs. Many relied instead on the simpler hieratic script for the multitude of everyday documents generated by the Egyptian bureaucracy.

Hieroglyphs—“the Words of God”—compose a writing system with more than 1,000 distinct characters, the meanings of which were lost for 1,500 years before they were deciphered by Jean-François Champollion in 1822. Including both ideograms (which convey a whole word or idea, either concrete or abstract, in a single sign) and phonograms (representing either an alphabetic sound or a group of consonants), [the writing system] was used in formal inscriptions on tomb and temple walls as well as on elaborate funerary papyri. For everyday purposes, however, scribes used a shorthand version of the hieroglyphic script known as hieratic, which was quicker to write and more economical of space. The two writings existed side by side for at least 2,500 years.

Scraps of ancient hieratic writing, mostly penned by student scribes on limestone flakes called ostraca, suggest that no matter how humble his origins, an educated Egyptian could achieve almost anything. Horemheb (d.1292 B.C.) is a good example. Born of middle-ranking parents, his scribal training led to an army career. From Scribe of Recruits, during the reign of Akhenaten (1353–1336 B.C.), Horemheb rose through the military ranks and, by the rule of Tutankhamun (1332–1323 B.C.), he was commander in chief of the Egyptian forces. As a close adviser of the young Pharaoh, Horemheb was appointed “Deputy of the King throughout the Two Lands,” and might have expected to succeed to the throne should the king die childless. He had to wait a few years, but eventually Horemheb achieved the pinnacle of his career by becoming the last king of the 18th Dynasty, making his mark by instituting dramatic reforms to the organisation of the army, the judiciary and administration in general. The lasting success of these changes owed much to his scribal background. . . .

But education was not available to all. Government departments and major temples supported schools, where boys commenced their training at six or seven, sometimes earlier. To these boarding establishments . . . family or household servants delivered the students’ food and drink rations daily for several years, during which time the student was not contributing to the family’s income. Boys from poorer families could only hope to be educated with support from a wealthier relative or patron, or through apprenticeship to an older scribe, perhaps the local clerk or land agent, who would teach them the basics of the scribe’s craft. This limited the scope for employment but such “on the job” training allowed apprentices to help out at home while learning. . . .

Scribal education began with the elementary principles of the hieratic script. The lowliest scribes, who trained for just five or six years, probably learned only the rudiments of the hieroglyphic script. Students were set exemplar documents and extracts from popular texts to copy, to practice their hieratic handwriting on basic-format letters, reports and contracts, while absorbing the good advice contained in the texts. Surviving examples of copy-work sometimes include tutors’ corrections added in red. Some significant Egyptian literary works survive almost exclusively from student copies.

A schoolboy “dictionary” of hieroglyphs with their hieratic equivalents shows that a knowledge of more than 450 signs was required for everyday writing purposes. Lessons in record-keeping and filing and labelling enabled any half-competent scribe to perform that most essential of all scribal functions: the making and updating of lists. For professions such as those of government official, priest or lawyer, a scribe would train for several more years, increasing his vocabulary to perhaps a thousand or more signs. Those with the best handwriting or drawing skills might follow the craft of creating beautifully illustrated copies of funerary texts, commonly called Books of the Dead. Others could become draughtsmen, artists or architects. Doctors compiled their own collections of medication recipes, treatments and associated incantations, many copied from texts found in the House of Life, the temple library. Lawyers had to be familiar with the corpus of civil and religious laws and precedents found in the official records, which were administered by archivists. Egypt’s bureaucratic society depended on the skills of an army of scribes of all ranks from filing clerk to tax assessor. For young Egyptians, “be a scribe” was the best of career advice.

From “Scribe Like an Egyptian” by Hilary Wilson from HISTORY TODAY, August 8, 2019. Copyright © 2019 by History Today Ltd. Company.

A pyramid diagram titled “ANCIENT EGYPTIAN SOCIAL CLASS STRUCTURE,” divided into five horizontal levels, each with a small drawing of figures in ancient Egyptian style and a labeled box. From top to bottom the levels are labeled: Pharaoh (a single standing figure); Nobility and priests (a kneeling figure and a standing figure); Traders, shopkeepers, scribes, and artisans (two seated figures working); Animal herders and farmers (a man standing beside a group of cattle); and Unskilled workers (three figures bending forward).

bureaucracy: an administrative staff of government officials
funerary papyri: a sheet or scroll of papyrus containing religious images and hieroglyphs meant to help the deceased be reborn in the afterlife
rudiments: basics
schoolboy: slang that refers to materials used during the course of receiving an education
draughtsmen: people who draw plans of machinery or structures
corpus: a collection of writings

Question

Which sentence from the excerpt best supports the idea that there were different levels of education for a scribe?

  • A“However, contrary to popular belief, not all Egyptian scribes understood hieroglyphs.” (paragraph 1)
  • B“For everyday purposes, however, scribes used a shorthand version of the hieroglyphic script known as hieratic, which was quicker to write and more economical of space.” (paragraph 2)
  • C“This limited the scope for employment but such ‘on the job’ training allowed apprentices to help out at home while learning.” (paragraph 4)
  • D“For professions such as those of government official, priest or lawyer, a scribe would train for several more years, increasing his vocabulary to perhaps a thousand or more signs.” (paragraph 6)
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks for a sentence from the excerpt that best supports the idea that different levels of education were available to scribes.

A. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 1 provides evidence that Egyptian scribes used two different forms of writing, but it does not address the topic of education or the different levels of education that were available to scribes.

B. Incorrect. The advantages and purposes of hieratic script are described in this sentence from paragraph 2, but this explanation of the advantages and purposes does not suggest that there were different levels of education for scribes.

C. Incorrect. The fact that scribes could learn their trade through apprenticeships as discussed in this sentence from paragraph 4 does provide evidence that another method of learning to be a scribe was possible, but this process was for a limited entry into becoming a scribe, not the continued education scribes would need in order to work in specific areas.

D. CORRECT. By explaining that certain professions required additional years of training, this sentence from paragraph 6 supports the idea that different levels of education existed for scribes.

Question analysis

This evidence question on Hilary Wilson’s “Scribe Like an Egyptian,” a magazine article about how ancient Egyptian scribes learned their trade, asks which quoted sentence best supports the idea that scribes received different levels of education. The four sentences come from paragraphs 1, 2, 4 and 6, and more than one seems to touch on the idea, so close reading of each decides it.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Choosing the sentence that best supports an idea is routine grade 7 evidence work. Here several quotations touch on ways scribes differed, and the article’s dense, technical wording makes those differences harder to sort than usual.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 12, 810 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 110 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Two of the wrong sentences are not off topic: one says not all scribes understood hieroglyphs, the other that apprenticeship narrowed a scribe’s job prospects, and both imply that scribes differed. The question rewards asking what the idea actually claims, that schooling itself came in stages, and only the sentence about professions that required more years of training says so outright. Students who stop at the first sentence suggesting a difference lose the point.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The right sentence never says “levels”; students must see that training “for several more years” for official, priest or lawyer posts means a higher tier of schooling than the basic course. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    Two other quotations also hint at differences among scribes, paragraph 1’s “not all Egyptian scribes understood hieroglyphs” and paragraph 4’s “limited the scope for employment,” so each must be weighed, not just scanned. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  3. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    Terms such as “hieratic,” “economical of space” and “scope for employment” slow the reading of the quotations, and the shorthand sentence is hard to dismiss until hieratic is understood as a script. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Ask what a sentence would have to say to prove that scribal education came in levels, then test each quotation against that and prefer a direct statement over a hint.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for the sentence that best supports one idea: scribes could get “different levels of education.” A level is a stage. Some scribes studied for a short time, and others went on to study more. You need a sentence that shows a difference in schooling, not just any difference between scribes.

  2. Find what each level looked like

    Paragraphs 5 and 6 describe the training. Paragraph 5 says the lowest scribes studied for only five or six years. They learned just the basics of hieroglyphs. Paragraph 6 says that more than 450 signs were needed for everyday writing. Then choice D adds a higher level: “For professions such as those of government official, priest or lawyer, a scribe would train for several more years, increasing his vocabulary to perhaps a thousand or more signs.”

  3. Work out what choice D means

    A profession is a job that needs special training. Choice D says some jobs needed more years of study and more signs, perhaps over a thousand. A basic scribe stopped sooner and knew fewer signs. So schooling came in stages: a basic course, and then more years for the top jobs. That is what the question means by levels of education.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. It says not all scribes understood hieroglyphs. That is a difference in what scribes knew. It says nothing about how they were taught.
    • B does not fit. It explains hieratic, a faster shorthand way of writing. That is about writing, not schooling.
    • C does not fit. It is about apprentices, who learned on the job from an older scribe. That is a different way into the work, not a higher or lower stage of study.
    • D fits. Some jobs needed several more years of training.

    Watch out: A is tempting because it shows that scribes were not all alike. But it never mentions school.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only one sentence shows some scribes studying for years after the basic course. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong choice. It shows that some scribes knew hieroglyphs and others did not. But it doesn’t say why, or how long anyone studied. D says plainly that some jobs needed several more years of training. That is a level of education above the basic one.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 9 as shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test.
As shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test: 2025 Practice Test A English, question 9.
The passage “Excerpt from “Scribe Like an Egyptian”” as shown on the testThe passage “Excerpt from “Scribe Like an Egyptian”” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 1 of 6.The passage “Excerpt from “Scribe Like an Egyptian”” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 2 of 6.The passage “Excerpt from “Scribe Like an Egyptian”” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 3 of 6.The passage “Excerpt from “Scribe Like an Egyptian”” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 4 of 6.The passage “Excerpt from “Scribe Like an Egyptian”” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 5 of 6.The passage “Excerpt from “Scribe Like an Egyptian”” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 6 of 6.

Question 45 of 120

2025 Practice Test A English, question 12

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “Scribe Like an Egyptian””.

Question

Which claim is best supported by the information presented in paragraphs 3 and 4?

  • AEducation was difficult for the common citizens of Egypt to obtain.
  • BOnce students began studying to become scribes, their future held more possibilities.
  • CIf someone wanted to become a scribe, support from outside sources such as the government or a temple was necessary.
  • DBecoming a successful scribe required a student’s family to sacrifice time and money in order to ensure the best education.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks for the claim that is best supported by the details in paragraphs 3 and 4.

A. Incorrect. While paragraph 4 does explain that boys from poorer families had more challenges in receiving an education, the paragraph also provides examples of obtaining a patron or getting an apprenticeship as ways that these aspiring scribes could attain an education. Furthermore, the details in paragraph 3 do not provide any support for the claim that “common citizens” had difficulty getting an education because that paragraph focuses on the example of one person who was able to become a king as a result of his background as a scribe.

B. CORRECT. In paragraph 3, the author provides an example of a person who used his skills as a scribe to rise through the ranks of society by describing the achievements of Horemheb to support the idea that “no matter how humble his origins, an educated Egyptian could achieve almost anything.” The author continues in paragraph 4 to explain that with the proper support, some young Egyptians could become educated, thereby opening more opportunities for themselves.

C. Incorrect. Paragraph 4 explains that schools were supported by the government and religious institutions, but it also explains that apprenticeships were a method of learning the craft of the scribe. As the paragraph indicates, boys could also be helped in their education by support from “a wealthier relative or patron.”

D. Incorrect. In paragraph 4, the author details the sacrifices that families made to keep their sons at the schools, while boys from poorer families could only hope for a patron or an apprenticeship. Paragraph 4 also explains that apprentices could help out at home while learning, so the sacrifice of time and money was not required of every family.

Question analysis

This inference question asks which claim is best supported by paragraphs 3 and 4 of “Scribe Like an Egyptian,” which tell the story of the scribe Horemheb and describe who could get a scribal education in ancient Egypt. Students must weigh each claim against both paragraphs together, and several claims echo a single sentence closely enough to look supported.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Choosing the claim a passage best supports is core grade 7 work. Here the claim must fit two paragraphs that do different jobs, one telling a single man’s story and one explaining access to schooling, and some choices fit only part of that.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 12, 810 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 75 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A misdescription of the passage in the explanation of one wrong answer was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The trap is a claim that paragraph 4 seems to state almost word for word, which makes it feel safer than the right one. But the question asks for support from both paragraphs, and Horemheb’s story points the other way, toward what schooling made possible. The two other wrong claims harden paragraph 4’s details into rules, a necessary sponsor or a required family sacrifice, so words like “necessary” and “required” are the ones to test.

  1. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The claim must fit two paragraphs that do different work: paragraph 3 follows Horemheb from army scribe to king, and paragraph 4 explains who could pay for schooling and what the alternatives were. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  2. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    The right claim restates paragraph 3’s “an educated Egyptian could achieve almost anything” in new words, while the most tempting wrong one nearly copies paragraph 4’s opening, “education was not available to all.” (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  3. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    Students must connect Horemheb’s rise with paragraph 4’s account of who got schooling to see that both paragraphs are about education opening doors, a link the author leaves implicit. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Sum up paragraph 3 and paragraph 4 in a sentence each, then test every claim against both summaries, watching for words that make a claim stronger than the text.

Traps

  • Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
  • Too broad or too strong: A choice overstates, generalizes, or uses absolute words the text does not support.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The DOE’s explanation of D said paragraph 4 details sacrifices “necessary for some poorer families,” and that paragraph 3’s Horemheb, born of middle-ranking parents, shows the sacrifice was not required of all families. In paragraph 4 the rations and lost income are those of families whose sons were at the schools; poorer boys could only hope for a patron or an apprenticeship; and paragraph 3 says nothing about what Horemheb’s family gave up. The explanation now says so: D is wrong because apprentices could help out at home while learning, so not every family made the sacrifice.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks which claim is best supported by paragraphs 3 and 4 together. A claim is a statement that someone says is true. The right claim must fit both paragraphs. Watch for strong words, like “necessary,” that go further than the text.

  2. Sum up paragraph 3

    Paragraph 3 tells about Horemheb. His parents were middle-ranking, not rich or powerful. His training as a scribe led to a job in the army. He rose to lead the army, then to serve the young king, and in the end he became king himself. The author uses him to show that “no matter how humble his origins, an educated Egyptian could achieve almost anything.” Humble origins means an ordinary family background.

  3. Sum up paragraph 4

    Paragraph 4 opens by saying that not everyone could get an education. Government offices and big temples ran schools. Families sent food and drink for years, while the boy earned nothing for them. Poorer boys could hope for help from “a wealthier relative or patron.” A patron is someone who pays for another person’s training. Or they could learn on the job from a working scribe. That path led to fewer jobs.

  4. Put the two paragraphs together

    Both paragraphs are about what schooling could do for a boy. Paragraph 3 shows a man rising all the way to king because he trained as a scribe. Paragraph 4 shows that, with the right support, boys could get that schooling. It even notes that the on-the-job path led to fewer jobs. So education opened doors. That is what choice B says.

  5. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. It matches only the start of paragraph 4. Paragraph 4 also gives ways in for poorer boys, and paragraph 3 shows a man from an ordinary family rising to the top.
    • B fits. Both paragraphs show schooling leading to more possibilities.
    • C does not fit. A government or temple school was not “necessary.” A relative, a patron or an apprenticeship could also work.
    • D does not fit. Apprentices could help out at home while they learned, so not every family gave up time and money. And the paragraphs never mention “the best education.”

  6. Choose the answer

    The claim that fits both paragraphs is that schooling gave a boy more possibilities. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong choice, because paragraph 4 begins by saying not everyone could get an education. But the question asks about paragraphs 3 and 4. Paragraph 3 tells of a scribe from an ordinary family who became king. Paragraph 4 shows ways around the cost. Both point to what education made possible, which is B.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 12 as shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test.
As shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test: 2025 Practice Test A English, question 12. This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 46 of 120

2025 Practice Test A English, question 13

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “Scribe Like an Egyptian””.

Question

Hieratic script was particularly valuable in a bureaucratic government because

  • Ausing hieratic script was an efficient way for scribes to produce large amounts of documentation.
  • Bmany members of the general public could comprehend information that was written in hieratic script.
  • Cknowledge of hieratic script prepared scribes to serve their society in increasingly challenging roles.
  • Dpeople from different professional backgrounds could easily communicate with one another in hieratic script.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks why hieratic script was especially valuable in a bureaucratic government.

A. CORRECT. Hieratic script is described in paragraph 1 as being simpler for the “multitude of everyday documents” generated by the government and as “quicker to write and more economical of space” in paragraph 2. The logical conclusion based on these details is that hieratic script was more efficient for the large amounts of documentation produced by the government.

B. Incorrect. In paragraph 4, the author explains that “education was not available to all,” suggesting that only people who were educated could read and write. The excerpt as a whole does not provide sufficient information to indicate what portion of the general public would be able to comprehend material written in hieratic script.

C. Incorrect. The idea that becoming a scribe could lead to taking different positions in society is addressed in paragraphs 3, 4, and 6. However, the use of hieratic script in the fields of medicine, law, or religion does not necessarily explain the value of the script for the bureaucratic government referenced in the question.

D. Incorrect. Although different professions such as doctors and lawyers used hieratic script, the author uses these professions as examples of different job opportunities for scribes in paragraph 6. There is no discussion in the excerpt about different professions communicating with each other, and these professions were not necessarily part of the bureaucratic government.

Question analysis

This inference question on “Scribe Like an Egyptian” asks why hieratic, one of the two scripts of ancient Egypt, was especially valuable to a bureaucratic government. The article never gives the reason in a single sentence, so students must connect what it says about Egypt’s bureaucracy with what it says about the script itself. Each choice offers a reasonable-sounding benefit.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Drawing a conclusion from two neighboring paragraphs is typical grade 7 inference work. The word “bureaucratic” and the article’s formal style add some load, but the details needed are close together and plainly stated.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 12, 810 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 68 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The two facts that answer the question sit a few lines apart in the first two paragraphs, so the work is mostly connecting them. The wrong reasons all sound like advantages a simpler script might bring, public readability, career preparation, communication across professions, and each rests on a guess or on the excerpt’s talk of scribal careers rather than on what it says hieratic was used for. Students who return to the description of hieratic itself avoid them.

  1. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    The reason is split between paragraph 1, where hieratic serves the “multitude of everyday documents,” and paragraph 2, where it is “quicker to write and more economical of space.” (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  2. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    The stem turns on “bureaucratic,” a word students must connect to a government that runs on paperwork; without it, the link to large amounts of documentation is hard to see. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

  3. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    No sentence says why hieratic helped the government; students must combine speed and compactness with the sheer volume of records to reach efficiency. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Find the sentences that describe hieratic script and what it was used for, then pick the choice those sentences support rather than one that only sounds like an advantage.

Traps

  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks why hieratic script was so useful to a bureaucratic government. A bureaucracy is a government run by many officials, with lots of paperwork. Hieratic is the quick, simple form of Egyptian writing. Look for what the article says about hieratic and what it was used for.

  2. Find the evidence in paragraphs 1 and 2

    Paragraph 1 says many scribes used hieratic for the “multitude of everyday documents” that the government produced. Multitude means a huge number. Paragraph 2 says hieratic was “quicker to write and more economical of space.” Economical of space means it took up less room on the page.

  3. Connect the two facts

    Put the facts together. The government made a huge number of papers. Hieratic was fast to write and used less space. So scribes could turn out lots of papers quickly. Getting a lot done with little time and effort is called being efficient.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits. Hieratic let scribes make large amounts of paperwork quickly.
    • B does not fit. Paragraph 4 says “education was not available to all.” The article never says ordinary people could read hieratic.
    • C does not fit. Training did lead to careers, but that explains a scribe’s chances, not why the government valued the script.
    • D does not fit. Paragraph 6 lists jobs like doctor and lawyer as careers for scribes. It never says those workers wrote to each other in hieratic.

    Watch out: B sounds sensible, since a simpler script seems easier for anyone to read. But that is a guess, not something the article says.

  5. Choose the answer

    Hieratic was fast and compact, and the government needed a huge number of documents. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong choice, because a simpler script does sound easier to read. But the article says only some Egyptians got an education. It never says the public could read hieratic. A rests on two facts the article states: the government made a “multitude of everyday documents,” and hieratic was quicker to write.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 13 as shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test.
As shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test: 2025 Practice Test A English, question 13.

Question 47 of 120

2025 Practice Test A English, question 14

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “Scribe Like an Egyptian””.

Question

The diagram after paragraph 6 best provides additional support for the topic of the excerpt by

  • Ademonstrating the place of scribes in ancient Egyptian social structure.
  • Bdepicting the types of tasks performed by each social class.
  • Cindicating that scribes were able to easily improve their social ranking.
  • Dcomparing the social positions of each social class in ancient Egypt.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how the diagram of ancient Egyptian class structure supports the topic of the excerpt.

A. CORRECT. The focus of the excerpt is the opportunities available to scribes in different professions and how people became scribes and therefore improved their position. By illustrating the position of the scribes in the class structure of ancient Egypt, the diagram supports the idea that scribes were valuable members of society.

B. Incorrect. The professions of the different social classes are shown in the diagram, but it does not address specific tasks. Furthermore, the main topic of the excerpt is the role of the scribes in society rather than the tasks performed by the different social classes.

C. Incorrect. While the diagram does show the position of scribes in the social hierarchy, it does not provide an illustration of movement between the different classes or rankings, so the diagram does not support the idea that scribes were able to improve their social standing.

D. Incorrect. The diagram shows the class structure as hierarchical and can support readers’ efforts to compare the different social positions. However, the role of scribes in society, rather than a general comparison of different classes, is the main focus of the excerpt.

Question analysis

This question on “Scribe Like an Egyptian” asks how the diagram after paragraph 6, a pyramid of ancient Egyptian social classes from the pharaoh at the top to unskilled workers at the base, gives additional support to the excerpt’s topic. Students must decide what the excerpt is mainly about and then judge what the graphic adds, and several choices describe something the pyramid really shows.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Linking a graphic to a text is regular grade 7 work, and this five-level pyramid is simple and clearly labeled. The demand lies in naming the excerpt’s topic first and judging how the diagram bears on it.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 12, 810 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 57 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

More than one choice is true of the pyramid, so the question is decided by the excerpt’s topic, not by the picture alone. Students who look only at the diagram see a ranking of all the classes; students who remember that the article is about scribes look for where scribes stand. The choice about rising easily borrows Horemheb’s story from the text and credits it to a drawing that shows no movement.

  1. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The choice about comparing every class’s position differs from the right one in a single detail, all classes rather than scribes, and both are true of the pyramid. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Reading a figure, table or graph moderate Understanding the question

    Scribes are not a tier of their own: they share the third of five tiers with merchants and craftsmen, below the pharaoh, nobles and priests and above farmers, herders and laborers. (Lesh, Post & Behr, 1987; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  3. How, not what minor Working it out

    The stem asks how the diagram supports the excerpt’s topic, so students must first decide the topic is scribes, then judge what the picture adds to it. (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001)

Strategy: State the excerpt’s topic in a few words, then test each choice twice: is it true of the diagram, and does it connect the diagram to that topic?

Traps

  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.
  • Wrong part of the text: A choice is true of another paragraph, stanza or speaker than the one asked about.
  • Wrong purpose or structure: Names a purpose, structure or effect that the part does not serve, or describes what a part says when the question asks what it does.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks how the diagram after paragraph 6 adds to the topic of the excerpt. First name the topic. Then ask two things about each choice. Is it true of the diagram? And does it connect the diagram to that topic?

  2. Name the excerpt’s topic

    The excerpt is about scribes, people trained to read and write for others. It tells how they learned, who could study, and what jobs they could get. Every paragraph comes back to scribes. So the diagram should add something about scribes.

  3. Read the diagram

    The diagram is a pyramid with five levels. From the top down, they are the Pharaoh, nobles and priests, then “Traders, shopkeepers, scribes, and artisans,” then herders and farmers, and last unskilled workers. Artisans are skilled craftspeople. Scribes sit in the third level, the middle one. They are below the ruler and the nobles, and above farmers and workers.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits. The diagram shows where scribes stood in Egyptian society, which ties it to the topic.
    • B does not fit. The labels name groups of people, not the tasks each group did.
    • C does not fit. The levels are fixed, and nothing in the diagram shows anyone moving up. Horemheb’s rise comes from paragraph 3, not the diagram.
    • D does not fit. The pyramid does rank all the classes. But that alone does not connect it to an excerpt about scribes.

    Watch out: More than one choice is true of the picture. The right one must also fit the topic.

  5. Choose the answer

    The diagram supports the topic by showing where scribes fit among the classes of ancient Egypt. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong choice, because the pyramid really does compare every class. But the excerpt is about scribes, not about every class. A is true of the diagram too, and it also links the diagram to the topic. It points to the place of scribes in the middle level.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 14 as shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test.
As shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test: 2025 Practice Test A English, question 14.

Question 48 of 120

2025 Practice Test A English, question 15

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “Scribe Like an Egyptian””.

Question

Based on the excerpt, which statement would the author most strongly agree with?

  • ABoys in Egypt were encouraged to enter the same profession as older male relatives.
  • BKnowledge of hieroglyphs was helpful to Egyptians who were interested in becoming scribes.
  • CHieratic script was more practical to ancient Egyptians than hieroglyphs were.
  • DBoys in Egypt who studied for only a few years were unlikely to find employment as scribes.
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks for a statement with which the author would most strongly agree.

A. Incorrect. The author only addresses boys who entered the profession of scribes. While the author does address the role of the family in supporting a boy’s education or securing an apprenticeship, the author does not provide any discussion to support the idea that boys were only encouraged to follow the professions of their male relatives.

B. Incorrect. The author explains that communication using hieroglyphs was not widely practiced in everyday correspondence and that hieratic script was the more popular form of writing. While being able to read and use hieroglyphs would have been helpful, it was not common for citizens to use this formal form of communication. In addition, scribes were trained to learn hieroglyphs and hieratic script as part of their education, so prior ability to read or compose hieroglyphs was not a requirement.

C. CORRECT. As described in paragraph 2, hieratic script was more efficient and economical than hieroglyphs. Because this script was used for “everyday purposes,” it was the more practical of the scripts as hieroglyphs were reserved for “formal inscriptions.”

D. Incorrect. In paragraph 6, the author indicates that “any half-competent scribe” could become employed in making and updating lists. While the paragraph later indicates that scribes would need to study several more years to be employed in a wider range of professions, there is no indication that employment as a scribe would be unavailable to a boy who studied for only a few years.

Question analysis

This point-of-view question asks which statement the author of “Scribe Like an Egyptian” would most strongly agree with. The four statements deal with family careers, knowledge of hieroglyphs, Egypt’s two scripts and the length of training, so students must test each one against the article and separate what the author says from what merely sounds likely.

NYS standards
  • 7R6 point of view and author position
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Inferring which statement an author would accept is typical grade 7 work. The four statements draw on different parts of a dense article, and some sound sensible without being backed by it, so each must be checked carefully.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 12, 810 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 68 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The right statement is a comparison the author never makes in so many words, while the statement about hieroglyphs sounds like something any author on scribes would accept. The question rewards asking which statement the excerpt itself backs most firmly, and paragraph 2’s contrast between everyday and formal writing does that directly. The two statements about boys rest on assumptions, sons following relatives and short training leaving boys jobless, that the excerpt never makes and partly contradicts.

  1. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    The four statements cover four topics, family careers, hieroglyphs, the two scripts and length of training, so each has to be traced to its own paragraph before they can be compared. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The author never ranks the scripts; “more practical” has to be drawn from paragraph 2, where hieratic is for “everyday purposes” and quicker to write, while hieroglyphs go on “formal inscriptions.” (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: For each statement, find the paragraph that deals with its topic and decide whether the author says it, implies it or never addresses it; keep the one with the firmest support.

Traps

  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks which statement the author would most strongly agree with. The author may not say it in the same words, but the excerpt must clearly back it. The four choices cover four topics, so find the paragraph for each one.

  2. Find what the author says about the scripts

    Paragraph 1 says many scribes used the simpler hieratic script for everyday papers. Paragraph 2 says hieroglyphs went on “formal inscriptions,” such as tomb and temple walls. Hieratic was used for “everyday purposes.” It was faster to write and took less space. Formal means used for special, serious occasions.

  3. Work out what that means

    Practical means useful for real, everyday needs. The author shows hieratic doing the daily work, such as letters, reports and contracts. Hieroglyphs were kept for special uses. So the author would agree that hieratic was more practical than hieroglyphs. The author never uses the words “more practical,” but the facts point there.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. The excerpt never says boys were pushed into a relative’s job.
    • B does not fit. Boys learned the signs at school, starting at six or seven. The excerpt never says knowing hieroglyphs beforehand helped. Paragraph 1 even says not all scribes understood them.
    • C fits. Hieratic was quicker, smaller and used for everyday work.
    • D does not fit. Paragraph 6 says “any half-competent scribe” could keep lists. Half-competent means only partly skilled. The lowest scribes studied only five or six years and still worked.

    Watch out: B sounds like something any author would accept. But the excerpt does not back it.

  5. Choose the answer

    The excerpt shows hieratic doing the everyday work, faster and in less space. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong choice. Knowing hieroglyphs sounds helpful for a future scribe. But boys learned their signs at school, and paragraph 1 says not all scribes understood hieroglyphs at all. C rests on paragraph 2, where hieratic is quicker to write and used for “everyday purposes.”

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 15 as shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test.
As shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test: 2025 Practice Test A English, question 15.

Question 49 of 120

2025 Practice Test A English, question 16
Passage Excerpt from Winter Wheat

Excerpt from Winter Wheat

by Mildred Walker

Ellen, the narrator, is preparing to leave her parents and the family farm for college the next day.

I love Dad’s way of talking that makes him seem different from other ranchers. He’s lived here twenty-three years, but he still says “back East where I come from.” He’s the one who gets excited when I do about spring coming or a serial running in the magazine we’re both reading, but it’s what Mom says that I depend on. When Mom used to say “Don’t worry” about my pet chicken or dog or new calf, it always got well. Dad is always talking of going some place, not now, but next year, maybe. Mom seems to think of nothing farther away than today or perhaps yesterday or tomorrow morning.

Mom folded the ironing board and put it inside their bedroom that was just off the kitchen. She carried in the freshly ironed clothes. Dad went back to his paper. When Mom came back she took beans from the cupboard to soak for tomorrow. Dad always said Mom could make all the dishes he’d had back in Vermont as well as though she were a New Englander herself, instead of a Russian. All of a sudden, I realized that tomorrow when those beans would be ready to eat I’d be going away. It gave me a funny feeling.

“I’ll be taking the train tomorrow night,” I said aloud, more to hear it myself.

“We can drive you into town in the afternoon,” Dad said, dropping his paper on the floor.

“There’s no need to go to town; she can catch the train at Gotham just as well. We haven’t nothing to take us into town for,” Mom said.

“Well, we don’t have to decide tonight,” Dad said, but I knew he wanted to go into Clark City. It wouldn’t be so flat as just seeing me go off on the train from Gotham. My going away was hard on both of them; they were so different—and I was part of them both. It made me uncomfortable to think of leaving them.

While I was getting ready for bed in my room that’s off the front room, I saw how it would be if I left from town. We’d go in right after dinner and go around to the stores, Dad going one way and Mom and I another. Dad would probably have his hair cut at the barbershop and stop in the bank and meet someone he knew to talk to. Then we’d meet at the big store on the corner and go to the cafeteria for supper. The train stops ten minutes or so at the station in town and there are other people and excitement and you have time to wave from the platform and then again from your window by your seat. We went to the station in Clark City to see the Goodals off when they went back to Iowa.

If I left from Gotham, we’d just drive down in the truck and wait till the train came. It only stops long enough for you to get on and you hardly have time to taste the flavor of going away.

I sat on the bed in my pyjamas with my arms around my knees. I couldn’t keep from thinking of that time Dad went back East. I tried to, and then I just sat still and looked straight at it. Sometimes that’s better than working so hard to keep from looking at what’s in your mind.

Dad went all the way back to Vermont. . . . It was in November and it was already dark when the train came through Gotham. Even now, I could feel how cold and dark it was. I held Mom’s hand. Dad was so dressed-up he seemed strange. . . . We stood there without saying anything until Dad told Mom to remember to call Mr. Bardich, our neighbor, if the cow didn’t calve tomorrow.

“I’ll manage,” Mom snapped back.

“I wish you could go, Anna,” Dad said to Mom, “and we could take Ellen.” . . .

“Good-by, Anna Petrovna,” he said, looking at Mom. I had never heard him call her by two names before.

“Good-by,” Mom said, standing still, without smiling.

Then he was gone and the crossroads were darker than ever. The train light shone on the high window in the top of the grain elevator for a moment and then that too was dark. We got into our old Ford and Mom drove back to the house. My throat ached all the way. The name Dad had called Mom kept saying itself in my ears: “Anna Petrovna, Anna Petrovna.” . . .

Our house seemed lonely when we came back to it. It seemed to be hiding under the coulee. I went with Mom to put the truck in the barn that was bigger than the house. I think Mom was prouder of our barn than the house, anyway. We walked back to look at the cow that was going to calve. She was just a big light blob in the dark, waiting. I had thought she was exciting this morning, but now she seemed sad, too.

The wind blew when we walked across the open space to the house and I couldn’t help shivering with the cold. Inside the house it was warm, but empty.

“Bring your nightgown in here and I heat you some milk,” Mom said.

I drank the milk sitting on a stool in front of the stove. It tasted good, but the lonely ache in my throat was still there. I picked up my clothes and hung them neatly behind the stove and put my cup on the sink board. Mom was fixing oatmeal for tomorrow morning.

“Good night, Mom,” I said almost timidly, standing beside her. She seemed wrapped around in a kind of strangeness. Then she turned around and drew me to her. The front of her dress was warm from the stove. I felt the comfortable heat through my gown. She laid her hand against my face and it felt rough and hard but firm. I dared ask her something I wanted to know.

“Mom, was that really your name—what Dad called you?”

Her voice sounded surprised. “Why, Yeléna, you know that; Anna Petrovna. You know I am born in Russia, in Seletskoe.”

“Yes, but I didn’t know your other name,” I said.

“Anna Petrovna Webb.” She pronounced it slowly. “Once I think what a funny name Ben Webb is!” She laughed. Her laugh was warm and low like our kitchen, and comfortable. The house seemed natural and right again. . . .

But now that I am grown, I feel the wall of strangeness between them, more than when I was a child. I wondered how they would get along without me.

From WINTER WHEAT by Mildred Walker, published by University of Nebraska Press. Copyright © 1944 by Harcourt, Brace and Company, Inc. Copyright renewed 1971 by Mildred Walker. All rights reserved.

serial: story published in short segments at regular intervals
coulee: small gulch or ravine

Question

Which sentence from the excerpt supports the idea that Ellen understands what her father is really thinking, and which sentence supports the idea that Ellen and her father share similar interests?

Move the correct answer to each box.

Supports the idea that Ellen understands what her father is really thinking

Supports the idea that Ellen and her father share similar interests

On the test you drag tiles into the boxes; here, choose each box’s tile from its menu. Each tile can be used once. The DOE has not published how answers with several parts are scored; this site counts one right only when every part is right.

Show the answer

Correct answer: blank 1: “Well, we don’t have to decide tonight,” Dad said, but I knew he wanted to go into Clark City.” (paragraph 6); blank 2: “He’s the one who gets excited when I do about spring coming or a serial running in the magazine we’re both reading” (paragraph 1)

The question asks for the identification of one sentence that supports the idea that Ellen understands what her father is really thinking, and one sentence that supports the idea that Ellen and her father share similar interests.

A. Incorrect. (“I love Dad’s way of talking that makes him seem different from other ranchers.” [paragraph 1]) This sentence from paragraph 1 presents a unique quality that Ellen loves about her father, but it does not provide evidence for the idea that Ellen and her father share similar interests or that Ellen understands what her father is really thinking.

B. CORRECT. (“He’s the one who gets excited when I do about spring coming or a serial running in the magazine we’re both reading” [paragraph 1]) This sentence from paragraph 1 shows that Ellen and her father both get excited about the coming of spring and share an enthusiasm for reading magazine serials (stories published in serial installments). Thus, it provides clear evidence for the idea that Ellen and her father share similar interests.

C. CORRECT. (“ ‘Well, we don’t have to decide tonight,’ Dad said, but I knew he wanted to go into Clark City.” [paragraph 6]) This sentence from paragraph 6 provides evidence that Ellen and her father share the same unspoken wish to go to Clark City rather than for Ellen to catch the train at Gotham, as suggested in paragraph 5 by Ellen’s mother. This quotation reveals that Ellen understands the true preference that her father is not expressing aloud, thereby providing evidence for the idea that Ellen understands what her father is really thinking.

D. Incorrect. (“We’d go in right after dinner and go around to the stores, Dad going one way and Mom and I another.” [paragraph 7]) Although this sentence from paragraph 7 indicates that Ellen can predict how her father would behave in a particular scenario, it does not show that Ellen understands what her father is really thinking, nor does it provide evidence for the idea that Ellen and her father share similar interests.

Question analysis

This evidence question on an excerpt from Mildred Walker’s 1944 novel Winter Wheat asks for one quotation showing that Ellen understands what her father is really thinking and another showing that the two share interests. On the test students drag two of four sentence tiles into labeled boxes, so each quotation’s exact wording decides where it belongs, if anywhere.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Matching quotations to ideas about a character is grade 7 evidence work, and the novel’s language is plain. Placing two of four tiles, with credit only when both are right, adds a step, and every tile mentions Ellen’s father.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 4, 1179 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 61 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A repeated word in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Each box has a tile that matches it closely, so the question is less about finding evidence than about not being drawn by the near misses. Ellen’s detailed picture of the town trip in paragraph 7 shows she knows her father’s habits, which can pass for knowing his mind, and the tiles about shared excitement and a shared wish can each seem to fit the other box. Because credit needs both placements, one doubtful tile costs the whole question.

  1. Much to keep track of moderate Working it out

    Two boxes must both be right, and all four tiles mention Dad, so each tile has to be held against two different ideas before the two that fit neither can be set aside. (Sweller, 1988; Carpenter, Just & Shell, 1990)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The first box turns on the gap between what Dad says and what Ellen knows: “Dad said, but I knew he wanted” marks a wish he does not speak aloud. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Treat the boxes as two separate evidence questions: restate each idea in your own words, then test all four tiles against it before placing one, since two tiles fit neither box.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The DOE’s explanation of Option D says the sentence does not “provide evidence for the idea that that Ellen and her father share similar interests,” with “that” printed twice. The site prints it once.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This question has two boxes, and each needs a different idea. Box 1: Ellen knows what Dad is really thinking, even when he doesn’t say it. Box 2: Ellen and Dad like the same things. On the test you drag a tile into each box. On this site you pick each box’s tile from a menu. Two tiles are left over.

  2. Find a hidden thought for box 1

    In paragraph 5, Mom says Ellen can catch the train at Gotham, the nearby stop. Then paragraph 6 says “ ‘Well, we don’t have to decide tonight,’ Dad said, but I knew he wanted to go into Clark City.” Dad’s words put off the choice. But Ellen knows his real wish, the trip into town. The word “but” marks the gap between what he says and what she knows.

  3. Find a shared interest for box 2

    Paragraph 1 says Dad is “the one who gets excited when I do about spring coming or a serial running in the magazine we’re both reading.” A serial is a story printed in parts, one part in each issue of a magazine. Ellen and Dad look forward to spring together, and they read the same story. Those are shared interests.

  4. Rule out the other two tiles

    • “I love Dad’s way of talking that makes him seem different from other ranchers.” (paragraph 1) This is Ellen’s feeling about how Dad talks. It is not a hidden thought, and it is not an interest they share.
    • “We’d go in right after dinner and go around to the stores, Dad going one way and Mom and I another.” (paragraph 7) Ellen pictures how a trip to town would go. Knowing Dad’s habits is not knowing his unspoken wish. And here they split up.

    Watch out: Don’t swap the two right tiles. Dad shows his excitement openly, so it is not a hidden thought.

  5. Fill in both boxes

    • Box 1, Ellen understands what her father is really thinking: “Well, we don’t have to decide tonight,” Dad said, but I knew he wanted to go into Clark City.” (paragraph 6)
    • Box 2, Ellen and her father share similar interests: “He’s the one who gets excited when I do about spring coming or a serial running in the magazine we’re both reading” (paragraph 1)

    Both boxes must be right to get the point.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

The town-trip tile is the closest wrong choice for box 1. In paragraph 7, Ellen can picture just what Dad would do in town. But that shows she knows his habits. In paragraph 6, Dad says one thing, and Ellen knows he wants another. That is knowing what he is really thinking.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 16 as shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test.
As shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test: 2025 Practice Test A English, question 16. This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.
The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the testThe passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 1 of 7.The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 2 of 7.The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 3 of 7.The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 4 of 7.The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 5 of 7.The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 6 of 7.The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 7 of 7.

Question 50 of 120

2025 Practice Test A English, question 23

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from Winter Wheat”.

Question

Which sentence from the excerpt provides evidence that Mom wants Ellen to understand the family’s heritage?

  • A“Mom folded the ironing board and put it inside their bedroom that was just off the kitchen.” (paragraph 2)
  • B“ ‘There’s no need to go to town; she can catch the train at Gotham just as well.’ ” (paragraph 5)
  • C“We’d go in right after dinner and go around to the stores, Dad going one way and Mom and I another.” (paragraph 7)
  • D“ ‘Why, Yeléna, you know that; Anna Petrovna.’ ” (paragraph 22)
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks which sentence from the excerpt provides evidence that Mom wants Ellen to understand the family’s heritage.

A. Incorrect. Although this sentence from paragraph 2 describes a domestic moment that takes place within the family home, it does not relate to the heritage of either parent and therefore does not provide evidence that her mother wants Ellen to understand the family’s heritage.

B. Incorrect. Although this sentence from paragraph 5 provides the name of the train station closest to Ellen’s family’s farm, the train stop at Gotham is not related to the family’s heritage. Therefore, this sentence does not provide clear evidence that her mother wants Ellen to understand the family’s heritage.

C. Incorrect. Although this sentence from paragraph 7 describes an aspect of the family dynamic (Ellen predicts that while browsing in stores in town, “Dad [would go] one way and Mom and I another”), their shopping habits do not provide clear evidence that her mother wants Ellen to understand the family’s heritage.

D. CORRECT. In this sentence from paragraph 22, Ellen’s mother addresses her by the Russian version of her name (Yeléna) and repeats her own Russian name (Anna Petrovna). The choice to call her daughter Yeléna instead of Ellen follows immediately after Ellen asks, “Mom, was that really your name—what Dad called you?” (paragraph 21), and the mother’s surprised response provides evidence that she both wants and expects Ellen to understand the family’s Russian heritage.

Question analysis

This evidence question asks which quoted sentence from the Winter Wheat excerpt shows that Mom wants Ellen to understand the family’s heritage. The four sentences, from paragraphs 2, 5, 7 and 22, all involve Mom, so students must reread each one in its paragraph to see what it really shows about her.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 6 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Below grade 7 Finding the sentence that supports a stated idea is everyday grade 7 work. The quotations are short and plainly worded and the idea is concrete, so one careful rereading of each in context is enough, a lighter task than usual.
Estimated difficulty
Routine: one familiar step, little to misread.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 4, 1179 words; question and choices: about grade 8, 83 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Only one of the four sentences touches the family’s origins at all, so a student who knows what heritage means can rule out the others at a glance. The small risk lies with students who match “Mom wants” to any line where Mom states a preference, or who do not recognize the Russian names, since the quotation stops before Mom mentions Russia.

  1. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The quoted line never mentions heritage; students must see that Mom calling Ellen “Yeléna” and repeating “Anna Petrovna,” as things Ellen should already know, shows her wish to pass on their Russian roots. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    The names’ Russian origin is clearest outside the quotation, in the rest of paragraph 22, where Mom names her birthplace, and in paragraph 2’s “instead of a Russian.” (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Define heritage in your own words, then reread each quoted sentence in its paragraph and ask whether it shows Mom handing something about the family on to Ellen.

Traps

  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.
  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks which sentence shows that Mom wants Ellen to understand the family’s heritage. Heritage is the history and traditions a family passes down, such as where it came from. Look for a sentence where Mom shares something about the family’s roots.

  2. Look at the conversation

    At the train, Dad called Mom Anna Petrovna, a name Ellen had never heard him use. In paragraph 21, Ellen asks, “Mom, was that really your name—what Dad called you?” In paragraph 22, Mom answers, “Why, Yeléna, you know that; Anna Petrovna.” Then she reminds Ellen that she was born in Russia.

  3. Work out what Mom’s answer shows

    Mom calls her daughter Yeléna, the Russian form of Ellen. She repeats her own Russian name. She also says “you know that,” as if Ellen should already know. Mom is surprised that Ellen doesn’t. That shows Mom wants and expects Ellen to know where the family comes from.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. Folding the ironing board is housework. It says nothing about the family’s past.
    • B does not fit. Mom does want something here, the train at Gotham. But that is about travel, not heritage.
    • C does not fit. Shopping in town shows family habits, not family roots.
    • D fits. Mom uses Russian names and expects Ellen to know them.

    Watch out: B tempts because it shows what Mom wants. But the question asks what she wants Ellen to understand about the family.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only one sentence has Mom passing on the family’s Russian roots. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong choice, because Mom states a wish in it: Ellen can catch the train at Gotham. But that wish is about the trip, not the family’s past. In D, Mom uses the Russian names Yeléna and Anna Petrovna. She is surprised that Ellen doesn’t know them. That shows she wants Ellen to understand her heritage.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 23 as shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test.
As shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test: 2025 Practice Test A English, question 23.

Question 51 of 120

2025 Practice Test B English, question 8
Passage Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil”

Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil”

by Emma Marris

The author of this opinion article attended a symposium, or conference, in Missoula, Montana, at which biologists and other scientists discussed species of plants and animals that are not native to the areas in which they live.

Invasive species are scary. It was ecologist Charles Elton, back in the 1950s, who introduced the militaristic “invasion” metaphor to describe exotic plants and animals—but there’s no question some can be extremely destructive.

The brown tree snake has eaten a dozen kinds of forest birds in Guam to extinction; zebra mussels clog pipes around the Great Lakes; the common house cat turns out to be, in Australia, a mercilessly effective killer of cute, fluffy marsupials like the bilby and the numbat.

As scientists have sounded the alarm about these pests, the public has gotten the message. Citizen groups rip out non-native plants. Native gardens have become increasingly popular, both as ways to celebrate the unique flora of each region and as tiny hot spots of diversity. Native trees provide food for native bugs, which feed native birds. Food chains developed over thousands of years of co-evolution unfold in our backyards. . . .

So we’ve learned, scientists and laypeople alike, that native species are good and non-natives are bad.

Julian Olden, a biologist at the University of Washington, Seattle, who co-organized the symposium, recently polled nearly 2,000 ecologists. Among his findings: a substantial number of them said they would immediately eradicate a hypothetical non-native forest plant, even if it were shown to have no effect on the forest. Olden calls this the “guilty even when proven innocent” approach.

That kind of approach is not very useful on a rapidly changing planet.

Exotics Are Everywhere

Climate change is making it harder even to decide who the invaders are.

How, scientists at the symposium wondered, do you define “native” on a warming planet, when plants and animals are already moving toward the poles or up mountainsides in search of climate conditions they can tolerate? Should we consider them “invasive” in their new homes? Regardless of what we label them, conservationists will be reluctant to remove them from their new environs—to do so would stymie1 their chances of adapting to the warmer future we’re creating.

And then there are the non-natives that we actually like. Most domestic crops are exotic in most of the places they’re grown, but there are even wild exotics that “do good,” forming useful relationships with native species.

Edwin Grosholz of the University of California, Davis, told the recent symposium about one such relationship. On beaches in his state, non-native spartina grass has become important habitat for the endangered California clapper rail, a plump shorebird with a downward curving bill more at home on land than in the air. A project to rip out and poison the spartina—which grows in dense swaths that exclude many other shorebirds—saw clapper rail numbers go tumbling downward.

There are other examples like that. The endangered southwestern willow flycatcher nests in “invasive” tamarisk shrubs. Many native (and beautiful) Hawaiian flowers are now pollinated by the Japanese white-eye bird—because the native pollinators have been driven extinct by other non-native species.

Should we impose further risk on already endangered natives by severing these relationships? Or should we admire the resilience of nature and let such “well-behaved” exotics stay? . . .

Leave them alone, more and more conservationists are arguing, and stop focusing obsessively on categorizing species as native or non-native. Mark Davis, an ecologist at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, once considered himself an “invasion biologist”—but not anymore. “I am actively trying to get the field to retire the invader narrative,” he said in Missoula.

A Good Thing, Not the Only Thing

After all, nativeness is just one environmental value, and arguably not as important as preventing extinctions and preserving biodiversity. In some cases we can best serve biodiversity by leaving the non-natives alone or even—brace yourself, now—introducing them on purpose.

This is the thinking behind, for example, installing the Aldabra tortoise on the islands of Mauritius. The islands lost their own large tortoises, and the fruiting plants that formerly had their seeds moved around by these fruit-loving reptiles have been on the decline. A tortoise that’s related to the island’s large tortoises—a non-native from the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean that was intentionally introduced in 2004—is now handling some of that work.

Most of the time, for the time being, conserving species still means focusing on supporting them in their historical habitats, planting natives and removing non-natives. We can and should do that in places where it is feasible and important to us.

From “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil” by Emma Marris from NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE, July 24, 2014. Copyright © 2014 by National Geographic Society.

Chart titled “Possible Management of Non-Native Species, Based on Extent of Invasion,” plotting Area Affected by Non-Native Species (vertical axis) against Time (horizontal axis) as an S-shaped curve that stays low, then rises steeply and levels off high, where it is labeled “Widespread and abundant throughout range.” The time line is divided into four shaded stages, left to right: Prevention, “Species absent”; Eradication, “Few, localized populations”; Containment, “Rapid increase in populations”; and Local Control and Management Only, “Eradication no longer feasible; can only protect small areas based on economic and ecological need.” Markers on the curve show “Species introduced” at the end of Prevention, “Detection” within Eradication and “Public awareness begins” near the end of Containment, and two large arrows read “Management = simple; eradication likely” across Prevention and Eradication and “Management = difficult and costly; eradication unlikely or impossible” across Containment and Local Control and Management Only.

1stymie: hinder or interfere with

Question

Determine whether each sentence from the excerpt presents a claim or presents evidence to support a claim.

Select all the correct answers.

Choose one answer in each row, then check. The DOE has not published how answers with several parts are scored; this site counts one right only when every part is right.

Presents a ClaimPresents Evidence
“That kind of approach is not very useful on a rapidly changing planet.” (paragraph 6)
“A project to rip out and poison the spartina—which grows in dense swaths that exclude many other shorebirds—saw clapper rail numbers go tumbling downward.” (paragraph 10)
“In some cases we can best serve biodiversity by leaving the non-natives alone or even—brace yourself, now—introducing them on purpose.” (paragraph 14)
“A tortoise that’s related to the island’s large tortoises—a non-native from the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean that was intentionally introduced in 2004—is now handling some of that work.” (paragraph 15)
Show the answer

Correct answer: “That kind of approach is not very useful on a rapidly changing planet.” (paragraph 6): Presents a Claim; “A project to rip out and poison the spartina—which grows in dense swaths that exclude many other shorebirds—saw clapper rail numbers go tumbling downward.” (paragraph 10): Presents Evidence; “In some cases we can best serve biodiversity by leaving the non-natives alone or even—brace yourself, now—introducing them on purpose.” (paragraph 14): Presents a Claim; “A tortoise that’s related to the island’s large tortoises—a non-native from the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean that was intentionally introduced in 2004—is now handling some of that work.” (paragraph 15): Presents Evidence

The question asks which quotations from the excerpt present a claim and which present evidence in support of a claim. (A claim is a statement made as part of an argument that can be supported or proved with evidence. Supporting evidence can include facts, figures, details, quotations, or other sources of data and information that can be evaluated by others.)

Row 1: Presents a claim [“That kind of approach is not very useful on a rapidly changing planet.” (paragraph 6)]. The phrase “is not very useful” indicates that the sentence expresses a claim—an arguable statement, or in this case an opinion, for which the author must provide proof.

Row 2: Presents evidence [“A project to rip out and poison the spartina—which grows in dense swaths that exclude many other shorebirds—saw clapper rail numbers go tumbling downward.” (paragraph 10)]. Despite its figurative language (“tumbling downward”), this sentence does not present a claim that must be supported by evidence. Instead, the sentence provides factual information—that numbers of clapper rail birds decreased when spartina grass was removed—that is evidence for another claim, that non-native plants can be welcome sometimes.

Row 3: Presents a claim [“In some cases we can best serve biodiversity by leaving the non-natives alone or even—brace yourself, now—introducing them on purpose.” (paragraph 14)]. The wording “we can best serve” signals that this sentence presents a claim—a statement being made as part of an argument that needs proof in order to be accepted—regarding the best way to achieve biodiversity.

Row 4: Presents evidence [“A tortoise that’s related to the island’s large tortoises—a non-native from the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean that was intentionally introduced in 2004—is now handling some of that work.” (paragraph 15)]. Although this sentence does not provide statistics, quotations, or other obvious markers that signal evidence, it does provide a factual example—non-native tortoises are now moving the seeds of fruiting plants in a way that preserves the diversity of plant life on the islands of Mauritius—that is used to support the author’s claim that non-native species can help preserve diversity.

Question analysis

This table-grid question on the opinion article about non-native species gives four sentences, from paragraphs 6, 10, 14 and 15, and asks whether each presents a claim or presents evidence to support a claim. Students make four separate decisions, and credit comes only when every row is right, so each sentence must be judged by the job it does in the author’s argument.

NYS standards
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Telling a claim from the evidence for it is core grade 7 argument work. The four sentences come labeled with their paragraphs, but they are long and broken by dashes and asides, and all four must be sorted correctly, a typical demand overall.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 815 words; question and choices: about grade 8, 22 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The two claims carry the author’s judgment in a few words, “not very useful” and “we can best serve,” while the two evidence rows report what happened. Students go wrong when they sort by surface: dramatic wording makes the spartina report sound like opinion, and the tortoise sentence, with no number or quotation, can pass for the author’s assertion. Asking whether a sentence judges or reports settles each row, but all four must be right for credit.

  1. Much to keep track of moderate Working it out

    Sentences from paragraphs 6, 10, 14 and 15 are judged one at a time, and the question is scored right only when all four rows are, so one doubtful row costs the point. (Sweller, 1988; Carpenter, Just & Shell, 1990)

  2. How, not what minor Working it out

    Each row asks what a sentence does in the argument, not what it is about: rows 3 and 4 both concern bringing in non-natives on purpose, but one argues for it and one reports it. (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001)

  3. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

    In the two evidence rows, 17 and 22 words separate the subject from its verb, “A project … saw” and “A tortoise … is now handling,” most of them inside dashes. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

  4. Figurative or literary language minor Understanding the question

    Row 2 reports a result in vivid words, a project to “rip out and poison” the grass and clapper rail numbers that “go tumbling downward,” so a report can sound like an opinion. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: For each sentence, ask whether it states a judgment the author must argue for or reports something that happened or was found, and sort it by that test alone.

Traps

  • Wrong purpose or structure: Names a purpose, structure or effect that the part does not serve, or describes what a part says when the question asks what it does.
  • Wrong tone or attitude: Misjudges the tone, attitude or point of view, such as reading admiration as criticism, or taking a character's or subject's feelings for the author's.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    Decide the job each of the four sentences does in the argument. A claim is a statement the author wants you to accept, such as an opinion or a judgment. People could disagree with it, so it needs support. Evidence is a fact, an example or an event that backs up a claim. Ask: does the sentence judge, or does it report what happened?

  2. Sort the sentence from paragraph 6

    Row 1 says “That kind of approach is not very useful on a rapidly changing planet.” The approach is the one in paragraph 5. There, many ecologists said they would wipe out a non-native plant even if it had no effect on the forest. The words “not very useful” are the author’s judgment. Someone could disagree, so the article has to argue for it. This sentence presents a claim.

    Watch out: “A rapidly changing planet” sounds like a fact. But the point of the sentence is the judgment about the approach.

  3. Sort the sentence from paragraph 10

    Row 2 is long, so set aside the part between the dashes. What is left says “A project to rip out and poison the spartina” saw clapper rail numbers fall. Spartina is a grass that is not native to California. The clapper rail is an endangered shorebird that lives in it. So the sentence reports what happened: the grass was removed, and the birds declined. It backs the claim in paragraph 9 that some non-natives “do good.” This row presents evidence.

    Watch out: Vivid words like “go tumbling downward” can sound like an opinion. But they only mean the numbers fell fast. Strong wording does not turn a report into a claim.

  4. Sort the sentence from paragraph 14

    Row 3 says “In some cases we can best serve biodiversity by leaving the non-natives alone or even—brace yourself, now—introducing them on purpose.” Biodiversity is the variety of living things in a place. The words “we can best serve” show the author’s judgment about what is best. “Brace yourself” shows she expects you to be surprised. A surprising idea needs proof. This sentence presents a claim.

  5. Sort the sentence from paragraph 15

    Row 4 also has a long part between dashes. Without it, the sentence says “A tortoise that’s related to the island’s large tortoises” is “now handling some of that work.” The sentence before explains the work. The islands lost their own large tortoises, which used to spread the seeds of fruiting plants. Now a non-native tortoise, brought in on purpose in 2004, does part of that job. It is a real example. It backs row 3’s claim. This row presents evidence.

    Watch out: Evidence does not need numbers or quotations. An example of what happened counts.

  6. Fill in the table

    • Row 1 (paragraph 6): Presents a Claim
    • Row 2 (paragraph 10): Presents Evidence
    • Row 3 (paragraph 14): Presents a Claim
    • Row 4 (paragraph 15): Presents Evidence

    On the test and on this site, click one circle in each row. All four rows must be right to get the point.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

Row 2 is the hardest. “Rip out and poison” and “tumbling downward” sound strong, like an opinion. But the sentence reports a project and its result: the bird numbers fell. Nobody judges what is best. So it is evidence for the claim that some non-natives “do good.”

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 8 as shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test.
As shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test: 2025 Practice Test B English, question 8.
The passage “Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil”” as printed (pages 68–70)The passage “Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil”” as printed on page 68 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil”” as printed on page 69 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil”” as printed on page 70 of the DOE handbook.

Question 52 of 120

2025 Practice Test B English, question 35
Passage Using Fire to Keep a Prairie Healthy

Using Fire to Keep a Prairie Healthy

Inside the 40,000-acre Joseph H. Williams Tallgrass Prairie Preserve in northern Oklahoma, herds of bison roam on the scenic land that is home to hundreds of different species of plants and animals. While one of the greatest threats to the prairie is wildfire, the use of controlled fires is actually an effective way to protect this idyllic landscape.

Fires that are started by lightning or other natural circumstances are inevitable, and the results can be disastrous. However, hundreds of years ago the American Indian people who inhabited the Great Plains area between Minnesota and Texas realized that these fires could also be helpful. The bison in the area seemed to prefer grazing on tender new grass on the recently burned land rather than on grass in the unburned areas. The American Indian people began to deliberately burn areas of land for bison to graze on, which enticed the herds away from the people’s crops.

Today conservationists at the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve and farmers in the Great Plains continue to use controlled burns for land management. Intentionally burning a portion of land can dramatically improve the quality of the vegetation that regrows there. The fires burn away weedy undergrowth and help limit the overcrowding of shrubs and trees in the burn area, creating less competition for water and nutrients. Additionally, the process of burning excess plant matter adds nitrogen, an essential element for plant growth, to the soil.

One common target of controlled burns at the preserve and the surrounding area is the invasive red cedar tree. A single red cedar tree can consume up to 40 gallons of water per day, taking this vital resource away from other plant life. These tall trees also cast shade that prevents sunlight from reaching the plants beneath them. The fast-growing red cedar trees tend to crowd out prairie grasses, the primary food source for wild and domestic animals that make the prairie their home. An imbalance in one component of the prairie’s ecosystem affects the entire web of life. Controlled burns help maintain this ecosystem’s delicate balance.

Of course, these controlled fires are intended to burn only a portion of an area. A total burn, which is a risk with an uncontrolled wildfire, would destroy all wildlife as well as the crops farmers plant for income. The key to using controlled fires is knowing which areas of land to burn and when. Conservation experts at the preserve employ the “patch-burn” approach, meaning they rotate which portion of land is burned each year. They study the land to find out which areas would most benefit from being burned, and then they arrange about a dozen burns over one-third of the land. This patch burning contains the fire within a specific area and allows animals in the burn area to safely relocate. The following year, conservationists will burn a different section of the preserve, while the land burned the previous year regrows healthier than before.

Researchers have tracked and studied the variety of plant species and animals that live on the preserve, and their studies show that the patch-burn approach has restored biodiversity to the area by promoting the growth of species that were at risk of being crowded out. The patch-burn system is so successful that the conservationists at the preserve provide training to prairie farmers about conducting controlled burns on their own land. Burning land to make it healthy may seem counterintuitive, but strategic controlled fires have helped the prairie sustain life for hundreds of years and, with careful management, will continue to do so.

Boxed diagram titled “OVERVIEW OF THE PATCH-BURN METHOD,” introduced by the text “By using a patch-burn method, conservationists and farmers can reduce the risk of unintentional fires and control where grazing animals, such as bison, roam.” Below it, a map of one stretch of land is divided by a branching stream, labeled Stream, into three shaded areas: a dark Unburned Area across the top, a medium gray Previously Burned Area on the left, and a light gray Recently Burned Area on the lower right, where eight bison stand. Three captions under the map read “The unburned area is overrun with weeds and has the greatest risk of catching fire,” “The previously burned area is cleared of weeds, and young trees and crops grow freely and thrive,” and “The recently burned area has been cleared of all plants. Bison prefer to eat the fresh grass that will begin to grow in the recently burned area, and they will generally remain in that area until newer, fresher grass is available elsewhere.”

Question

Which details from the passage best convey the central idea that using the patch-burn method is an effective way to protect and manage prairie land?

  • Athe explanation that conservationists use the alternating burn pattern of the patch-burn method in order to allow the animals in the area to avoid the fire
  • Bthe information that conservationists evaluate which land would most benefit from a controlled burn before applying the patch-burn method
  • Cthe information that conservationists have determined that the patch-burn method has promoted the growth of species that were at risk of being crowded out
  • Dthe explanation that conservationists are able to control the fire in the patch-burn method by arranging separate burns across the designated portion of land
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks which details from the passage best convey the central idea that using the patch-burn method is an effective way to protect and manage prairie land.

A. Incorrect. The author explains in paragraph 5 that “patch burning contains the fire within a specific area and allows animals in the burn area to safely relocate.” This explanation conveys two supporting ideas: the patch-burn method is controllable, and patch-burn fires do not pose a threat to animals. However, this explanation does not address the broader central idea that the patch-burn method is an effective way to protect and manage prairie land.

B. Incorrect. In paragraph 5, the author states that “the key to using controlled fires is knowing which areas of land to burn and when.” The author then provides information about how conservation experts “study the land to find out which areas would most benefit from being burned.” However, these details convey supporting ideas rather than the central idea that using the patch-burn method is an effective way to protect and manage prairie land.

C. CORRECT. In paragraph 3, the author states that “fires burn away weedy undergrowth and help limit the overcrowding of shrubs and trees in the burn area, creating less competition for water and nutrients.” Also, in paragraph 6, the author states that patch burning “has restored biodiversity to the area by promoting the growth of species that were at risk of being crowded out.” These details directly convey the central idea that using the patch-burn method is an effective way to protect and manage prairie land.

D. Incorrect. The author explains in paragraph 5 how conservationists “arrange about a dozen burns over one-third of the land,” which helps show how the patch-burn method is applied by conservationists. However, this is a supporting detail that conveys the idea that the burns are deliberately set and carefully controlled. This detail does not convey the central idea that using the patch-burn method is an effective way to manage and protect prairie land.

Question analysis

This evidence question on the article about controlled burns at an Oklahoma tallgrass prairie preserve asks which details best convey the central idea that the patch-burn method is an effective way to protect and manage prairie land. Every choice reports something the article really says about the method, so students must decide which details speak most directly to the central idea as stated.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Matching details to a stated central idea is regular grade 7 work, and the article is short and clearly written. Each choice is a long, accurate description, so the work lies in judging relevance rather than truth, which is typical.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 598 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 118 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The central idea joins three words, protect, manage and effective, and each wrong choice speaks to protect or manage with a step in carrying out the method: keeping animals safe, choosing the land, controlling the fire. Only a result shows that the method is effective, and the one result offered is the return of species once at risk of being crowded out. Students who ask what each detail proves, not what it is about, separate how the method works from whether it works.

  1. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    All four choices report the patch-burn method accurately, the animals’ safe relocation, the study of the land, the dozen burns and the restored species, so truth rules none out; each must be tested for proof the method works. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    Three choices come from paragraph 5, where the method is explained, while the result that shows it works, restored biodiversity, sits in paragraph 6, after the description ends. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  3. A lot to read minor Understanding the question

    Each choice is a noun phrase of 19 to 26 words opening “the explanation that” or “the information that,” so four long details must be unpacked before they can be compared. (Kintsch, 1998; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Restate the central idea in your own words, noting what “effective” requires, then ask of each choice whether that detail would persuade a doubtful reader of the whole idea.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks which details best support a central idea. A central idea is a main point the whole passage develops. Here the idea is given: the patch-burn method is an effective way to protect and manage prairie land. Effective means it works and gets good results. So look for details that show results, not just how the method is done.

  2. Find how the method works

    Paragraph 5 explains the patch-burn method. The experts “rotate which portion of land is burned each year.” Rotate means take turns. First, “They study the land to find out which areas would most benefit from being burned.” Then “they arrange about a dozen burns over one-third of the land.” This “contains the fire within a specific area and allows animals in the burn area to safely relocate.” These details tell how the method is done.

  3. Find what the method achieves

    Paragraph 6 gives the results. Researchers studied the plants and animals on the preserve. Their studies show “that the patch-burn approach has restored biodiversity to the area by promoting the growth of species that were at risk of being crowded out.” Biodiversity means many kinds of living things. A species is one kind of plant or animal. Crowded out means pushed aside, the way red cedars crowd out prairie grasses in paragraph 4. So the method helped species that were losing ground. That shows it works.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. Animals escaping safely shows the burns are done with care. It does not show the land gets healthier.
    • B does not fit. Studying the land is a planning step before a burn. It shows how the experts choose, not whether the burns work.
    • C fits. It reports a result: the method helped species that were at risk.
    • D does not fit. Arranging a dozen burns shows how the fire is kept under control. It does not show what the burns achieve.

    Watch out: D sounds like “manage,” since the experts control the fire. But controlling a fire is part of doing the method. Only a result proves the method is effective.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only one choice shows the patch-burn method getting good results. So the answer is C, “the information that conservationists have determined that the patch-burn method has promoted the growth of species that were at risk of being crowded out.”

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong choice. Careful control sounds like good management. But D only describes how the burns are set up. A method can be done carefully and still fail. C gives the proof that it works: studies show the burns “restored biodiversity.” Paragraph 6 even calls the system “so successful.”

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 35 as shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test.
As shown on the screen of the DOE’s digital test: 2025 Practice Test B English, question 35.
The passage “Using Fire to Keep a Prairie Healthy” as printed (page 41)The passage “Using Fire to Keep a Prairie Healthy” as printed on page 41 of the DOE handbook.

Question 53 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 13
Passage Excerpt from “Impressions of an Indian Childhood”

Excerpt from “Impressions of an Indian Childhood”

by Zitkala-Sa

Zitkala-Sa (Gertrude Simmons Bonnin) was a Native American writer, musician, teacher, and political activist who was raised on the Yankton Sioux Reservation in South Dakota. In 1900 she published “Impressions of an Indian Childhood” (the term Indian was commonly used at the time to refer to Native American people) to expose readers to what life is like on a reservation.

Soon after breakfast Mother sometimes began her beadwork. On a bright, clear day, she pulled out the wooden pegs that pinned the skirt of our wigwam1 to the ground, and rolled the canvas part way up on its frame of slender poles. Then the cool morning breezes swept freely through our dwelling, now and then wafting the perfume of sweet grasses from newly burnt prairie.

Untying the long tasseled strings that bound a small brown buckskin2 bag, my mother spread upon a mat beside her bunches of colored beads, just as an artist arranges the paints upon his palette. On a lapboard she smoothed out a double sheet of soft white buckskin; and drawing from a beaded case that hung on the left of her wide belt a long, narrow blade, she trimmed the buckskin into shape. Often she worked upon small moccasins for her small daughter. Then I became intensely interested in her designing. With a proud, beaming face, I watched her work. In [my] imagination, I saw myself walking in a new pair of snugly fitting moccasins. I felt the envious eyes of my playmates upon the pretty red beads decorating my feet.

Close beside my mother I sat on a rug, with a scrap of buckskin in one hand and an awl in the other. This was the beginning of my practical observation lessons in the art of beadwork. From a skein3 of finely twisted threads of silvery sinews my mother pulled out a single one. With an awl she pierced the buckskin, and skillfully threaded it with the white sinew. Picking up the tiny beads one by one, she strung them with the point of her thread, always twisting it carefully after every stitch.

It took many trials before I learned how to knot my sinew thread on the point of my finger, as I saw her do. Then the next difficulty was in keeping my thread stiffly twisted, so that I could easily string my beads upon it. My mother required of me original designs for my lessons in beading. At first I frequently ensnared many a sunny hour into working a long design. Soon I learned from self-inflicted punishment to refrain from drawing complex patterns, for I had to finish whatever I began.

After some experience I usually drew easy and simple crosses and squares. These were some of the set forms. My original designs were not always symmetrical nor sufficiently characteristic, two faults with which my mother had little patience. The quietness of her oversight made me feel strongly responsible and dependent upon my own judgment. She treated me as a dignified little individual as long as I was on my good behavior; and how humiliated I was when some boldness of mine drew forth a rebuke from her!

In the choice of colors she left me to my own taste. I was pleased with an outline of yellow upon a background of dark blue, or a combination of red and myrtle-green. There was another of red with a bluish-gray that was more conventionally used. When I became a little familiar with designing and the various pleasing combinations of color, a harder lesson was given me. It was the sewing on, instead of beads, some tinted porcupine quills, moistened and flattened between the nails of the thumb and forefinger. My mother cut off the prickly ends and burned them at once in the centre fire. These sharp points were poisonous, and worked into the flesh wherever they lodged. For this reason, my mother said, I should not do much alone in quills until I was as tall as my cousin Warca-Ziwin.

Always after these confining lessons I was wild with surplus spirits, and found joyous relief in running loose in the open again. Many a summer afternoon a party of four or five of my playmates roamed over the hills with me. We each carried a light sharpened rod about four feet long, with which we pried up certain sweet roots. When we had eaten all the choice roots we chanced upon, we shouldered our rods and strayed off into patches of a stalky plant under whose yellow blossoms we found little crystal drops of gum. Drop by drop we gathered this nature’s rock-candy, until each of us could boast of a lump the size of a small bird’s egg. Soon satiated with its woody flavor, we tossed away our gum, to return again to the sweet roots.

From “Impressions of an Indian Childhood” by Zitkala-Sa—Public Domain

A BRIEF HISTORY OF BEADWORK IN SOUTH DAKOTA

DateEvent
1500sThe Dakota use beads made from bones, shells, stones, and animal teeth. European traders bring glass beads to North America.
Late 1600sThe Dakota begin trading with the French in Minnesota.
1830sThe Dakota begin using glass beads in clothing, artwork, and decorations in place of Native-made beads.
1862–1865The Dakota are expelled from their homelands in Minnesota as a result of the U.S.-Dakota War.
1900s–1920sThe Dakota create items to sell outside their community.

Source: MNopedia

1wigwam: hut with an arched framework of poles covered with bark, mats, or animal hides

2buckskin: leather made from the skin of a male deer

3skein: coiled length of yarn or other thread loosely wound on a reel

Question

The details in paragraph 3 convey a central idea of the excerpt by suggesting that

  • Athe author was interested in the work because she knew her mother was making something for her.
  • Bthe author had difficulty learning through observation but wanted to help her mother.
  • Cthe author was determined to behave according to her mother’s standards and sought her approval.
  • Dthe author had great admiration for her mother’s precision and mastery of her craft.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks how the details in paragraph 3 convey a central idea of the excerpt.

A. Incorrect. In paragraph 2, the author mentions how her mother “worked upon small moccasins for her small daughter” and when she did, the author “became intensely interested in her [mother’s] designing.” However, in paragraph 3, the author is interested in her mother’s work mainly as part of her “lessons in the art of beadwork,” not because she knew her mother was making something for her.

B. Incorrect. In paragraph 3, the author receives “practical observation lessons in the art of beadwork” and describes how “from a skein of finely twisted threads of silvery sinews my mother pulled out a single one” and “pierced the buckskin, and skillfully threaded it with the white sinew.” The author describes the process in such detail that she provides no indication that she had difficulty learning through observation. The author also does not give any indication in the paragraph that she wanted to help her mother; she was there merely to observe and learn.

C. Incorrect. Although the author refers to her beading lessons with her mother as “practical observation lessons in the art of beadwork” and indicates that she sat “close beside” her mother while observing her beadwork, the author provides no indication in the paragraph that she was determined to behave according to her mother’s standards or that she sought her mother’s approval.

D. CORRECT. In paragraph 3, the author describes her mother’s artistry and craftsmanship by using language such as “skillfully threaded,” “picking up the tiny beads one by one,” and “twisting it carefully after every stitch.” These close observations indicate that the author greatly admired her mother’s mastery of her craft and the precision that went into every detail of her work.

Question analysis

This reading question asks how the details in the paragraph where young Zitkala-Sa sits beside her mother, watching her pierce buckskin and string tiny beads, point to a central idea of the excerpt. Several choices name feelings found elsewhere in the memoir, so students must stay with what this one paragraph shows.

NYS standards
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Linking a paragraph's details to a central idea is grade 7 reading. The answer rests on one short paragraph, but the student must turn its concrete details about thread and beads into an idea, a typical grade 7 demand.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 8, 946 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 73 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Paragraph 3 is short and concrete, but the feelings named in the choices come from all over the excerpt, so the danger is answering about the excerpt rather than this paragraph. The girl's interest in moccasins made for her belongs to paragraph 2, her struggles to paragraph 4, and good behavior to paragraph 5. Rereading paragraph 3 alone, and noticing how it describes the mother's hands at work, points to the right idea.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    Admiration is never named; it has to be inferred from the words chosen for the mother's work: “skillfully threaded,” beads picked up “one by one,” thread twisted “carefully after every stitch.” (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer

    The right choice says “precision and mastery,” words absent from paragraph 3, while wrong choices echo the excerpt's own “observation” lessons, its “difficulty” with thread, and the moccasins made for the daughter. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

Strategy: Reread paragraph 3 by itself and note what its verbs and describing words emphasize, then match that emphasis to a choice and reject ideas drawn from other paragraphs.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    Look only at paragraph 3. A central idea is an important message of the whole excerpt. You need the idea that the details in paragraph 3 show.

  2. Find the details in paragraph 3

    The girl sits “close beside” her mother and watches. The mother “skillfully threaded it with the white sinew.” Sinew is a strong cord made from an animal’s body. She picks up “the tiny beads one by one.” She keeps “twisting it carefully after every stitch.”

  3. Work out what the details show

    Words like “skillfully” and “carefully” show the mother is an expert. She works with precision, which means being exact. Her mastery, or great skill, shows in every small move. The girl notices each one. You watch someone this closely when you admire them, or think highly of them.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. The moccasins made for her come from paragraph 2. Paragraph 3 is about her lessons.
    • B is wrong. Her trouble with thread comes in paragraph 4. Nothing says she wants to help.
    • C is wrong. Good behavior comes up in paragraph 5, not paragraph 3.
    • D is right. The careful details show admiration for her mother’s skill.

    Watch out: A, B and C all use ideas from other paragraphs. Stay inside paragraph 3.

  5. Choose the answer

    Paragraph 3 shows a girl who watches her mother’s expert hands with wonder. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong answer, because the girl really was “intensely interested” when her mother made moccasins for her. But that is in paragraph 2. Paragraph 3 calls the watching “the beginning of my practical observation lessons.” Its details praise how skillfully and carefully the mother works. That fits D.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 13 as printed on page 44 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 44, question 13. Open page 44 of the handbook (PDF)
The passage “Excerpt from “Impressions of an Indian Childhood”” as printed (pages 42–43)The passage “Excerpt from “Impressions of an Indian Childhood”” as printed on page 42 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from “Impressions of an Indian Childhood”” as printed on page 43 of the DOE handbook.

Question 54 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 14

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “Impressions of an Indian Childhood””.

Question

How does the author distinguish her point of view from that of her mother?

  • Aby describing their techniques for knotting sinew thread (paragraph 4)
  • Bby describing their approaches to beadwork design (paragraph 5)
  • Cby stating her mother’s instructions on working with quills (paragraph 6)
  • Dby stating her mother’s ideas about activities after lessons (paragraph 7)
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks how the author distinguishes her point of view from that of her mother.

A. Incorrect. In paragraph 4, the author explains that “it took many trials before I learned how to knot my sinew thread on the point of my finger, as I saw her do” and that the “difficulty was in keeping my thread stiffly twisted, so that I could easily string my beads upon it.” Although this explanation describes the author’s difficulty in performing the same task as her mother, it does not distinguish her point of view from that of her mother. In fact, they seem to share the same point of view regarding the importance of the technique the author is attempting to learn.

B. CORRECT. In paragraph 5, the author distinguishes her point of view from that of her mother by describing their approaches to beadwork design. In the paragraph, the author states, “I usually drew easy and simple crosses and squares” and “My original designs were not always symmetrical nor sufficiently characteristic, two faults with which my mother had little patience.” The author also distinguishes her point of view from that of her mother by stating that “the quietness of [my mother’s] oversight made me feel strongly responsible and dependent upon my own judgment.”

C. Incorrect. In paragraph 6, the author states, “My mother cut off the prickly ends and burned them at once in the centre fire. These sharp points were poisonous, and worked into the flesh wherever they lodged. For this reason, my mother said, I should not do much alone in quills until I was as tall as my cousin Warca-Ziwin.” Although these instructions explain the importance of having experience and skill when working with quills, they do not distinguish the author’s point of view from that of her mother.

D. Incorrect. In paragraph 7, the author describes her beadwork lessons as “confining” and states that she liked to roam “over the hills” with her playmates after the lessons. However, she makes no mention of her mother in paragraph 7; the activities and ideas stated there belong to the author, not the mother.

Question analysis

This reading question asks how Zitkala-Sa separates her own point of view from her mother's in an excerpt about learning beadwork as a girl. Each choice points to a different paragraph, so students must revisit all four and find where the two perspectives actually differ, not just where one person speaks or acts.

NYS standards
  • 7R6 point of view and author position
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Analyzing how an author sets her view apart from another person's is a grade 7 standard. The memoir's sentences are long and old-fashioned, but its paragraphs are short and concrete, so the demand is typical of grade 7 reading.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 8, 946 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 51 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A word-order slip in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Every paragraph named shows mother and daughter together, or the daughter alone, so each looks like a candidate until it is tested for an actual difference in outlook. The struggle to knot sinew is a difference in skill, not in view, and the warning about quills gives only the mother's side. Paragraph 5 is the one place where the girl's own designs and her mother's impatience with their faults are set side by side.

  1. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    Each choice points to a different paragraph, 4 through 7, so all four have to be reread and tested for two outlooks that actually differ, not just one person's action or advice. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. How, not what moderate Working it out

    The question asks how the author sets her view apart, so students must find where two outlooks meet and clash: her simple, imperfect designs against the faults her mother “had little patience” with. (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001)

  3. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    The key sentence turns on “not always symmetrical nor sufficiently characteristic,” formal words that must be understood to see the mother's standards behind them. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: For each paragraph named, ask whether it shows both the mother's view and the narrator's and sets them against each other; a paragraph with one perspective cannot be the answer.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook reads “The author also distinguishes her point of view from that her of mother.” It now reads “from that of her mother,” as earlier in the same explanation.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    A point of view is how a person sees or judges something. You need a place where the author shows that she and her mother see things differently. Each choice names a different paragraph. Check each one for two views that don’t match.

  2. Find two views in paragraph 5

    The girl “usually drew easy and simple crosses and squares.” Then she says: “My original designs were not always symmetrical nor sufficiently characteristic, two faults with which my mother had little patience.”

  3. Work out what it means

    Symmetrical means the same on both sides. “Sufficiently characteristic” means typical enough of the usual style. The girl kept her designs easy and simple. Her mother cared about something else. She saw “faults,” or mistakes, in them. Having “little patience” means being quickly annoyed. So the two judge the designs differently.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. In paragraph 4 the girl learns to knot thread “as I saw her do.” She learns her mother’s way, so their views match.
    • B is right. Paragraph 5 sets the girl’s designs against her mother’s standards.
    • C is wrong. Paragraph 6 gives only the mother’s warning about quills. The girl does not disagree.
    • D is wrong. The mother doesn’t appear in paragraph 7 at all.

    Watch out: A is tempting because the girl struggles with something her mother can do. But that is a difference in skill, not in point of view.

  5. Choose the answer

    Paragraph 5 is the one place where the two views are set side by side. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong answer. The girl does struggle to knot thread the way her mother does. But they agree on how it should be done. In paragraph 5, the girl’s simple designs meet her mother’s impatience with their “faults.” That is a real difference in how they see the work.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 14 as printed on page 45 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 45, question 14. Open page 45 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D). This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 55 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 16

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “Impressions of an Indian Childhood””.

Question

Which sentence best summarizes the process of beading that is described in the excerpt?

  • ATake a buckskin bag full of beads and spread them out on a mat in different colors like a paint palette; take a double sheet of buckskin and smooth it out on a table; take a sinew and awl and thread the beads onto the buckskin in a desired pattern.
  • BCut the double sheet of buckskin into a shape; take a skein of sinew and pierce the buckskin with an awl; thread the sinew with beads of many different colors in a simple or complex pattern; twist the sinew to keep it tight after every stitch into the buckskin.
  • CArrange the beads into groups of colors on a mat; smooth out a double sheet of buckskin and cut it to shape; take a single thread of sinew; pierce the buckskin with an awl; thread the buckskin with the sinew and string it with beads, carefully twisting after every stitch.
  • DGather beads, buckskin, sinew, and awl and place them on a mat; cut the buckskin into the desired shape; decide on a pattern for the beads and create it using the sinews and the awl; thread the beads onto the sinew in the desired pattern and twist it tight.
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks which sentence best summarizes the process of beading that is described in the excerpt.

A. Incorrect. In paragraphs 2 and 3, the author describes how at the beginning of the process her mother “smoothed out a double sheet of soft white buckskin” on a lapboard (paragraph 2) and how she strings the beads into a pattern. However, this sentence does not describe the steps that take place between the preparation and the stringing of the beads. Thus, this sentence does not best summarize the beading process.

B. Incorrect. In paragraphs 2 and 3, the author describes the process her mother uses to string the beads with “the point of her thread, always twisting it carefully after every stitch” (paragraph 3). While this sentence includes some of the steps in the beading process, it does not describe the necessary preparation, namely spreading the beads out on a mat and smoothing out the buckskin on a lapboard. Thus, this sentence does not best summarize the beading process.

C. CORRECT. This sentence best summarizes the process of beading that is described in the excerpt because it includes details about each step in the process. In paragraph 2, the author explains how her mother “spread upon a mat beside her bunches of colored beads” and how “on a lapboard she smoothed out a double sheet of soft white buckskin; and drawing from a beaded case that hung on the left of her wide belt a long, narrow blade, she trimmed the buckskin into shape.” The author continues her description in paragraph 3, stating, “From a skein of finely twisted threads of silvery sinews my mother pulled out a single one. With an awl she pierced the buckskin, and skillfully threaded it with the white sinew. Picking up the tiny beads one by one, she strung them with the point of her thread, always twisting it carefully after every stitch.”

D. Incorrect. In paragraphs 2 and 3, the author describes the process her mother uses as she “smoothed out a double sheet of soft white buckskin” (paragraph 2) on a lapboard before stringing the beads. While this sentence includes most of the steps in the beading process, it excludes the step of piercing the buckskin. This sentence also provides few details about the process of beading and uses vague wording to describe each step. Therefore, the sentence does not best summarize the beading process.

Question analysis

This reading question asks which sentence best summarizes the beadwork process Zitkala-Sa watches her mother carry out, from laying out the materials to stringing the beads. Each choice is a long list of steps, so students must compare them detail by detail with the excerpt and notice what each one adds, leaves out or misplaces.

NYS standards
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Summarizing a process is grade 7 reading, but the four summaries are long and nearly alike, and checking them against two paragraphs of 1900 prose with words like awl, sinew and skein is heavier than usual.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 8, 946 words; question and choices: about grade 16+, 212 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • An inaccurate detail about the excerpt in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

This question is won by bookkeeping, not insight: list the mother's steps from the two paragraphs, then hold each long summary against the list. The most tempting wrong summary reads like a sensible craft routine in a sensible order, yet it never has the buckskin pierced and puts every tool on the mat. Others open with a familiar image or close with precise stitching while skipping steps, so students who check only the beginning or only the end are caught.

  1. Every choice must be checked major Choosing the answer

    Each summary is a chain of four to six steps, so all four must be checked step by step against paragraphs 2 and 3 for steps missing, added or out of order. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. A lot to read moderate Understanding the question

    The four choices together run to about 200 words of semicolon-linked steps, and the text they summarize is two paragraphs of dense 1900 prose. (Kintsch, 1998; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

  3. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    Words like awl, sinew, skein and lapboard name the tools and materials, and a student unsure of them cannot tell which steps a summary has dropped. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: List the mother's steps from paragraphs 2 and 3 in order, then check each choice against your list for a missing step, an invented detail or a step out of place.

Traps

  • Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: In rejecting choice B, the handbook says the choice leaves out the preparation, “namely spreading the beads and the buckskin out on a table.” The excerpt mentions no table: in paragraph 2 the mother spreads the beads on a mat and smooths out the buckskin on a lapboard. The explanation now says so. (Choice A’s “on a table” is part of a wrong answer and is left as printed.)

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    You need the summary that best matches the beading steps in the excerpt. A summary is a short retelling of the main points. The best one keeps every main step, in order, and adds nothing new.

  2. List the steps from paragraphs 2 and 3

    Paragraphs 2 and 3 give the mother’s steps in order. The last one ends with her “always twisting it carefully after every stitch.”

    1. Spread the beads on a mat.
    2. Smooth out a double sheet of buckskin on a lapboard (a board held on the lap).
    3. Trim the buckskin into shape with a blade.
    4. Pull out a single sinew, a strong thread.
    5. Pierce (poke a hole in) the buckskin with an awl, a pointed tool.
    6. Thread the sinew through the buckskin.
    7. String the beads, twisting the thread after every stitch.

  3. Check each choice against the list

    • A is wrong. It skips trimming, piercing and twisting. It also says “on a table,” but she used a lapboard.
    • B is wrong. It starts with cutting. It skips spreading the beads and smoothing the buckskin.
    • C is right. It has every step, in the same order.
    • D is wrong. It never says to smooth the buckskin or pierce it. It also puts every tool on the mat, but only the beads went there.

    Watch out: D sounds like a sensible plan in a sensible order. But a summary must match the excerpt, not just sound right. Check it step by step.

  4. Choose the answer

    Only C follows the mother’s steps from start to finish. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong answer. It is neat and keeps most of the steps. But it skips smoothing the buckskin and never says to pierce it with the awl. It also piles every tool onto the mat. C matches the excerpt step for step, so it is the best summary.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 16 as printed on page 45 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 45, question 16. Open page 45 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D). This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 56 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 17

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “Impressions of an Indian Childhood””.

Question

The idea that mastering moccasin design and creation requires experience is best illustrated in the excerpt through

  • Athe information about the advanced technique of incorporating porcupine quills into a design.
  • Bthe descriptions of the special materials that must be used to make decorated moccasins.
  • Cthe descriptions of the various color combinations that make an attractive moccasin design.
  • Dthe example of the author successfully and independently using a sharpened rod.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how the idea that mastering moccasin design and creation requires experience is best illustrated in the excerpt.

A. CORRECT. In paragraph 6, the author states that when she became more familiar with elements of design, “a harder lesson was given me.” According to the author, sewing on porcupine quills is a much more difficult task to master because it requires experience in handling the poisonous porcupine quills, which is why her mother told her not to “do much alone in quills” until she was older (paragraph 6). This information best illustrates the idea that mastering moccasin design and creation requires experience.

B. Incorrect. Although the author provides detailed descriptions of the materials used to make decorated moccasins (“colored beads” [paragraph 2]; “a skein of finely twisted threads of silvery sinews” [paragraph 3]; “tinted porcupine quills, moistened and flattened between the nails of the thumb and forefinger” [paragraph 6]), these descriptions do not illustrate the experience that is needed to gain mastery of moccasin design and creation.

C. Incorrect. Although the author describes the color combinations she used in making moccasins (“I was pleased with an outline of yellow upon a background of dark blue, or a combination of red and myrtle-green. There was another of red with a bluish-gray that was more conventionally used” [paragraph 6]), this information mainly illustrates the author’s satisfaction with her moccasin design, not the importance of experience in mastering the creation and design of moccasins.

D. Incorrect. In paragraph 7, the author tells of using a sharpened rod to dig for roots. She explains that she and her playmates used the rods to “[pry] up certain sweet roots,” which they ate before going off to gather gum from a stalky plant. The detail of the sharpened rod is from a recollection about the playtime that followed the “confining lessons” of moccasin making. However, the sharpened rod was not used to create moccasins.

Question analysis

This reading question asks which part of Zitkala-Sa's account of learning to bead moccasins best illustrates the idea that mastering the craft takes experience. The choices point to materials, color combinations, a technique and outdoor play, so students must find the detail that ties skill to practice rather than one that simply describes the craft.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Choosing the detail that best illustrates an idea is grade 7 evidence work. The idea is stated plainly in the question and each paragraph of the excerpt keeps to one topic, so the demand matches typical grade 7 tasks.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 8, 946 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 69 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • An inaccurate account of the excerpt in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The idea of experience is spelled out in paragraph 6, where quillwork is a harder lesson given only after some practice and kept from the girl until she is older. The wrong choices describe things the excerpt really contains, materials, colors and a tool, so they look supported until each is asked whether it shows a learner needing practice. Students who put that one question to every choice find this a quick item.

  1. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    The stem names no paragraph, so students must find where each choice's detail sits, from the beads and sinew of paragraphs 2 and 3 to the rods of paragraph 7. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The link to experience is implied in paragraph 6: quills come as “a harder lesson” once she is “a little familiar with designing,” and she must wait until she is “as tall as my cousin.” (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: For each choice, find the part of the excerpt it refers to and ask whether it shows a learner needing practice before doing something, not just what the craft involves.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Wrong part of the text: A choice is true of another paragraph, stanza or speaker than the one asked about.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: In rejecting choice D, the handbook says the author used a sharpened rod “to spear gum from trees” and that the children pried up sweet roots “to find the gum.” In paragraph 7 the rods are used to pry up sweet roots, which the children eat; afterwards they stray off to a stalky plant and find drops of gum under its yellow blossoms. Nothing is speared and no trees are mentioned. The explanation now says the rods were used to dig for roots, sweet roots the children ate before going off to gather gum from a stalky plant. The reason for rejecting D, that the rod was not used to make moccasins, is unchanged.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    You need the part of the excerpt that best shows one idea. The idea is that you need experience to master making moccasins. Experience means practice over time. Look for a learner who must practice before doing something harder.

  2. Find the evidence in paragraph 6

    Paragraph 6 says: “When I became a little familiar with designing and the various pleasing combinations of color, a harder lesson was given me.” The harder lesson was sewing on porcupine quills. Then her mother said “I should not do much alone in quills until I was as tall as my cousin Warca-Ziwin.”

  3. Work out what it means

    Quills are the sharp spines of a porcupine. Their points were “poisonous,” so they were dangerous. The girl got this lesson only after she knew the basics. Even then, she could not do much alone with quills until she was as tall as her cousin. That shows skill grows with experience.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is right. Quillwork is a harder skill she must earn through practice.
    • B is wrong. The materials show what moccasins are made of, not how skill is gained.
    • C is wrong. The colors show her own taste. Her mother “left me to my own taste.”
    • D is wrong. The rods were for digging up sweet roots during play. They had nothing to do with moccasins.

    Watch out: C comes right before the quills in paragraph 6, so it is easy to pick. But the colors show what she liked, not a skill she had to build up.

  5. Choose the answer

    The quill lesson comes only after practice, and working alone comes only once she has grown. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer, since the colors come just before the quill lesson. But the girl was free to pick the colors she liked. That shows her taste, not a need for experience. The quills are called “a harder lesson,” given only once she knew the basics. That fits A.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 17 as printed on page 46 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 46, question 17. Open page 46 of the handbook (PDF) This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 57 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 19
Passage At Dusk

At Dusk

by Natasha Trethewey

At first I think she is calling a child,
my neighbor, leaning through her doorway
at dusk, street lamps just starting to hum
the backdrop of evening. Then I hear
the high-pitched wheedling1 we send out
to animals who know only sound, not
the meanings of our words—here here—
nor how they sometimes fall short.
In another yard, beyond my neighbor’s
sight, the cat lifts her ears, turns first
toward the voice, then back
to the constellation of fireflies flickering
near her head. It’s as if she can’t decide
whether to leap over the low hedge,
the neat row of flowers, and bound
onto the porch, into the steady circle
of light, or stay where she is: luminous
possibility—all that would keep her
away from home—flitting before her.
I listen as my neighbor’s voice trails off.
She’s given up calling for now, left me
to imagine her inside the house waiting,
perhaps in a chair in front of the TV,
or walking around, doing small tasks;
left me to wonder that I too might lift
my voice, sure of someone out there,
send it over the lines stitching here
to there, certain the sounds I make
are enough to call someone home.

“At Dusk” from NATIVE GUARD by Natasha Trethewey, published by Houghton Mifflin Company. Copyright © 2006 by Natasha Trethewey. All rights reserved.

1wheedling: speaking in a flattering manner

Question

Which lines from the poem best support the idea that the neighbor’s efforts to call the cat home directly affect the speaker?

  • A“At first I think she is calling a child, / my neighbor” (lines 1–2)
  • B“the high-pitched wheedling we send out / to animals who know only sound” (lines 5–6)
  • C“I listen as my neighbor’s voice trails off. / She’s given up calling for now” (lines 20–21)
  • D“left me to wonder that I too might lift / my voice, sure of someone out there” (lines 25–26)
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks for the best textual support for the idea that the neighbor’s actions in calling the cat directly affect the speaker of the poem.

A. Incorrect. Lines 1–2 show that the speaker has noticed the neighbor’s calling and guessed the reason for it. The speaker at first believes that the neighbor is “calling a child,” but then the speaker notices a sound associated with the time of day—the “street lamps just starting to hum / the backdrop of evening” (lines 3–4). However, the poem does not describe any direct effects on the speaker’s own opinions or behavior caused by these aspects of the surroundings.

B. Incorrect. The “high-pitched wheedling” sound the speaker mentions in line 5 might be assumed to have an annoying effect. However, the poem includes no indication that the sound has any direct effect on the speaker or that the speaker has any personal reaction to the sound. Instead, in lines 6–7, the speaker concentrates on explaining the reason people make the sound: to communicate with “animals who know only sound, not / the meanings of our words.”

C. Incorrect. In lines 20–21, the speaker actively listens “as my neighbor’s voice trails off,” which could be interpreted as an effect of the neighbor’s call. However, the speaker’s listening soon comes to an end because the neighbor has “given up calling for now,” and the poem does not describe any direct effects on the speaker’s own opinions or behavior caused by listening. Therefore, lines 20–21 do not best support the idea that the neighbor’s actions directly affect the speaker of the poem.

D. CORRECT. In lines 25–26, after observing the neighbor calling the cat, the speaker begins to reflect on the speaker’s own behavior and motivations, wondering if, like the neighbor, the speaker “might lift” the speaker’s voice to call someone who is surely “out there.” The speaker’s description of being left “to wonder” indicates that the speaker’s thoughts are a direct effect of observing the neighbor’s efforts to call the cat.

Question analysis

This reading question asks which lines from Natasha Trethewey's poem At Dusk best support the idea that a neighbor's efforts to call her cat home directly affect the speaker. Every option quotes lines connected to the calling, so students must tell lines that merely describe the scene from lines that show its effect on the person watching.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Choosing lines that support an idea is grade 7 evidence work. The quotations are short and the poem's language is plain, but each must be checked against a specific claim, a typical grade 7 task.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one sentence or line
Reading level
Passage: 236 words (a poem; reading level not measured); question and choices: about grade 5, 79 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Every quotation shows the speaker noticing the call in some way, so the question is how strong a connection “directly affect” requires. The listening lines are the trap: they stop one line short of “left me,” where the effect begins. Students who ask what the calling makes the speaker think or want find the lines in which the speaker imagines calling out too.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    Students must decide what counts as an effect on the speaker: hearing and listening are reactions, but only lines 25–26 show the calling changing what the speaker thinks or wants. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    All four quotations involve the speaker and the calling, from “I think” to “we send out” to “I listen,” so each has to be tested for an effect, not just a connection. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: For each quotation, ask what the speaker does, thinks or feels because of the calling; lines that only report a sound or an event show no effect.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    You need the lines that best show the neighbor’s calling has a direct effect on the speaker. The speaker is the “I” who tells the poem. An effect here is a change in what the speaker thinks, feels or does.

  2. Find where the effect begins

    In line 20 the neighbor’s voice “trails off.” She has given up calling, and that “left me” with new thoughts. First it “left me / to imagine her inside the house waiting” (lines 21–22). Then it “left me to wonder that I too might lift / my voice, sure of someone out there” (lines 25–26).

  3. Work out what the lines mean

    “I too” means the speaker now thinks of doing what the neighbor did. The speaker imagines calling out to someone, the way the neighbor called the cat. Watching her call has changed the speaker’s own thoughts and wishes. That is a direct effect.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. Lines 1–2 show only the speaker’s first guess about the sound. Nothing changes for the speaker.
    • B is wrong. Lines 5–6 explain how people in general call animals. They show no reaction from the speaker.
    • C is wrong. Lines 20–21 show the speaker listening as the calling stops. The effect starts after them, with “left me.”
    • D is right. The speaker wonders about lifting “my voice” too.

    Watch out: C is tempting because “I listen” is a reaction. But hearing a sound is not the same as being changed by it.

  5. Choose the answer

    Lines 25–26 show the calling making the speaker want to call out too. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer. In it the speaker does listen to the neighbor. But the lines only report her voice fading and the calling ending. The speaker’s own response begins with “left me to wonder,” in line 25. There the speaker thinks of calling someone too. That is the direct effect.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 19 as printed on page 49 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 49, question 19. Open page 49 of the handbook (PDF)
The passage “At Dusk” as printed (page 48)The passage “At Dusk” as printed on page 48 of the DOE handbook.

Question 58 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 21

Uses the passage above: “At Dusk”.

Question

The details in lines 10–17 about the cat convey a central idea of the poem by

  • Ashowing that returning home after experiencing independence is challenging.
  • Bsuggesting that caring for others means allowing them to grow and to roam freely.
  • Cimplying that expecting to feel at home in the natural world leads to disappointment.
  • Demphasizing the conflicting desires to return to the familiar and to explore the unknown.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks how the details in lines 10–17 convey a central idea of the poem.

A. Incorrect. In lines 10–17, the speaker says that the cat’s actions—she “turns first / toward the voice, then back”—make the cat seem “as if she can’t decide” whether to return home or to explore “the constellation of fireflies flickering / near her head.” However, while the cat is indecisive, it is not the experience of independence that causes this conflict for the cat but rather the “luminous / possibility . . . flitting before her” (lines 17–19).

B. Incorrect. The neighbor’s calling of the cat indicates that she does allow it to roam outside regularly. However, the details in these lines focus not on whether allowing the cat to roam is an expression of caring but on the cat’s reaction to the neighbor’s calls, “as if she can’t decide” (line 13) whether to return home “into the steady circle / of light” (lines 16–17) or stay and enjoy the “luminous / possibility” (lines 17–18) that the night offers. Furthermore, the neighbor’s “wheedling” (line 5) and the timing of her call, “at dusk” (line 3), introduce the possibility that encouraging others to come home expresses more caring than allowing them to roam freely.

C. Incorrect. Lines 10–17 describe the reactions of the cat, who is exploring the natural world, including a “constellation of fireflies flickering / near her head,” when the neighbor calls to her. The poet describes the cat’s conflict by saying that “It’s as if she can’t decide” whether to stay outdoors or return “into the steady circle / of light” at home with the neighbor. However, the cat’s indecision demonstrates that, rather than being a disappointment, the natural world is as appealing as home.

D. CORRECT. Lines 10–11 describe how the cat “turns first / toward the voice, then back,” indicating that the cat is experiencing a conflict. To the speaker, the cat seems “as if she can’t decide” (line 13) between exploring “the constellation of fireflies” (line 12) outdoors and returning to the familiar “steady circle / of light” (lines 16–17) indoors. This central idea that someone might experience a conflict between exploring and returning to the familiar is suggested again in lines 28–29 when the speaker wonders whether “the sounds I make / are enough to call someone home.”

Question analysis

This reading question asks how the lines describing a cat in another yard, as the neighbor calls from her doorway, convey a central idea of Natasha Trethewey's poem At Dusk. Students must turn a concrete picture of an animal's behavior into a general idea and check each proposed lesson against what the cat actually does in these lines.

NYS standards
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Showing how specific lines convey a central idea is grade 7 work. The cat's behavior is concrete and easy to picture, so the step from image to idea is a typical grade 7 poetry task.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: 236 words (a poem; reading level not measured); question and choices: about grade 9, 66 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A grammar slip in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The lines show a cat turning toward the voice and back to the fireflies, then hesitating between the porch light and the night, so the idea is a pull in two directions. The most tempting wrong answer also describes trouble going home but explains it by time spent away, a cause these lines never give. Other choices bring in lessons about caring for pets or about nature letting us down, which the bright images of the night contradict.

  1. Figurative or literary language moderate Understanding the question

    The two pulls are images, “the constellation of fireflies flickering” for the unknown and “the steady circle / of light” on the porch for the familiar, and both must be read that way. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    Students must turn one cat's hesitation in a yard into an idea about people, a step these lines leave to the reader until the speaker's own wish at the end of the poem. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Describe in plain words what the cat does in lines 10–17 and why, then choose the general idea that matches that behavior without adding causes the lines never give.

Traps

  • Half right: One half of a two-part choice is right and the other is not.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: In rejecting choice A, the handbook reads “the cat’s actions—she “turns first / toward the voice, then back”—makes the cat seem.” It now reads “make,” to agree with “actions.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    Lines 10–17 are about the cat. A central idea is a main message of the poem. You need the idea that these details about the cat show.

  2. Read what the cat does

    The cat “lifts her ears, turns first / toward the voice, then back / to the constellation of fireflies flickering / near her head” (lines 10–13). Then the speaker says, “It’s as if she can’t decide” (line 13). She could leap “onto the porch, into the steady circle / of light” (lines 16–17). Or she could “stay where she is” (line 17).

  3. Work out what it means

    The porch light is home. It is familiar, something the cat knows well. The fireflies are like a “constellation,” a group of stars. They stand for the unknown night and its wonders. The cat is pulled both ways. Part of her wants home. Part of her wants to stay out and explore.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. Going home is hard for the cat. But the reason is the fireflies near her now. The lines never say she got used to being free.
    • B is wrong. These lines are about the cat’s choice. They say nothing about caring for her or letting her roam.
    • C is wrong. Nature is not disappointing here. The fireflies make the outdoors glow.
    • D is right. The cat is torn between the familiar porch and the unknown night.

    Watch out: A sounds close, because the cat really does have trouble going home. But A adds a cause the poem never gives.

  5. Choose the answer

    The cat turns toward home and then back to the fireflies. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong answer. It is right that going home is hard for the cat. But A blames a taste of freedom from time spent away. The poem says nothing about that. It shows two pulls at once: the voice and light of home, and the fireflies close by. D names both desires.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 21 as printed on page 49 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 49, question 21. Open page 49 of the handbook (PDF) This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 59 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 24

Uses the passage above: “At Dusk”.

Question

How does the setting affect the events of the poem?

  • AIt enables the speaker to regularly overhear the neighbor calling for her cat at dusk.
  • BIt allows the speaker to observe the neighbor quietly without interacting with her.
  • CIt shows how living in close proximity helps the speaker feel connected to the neighbor.
  • DIt shows how feeling isolated causes the speaker to imagine interactions with the neighbor.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks how the setting affects the events discussed in the poem.

A. Incorrect. In line 2, the speaker refers to the woman calling for her cat as “my neighbor,” which clearly suggests that the speaker lives next door to the woman. However, although the two live next door to each other, line 1 suggests that perhaps the speaker does not regularly overhear the neighbor because the speaker initially thinks that the neighbor is “calling a child” and only later realizes the neighbor is calling to a cat. Although the setting places the speaker and the neighbor in close proximity, the poem does not indicate the frequency or regularity with which the speaker overhears the neighbor.

B. CORRECT. In the first four lines, the speaker observes the actions of the neighbor as the neighbor leans out to call for the cat at dusk. Despite the speaker’s observation of the neighbor, there is no indication that the neighbor notices the speaker. The reader can conclude that because of the time of day and the speaker being in the house next door, the speaker can observe the neighbor without being observed by her or having to interact with her.

C. Incorrect. The setting of the poem is a neighborhood at nightfall, as indicated by “at dusk” in line 3, the reference to “another yard” in line 9, and the flickering fireflies in line 12. However, while the speaker is close enough to the neighbor to overhear her calling to the cat, there is no indication that the speaker feels connected to the neighbor. Instead, the speaker expresses curiosity about the neighbor after the neighbor goes inside, and the speaker is “left . . . / to imagine her inside the house waiting” (lines 21–22). The fact the speaker initially thought that the neighbor was calling a child indicates that the speaker is not familiar with the neighbor and her habits, and there is no indication that the speaker feels connected to the neighbor.

D. Incorrect. In lines 22–24, the speaker imagines what the neighbor may be doing while the neighbor is waiting inside for the cat to return, but the speaker is imagining the neighbor’s solitary experience after the neighbor has momentarily “given up” on calling to the cat (line 21). The speaker does not imagine personally interacting with the neighbor but rather briefly imagines what the neighbor is doing at home while the cat is away.

Question analysis

This reading question asks how the setting of At Dusk, a neighborhood at nightfall where a woman leans from her doorway to call her cat, affects the events of the poem. Because so little happens, students must infer the setting's role from small details, and several choices sound reasonable without being supported by the poem.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 students analyze how setting shapes events, usually in a story with a clear plot. This poem has almost no action, so the student must reason from a handful of details about place and time, which is harder than typical grade 7 work.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: 236 words (a poem; reading level not measured); question and choices: about grade 8, 67 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Little happens in this poem, so the setting's role must be built from small details: a neighbor at her doorway at dusk, a cat in another yard, a speaker who hears and watches but never speaks. The strongest wrong answer is right about overhearing and wrong only in claiming it happens regularly, which the speaker's first mistaken guess argues against. The other choices supply a feeling of closeness or of isolation that the poem never states.

  1. A very close wrong answer major Choosing the answer

    The overhearing choice describes what the setting allows almost as well as the right one and fails on a single word, “regularly,” since the poem records one evening and the speaker first mistakes the call. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The setting's effect is never stated; it has to be inferred from the speaker hearing and watching from nearby while the neighbor, “leaning through her doorway,” never seems to notice anyone. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Picture the scene from the speaker's position, then check each choice word by word against the poem and reject any that claims something the poem never states.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    The setting is where and when a story or poem takes place. You need to see how the setting shapes what happens in the poem.

  2. Picture the setting

    It is “dusk” (line 3), the dim time just after sunset. The neighbor is “leaning through her doorway” (line 2). The cat is “In another yard” (line 9). The speaker is close enough to hear and watch it all. But the speaker never speaks to the neighbor. Nothing shows the neighbor notices the speaker.

  3. Work out the effect

    Living next door puts the speaker close by. In the fading light, the speaker can watch quietly. So the speaker sees the neighbor and the cat without joining in. The whole poem is what the speaker sees, hears and imagines from there.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. The word “regularly” is the problem. The poem shows one evening.
    • B is right. The speaker watches from nearby and never talks with the neighbor.
    • C is wrong. The speaker never says they feel close to the neighbor.
    • D is wrong. The poem never says the speaker feels lonely. The speaker pictures the neighbor alone inside, not the two of them talking.

    Watch out: A is almost right, since living nearby does let the speaker overhear. One word makes it wrong.

  5. Choose the answer

    The setting lets the speaker watch quietly from close by. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong answer. Living next door does let the speaker hear the call. But nothing says it happens often. The poem tells about one evening. At first the speaker even thinks a child is being called. B fits what the poem shows: the speaker watches without ever talking to the neighbor.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 24 as printed on page 50 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 50, question 24. Open page 50 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).

Question 60 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 26
Passage Champion of the Channel

Champion of the Channel

In 1926 an editor at the London Daily News predicted that Gertrude Ederle, an American swimmer with eighteen world records and three Olympic medals, would fail in her attempt to swim across the English Channel. He claimed that “even the most uncompromising champion of the rights and capacities of women must admit that in contests of physical skill, speed and endurance they must remain forever the weaker sex.” Yet, at only nineteen years old, Ederle not only became the first woman to accomplish this feat, she also broke the men’s record by two hours. Gertrude Ederle’s triumphant swim across the English Channel was a testimony to her determination, innovative spirit, and passion for swimming.

Crossing the English Channel is a daunting task for any swimmer. At its narrowest point, the channel measures twenty-one miles across. Its icy waters hover around sixty degrees Fahrenheit, and its unruly tides and currents toss swimmers about like bobbing corks. Stinging jellyfish, seaweed, and floating debris from shipwrecks and lost cargoes present added hazards.

For decades the channel’s perils have defeated countless swimmers. Ederle, too, failed in her first attempt to cross the channel in 1925. Just six miles short of finishing, she became ill, and her coach had to haul her out of the water. Undeterred, Ederle decided to try again. Ederle knew that if she did not complete the challenge this time, she might never get the opportunity to set this record, because a rival female swimmer was preparing to make her second attempt at the crossing as well.

To prepare for the marathon swim, Ederle found ways to improve her equipment. She and her sister Meg discovered that melted candle wax perfectly sealed goggle edges, effectively waterproofing Ederle’s goggles against hammering waves. The sisters also designed a two-piece silk swimsuit for Ederle. During her first channel-crossing attempt she had worn a standard one-piece swimsuit that, after the lengthy hours of swimming across the channel, had stretched out, filling with water and creating drag, making an already challenging task almost insurmountable. Unlike the cumbersome typical bathing suit, this silk invention weighed little and allowed for easy movement.

On August 6, 1926, Ederle waded into the channel near Cape Gris-Nez, France. At first she shivered in the bone-chilling water even though she had covered her body in eight layers of grease for insulation. Her limbs felt stiff. Her strokes were irregular. Driving forward, she fought to clear her mind and find what she called her “sphere,” a place where the sea became her only companion and the shrieks of gulls and the humming of boat engines faded away. Using a new overhand stroke called the American crawl, Ederle eventually settled into a steady pace, briskly breaking through waves.

Throughout Ederle’s swim, two tugboats accompanied her. One carried newspaper reporters who wired dispatches of her progress to shore. The other, displaying a sign that read “This way, ole kid!” with an arrow pointing forward, transported her coach, family, and friends. Her coach played songs, such as “Yes, We Have No Bananas,” on a phonograph so that Ederle could time her strokes to the rhythm. Using a net, her coach also passed her baby bottles of broth for nourishment.

For hours Ederle swam, dodging debris with an amused smile. However, as she neared the English shore, a sudden fierce storm erupted. The tides and waves forced Ederle backward, and she fought the stubborn swells for several hours. The salty water caused her tongue to swell and inflamed her ears. Yet Ederle felt indescribably happy as she churned through the sea. Finally, as she neared the English shore, the storm abated, and the tide turned. No longer fighting against her, the sea pushed her toward the shore and victory.

After fourteen hours and thirty-one minutes, Ederle, on wobbly legs, stepped onto the English shore. The waiting crowd roared, honked their automobile horns, blasted their tugboat whistles, and set off flares that flashed in the sky. Ederle had swum into history.

When Ederle returned to New York, she received a parade, where thousands of people shouted “Trudy!” Not only were everyday American citizens proud of Ederle, but she also inspired them to be more active. Over the next few years, more than 60,000 people credited her with motivating them to earn their American Red Cross swimming certificates. Gertrude Ederle’s accomplishment proved to the world that with determination and passion, it was possible for a person to achieve his or her goals.

SOLO SWIMS ACROSS THE ENGLISH CHANNEL

Earliest Speed Records
Year Swimmer Time
1875 Matthew Webb (M) 21 hours, 45 minutes
1923 Enrico Tiraboschi (M) 16 hours, 33 minutes
1926 Gertrude Ederle (F) 14 hours, 31 minutes
1926 Arnst Vierkotter (M) 12 hours, 38 minutes
Current Speed Records
Year Swimmer Time
2012 Trent Grimsey (M) 6 hours, 55 minutes
2006 Yvetta Hlavacova (F) 7 hours, 25 minutes

Question

What do the newspaper editor’s comments in paragraph 1 reveal about the challenges Ederle faced in attempting her feat?

  • ARegardless of her ability, being an American put Ederle at a serious disadvantage over a Londoner, who would be more familiar with the English Channel.
  • BAt the time, Ederle still needed more training in order to succeed in the daunting task of swimming the English Channel.
  • CWhile Ederle could participate in athletic competition, some people were not comfortable with her attempt to swim the channel because no woman had ever attempted it before.
  • DIn spite of her previous achievements, Ederle still experienced social as well as physical obstacles in attempting to swim the channel.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks what the newspaper editor’s comments in paragraph 1 reveal about Ederle’s challenges leading up to her attempt to swim across the channel.

A. Incorrect. The idea that Ederle was at a disadvantage because she was American rather than English, and thus less familiar with the channel, was not the basis for the newspaper editor’s comments about the outcome of her swim.

B. Incorrect. The passage establishes that Ederle was a highly accomplished swimmer who had won major world competitions (“Gertrude Ederle, an American swimmer with eighteen world records and three Olympic medals” [paragraph 1]).

C. Incorrect. The newspaper editor’s point was that Ederle would be unsuccessful in her attempt to complete the swim because she was a woman, not that people were uncomfortable with the idea since no woman had attempted it before.

D. CORRECT. The comments reveal a lack of social support since many people believed that a woman, no matter how skilled a swimmer, did not have the strength to overcome the physical challenges that the dangerous channel waters presented (“He claimed that ‘even the most uncompromising champion of the rights and capacities of women must admit that in contests of physical skill, speed and endurance they must remain forever the weaker sex.’ ” [paragraph 1]).

Question analysis

In 1926 a London newspaper editor predicted that Gertrude Ederle would fail to swim the English Channel, and this reading question asks what his comments in the first paragraph reveal about the challenges she faced. Students must infer from the editor's own words what stood in her way, and the wrong choices offer believable obstacles that the passage never connects to him.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R6 point of view and author position
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Reading an opinion for what it shows about a person's situation is everyday grade 7 inference. This question points to both of the editor's sentences rather than quoting just one, so the evidence is in plain view and the work is weighing four readings.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 790 words; question and choices: about grade 14, 112 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Pointing to both of the editor's sentences puts his reason in plain view, so the work lies in naming what kind of obstacle a sexist prediction is. Students who see prejudice but not its stated basis fall for the near miss, which blames the lack of earlier female attempts, though Ederle herself had tried in 1925. The right answer is the only one that pairs that prejudice with the channel's physical dangers, and it rewards reading his words as a judgment about women, not about her.

  1. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice and the one about people being uncomfortable both find a social obstacle despite her skill; they part on its cause, the editor's claim that women are “the weaker sex” or the idea that no woman had tried. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    Neither of the editor's sentences names an obstacle, so a prediction of failure and a remark about women's “physical skill, speed and endurance” must be read as prejudice she faced on top of the channel's own dangers. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

    The editor's quoted claim runs 30 words, opening with “even the most uncompromising champion of the rights and capacities of women” and holding its point, “the weaker sex”, until the end. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: Put the editor's reasoning into your own words before looking at the choices, then reject any choice whose reason for doubting Ederle is not the one he actually gives.

Traps

  • Half right: One half of a two-part choice is right and the other is not.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.
  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Understand what the question asks

    This question asks you to make an inference. An inference is a conclusion you reach from clues when the text does not say it outright. The editor’s comments are in paragraph 1. You need to work out what they show about the problems Ederle had to face.

  2. Find the editor’s two comments

    Paragraph 1 says the editor “predicted that Gertrude Ederle, an American swimmer with eighteen world records and three Olympic medals, would fail in her attempt to swim across the English Channel.” Then it gives his reason. He said that women “must remain forever the weaker sex.”

  3. Put his reason in your own words

    The editor’s full sentence is long, and its point comes at the very end. He meant that even people who support women must agree that women will always be weaker in sports. His reason had nothing to do with Ederle’s own skill, which her records proved. He doubted her only because she was a woman. That is a social obstacle: a problem that comes from what other people believe.

  4. Add the dangers of the swim

    On top of that, the swim itself was dangerous. Paragraph 2 calls the crossing “a daunting task for any swimmer.” Daunting means scary and hard. The paragraph lists “icy waters,” rough tides and “stinging jellyfish.” So Ederle had two kinds of trouble: people’s doubts and the hard swim itself.

  5. Check each choice

    • D fits: “in spite of her previous achievements” matches her records, and “social as well as physical obstacles” matches the editor’s doubts plus the rough water.
    • A is wrong because the editor never mentions her being American or Londoners knowing the channel.
    • B is wrong because nothing says she needed more training, and her eighteen world records show she was well prepared.
    • C is wrong because the editor’s reason was that women are weaker, not that no woman had tried.

    Watch out: C also spots people doubting her, so it is tempting. But it gives the wrong reason for the doubt. Paragraph 3 even says Ederle herself had tried in 1925.

  6. Choose the answer

    The editor’s words show that Ederle faced prejudice against women on top of a dangerous swim. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the choice most likely to fool you. It also sees that some people doubted Ederle. But it blames the doubt on no woman having tried before. The editor’s real reason was his belief that women are “the weaker sex.” D names that social obstacle and adds the physical ones, so D fits best.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 26 as printed on page 54 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 54, question 26. Open page 54 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).
The passage “Champion of the Channel” as printed (pages 56–57)The passage “Champion of the Channel” as printed on page 56 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Champion of the Channel” as printed on page 57 of the DOE handbook.

Question 61 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 29

Uses the passage above: “Champion of the Channel”.

Question

Which sentence best supports the idea that Ederle succeeded in swimming across the channel because of her innovative approach to the challenge?

  • A“Yet, at only nineteen years old, Ederle not only became the first woman to accomplish this feat, she also broke the men’s record by two hours.” (paragraph 1)
  • B“At first she shivered in the bone-chilling water even though she had covered her body in eight layers of grease for insulation.” (paragraph 5)
  • C“Using a new overhand stroke called the American crawl, Ederle eventually settled into a steady pace, briskly breaking through waves.” (paragraph 5)
  • D“The other [tugboat], displaying a sign that read ‘This way, ole kid!’ with an arrow pointing forward, transported her coach, family, and friends.” (paragraph 6)
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks for the best support for the idea that Ederle’s swim across the channel was successful because of her innovative approach to the challenge.

A. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 1 shows that Ederle’s performance was groundbreaking but not necessarily innovative.

B. Incorrect. The layers of grease mentioned in the sentence from paragraph 5 primarily served to insulate Ederle (keep her warm) by helping her maintain her body temperature in the cold water; neither the sentence in paragraph 5 nor the surrounding text evidence establishes that this was an innovative practice. Furthermore, the sentence does not show that she succeeded as a result of this approach.

C. CORRECT. The sentence from paragraph 5 explains that Ederle employed a newly developed, or innovative, type of stroke that allowed her to maintain her pace through the rough water.

D. Incorrect. The tugboat carrying Ederle’s supporters referenced in the sentence from paragraph 6 likely provided encouragement during Ederle’s swim, but the sentence does not show that this approach was innovative or that it enabled Ederle’s success.

Question analysis

In this textual-evidence question, students look for the sentence that best backs up a claim about Gertrude Ederle's English Channel swim: that an innovative approach is what made her succeed. The quotations come from four different moments in her story, so each must be checked for something genuinely new and for a real effect on the outcome.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Finding the sentence that backs a claim is the standard grade 7 evidence task, set here at a typical level: four short quotations labeled by paragraph and a claim with two parts, what was new and what it achieved.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 790 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 117 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The claim joins two ideas, an innovative approach and the success it produced, and only one quotation carries both. The record-breaking sentence proves success with no method, the grease is a technique the passage never calls new and that did not stop her shivering, and the tugboat sign shows her supporters, not her approach. The adjective “new” before the American crawl is the clue that settles it.

  1. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    Each quotation describes a real moment of the crossing, so each has to clear two tests: a method that was new, and a method that moved her toward the English shore. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    Even the right sentence never says the crawl won the swim; the student must take “settled into a steady pace, briskly breaking through waves” as what carried her across. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Test each quotation twice: does it describe a method that was new or original, and does it show that method helping her finish? Keep only a sentence that passes both tests.

Traps

  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Break the idea into two parts

    This asks you to find evidence. Innovative means new and original, a fresh way to do something. The idea has two parts. Ederle used a new approach, and that approach helped her succeed. The best sentence must show both.

  2. Look for something new

    Only one choice uses the word “new.” Choice C says she used “a new overhand stroke called the American crawl” (paragraph 5). A stroke is the way you move your arms to pull through the water. So this is a new method.

  3. See whether it helped her

    The same sentence says she “settled into a steady pace, briskly breaking through waves.” Briskly means quickly and with energy. A steady, quick pace moved her forward through the rough water. So the new stroke helped her succeed.

  4. Check each choice

    • C fits: it shows a new stroke and the steady pace it gave her.
    • A is wrong because it proves she succeeded but shows no new method.
    • B is wrong because the passage never calls the grease new, and she still “shivered in the bone-chilling water.”
    • D is wrong because the sign on the tugboat cheered her on but was not a new way of swimming.

    Watch out: B may sound clever, since the grease was meant to keep her warm. But it shows neither something new nor a reason she won.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only C shows a new method that helped Ederle get across. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the strongest pull, since grease to keep warm sounds like a smart trick. Yet the passage never presents the grease as new, and it did not stop her shivering. C names a method the passage calls “new” and shows it paying off in a steady, quick pace.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 29 as printed on page 55 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 55, question 29. Open page 55 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 62 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 33

Uses the passage above: “Champion of the Channel”.

Question

The idea that many people were interested in Ederle’s attempt to swim the channel is illustrated in the passage mainly through the

  • Ainformation about Ederle’s competition with another female swimmer who was also attempting to cross the channel.
  • Bdetails about the reports of Ederle’s progress during the swim and the celebration of her successful completion of the swim.
  • Cdetails about how Ederle’s historic swim contributed to an increase in the number of people learning how to swim.
  • Dinformation about the resources Ederle used throughout her swim to maintain her motivation and stamina.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks how the idea that many people were interested in Ederle’s attempt to swim the channel is mainly illustrated in the passage.

A. Incorrect. While paragraph 3 states that “a rival female swimmer was preparing to make her second attempt at the crossing as well,” which suggests that Ederle’s competitor was interested in Ederle’s attempt to swim the channel, this information does not establish that many people were interested in Ederle’s attempt.

B. CORRECT. Paragraph 6 includes the detail that newspaper reporters followed Ederle on a tugboat and “wired dispatches of her progress to shore,” which suggests that an audience was waiting for news about Ederle’s progress. Paragraph 8 states that when Ederle reached the shore, “the waiting crowd roared, honked their automobile horns, blasted their tugboat whistles, and set off flares that flashed in the sky.” Further, paragraph 9 states that when Ederle returned to New York, “thousands of people” attended a parade in her honor. These details describing the celebration of Ederle’s feat further illustrate the idea that many people were interested in what she had accomplished.

C. Incorrect. While paragraph 9 states that “more than 60,000 people credited [Ederle] with motivating them to earn their American Red Cross swimming certificates,” this detail describes how Ederle’s historic swim influenced people after the fact but does not illustrate the level of public interest during the attempt itself.

D. Incorrect. Paragraph 6 provides details about how Ederle’s “coach, family, and friends” displayed signs, played songs, and “passed her baby bottles of broth” to help her maintain her motivation and stamina. However, these resources do not suggest the idea that people beyond Ederle’s immediate support team were interested in her attempt to swim the channel.

Question analysis

Public interest in Gertrude Ederle's 1926 English Channel swim is the focus of this reading question, which asks which details in the passage mainly illustrate that many people cared about her attempt. Students must gather signs of attention from several paragraphs, and every choice points to real details that involve other people in her story.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Matching an idea to the details that develop it is standard grade 7 work. The supporting details are spread across several late paragraphs and must be gathered before the choices can be judged, a typical grade 7 demand.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 790 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 92 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The idea has two parts, many people and interest in the attempt itself, and each wrong choice satisfies one at most. The strongest pull is the 60,000 swimming certificates, a huge number tied to Ederle but describing what people did in the years afterward. Students who hold both parts in mind, and who remember that paragraph 6 carries reporters as well as family, find the details that answer it.

  1. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The right details sit in three places: reporters wiring dispatches from a tugboat in paragraph 6, the roaring crowd and flares in paragraph 8, and the New York parade in paragraph 9. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    No sentence says people were interested; the student must infer an eager audience from reporters sending news to shore and a crowd already “waiting” when she landed. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Hold each choice to both parts of the idea in the stem: the details must involve many people, and they must show interest in the attempt itself, not some other link to Ederle.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Find the two parts of the idea

    This asks you to find the details that best show an idea. The idea has two parts. Many people, not just a few, cared about Ederle. And they were interested in the attempt itself, the swim as it happened. The right choice must show both.

  2. Look for news and crowds

    Paragraph 6 says reporters on a tugboat “wired dispatches of her progress to shore.” Dispatches are news reports. In paragraph 8, “The waiting crowd roared” as she stepped onto the English shore. In paragraph 9, “thousands of people shouted” her name at a parade in New York.

  3. See what these details show

    Reporters send news only when readers want it. So people on land were following the swim as it happened. The crowd was “waiting” before she even arrived. Then thousands cheered her at home. These details show that a great many people cared about her swim.

  4. Check each choice

    • B fits: the reports of her progress and the celebration show many people following the swim.
    • A is wrong because the rival swimmer in paragraph 3 is one person, not many people.
    • C is wrong because the swimming certificates came in later years, after the swim.
    • D is wrong because her coach, family and friends were a small group, not the wider public.

    Watch out: C has the biggest number, more than 60,000 people. But it tells what people did after the swim was over.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only B shows many people paying attention while Ederle swam and when she finished. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer, since 60,000 is a huge number of people. But they earned their certificates “over the next few years,” long after the swim. That shows her influence, not interest in the attempt. B shows people following the swim as it happened and cheering when she finished.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 33 as printed on page 56 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 56, question 33. Open page 56 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 63 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 34

Uses the passage above: “Champion of the Channel”.

Question

The table builds on the information in the passage mainly by

  • Aemphasizing that people have continued to swim across the channel and have significantly improved the speed record.
  • Bsuggesting that Ederle inspired many women to swim across the channel to attempt to break the current speed record.
  • Crevealing that other women competed with Ederle to set a record time for swimming across the English Channel.
  • Dproviding a comparison between the earliest channel-swimming records and the current record times.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how the table mainly builds on the information in the passage.

A. CORRECT. The table supports the information in the passage by showing that people have continued to swim the channel and have significantly improved on past records. The information in the table about records set by those who came after Ederle builds on the idea that “Gertrude Ederle’s accomplishment proved to the world that with determination and passion, it was possible for a person to achieve his or her goals” (paragraph 9).

B. Incorrect. Even though paragraph 9 states that Ederle “inspired [everyday American citizens] to be more active” and the table presents the time for the current female record holder, there is no indication in the passage or in the table that the subsequent female record holders were inspired to swim across the channel by Ederle.

C. Incorrect. Although paragraph 3 mentions that Ederle had a female rival and the table includes the speed record of another female swimmer, the passage does not provide information about other female swimmers competing with Ederle to set the channel-swim record.

D. Incorrect. Although paragraph 1 mentions that Ederle “broke the men’s record by two hours” and the table allows for comparisons between the earliest speed records and those of the present day, the passage mentions no channel-swim records set after Ederle’s swim, so it says nothing about current record times. The table allows for comparison, but this aspect of the table does not build on the information presented in the passage.

Question analysis

This question asks how a table of English Channel speed records, from Matthew Webb's 1875 crossing to a 2012 record, builds on the passage about Gertrude Ederle. Students must read times from two eras and decide what the table adds to the text, while the choices mix accurate observations about the table with claims neither source supports.

NYS standards
  • 7R5 structure and genre features
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Relating a table to a passage is within grade 7 standards, but here the student must compare records from two eras, connect them to ideas in the text and choose among closely worded statements, well above typical grade 7 demand.
Estimated difficulty
Among the hardest on the SHSAT: a non-obvious approach, heavy reading, or a well-hidden trap.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 790 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 78 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A self-contradictory statement in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

This is one of the hardest questions on the test because a wrong choice describes the table exactly, in its own words. The passage stops with Ederle's 1926 record, and what the table adds is the rest of the story: swimmers kept crossing, and the record fell to under seven hours. Students who describe what the table contains, rather than what it tells a reader who has finished the passage, lose the point.

  1. A very close wrong answer major Choosing the answer

    The comparison choice repeats the table's own headings, “Earliest Speed Records” and “Current Speed Records”, and is literally true; only the stem's “builds on the information in the passage” and “mainly” separate it from the choice about the falling record. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Reading a figure, table or graph moderate Understanding the question

    The student must compare times across the table's two sections, from Webb's 21 hours 45 minutes in 1875 and Ederle's 14 hours 31 minutes to Grimsey's 6 hours 55 minutes in 2012. (Lesh, Post & Behr, 1987; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  3. How, not what moderate Working it out

    The question asks what the table adds to a passage that ends in 1926, so the student must say what its later rows extend, not what its layout holds. (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001)

Strategy: Read both sections of the table and say what it adds to Ederle's story, then keep only a choice that the table shows and that connects to an idea the passage itself develops.

Traps

  • Wrong purpose or structure: Names a purpose, structure or effect that the part does not serve, or describes what a part says when the question asks what it does.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: In rejecting choice D, the handbook notes that paragraph 1 says Ederle “broke the men’s record by two hours,” and then says “there is no mention in the passage of past, present, or future channel-swim records.” Paragraph 1 does mention a past record: the one Ederle broke. What the passage never mentions is a record set after hers, which is what the table’s “Current Speed Records” add. The explanation now says the passage mentions no channel-swim records set after Ederle’s swim, so it says nothing about current record times. The reason for rejecting D is otherwise unchanged.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Understand the question

    To build on something means to add to it. So this asks what the table adds to what the passage already tells you. Don’t just describe what is in the table. Ask what a reader learns from it after finishing the passage.

  2. Read the table’s two parts

    The table has two parts, “Earliest Speed Records” and “Current Speed Records.” These rows matter most:

    YearSwimmerTime
    1875Matthew Webb21 hours, 45 minutes
    1926Gertrude Ederle14 hours, 31 minutes
    2012Trent Grimsey6 hours, 55 minutes

  3. Compare the times

    Ederle swam for 14 hours and 31 minutes. Half of her time would be about 7 hours and 15 minutes. Grimsey’s 2012 time, 6 hours and 55 minutes, is even faster than that. So people kept swimming the channel after 1926, and the record got much faster.

  4. See what the passage leaves out

    The passage does mention one record. In paragraph 1, Ederle “broke the men’s record by two hours.” But the passage stops in 1926. It never tells of any record set after her swim. The table adds that later part of the story: swimmers kept crossing, and the record kept falling.

  5. Check each choice

    • A fits: people kept crossing and “significantly improved the speed record,” and significantly means by a lot.
    • B is wrong because nothing links any later woman to Ederle, and the table lists only one later woman.
    • C is wrong because Ederle is the only woman of her time in the table, and Hlavacova swam 80 years later, in 2006.
    • D is wrong because it only names what the table holds, not what the comparison adds to Ederle’s story.

    Watch out: D uses the table’s own headings, so it sounds right. But the question asks what the table adds, not how it is laid out.

  6. Choose the answer

    The table carries the story past 1926 and shows the record falling far below Ederle’s time. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D comes closest, because the table really does set the earliest and current records side by side. But D stops at describing the table. A says what that comparison shows a reader who has finished the passage: the record kept falling, from Ederle’s 14 hours and 31 minutes to under 7 hours.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 34 as printed on page 56 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 56, question 34. Open page 56 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D). This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 64 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 36
Passage 5 Reasons Physical Books Might Be Better Than E-Books

5 Reasons Physical Books Might Be Better Than E-Books

by Shaunacy Ferro

Though e-book1 readers have become a more common sight around town, traditional books still have their evangelists.2 According to The New York Times, e-book sales have been falling in 2015. Print definitely isn’t dead. In fact, according to some research, it may actually be a better choice for some readers. While scientists are still trying to tease out exactly how digital reading affects us differently, here are five ways e-books might be inferior to their dead-tree cousins.

E-books can reduce reading comprehension.

In a study of middle schoolers, West Chester University researchers found that students who read on iPads3 had lower reading comprehension than when they read traditional printed books. They discovered that the kids sometimes skipped text in favor of interactive features in the e-books, suggesting that certain multimedia in children’s e-books can be detrimental to the practice of reading itself. However, the researchers noted that some interactive features in e-books are designed to enhance comprehension, and that those might be more helpful than game-type interactive graphics.

Young kids can get distracted by e-books.

Similar results were found by a small study by the Joan Ganz Cooney Center that consisted of 32 kids reading e-books and print books with their parents. It found that “enhanced” e-books might be distracting. Kids who read enhanced e-books—ones with interactive, multimedia experiences—were more engaged with them physically, but in the end they remembered fewer narrative details than those who read print books or basic e-books.

You remember less about a book’s timeline.

Another study of adults also found that e-books can be hard to absorb. The researchers asked 25 people to read a 28-page story on a Kindle4 and 25 to read the story in paperback, then asked the readers to put 14 events from the story in chronological order. Those who read the story on a Kindle performed worse on the chronology test than the book readers, though they performed about the same as print readers in other tests. Earlier research by the same scholars, from Stavanger University in Norway, found that Norwegian 10th graders also remembered more about texts if they read them in print rather than on a computer screen.

They’re not great as textbooks.

While e-book textbooks are often cheaper (and easier to carry) than traditional door-stop5 textbooks, college students often don’t prefer them. In some surveys of college kids, the majority of students have reported preferring print books. However, a 2012 study from the UK’s National Literacy Trust of kids ages 8 to 16 found that more than 50 percent of children reported preferring screen reading.

They’re tiring.

Staring at a lit screen can be tiring for the eyes and the brain. A 2005 study from Sweden found that reading digitally required a higher cognitive workload than reading on paper. Furthermore, staring at LED6 screens at night can disrupt sleep patterns. A 2014 Harvard study found that people who used e-readers with LED screens at night slept worse and were more tired the next day. So, if you’re going to go for an e-book, go for one without the backlight.

The take-away message? If you’re really trying to absorb material, you might want to go for a physical book. And if you’re going to be up all night studying, turn off the backlight.

However, all this may not mean that reading on a Kindle is really going to melt your brain. For instance, reading an e-book on a computer is a much different experience than reading on a Kindle, which is specifically designed for consuming books. So, too, is playing with an interactive e-book on an iPad, compared to using a simpler e-book device that only presents the text, with no opportunities to click away into digital distractions.

And some studies have found that part of the difference between the way people absorb information from e-books versus paper might be due to approaching e-books differently—in one test, participants didn’t regulate their study time with digital books like they did with paper texts, leading to worse performances. It’s possible that our expectations of e-book reading—as well as the different designs of the digital reading experience on a computer or iPad or Kindle—might affect how we approach the text and how much effort we put into studying them. As generations of e-book readers evolve, and people become more accustomed to the idea of sitting down with a digital textbook, these factors could change—for better or for worse.

“5 Reasons Physical Books Might Be Better Than E-Books” by Shaunacy Ferro from MENTAL FLOSS, October 2, 2015. Copyright © 2015 Mental Floss, Inc.

1e-book: an electronic book, a publication made available digitally for reading on a computer or other device

2evangelists: advocates or supporters

3iPads: tablet computers

4Kindle: device for reading e-books

5door-stop: a reference to the idea that some textbooks are large and heavy enough to hold a door open

6LED: Light-emitting diode; LEDs are often used as a backlight for electronic devices such as smart phones and tablets.

Question

Which evidence from the passage best supports the claim that “print definitely isn’t dead” (paragraph 1)?

  • AMost college students prefer using paper books to using e-books.
  • BScientists are still studying the effects of reading on a screen.
  • CPaper books are less disruptive to sleep patterns than e-books are.
  • DReading on a screen can affect both the eyes and the brain.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks which evidence from the passage best supports the claim in paragraph 1 that “print definitely isn’t dead.”

A. CORRECT. In paragraph 5, the author points out that “while e-book textbooks are often cheaper (and easier to carry) than traditional door-stop textbooks, college students often don’t prefer them.” The author adds that “in some surveys of college kids, the majority of students have reported preferring print books.” As a result, this evidence from the passage supports the claim in paragraph 1 that “print definitely isn’t dead.”

B. Incorrect. In paragraph 1, the author notes that “scientists are still trying to tease out exactly how digital reading affects us differently.” This detail shows that research on reading on a screen is still going on, but it says nothing about whether people still choose print, so it does not support the claim in paragraph 1 that “print definitely isn’t dead.”

C. Incorrect. Although the main idea of paragraph 6 is supported by the 2014 study that showed that “people who used e-readers with LED screens at night slept worse and were more tired the next day,” this detail does not support the claim in paragraph 1 that “print definitely isn’t dead.”

D. Incorrect. The author states in paragraph 6 that “staring at a lit screen can be tiring for the eyes and the brain” and that “reading digitally required a higher cognitive workload.” Although these details illustrate how using e-readers can have negative physical and mental effects, they do not support the claim in paragraph 1 that “print definitely isn’t dead.”

Question analysis

This evidence question takes the claim “print definitely isn't dead” from the opening of an article comparing printed books and e-books and asks which evidence from the passage best supports it. Students must pin down exactly what the claim says before judging the evidence, since all four choices come from the article and sound related.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 students judge whether evidence is relevant to a claim, but this claim is a short idiom whose precise meaning must be settled first, and every choice paraphrases a real finding, which makes the comparison finer than typical.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 829 words; question and choices: about grade 6, 59 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • The explanation of one wrong choice discussed a different detail; it now explains that choice.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The sentence right after the claim says print “may actually be a better choice”, and the two wrong choices about sleep and tired eyes support exactly that, which makes them feel like the answer. The claim itself is narrower: print is still alive, still chosen by readers. Only one choice reports people choosing print, and its wording overstates the surveys, so students must accept an imperfect paraphrase over accurate findings that prove a different point.

  1. Reading between the lines major Working it out

    The article never ties any evidence to “Print definitely isn't dead”; the student must read it as print still being chosen and find that in paragraph 5's surveys, four paragraphs away. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Figurative or literary language moderate Understanding the question

    “Isn't dead” is an idiom, and its exact sense, still bought and read rather than still worthwhile, decides between the survey of college students and the findings about sleep and tired eyes. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer

    The right choice turns “in some surveys of college kids, the majority” into “Most college students prefer”, a looser paraphrase careful readers may distrust, while another choice echoes “the eyes and the brain”. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

Strategy: Put the claim “print definitely isn't dead” into your own words first, then ask whether each choice proves that exact point or a different one made nearby in paragraph 1.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: Choice B is “Scientists are still studying the effects of reading on a screen,” from paragraph 1 (“scientists are still trying to tease out exactly how digital reading affects us differently”). The handbook's explanation of B instead discusses the iPad reading-comprehension study of paragraph 2, apparently left over from an earlier version of the choice. The explanation now addresses B: ongoing research says nothing about whether people still choose print. The answer, A, is unchanged.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Pin down the claim

    This asks you to find evidence for a claim. “Print definitely isn’t dead” is an idiom, a saying that doesn’t mean exactly what its words say. Books can’t really die. The claim means printed books are still being bought and read. People still choose them.

  2. Watch for the nearby claim

    The very next sentence makes a different claim. It says print “may actually be a better choice for some readers.” Being better is not the same as being alive. So you need evidence that people still choose print, not evidence that print is good for you.

  3. Find people choosing print

    Paragraph 5 says that “in some surveys of college kids, the majority of students have reported preferring print books.” A majority means more than half. They pick paper even though e-books are “often cheaper (and easier to carry).” So many readers still choose print, which shows it is still alive.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits: most college students in those surveys prefer paper books.
    • B is wrong because research still going on says nothing about whether people still choose print.
    • C is wrong because better sleep is a reason print may be better, not proof that people still use it.
    • D is wrong because tired eyes and brains are also a reason print may be better.

    Watch out: C and D support the “better choice” sentence, not “isn’t dead.”

  5. Choose the answer

    Only A shows that many readers still choose paper books today. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the most tempting wrong answer. The finding that lit screens hurt sleep is real, and it favors paper. But it shows print may be better, not that it is still alive. A shows readers still choosing print. It says “Most college students” when the passage reports only “some surveys,” but it is still the best fit.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 36 as printed on page 60 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 60, question 36. Open page 60 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D). This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.
The passage “5 Reasons Physical Books Might Be Better Than E-Books” as printed (pages 58–59)The passage “5 Reasons Physical Books Might Be Better Than E-Books” as printed on page 58 of the DOE handbook.The passage “5 Reasons Physical Books Might Be Better Than E-Books” as printed on page 59 of the DOE handbook.

Question 65 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 37

Uses the passage above: “5 Reasons Physical Books Might Be Better Than E-Books”.

Question

Which sentence from the passage suggests that people in the future will likely choose e-books over print books?

  • A“They discovered that the kids sometimes skipped text in favor of interactive features in the e-books, suggesting that certain multimedia in children’s e-books can be detrimental to the practice of reading itself.” (paragraph 2)
  • B“However, the researchers noted that some interactive features in e-books are designed to enhance comprehension, and that those might be more helpful than game-type interactive graphics.” (paragraph 2)
  • C“Kids who read enhanced e-books—ones with interactive, multimedia experiences—were more engaged with them physically, but in the end they remembered fewer narrative details than those who read print books or basic e-books.” (paragraph 3)
  • D“However, a 2012 study from the UK’s National Literacy Trust of kids ages 8 to 16 found that more than 50 percent of children reported preferring screen reading.” (paragraph 5)
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks which sentence from the passage suggests that people in the future will likely choose e-books over print books.

A. Incorrect. While this sentence from paragraph 2 implies high engagement with the interactive features of e-books, it does not provide explicit evidence indicating that engagement with e-books is a reason for choosing them over print books.

B. Incorrect. While this sentence from paragraph 2 highlights some of the benefits of e-books, such as the potential to “enhance comprehension,” those benefits are not explicitly linked to readers choosing e-books over print books.

C. Incorrect. This sentence from paragraph 3 provides evidence that shows both benefits and drawbacks of reading e-books, including higher engagement but a decreased ability to recall details. Therefore, the sentence does not clarify why readers would choose e-books over print books.

D. CORRECT. In this sentence from paragraph 5, the author cites a 2012 study that found that over 50 percent of 8- to 16-year-olds “reported preferring screen reading.” Since this specific age group will one day influence the future of reading and the results of the study point to a significant percentage preferring screen reading, this sentence provides compelling evidence for what readers will prefer in the future.

Question analysis

Based on a magazine article about e-books and printed books, this question asks which quoted sentence suggests that people in the future will likely choose e-books over print. Students must reason from a present-day research finding to a likely future, while each quoted sentence reports research on children and e-books.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Drawing a logical inference from a quoted finding is typical grade 7 evidence work. The sentences are printed in the choices, so the reading load is light, but the student must still reason from a study's results to readers' future choices.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one sentence or line
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 829 words; question and choices: about grade 15, 138 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The question asks for a prediction, but the article only reports studies of the present, so the student has to decide what kind of finding could point to the future. Preference is the link: what children choose now hints at what readers will choose later. Sentences about engagement and well-designed features sound favorable to e-books, yet they describe how e-books work, not whether anyone prefers them.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    No sentence mentions the future; the student must see that children of 8 to 16 who prefer screens today are tomorrow's readers, a step the article leaves unstated. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. A lot to read minor Understanding the question

    Each choice is a full quoted sentence of 26 to 34 words, three of them packed with study details, so comparing the four takes more reading than the short stem suggests. (Kintsch, 1998; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Decide what kind of evidence could predict what people will choose later, then check each sentence for that kind of evidence instead of general praise or criticism of e-books.

Traps

  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Understand the prediction

    This asks for evidence that points to the future. But the article reports only studies of the past and present. So you need a clue about today that hints at what readers will choose later.

  2. Think about what predicts a choice

    What people will choose later depends on what they like now. So look for a sentence about preference, which means the thing a person likes better. It helps if those people are young, because young readers are the readers of the future.

  3. Find the preference sentence

    Choice D quotes a 2012 study of “kids ages 8 to 16.” It found that “more than 50 percent of children reported preferring screen reading.” So more than half of these young readers already like screens better. As they grow up, many of them may keep choosing e-books.

  4. Check each choice

    • D fits: young readers already prefer screens, which hints at the future.
    • A is wrong because skipping text is called “detrimental,” or harmful, and it shows no one choosing e-books.
    • B is wrong because it tells what some features might do, not what readers like.
    • C is wrong because the study measured how much kids remembered, not which books they liked.

    Watch out: B and C sound good for e-books. But neither one says what readers choose.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only D tells what young readers prefer, which points to later choices. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B comes closest, since features “designed to enhance comprehension” sound like a reason e-books might win. But the sentence only says what some features are meant to do. It says nothing about what readers choose. D reports what more than half of young readers already prefer, and that hints at the future.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 37 as printed on page 60 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 60, question 37. Open page 60 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 66 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 39

Uses the passage above: “5 Reasons Physical Books Might Be Better Than E-Books”.

Question

Which sentence from the passage best reveals the author’s point of view about e-books?

  • A“While scientists are still trying to tease out exactly how digital reading affects us differently, here are five ways e-books might be inferior to their dead-tree cousins.” (paragraph 1)
  • B“While e-book textbooks are often cheaper (and easier to carry) than traditional door-stop textbooks, college students often don’t prefer them.” (paragraph 5)
  • C“For instance, reading an e-book on a computer is a much different experience than reading on a Kindle, which is specifically designed for consuming books.” (paragraph 8)
  • D“So, too, is playing with an interactive e-book on an iPad, compared to using a simpler e-book device that only presents the text, with no opportunities to click away into digital distractions.” (paragraph 8)
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks which sentence from the passage best reveals the author’s point of view about e-books.

A. CORRECT. The sentence from paragraph 1 best reveals the author’s point of view because it introduces the author’s argument that “e-books might be inferior,” which is illustrated throughout the text.

B. Incorrect. The sentence from paragraph 5 provides a small detail about college students preferring traditional books over e-books despite the fact that e-books may seem ideal by being “cheaper (and easier to carry).” This statement supports one point made in the text but not the author’s broader point of view about e-books in general.

C. Incorrect. In the second sentence from paragraph 8, the author discusses answers to why “all this may not mean that reading on a Kindle is really going to melt your brain” and compares reading on a Kindle with reading on a computer to explain how they are different. The sentence focuses on the experiences with using two types of e-book devices rather than on the author’s broader opinion about e-books.

D. Incorrect. In the last sentence from paragraph 8, the author uses the previous comparison between reading on a Kindle and reading on a computer to illustrate the differences between “playing with an interactive e-book on an iPad” and using “a simpler e-book device that only presents the text” and limits distractions. However, similar to the sentence in Option C, this sentence focuses on the experiences of using two types of e-book devices rather than on the author’s broader point of view about e-books.

Question analysis

This point-of-view question asks which sentence best reveals the author's own view of e-books in a magazine article weighing them against printed books. Students must separate a sentence that states the author's position from sentences that support or qualify it, and the article's later hedging about e-books can blur the picture.

NYS standards
  • 7R6 point of view and author position
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Identifying an author's point of view in an informational article is standard grade 7 work. The quotations are labeled by paragraph and the article's stance stays consistent, so the demand matches a typical grade 7 point-of-view item.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 829 words; question and choices: about grade 14, 122 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The article announces its stance in the first paragraph, so the question rewards recognizing the sentence where the author sets up the whole list of reasons. The pull comes from a sentence about college students passing up cheaper e-book textbooks, which agrees with the author but reports one finding. The two sentences from paragraph 8 compare devices, and their mention of “digital distractions” can sound like a verdict without being one.

  1. How, not what minor Working it out

    Point of view must be told apart from reported fact: three sentences describe students' habits or devices, and only one carries the author's verdict, “might be inferior”. (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001)

  2. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

    The right sentence holds its point behind a long “While scientists are still trying to tease out” clause, and paragraph 8's “So, too, is playing with” sentence borrows its meaning from the one before. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: First decide in a few words what the author thinks about e-books overall, then find the sentence that states that view rather than one piece of support for it.

Traps

  • Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Know what point of view means

    An author’s point of view is what the author thinks about a topic. You need the sentence that shows how the author sees e-books overall. One small fact, or a comparison of two devices, isn’t enough.

  2. Sum up the author’s view

    The title says physical books “Might Be Better Than E-Books.” The article then gives five reasons, one under each bold heading. So the author thinks e-books may be worse than print for some kinds of reading.

  3. Find where the author says it

    Choice A comes from paragraph 1. It ends, “here are five ways e-books might be inferior to their dead-tree cousins.” Inferior means worse. “Dead-tree cousins” is a joke name for paper books, since paper is made from trees. This sentence states the author’s view and sets up the whole list.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits: it states the author’s overall view that e-books “might be inferior.”
    • B is wrong because it reports one finding about college students, which supports just one reason.
    • C is wrong because it compares a computer and a Kindle without judging e-books.
    • D is wrong because it explains how an iPad e-book differs from a simpler device, not what the author thinks.

    Watch out: B agrees with the author, so it seems right. But it is one small piece of support, not the view itself.

  5. Choose the answer

    Choice A is where the author announces the opinion behind the whole article. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B comes closest, because it fits the author’s view. But it reports what college students prefer, one detail in one section. A is where the author states the opinion the whole article supports: e-books “might be inferior” to print.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 39 as printed on page 61 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 61, question 39. Open page 61 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 67 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 41

Uses the passage above: “5 Reasons Physical Books Might Be Better Than E-Books”.

Question

Which evidence in the passage is most relevant to the author’s claim that “our expectations of e-book reading . . . might affect how we approach the text” (paragraph 9)?

  • AStudies found that students used their study time less productively with e-books than with print books.
  • BA study found that e-books enhanced with multimedia engaged children to interact physically with the e-books.
  • CAdult readers recalled more details from a story read in a print book than in an e-book.
  • DOne study found that people who read e-books had poor recall of chronological events.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks which evidence in the passage is most relevant to the author’s claim that “our expectations of e-book reading . . . might affect how we approach the text” (paragraph 9).

A. CORRECT. According to information in the passage, “kids sometimes skipped text in favor of interactive features” (paragraph 2) and they “remembered fewer narrative details” (paragraph 3). Additionally, a study found that “participants didn’t regulate their study time with digital books like they did with paper texts, leading to worse performances” (paragraph 9). This information directly demonstrates the author’s claim that expectations of e-book reading might affect how people approach the text.

B. Incorrect. In paragraph 3, the author states that e-books may be physically engaging, but they are also “distracting,” and readers who used them “remembered fewer narrative details.” While this evidence is important in helping readers understand why children who read e-books may comprehend less information than children who read print text, the evidence does not as strongly relate to the author’s claim as the idea in the correct answer does.

C. Incorrect. The author states that one “study of adults also found that e-books can be hard to absorb” (paragraph 4) and that “if you’re really trying to absorb material, you might want to go for a physical book” (paragraph 7). Although the evidence presented here provides support for the idea that retaining information from an e-book is more difficult than from a print book, it does not as strongly relate to the author’s claim as the idea in the correct answer does.

D. Incorrect. The author points out in paragraph 4 that adults “who read the story on a Kindle performed worse on the chronology test than the book readers.” Although this evidence shows how well adults can recall a series of events read in an e-book versus how well adults can recall a series of events read in a print book, the evidence does not as strongly relate to the author’s claim as the idea in the correct answer does.

Question analysis

Near the end of an article about e-books, the author claims that readers' expectations might affect how they approach a text, and this evidence question asks which finding is most relevant to that claim. Students must see exactly what the claim is about, since all four choices report research from the article.

NYS standards
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Matching evidence to a specific claim is typical grade 7 argument work. The claim sits in the article's densest sentence, cut by an ellipsis, so students must reread it in full, but the evidence itself is short and plainly stated.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 829 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 89 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A reversed statement of the author’s claim in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The claim is about cause, what readers expect shaping how they read, so evidence about results, such as weaker recall, does not reach it. The key evidence sits in the same paragraph as the claim, just before it, but the right choice rewords it and generalizes it to “studies” and “students”. The most tempting wrong answer describes children interacting with e-books, a behavior, but one driven by the e-books' features rather than by readers' expectations.

  1. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice turns paragraph 9's “didn't regulate their study time with digital books like they did with paper texts” into “used their study time less productively”, while another choice echoes paragraph 4's chronology test. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The student must see that how readers manage their study time is a way of approaching a text, and that it reflects what they expect from a screen. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Put the quoted claim into your own words, naming what does the affecting and what is affected, then ask which choice is evidence of exactly that relationship.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook ends its explanation of choice A by saying the evidence demonstrates “the author’s claim that expectations of e-book reading might be affected by how people approach the text.” The claim in paragraph 9, quoted in the question, runs the other way: “our expectations of e-book reading . . . might affect how we approach the text.” The sentence now reads “might affect how people approach the text.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Put the claim in plain words

    Expectations are what you think something will be like. How you approach a text is the way you go about reading it. So the claim says that what we expect from e-books may change how we read them. The cause is our expectations. The effect is how we read.

  2. Find evidence about how people read

    Look just before the claim, in paragraph 9. In one test, “participants didn’t regulate their study time with digital books like they did with paper texts, leading to worse performances.” To regulate means to control or plan. So people handled their study time differently with e-books, and they did worse.

  3. Connect the evidence to the claim

    Planning your study time is part of how you approach a text. People planned differently on a screen, perhaps because they expected screen reading to be different. That is the very link the claim describes: what you expect shapes how you read.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits: using study time “less productively,” or less well, is a way of approaching the text.
    • B is wrong because the kids played with the e-books because of the books’ features, not their own expectations.
    • C is wrong because it misstates the adult study, where e-book readers did worse only at putting events in order.
    • D is wrong because poor memory of events is a result, not a way of approaching the text.

    Watch out: B and D tell what happened with e-books. But the claim is about readers’ habits and where they come from.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only A shows readers going about their reading differently with e-books. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B comes closest, because touching and playing with an e-book is a kind of behavior. But paragraph 3 credits the books’ interactive features for that, not what readers expected. A shows readers managing their study time differently with screens, which is how they approached the text.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 41 as printed on page 62 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 62, question 41. Open page 62 of the handbook (PDF) This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 68 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 42

Uses the passage above: “5 Reasons Physical Books Might Be Better Than E-Books”.

Question

What is the best summary of the research into the effects of e-book reading?

  • AE-books are disliked by college students and preferred by kids, and their interactive features are distracting.
  • BSome e-books can aid comprehension, but most e-book readers remember few details.
  • CE-books reduce reading comprehension and increase distraction, and they are tiring for the eyes and brain.
  • DEnhanced e-books engage children, but they offer them too many opportunities to be distracted by non-reading activities.
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks which sentence is the best summary of the research into the effects of e-book reading.

A. Incorrect. In paragraph 5, the author notes that “college students often don’t prefer” e-book textbooks but that more than half the children in a study reported “preferring screen reading.” Paragraph 3 describes a study that showed that “ ‘enhanced’ ” e-books might be distracting for young children. Therefore, this sentence is not the best summary, because it overstates the opinions of college students and implies that college students are distracted by interactive features, which is not discussed in the text.

B. Incorrect. According to the information in paragraph 3, children who read “ ‘enhanced’ ” e-books “remembered fewer narrative details than those who read print books or basic e-books.” A study conducted with a group of tenth graders showed that these students “remembered more about texts if they read them in print rather than on a computer screen” (paragraph 4). Although the author points out in paragraph 2 that “some interactive features in e-books are designed to enhance comprehension,” a study found that “ ‘enhanced’ e-books might be distracting” (paragraph 3). Therefore, this sentence does not provide the best summary of the research about e-book reading, because the author does not show that e-books aid in reading comprehension.

C. CORRECT. The author states in paragraph 2 that studies found that “students who read on iPads had lower reading comprehension than when they read traditional printed books” and that “e-books can be detrimental to the practice of reading itself.” In paragraph 3, the author also points out that a study found that “ ‘enhanced’ e-books might be distracting” and that children “remembered fewer narrative details than those who read print books or basic e-books.” Finally, in paragraph 6, the author states that “staring at a lit screen can be tiring for the eyes and the brain” and that “a 2005 study from Sweden found that reading digitally required a higher cognitive workload than reading on paper.” Therefore, this sentence provides the best summary of the research about e-book reading, because it includes accurate information about the results of the studies discussed in the text.

D. Incorrect. In paragraph 2, the author does point out that “researchers noted that some interactive features in e-books are designed to enhance comprehension, and that those might be more helpful than game-type interactive graphics.” The author also explains in paragraph 3 how children “were more engaged with [e-books] physically.” But because this sentence does not include important details about reading comprehension or the physical toll of e-book reading on readers, it does not provide the best summary of the research about e-book reading.

Question analysis

This summary question asks for the best summary of the research an article reports on the effects of reading e-books instead of printed books. Students must pull findings together from several sections, and the choices differ in how completely and how accurately they reflect what the studies found.

NYS standards
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Summarizing research spread across an article is grade 7 work. The five bold headings make the findings easy to locate, so the demand is typical: weighing four summaries for accuracy and for how much they cover.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 829 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 75 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The right summary practically restates three of the article's bold headings, so students who use the headings as a map can answer quickly. The wrong summaries fail in different ways: one mixes in survey preferences, which are not effects of reading, one stretches a few studies to “most e-book readers”, and one is accurate but covers only the enhanced e-books. Spotting each flaw takes more care than spotting the answer.

  1. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    Each summary joins two or three findings, and every part must be checked: “disliked” against “don't prefer”, “most e-book readers” against small studies, “too many opportunities” against one study of 32 kids. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    The findings are spread over five sections, but bold headings such as “E-books can reduce reading comprehension” and “They're tiring” make each one easy to find. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: List the main finding under each bold heading, then pick the choice that reflects several of them accurately without adding claims or stretching any single finding.

Traps

  • Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
  • Half right: One half of a two-part choice is right and the other is not.
  • Too broad or too strong: A choice overstates, generalizes, or uses absolute words the text does not support.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Know what a good summary does

    A summary gives the main points in a few words. A good one gets each point right. It doesn’t add new claims or stretch one finding too far. Here you need to sum up what research found about the effects of reading e-books.

  2. Use the bold headings

    The headings list the main findings:

    • “E-books can reduce reading comprehension.” Comprehension means understanding.
    • “Young kids can get distracted by e-books.”
    • “You remember less about a book’s timeline.”
    • “They’re not great as textbooks.”
    • “They’re tiring.”

  3. Match the right choice to the findings

    Choice C says e-books “reduce reading comprehension and increase distraction,” and that they “are tiring for the eyes and brain.” That covers three headings: understanding, distraction and tiredness. Each part matches what the studies found.

  4. Check each choice

    • C fits: it joins three key findings and states each one correctly.
    • A is wrong because what readers prefer is not an effect of reading, and “don’t prefer” is not “disliked.”
    • B is wrong because some features are only designed to help, and no study covers “most” e-book readers.
    • D is wrong because it covers only enhanced e-books and leaves out comprehension, timelines and tiredness.

    Watch out: D is true as far as it goes. But it sums up just one section, so it is too narrow.

  5. Choose the answer

    Choice C brings together the main findings from several sections. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D comes closest, because every word of it is true about enhanced e-books. But a summary of the research has to cover more than one study. C brings together understanding, distraction and tiredness, the findings of several sections, without adding anything the passage doesn’t say.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 42 as printed on page 62 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 62, question 42. Open page 62 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).

Question 69 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 45
Passage Excerpt from The Highest Tide

Excerpt from The Highest Tide

by Jim Lynch

The narrator’s summer job is collecting marine specimens in Puget Sound, Washington. In this excerpt, he is looking for specimens in the mudflats before daybreak. Mudflats, or flats, are coastal landforms created when sediment and silt from tides are deposited as the tides recede.

I rounded the oyster beds, to the far side. . . . It was low tide by then, and I saw the water hesitating at its apex, neither leaving nor returning, patiently waiting for the gravitational gears to shift. Dozens of anxious clams started squirting in unison like they did whenever vibrating grains of sand warned them predators were approaching. I stopped and waited with them, to actually see the moment when the tide started returning with its invisible buffet of plankton for the clams, oysters, mussels and other filter feeders. It was right then, ankle deep in the Sound, feet numbing, eyes relaxed, that I saw the nudibranch.1

In all my time on the flats I’d never seen one before. I’d read about them, sure. I’d handled them at aquariums but never in the wild, and I’d never even seen a photo of one this stunning. It was just three inches long but with dozens of fluorescent, orange-tipped hornlike plumes jutting from the back of its see-through body that appeared to be lit from within.

Nudibranchs are often called the butterflies of the sea, but even that understates their dazzle. Almost everything else in the northern Pacific is dressed to blend with pale surroundings. Nudibranchs don’t bother, in part because they taste so lousy they don’t need camouflage to survive. But also, I decided right then, because their beauty is so startling it earns them a free pass, the same way everyday life brakes for peacocks, parade floats. . . .

The dark mudflats loomed like wet, flattened dunes stretching deep into Skookumchuck Bay in front of our house. From a distance, they looked too barren to support sea life. Up close, they still did, unless you knew where to find the hearty clams, worms and tiny creatures that flourish in mud. . . . I’m not sure why I decided to take a look. It was still an hour before sunrise, and I knew exactly what the bars2 looked like in the moonlight, but for some reason, I couldn’t resist.

I heard it long before I saw it. It was an exhale, a release of sorts, and I instantly wondered if a whale was stranded again. We had a young minke3 stuck out there two summers prior, and it made similar noises until the tide rose high enough for rescuers to help free it. . . . I looked for a hulking silhouette but couldn’t find one. I waited, but there were no more sounds. Still, I went toward what I thought I’d heard, avoiding stepping into the mud until I had to. I knew the flats well enough to know I could get stuck just about anywhere. The general rule was you didn’t venture out past the shells and gravel with an incoming tide. I sank up to my knees twice, and numbing water filled my boots.

. . . I kept stepping toward the one sound I’d heard, a growing part of me hoping I’d find nothing at all. When I stopped to rest and yank up my socks, my headlamp crossed it. My first thought? A giant octopus.

Puget Sound has some of the biggest octopi in the world. They often balloon to a hundred pounds. Even the great Jacques Cousteau4 himself came to study them. But when I saw the long tubular shape of its upper body and the tangle of tentacles below it, I knew it was more than an octopus. I came closer, within fifty feet, close enough to see its large cylindrical siphon5 quiver. I couldn’t tell if it was making any sounds at that point, because it was impossible to hear anything over the blood in my ears. . . .

The creature’s body came to a triangular point above narrow fins that lay flat on the mud like wings, but it was hard to be sure exactly where it all began or ended, or how long its tentacles truly were, because I was afraid to pry my eyes off its jumble of arms for more than half a second. I didn’t know whether I was within reach, and its arms were as big around as my ankle and lined with suckers the size of half-dollars. If they even twitched I would have run. So, I was looking at it and not looking at it while my heart spangled my vision. I saw fragments, pieces, and tried to fuse them in my mind but couldn’t be certain of the whole. I knew what it had to be, but I wouldn’t allow myself to even think the two words. Then I gradually realized the dark shiny disc in the middle of the rubbery mass was too perfectly round to be mud or a reflection.

It was too late to smother my scream. Its eye was the size of a hubcap.6

From THE HIGHEST TIDE by Jim Lynch. Copyright © 2005 by Jim Lynch. Used by permission of Bloomsbury USA. All rights reserved.

1nudibranch: type of sea slug

2bars: sandbars

3minke: species of small whale

4Jacques Cousteau: renowned French oceanographer

5siphon: tube-like organ that is used for drawing in or removing fluids

6hubcap: removable cap over the end of a wheel axle

Question

The narrator’s actions in paragraph 5 reveal that he is

  • Aexpecting to see the familiar sight of a stranded minke.
  • Bconfident about exploring farther into the mudflats.
  • Cunconcerned about becoming stuck in the mudflats.
  • Ddetermined to discover the source of the sound.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks what the narrator’s actions in paragraph 5 reveal about him.

A. Incorrect. The paragraph begins with the narrator wondering “if a whale was stranded again” because of one that had gotten stuck before and had “made similar noises.” However, the narrator explains that he “looked for a hulking silhouette but couldn’t find one” before he “went toward what [he] thought [he’d] heard,” so readers can conclude that he continues to walk through the dangerous mudflats not because he expects to find a whale but because he is curious to find out what made the noise.

B. Incorrect. The fact that the narrator knows about a whale that was stranded on the mudflats “two summers prior” indicates that he is familiar with the area, and he does mention that he has some knowledge of the mudflats. However, in the paragraph, he reveals that his knowledge is of the dangers there: “I knew the flats well enough to know I could get stuck just about anywhere.” He also explains that as he moves, he avoids “stepping into the mud until [he] had to.” The fact that he acknowledges the danger and tries to avoid it indicates that he is cautious rather than confident.

C. Incorrect. In the paragraph, the narrator’s recollection that even though he could not see the silhouette of a whale, “still, [he] went toward what [he] thought [he’d] heard” might make him seem unconcerned about getting stuck. However, even as he continues, he moves carefully, avoiding “stepping into the mud until [he] had to” because he knows the mudflats “well enough to know [he] could get stuck just about anywhere.”

D. CORRECT. In the paragraph, the narrator describes the dangers of walking on the mudflats by stating that he “knew the flats well enough to know [he] could get stuck just about anywhere,” but he continues walking toward the sound. Despite knowing the dangers, he still “went toward what [he] thought [he’d] heard,” and this shows that he is determined to find out what made the sound.

Question analysis

This inference question asks what the narrator's actions reveal about him when he hears a strange sound on the mudflats before dawn and sets off toward it. Students must read what he does alongside what he says he knows about the flats, and several choices fit one detail of the paragraph but not the whole of it.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Inferring a character's trait from actions is core grade 7 literary reading. The evidence sits in one paragraph and the actions are concrete, so the item is typical, though the long paragraph mixes memory, rules and movement.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 6, 902 words; question and choices: about grade 8, 41 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Paragraph 5 shows two things at once, a narrator who knows exactly how dangerous the flats are and one who keeps walking toward a sound anyway. Choices that see only the walking call him confident or unconcerned, and the one that sees only his first thought has him expecting a whale. The word “Still”, after his search for a silhouette comes up empty, is the hinge that shows determination.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The trait is never named; it must be drawn from what he does, especially “Still, I went toward what I thought I'd heard” after seeing nothing and hearing nothing more. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Much to keep track of minor Working it out

    The paragraph mixes a memory of the stranded minke, a rule about incoming tides and his own steps, and the student must keep his caution and his persistence in view together. (Sweller, 1988; Carpenter, Just & Shell, 1990)

Strategy: List what the narrator does in paragraph 5, step by step, and note what he knows while doing it; then ask what those actions, taken together, say about him.

Traps

  • Wrong tone or attitude: Misjudges the tone, attitude or point of view, such as reading admiration as criticism, or taking a character's or subject's feelings for the author's.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Know what the question asks

    This asks you to make an inference about a character. You judge what the narrator is like from what he does. The text never names the trait, so look closely at his actions.

  2. List his actions in paragraph 5

    He hears a sound and wonders if a whale is stranded. He “looked for a hulking silhouette but couldn’t find one.” He waits, but hears nothing more. Then he says, “Still, I went toward what I thought I’d heard.” He sinks to his knees twice, and cold water fills his boots.

  3. Notice what he knows

    He knows the danger. He says, “I knew the flats well enough to know I could get stuck just about anywhere.” The word “Still” matters here. It means even so. Even with no whale in sight and no more sounds, he keeps heading toward the noise.

  4. Check each choice

    • D fits: he keeps going toward the sound despite the danger, so he is determined to find its source.
    • A is wrong because he finds no whale and keeps going, and one stranding two summers ago is not a familiar sight.
    • B is wrong because knowing he could get stuck anywhere makes him careful, not confident.
    • C is wrong because he avoids “stepping into the mud until I had to,” so he does worry about getting stuck.

    Watch out: B and C notice only that he keeps walking. They miss how carefully he moves.

  5. Choose the answer

    He presses on toward the sound even though he knows the mud is dangerous. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B comes closest, because he says he knows the flats well. But what he knows is how easily he could get stuck, so he is careful, not confident. Pressing on anyway, after seeing nothing and hearing nothing more, shows determination.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 45 as printed on page 66 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 66, question 45. Open page 66 of the handbook (PDF)
The passage “Excerpt from The Highest Tide” as printed (pages 64–65)The passage “Excerpt from The Highest Tide” as printed on page 64 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from The Highest Tide” as printed on page 65 of the DOE handbook.

Question 70 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 46

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from The Highest Tide”.

Question

How does the setting affect the plot of the excerpt?

  • AThe darkness of the mudflats before sunrise causes the narrator to pay close attention to his surroundings.
  • BThe rugged terrain of the mudflats makes it more difficult for the narrator to do his job.
  • CThe slow return of the tide along the mudflats forces the narrator to be patient during his journey.
  • DThe barren appearance of the mudflats creates a sense of mystery that unsettles the narrator.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how the setting affects the plot of the excerpt.

A. CORRECT. In paragraph 4, the narrator says that it is an hour before sunrise. It is difficult to see because the mudflats are dark, so the narrator, while familiar with the terrain of the mudflats, is cautious.

B. Incorrect. While the terrain of the mudflats is challenging because of the “wet, flattened dunes” (paragraph 4), the narrator is familiar with the terrain and moves carefully. In addition, the excerpt focuses on the narrator’s curiosity and enjoyment as he explores the mudflats, not on his work collecting specimens.

C. Incorrect. In paragraph 1, the narrator watches the water “hesitating at its apex” and “patiently waiting for the gravitational gears to shift.” This illustrates that the narrator is already familiar with the changes in his surroundings, that the tide is slow to move in, and that he can move carefully through the mudflats without the threat of rising water.

D. Incorrect. While the narrator is on the mudflats for the entire excerpt, the phrase “eyes relaxed” in paragraph 1 indicates that the narrator feels comfortable there. The narrator does not show fear until paragraph 6, when a growing fear about the unknown creature arises.

Question analysis

Set on the mudflats of Puget Sound before daybreak, this excerpt from the novel The Highest Tide is the basis for a question about how setting affects plot. Students must link features of the place and time to what the narrator does across the whole excerpt, and each choice pairs a real feature of the setting with an effect that may or may not be in the text.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Analyzing how setting shapes plot is a grade 7 literary standard, but the excerpt never states the link: the effect must be inferred from scattered details, and every choice names a genuine feature of the flats, which is beyond typical work.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 6, 902 words; question and choices: about grade 8, 77 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A statement in the explanation that contradicted the excerpt’s introduction was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Every choice names a real feature of the mudflats, so the question turns on which feature the excerpt actually shows shaping events. The darkness never gets a sentence of its own; it is felt in a sound heard before anything is seen, a silhouette that cannot be found and a headlamp beam. The barren look of the flats is the strongest pull, because the scene is eerie, but the narrator knows life hides in the mud and his unease comes from the creature.

  1. Reading between the lines major Working it out

    The excerpt never says the darkness changes anything; the effect must be assembled from the hour before sunrise, the sound heard “long before I saw it”, the missing silhouette and the headlamp that finally finds the creature. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice uses no words from the text, while the wrong ones echo it: the “barren” look of the flats, the water “patiently waiting”, the narrator's summer job. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  3. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The darkness is established in paragraph 4 and felt in paragraphs 5, 6 and 8, so no single passage shows the setting at work. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Collect the details of time, place and conditions across the excerpt, then for each choice ask whether the text shows that feature of the setting actually changing what the narrator does.

Traps

  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: In rejecting choice B, the handbook says “the excerpt shows that the narrator explores the mudflats for curiosity and enjoyment, not work.” But the introduction says the narrator’s summer job is collecting marine specimens and that “in this excerpt, he is looking for specimens in the mudflats before daybreak.” The explanation now says the excerpt focuses on his curiosity and enjoyment as he explores the mudflats, not on his work collecting specimens. That keeps the handbook’s point (the excerpt is not about the terrain making his job harder) without contradicting the introduction.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Know what setting and plot mean

    The setting is where and when a story happens. The plot is the chain of events. This asks which part of the setting changes what happens or what the narrator does.

  2. Find the time of day

    Paragraph 4 says, “It was still an hour before sunrise.” The narrator is out on the mudflats in the dark. The only light comes from the moon and his headlamp.

  3. See how the dark shapes events

    Because it is dark, he must rely on sounds and small clues. He says, “I heard it long before I saw it.” He looks for “a hulking silhouette,” a dark outline, but can’t find one. He spots the creature only when “my headlamp crossed it.” Then he stares hard, trying to make out its shape. The darkness keeps him alert and watching closely.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits: the dark makes him pay close attention to everything around him.
    • B is wrong because the excerpt follows a strange sound and never shows the ground making his job harder.
    • C is wrong because in paragraph 1 he chooses to stop and watch the tide, and nothing forces him.
    • D is wrong because he knows life hides in the mud, and what scares him is the creature.

    Watch out: D feels right because the scene is eerie. But the flats’ empty look never troubles him.

  5. Choose the answer

    The darkness before sunrise is what keeps the narrator listening and looking so carefully. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D comes closest, because the dark flats do feel spooky. But the narrator says they only look “too barren to support sea life” from far away, and he knows better. His fear comes from the creature. The darkness, though, shapes every step: he hears before he sees and must watch closely.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 46 as printed on page 66 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 66, question 46. Open page 66 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D). This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 71 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 47

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from The Highest Tide”.

Question

Which sentence from paragraph 5 supports the idea that the narrator is taking a risk?

  • A“It was an exhale, a release of sorts, and I instantly wondered if a whale was stranded again.”
  • B“I looked for a hulking silhouette but couldn’t find one.”
  • C“I waited, but there were no more sounds.”
  • D“I knew the flats well enough to know I could get stuck just about anywhere.”
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks which sentence from paragraph 5 supports the idea that the narrator is taking a risk.

A. Incorrect. In this sentence, the narrator is describing the exhale of a creature and his concern that the sound might be coming from a whale in danger. At no point does the narrator suggest that this is a dangerous situation.

B. Incorrect. This sentence describes a “hulking silhouette” because the narrator is searching for a whale that might be stranded. This expression refers to the size of the whale and not to any danger the narrator might face.

C. Incorrect. The narrator’s words “no more sounds” are used to illustrate his listening for what may be a whale. At this point, the narrator is still concerned about the possibility that a whale may be stranded, not the possibility of being in danger.

D. CORRECT. The idea that the narrator could become stuck in the mud of the flats means that the surroundings pose some danger or difficulty.

Question analysis

Students choose which sentence from one tense paragraph of The Highest Tide shows that the narrator is taking a risk as he follows a strange sound across the mudflats. In this evidence question, all four sentences come from the same scene, so students must tell real danger to the narrator apart from a mood of suspense.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 6 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Below grade 7 Choosing the sentence that supports an idea is a grade 6 and 7 skill. Here all four choices come from one paragraph and only the idea of danger needs matching, a lighter task than typical grade 7 evidence work.
Estimated difficulty
Routine: one familiar step, little to misread.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 6, 902 words; question and choices: about grade 5, 65 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Only one of the four sentences mentions anything that could happen to the narrator himself, so this is among the easiest questions on the test. The other three build suspense, a strange exhale, a missing silhouette, a silence, and a student who confuses suspense with danger may pick one. Asking who is at risk in each sentence settles it at once.

  1. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The right sentence states only what the narrator knows, that he could get stuck; it shows a risk because the sentences around it have him walking out onto the mud anyway. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Decide what taking a risk would mean for the narrator in this place, then test each sentence for a danger to him rather than a feeling of suspense.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Know what the question asks

    This asks you to find evidence. Taking a risk means doing something that could hurt you. So look for a sentence that shows a danger to the narrator himself.

  2. Think about the danger on the flats

    Mudflats are soft and wet. A person can sink into the mud and get stuck as the water rises. Paragraph 5 even gives a rule: “The general rule was you didn’t venture out past the shells and gravel with an incoming tide.”

  3. Find the sentence about danger

    Choice D says, “I knew the flats well enough to know I could get stuck just about anywhere.” So the narrator knows he could get stuck. Yet he keeps walking out toward the sound. That means he is taking a risk.

  4. Check each choice

    • D fits: getting stuck is a danger to him, and he goes on anyway.
    • A is wrong because a stranded whale would be in danger, not the narrator.
    • B is wrong because “hulking silhouette,” a huge dark shape, describes the whale he expected, not a threat.
    • C is wrong because waiting in silence builds suspense but puts him in no danger.

    Watch out: A, B and C create a spooky mood. But a spooky mood is not the same as a risk.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only one sentence names something that could happen to the narrator himself. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A comes closest, because a stranded whale sounds serious. But the danger in that sentence belongs to the whale. Only D names something that could happen to the narrator: getting stuck in the mud.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 47 as printed on page 66 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 66, question 47. Open page 66 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 72 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 51
Passage Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil”

Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil”

by Emma Marris

The author of this opinion article attended a symposium, or conference, in Missoula, Montana, at which biologists and other scientists discussed species of plants and animals that are not native to the areas in which they live.

Invasive species are scary. It was ecologist Charles Elton, back in the 1950s, who introduced the militaristic “invasion” metaphor to describe exotic plants and animals—but there’s no question some can be extremely destructive.

The brown tree snake has eaten a dozen kinds of forest birds in Guam to extinction; zebra mussels clog pipes around the Great Lakes; the common house cat turns out to be, in Australia, a mercilessly effective killer of cute, fluffy marsupials like the bilby and the numbat.

As scientists have sounded the alarm about these pests, the public has gotten the message. Citizen groups rip out non-native plants. Native gardens have become increasingly popular, both as ways to celebrate the unique flora of each region and as tiny hot spots of diversity. Native trees provide food for native bugs, which feed native birds. Food chains developed over thousands of years of co-evolution unfold in our backyards. . . .

So we’ve learned, scientists and laypeople alike, that native species are good and non-natives are bad.

Julian Olden, a biologist at the University of Washington, Seattle, who co-organized the symposium, recently polled nearly 2,000 ecologists. Among his findings: a substantial number of them said they would immediately eradicate a hypothetical non-native forest plant, even if it were shown to have no effect on the forest. Olden calls this the “guilty even when proven innocent” approach.

That kind of approach is not very useful on a rapidly changing planet.

Exotics Are Everywhere

Climate change is making it harder even to decide who the invaders are.

How, scientists at the symposium wondered, do you define “native” on a warming planet, when plants and animals are already moving toward the poles or up mountainsides in search of climate conditions they can tolerate? Should we consider them “invasive” in their new homes? Regardless of what we label them, conservationists will be reluctant to remove them from their new environs—to do so would stymie1 their chances of adapting to the warmer future we’re creating.

And then there are the non-natives that we actually like. Most domestic crops are exotic in most of the places they’re grown, but there are even wild exotics that “do good,” forming useful relationships with native species.

Edwin Grosholz of the University of California, Davis, told the recent symposium about one such relationship. On beaches in his state, non-native spartina grass has become important habitat for the endangered California clapper rail, a plump shorebird with a downward curving bill more at home on land than in the air. A project to rip out and poison the spartina—which grows in dense swaths that exclude many other shorebirds—saw clapper rail numbers go tumbling downward.

There are other examples like that. The endangered southwestern willow flycatcher nests in “invasive” tamarisk shrubs. Many native (and beautiful) Hawaiian flowers are now pollinated by the Japanese white-eye bird—because the native pollinators have been driven extinct by other non-native species.

Should we impose further risk on already endangered natives by severing these relationships? Or should we admire the resilience of nature and let such “well-behaved” exotics stay? . . .

Leave them alone, more and more conservationists are arguing, and stop focusing obsessively on categorizing species as native or non-native. Mark Davis, an ecologist at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, once considered himself an “invasion biologist”—but not anymore. “I am actively trying to get the field to retire the invader narrative,” he said in Missoula.

A Good Thing, Not the Only Thing

After all, nativeness is just one environmental value, and arguably not as important as preventing extinctions and preserving biodiversity. In some cases we can best serve biodiversity by leaving the non-natives alone or even—brace yourself, now—introducing them on purpose.

This is the thinking behind, for example, installing the Aldabra tortoise on the islands of Mauritius. The islands lost their own large tortoises, and the fruiting plants that formerly had their seeds moved around by these fruit-loving reptiles have been on the decline. A tortoise that’s related to the island’s large tortoises—a non-native from the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean that was intentionally introduced in 2004—is now handling some of that work.

Most of the time, for the time being, conserving species still means focusing on supporting them in their historical habitats, planting natives and removing non-natives. We can and should do that in places where it is feasible and important to us.

From “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil” by Emma Marris from NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE, July 24, 2014. Copyright © 2014 by National Geographic Society.

Chart titled “Possible Management of Non-Native Species, Based on Extent of Invasion,” plotting Area Affected by Non-Native Species (vertical axis) against Time (horizontal axis) as an S-shaped curve that stays low, then rises steeply and levels off high, where it is labeled “Widespread and abundant throughout range.” The time line is divided into four shaded stages, left to right: Prevention, “Species absent”; Eradication, “Few, localized populations”; Containment, “Rapid increase in populations”; and Local Control and Management Only, “Eradication no longer feasible; can only protect small areas based on economic and ecological need.” Markers on the curve show “Species introduced” at the end of Prevention, “Detection” within Eradication and “Public awareness begins” near the end of Containment, and two large arrows read “Management = simple; eradication likely” across Prevention and Eradication and “Management = difficult and costly; eradication unlikely or impossible” across Containment and Local Control and Management Only.

1stymie: hinder or interfere with

Question

Which sentence from the excerpt supports the conclusion that Elton’s “militaristic ‘invasion’ metaphor” (paragraph 1) has influenced scientific understanding of non-native species?

  • A“Among [Olden’s] findings: a substantial number of them said they would immediately eradicate a hypothetical non-native forest plant, even if it were shown to have no effect on the forest.” (paragraph 5)
  • B“Regardless of what we label them, conservationists will be reluctant to remove them from their new environs—to do so would stymie their chances of adapting to the warmer future we’re creating.” (paragraph 8)
  • C“A project to rip out and poison the spartina—which grows in dense swaths that exclude many other shorebirds—saw clapper rail numbers go tumbling downward.” (paragraph 10)
  • D“In some cases we can best serve biodiversity by leaving the non-natives alone or even—brace yourself, now—introducing them on purpose.” (paragraph 14)
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks which sentence from the excerpt supports the conclusion that Elton’s “militaristic ‘invasion’ metaphor” (paragraph 1) has influenced scientific understanding of non-native species.

A. CORRECT. This sentence shows that of the 2,000 ecologists Olden polled, many said they think it is right to “immediately eradicate” non-native plants even if they are demonstrably harmless in their new environment. The response of these ecologists supports that Elton’s metaphor discussed in paragraph 1 has influenced scientific understanding.

B. Incorrect. Rather than supporting the idea that the militaristic metaphor has influenced scientists, this sentence shows that conservationists, at any rate, are happy to let non-native species thrive wherever they can, given global warming.

C. Incorrect. While this sentence does refer to efforts to eradicate a non-native species, the main point of it is that these efforts ended up harming a native species (the clapper rail shorebird).

D. Incorrect. In contrast to supporting the idea that the militaristic invasion metaphor has influenced scientific understanding of non-native species, this sentence puts forth the bold idea of treating non-native species as something to be welcomed.

Question analysis

This evidence question asks which sentence from an opinion article about non-native species supports the conclusion that ecologist Charles Elton's war-like “invasion” metaphor has shaped how scientists think. Students must work out what attitude the metaphor implies and then judge which quotation shows that attitude at work in science.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Finding evidence for a stated conclusion is grade 7 work. This conclusion is abstract, about a metaphor's influence on thinking, and the vocabulary, such as eradicate and environs, adds load, but the choices are fairly distinct.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 815 words; question and choices: about grade 16, 135 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A wording slip in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The conclusion is abstract, that a figure of speech shaped how scientists think, so the student has to translate it into behavior: treating every non-native as an enemy to destroy. The spartina sentence describes exactly that kind of attack, which makes it tempting, but its point is the harm the attack did to a native bird. Two other sentences show conservationists and the author moving away from the invasion view, the opposite of what is asked.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The right sentence never mentions Elton or war; eradicating a plant even when it is “shown to have no effect” must be recognized as the invasion mindset, which Olden calls “guilty even when proven innocent”. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    “Militaristic”, “eradicate”, “environs” and “stymie” all appear in the stem or the choices, and only “stymie” is footnoted. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Work out what attitude the invasion metaphor encourages toward non-native species, then test each sentence for evidence that scientists hold that attitude.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook reads “many said they think it is right to “immediately eradicate” non-native species plants.” Paragraph 5 is about “a hypothetical non-native forest plant,” so the explanation now reads “non-native plants.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Unpack the conclusion

    A metaphor describes one thing as if it were another. In paragraph 1, Elton called the spread of non-native species an “invasion,” as if they were an enemy army. Militaristic means having to do with war. So the conclusion says this war-like way of talking has shaped how scientists think about non-native species.

  2. Picture that way of thinking

    If you see a species as an invader, you treat it as an enemy. You want to get rid of it, whether or not it does any harm. So look for a sentence that shows scientists thinking this way.

  3. Find the scientists’ answers

    Paragraph 5 describes a poll of nearly 2,000 ecologists, scientists who study living things and where they live. Many said they would “immediately eradicate,” or wipe out, a non-native plant. They would do it “even if it were shown to have no effect on the forest.” The plant would do no harm, yet they would destroy it. Olden calls this “guilty even when proven innocent.”

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits: scientists would destroy a harmless plant just because it is non-native, which is the invasion way of thinking.
    • B is wrong because conservationists being reluctant, or unwilling, to remove species is the opposite attitude.
    • C is wrong because its point is that removing the grass hurt a native bird, not what scientists believe.
    • D is wrong because the author argues for leaving non-natives alone, which goes against the invasion idea.

    Watch out: C describes an attack on a plant, so it sounds war-like. But it tells what happened, not how scientists think.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only A shows scientists treating a non-native species as an enemy, even when it is harmless. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C comes closest, because ripping out and poisoning a plant looks like the war the metaphor describes. But the sentence reports that this harmed the clapper rail. It doesn’t show what scientists believe. A shows many ecologists ready to destroy even a harmless plant, which is the invasion way of thinking at work.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 51 as printed on page 70 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 70, question 51. Open page 70 of the handbook (PDF) This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.
The passage “Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil”” as printed (pages 68–70)The passage “Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil”” as printed on page 68 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil”” as printed on page 69 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil”” as printed on page 70 of the DOE handbook.

Question 73 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 52

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil””.

Question

Which detail provides the most relevant support for the claim that “climate change is making it harder even to decide who the invaders are” (paragraph 7)?

  • Athe mention in paragraph 8 of non-native species that are forced to seek new habitats
  • Bthe acknowledgment in paragraph 9 that non-native species include many domestic crops
  • Cthe description in paragraph 11 of the interactions between native and non-native species
  • Dthe account in paragraph 13 of an ecologist who changed his beliefs about non-native species
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks which detail provides the most relevant support for the claim that “climate change is making it harder even to decide who the invaders are” (paragraph 7).

A. CORRECT. The fact that many plants and animals have no choice but to seek out “climate conditions they can tolerate” (paragraph 8) makes it much harder to decide whether to call these species invaders.

B. Incorrect. The fact that many domestic crops are non-native species has nothing to do with climate change affecting our discernment of which species are invaders.

C. Incorrect. The description in paragraph 11 of native and non-native species interacting never suggests that climate change is a factor in these interactions and never suggests that climate change muddies our understanding of which species is native and which is non-native.

D. Incorrect. While the example of Mark Davis so thoroughly changing his beliefs about non-native species is a powerful one, the role that climate change might have played in this reversal is never discussed.

Question analysis

Here students choose the detail that gives the most relevant support to the claim that climate change is making it harder even to decide which species are invaders, in an article rethinking non-native species. Each choice names a paragraph, and the article gives several different reasons to question the label, so every detail must be checked against the whole claim.

NYS standards
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Below grade 7 Judging which detail supports a claim is grade 7 argument work, but here the choices name their paragraphs, the claim is short and specific, and only one key idea must be matched, so the task is lighter than typical.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 815 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 76 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The claim has two parts, climate change as the cause and blurred labels as the effect, and every wrong detail muddies the word “invader” without any help from the climate. Crops, helpful partnerships and a converted invasion biologist all complicate the label, so a student who checks only the effect finds four plausible answers. Only paragraph 8 talks about a warming planet.

  1. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    The choices describe paragraphs instead of quoting them, so each of paragraphs 8, 9, 11 and 13 must be reread for a link to climate. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer

    The right choice says “forced to seek new habitats” where paragraph 8 says species are moving “toward the poles or up mountainsides in search of climate conditions they can tolerate”. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

Strategy: Name the cause and the effect in the claim, then test each detail for both; a detail that fits only one part is not the most relevant support.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Split the claim into two parts

    This asks for the detail that best supports a claim. The claim has a cause and an effect. The cause is climate change. The effect is that it is harder to tell which species are invaders. The best support must connect both parts.

  2. Find where climate comes up

    Paragraph 8 comes right after the claim, and it talks about “a warming planet.” Plants and animals “are already moving toward the poles or up mountainsides in search of climate conditions they can tolerate.” To tolerate means to be able to live with. As places get hotter, many species move to cooler ones.

  3. See why the labels get harder

    When a species moves to a new place, it is not native there. But it didn’t really invade. Heat pushed it out of its old home. So scientists ask whether such species should be called invasive “in their new homes.” Climate change blurs the line between native and invader.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits: species forced to move by the climate link the cause to the effect.
    • B is wrong because crops are non-natives people like, but paragraph 9 never mentions climate.
    • C is wrong because the helpful pairings in paragraph 11 have nothing to do with climate change.
    • D is wrong because nothing ties Mark Davis’s change of mind to a warming planet.

    Watch out: B, C and D all make the word invader less clear. But only A shows climate change doing it.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only A shows climate change making the word invader hard to apply. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B comes closest, since crops are non-natives we welcome, and that does complicate the word invader. But paragraph 9 says nothing about climate. A has both parts of the claim: a warming planet, and species that end up in new homes where the old labels don’t fit.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 52 as printed on page 70 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 70, question 52. Open page 70 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).

Question 74 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 54

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil””.

Question

Which sentence from the excerpt supports the idea that some species are able to adjust to change?

  • A“Native gardens have become increasingly popular, both as ways to celebrate the unique flora of each region and as tiny hot spots of diversity.” (paragraph 3)
  • B“Many native (and beautiful) Hawaiian flowers are now pollinated by the Japanese white-eye bird—because the native pollinators have been driven extinct by other non-native species.” (paragraph 11)
  • C“After all, nativeness is just one environmental value, and arguably not as important as preventing extinctions and preserving biodiversity.” (paragraph 14)
  • D“The islands lost their own large tortoises, and the fruiting plants that formerly had their seeds moved around by these fruit-loving reptiles have been on the decline.” (paragraph 15)
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks which sentence from the excerpt supports the idea that some species are able to adjust to change.

A. Incorrect. This sentence discusses native gardens, featuring native species, which presumably have no need to adjust to change.

B. CORRECT. This sentence demonstrates that some species—in this case, Hawaiian flowers—have adapted well to change: the flowers thrive thanks to new pollinators.

C. Incorrect. This sentence focuses on the importance of “preventing extinctions and preserving biodiversity” but does not address the fact that being able to adjust to change is one thing that helps achieve those goals.

D. Incorrect. Far from demonstrating that some species can adjust to change, this sentence discusses species that were not adjusting to the loss of large tortoises and were therefore “on the decline.”

Question analysis

Using an article that argues not every non-native species is harmful, this evidence question asks students to pick the sentence showing that some species are able to adjust to change. Students must decide what adjusting to change would look like in nature, then find a quotation that actually shows a species doing it.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Selecting a sentence that supports an idea is typical grade 7 evidence work. The quotations are labeled, but the idea is stated generally and must be recognized inside a specific ecological example, a small inference that keeps the item at grade level.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one sentence or line
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 815 words; question and choices: about grade 14, 117 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The idea is general and every choice is specific, so the student must recognize adjustment inside an ecological example. The Mauritius sentence is the trap: the paragraph it comes from ends with a new tortoise taking over, which is adjustment, but the quoted sentence stops at the decline. Judging only the words quoted, and asking whether a species carried on after a change, separates the two.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The right sentence never says “adjust”; Hawaiian flowers now pollinated by a newcomer after their native pollinators died out must be recognized as species coping with a change. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The Hawaiian sentence and the Mauritius sentence both describe plants losing the animals that served them; they part on the outcome, a new pollinator or a decline. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

Strategy: For each quotation, ask whether a species faces a change and whether the sentence shows it carrying on successfully; judge only the words quoted.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Know what the question asks

    To adjust to change means to keep going when something important in your world changes. You need a sentence that shows a species facing a change and carrying on. Judge only the words in each quoted sentence.

  2. Look for a change

    Choice B says the native pollinators of some Hawaiian flowers “have been driven extinct.” Extinct means gone forever. Pollinators are animals that carry pollen between flowers so the plants can make seeds. Losing them is a huge change for the flowers.

  3. Look for the adjustment

    The same sentence says the flowers “are now pollinated by the Japanese white-eye bird.” A new bird does the job the old pollinators used to do. So the flowers carried on after the change. That is adjusting.

  4. Check each choice

    • B fits: the flowers lost their pollinators and gained a new one.
    • A is wrong because native gardens are about what people like to plant, and no species adjusts to anything.
    • C is wrong because it states the author’s values and shows no species at all.
    • D is wrong because the plants “have been on the decline,” which means they are getting fewer, not adjusting.

    Watch out: Later in paragraph 15, a new tortoise takes over some of the lost tortoises’ work. But the sentence in D stops at the decline.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only B shows a species carrying on after a big change. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D comes closest, because it also shows plants losing the animals that helped them. But D’s sentence ends with the plants in decline. B’s sentence goes further: a new bird now does the work, so the flowers carry on. That is a species adjusting to change.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 54 as printed on page 71 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 71, question 54. Open page 71 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).

Question 75 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 56

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil””.

Question

Climate change has affected efforts to manage invasive species mainly by causing ecologists to

  • Acall upon the public to be more tolerant of the presence of non-native species.
  • Badmit that past attempts to eliminate non-native species have damaged the environment.
  • Cfind ways of ensuring that native species are not harmed by the arrival of new species.
  • Dacknowledge that it is not realistic for some species to remain in their native habitats.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

This question asks how climate change has mainly affected efforts to manage invasive species.

A. Incorrect. While ecologists are now arguing for some non-native species to be left alone (paragraph 13), they are arguing specifically on behalf of “well-behaved” non-native species (paragraph 12), not non-native species in general.

B. Incorrect. While paragraph 10 describes how removing a non-native species negatively affected a native species, the excerpt never discusses the idea that attempts to eliminate non-native species might have damaged the environment.

C. Incorrect. While the excerpt refers to climate change causing plants and animals to move to more tolerable environments (paragraph 8), it does not specifically discuss ways to ensure that the arrival of these non-native species does not harm native species.

D. CORRECT. As paragraph 8 says, “plants and animals are already moving toward the poles” because of climate change, and ecologists recognize that those species need to do so to adapt “to the warmer future we’re creating.”

Question analysis

This question asks how climate change has mainly affected efforts to manage invasive species, according to an article arguing that not all non-native species are harmful. Students must locate the article's brief discussion of a warming planet and recognize its point when it is restated in different words.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Tracing how one factor shapes an idea is grade 7 work. The relevant discussion is a single paragraph, but it is built from long questions rather than statements, and the choices restate it abstractly, so the item sits at a typical grade 7 level.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 815 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 71 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Climate change is discussed in only one paragraph, and that paragraph mostly asks questions, so the student has to work out what the scientists concluded from what they wondered. The wrong choices borrow ideas from later in the article, leaving well-behaved exotics alone and the spartina project, or bring in a common conservation goal, and none of them is tied to a warming planet. Finding paragraph 8 first makes the rest straightforward.

  1. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice's “not realistic for some species to remain in their native habitats” shares no words with paragraph 8, which speaks of plants and animals “moving toward the poles or up mountainsides”. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  2. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

    Paragraph 8 makes its point through questions, the first broken by “scientists at the symposium wondered”, so what ecologists accept has to be pulled out of what they ask. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

  3. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The acknowledgment is implied: reluctance to remove species that would otherwise lose their chance of “adapting to the warmer future” shows that staying put is no longer an option. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Find where the article actually discusses a warming planet and what the scientists there are wondering about, then match a choice to that discussion.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Know what the question asks

    This asks how climate change has changed the way scientists handle non-native species. First find the part of the article that talks about climate. Then see what the scientists there accept.

  2. Find the climate paragraph

    Paragraphs 7 and 8 are about climate change. Paragraph 8 says that on “a warming planet,” plants and animals “are already moving toward the poles or up mountainsides.” They are looking for “climate conditions they can tolerate,” which means weather they can survive.

  3. See what the scientists accept

    Paragraph 8 says conservationists “will be reluctant to remove them.” Reluctant means unwilling. Removing them “would stymie” their “chances of adapting to the warmer future.” The footnote says stymie means to hinder, or hold back. In other words, scientists accept that these species can’t stay where they were. To survive, they have to move.

  4. Check each choice

    • D fits: ecologists admit that some species can’t realistically stay in their native homes.
    • A is wrong because the call to leave non-natives alone in paragraphs 12 and 13 is about “well-behaved” ones, not climate.
    • B is wrong because the one failed removal in paragraph 10 has nothing to do with climate.
    • C is wrong because paragraph 8 talks about letting moving species adapt, not shielding natives from newcomers.

    Watch out: A sounds close because it is also about putting up with non-natives. But it comes from a part of the article that never mentions climate.

  5. Choose the answer

    Climate change has made ecologists accept that some species must leave their old homes. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A comes closest, because the article does argue for leaving some non-natives alone. But that argument is about helpful newcomers, and it never mentions climate. Paragraphs 7 and 8 are where climate change comes up. There, scientists accept that many species must leave their old homes to survive, which is D.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 56 as printed on page 72 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 72, question 56. Open page 72 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).

Question 76 of 120

2024 Test A English, question 57

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “It’s Time to Stop Thinking That All Non-Native Species Are Evil””.

Question

How does the chart provide additional support for a central idea of the excerpt?

  • Aby implying that the public becomes aware of non-native species only after removal is impossible
  • Bby showing that the complete removal of non-native species is usually not achievable after a certain period of time
  • Cby demonstrating why non-native species can be destructive if they are not removed from an area immediately
  • Dby explaining how some conservation groups have approached the removal of non-native species
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks how the chart provides additional support for a central idea of the excerpt.

A. Incorrect. The chart indicates that the public tends to become aware of non-native species once eradication is “unlikely or impossible,” not strictly impossible. Furthermore, this idea is not a central idea of the excerpt.

B. CORRECT. The chart strongly suggests that once “rapid increase in populations” of non-native species has occurred, eradication will be “unlikely or impossible.”

C. Incorrect. While the chart does show that non-native species can eventually be impossible to eradicate, it never addresses the issue of how the non-native species might be destructive to their new environments.

D. Incorrect. The chart shows how non-native species become harder and harder to remove as their population grows but does not explain how any conservation groups have approached their removal.

Question analysis

This question asks how a chart titled “Possible Management of Non-Native Species, Based on Extent of Invasion” supports a central idea of an article arguing that not all non-native species are harmful. Students must read the chart's stages, labels and curve, then decide which statement the chart actually shows and which also fits the article's argument.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Grade 7 students connect graphics to a text, but this chart packs four stages, two arrows, a curve and several labels into one figure, and its pattern must be linked to an argument made in words, demanding but within upper grade 7.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 815 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 78 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The chart is easy to read in outline, simple management on the left and costly, likely failed eradication on the right, and the right choice restates that contrast. The pull comes from the “Public awareness begins” marker, placed at the border of the stage where eradication is no longer feasible, which makes a statement about public awareness look like a faithful reading. It is nearly faithful, but it describes one marker, not a central idea the article develops.

  1. Reading a figure, table or graph moderate Understanding the question

    The chart packs four shaded stages, two arrows, an S-shaped curve and three markers into one figure, and its message lies in the arrows: eradication “likely” early, “unlikely or impossible” later. (Lesh, Post & Behr, 1987; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  2. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice and the public-awareness choice both read the late stages where removal fails; the awareness marker even sits on the border of “Eradication no longer feasible”, so only centrality separates them. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  3. Combines ideas minor Working it out

    The chart's pattern has to be matched to the article's argument that nativeness is one value among several and that removal makes sense only where “feasible and important to us”. (Embretson, 1998; Daniel & Embretson, 2010)

Strategy: Read the chart's title, axes and stage labels, say in one sentence what it shows happening over time, then ask which part of the article's argument that pattern supports.

Traps

  • Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Wrong part of the text: A choice is true of another paragraph, stanza or speaker than the one asked about.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Know what the question asks

    This asks how the chart supports a central idea, a main point of the article. First read the chart and say in your own words what it shows. Then link that to the article’s argument.

  2. Read the chart from left to right

    Time moves from left to right. The curve shows how much area a non-native species covers. Eradication means wiping a species out completely. Early on, the arrow says management is “simple” and eradication is “likely.” Then the species spreads fast. From there on, management is “difficult and costly,” and eradication is “unlikely or impossible.” In the last stage it is “no longer feasible,” or no longer possible.

  3. Link the chart to the article

    The article argues that we shouldn’t treat every non-native species the same way. Paragraph 16 says we should remove non-natives “in places where it is feasible and important to us.” The chart shows when removal is possible: mostly early, before the species spreads. After that, wiping it out usually can’t be done.

  4. Check each choice

    • B fits: complete removal is usually not possible after a certain time, which is the chart’s main message.
    • A is wrong because the “Public awareness begins” marker is one small label, and the article never discusses when the public notices.
    • C is wrong because the chart shows how far a species spreads, not how much damage it does.
    • D is wrong because the chart shows general stages, not what any real group has done.

    Watch out: A reads the marker correctly, since it does sit late, where removal is already hard. But it picks a detail, not the chart’s main point.

  5. Choose the answer

    The chart shows that removal works only early, which backs up the article’s argument. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A comes closest, since the chart does place “Public awareness begins” late, when removal is already hard. But that is one small marker, and the article never says when the public first notices a species. B states the chart’s main message, that removal works only early. That backs up the article’s point that removing non-natives isn’t always possible.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 57 as printed on page 72 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 72, question 57. Open page 72 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 77 of 120

2024 Test B English, question 18
Passage Excerpt from “How Exercise Could Help You Learn a New Language”

Excerpt from “How Exercise Could Help You Learn a New Language”

by Gretchen Reynolds

Many scientists suspect that exercise alters the biology of the brain in ways that make it more malleable and receptive to new information, a process that scientists refer to as plasticity.

But many questions have remained unanswered about movement and learning, including whether exercise is most beneficial before, during or after instruction and how much and what types of exercise might be best.

So for a new study, which was published recently in PLOS One, researchers in China and Italy decided to home in on language learning and the adult brain.

Language learning is interesting. As young children, almost all of us picked up our first language easily. We didn’t have to be formally taught; we simply absorbed words and concepts.

But by early adulthood, the brain generally begins to lose some of its innate language capability. It displays less plasticity in areas of the brain related to language. As a result, for most of us, it becomes harder to learn a second language after childhood.

To see what effects exercise might have on this process, the researchers first recruited 40 college-age Chinese men and women who were trying to learn English. The students had some facility with this second language but were far from proficient.

The researchers then divided the students into two groups. Those in one group would continue to learn English as they had before, primarily while seated in rote vocabulary-memorization sessions.

The others would supplement these sessions with exercise.

Specifically, the students would ride exercise bikes at a gentle pace (about 60 percent of their maximum aerobic capacity) beginning 20 minutes before the start of the lessons and continuing throughout the 15 minutes or so of instruction.

Both groups learned their new vocabulary by watching words projected onto large screens, together with comparable pictures, such as “apple” and a Red Delicious. They were shown 40 words per session, with the sequence repeated several times.

Afterward, the students all rested briefly and then completed a vocabulary quiz, using computer keys to note as quickly as possible whether a word was with its correct picture. They also responded to sentences using the new words, marking whether the sentences were accurate or, in the case of “The apple is a dentist,” nonsensical. Most linguists1 feel that understanding sentences shows greater mastery of a new language than does simple vocabulary improvement.

The students completed eight vocabulary sessions over the course of two months.

And at the end of each lesson, the students who had ridden bikes performed better on the subsequent vocabulary tests than did the students who sat still.

They also became more proficient at recognizing proper sentences than the sedentary students, although that difference did not emerge until after several weeks of instruction.

Perhaps most interesting, the gains in vocabulary and comprehension lingered longest for the cyclists. When the researchers asked the students to return to the lab for a final round of testing a month after the lessons—without practicing in the meantime—the cyclists remembered words and understood them in sentences more accurately than did the students who had not moved.

“The results suggest that physical activity during learning improves that learning,” says Simone Sulpizio, a professor of psychology and linguistics at the University Vita-Salute San Raffaele in Milan, Italy, and a study co-author.

These improvements extend beyond simply aiding in memorization, she added. The exercise also deepened language learners’ grasp of how to use their newly acquired words.

This study involved college students performing relatively light exercise, though, and cannot tell us whether other people completing other types of exercise would achieve the same results.

It also offers no clues about what is occurring inside the brain that might be contributing to the benefits of the exercise. But many past studies have shown that exercise prompts the release of multiple neurochemicals in the brain that increase the number of new brain cells and the connections between neurons, Dr. Sulpizio says. These effects improve the brain’s plasticity and augment the ability to learn.

From a real-world standpoint, the study’s implications might seem at first to be impractical. Few classrooms are equipped with stationary bicycles. But specialized equipment is probably unnecessary, Dr. Sulpizio says.

“We are not suggesting that schools or teachers buy lots of bicycles,” she says. “A simpler take-home message may be that instruction should be flanked by physical activity.”

From “How Exercise Could Help You Learn a New Language” by Gretchen Reynolds from THE NEW YORK TIMES, August 16, 2017. Copyright © 2017 The New York Times Company.

1linguists: scientists who study language

Question

Which sentence is the best summary of the research procedure used in the study in the excerpt?

  • AResearchers had a group of non-English-speaking students learn new English vocabulary by matching words and images on a computer screen, and also by analyzing words in context; some students exercised and some students sat still while learning.
  • BResearchers first divided non-English-speaking students into two groups, with one group exercising before and while studying English and the other group studying English without exercising; then, after instruction, student learning was assessed.
  • CResearchers first had non-English-speaking students sit on stationary bikes and pedal for 20 minutes before instruction and 15 minutes during instruction; then, after a rest period, students indicated whether English sentences made sense.
  • DResearchers asked non-English-speaking students to study English while sitting or biking; then the students’ vocabulary skills were assessed after a short break period and also after a break of a full month without their having studied any of the materials.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks for the best summary of the research procedure used in the study in the excerpt.

A. Incorrect. This summary says that students learned new words by matching words and images and “also by analyzing words in context,” but this last method was how the researchers assessed students, not how the students learned words; the summary is therefore inaccurate.

B. CORRECT. The summary includes the most important information, which is that one group of non-English-speaking students exercised before and during the English lessons, while the other group did not, and that the students’ learning was assessed afterward.

C. Incorrect. This summary is incomplete because it never mentions the control group—that is, the students who studied English without exercising—which was essential to the study so that results could be compared.

D. Incorrect. This summary includes unnecessary details, such as that students were assessed after a short break and also assessed after a month of no studying; it also neglects to mention important points: that one group exercised both before and during learning, while the other group did not exercise at all.

Question analysis

This summary question asks which of four long sentences best sums up how the researchers ran the study of exercise and English vocabulary learning. Each choice packs in real details about bikes, screens, quizzes and timing, so students must check both whether every detail is accurate and whether anything essential to the study’s design has been left out.

NYS standards
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 students summarize texts, usually choosing among short summaries. Here each choice runs about forty words packed with accurate details from several paragraphs, and students must judge which keeps the study’s essential design, not merely which details are true.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 764 words; question and choices: about grade 16+, 157 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Most of what the wrong summaries say is true, which makes this a test of completeness and weight rather than of accuracy. One summary describes only the cyclists, another slips the sentence quiz into how words were taught, and the most tempting one is accurate but leaves out that the cyclists pedaled before the lesson as well as during it. The right summary is plainer than its rivals: two groups, one exercising, then a test.

  1. A very close wrong answer major Choosing the answer

    The sitting-or-biking summary is accurate and names both conditions, as the right one does, but it spends its words on the short rest and the month-later test instead of when the cyclists rode. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The procedure runs from the recruiting in paragraph 6 through the groups, bikes, lessons and quiz in paragraphs 7–12 to the final test in paragraph 15, so it must be gathered before any summary is judged. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  3. A lot to read moderate Understanding the question

    Each summary is a 32- to 40-word sentence packed with real details, the 20 minutes of pedaling, the rest period, the month without study, so the four together form a dense passage of their own. (Kintsch, 1998; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Before reading the choices, note in a few words how the study was set up and how learning was checked. Then test each summary for accuracy and for anything essential it leaves out.

Traps

  • Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    You need the best summary of how the study was done. A summary gives the main parts in a few words. It must be accurate, and it can’t leave out anything important. Small details can be skipped.

  2. Find the main parts of the study

    • Paragraph 7: “The researchers then divided the students into two groups.”
    • Paragraphs 8 and 9: one group rode bikes “beginning 20 minutes before the start of the lessons and continuing throughout the 15 minutes or so of instruction.” The other group sat still.
    • Paragraph 11: then all the students took a quiz.

    So the key parts are two groups, one that exercised, and a test afterward. The group that sat still matters. It lets the researchers compare.

  3. Check each choice

    • B has it all: two groups, one exercising “before and while studying,” then a test.
    • A says students learned by “analyzing words in context.” But judging sentences was part of the quiz, not the lessons.
    • C describes only the bike riders. It leaves out the group that sat still, so nothing gets compared.
    • D spends its words on small details: the short break and the test a month later. It leaves out that the bike riders started 20 minutes before the lesson.

  4. Pick the answer

    Watch out: D is tempting because everything in it is true. But a summary should give the main parts, not the side details. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong answer. Its facts are accurate, and it names both groups. But it builds the summary around the break and the month-later test. It never says the cyclists rode before the lessons too. B gives the main plan plainly: two groups, one exercising, then a test of learning.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 18 as printed on page 173 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 173, question 18. Open page 173 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).
The passage “Excerpt from “How Exercise Could Help You Learn a New Language”” as printed (pages 171–172)The passage “Excerpt from “How Exercise Could Help You Learn a New Language”” as printed on page 171 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from “How Exercise Could Help You Learn a New Language”” as printed on page 172 of the DOE handbook.

Question 78 of 120

2024 Test B English, question 19

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “How Exercise Could Help You Learn a New Language””.

Question

In the study described in the excerpt, researchers asked English learners to assess the sense of words in context because that task is

  • Abetter at determining the capability learners have of language than simple vocabulary recall.
  • Bconsistent with the way earlier research was conducted on adult language learners.
  • Ca better way for learners to absorb the meaning of individual vocabulary words.
  • Dmore difficult for learners to perform after an extended period of time has passed.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks why the researchers in the excerpt asked the English learners to assess whether the new words made sense in the context of actual sentences.

A. CORRECT. As stated in paragraph 11, “Most linguists feel that understanding sentences shows greater mastery of a new language” than mere memorization of new words, so the researchers realized that asking learners to assess words in context would be a better measure of how well they learned the new words.

B. Incorrect. The excerpt never addresses how earlier research on adult language learners was conducted.

C. Incorrect. Having learners respond to the new words in context was used not as a teaching tool but rather to assess learners’ mastery (paragraph 11).

D. Incorrect. The excerpt describes how proficiency at assessing words in context began to emerge “after several weeks of instruction” (paragraph 14) and never suggests that the task became more difficult after an extended period of time.

Question analysis

This key-details question asks why the researchers in the exercise and language-learning study had students judge whether sentences using their new English words made sense. Students must find the reason the article gives and recognize it in reworded form, while weighing choices that each sound like a sensible reason to use such a task.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Finding a reason the text states outright is routine grade 7 reading. The stem rewords the sentence task as judging “the sense of words in context,” so students must match ideas across different wording, which keeps it at grade level.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 764 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 75 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The stem rewords the sentence task as assessing “the sense of words in context,” so students first have to recognize it as the quiz with lines like “The apple is a dentist.” Once that paragraph is found, its last sentence supplies the reason. The common error is to forget that the sentences came in the quiz, not the lessons, and so treat them as a way of teaching words.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The article never says why the researchers added sentences; the reason is the linguists’ view that closes paragraph 11, “understanding sentences shows greater mastery,” placed right after the task. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Find the paragraph that describes the quiz with sentences such as “The apple is a dentist,” and read to the end of it for the reason the article gives.

Traps

  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks why the researchers had students judge whether sentences made sense. The question calls this “assess the sense of words in context.” Context means the words around a word. So find where the article describes this task. Then look for the reason it gives.

  2. Find the task in the passage

    Paragraph 11 describes the quiz. The students “responded to sentences using the new words.” They marked whether each sentence was right or “nonsensical,” which means it makes no sense. One example was “The apple is a dentist.” The very next sentence gives the reason for this task.

  3. Read the reason

    Paragraph 11 ends by saying most linguists feel that “understanding sentences shows greater mastery of a new language than does simple vocabulary improvement.” Linguists are scientists who study language. Mastery means real skill. So knowing how to use a word in a sentence shows more skill than just remembering it. That is why the researchers tested sentences.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits. Judging sentences shows more about a learner’s skill than recalling words. Recall means remembering.
    • B: the article never says how earlier studies were done.
    • C: the sentence task came in the quiz after each lesson. It tested learning. It was not a way to teach words.
    • D: paragraph 14 says the cyclists’ lead on sentences took “several weeks” to show up. That doesn’t mean the task got harder.

    Watch out: C is tempting if you forget when the sentences came. The words were taught with pictures on screens.

  5. Pick the answer

    The researchers used sentences because they show deeper skill than word recall. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer, because sentences can help people learn words. But in this study the sentences came in the quiz, after the lesson. They measured what students knew. A matches the reason the article gives: understanding sentences “shows greater mastery” than knowing words.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 19 as printed on page 174 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 174, question 19. Open page 174 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 79 of 120

2024 Test B English, question 20

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “How Exercise Could Help You Learn a New Language””.

Question

Read these sentences from paragraph 17.

These improvements extend beyond simply aiding in memorization, she added. The exercise also deepened language learners’ grasp of how to use their newly acquired words.

Which sentence from the excerpt best explains why Sulpizio feels confident in the conclusion stated in these sentences?

  • A“They were shown 40 words per session, with the sequence repeated several times.” (paragraph 10)
  • B“They also responded to sentences using the new words, marking whether the sentences were accurate or, in the case of ‘The apple is a dentist,’ nonsensical.” (paragraph 11)
  • C“And at the end of each lesson, the students who had ridden bikes performed better on the subsequent vocabulary tests than did the students who sat still.” (paragraph 13)
  • D“They also became more proficient at recognizing proper sentences than the sedentary students, although that difference did not emerge until after several weeks of instruction.” (paragraph 14)
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks which sentence from the excerpt best supports Sulpizio’s assertion in paragraph 17 that exercise went beyond helping with memorization to deepen the language learners’ ability to use new vocabulary.

A. Incorrect. This sentence merely describes what the language-learning sessions were like, without making any claims about how the exercise affected the subjects’ understanding of how to use new words.

B. Incorrect. While this sentence does address the fact that learners were required to think about how the new words should be used rather than just memorizing the words, it does not discuss results such as how the exercise affected their ability to do this.

C. Incorrect. This sentence establishes only that exercise helped with the memorization of new words, not that exercise deepened learners’ grasp of how to use the new words.

D. CORRECT. The fact that learners who exercised were better at identifying when the new words were used correctly in sentences directly supports Sulpizio’s assertion that the exercise deepened their grasp of how to use the new words.

Question analysis

This textual evidence question quotes Simone Sulpizio’s conclusion that exercise did more than help learners memorize new English words. Students choose the sentence from the article that best explains why she can be confident of it. All four choices come from the article’s account of the study, so students must match evidence to the exact claim rather than to its general topic.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 evidence questions usually match a quotation to a stated claim. This claim has two parts, gains beyond memorizing and a better grasp of usage, and two quotations touch it closely, a sharper test than typical grade 7 work.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 764 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 142 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Sulpizio’s claim has two parts, gains beyond memorizing and a better grasp of using words, and two of the quotations each touch one part. The vocabulary result is real evidence that exercise helped, but of the very memorizing she says the gains went beyond, and the sentence-task description mentions using words but reports no result. Only a result about sentences proves the claim, so the question rewards asking of each line what it shows, not what it is about.

  1. A very close wrong answer major Choosing the answer

    The vocabulary-test result in paragraph 13 and the sentence result in paragraph 14 are worded alike, cyclists outperforming students who sat still; only the skill measured, memorizing words or using them, separates them. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    Students must map the claim’s two halves onto the study’s two measures: vocabulary tests show memorization, and recognizing proper sentences shows the “grasp of how to use” new words. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    The four quotations come from paragraphs 10, 11, 13 and 14, and each must be weighed against a claim made later, in paragraph 17. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Pin down what the quoted claim says the exercise achieved, then test each sentence by asking whether it reports a result that proves that specific achievement.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    Sulpizio says the exercise did more than help students memorize words. It “deepened language learners’ grasp of how to use their newly acquired words.” A grasp is an understanding. You need the sentence that best proves this claim. Proof should be a result, not just a description.

  2. Break the claim into two parts

    • Part 1: the gains went “beyond simply aiding in memorization.” Memorization is learning words by heart.
    • Part 2: the cyclists got better at using the words.

    So the proof must show the bike riders did better with words in sentences. A test that only checks memory won’t prove it.

  3. Check each choice

    • A (paragraph 10) tells how many words were shown. It gives no result.
    • B (paragraph 11) describes the sentence task. But it doesn’t say who did better.
    • C (paragraph 13) is a result. But it is about “vocabulary tests,” which check memory. That is the part she says the gains went beyond.
    • D (paragraph 14) says the cyclists “became more proficient at recognizing proper sentences than the sedentary students.” Proficient means skilled. Sedentary means sitting still. That is a result about using words.

  4. Pick the answer

    Watch out: C is very tempting. It shows that exercise helped. But it proves the wrong kind of help. Only one choice shows the cyclists did better at using words in sentences. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer. Both C and D say the bike riders beat the students who sat still. The difference is the skill that was tested. C’s vocabulary tests show memory. D’s sentence test shows the learners knew how to use the words, which is exactly Sulpizio’s claim.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 20 as printed on page 174 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 174, question 20. Open page 174 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).

Question 80 of 120

2024 Test B English, question 22

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “How Exercise Could Help You Learn a New Language””.

Question

Which evidence from the excerpt is most relevant to the author’s claim that there are many unanswered questions about the relationship between movement and learning?

  • Athe method of the study using one type of exercise and people from one age group
  • Bthe statement from Sulpizio explaining past studies on neurochemicals in the brain
  • Cthe finding of the study that exercise helps people recall information over a long period of time
  • Dthe statement from Sulpizio describing how the results of the study can be applied
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks which evidence from the excerpt is most relevant to the author’s claim that there are many unanswered questions about the relationship between movement and learning.

A. CORRECT. While the study revealed that the college students who used exercise bikes did better in their language learning, paragraph 18 indicates that we cannot know “whether other people completing other types of exercise would achieve the same results,” suggesting that there are many unknowns about the relationship between movement and learning.

B. Incorrect. Rather than supporting the claim that there are many unanswered questions about the relationship between movement and learning, this statement offers a possible explanation as to why exercise might improve learning.

C. Incorrect. The finding that exercise helps people retain their language learning longer (paragraph 15) adds to our understanding of the relationship between movement and learning rather than supporting the claim that there are still many unanswered questions.

D. Incorrect. Sulpizio’s statement that the study suggests that “ ‘instruction should be flanked by physical activity’ ” (paragraph 21) does not in any way address the issue of unanswered questions about movement and learning.

Question analysis

This evidence question asks which part of the exercise and language-learning article is most relevant to the author’s early claim that many questions about movement and learning remain unanswered. The choices describe parts of the article in general terms rather than quoting them, so students must locate each one and judge how it bears on that claim.

NYS standards
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 students trace claims and judge whether evidence is relevant. Here the claim appears early, the evidence is described in summary rather than quoted, and students must see an indirect link across the article, which demands more than usual.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 764 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 84 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The choices describe evidence instead of quoting it, so each must first be located and then weighed against a claim made near the start of the article. The trap is the neurochemical statement: its paragraph begins by admitting what the study cannot show, but the statement itself offers an answer from past research. The key is easy to undervalue because it sounds like a plain description of the method, until it is linked to paragraph 18’s account of what the study cannot tell us.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The right choice names a method, not a question; students must see that one light exercise tried on college students leaves open paragraph 2’s “what types of exercise might be best,” as paragraph 18 says. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The claim sits in paragraph 2, and the choices are short labels that must be traced to paragraphs 15, 18, 19 and 21 before any of them can be judged. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Reread the claim in paragraph 2, then find where each choice’s material appears in the article and ask how directly it bears on that claim.

Traps

  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.
  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    The author claims there are many unanswered questions about movement and learning. You need the evidence that best supports that claim. Evidence is the facts that back up a point. So look for something that shows a question is still open, not something that answers one.

  2. Find the claim

    Paragraph 2 says “many questions have remained unanswered about movement and learning.” It names some. One is whether exercise helps most “before, during or after instruction.” Another is “how much and what types of exercise might be best.” Instruction means teaching.

  3. Find what the study left open

    The study used one kind of exercise, light biking. It also used one age group, college students. Paragraph 18 says the study “cannot tell us whether other people completing other types of exercise would achieve the same results.” So the question of “what types of exercise” work best is still open. That is what choice A describes.

  4. Check the other choices

    • B: in paragraph 19, Sulpizio says past studies show exercise releases “neurochemicals,” or brain chemicals, that help learning. That offers an answer, not an open question.
    • C: the finding in paragraph 15, that cyclists remembered words longer, answers a question.
    • D: Sulpizio’s advice in paragraph 21 says how to use the results. It says nothing about what is still unknown.

    Watch out: Paragraph 19 begins with something the study can’t explain, so B is tempting. But Sulpizio’s statement itself gives an explanation.

  5. Pick the answer

    Only the study’s narrow method shows that big questions remain. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong answer, because its paragraph starts by admitting the study “offers no clues” about the brain. But Sulpizio then fills that gap with what past studies found. A points to what is truly still unknown: whether other people and other kinds of exercise would get the same results.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 22 as printed on page 175 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 175, question 22. Open page 175 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).

Question 81 of 120

2024 Test B English, question 24
Passage Excerpt from Do Them No Harm!

Excerpt from Do Them No Harm!

by Zoa L. Swayne

This narrative is about the Nez Perce, an American Indian tribe, in what is now northern Idaho. The tribe is preparing for a gathering before the coming winter.

In the moon of Ta-Yum, the hottest days of summer, when salmon spawn in the little streams and huckleberries ripen in the high mountains, people from many villages of the Chopunnish Nation gathered in the Oyaip Prairie for the work and festivities of their annual camas1 harvest.

From far and near The People came. . . .

Should a stranger enter their homeland and ask, “Where are you from?” the reply was always, “We are Nee-mee-poo, The People who live here in this place.”

It was a time of Lawtiwa-mah-ton—a time of being friends together—when The People came for this last chance to enjoy being together before the Cold Moons kept them close to their fires. The visiting and trading, the foot racing and horse racing, and the gambling and stick games would be remembered and talked about long after they had forgotten the drudgery of digging and roasting camas, picking berries, or drying meat and fish. Lawtiwa-mah-ton! It was good to be friends together.

As was their custom since wahk-kee-ma, a time far back beyond the memory of man, they set up their camps in the same locations their parents and grandparents had occupied before them. Red Bear’s people, from Kamiah, made their camp near the trail that came out of the mountains. Their neighbors in Kamiah Valley, The People from Tee-e-lap-a-lo, had their camp close by. Across the wide meadow, by the great roasting pits, the camps of the Te-wap-poo and Ask-kah-poo were located. The tepees and ish-nash, brush shelters, of other groups nestled in their accustomed areas in and among the pines in such numbers that they encircled the entire meadow land.

Red Bear’s people had traveled all summer with neighboring bands, gathering and preparing roots, picking and drying berries, drying and smoking meat and fish for their winter food supply. Now they were at the Oyaip camp. The women worked hard to dig and cure as many bags of roots as they could during the warm, sunny days, for the sharp night air brought warnings that WARM was going and COLD was coming.

Everyone helped in some way. Most of the men fished or hunted for meat. While many of the women dug and roasted camas, other women and older children picked and dried berries.

And the younger children played. They played at hunting. They played with the babies. They played with their horses and puppies. They learned how to live through their play.

This sun, happiness, peace, and quiet blessed the Red Bear camp. All were busy with their daily tasks, until sudden cries came from the children playing by the trail.

“People coming! People coming! People coming on the trail from the high mountains!” they called as they ran to their elders, who looked sharply at the figures of approaching horsemen.

Were they friends or enemies? Did they bring good news or bad?

“Who can it be? What brings them here?” were the questions in every mind.

“Could they be the four hunters who had gone to Buffalo Country two summers past? Would they have news of the families who had gone long ago to Buffalo Country and never returned?”

It was customary for a hunting party to be gone for more than one season.

“Looks like hunters,” the older men agreed. “Looks like they had good hunting. Maybe our four hunters. [They have] been gone many moons.”

“Looks like five people—not four,” others observed.

Excitement grew as the riders came close enough to be recognized.

“A-a-a-a-a, they are our four hunters! But who is the fifth person?” they asked.

“Looks like a woman. Who is she?”

The hunters rode up to the welcoming crowd, proud to show off the loads of meat, hides, and other trophies of their hunt. They paraded around the encampment for all to see how strong their Hunting Power had been—what great hunters they, themselves, were.

Red Bear’s people rejoiced at their hunters’ success. Good hunters brought good to everybody. The meat meant plenty of food and the hides meant soft-tanned robes to give comfort through the Cold Moons. But it was the sight of the frail figure of the woman that aroused their curiosity. Who was she? Where had she come from? . . .

“Belongs to Red Bear people. Gone then come back,” the hunters said, as they dismounted and unloaded their packs. . . .

Now they could see! She was the daughter of the family gone so long ago! The girl-child who had left came back now—a grown woman.

“Wat-ku-ese!” the women cried. “Gone-from-Home-then-Come-Back. Wat-ku-ese!” And Wat-ku-ese was her name from that time on.

Gentle arms lifted Wat-ku-ese from her horse. The women brought her food and made a place for her to rest. For many suns they cared for her until she became stronger.

One evening Wat-ku-ese told her story for all to hear.

From DO THEM NO HARM!: Lewis and Clark Among the Nez Perce by Zoa L. Swayne. Published by Caxton Press. Copyright © 1990 by Zoa L. Swayne. Orofino, Idaho and Legacy House, Inc. Orofino, Idaho. All rights reserved.

1camas: a wild, edible plant

Question

In paragraphs 4 and 6, the beginning of the change in seasons affects the characters mainly by

  • Acausing them to collect their bounty and feel eager to celebrate before it becomes cold.
  • Bmaking them want to rest and relax before the challenging work of the harvest begins.
  • Cforcing them to give up leisure time to prepare their camp for the coming winter.
  • Dallowing them to trade the goods they have prepared during the warm months.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how the beginning of the change of seasons mainly affects the characters.

A. CORRECT. Paragraph 4 describes the time as the last chance for The People to be together “before the Cold Moons kept them close to their fires.” Paragraph 6 tells about how the women were working hard to dig and cure roots, because “WARM was going and COLD was coming.” These paragraphs describe both celebration and preparation before the winter comes.

B. Incorrect. Paragraphs 4 and 6 describe the characters working hard, but there is no discussion of them wanting to rest and relax.

C. Incorrect. While both paragraphs describe some of the work involved in the harvest, paragraph 4 also lists a number of leisure activities, such as visiting, foot racing, horse racing, gambling, and stick games. The characters are still taking the time to relax.

D. Incorrect. While paragraph 4 mentions trading in a list of activities that the characters are doing, this is just one of many activities. Allowing the characters to trade goods is not the way the change in seasons mainly affects them.

Question analysis

This question on how setting shapes characters asks how the first signs of winter mainly affect The People in paragraphs 4 and 6 of Do Them No Harm!, a narrative about a Nez Perce harvest gathering. Students must draw on two separate paragraphs and pick the effect both support, among choices that each borrow real activities from the story.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Explaining how setting shapes what characters do is typical grade 7 work on story elements. Students combine details from two separate paragraphs, a step beyond reading one, but the language is plain and the details concrete.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 5, 885 words; question and choices: about grade 7, 73 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Each paragraph shows a different response to the coming winter, play in paragraph 4 and hard work in paragraph 6, and only one choice keeps both. Students who read paragraph 6 alone see work under pressure and decide the cold costs The People their free time, though paragraph 4 lists races and games. The question rewards checking each choice against both paragraphs, not just the one read last.

  1. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice and the one about giving up leisure both have The People preparing before the cold; they differ only in whether the season brings celebration or takes it away. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    The answer must fit both paragraphs: paragraph 4’s racing, gambling and stick games before “the Cold Moons” and paragraph 6’s women digging roots because “COLD was coming.” (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Find what paragraphs 4 and 6 each say about the approaching cold, then note what The People do because of it, and choose the effect that fits both paragraphs.

Traps

  • Half right: One half of a two-part choice is right and the other is not.
  • Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
  • Reversed relationship: Cause and effect, or the order of events, turned around.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    Summer is ending and winter is coming. This asks how that change mainly affects the characters in paragraphs 4 and 6. Your answer has to fit both paragraphs, not just one.

  2. Read paragraph 4

    Paragraph 4 calls this time “this last chance to enjoy being together before the Cold Moons kept them close to their fires.” The Cold Moons are the winter months. The People enjoy “the foot racing and horse racing, and the gambling and stick games.” So, before winter, they celebrate together.

  3. Read paragraph 6

    Paragraph 6 says “The women worked hard to dig and cure as many bags of roots as they could during the warm, sunny days.” To cure food means to dry it so it keeps. Why rush? Because “the sharp night air brought warnings that WARM was going and COLD was coming.” So, before winter, they also gather and store food.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits both: they collect their bounty and celebrate before the cold. Bounty means a large supply of good things, like food.
    • B: no one wants to rest before the work. The harvest work is already going on.
    • C: they don’t give up leisure, which is free time for fun. Paragraph 4 is full of races and games.
    • D: trading is only one item in paragraph 4’s list. It is not the main effect.

  5. Pick the answer

    Watch out: C is tempting if you read only paragraph 6, which is all hard work. But paragraph 4 shows play. Only one choice fits both paragraphs. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer. Like A, it has The People getting ready for winter. But C says they give up their free time. Paragraph 4 says the opposite: races, games and visiting fill this “last chance to enjoy being together.” A keeps both the work and the fun.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 24 as printed on page 179 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 179, question 24. Open page 179 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).
The passage “Excerpt from Do Them No Harm!” as printed (pages 177–178)The passage “Excerpt from Do Them No Harm!” as printed on page 177 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from Do Them No Harm!” as printed on page 178 of the DOE handbook.

Question 82 of 120

2024 Test B English, question 29

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from Do Them No Harm!”.

Question

Which quotation from the excerpt best supports the idea that The People feel a connection to members of their group in spite of distance?

  • A“As was their custom since wahk-kee-ma, a time far back beyond the memory of man, they set up their camps in the same locations their parents and grandparents had occupied before them.” (paragraph 5)
  • B“ ‘Would they have news of the families who had gone long ago to Buffalo Country and never returned?’ ” (paragraph 13)
  • C“ ‘Looks like hunters,’ the older men agreed. ‘Looks like they had good hunting.’ ” (paragraph 15)
  • D“But it was the sight of the frail figure of the woman that aroused their curiosity.” (paragraph 21)
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks which quotation from the excerpt best supports the idea that The People feel a connection to members of their group in spite of distance.

A. Incorrect. This quotation describes the fact that The People always set up their camps in the same places their parents and grandparents used before them. This quotation highlights the customs The People continue from their ancestors, but it does not focus on their present personal connections.

B. CORRECT. This quotation alludes to The People’s eagerness to hear about the families who had traveled away from their group. This eagerness shows that they still feel a connection to these families, even though they are far apart.

C. Incorrect. This quotation describes The People’s analysis of the visitors—that they may be hunters. It does not show a connection to the visitors.

D. Incorrect. This quotation shows that The People are curious about a stranger who has come into their camp. It does not show closeness to distant members of the group.

Question analysis

This textual evidence question asks which quotation from the Nez Perce narrative best supports the idea that The People feel connected to members of their group even when those members are far away. The quotations come from across the excerpt, so students must make sure the one they choose fits both parts of that idea.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Choosing the quotation that supports an idea is everyday grade 7 work. Here the idea joins two conditions, connection and distance, and the quotations come from across the excerpt, which keeps the demand at a solid grade 7 level.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 5, 885 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 107 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • The explanation described one wrong choice's quotation inaccurately; that sentence was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The idea joins two conditions, connection and distance, and the quotations satisfy them unevenly. The camp-location line shows a strong tie, but to ancestors across time rather than to members far away, and the line about the woman involves a returning member before anyone knows she is one. The right line is easy to pass over because it is a question, yet asking after families long gone shows they still matter.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The right quotation is a question, not a statement of feeling; students must infer that asking for news of families “gone long ago” shows a bond that distance has not broken. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    Each quotation has to pass two tests, a bond with group members and members who are far away, and the camp-location line passes only the first. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Test each quotation against both parts of the idea: does it show a bond with group members, and does that bond reach people who are far away?

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: Choice A quotes paragraph 5: The People “set up their camps in the same locations their parents and grandparents had occupied before them.” The handbook's explanation says the quotation describes them returning “to perform the same traditional tasks and enjoy the same festivities as their ancestors,” which the sentence doesn't say. The explanation now describes the quotation as it is. The reason A is wrong is unchanged: it shows a custom kept from their ancestors, not a connection to members who are far away. The answer, B, is unchanged.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    You need the quotation that best shows The People feel close to group members who are far away. The idea has two parts: a connection, and distance. The right quotation must show both.

  2. Test each quotation on both parts

    • A (paragraph 5): they camp where “their parents and grandparents” camped. That is a connection, but to people from the past, not to people far away.
    • B (paragraph 13): “Would they have news of the families who had gone long ago to Buffalo Country and never returned?” These families are far away and long gone. The People still want news of them.
    • C (paragraph 15): the men only guess that the riders are hunters who had a good hunt. They show no feeling for anyone.
    • D (paragraph 21): The People are curious about the woman. They don’t know yet that she is one of them.

  3. See why B shows a connection

    You only ask for news about people you care about. The families left “long ago.” They went to Buffalo Country, far from the camp. Yet The People still wonder about them. So time and distance have not broken the bond.

  4. Pick the answer

    Watch out: A shows a strong bond too, so it is tempting. But it ties The People to their parents and grandparents, across time. It is not about members who are far away. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong answer, because camping where parents and grandparents camped shows a strong tie. But that tie stretches across years, not across distance. B is about families who went far away “long ago,” and The People still want news of them. Only B passes both tests.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 29 as printed on page 180 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 180, question 29. Open page 180 of the handbook (PDF) This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 83 of 120

2024 Test B English, question 30

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from Do Them No Harm!”.

Question

Read these sentences from paragraph 22.

“Belongs to Red Bear people. Gone then come back.”

How does this statement affect the villagers in the excerpt?

  • AIt increases their concern about why the woman is in their camp.
  • BIt makes them hopeful that more lost members will return before the winter.
  • CIt causes shock, leading them to grieve for the loss of the woman and her family.
  • DIt inspires amazement, making them want to reconnect with their returned family member.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks how the statement from paragraph 22 affects the villagers in the excerpt.

A. Incorrect. In paragraph 21, the villagers question who the woman is and from where she has come, but they are merely curious about her and not necessarily concerned, as there is no indication in paragraph 22 that she might be a threat.

B. Incorrect. This statement reveals that the woman is a member of the Red Bear people who has returned, and in paragraph 15 there is a reference to four hunters who have been gone a long time. However, this statement serves only to satisfy the villagers’ curiosity about who this woman is; it does not make the villagers hopeful that other people will also return.

C. Incorrect. Though paragraph 23 reveals that the villagers are somewhat surprised because the girl has grown into a woman, paragraph 24 suggests they are excited to receive her. There is no reason given in paragraph 22 for them to grieve for her loss, since she has returned.

D. CORRECT. The hunters’ words from paragraph 22 amaze the villagers, who do not at first recognize the woman. Once they know she is one of their own, they are eager to interact with her, as revealed in paragraphs 24 and 25, where they give her a new name and care for her.

Question analysis

This question quotes the hunters’ brief words about the frail woman who rides into camp with them, “Belongs to Red Bear people. Gone then come back,” and asks how the statement affects the villagers. Students must follow the scene that comes next and judge the villagers’ feelings from what they shout and do, since the excerpt never names those feelings directly.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Explaining how a line of dialogue affects characters is grade 7 story analysis. The hunters’ words are short and the response follows at once, so the main demand is inferring the villagers’ state of mind, a routine grade 7 step.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 5, 885 words; question and choices: about grade 6, 78 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The hunters’ words answer the question the crowd has been asking, who the woman is, and what follows is recognition and welcome. Students who carry over an earlier mood, worry about strangers or sadness at a long absence, misread the moment. The hopeful-sounding choice about more members returning goes one step past the text, which shows joy over this return and nothing about others.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The villagers’ reaction is never named; it is shown in paragraphs 23–25, where “Now they could see!”, the women cry out her new name and gentle arms lift her from her horse. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Read the paragraphs right after the hunters speak and note what the villagers say and do. Then choose the reaction those words and actions show.

Traps

  • Wrong tone or attitude: Misjudges the tone, attitude or point of view, such as reading admiration as criticism, or taking a character's or subject's feelings for the author's.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    The hunters say: “Belongs to Red Bear people. Gone then come back.” This asks how those words affect the villagers. The story doesn’t name their feelings. So look at what they say and do next.

  2. See what happens next

    • Paragraph 23: “Now they could see! She was the daughter of the family gone so long ago!”
    • Paragraph 24: the women cry out “Wat-ku-ese!” This becomes her new name.
    • Paragraph 25: “Gentle arms lifted Wat-ku-ese from her horse.” The women bring her food and care for her.

  3. Name the feelings

    The exclamation points in paragraph 23 show surprise and wonder. A little girl has come back as a grown woman, and they can hardly believe it. That is amazement. Then they give her a name, feed her and care for her. They want to bring her back into the family. That is reconnecting, or becoming close again.

  4. Check each choice

    • D fits: amazement, then wanting to reconnect.
    • A: the hunters say she belongs to the Red Bear people. That ends any worry.
    • B: nothing says they hope others will return before winter.
    • C: they are surprised, but they don’t grieve, or feel deep sadness. They cheer and care for her.

    Watch out: C is tempting because she is frail and was gone a long time. But the women’s actions are happy and gentle.

  5. Pick the answer

    The villagers are amazed, and they rush to welcome her back home. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer, because the news is a shock and the woman is frail. But nobody mourns. The women shout her new name, and “Gentle arms lifted Wat-ku-ese from her horse.” Those are signs of joy and care. That matches D, amazement and a wish to reconnect.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 30 as printed on page 181 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 181, question 30. Open page 181 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).

Question 84 of 120

2024 Test B English, question 40
Passage Invention of the Telegraph

Samuel Morse, an American inventor, is credited with creating the electronic telegraph, a communication device that allows users to send messages using a system of short and long pulses that represent letters, numbers, and punctuation. In 1843 the United States Congress passed the Telegraph Bill, which provided Morse with the funds to build an electric telegraph system.

Invention of the Telegraph

Earlier Signal Systems

Long before Samuel F. B. Morse electrically transmitted his famous message “What hath God wrought?” from Washington to Baltimore on May 24, 1844, there were signaling systems that enabled people to communicate over distances. Most were visual or “semaphore” systems using flags or lights. In the eighteenth century, such systems used an observer who would decipher a signal from a high tower on a distant hill and then send it on to the next station. The young American republic wanted just such a system along its entire Atlantic coast and offered a prize of $30,000 for a workable proposal. The framers of this legislation1^1 had no way of knowing that when they used the word “telegraph” to refer to this visual semaphore system, they would be offered an entirely new and revolutionary means of communication—electricity.

The Growth of an Idea

The idea of using electricity to communicate over distance is said to have occurred to Morse during a conversation aboard ship when he was returning from Europe in 1832. Michael Faraday’s recently invented electromagnet was much discussed by the ship’s passengers, and when Morse came to understand how it worked, he speculated that it might be possible to send a coded message over a wire. While a student at Yale College years before, he had written his parents a letter about how interesting he found the lectures on electricity. Despite what he had learned at Yale, Morse found when he began to develop his idea that he had little real understanding of the nature of electricity, and after sporadic attempts to work with batteries, magnets, and wires, he finally turned for help to a colleague at the University of the City of New York, Leonard D. Gale.

Gale was a professor of chemistry and familiar with the electrical work of Princeton’s Joseph Henry, a true pioneer in the new field. Well before Morse had his shipboard idea about a telegraph, Henry rang a bell at a distance by opening and closing an electric circuit. In 1831, he had published an article, of which Morse was unaware, that contained details suggesting the idea of an electric telegraph. Gale’s help and his knowledge of this article proved crucial to Morse’s telegraph system because Gale not only pointed out flaws in the system but showed Morse how he could regularly boost the strength of a signal and overcome the distance problems he had encountered by using a relay system Henry had invented. Henry’s experiments, Gale’s assistance, and, soon after, hiring the young technician Alfred Vail were keys to Morse’s success.

Obstacles and Opportunities

By December 1837, Morse had enough confidence in his new system to apply for the federal government’s appropriation, and during the next year he conducted demonstrations of his telegraph both in New York and Washington.

However, when the economic disaster known as the Panic of 1837 took hold of the nation and caused a long depression, Morse was forced to wait for better times. It was during this period that Morse visited Europe again and tried not only to secure patent protection overseas but to examine competing telegraph systems in England. . . .

By 1843, the country was beginning to recover economically, and Morse again asked Congress for the $30,000 that would allow him to build a telegraph line from Washington to Baltimore, forty miles away. The House of Representatives eventually passed the bill containing the Morse appropriation, and the Senate approved it in the final hours of that Congress’s last session. With President Tyler’s signature, Morse received the cash he needed and began to carry out plans for an underground telegraph line.

Realizing a Great Invention

Morse had hired the ingenious construction engineer Ezra Cornell to lay the pipe carrying the wire, and although Cornell did his job superbly, one of Morse’s partners, Congressman F. O. J. Smith, had purchased wire with defective insulation. Too much time had been wasted laying bad wire, and with the project on a rigid deadline, something had to be done quickly. Cornell suggested that the fastest and cheapest way of connecting Washington and Baltimore was to string wires overhead on trees and poles. The desperate Morse gave the go-ahead, and the line was completed in time for the dramatic and spectacularly successful link between the Supreme Court chamber of the Capitol building and the railroad station in Baltimore.

Soon, as overhead wires connected cities up and down the Atlantic coast, the dots-and-dashes method2^2 that recorded messages on a long moving strip of paper was replaced by the operator’s ability to interpret the code in real time. . . . Telegraph lines soon extended westward, and within Morse’s own lifetime they connected the continents of Europe and America.

“Invention of the Telegraph”—Public Domain/Library of Congress

1^1legislation: Telegraph Bill

2^2dots-and-dashes method: the short and long pulses of Morse code that are sent and received by telegraph operators

World map titled “British All-Red Telegraph Line, 1902,” with a compass rose (N, S, E, W) and a key showing a thick black line as an electric telegraph line. The line runs from London across the Atlantic Ocean and Canada to Vancouver, then west into the Pacific Ocean off the map’s left edge; from London and from Canada’s east coast to Bermuda, then to Barbados, across the Atlantic to Cape Town, and across the Indian Ocean to Perth, which a second line links to India; and from Perth across Australia to Brisbane and Norfolk, with branches to New Zealand and east into the Pacific off the map’s right edge. Washington, D.C., in the United States, is marked with a dot but no line reaches it.

The first transatlantic electric telegraph message was sent in 1858, and by 1902 the British All-Red Line connected most of the world.

Bar graph titled “Telegraph Messages Transmitted, 1870–1920,” with the number of messages transmitted, in millions, on the vertical axis (0 to 180 in steps of 20) and the years 1870, 1880, 1890, 1900, 1910 and 1920 on the horizontal axis. The bars show about 10 million messages in 1870, 30 million in 1880, 55 million in 1890, 65 million in 1900, 75 million in 1910 and 155 million in 1920.

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census. Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970, Bicentennial Edition, Part 2. Washington, D.C., 1975.

Question

How does the map provide additional support for a central idea of the passage?

  • Aby demonstrating that Morse’s telegraph system greatly exceeded the limitations of previous long-distance communication systems
  • Bby indicating that Morse was lacking foresight by seeking a patent only in North America
  • Cby proving that Gale’s advice helped Morse extend the telegraph’s range much farther than first thought possible
  • Dby showing that the Morse telegraph had a surprisingly immense influence across the world
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how the map provides additional support for a central idea of the passage.

A. CORRECT. The map shows the telegraph line crossing continents in 1902, just forty-four years after the first transatlantic message was sent in 1858. This is a much greater distance than the first line Morse built between “the Supreme Court chamber of the Capitol building and the railroad station in Baltimore” (paragraph 7).

B. Incorrect. The map shows the distance the line covers; it does not indicate Morse’s lack of foresight in seeking patents only in North America.

C. Incorrect. While Gale’s advice was crucial to Morse’s success, the map shows the physical line stretching across continents many years later, after their initial work.

D. Incorrect. While it can be inferred that the telegraph had influence across the world, the amount of influence cannot be determined.

Question analysis

This question pairs “Invention of the Telegraph” with a map of the British All-Red Telegraph Line in 1902 and asks how the map adds support for a central idea of the passage. Students must read a world map with a key and a caption, connect what it shows to the story of Samuel Morse’s invention, and sort through four claims about the map that vary in how far they go.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Linking a graphic to a text is familiar grade 7 work. Here students must pin down a central idea of the passage and work out how a 1902 world map, made decades after Morse’s first line, bears on it, a step beyond typical demand.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 910 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 75 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • An inaccurate detail in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Lines on a map can prove how far the telegraph reached, and the question turns on how much more than that each choice claims. The key depends on a link back to paragraph 1, where a message went only as far as the next hilltop tower, read many minutes before the map. The influence choice skips that link and states the map’s message in bigger terms, so students who do not ask what a map of routes can show are drawn to it.

  1. A very close wrong answer major Choosing the answer

    The influence choice, a telegraph with “a surprisingly immense influence across the world,” sounds like a fair reading of lines circling the globe; it differs from the key in claiming impact and surprise rather than reach beyond earlier systems. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The earlier systems the key measures against are in paragraph 1, towers on distant hills passing flag and light signals from station to station, far from the map at the end of the passage. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  3. Reading a figure, table or graph moderate Understanding the question

    The map shows a 1902 British line from London to Canada and Vancouver, south through Bermuda and Barbados to Cape Town, and on to India, Australia and New Zealand, with Washington left unconnected. (Lesh, Post & Behr, 1987; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

Strategy: Look at what the map and its caption actually show, sum up a central idea of the passage in your own words, and keep only a choice that both of them back up.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook says the 1902 line came “forty-four years after the first message was sent in 1858.” The first telegraph message was Morse’s in 1844 (paragraph 1); 1858 is the year of the first transatlantic message, as the map’s caption says. The site now says “the first transatlantic message.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This question asks how a graphic adds to the passage. You need two things. First, what does the map really show? Second, which central idea, a main point the whole passage builds, does it back up?

  2. Read the map and its caption

    This map is a picture of one British network of telegraph wires, as it stood in 1902. In its key, a thick black line stands for an electric telegraph line. From London, a line crosses the Atlantic Ocean and Canada to Vancouver. Other lines reach Bermuda, Barbados, Cape Town, India, Australia and New Zealand. According to the caption, by 1902 this network “connected most of the world.”

  3. Recall the older ways of signaling

    Next, compare that with paragraph 1. Before electricity, people signaled with flags or lights. An observer would “decipher a signal from a high tower on a distant hill and then send it on to the next station.” So a message could only jump as far as a person could see. Even Morse’s first line, in paragraph 6, reached Baltimore, just “forty miles away.”

  4. Connect the map to that idea

    The caption says the first message across the Atlantic was sent in 1858. Only 44 years later, in 1902, lines crossed several oceans and linked much of the globe. Paragraph 8 adds that telegraph lines “connected the continents of Europe and America” before Morse died. So the map supports a central idea: electric telegraph lines went far beyond the reach of older signal systems.

  5. Check each choice

    • A fits. Lines that span oceans go far past the limits of hilltop towers.
    • B does not fit. A map of lines shows nothing about patents. Also, paragraph 5 says Morse sought patent protection in Europe, too.
    • C does not fit. The map names no inventors, so it cannot prove what Gale’s advice did decades before.
    • D does not fit. The map shows where lines went, not how much they changed the world, and nothing on it shows surprise.

  6. Choose the answer

    The map shows telegraph lines reaching around the globe, far past what flags and towers could do. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest trap, because lines around the world seem to prove a huge effect. But a map of routes shows only how far messages could travel. It cannot measure influence, and it cannot show that anyone was surprised. A sticks to what a map of lines can prove: the telegraph reached much farther than earlier systems.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 40 as printed on page 188 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 188, question 40. Open page 188 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D). This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.
The passage “Invention of the Telegraph” as printed (pages 146–148)The passage “Invention of the Telegraph” as printed on page 146 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Invention of the Telegraph” as printed on page 147 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Invention of the Telegraph” as printed on page 148 of the DOE handbook.

Question 85 of 120

2024 Test B English, question 44
Passage Snowy Mountains

Snowy Mountains

by John Gould Fletcher

Higher and still more high,
Palaces made for cloud,
Above the dingy city-roofs
Blue-white like angels with broad wings,
Pillars of the sky at rest
The mountains from the great plateau
Uprise.

But the world heeds them not;
They have been here now for too long a time.
The world makes war on them,
Tunnels their granite cliffs,
Splits down their shining sides,
Plasters their cliffs with soap-advertisements,
Destroys the lonely fragments of their peace.

Vaster and still more vast,
Peak after peak, pile after pile,
Wilderness still untamed,
To which the future is as was the past,
Barrier spread by Gods,
Sunning their shining foreheads,
Barrier broken down by those who do not need
The joy of time-resisting storm-worn stone,
The mountains swing along
The south horizon of the sky;
Welcoming with wide floors of blue-green ice
The mists that dance and drive before the sun.

“Snowy Mountains” by John Gould Fletcher—Public Domain

Question

Which line from the poem best supports the idea that people have sacrificed priceless natural beauty in order to make a profit?

  • A“Above the dingy city-roofs” (line 3)
  • B“The world makes war on them,” (line 10)
  • C“Tunnels their granite cliffs,” (line 11)
  • D“Plasters their cliffs with soap-advertisements,” (line 13)
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks for the line from the poem that best supports the idea that people have sacrificed natural beauty for profit.

A. Incorrect. While city roofs may spoil the natural beauty, they do not directly symbolize financial gain or profit in line 3.

B. Incorrect. Although making a profit might have been the root cause of the damage that was done to the mountains, making war on the mountains is not a direct message about profit or financial gain in line 10.

C. Incorrect. Although tunneling through the mountains affects the natural beauty of the mountains, it does not directly symbolize financial gain or profit in line 11.

D. CORRECT. Advertisements are often used as a means to gain a profit, as implied by the soap advertisements in line 13. Additionally, the word “Plasters,” in line 13, communicates a negative connotation for the use of advertisements on the priceless natural beauty of the mountains.

Question analysis

In this textual evidence question on John Gould Fletcher’s poem “Snowy Mountains,” students pick the line that best backs the claim that people traded priceless natural beauty for profit. Most of the quoted lines show damage of some kind, so the deciding question is which one also shows why the damage was done.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Matching a claim to a quoted line is standard grade 7 evidence work, and these four lines are short and numbered. The images are concrete, so little inference is needed once the claim is read carefully.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from one sentence or line
Reading level
Passage: 161 words (a poem; reading level not measured); question and choices: about grade 6, 45 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Three of the four quoted lines show damage to the mountains, which meets the first half of the claim and makes the question a test of the second half. Students who look only for harm tend to settle on the loudest image of attack, “makes war on them.” The one line that contains a product for sale is the only one showing beauty traded for money, and once that is seen the choice is quick.

  1. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    Lines 10, 11 and 13 all show people harming the mountains, so each must be held against the claim’s second half, making a profit, which only one of them carries. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    No line names money; profit has to be read from “soap-advertisements,” which exist to sell a product, while “Plasters” supplies the spoiling of the cliffs’ beauty. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Underline the two things the claim needs, harm to the mountains’ beauty and a money motive, then read each quoted line and cross out any that shows only one of them.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for evidence: the line that best supports an idea. Notice that the idea makes two claims. People have spoiled the mountains’ beauty, and they did it to make money, or a profit. The best line must show both parts, not just one.

  2. Read the four lines in the poem

    Choice A, “Above the dingy city-roofs,” comes from the first stanza, where the poem praises the peaks. Dingy means grimy and gloomy. The other three choices come from the second stanza, where people attack the mountains. In order, they are “The world makes war on them” (line 10), “Tunnels their granite cliffs” (line 11) and “Plasters their cliffs with soap-advertisements” (line 13).

  3. Test each line for harm and money

    An advertisement is a sign that tries to get you to buy something. Soap ads are there to sell soap, so they are about profit. To plaster something is to cover it thickly and messily, like paste on a wall. Picture the bright cliffs smeared with ugly signs, all to sell a product.

    LineHarms the mountains?Shows money?
    3NoNo
    10YesNo
    11YesNo
    13YesYes

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. Line 3 only places the dirty city below the peaks. It shows no harm to the mountains and no money.
    • B does not fit. The words “makes war” show an attack, but not the reason for it.
    • C does not fit. Tunnels do damage the cliffs. You may know that tunnels are dug for trains or mines, but the line itself never mentions money.
    • D fits. It shows the beauty spoiled and a product being sold.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only line 13 shows both the harm and the money behind it. So the answer is D, line 13.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the strongest trap, because “makes war” is the fiercest image of harm in the poem. But the idea also needs a reason: making a profit. War on the mountains could happen for any reason. Only the soap ads show something being sold, so only D backs up both parts of the idea.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 44 as printed on page 190 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 190, question 44. Open page 190 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).
The passage “Snowy Mountains” as printed (page 142)The passage “Snowy Mountains” as printed on page 142 of the DOE handbook.

Question 86 of 120

2024 Test B English, question 48

Uses the passage above: “Snowy Mountains”.

Question

How do the details in the third stanza (lines 15–26) most contribute to the development of a theme of the poem?

  • Aby reflecting nature’s capacity to resist change
  • Bby showing that nature is capable of influencing human will
  • Cby exposing how a lack of awareness leads to nature’s ruin
  • Dby explaining why people must respect nature
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks how the details in the third stanza most contribute to the development of a theme of the poem.

A. CORRECT. In the third stanza, phrases such as “Wilderness still untamed” (line 17), “time-resisting storm-worn stone” (line 22), and “The mountains swing along” (line 23) convey the message that in spite of the destruction described in the second stanza, the mountains manage to maintain their wild magnificence.

B. Incorrect. While the phrase “Barrier broken down” (line 21) conveys the idea that people can have some effect on the natural landscape, it does not convey how nature affects people.

C. Incorrect. The phrase “those who do not need” (line 21) implies a choice to damage nature and not a lack of awareness or understanding.

D. Incorrect. The third stanza is not a call to humanity to respect the mountains but a description of the untamed, welcoming mountains and the joy they provide for those who appreciate them.

Question analysis

Students trace how the details of the third and final stanza of “Snowy Mountains,” lines 15–26, most contribute to developing a theme of the poem. Because the stanza is a single sentence that runs from line 15 to the poem’s last word, students must keep its whole movement in mind before deciding what it adds.

NYS standards
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 theme questions usually rest on a few clear details. Here students must hold a twelve-line stanza of inverted, piled-up phrases in mind and pick among four reasonable lessons about nature, a heavier load closer to grade 8.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: 161 words (a poem; reading level not measured); question and choices: about grade 7, 55 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The final stanza holds both endurance and damage, and the stem’s “most” asks which of the two its details build. Students who fix on the broken barrier choose ruin, a reading the second stanza seems to confirm, while those who tally the stanza’s details find untamed wilderness, time-resisting stone and mountains swinging at ease. Because the stanza is one long, inverted sentence, that tally is slow, which is what makes the question hard.

  1. Complex sentences moderate Understanding the question

    Lines 15–26 are one sentence in which phrase after phrase, from “Vaster and still more vast” to “storm-worn stone,” comes before its subject, “The mountains,” in line 23. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

  2. Figurative or literary language moderate Understanding the question

    The message of endurance is carried by personification: the peaks have “shining foreheads,” are “spread by Gods,” and “swing along” the horizon welcoming the mists. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The theme has to be assembled from details scattered over twelve lines, “Wilderness still untamed,” “the future is as was the past,” “time-resisting,” and weighed against the single line of damage. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Read lines 15–26 as one long sentence, find its main subject and verb, and sum up its message in a phrase; then check each choice against the whole stanza, not a single line.

Traps

  • Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.
  • Reversed relationship: Cause and effect, or the order of events, turned around.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks about theme, the big message of the poem. You need to see what the details of the third stanza, lines 15 to 26, add to that message. The word “most” matters. Pick the idea that most of the details support, not just one line.

  2. Gather the details in lines 15 to 26

    The peaks grow “Vaster and still more vast” (line 15). They are a “Wilderness still untamed” (line 17). For them, the future is “as was the past” (line 18). Their stone is “time-resisting” (line 22). In the last four lines, “The mountains swing along” the sky and welcome the mists. Only line 21 shows damage: the barrier is “broken down.”

  3. Find what the details share

    Untamed means still wild, not controlled by people. If the future is the same as the past, the mountains are not changing. Time-resisting means they hold out against the years. And at the end of the stanza, they are still moving along at ease. Nearly every detail shows the same thing. The mountains last and stay wild, which is nature’s power to resist change.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits. Wild, unchanging, time-resisting mountains show nature holding out against change.
    • B does not fit. It turns things around. In this stanza, people affect the mountains. Nothing shows the mountains changing what people want.
    • C does not fit. Line 21 shows damage, but it is one line out of twelve. The stanza does not end in ruin either: the mountains still swing along and welcome the mists.
    • D does not fit. These lines paint a picture of the peaks. They give readers no orders and no reasons to behave a certain way.

  5. Choose the answer

    Most of the third stanza shows mountains that stay wild and lasting. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest trap, because line 21 does show the barrier “broken down,” and the second stanza is full of harm. But this question is about the third stanza, and it asks what the details most add. Most of the other lines there show mountains that are vast, wild and lasting. That builds A, not ruin.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 48 as printed on page 192 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 192, question 48. Open page 192 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).

Question 87 of 120

2024 Test B English, question 51
Passage Excerpt from “The Past and the Future of the Earth’s Oldest Trees”

Excerpt from “The Past and the Future of the Earth’s Oldest Trees”

by Alex Ross

About forty-five hundred years ago, not long after the completion of the Great Pyramid at Giza, a seed of Pinus longaeva, the Great Basin bristlecone pine, landed on a steep slope in what are now known as the White Mountains, in eastern California. The seed may have travelled there on a gust of wind, its flight aided by a winglike attachment to the nut. Or it could have been planted by a bird known as the Clark’s nutcracker, which likes to hide pine seeds in caches; nutcrackers have phenomenal spatial1 memory and can recall thousands of such caches. This seed, however, lay undisturbed. On a moist day in fall, or in the wake of melting snows in spring, a seedling appeared above ground—a stubby one-inch stem with a tuft of bright-green shoots.

Most seedlings die within a year; the mortality rate is more than ninety-nine percent. The survivors are sometimes seen growing in the shadow of a fallen tree. The landscape of the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, as this area of the White Mountains is called, is littered with fragments of dead trees—trunks, limbs, roots, and smaller chunks. Pinus longaeva grows exclusively in subalpine regions of the Great Basin, which stretches from the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada to the Wasatch Range, in Utah. Conditions are generally too arid for the dead wood to rot; instead, it erodes, sanded down like rock. The remnants may harbor nutrients and fungi that help new trees grow. Bristlecones rise from the bones of their ancestors—a city within a cemetery.

Coast redwoods and giant sequoias, California’s gargantuan world-record-holding trees, can grow fifty feet or more in their first twenty years. Bristlecones rise agonizingly slowly. After four or five years, the seedling on the steep slope would have been just a few inches higher, sprouting needles in place of the embryonic shoots. The needles are a deep green, tough, resinous, and closely bunched in groups of five. On a mature tree, they live for fifty years or more. Decades may have passed before the tree was human height, and decades more before it resembled a conventional pine. Bristlecone saplings grow straight up, with relatively sparse foliage, looking like undernourished Christmas trees. After a few hundred years—by which time the Old Kingdom of Egypt had fallen—it was probably forty or fifty feet in height.

Many tree species live for hundreds of years. A smaller but not inconsiderable number, including the sequoias and certain yews, oaks, cypresses, and junipers, survive for thousands. Once a bristlecone has established itself in the unforgiving conditions of the White Mountains, it can last almost indefinitely. The trees tend to grow some distance from one another, so fires almost never destroy an entire stand. Because only a few other plant species can handle the dry, cold climate, the bristlecones face little competition. Unlike most plants, they tolerate dolomite soil, which is composed of a chalky type of limestone that is heavily alkaline and low in nutrients. As for insect threats, bristlecone wood is so dense that mountain-pine beetles and other pests can rarely burrow their way into it.

Empires rose and fell; wars raged; . . . and the tree from 2500 B.C. continued its implacable slow-motion existence, adding about two-hundredths of an inch to the diameter of its trunk each year. Minute changes in the tree-ring record make bristlecones an exceptionally useful source of data about changing conditions on Earth. When rains are heavier than normal, the rings widen. When volcanic eruptions cause global cooling, frost rings make the anomaly2 visible. . . .

As the millennia go by, bristlecones become contorted and wraithlike.3 The main stem, or leader, dies back. Entire branches, even the trunk itself, become fossils. At first glance, the tree may look dead. Such is the case of the forty-five-hundred-year-old tree that clings to life near the tourist path that now runs through the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest. Spears of dead wood jut into the air. The trunk is a marbled hulk stripped of bark, like driftwood thrown from a vanished ocean. A ribbon of live bark runs up one side, funneling water and nutrients to clumps of green needles high above. All told, the tree is an unprepossessing specimen; most people march past it without giving it a second glance. . . .

. . . No two super-elderly trees look alike, to the point where they have acquired the characteristics of individuals. Trees are prone to anthropomorphism; we project our dreams and our anxieties onto them. Bristlecones have been called elders, sentinels, sages. The possibility that climate change will cause their extinction has inspired a spate4 of alarmed news stories, although tree scientists tend to discount the idea that the bristlecones are in immediate danger. They have survived any number of catastrophes in the past; they may survive humanity.

From “The Past and the Future of the Earth’s Oldest Trees” by Alex Ross from THE NEW YORKER, January 20, 2020. Copyright © 2020 by Condé Nast. All rights reserved.

1spatial: relating to physical space

2anomaly: oddity

3wraithlike: ghostly

4spate: sudden abundance

Question

In paragraph 4, the idea that the bristlecone pine can withstand difficult conditions is illustrated mainly through

  • Aa comparison of the bristlecone pine with similar trees that are known for their long lives.
  • Ba description of specific qualities of the bristlecone pine that make it suited to its environment.
  • Can explanation of why the White Mountains are the best place for the bristlecone pine to grow.
  • Dan examination of why the bristlecone pine has few competitors in the White Mountains.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks how paragraph 4 mainly conveys the idea that the bristlecone pine can withstand difficult conditions.

A. Incorrect. While paragraph 4 does mention the bristlecone pine in conjunction with other long-living trees, this does not explain in any way how the bristlecone pine can survive difficult conditions.

B. CORRECT. Paragraph 4 mentions several qualities that help the bristlecone pine survive a difficult environment: it can survive in a “dry, cold climate” as few plants can, it tolerates a soil that is heavily alkaline and low in nutrients, and the density of its wood protects it from insects.

C. Incorrect. Paragraph 4 focuses on the qualities of the bristlecone pine that make it well suited to the White Mountains rather than on why the White Mountains are well suited to bristlecone pines.

D. Incorrect. While paragraph 4 does acknowledge that the bristlecone pine has few competitors because the pine can stand conditions few other plants can stand, it is the examination of the pine’s unique qualities that explains how the pine survives those conditions.

Question analysis

Students examine paragraph 4 of an article about the bristlecone pine and decide how it mainly illustrates the idea that this tree can withstand harsh conditions. The paragraph mixes comparisons with other species, facts about the White Mountains and facts about the tree, so students must recognize the main way the author builds the idea.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Grade 7 students often identify how a paragraph supports an idea, and this one is typical in demand: one plainly written paragraph of seven sentences, with a few unfamiliar terms such as “dolomite” and “alkaline.”
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 8, 851 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 79 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Paragraph 4 opens with other long-lived trees and then lists what lets the bristlecone last: spacing that keeps fires from spreading, tolerance of dry cold and poor soil, and wood too dense for beetles. The strongest lure lifts one item from that list and calls it the paragraph’s method. Students who step back and ask what most of the sentences describe see a set of the tree’s own traits.

  1. How, not what moderate Working it out

    The stem asks how paragraph 4 makes its case, so its sentences have to be sorted by kind: a comparison with other long-lived trees, the setting, and the bristlecone’s own traits. (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001)

  2. The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer

    The key names no detail, only “specific qualities” that suit the tree to “its environment,” while the wrong choices echo the paragraph’s long-lived trees, the White Mountains and “little competition.” (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

Strategy: Reread paragraph 4 and label each sentence by what it tells you, then ask which kind of detail carries most of the paragraph’s case that the tree is tough.

Traps

  • Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.
  • Reversed relationship: Cause and effect, or the order of events, turned around.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks how paragraph 4 mainly shows that the bristlecone can survive harsh conditions. Mainly means the method used in most of the paragraph, not in a single sentence. So sort the sentences by what they do.

  2. Sort what paragraph 4 tells you

    Here is what the paragraph covers, in order:

    • Many trees live hundreds or even thousands of years.
    • Once settled, a bristlecone “can last almost indefinitely,” or with no set end.
    • The trees grow apart, so a fire rarely burns a whole group.
    • Few plants can stand the dry, cold climate, so there is little competition.
    • They can live in dolomite soil, which is chalky and low in nutrients.
    • Their wood is so dense, or tightly packed, that beetles can rarely bore in.

  3. Find the pattern

    After the first two sentences, nearly every sentence describes the tree itself. It grows spread out. It handles cold, dry air and poor soil. Its wood is too hard for insects. Each of these is a quality, or trait, that fits the tree to its tough home. That list of traits is how the paragraph shows the tree’s toughness.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. Other long-lived trees are named only at the start. That sets the scene but shows nothing about surviving hardship.
    • B fits. Most of the paragraph lists the tree’s own traits that help it survive.
    • C does not fit. It turns things around. The paragraph shows the tree suited to harsh mountains, not the mountains being the best place for it.
    • D does not fit. Little competition is one item in the list, not the main method.

  5. Choose the answer

    Paragraph 4 mainly works by describing what lets the bristlecone handle its harsh home. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest trap, since paragraph 4 does say the trees face little competition. But that is just one result. The paragraph also points to spacing, tolerance of poor soil and dense wood. B covers all of these traits together, so it names the main method.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 51 as printed on page 195 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 195, question 51. Open page 195 of the handbook (PDF)
The passage “Excerpt from “The Past and the Future of the Earth’s Oldest Trees”” as printed (pages 193–194)The passage “Excerpt from “The Past and the Future of the Earth’s Oldest Trees”” as printed on page 193 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from “The Past and the Future of the Earth’s Oldest Trees”” as printed on page 194 of the DOE handbook.

Question 88 of 120

2024 Test B English, question 53

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “The Past and the Future of the Earth’s Oldest Trees””.

Question

Which claim is best supported by the details in paragraph 5 about the bristlecone pine’s tree-ring record?

  • AThe bristlecone pine must be protected from extinction so that there is a record of changing Earth conditions.
  • BThe structure of the bristlecone pine allows scientists to predict changing Earth conditions over time.
  • CThe slow growth process of the bristlecone pine allows it to survive in spite of changing Earth conditions.
  • DThe bristlecone pine can be used to gather information on changing Earth conditions because of its long life.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks which claim is best supported by the details about the bristlecone pine tree’s ring record presented in paragraph 5.

A. Incorrect. In paragraph 5, the author explains that the bristlecone pine is “an exceptionally useful source of data about changing conditions on Earth,” and this suggests that the information presented by the trees is particularly valuable and important. However, while the paragraph explains that the data provided by the trees are important, it does not address the need to protect the trees from any threat of extinction. The only reference to the trees’ extinction is in paragraph 7, when the author addresses the “possibility that climate change will cause their extinction” but then explains that “scientists tend to discount the idea that the bristlecones are in immediate danger.”

B. Incorrect. Paragraph 5 describes “minute changes in the tree-ring record” that make bristlecone pines “an exceptionally useful source of data about changing conditions on Earth,” and examples of those changing conditions are described in the present tense: “When rains are heavier than normal, the rings widen.” However, the term “record” indicates that the tree rings are already formed by the time scientists study them. The trees provide information about the past, which is emphasized by the description at the beginning of paragraph 5 of historic events one tree lived through. The excerpt contains no information about whether scientists can use the climate patterns of the past as evidenced by tree rings to make predictions about the future.

C. Incorrect. Paragraph 5 describes the “slow-motion existence” of the bristlecone pine and provides examples of the record of “changing conditions on Earth” reflected in the rings of the trees. However, although the paragraph makes it clear that the trees have been able to survive these changing conditions, the paragraph does not indicate that the slow growth of the trees, each of which adds only “about two-hundredths of an inch to the diameter of its trunk each year,” is the key to their survival. Instead, paragraph 4 lists other reasons why an established bristlecone pine “can last almost indefinitely,” including distance between individual trees; tolerance for cold, dry conditions and dolomite soil; and wood that is resistant to insects.

D. CORRECT. Paragraph 5 emphasizes the longevity of the bristlecone pine by discussing its “implacable slow-motion existence” and how this makes the trees a valuable source of information for scientists. The author explains that “minute changes in the tree-ring record make bristlecones an exceptionally useful source of data about changing conditions on Earth.” A tree that has been alive since 2500 B.C., like the one in paragraph 5, can provide a long record of the changing climate.

Question analysis

Students decide which claim is best supported by the details about tree rings in paragraph 5 of an article on the ancient bristlecone pines of California’s White Mountains. Every choice links the trees to changing conditions on Earth, so the challenge is noticing which claim stays within what the paragraph actually says.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Choosing the claim a paragraph supports is core grade 7 inference work, and paragraph 5 is only four sentences long. The demand is typical: one careful reading of those sentences, plus attention to the exact wording of each claim.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 8, 851 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 85 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • An inaccurate detail in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

All four claims tie the bristlecone to changing conditions on Earth, so the paragraph’s topic cannot separate them; only what the paragraph supports can. Two claims go a step past it, one turning a record of the past into a tool for prediction and the other making slow growth the cause of survival. The right claim also goes slightly beyond the words, but only by linking the ring record to the tree’s forty-five centuries.

  1. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The predicting choice shares the key’s frame, the tree giving scientists knowledge of “changing conditions on Earth”; they part on direction, since a ring “record” shows past conditions and forecasts nothing. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    Paragraph 5 credits the rings’ “minute changes,” not the tree’s age, so the key’s “because of its long life” has to be inferred from a tree that has been growing since 2500 B.C. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    Every claim mentions changing conditions on Earth, so none can be dropped as off topic; each must be tested against what the four sentences of paragraph 5 actually say. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Restate in your own words what paragraph 5 says the tree rings record, then ask of each claim whether those four sentences alone would let you say it.

Traps

  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: In explaining why Option C is wrong, the handbook says paragraph 4 lists “bark that is resistant to insects.” Paragraph 4 says that bristlecone wood “is so dense that mountain-pine beetles and other pests can rarely burrow their way into it”; it says nothing about the bark. The site now says “wood that is resistant to insects.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks which claim is best supported by paragraph 5’s details about tree rings. A tree ring is the layer of wood a tree adds each year. You need the claim those details really back up, without adding ideas the paragraph never gives.

  2. Find the tree-ring details

    Paragraph 5 says, “Minute changes in the tree-ring record make bristlecones an exceptionally useful source of data about changing conditions on Earth.” Then it gives examples. “When rains are heavier than normal, the rings widen.” When volcanoes cool the planet, “frost rings” show it. The same paragraph describes a tree that has been growing since 2500 B.C.

  3. Explain what the details mean

    Minute (said my-NOOT) means tiny. Data means facts and measurements. Each year adds a ring, so the rings work like a diary of conditions on Earth. A tree alive since 2500 B.C. holds about 4,500 years of these yearly entries. Its long life is what makes its record so long and so useful.

  4. Check each choice

    • A does not fit. Paragraph 5 never says the tree must be protected. Paragraph 7 even says scientists doubt it is in immediate danger.
    • B does not fit. A record shows what already happened. Nothing says the rings can predict the future.
    • C does not fit. Paragraph 5 never says slow growth keeps the tree alive. Paragraph 4 gives the reasons, such as wood too dense for insects. C also leaves out the rings.
    • D fits. A tree that lives for thousands of years keeps a ring record of changing conditions over all that time.

  5. Choose the answer

    The rings record changes on Earth, and the tree’s great age makes that record long. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B comes nearest to the right answer. Like D, it says the tree gives scientists facts about changing conditions on Earth. But the rings are a “record,” and a record tells about the past, not the future. D stays with what the paragraph supports: a long-lived tree holds a long record of change.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 53 as printed on page 195 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2025 Admissions, page 195, question 53. Open page 195 of the handbook (PDF) This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 89 of 120

2023 Test A English, question 15
Passage A Memory Revolution

A Memory Revolution

A high school senior logs on to a computer at the library to double-check the application due date listed on a college admissions website. Nearby, a librarian helps a group of biology students use a database to search for recent studies about mammals. In the past few decades, the Internet has become an integral component of daily life for many people. The seemingly limitless power of search engines made the Internet search extremely common, and today people increasingly rely on the Internet’s vast accumulation of sources to access all types of information. Scientists are beginning to examine how this reliance is modifying the strategies people use to store and prioritize information in their mind.

A Dependable and Valuable Asset

Psychologist Benjamin Storm from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and researchers Sean Stone and Aaron Benjamin devised an experiment to study students’ tendency to depend on the Internet for facts. To begin, the scientists divided sixty participants into multiple groups, including an “Internet” group and a “memory” group, and placed them in front of computers. The Internet group was required to use the search engine Google to answer eight challenging trivia questions. In contrast, participants in the memory group were permitted to use only their personal knowledge to answer the questions. In the second round, the researchers administered notably easier questions. This time, they allowed each group the option of using Google as they answered. Their results showed that 83 percent of the Internet group continued to consult Google in the second round, while only 63 percent of the memory group chose to do so.

People’s growing inclination to rely on the Internet in order to retrieve information, particularly facts and figures, is called cognitive offloading. Canadian researcher Evan F. Risko and British researcher Sam Gilbert, who have written extensively about the topic, say a similar process has been taking place for centuries. In the past, people used resources like encyclopedias to assist their memories; however, today the Internet, serving as a vast extended memory, allows people to digitally access and retrieve much larger volumes of information. Consequently, people’s minds are free for other cognitive feats, such as connecting data, learning new information, or solving problems.

Filing Information Away

The use of the Internet also appears to be modifying the strategies people use to store information in their mind. Researchers Betsy Sparrow from Columbia University, Jenny Liu from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Daniel Wegner from Harvard University conducted several studies to discover how people efficiently manage their information intake.

To begin, the researchers examined how people evaluate which information deserves their effort to remember. For this experiment, participants read forty trivia facts, such as “An ostrich’s eye is bigger than its brain,” and typed the statements into a computer file. Half the participants had been previously told the file would be saved, while half believed it would be erased. Next, the participants wrote down every fact they could recall. Those who believed the information would be erased and no longer available could recall 40 percent more facts than those who thought the information would be saved.

In another experiment, the same researchers tested the ability of study participants to remember where to access information. For this trial, participants read and typed trivia statements, which they saved in folders with generic names such as “Facts” and “Items.” After spending ten minutes writing down all the facts they could recall from memory, participants were asked which folder contained a particular fact based on a keyword. For example, “Which folder has the fact about ostriches?” Overall, participants recalled the information’s location more often than the content itself, correctly identifying 49 percent of the folders for specific facts while remembering only 23 percent of the actual trivia. The researchers concluded that our memory is adapting to the Internet age by prioritizing where to locate information even when the specific details are forgotten. According to Sparrow, the Internet has become an important form of transactive memory, an external source of the recollections and associative networks that constitute memory.

As the Internet’s resources continue to expand our “external” memory, some question whether the process may cause people to depend too heavily on technology. However, Steven Pinker, a professor of psychology at Harvard University, says, “Knowledge is increasing exponentially; human brainpower and waking hours are not. Fortunately, the Internet and information technologies are helping us manage, search and retrieve our collective intellectual output at different scales, from Twitter and previews to e-books and online encyclopedias. Far from making us stupid, these technologies are the only things that will keep us smart.”

Flow diagram titled “HOW MEMORY WORKS”: an arrow labeled “New Information” points down into a box labeled “Sensory Memory,” and an arrow labeled “Attention” leads down from that box to a box labeled “Short-Term Memory.” From Short-Term Memory, an arrow points right to the note “Unrehearsed information is forgotten,” and on its left a curved arrow labeled “Rehearsal” loops from the bottom of the box back into its top, beside the note “Information is maintained through repetition.” An arrow labeled “Storage” leads down from Short-Term Memory to a box labeled “Long-Term Memory,” a curved arrow labeled “Retrieval” leads from Long-Term Memory back up into Short-Term Memory, and an arrow points right from Long-Term Memory to the note “Some information may be forgotten over time.”

Question

Which sentence from the passage suggests that using Internet search engines may lead people to rely less on their own ability to recall information?

  • A“In the past few decades, the Internet has become an integral component of daily life for many people.” (paragraph 1)
  • B“The Internet group was required to use the search engine Google to answer eight challenging trivia questions.” (paragraph 2)
  • C“Their results showed that 83 percent of the Internet group continued to consult Google in the second round, while only 63 percent of the memory group chose to do so.” (paragraph 2)
  • D“For this experiment, participants read forty trivia facts, such as ‘An ostrich’s eye is bigger than its brain,’ and typed the statements into a computer file.” (paragraph 5)
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks which sentence from the passage suggests that using Internet search engines may lead people to rely less on their own ability to recall information.

A. Incorrect. While the sentence in paragraph 1 refers to the increase in use that has made the Internet “an integral component” of everyday life for many people, it does not address memory or explain the effect of Internet use on a person’s ability to recall information.

B. Incorrect. Although the sentence in paragraph 2 refers to research that was conducted to determine how the use of the Internet affects a person’s memory, the sentence simply explains one guideline of the study. The fact that the study required one group of participants to use Google does not indicate whether using a search engine affects the degree to which people rely on their own ability to recall information.

C. CORRECT. The sentence in paragraph 2 states that “83 percent of the Internet group continued to consult Google in the second round” and that “only 63 percent of the memory group chose to do so.” These statistics suggest that using Google in the first round resulted in participants in the Internet group relying more heavily on the Internet search engine to recall information in the second round, whereas participants who had not used Google in the first round were more likely to rely on their own ability to recall information.

D. Incorrect. The sentence in paragraph 5 describes a task presented to participants in a research study. Although the study was designed to examine “how people evaluate which information deserves their effort to remember” (paragraph 5), the sentence does not indicate that use of Internet search engines prompted people to rely less on their own ability to recall information.

Question analysis

This evidence question on “A Memory Revolution,” an article about how search engines are changing the ways people store and find information, asks which sentence suggests that searching online may lead people to depend less on their own recall. The four quotations come from paragraphs 1, 2 and 5, and each touches on the Internet, a study or memory, so students must test what each one actually shows.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Choosing the sentence that supports an idea is routine grade 7 evidence work. Here the idea appears in the question but in none of the quotations, so students must infer which one implies it from what the passage says around each.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 14, 763 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 117 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

None of the four quotations states the idea in the question, so each has to be judged by what it implies. Paragraph 2’s experiment supplies both the most tempting wrong sentence and the right one, and they differ as a study’s setup differs from its findings. Students who settle for the sentence that names a search engine, or for any line about remembering trivia, overlook that only a measured result can show an effect on how people recall.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The right sentence gives only two percentages and never mentions memory; students must infer that reaching for Google on “notably easier questions” shows less trust in one’s own recall, and that first-round searching set the Internet group apart. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. A very close wrong answer minor Choosing the answer

    Two quotations come from paragraph 2’s Google study and both name the Internet group; one states the rule for the first round, the other what the group chose once Google was optional. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  3. Much to keep track of minor Working it out

    Reading 83 and 63 percent correctly means holding two groups and two rounds in mind: which group had to search at first, and that in round two both could choose Google. (Sweller, 1988; Carpenter, Just & Shell, 1990)

Strategy: Put the idea in your own words, then reread each quoted sentence in its paragraph and ask whether it shows people relying more on a search engine and less on their own memory.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is an evidence question. You need the sentence that best supports an idea. The idea is that using search engines may make people lean less on their own memory. To recall means to bring back to mind. A search engine is a website, like Google, that finds information for you. Look for a sentence that shows people trusting Google more than their own memory.

  2. Find the study in paragraph 2

    Paragraph 2 tells about an experiment with two groups. “The Internet group was required to use the search engine Google to answer eight challenging trivia questions.” The memory group could use only what they already knew. Then came a second round of “notably easier questions.” This time, each group could choose whether to use Google.

  3. Read the results

    GroupRound 1Round 2: chose Google
    Internet grouphad to use Google83 percent
    Memory groupmemory only63 percent

    The round 2 questions were easier. People had a better chance of knowing the answers on their own. Yet the Internet group still turned to Google more often. That is 20 more people out of every 100. Using Google first seems to have made them lean on it instead of their own memory.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. It says the Internet is “an integral component,” or a key part, of daily life. It says nothing about memory.
    • B is wrong. It gives a rule of the study: what the Internet group had to do in round 1. A rule is not a result, so it can’t show an effect.
    • C is right. It gives the result. The group that had used Google kept choosing it, even when the questions got easier.
    • D is wrong. It tells about the typing task in a different study. That study tested memory, but no search engine was used.

    Watch out: B is tempting because it names Google and the same study. But it only tells what people were told to do, not what they chose.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only C shows what people did once they were free to choose. The Internet group leaned on Google more than the memory group did. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong answer, since it comes from the same study. But B only tells what the Internet group had to do at the start. C shows what happened next. Given a choice, 83 percent of that group still used Google, but only 63 percent of the memory group did. That gap is the evidence.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 15 as printed on page 46 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2024 Admissions, page 46, question 15. Open page 46 of the handbook (PDF)
The passage “A Memory Revolution” as printed (pages 3–4)The passage “A Memory Revolution” as printed on page 3 of the DOE handbook.The passage “A Memory Revolution” as printed on page 4 of the DOE handbook.

Question 90 of 120

2023 Test A English, question 48
Passage Excerpt from Winter Wheat

Excerpt from Winter Wheat

by Mildred Walker

Ellen, the narrator, is preparing to leave her parents and the family farm for college the next day.

I love Dad’s way of talking that makes him seem different from other ranchers. He’s lived here twenty-three years, but he still says “back East where I come from.” He’s the one who gets excited when I do about spring coming or a serial running in the magazine we’re both reading, but it’s what Mom says that I depend on. When Mom used to say “Don’t worry” about my pet chicken or dog or new calf, it always got well. Dad is always talking of going some place, not now, but next year, maybe. Mom seems to think of nothing farther away than today or perhaps yesterday or tomorrow morning.

Mom folded the ironing board and put it inside their bedroom that was just off the kitchen. She carried in the freshly ironed clothes. Dad went back to his paper. When Mom came back she took beans from the cupboard to soak for tomorrow. Dad always said Mom could make all the dishes he’d had back in Vermont as well as though she were a New Englander herself, instead of a Russian. All of a sudden, I realized that tomorrow when those beans would be ready to eat I’d be going away. It gave me a funny feeling.

“I’ll be taking the train tomorrow night,” I said aloud, more to hear it myself.

“We can drive you into town in the afternoon,” Dad said, dropping his paper on the floor.

“There’s no need to go to town; she can catch the train at Gotham just as well. We haven’t nothing to take us into town for,” Mom said.

“Well, we don’t have to decide tonight,” Dad said, but I knew he wanted to go into Clark City. It wouldn’t be so flat as just seeing me go off on the train from Gotham. My going away was hard on both of them; they were so different—and I was part of them both. It made me uncomfortable to think of leaving them.

While I was getting ready for bed in my room that’s off the front room, I saw how it would be if I left from town. We’d go in right after dinner and go around to the stores, Dad going one way and Mom and I another. Dad would probably have his hair cut at the barbershop and stop in the bank and meet someone he knew to talk to. Then we’d meet at the big store on the corner and go to the cafeteria for supper. The train stops ten minutes or so at the station in town and there are other people and excitement and you have time to wave from the platform and then again from your window by your seat. We went to the station in Clark City to see the Goodals off when they went back to Iowa.

If I left from Gotham, we’d just drive down in the truck and wait till the train came. It only stops long enough for you to get on and you hardly have time to taste the flavor of going away.

I sat on the bed in my pyjamas with my arms around my knees. I couldn’t keep from thinking of that time Dad went back East. I tried to, and then I just sat still and looked straight at it. Sometimes that’s better than working so hard to keep from looking at what’s in your mind.

Dad went all the way back to Vermont. . . . It was in November and it was already dark when the train came through Gotham. Even now, I could feel how cold and dark it was. I held Mom’s hand. Dad was so dressed-up he seemed strange. . . . We stood there without saying anything until Dad told Mom to remember to call Mr. Bardich, our neighbor, if the cow didn’t calve tomorrow.

“I’ll manage,” Mom snapped back.

“I wish you could go, Anna,” Dad said to Mom, “and we could take Ellen.” . . .

“Good-by, Anna Petrovna,” he said, looking at Mom. I had never heard him call her by two names before.

“Good-by,” Mom said, standing still, without smiling.

Then he was gone and the crossroads were darker than ever. The train light shone on the high window in the top of the grain elevator for a moment and then that too was dark. We got into our old Ford and Mom drove back to the house. My throat ached all the way. The name Dad had called Mom kept saying itself in my ears: “Anna Petrovna, Anna Petrovna.” . . .

Our house seemed lonely when we came back to it. It seemed to be hiding under the coulee. I went with Mom to put the truck in the barn that was bigger than the house. I think Mom was prouder of our barn than the house, anyway. We walked back to look at the cow that was going to calve. She was just a big light blob in the dark, waiting. I had thought she was exciting this morning, but now she seemed sad, too.

The wind blew when we walked across the open space to the house and I couldn’t help shivering with the cold. Inside the house it was warm, but empty.

“Bring your nightgown in here and I heat you some milk,” Mom said.

I drank the milk sitting on a stool in front of the stove. It tasted good, but the lonely ache in my throat was still there. I picked up my clothes and hung them neatly behind the stove and put my cup on the sink board. Mom was fixing oatmeal for tomorrow morning.

“Good night, Mom,” I said almost timidly, standing beside her. She seemed wrapped around in a kind of strangeness. Then she turned around and drew me to her. The front of her dress was warm from the stove. I felt the comfortable heat through my gown. She laid her hand against my face and it felt rough and hard but firm. I dared ask her something I wanted to know.

“Mom, was that really your name—what Dad called you?”

Her voice sounded surprised. “Why, Yeléna, you know that; Anna Petrovna. You know I am born in Russia, in Seletskoe.”

“Yes, but I didn’t know your other name,” I said.

“Anna Petrovna Webb.” She pronounced it slowly. “Once I think what a funny name Ben Webb is!” She laughed. Her laugh was warm and low like our kitchen, and comfortable. The house seemed natural and right again. . . .

But now that I am grown, I feel the wall of strangeness between them, more than when I was a child. I wondered how they would get along without me.

From WINTER WHEAT by Mildred Walker, published by University of Nebraska Press. Copyright © 1944 by Harcourt, Brace and Company, Inc. Copyright renewed 1971 by Mildred Walker. All rights reserved.

serial: story published in short segments at regular intervals
coulee: small gulch or ravine

Question

Which sentence from the excerpt provides evidence that Ellen has a lot in common with her father?

  • A“He’s the one who gets excited when I do about spring coming or a serial running in the magazine we’re both reading. . . .” (paragraph 1)
  • B“ ‘We can drive you into town in the afternoon,’ Dad said, dropping his paper on the floor.” (paragraph 4)
  • C“ ‘Well, we don’t have to decide tonight,’ Dad said, but I knew he wanted to go into Clark City.” (paragraph 6)
  • D“I wondered how they would get along without me.” (paragraph 25)
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks which sentence from the excerpt provides evidence that Ellen has a lot in common with her father.

A. CORRECT. This sentence from paragraph 1 shows that Ellen and her father both get excited about the coming of spring and share an interest in reading magazine serials (stories published in serial installments). The sentence implies that Ellen and her father have shared likes and interests, and therefore, it provides clear evidence that they have a lot in common.

B. Incorrect. While this sentence from paragraph 4 highlights the warm relationship between Ellen and her father and shows that he would like to take her to the train station in town, it does not provide clear evidence that they share a lot in common.

C. Incorrect. Although this sentence from paragraph 6 implies that Ellen understands her father well enough to intuit his preference to go to the train station in town (“but I knew he wanted to go into Clark City”), their closeness is not clear evidence that Ellen and her father have a lot in common.

D. Incorrect. While this sentence from paragraph 25 shows Ellen’s concern about the effect that her leaving the farm will have on her parents, it does not provide clear evidence that Ellen and her father have a lot in common.

Question analysis

This evidence question on an excerpt from Mildred Walker’s novel Winter Wheat, in which Ellen gets ready to leave her parents’ farm for college, asks which sentence shows that Ellen has a lot in common with her father. The four quotations, from paragraphs 1, 4, 6 and 25, all involve Ellen and her family, so each must be checked for what it really shows.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Finding the sentence that supports an idea about a character is standard grade 7 evidence work. The novel’s language is plain and the idea concrete, but every quotation involves Ellen’s family, so each must be read in its paragraph before it is judged.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 6, 80 words; question and choices: about grade 7, 88 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The question asks for likeness, not affection, and three of the quotations show Ellen’s ties to her family in other ways: her father offers to drive her into town, she knows a wish he does not voice, and she wonders how her parents will manage once she is gone. Only one sentence shows father and daughter reacting the same way to the same things, the coming of spring and a magazine story. Students who read “a lot in common” as “close” are drawn to the line where Ellen reads his mind.

  1. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    Every quotation involves Ellen and her parents, and three show a bond of another kind, an offer of a ride, a guessed wish, a worry about leaving, so each must be tested for shared tastes rather than care. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The right sentence neither names Dad nor says “in common”: students must trace “He’s” back to Dad earlier in paragraph 1 and hear shared interests in “when I do” and “we’re both reading.” (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Decide what having a lot in common would mean for two people, then reread each quotation in its paragraph and ask whether it shows that or some other side of how Ellen and her father relate.

Traps

  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is an evidence question. You need the sentence that shows Ellen has “a lot in common” with her father. Two people have a lot in common when they like the same things and share the same interests. Being close, or caring about each other, is not the same thing. Keep that difference in mind.

  2. Look at the sentence in paragraph 1

    In paragraph 1, Ellen is telling about her dad, so “He’s” means Dad. She says he “gets excited when I do about spring coming or a serial running in the magazine we’re both reading.” A serial is a story printed in parts, with a new part in each issue of a magazine.

  3. Work out what it means

    The words “when I do” mean Dad gets excited at the same times Ellen does. They both look forward to spring. They both read the same magazine story and enjoy it. Those are two interests they share. In the same paragraph, Ellen compares her parents. Dad is the one who shares her excitement. Mom is the one whose words she counts on.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is right. It names two things that excite both of them: spring and a magazine story.
    • B is wrong. In paragraph 4, Dad quickly offers to drive Ellen into town for her train. That shows he cares, not that they like the same things.
    • C is wrong. In paragraph 6, Ellen says, “but I knew he wanted to go into Clark City.” She understands him well. But knowing what someone wants is not sharing his interests.
    • D is wrong. In paragraph 25, “they” means Mom and Dad. Ellen worries about both. That is not something she shares with Dad.

    Watch out: C is tempting because it shows Ellen and Dad are close. But being close is not having a lot in common.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only A shows Ellen and her dad getting excited about the same things: spring and a story they both read. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer. It shows that Ellen can tell what her dad wants without his saying it. That proves they are close. But the question asks what they have in common. A names two shared interests: spring coming and a serial “we’re both reading.”

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 48 as printed on page 67 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2024 Admissions, page 67, question 48. Open page 67 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).
The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the testThe passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 1 of 7.The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 2 of 7.The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 3 of 7.The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 4 of 7.The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 5 of 7.The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 6 of 7.The passage “Excerpt from Winter Wheat” as shown on the DOE’s digital test, screen 7 of 7.

Question 91 of 120

2023 Test B English, question 14
Passage Excerpt from “The Food Business Incubator”

Excerpt from “The Food Business Incubator”

by Mandalit Del Barco

“La Cocina” means “the kitchen” in Spanish. It’s also the name of a business incubator1 based in San Francisco’s Mission District. Since it began in 2005, it’s been helping local food entrepreneurs, many of whom are low-income immigrant women, develop their small businesses.

Over the years, many of its alumni have found success: more than 50 chefs in its program have become self-sufficient business owners, and many of them have opened their own brick-and-mortar restaurants. Two alumnae of its culinary program . . . were even recognized as semi-finalists for prestigious James Beard awards.2

A new cookbook, We Are La Cocina: Recipes in Pursuit of the American Dream, tells some of their stories.

Executive director Caleb Zigas says the nonprofit La Cocina grew out of two grassroots economic development organizations3 who found many people cooking at their homes and selling food on the streets. The vendors needed an affordable commercial kitchen space and technical assistance in order for their businesses to be legally viable. La Cocina provided just such a space, in addition to helping them develop business plans, pull city permits and more.

Zigas says as many as eight businesses can work in the kitchen space at La Cocina at any one time. Some can prep for a farmers’ market sale, corporate catering gigs or weddings, while others might be making and packaging their food products.

“It’s just an incredible and exciting range of techniques, flavors, perspectives, age, language. And that’s a really beautiful thing,” he says. . . .

Twice a year, La Cocina hosts “F&B: Voices from the Kitchen,” a storytelling project where their chefs can tell their own stories, as they do in the new cookbook. Some of the chefs will be on tour to promote the book, whose proceeds will go to support La Cocina entrepreneurs.

NPR4 caught up with . . . La Cocina chefs, who shared their stories:

Mariko Grady, Aedan Fermented Foods

At La Cocina, you can often hear Mariko Grady singing or humming as she prepares miso, koji, and amasake. Her fermented products come in four different flavors, including mushroom and chicken, to be used in soups and sauces. She originally brought the fermenting rice and barley koji seeds from Japan, where she had a 30-year career as a singer and dancer with the prestigious modern theatrical dance group she founded, Pappa Tarahumara. They performed around the world, and 16 years ago, had a one-night show in San Francisco. The man who would become her husband was in the audience. She soon joined him in San Francisco, often returning to Tokyo to rehearse. But after the earthquake and tsunami hit Japan in 2011, her company disbanded. . . . Grady focused on nourishing her family and creating a line of fermented products that she sells online, at local Bay Area stores and at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market. She began at La Cocina in 2012 and named her business after her son, Aedan. (Written in Kanji characters, the name means “wisdom” and “handed down from generation to generation.”) . . . Her fermented products are “also full of wisdom about how to relate to nature and how to create a healthy life,” she says. . . .

Shani Jones, Peaches Patties

Shani Jones is a native San Franciscan. Her father was born in New Orleans, her mother, in Jamaica. She says their home was always filled with a variety of spices and dishes like jerk chicken and Jamaican patties—savory pastries filled with beef or chicken. Jones says she learned to cook from her mother, whose nickname was Peaches. After returning from college in Atlanta, Jones worked on her doctorate in organizational leadership and management while driving a Lyft5 car. She often told passengers about her idea of opening a catering company with her mom’s recipes. They steered her to La Cocina, where she developed her own business, named after her mother. Five years later, she caters and runs a kiosk6 at a small food cooperative in Bernal Heights, where some of her handmade patties have an Ethiopian twist, “because my husband is Ethiopian.” Jones has big aspirations for Peaches Patties: “The ultimate goal,” she says, “is to be the patty kingpin7 of the West Coast.”

From “The Food Business Incubator That Helps Immigrant Women Pursue The American Dream” by Mandalit Del Barco from WEEKEND EDITION SUNDAY, June 19, 2019. Copyright © 2019 NPR.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR LA COCINA APPLICANTS

Level of IncomeLa Cocina considers assets and access to opportunity when screening applicants. La Cocina’s mission is to support entrepreneurs who face barriers to becoming successful in the food industry. Applicants must be classified as low- or very-low-income earners according to the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Guidelines for San Francisco.
Business PlanApplicants must have a business plan that is ready to be put into action. La Cocina will help applicants refine an existing business plan. Applicants without a business plan should contact one of La Cocina’s partner organizations for guidance in developing one.
Viable ProductThe applicant’s food must not only be delicious but also stand out. For a business to make a profit, there also has to be a market for the food.
Entrepreneurial Work EthicLa Cocina is excited to work with entrepreneurs who are motivated and passionate about growing their business. Succeeding in the food industry requires a lot of heart and hard work.
Community SpiritThe 30+ entrepreneurs who share La Cocina’s kitchen are from many different backgrounds. La Cocina values the community it has created and expects each entrepreneur to be active in bringing the spirit of La Cocina to the wider world.
In order to succeed in the La Cocina kitchen, accepted applicants must be flexible and willing to work closely with others.

Source: La Cocina

1business incubator: company that helps new and startup companies develop by providing services such as management training and office space

2James Beard awards: an award named after American cook and author James Beard, considered one of the highest honors in the culinary industry

3economic development organizations: organizations whose mission is to promote economic improvement within a specific geographical area

4NPR: National Public Radio, a nonprofit media organization that produces and distributes news and cultural programming

5Lyft: ride-sharing company where people use their own cars to provide rides to customers

6kiosk: cart or small structure with one or more open sides that is used to vend merchandise or services

7kingpin: the leader in a group or undertaking

Question

Which statement would the author most likely agree with?

  • AThe publicity efforts La Cocina engages in will help its business design spread to other cities.
  • BThe variety of exciting food available in San Francisco is due to the work of La Cocina.
  • CLa Cocina offers a method that will guarantee business ownership for qualified entrepreneurs.
  • DLa Cocina does admirable work in supporting the efforts of ambitious cooks who may have few resources.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks with which statement the author would most likely agree.

A. Incorrect. The author does not suggest at any point that La Cocina would like to expand its work and mission to other cities.

B. Incorrect. While the author describes some of the work of talented chefs from La Cocina, at no point does the author imply that the many food choices that exist in San Francisco are because of La Cocina.

C. Incorrect. While the author does describe how La Cocina can help entrepreneurs find success, at no point does the author suggest that La Cocina can guarantee success.

D. CORRECT. The descriptions of the income requirements as well as the information that some of the chefs are James Beard award semi-finalists and others have achieved success with their businesses all help show that the author admires the work of La Cocina in helping chefs who have few resources.

Question analysis

This point-of-view question asks which statement the author of the NPR article about La Cocina, a San Francisco nonprofit that helps food entrepreneurs, would most likely agree with. The author reports facts and profiles two chefs rather than giving opinions outright, so students must infer the author’s attitude from what the article chooses to report and test each statement against it.

NYS standards
  • 7R6 point of view and author position
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Inferring which statement an author would accept is typical grade 7 point-of-view work. This reporter lets facts and two chefs’ stories carry the view, but each statement can be checked directly against the article, which keeps the demand ordinary.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 1057 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 72 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • An inaccurate detail in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Because the author reports rather than argues, students must build the author’s attitude from the facts chosen, then test four statements that all speak well of La Cocina. Three of them claim more than the article does: that it will spread to other cities, that it accounts for the city’s food, that it guarantees ownership. The right statement is the modest one, and students drawn to bigger praise lose the point.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The reporter never states an opinion; admiration has to be read from what the article chooses to include: the income rule, the 50-plus self-sufficient owners, the James Beard semi-finalists and two chefs’ stories. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    Support for the author’s view is scattered from paragraph 1’s low-income immigrant women through paragraph 2’s successes to the table’s Level of Income row, so no single passage settles it. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  3. The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer

    The right statement speaks of “ambitious cooks” with “few resources,” words the article never uses, while wrong ones echo its own “exciting” and “San Francisco” or the table’s talk of qualifications. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

Strategy: Ask what the article’s choice of facts and stories shows about how the author regards La Cocina, then measure each statement against that view and against what the article actually reports.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook’s explanation of Option D says that “some of the chefs are James Beard award recipients.” The excerpt never says any chef won the award: paragraph 2 says two alumnae “were even recognized as semi-finalists for prestigious James Beard awards.” The site now says “some of the chefs are James Beard award semi-finalists.” The answer is unchanged.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Think about the author’s view

    This asks about the author’s point of view, or how the author feels about the topic. The author is a reporter who mostly gives facts. So you have to read the author’s feelings from the facts the author chose to include.

  2. Gather the clues

    • Paragraph 1: La Cocina helps cooks, “many of whom are low-income immigrant women.” Low-income means earning little money.
    • Paragraph 2: “more than 50 chefs in its program have become self-sufficient business owners.” Self-sufficient means able to support themselves.
    • Paragraph 2 also says two alumnae “were even recognized as semi-finalists” for top cooking awards. Semi-finalists reach the round before the final. They did not win.
    • Paragraph 10: Shani Jones hopes “to be the patty kingpin of the West Coast.” A kingpin is the leader of a group.

  3. Work out the author’s opinion

    Put the clues together. The cooks often start with little money. Many of them dream big, like Jones. La Cocina helps them, and many succeed. The word “even” shows the author is impressed. So the author admires La Cocina’s work. Admirable means deserving praise. Ambitious means wanting to achieve a lot.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. Some chefs will tour to promote a cookbook. That is not a plan to bring La Cocina to other cities.
    • B is wrong. The author never says La Cocina is the reason San Francisco has so many kinds of food.
    • C is wrong. To guarantee means to promise for sure. The author reports successes but promises nothing.
    • D is right. It matches the clues: cooks with little money, big dreams and praise for the help they get.

    Watch out: A is tempting because a book tour does spread the word. But spreading the word is not opening in new cities.

  5. Choose the answer

    The author would agree that La Cocina deserves praise for helping driven cooks who have little money. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the most tempting wrong choice. The chefs’ book tour and storytelling events do share La Cocina’s story. But the article never mentions taking its model to other cities. D claims only what the article supports, so it is the better choice.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 14 as printed on page 161 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2024 Admissions, page 161, question 14. Open page 161 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D). This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.
The passage “Excerpt from “The Food Business Incubator”” as printed (pages 158–160)The passage “Excerpt from “The Food Business Incubator”” as printed on page 158 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from “The Food Business Incubator”” as printed on page 159 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from “The Food Business Incubator”” as printed on page 160 of the DOE handbook.

Question 92 of 120

2023 Test B English, question 15

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “The Food Business Incubator””.

Question

Which piece of evidence from the excerpt is most relevant to the author’s claim that La Cocina provides an opportunity to become more established as a business owner?

  • Athe description of how two alumni of the business incubator have won food awards
  • Bthe reference to a storytelling project where chefs relate their own backgrounds and business experiences
  • Cthe lists of necessities such as business plans and city permits that La Cocina assists with
  • Dthe notations of the criteria that applicants must meet to be endorsed by La Cocina in order to develop a small business
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks for the piece of evidence most relevant to the author’s claim that La Cocina provides an opportunity to become more established as a business owner.

A. Incorrect. This evidence reveals that two former members of La Cocina have been recognized for their culinary skills and thus likely gained some business success, but it is not directly relevant to how La Cocina provides specific services and training to help prospective business owners in achieving their goals.

B. Incorrect. Paragraph 7 briefly describes this project, but the fact that chefs share their stories with others does not directly reveal that La Cocina provides resources to help current members become established in a business. It merely suggests that La Cocina wants to publicize its participants and its efforts.

C. CORRECT. This evidence reveals a direct connection between what La Cocina offers and the chefs’ ability to operate a successful business. Having a viable business plan and obtaining the correct operating permits are necessary for the chefs to move out of the La Cocina space and into their own facilities—thus becoming more established business owners.

D. Incorrect. Though the list of criteria that applicants to La Cocina must meet helps ensure that the chefs have a good chance of success in the program, these criteria reveal La Cocina’s selectivity and not necessarily its ability to aid chefs in becoming more established business owners.

Question analysis

This evidence question asks which part of the La Cocina article is most relevant to the author’s claim that the incubator gives people an opportunity to become more established as business owners. Each choice names a piece of evidence without quoting it, so students must first track down where it appears and then weigh how closely it speaks to owning and running a business.

NYS standards
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Matching evidence to a claim is standard grade 7 work. Here the choices describe parts of the article and its table in general terms, the claim is paraphrased rather than quoted, and more than one choice seems related, so it demands more than usual.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 1057 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 95 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Every choice points to something real in the excerpt, so the work is matching evidence to the exact claim: an opportunity La Cocina provides to become more established. Success stories show outcomes, the storytelling project shows publicity, and the table shows who may apply, but only the services in paragraph 4 show La Cocina giving that opportunity. The two choices about business plans are hardest to separate, because helping with a plan and requiring one look alike at a glance.

  1. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The table’s criteria and the right choice both concern business plans, which appear in paragraph 4 and in the Business Plan row; one is help La Cocina gives, the other a requirement for getting in. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The choices describe evidence without quoting it, from paragraph 2’s awards and paragraph 7’s storytelling project to paragraph 4’s services and the table, so each must be found before it can be weighed. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  3. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The claim speaks of becoming “more established,” and students must see that business plans and permits are what let a cook move from selling on the street to running a legal, independent business. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Restate the claim in your own words, find where each described piece of evidence appears, and ask whether that evidence shows how someone becomes more established as a business owner.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Restate the claim

    This is an evidence question. Evidence is a fact that backs up a claim. The claim here is that La Cocina gives cooks a chance to become “more established” business owners. More established means more firmly set up, with a business that can last.

  2. Find what the cooks needed

    Paragraph 4 tells what the street cooks were missing. “The vendors needed an affordable commercial kitchen space and technical assistance in order for their businesses to be legally viable.” Vendors are sellers. Legally viable means allowed by law and able to keep going. A food business needs official permission from the city to run.

  3. Find what La Cocina gave them

    La Cocina gave them a kitchen and helped them “develop business plans, pull city permits and more.” A business plan is a written plan for how a business will make money. To pull a permit means to get it from the city. With a plan and permits, a street cook can run a real, legal business. That is what becoming more established looks like.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. Paragraph 2 says the two chefs were semi-finalists, so they did not win. Also, a cooking honor doesn’t show help with running a business.
    • B is wrong. The storytelling project in paragraph 7 lets chefs share their stories. That spreads the word, but it doesn’t set anyone up in business.
    • C is right. Plans and permits are the tools that turn a cook into an established owner.
    • D is wrong. The table lists what applicants need to get in. Rules for joining don’t show the help La Cocina gives once you are in.

    Watch out: D is tempting because the table also mentions business plans. But there a plan is something you must already have. In paragraph 4, La Cocina helps you develop one.

  5. Choose the answer

    The help with plans and permits shows La Cocina giving cooks a real chance at a lasting business. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the hardest choice to rule out. Both D and C touch on business plans. But D points to entry rules, which tell who may join. C points to services La Cocina provides. The claim is about an opportunity La Cocina gives, so C is the better evidence.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 15 as printed on page 162 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2024 Admissions, page 162, question 15. Open page 162 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 93 of 120

2023 Test B English, question 17

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “The Food Business Incubator””.

Question

The table provides additional support for a central idea of the excerpt by

  • Ashowing how La Cocina works with partner organizations to further educate and advance successful applicants within the food industry.
  • Bexplaining how applicants are prepared to develop their own businesses once they leave La Cocina.
  • Cestablishing that La Cocina is dedicated to its mission to provide delicious food to different communities.
  • Demphasizing that applicants must be willing to dedicate time to promoting and developing their business with La Cocina.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks how the table provides additional support for a central idea of the excerpt.

A. Incorrect. The table describes the requirements that allow food entrepreneurs to qualify to participate in La Cocina. While the table does mention that applicants without a business plan should contact one of La Cocina’s partner organizations, it does not specifically explain how La Cocina works with these partner organizations to help educate successful applicants.

B. Incorrect. The table describes the ways entrepreneur chefs must qualify in order to be accepted into La Cocina, not how their businesses can be successful after they leave.

C. Incorrect. While the table mentions community spirit, this is in reference to the type of energy La Cocina wishes to establish within its group kitchen space. The excerpt and table do not discuss providing food to different communities within or outside San Francisco as specific goals of La Cocina.

D. CORRECT. A central idea of the excerpt is that La Cocina helps local food entrepreneurs develop their businesses. The table lists requirements for people who want to participate in La Cocina. They must be willing to work hard to promote their own businesses as they use the resources that La Cocina provides.

Question analysis

This question asks how the table “Qualifications for La Cocina Applicants,” printed after the NPR article, provides additional support for a central idea of the excerpt. The table’s five rows, from level of income to community spirit, are written in full sentences, so students must read it as closely as the article and decide how the two connect.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 readers often connect a table to a text. This one holds five rows of requirements written as sentences, not numbers, and students must tie it to a central idea through long choices, more than typical grade 7 work.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 1057 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 81 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A detail of the table was restated accurately in the explanation.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The table is easy to read row by row but hard to connect, because it lists entry requirements while the article describes help and success. Each wrong choice grabs a real phrase from the table or an idea from the article, partner organizations, delicious food, alumni starting their own businesses, and attaches it to a claim the table does not make. The right choice is the only one that sums up several rows at once, the work ethic and community spirit expected of applicants.

  1. Reading a figure, table or graph moderate Understanding the question

    The table holds five rows of full sentences, and the telling details sit in single phrases: “should contact one of La Cocina’s partner organizations,” “a lot of heart and hard work,” “active in bringing the spirit of La Cocina to the wider world.” (Lesh, Post & Behr, 1987; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  2. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice speaks of dedicating time to “promoting and developing” a business, words the table never uses, while wrong choices lift its own “partner organizations,” “mission,” “delicious” and “community.” (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  3. Combines ideas minor Working it out

    Students must join two sources, a central idea of the article, that La Cocina helps cooks develop businesses, and a table about who may apply, then say what the second adds to the first. (Embretson, 1998; Daniel & Embretson, 2010)

Strategy: Sum up each row of the table in a few words, state a central idea of the article in a sentence, and keep only a choice that the rows actually show and that fits that idea.

Traps

  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.
  • Wrong part of the text: A choice is true of another paragraph, stanza or speaker than the one asked about.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook’s explanation of Option A says the table states that applicants without a business plan “must contact” one of La Cocina’s partner organizations. The table’s Business Plan row says they “should contact” one: it is advice, while the row’s requirement is that applicants “must have a business plan that is ready to be put into action.” The site now says “should contact.” The answer is unchanged.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. See how the table connects

    This question links the table to the article. The table, “Qualifications for La Cocina Applicants,” lists what people need to join. Qualifications are the skills or traits you must have. You must decide how the table supports a central idea of the article.

  2. Sum up each row

    RowWhat it asks of applicants
    Level of Incomeearn little money
    Business Planhave a plan ready to use
    Viable Productmake food that tastes great, stands out and can sell
    Entrepreneurial Work Ethicbe eager and work hard
    Community Spiritwork well with others and spread La Cocina’s spirit

    Most rows describe people ready to put in real effort.

  3. Connect the table to the article

    A central idea of the article is that La Cocina helps cooks develop their businesses. The table shows what La Cocina expects in return. It wants people “motivated and passionate about growing their business.” It says success “requires a lot of heart and hard work.” It expects each cook to be “active in bringing the spirit of La Cocina to the wider world.” So the help goes to people who will give time to their business.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. The table says applicants without a plan “should contact” a partner group for advice. That happens before applying. It doesn’t show La Cocina working with partners to train accepted cooks.
    • B is wrong. The table is about getting in, not about leaving La Cocina later.
    • C is wrong. The table uses the words “delicious” and “community.” But its community is the cooks who share the kitchen, not neighborhoods La Cocina feeds.
    • D is right. The work-ethic row calls for hard work at growing a business. The community row asks cooks to spread La Cocina’s spirit. Both take time and effort.

  5. Choose the answer

    The table shows that La Cocina wants cooks ready to work hard at building their businesses. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong answer, because “partner organizations” really is in the table. But the table only suggests that people without a business plan get advice from one. It never shows La Cocina teaming up with partners to train its members. D sums up several rows at once.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 17 as printed on page 162 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s NYC Guide to the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) for 2024 Admissions, page 162, question 17. Open page 162 of the handbook (PDF) This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 94 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 11
Passage An Early Warning

An Early Warning

One of the books that has done the most to alert the world to the dangers of environmental degradation is George Perkins Marsh’s Man and Nature. Its message—that Western society is in the process of causing irreparable harm to the environment—greatly influenced ecologists during the beginning of the modern environmentalist movement in the 1960s. Marsh was not, however, part of this movement. Surprisingly, Man and Nature was first published in 1864.

Marsh first observed the environmentally destructive effects of human activities while growing up in Vermont in the early nineteenth century. The heavy demand for firewood had depleted the forests, and extensive sheep grazing had stripped the land. The result was flooding and soil erosion. Furthermore, streams were fouled by wastes dumped from numerous mills and dye houses.

Much later in his life, after careers in law, business, farming, and politics, Marsh served as ambassador to Italy. There he noticed land abuse similar to what he had seen in Vermont. Overgrazing and forest mismanagement had rendered areas that had been productive farmland since the days of the Roman Empire desolate. Marsh attributed this to what he called “man’s ignorant disregard for the laws of nature.”

In Italy, Marsh began to organize his observations and theories. He wrote in a way intended to educate readers about the impact of industrial and agricultural practices on the environment. In Man and Nature, he evaluated the important relationships between animals and plants, discussed forestry practices in great detail, and analyzed the ways natural water supplies are affected by human use.

Man and Nature challenged the popular belief that nature can heal any damage that people inflict upon it. Marsh argued that people may use and enjoy, but not destroy, the riches of the earth.

Furthermore, he asserted that everything in nature is significant and that even the tiniest organism affects the fragile environmental balance. His belief that drastic alteration of this balance would be dangerous is now accepted as a fundamental principle of modern environmental science.

Although he pointed out environmental damage caused by irresponsible human activities, Marsh did not oppose every human alteration to the environment. To him, the goal was proper management, not a return to wilderness conditions. People should consider the consequences of their actions, he wrote, and become “co-worker[s] with nature.” Marsh praised the Suez Canal, the human-made waterway between the Mediterranean Sea and the Gulf of Aden, as “the greatest and most truly cosmopolite physical improvement ever undertaken by man.” He believed that the advantages of the canal— improved transportation and commerce—would outweigh any environmental damage. Yet he also warned of possible unintended consequences, such as destructive plants and animals spreading from one body of water to the other.

Marsh was considered a radical thinker during his lifetime. By the late nineteenth century, however, his writings, along with those of John Muir, Henry David Thoreau, and others, had inspired what became known as the conservation movement. The conservationists of that time sought to educate the public that wilderness areas were worth preserving and were responsible for creating the National Park Service and the National Forest Service.

Question

Marsh believed that the people of his time caused harm to the environment because

  • Athey assumed that future generations would solve any environmental problems.
  • Bthey thought industrial progress was more important than protecting nature.
  • Cthey were unwilling to change farming and waste-disposal practices.
  • Dthey lacked knowledge of nature and natural processes.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The answer is (D)

The question asks for the specific reason Marsh believed people caused harm to the environment. Marsh credited the land abuse he observed in Vermont and Italy to people’s lack of understanding, or ignorance, of nature (paragraph 3) and “the popular belief that nature can heal any damage that people inflict upon it” (paragraph 5). This concept is stated in Option D.

Option A is incorrect because, although people are currently working to improve the environment, the passage does not state that Marsh believed that people in his time expected future generations to solve environmental problems.

Option B is incorrect because, while the people of Marsh’s time made advances in industry, Marsh did not indicate that he believed that people thought industrial progress outweighed efforts to protect the environment.

Option C is incorrect because, while many people at the time participated in “environmental degradation” (paragraph 1), none of the evidence in the passage suggests that Marsh believed that people were unwilling to change their practices.

Question analysis

This reading question asks why George Perkins Marsh thought people of his time were harming the environment, based on a passage about his book Man and Nature. The reason appears in Marsh's own words, but several choices offer causes that sound reasonable for the nineteenth century without being what the passage says.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Locating the reason a text gives for a person's belief is ordinary grade 7 reading. The passage's vocabulary is heavy for grade 7, but the answer rests on one short phrase that students need to interpret.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 12, 523 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 51 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The answer rests on one quoted phrase in paragraph 3, but that phrase has to be read as a reason. A student who takes “disregard” to mean stubborn refusal will prefer reasons about unwillingness or about valuing industry, which feel like natural explanations for the damage in Vermont and Italy. Reading “ignorant” in its literal sense, not knowing, settles it.

  1. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice turns “man's ignorant disregard for the laws of nature” into “lacked knowledge”, while wrong choices reuse the passage's own words “industrial”, “farming” and “waste”. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  2. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    “Ignorant disregard” can be heard as deliberate neglect rather than not knowing, which pushes readers toward reasons about unwillingness or misplaced priorities. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Look for the words Marsh himself used to explain the damage he saw in Italy, and check them against the popular belief described in paragraph 5.

Traps

  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for a reason. Why did Marsh think people of his time hurt the environment? You need the cause the passage says Marsh gave, not a cause that just sounds likely.

  2. Find Marsh’s own words

    In paragraph 3, Marsh sees ruined farmland in Italy. He blames it on what he called “man’s ignorant disregard for the laws of nature.” Paragraph 5 adds that his book challenged “the popular belief that nature can heal any damage that people inflict upon it.”

  3. Work out what the words mean

    Ignorant means not knowing. Here it does not mean rude. Disregard means not paying attention to something. The laws of nature are the ways nature works. So Marsh said people harmed the land because they did not understand how nature works. Paragraph 5 shows one thing they got wrong. They thought nature could fix any damage.

  4. Check each choice

    • D: “they lacked knowledge of nature and natural processes.” This matches “ignorant,” which means not knowing.
    • A: the passage never says people expected future generations to fix things.
    • B: the passage mentions “industrial and agricultural practices.” But it never says Marsh blamed people for caring more about industry.
    • C: the passage describes sheep grazing and mill waste. But it never says people refused to change.

    Watch out: “Ignorant disregard” can sound like people knew better and didn’t care. That reading pulls you toward C. But ignorant means they didn’t know.

  5. Pick the answer

    Marsh’s own word, “ignorant,” points to a lack of knowledge. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer. Paragraph 2 does describe harmful grazing and mill waste. But nothing says people were unwilling to change. Marsh blamed “ignorant” behavior, which means people didn’t know how nature works. That matches D.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 11 as printed on page 53 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 53, question 11. Open page 53 of the handbook (PDF)
The passage “An Early Warning” as printed (page 52)The passage “An Early Warning” as printed on page 52 of the DOE handbook.

Question 95 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 13

Uses the passage above: “An Early Warning”.

Question

Which evidence supports the accuracy of Marsh’s theories about nature?

  • Athe details about Marsh’s observations of environmental degradation
  • Bthe details about how Marsh’s writing inspired a conservation movement
  • Cthe details about how Marsh’s ideas are essential to modern environmental science
  • Dthe details about Marsh’s opinions on human alterations to the environment
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The answer is (C)

The question asks for evidence that supports Marsh’s theories about nature, based on the passage. The passage states that ideas from Marsh’s book are now considered basic knowledge in the field of environmental science (paragraph 6). This statement supports the idea that his theories about nature were accurate, making Option C correct.

Option A is incorrect because, while Marsh made observations of the harm that people were causing to the environment (paragraphs 2 and 3), the details about his observations do not provide evidence that his theories were accurate.

Option B is incorrect because, while Marsh’s writing did inspire a conservation movement (paragraph 8), these details do not call attention to the accuracy of his ideas.

Option D is incorrect because it refers to Marsh’s personal opinions (paragraph 7), not his theories.

Question analysis

This reading question asks which details in a passage about George Perkins Marsh and Man and Nature support the accuracy of his theories about nature. Every choice points to real content in the passage, so students must think carefully about what kind of evidence shows that ideas were correct.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 students judge whether evidence supports a claim, but here the choices are abstract descriptions of passage content, and the student must decide which kind of detail could actually show a theory to be correct, a step beyond typical grade 7 work.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 12, 523 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 51 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The choices are labels for kinds of detail, not quotations, so the student has to translate each one back into the passage and then ask a harder question: does it show the ideas were right? Influence and firsthand observation both feel like proof, and they separate students who confuse popularity or origin with confirmation from those who do not. Only acceptance by modern science judges the theories after the fact.

  1. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice and the one about inspiring a conservation movement are worded alike, details about how Marsh's ideas fared later, and differ only in whether they show acceptance by science or mere influence. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The student must work out what kind of fact could show a theory accurate, later acceptance by a science, and then spot it in paragraph 6's “fundamental principle of modern environmental science”. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The four kinds of detail sit in different paragraphs, observations in 2 and 3, science in 6, opinions in 7 and the movement in 8, and each must be found. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Decide first what kind of fact would prove a theory accurate, then test each choice against that standard rather than against whether it is true of Marsh.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks what shows that Marsh’s theories were accurate, or correct. A theory is an idea that tries to explain how something works. So you need a detail that shows his ideas turned out to be true. A detail that is just true about Marsh is not enough.

  2. Decide what counts as proof

    How can you show an idea is correct? A strong way is when experts study it later and agree with it. Being popular does not make an idea correct. And the facts that gave someone an idea can’t also prove that idea.

  3. Find that proof in the passage

    Paragraph 6 says: “His belief that drastic alteration of this balance would be dangerous is now accepted as a fundamental principle of modern environmental science.” A drastic alteration is a big change. A fundamental principle is a basic rule. So scientists today treat Marsh’s idea as a basic truth. That supports its accuracy.

  4. Check each choice

    • C: Marsh’s ideas are “essential to modern environmental science.” This matches paragraph 6.
    • A: his observations in Vermont and Italy are what he built his theories on. They don’t show the theories were right.
    • B: inspiring a movement shows his ideas were popular. Popular is not the same as correct.
    • D: his opinions about changing nature, such as praising a canal, are more of his views. They are not proof.

    Watch out: A is tempting because the damage Marsh saw was real. But it came before his theories, so it can’t test them.

  5. Pick the answer

    Only C shows experts in a science accepting Marsh’s ideas as true. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is close because it is also about how Marsh’s ideas did later. But many people can follow an idea that is wrong. C shows that scientists, who test ideas, now accept his belief as a basic rule. That is evidence of accuracy, not just of popularity.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 13 as printed on page 53 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 53, question 13. Open page 53 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 96 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 14

Uses the passage above: “An Early Warning”.

Question

Which detail about Marsh provides support for the author’s statement in paragraph 5?

  • Ahis reputation as a radical thinker
  • Bhis contribution to the conservation movement
  • Chis experience working as an ambassador
  • Dhis approval of beneficial human-made projects in nature
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The answer is (D)

The question asks for a specific detail that supports the author’s statement in paragraph 5. In paragraph 5, the author states that “Marsh argued that people may use and enjoy, but not destroy, the riches of the earth.” Marsh’s approval of the Suez Canal shows that Marsh did not oppose certain human innovations, because the advantages—improved transportation and commerce—enriched human life and outweighed environmental damage (paragraph 7). Option D describes that idea.

Option A is incorrect because it is not relevant to the statement in question.

Option B is incorrect because, while it acknowledges Marsh’s contributions to the conservation movement, it does not relate to his attitudes about certain alterations to the environment.

Option C is incorrect because it relates to a time when Marsh observed environmental degradation in Italy.

Question analysis

This reading question asks which detail about George Perkins Marsh supports a statement the author makes in paragraph 5 of a passage about his book Man and Nature. Students must pin down the exact claim first, then find the detail elsewhere in the passage that illustrates it, since all four choices are true facts about Marsh.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R8 evaluating arguments and claims
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Matching a supporting detail to a claim is grade 7 work, but here the student must first decide which statement in paragraph 5 is meant and then connect it to a detail elsewhere, with choices given as brief labels.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 12, 523 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 38 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Paragraph 5 contains two statements, and the question does not say which one it means, so a student must settle that first. Anchored to the first sentence, the radical-thinker detail looks like a fit; anchored to “use and enjoy, but not destroy”, only the approval of the Suez Canal works. The brief labels hide which paragraph each detail comes from, so every one has to be traced.

  1. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The claim is in paragraph 5 but its support, Marsh's praise of the Suez Canal, is two paragraphs later, and the choices are brief labels that must be traced back. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  2. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    Praise for a canal does not mention the earth's riches; the student must see that approving a useful human-made change shows “use and enjoy” in practice. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Restate paragraph 5's claim in your own words, then ask of each detail whether it shows Marsh holding that view, rather than simply being true about him.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    First find the author’s statement in paragraph 5. Then find the detail about Marsh that backs it up, or shows it is true.

  2. Find the statement in paragraph 5

    Paragraph 5 says: “Marsh argued that people may use and enjoy, but not destroy, the riches of the earth.” The riches of the earth are nature’s gifts, like land, water, and forests. In plain words: it is fine to use nature, as long as you don’t wreck it.

  3. Look for that view in action

    Paragraph 7 says: “Marsh did not oppose every human alteration to the environment.” He praised the Suez Canal, a waterway people dug so ships could pass. He believed its benefits, “improved transportation and commerce,” would outweigh any harm. Commerce means trade, or buying and selling. So Marsh was fine with people using nature in a helpful way.

  4. Check each choice

    • D: his approval of helpful human-made projects shows “use and enjoy” in action.
    • A: he was a radical thinker, but that says nothing about how people should use nature.
    • B: he helped inspire the conservation movement, but that doesn’t show his view on using nature.
    • C: his job in Italy explains where he saw land damage. It says nothing about how to use the earth.

    Watch out: Paragraph 5 says Marsh’s book challenged a “popular belief,” which can make you think of “radical.” But A doesn’t show the use-but-don’t-destroy idea.

  5. Pick the answer

    Praising a useful canal shows Marsh believed people may use nature. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong answer. Marsh was a radical thinker, and paragraph 5 does say his book challenged a popular belief. But being radical doesn’t show that people may use nature. Praising a useful canal does, so D gives real support.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 14 as printed on page 54 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 54, question 14. Open page 54 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).

Question 97 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 15

Uses the passage above: “An Early Warning”.

Question

Which of Marsh’s ideas most influenced the environmental movement of the 1960s?

  • ASome human alterations to the environment are necessary.
  • BPeople lack an understanding of the environment.
  • CHuman activities could damage the environment.
  • DEnvironmental degradation has been occurring for many years.
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The answer is (C)

The question asks for the idea Marsh had that was the most influential on the movement in the 1960s. Marsh’s main contribution to the modern environmental movement—the idea that Western society is causing irreversible harm to the environment—is given in paragraph 1, making Option C correct.

Option A is incorrect because, while Marsh did believe that some human alterations to the environment are necessary (paragraph 7), the negative impact of human activity was his most influential idea.

Option B is incorrect because, while Marsh believed that people lacked an understanding of nature (paragraph 3), this belief is a detail in support of his overall claim.

Option D is incorrect because, while Marsh observed firsthand that environmental degradation had been occurring for many years (paragraph 3), that was not the focus of his most influential idea.

Question analysis

This reading question asks which of George Perkins Marsh's ideas most influenced the environmental movement of the 1960s, according to a passage about his book Man and Nature. All four choices are ideas the passage connects to Marsh, so students must find the one the text links to that later movement.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Identifying an idea that a text says shaped later events is routine grade 7 reading. Each choice is one of Marsh's real ideas, so the demand is matching the question to the passage's exact statement, not interpretation.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 12, 523 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 41 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The link to the 1960s is stated outright in the second sentence of the passage, so a student who goes back to it can answer quickly. Points are lost by answering from memory, since every choice is a genuine Marsh idea, including his view that people misunderstand nature. Matching the paraphrase rather than the familiar wording is the whole task.

  1. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice restates paragraph 1's message, “causing irreparable harm to the environment”, in plain words, while wrong ones echo “environmental degradation” and “human alteration to the environment”. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  2. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    All four choices are ideas the passage connects to Marsh, so recognizing one as his is not enough; each must be checked for a link to the 1960s. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Find where the passage mentions the movement of the 1960s and read exactly what it says influenced it, then match that wording to a choice.

Traps

  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.
  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    All four choices are ideas linked to Marsh. You need the one the passage says shaped the environmental movement of the 1960s. So find where the passage talks about the 1960s.

  2. Find the 1960s in the passage

    Paragraph 1 says: “Its message—that Western society is in the process of causing irreparable harm to the environment—greatly influenced ecologists during the beginning of the modern environmentalist movement in the 1960s.”

  3. Put the sentence in plain words

    “Its message” means the book’s main point. Irreparable means it can’t be repaired. Western society means the countries of Europe and North America. So the message was: people are doing damage to nature that can’t be undone. That message is what influenced the 1960s ecologists.

  4. Check each choice

    • C: “Human activities could damage the environment.” This says the same thing in simpler words.
    • A: Marsh did accept some changes, like the Suez Canal (paragraph 7). But the passage doesn’t link that to the 1960s.
    • B: Marsh did blame “man’s ignorant disregard for the laws of nature” (paragraph 3). But that is a reason for the harm, not the message that shaped the 1960s.
    • D: “environmental degradation,” or damage, appears in paragraph 1. But saying damage has gone on for years is only an observation.

    Watch out: B is a real belief of Marsh’s, so it feels right. Make sure a choice answers this question, about the 1960s.

  5. Pick the answer

    The passage directly says the message about harm influenced the 1960s. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong answer, because Marsh really did think people didn’t understand nature. But paragraph 1 says the message that influenced the 1960s was about harm: people were “causing irreparable harm to the environment.” C states that idea.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 15 as printed on page 54 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 54, question 15. Open page 54 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 98 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 16
Passage Champion of the Channel

Champion of the Channel

In 1926 an editor at the London Daily News predicted that Gertrude Ederle, an American swimmer with eighteen world records and three Olympic medals, would fail in her attempt to swim across the English Channel. He claimed that “even the most uncompromising champion of the rights and capacities of women must admit that in contests of physical skill, speed and endurance they must remain forever the weaker sex.” Yet, at only nineteen years old, Ederle not only became the first woman to accomplish this feat, she also broke the men’s record by two hours. Gertrude Ederle’s triumphant swim across the English Channel was a testimony to her determination, innovative spirit, and passion for swimming.

Crossing the English Channel is a daunting task for any swimmer. At its narrowest point, the channel measures twenty-one miles across. Its icy waters hover around sixty degrees Fahrenheit, and its unruly tides and currents toss swimmers about like bobbing corks. Stinging jellyfish, seaweed, and floating debris from shipwrecks and lost cargoes present added hazards.

For decades the channel’s perils have defeated countless swimmers. Ederle, too, failed in her first attempt to cross the channel in 1925. Just six miles short of finishing, she became ill, and her coach had to haul her out of the water. Undeterred, Ederle decided to try again. Ederle knew that if she did not complete the challenge this time, she might never get the opportunity to set this record, because a rival female swimmer was preparing to make her second attempt at the crossing as well.

To prepare for the marathon swim, Ederle found ways to improve her equipment. She and her sister Meg discovered that melted candle wax perfectly sealed goggle edges, effectively waterproofing Ederle’s goggles against hammering waves. The sisters also designed a two-piece silk swimsuit for Ederle. During her first channel-crossing attempt she had worn a standard one-piece swimsuit that, after the lengthy hours of swimming across the channel, had stretched out, filling with water and creating drag, making an already challenging task almost insurmountable. Unlike the cumbersome typical bathing suit, this silk invention weighed little and allowed for easy movement.

On August 6, 1926, Ederle waded into the channel near Cape Gris-Nez, France. At first she shivered in the bone-chilling water even though she had covered her body in eight layers of grease for insulation. Her limbs felt stiff. Her strokes were irregular. Driving forward, she fought to clear her mind and find what she called her “sphere,” a place where the sea became her only companion and the shrieks of gulls and the humming of boat engines faded away. Using a new overhand stroke called the American crawl, Ederle eventually settled into a steady pace, briskly breaking through waves.

Throughout Ederle’s swim, two tugboats accompanied her. One carried newspaper reporters who wired dispatches of her progress to shore. The other, displaying a sign that read “This way, ole kid!” with an arrow pointing forward, transported her coach, family, and friends. Her coach played songs, such as “Yes, We Have No Bananas,” on a phonograph so that Ederle could time her strokes to the rhythm. Using a net, her coach also passed her baby bottles of broth for nourishment.

For hours Ederle swam, dodging debris with an amused smile. However, as she neared the English shore, a sudden fierce storm erupted. The tides and waves forced Ederle backward, and she fought the stubborn swells for several hours. The salty water caused her tongue to swell and inflamed her ears. Yet Ederle felt indescribably happy as she churned through the sea. Finally, as she neared the English shore, the storm abated, and the tide turned. No longer fighting against her, the sea pushed her toward the shore and victory.

After fourteen hours and thirty-one minutes, Ederle, on wobbly legs, stepped onto the English shore. The waiting crowd roared, honked their automobile horns, blasted their tugboat whistles, and set off flares that flashed in the sky. Ederle had swum into history.

When Ederle returned to New York, she received a parade, where thousands of people shouted “Trudy!” Not only were everyday American citizens proud of Ederle, but she also inspired them to be more active. Over the next few years, more than 60,000 people credited her with motivating them to earn their American Red Cross swimming certificates. Gertrude Ederle’s accomplishment proved to the world that with determination and passion, it was possible for a person to achieve his or her goals.

SOLO SWIMS ACROSS THE ENGLISH CHANNEL

Earliest Speed Records
Year Swimmer Time
1875 Matthew Webb (M) 21 hours, 45 minutes
1923 Enrico Tiraboschi (M) 16 hours, 33 minutes
1926 Gertrude Ederle (F) 14 hours, 31 minutes
1926 Arnst Vierkotter (M) 12 hours, 38 minutes
Current Speed Records
Year Swimmer Time
2012 Trent Grimsey (M) 6 hours, 55 minutes
2006 Yvetta Hlavacova (F) 7 hours, 25 minutes

Question

Read this sentence from paragraph 1.

In 1926 an editor at the London Daily News predicted that Gertrude Ederle, an American swimmer with eighteen world records and three Olympic medals, would fail in her attempt to swim across the English Channel.

What does the editor’s comment reveal about the challenges Ederle faced in attempting her feat?

  • ARegardless of her ability, being an American put Ederle at a serious disadvantage over a Londoner, who would be more familiar with the English Channel.
  • BAt the time, Ederle still needed more training in order to succeed in the daunting task of swimming the English Channel.
  • CWhile Ederle could participate in athletic competition, some people were not comfortable with her attempt to swim the channel because no woman had ever attempted it before.
  • DIn spite of her previous achievements, Ederle still experienced social as well as physical obstacles in attempting to swim the channel.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

This is the answer (D)

The question asks what the sentence reveals about Ederle’s challenges leading up to her attempt to swim across the channel.

Option D is correct because the sentence implies a lack of social support since many people believed that a woman, no matter how skilled a swimmer, did not have the strength to overcome the physical challenges that the dangerous channel waters presented (paragraph 1: “He claimed that ‘even the most uncompromising champion of the rights and capacities of women must admit that in contests of physical skill, speed and endurance they must remain forever the weaker sex.’”).

Option A is incorrect because the idea that Ederle was at a disadvantage because she was American rather than English, and thus less familiar with the channel, was not the basis for the newspaper editor’s prediction about the outcome of her swim.

Option B is incorrect because the passage establishes that Ederle was a highly accomplished swimmer who had won major world competitions (paragraph 1: “. . . Gertrude Ederle, an American swimmer with eighteen world records and three Olympic medals . . .”).

Option C is incorrect; the newspaper editor’s point was that it would be impossible for Ederle to complete the swim because she was a woman, not because people were uncomfortable with the idea since no woman had attempted it before.

Question analysis

This reading question quotes a 1926 newspaper editor's prediction that swimmer Gertrude Ederle would fail to cross the English Channel and asks what it reveals about the challenges she faced. Students must infer what lay behind the editor's prediction, and one tempting choice gets the attitude partly right but the reason wrong.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R6 point of view and author position
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Inferring what a quoted opinion reveals is standard grade 7 work. The demand is typical, though the editor's full reasoning, with words like uncompromising, comes in the sentence after the one quoted in the question.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 790 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 148 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The quoted sentence on its own suggests only that someone doubted Ederle, so students who stay inside it guess at why. Those who read the editor's next sentence find the reason, his belief that women are the weaker sex, and can see social prejudice as an obstacle. The near miss gets the prejudice right but invents its cause, and the right answer adds the physical challenge that the second paragraph details.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The quoted sentence gives only a prediction; its reason, women as “the weaker sex”, comes in the next sentence and must be read as a social obstacle alongside the channel's physical ones. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice and the one about people being uncomfortable both find a social obstacle in spite of her ability, and they part only on its cause: the editor's view of women, or no woman having tried. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  3. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

    The editor's claim is one long, formal sentence beginning “even the most uncompromising champion of the rights and capacities of women”, with its point delayed to the end. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: Read the editor's full claim in the sentence that follows, then ask what his reasoning was based on and what it suggests about the challenges she faced.

Traps

  • Half right: One half of a two-part choice is right and the other is not.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    The editor predicted that Ederle would fail. You need to work out what his prediction shows about the challenges she faced. This is an inference: a smart guess based on clues in the text.

  2. Read the editor’s reason

    The very next sentence gives his reason. He said that “even the most uncompromising champion of the rights and capacities of women must admit that in contests of physical skill, speed and endurance they must remain forever the weaker sex.”

  3. Put his words in plain English

    A champion here means a supporter of a cause. Uncompromising means not giving in at all. Capacities means abilities. So he said: even the strongest supporter of women must admit that women will always be weaker in sports. He expected her to fail just because she was a woman.

  4. See the two kinds of challenge

    The editor ignored her skill. She had “eighteen world records and three Olympic medals.” So she faced a social obstacle, one that comes from what other people think. People doubted her because she was a woman. She also faced physical obstacles. Paragraph 2 describes the icy water, the tides, and the jellyfish.

  5. Check each choice

    • D: in spite of her past wins, she faced “social as well as physical obstacles.” This matches.
    • A: the editor never mentions her being American or knowing the channel.
    • B: her records show she was well trained. Training was not the editor’s reason.
    • C: people did doubt her, but not because no woman had tried. Ederle herself had tried in 1925 (paragraph 3).

    Watch out: C spots the social problem but gives the wrong reason for it.

  6. Pick the answer

    The editor’s view of women was a social obstacle, added to the hard swim itself. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer, since it also points to a social problem. But the editor’s reason was that women are “the weaker sex,” not that no woman had tried. In fact, Ederle tried in 1925. D names the real social obstacle and the physical ones too.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 16 as printed on page 57 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 57, question 16. Open page 57 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).
The passage “Champion of the Channel” as printed (pages 56–57)The passage “Champion of the Channel” as printed on page 56 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Champion of the Channel” as printed on page 57 of the DOE handbook.

Question 99 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 19

Uses the passage above: “Champion of the Channel”.

Question

Which sentence best supports the idea that Ederle succeeded in swimming across the channel because of her innovative approach to the challenge?

  • A“Yet, at only nineteen years old, Ederle not only became the first woman to accomplish this feat, she also broke the men’s record by two hours.” (paragraph 1)
  • B“At first she shivered in the bone-chilling water even though she had covered her body in eight layers of grease for insulation.” (paragraph 5)
  • C“Using a new overhand stroke called the American crawl, Ederle eventually settled into a steady pace, briskly breaking through waves.” (paragraph 5)
  • D“No longer fighting against her, the sea pushed her toward the shore and victory.” (paragraph 7)
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The answer is (C)

The question asks for the best support for the idea that Ederle’s swim across the channel was successful because of her innovative approach to the challenge.

Option C is correct because the sentence from paragraph 5 explains that Ederle employed a newly developed type of stroke that allowed her to maintain her pace through the rough water.

Option A is incorrect because the sentence from paragraph 1 shows that her performance was groundbreaking but not necessarily creative.

Option B is incorrect because the layers of grease primarily served to help maintain Ederle’s body temperature in the water, and there is nothing in the passage to suggest that this was an innovative practice.

Option D is incorrect because the sentence from paragraph 7 simply states that Ederle fought against the waves and completed her swim, and it does not describe how Ederle employed innovative techniques.

Question analysis

This reading question asks which quoted sentence best supports the idea that Gertrude Ederle crossed the English Channel because of an innovative approach. Each quotation describes a real moment of her story, so students must test each one against what innovative actually means.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Choosing the sentence that best supports an idea is a core grade 7 reading task. The quotations come with paragraph numbers, so the demand is a careful check of each against the key word innovative, as in typical grade 7 practice.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 790 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 108 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A wrong paragraph number in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The claim has two parts, success and an innovative cause, and only one quotation shows both. The record-breaking sentence proves the success but says nothing about method, while the grease is a technique the passage never calls new and that did not keep her from shivering. The word “new” in the crawl sentence is the signal careful readers use.

  1. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

    Each quotation shows a real part of the swim, so each must pass two tests: it shows something new that Ederle did, and that thing helped her finish. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Pin down what innovative means in your own words, then ask of each quoted sentence whether it shows an innovative approach of Ederle's at work and helping her succeed.

Traps

  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook says the sentence in choice D comes from paragraph 6. The choice itself and the passage place it in paragraph 7 (“No longer fighting against her, the sea pushed her toward the shore and victory.”), so the explanation now says paragraph 7.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    Innovative means new and creative, a fresh way of doing something. You need a sentence that shows two things. First, Ederle used something new. Second, that new thing helped her succeed.

  2. Look for something new

    • A says she was the first woman across and beat the men’s record. That shows she succeeded, but not how.
    • B says she wore grease “for insulation,” a layer that keeps heat in. The passage never calls the grease new.
    • C says she used “a new overhand stroke called the American crawl” (paragraph 5). Here is the word “new.”
    • D says the sea pushed her to shore. That is the tide changing, not something Ederle did.

  3. Check that it helped her

    Choice C goes on: she “eventually settled into a steady pace, briskly breaking through waves.” A stroke is the way you move your arms to swim. Briskly means quickly and with energy. So the new stroke gave her a steady, quick pace. That helped her get across.

  4. Rule out the grease

    Watch out: B can seem clever, since the grease was meant to keep her warm. But the same sentence says she still “shivered in the bone-chilling water.” So the passage does not call it new, and it does not show it helping her win.

  5. Pick the answer

    Only C shows a new method that helped her succeed. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong answer, because grease for warmth sounds smart. But the passage never says it was new, and she shivered anyway. C has both parts: the word “new” and a result, a “steady pace” through the waves.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 19 as printed on page 58 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 58, question 19. Open page 58 of the handbook (PDF) This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 100 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 23

Uses the passage above: “Champion of the Channel”.

Question

Ederle’s victorious swim across the English Channel influenced American attitudes mainly by

  • Asparking interest in physical activity and in seeking swimming certification.
  • Bencouraging other swimmers to seek out and achieve challenging feats.
  • Cdemonstrating that women could achieve and even surpass feats accomplished by men.
  • Dshowing that determination and perseverance are necessary to overcome previous failures.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The answer is (A)

The question asks for an explanation of how Ederle’s successful swim across the channel affected American attitudes.

Option A is correct because the passage indicates that there was a large increase in the number of American men and women who became physically active and who obtained swimming certificates shortly after Ederle’s swim (paragraph 9: “Over the next few years, more than 60,000 people credited her with motivating them to earn their American Red Cross swimming certificates.”).

Option B is incorrect because, although there was an increase in the number of people learning to swim, the passage does not provide details about people who were inspired by Ederle to take on extreme challenges such as swimming across the channel.

Option C is incorrect because, although Ederle did, in fact, surpass the men’s time for the swim by two hours, the passage does not provide information about how this achievement affected the American people’s perception of the capabilities of men and women.

Option D is incorrect because, although the passage does explain how Ederle’s determination and perseverance led to her eventual success, it does not demonstrate how this affected American attitudes toward overcoming failures.

Question analysis

This reading question asks how Gertrude Ederle's record-setting English Channel swim mainly influenced American attitudes, according to the final paragraph of the passage. Students must stick to what the passage actually reports about Americans' reactions, since several choices sound plausible for such a famous swim.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Explaining how a person influenced others is typical grade 7 reading. The evidence sits in one paragraph near the end, and the main demand is matching each choice to what that paragraph actually says.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 790 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 55 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The answer is reported plainly in the last paragraph, but the passage's opening primes a different expectation. Because the editor dismissed women and Ederle then beat the men's record, many students expect her swim to have changed how Americans saw women, an effect the passage never reports. The question rewards sticking to what the text says Americans actually did afterward.

  1. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice and the one about encouraging other swimmers both say Ederle moved people to take up swimming, and differ only in scale: earning swimming certificates or chasing “challenging feats”. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer

    The answer recasts paragraph 9's “inspired them to be more active” and “swimming certificates” in new words, while one wrong choice echoes the closing word “determination”. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

Strategy: Go to the paragraph about her return to New York and note exactly what it says Americans did or felt afterward, then match that report to a choice.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks how Ederle’s swim changed the way Americans thought or acted. You need the effect the passage actually reports. So look at what happened after she came home.

  2. Find the effect in paragraph 9

    Paragraph 9 says: “Not only were everyday American citizens proud of Ederle, but she also inspired them to be more active.” It goes on: “Over the next few years, more than 60,000 people credited her with motivating them to earn their American Red Cross swimming certificates.”

  3. Put it in plain words

    To credit someone means to say they were the reason for something. A swimming certificate is a paper that shows you passed a swimming course. So Americans got more active. Many worked to earn swimming certificates because of her.

  4. Check each choice

    • A: “sparking interest in physical activity and in seeking swimming certification.” This matches both parts of paragraph 9.
    • B says swimmers went after “challenging feats.” The passage talks about certificates, not big feats.
    • C: Ederle did beat the men’s record. But the passage never says this changed what Americans thought about women.
    • D echoes the last sentence about determination. But that sentence is about what she proved “to the world,” and it says “possible,” not “necessary.”

    Watch out: C feels right because of the editor in paragraph 1. But the passage never reports a change in how Americans saw women.

  5. Pick the answer

    Paragraph 9 reports that Americans became more active and earned swimming certificates. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is close because it also says people were moved to swim. But it says they chased “challenging feats,” like crossing the channel. The passage only says people got more active and earned swimming certificates. A matches that exactly.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 23 as printed on page 59 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 59, question 23. Open page 59 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 101 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 25

Uses the passage above: “Champion of the Channel”.

Question

The table contributes to the development of the topic of the passage mainly by

  • Aemphasizing that people have continued to swim across the channel and have significantly reduced the speed record.
  • Bsuggesting that Ederle inspired women to swim across the channel in an attempt to break the current speed record.
  • Crevealing that Ederle is not the only woman who has set a record time for swimming across the English Channel.
  • Dproviding a comparison between channel-swimming records of the early twentieth century and current records.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The answer is (A)

The question asks for an explanation of how the table at the end of the passage contributes to the development of the topic of the passage. The table provides information about the earliest speed records set for crossing the channel, including Ederle’s, and information about present-day records, which are much faster.

Option A is correct because the information in the table develops the topic of Ederle’s historic swim across the channel by indicating that people have continued to swim the channel and have found new ways to set speed records over time.

Option B is incorrect because, even though the table presents the time for the current female record holder, there is no indication in the passage or in the table that the record holder was inspired by Ederle.

Option C is incorrect because, although the table shows that another woman, Yvetta Hlavacova, set a record time, the passage itself does not discuss other female swimmers’ successful swims across the channel, so this detail is not the main way the table develops the topic.

Option D is incorrect because, although the table allows for the comparison of times, the topic of the passage is related to Ederle’s record in comparison with other swimmers of her time, not present-day swimmers.

Question analysis

This reading question asks how the table of English Channel swim records at the end of the Gertrude Ederle passage contributes to the topic. Students must read times from two eras, compare them, and decide what the table mainly adds, which is harder than it looks because several choices say something true about the table.

NYS standards
  • 7R5 structure and genre features
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Explaining how a table adds to a passage goes beyond typical grade 7 reading questions: the student must compare times across eras, notice who set them, and choose among statements several of which are partly true of the table.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 790 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 84 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • An inaccurate statement in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Every choice says something about the table, and two are literally true of it, so the question hinges on the word “mainly”. Students lose the point by describing what the table holds, a comparison or a second woman, instead of what the comparison shows: the record has kept falling since Ederle's day. Reading the times, not just the headings, makes that drop visible.

  1. A very close wrong answer major Choosing the answer

    The right choice and the comparison one cover the same contrast between old and current records; the right one states its result, a much faster record, while the other only names the comparison and its “early twentieth century” leaves out 1875. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  2. Reading a figure, table or graph moderate Understanding the question

    The table splits records into earliest and current sets, and the student must compare times across them, from 21 hours 45 minutes in 1875 down to 6 hours 55 minutes in 2012. (Lesh, Post & Behr, 1987; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  3. How, not what moderate Working it out

    The question asks how the table develops the passage's topic, so the student must say what it adds beyond the text, not just what it lists. (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001)

Strategy: Read the table's headings and compare the times, then ask what a reader learns from it that the passage alone does not say, and pick the choice that names that.

Traps

  • Wrong purpose or structure: Names a purpose, structure or effect that the part does not serve, or describes what a part says when the question asks what it does.
  • Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook rejects choice C because “the passage does not provide information about other female swimmers’ successful swims across the channel.” But the table lists a second woman, Yvetta Hlavacova (2006, 7 hours, 25 minutes), so C is true of the table. The explanation now says C is wrong because that one detail is not the table’s main contribution: the passage does not discuss other female swimmers, and the table mainly shows how far the record has fallen since Ederle’s time.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks what the table adds to the passage. Don’t just say what is in the table. Say what you learn from it that the passage itself does not tell you.

  2. Read the key rows of the table

    The table has two parts, “Earliest Speed Records” and “Current Speed Records.” Here are three of its rows:

    YearSwimmerTime
    1875Matthew Webb21 hours, 45 minutes
    1926Gertrude Ederle14 hours, 31 minutes
    2012Trent Grimsey6 hours, 55 minutes

  3. Compare the times

    Ederle took about 14 and a half hours. Half of that is about 7 and a quarter hours. The 2012 record is under 7 hours. So today’s record is less than half of Ederle’s time. This shows two things. People kept swimming the channel long after Ederle. And they got much faster.

  4. See what the passage leaves out

    The passage ends with Ederle’s parade and the people she inspired. It never says what happened to the record later. The table adds that part of the story: the record kept falling, by a lot.

  5. Check each choice

    • A: people kept swimming the channel and “significantly reduced the speed record.” Significantly means by a lot. The table shows this.
    • B: nothing says later women were inspired by Ederle.
    • C: the table does show another woman, Yvetta Hlavacova, with a record. But that is one row, not the table’s main point.
    • D only names what is in the table, not what it shows. Also, the first record is from 1875, not the twentieth century.

    Watch out: D describes the table’s contents. The question asks what the table contributes, or adds.

  6. Pick the answer

    The table shows that the record has fallen a long way since Ederle’s time. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong answer, because the table does set old and new records side by side. But D stops at naming the comparison. A says what the comparison shows. The record dropped from over 21 hours to under 7 hours. That is what the table adds to the passage.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 25 as printed on page 60 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 60, question 25. Open page 60 of the handbook (PDF) This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 102 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 30
Passage Excerpt from A Tramp Abroad

Excerpt from A Tramp Abroad

by Mark Twain

Now and then, while we1^1 rested, we watched the laborious ant at his work. I found nothing new in him—certainly nothing to change my opinion of him. It seems to me that in the matter of intellect the ant must be a strangely overrated bird. During many summers now I have watched him, when I ought to have been in better business, and I have not yet come across a living ant that seemed to have any more sense than a dead one. I refer to the ordinary ant, of course; I have had no experience of those wonderful Swiss and African ones which vote, keep drilled armies, . . . and dispute about religion. Those particular ants may be all that the naturalist paints them, but I am persuaded that the average ant is a sham.

I admit his industry, of course; he is the hardest working creature in the world—when anybody is looking—but his leather-headedness is the point I make against him. He goes out foraging, he makes a capture, and then what does he do? Go home? No; he goes anywhere but home. He doesn’t know where home is. His home may be only three feet away; no matter, he can’t find it. He makes his capture, as I have said; it is generally something which can be of no sort of use to himself or anybody else; it is usually seven times bigger than it ought to be; he hunts out the awkwardest place to take hold of it; he lifts it bodily up in the air by main force, and starts—not toward home, but in the opposite direction; not calmly and wisely, but with a frantic haste which is wasteful of his strength; he fetches up against a pebble, and, instead of going around it, he climbs over it backwards, dragging his booty after him, tumbles down on the other side, jumps up in a passion, kicks the dust off his clothes, moistens his hands, grabs his property viciously, yanks it this way, then that, shoves it ahead of him a moment, turns tail and lugs it after him another moment, gets madder and madder, then presently hoists it into the air and goes tearing away in an entirely new direction; comes to a weed; it never occurs to him to go around it. No; he must climb it, and he does climb it, dragging his worthless property to the top—which is as bright a thing to do as it would be for me to carry a sack of flour from Heidelberg to Paris by way of Strasburg steeple; when he gets up there he finds that that is not the place; takes a cursory glance at the scenery, and either climbs down again or tumbles down, and starts off once more—as usual, in a new direction. At the end of half an hour he fetches up within six inches of the place he started from, and lays his burden down. Meantime, he has been over all the ground for two yards around, and climbed all the weeds and pebbles he came across. Now he wipes the sweat from his brow, strokes his limbs, and then marches aimlessly off, in as violent a hurry as ever. He traverses a good deal of zig-zag country, and by and by stumbles on his same booty again. He does not remember to have ever seen it before; he looks around to see which is not the way home, grabs his bundle, and starts. He goes through the same adventures he had before; finally stops to rest, and a friend comes along.

Evidently the friend remarks that a last year’s grasshopper leg is a very noble acquisition, and inquires where he got it. Evidently the proprietor does not remember exactly where he did get it, but thinks he got it “around here somewhere.” Evidently the friend contracts to help him freight it home. Then, with a judgment peculiarly antic (pun not intentional), they take hold of opposite ends of that grasshopper leg and begin to tug with all their might in opposite directions. Presently they take a rest, and confer together. They decide that something is wrong, they can’t make out what. Then they go at it again, just as before. Same result. Mutual recriminations follow. Evidently each accuses the other of being an obstructionist. They warm up, and the dispute ends in a fight. They lock themselves together and chew each other’s jaws for a while; then they roll and tumble on the ground till one loses a horn or a leg and has to haul off for repairs. They make up and go to work again in the same old insane way, but the crippled ant is at a disadvantage; tug as he may, the other one drags off the booty and him at the end of it. Instead of giving up, he hangs on, and gets his shins bruised against every obstruction that comes in the way. By and by, when that grasshopper leg has been dragged all over the same old ground once more, it is finally dumped at about the spot where it originally lay. The two perspiring ants inspect it thoughtfully and decide that dried grasshopper legs are a poor sort of property after all, and then each starts off in a different direction to see if he can’t find an old nail or something else that is heavy enough to afford entertainment and at the same time valueless enough to make an ant want to own it. . . .

Science has recently discovered that the ant does not lay up anything for winter use. . . . He does not work, except when people are looking, and only then when the observer has a green, naturalistic look, and seems to be taking notes. This amounts to deception, and will injure him for the Sunday schools. He has not judgment enough to know what is good to eat from what isn’t. This amounts to ignorance, and will impair the world’s respect for him. . . . He cannot stroll around a stump and find his way home again. This amounts to idiocy, and once the damaging fact is established, thoughtful people will cease to look up to him. It is strange beyond comprehension that so manifest a humbug as the ant has been able to fool so many nations and keep it up so many ages without being found out.

we1^1: the author and his fictional travel companion

From A TRAMP ABROAD by Mark Twain—Public Domain

Question

Which of the following best explains the author’s fascination with the ants?

  • A“During many summers now I have watched him, when I ought to have been in better business, and I have not yet come across a living ant that seemed to have any more sense than a dead one.” (paragraph 1)
  • B“I admit his industry, of course; he is the hardest working creature in the world—” (paragraph 2)
  • C“Science has recently discovered that the ant does not lay up anything for winter use.” (paragraph 4)
  • D“It is strange beyond comprehension that so manifest a humbug as the ant has been able to fool so many nations and keep it up so many ages without being found out.” (paragraph 4)
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The answer is (D)

The question asks for the text from the passage that explains why the author finds the behavior of the ants fascinating. The author’s purpose in describing the excessively foolish actions of the ants is to prove his argument that in spite of what people have long believed, ants are completely lacking in intelligence.

Option D is correct because the quoted text in Option D shows the author’s interest in the difference between public opinion and observed truth.

Option A is incorrect because the quoted text in Option A provides details that reflect the author’s basic interest, but this observation does not extend to the level of fascination.

Option B is incorrect because the author’s main message in the excerpt is that the ant, however industrious, is foolish.

Option C is incorrect because the quoted text in Option C also provides details that would reflect a basic interest and observation but that do not extend to fascination.

Question analysis

This textual evidence question asks which of four quotations from Mark Twain's ant excerpt best explains why the narrator is so fascinated by ants. Nowhere does the excerpt say outright what draws him to them, so students must infer it and then weigh quotations that all show him paying attention to ants.

NYS standards
  • 7R6 point of view and author position
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 evidence questions usually match a quotation to a claim the text states. Here the claim, the narrator's fascination, is never named, so students must infer its cause from four quotations in a satirical, old-fashioned text.
Estimated difficulty
Among the hardest on the SHSAT: a non-obvious approach, heavy reading, or a well-hidden trap.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from the whole text
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 1099 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 116 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The stem's word “fascination” clashes with a narrator who sneers at ants, and that clash is what makes the item hard. Students must recast fascination as puzzled interest and then look for the quotation that names its cause, the gap between the ant's reputation and its behavior. The quotation about years of watching is the trap: it shows interest without explaining it, and many careful readers settle on it.

  1. Reading between the lines major Working it out

    The excerpt never says the author is fascinated, and his tone is contempt, so students must infer that what holds his attention is the puzzle of how a “humbug” fooled whole nations. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Hard words moderate Understanding the question

    The key turns on “so manifest a humbug,” meaning so obvious a fraud, and “strange beyond comprehension”; a student who skips those words cannot see that the line expresses wonder. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

  3. A lot to read minor Understanding the question

    Each choice is a full quotation, the longest 38 words, so the four together form a short passage of archaic prose to weigh. (Kintsch, 1998; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Before reading the quotations, state in your own words what most seems to interest the narrator about ants; then pick the quotation that gives the reason behind his interest.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Wrong tone or attitude: Misjudges the tone, attitude or point of view, such as reading admiration as criticism, or taking a character's or subject's feelings for the author's.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This question is about the author’s point of view. Twain sounds mostly annoyed with ants. So what keeps him so interested in them? You need the quote that gives the reason for his interest.

  2. Think about the word fascination

    Fascination means a strong interest, the kind that makes you keep watching. Twain mocks ants, so he does not admire them. What puzzles him is their good name. People all over the world think ants are wise. Twain thinks they are not.

  3. Find the reason in paragraph 4

    Look at the last sentence of paragraph 4: “It is strange beyond comprehension that so manifest a humbug as the ant has been able to fool so many nations.”

    A humbug is a fake or a fraud. Manifest means plain to see. “Beyond comprehension” means too strange to understand. So Twain is amazed that such an obvious fake has fooled people for ages.

  4. Check each choice

    • A shows he has watched ants for years. It shows interest, but not the reason for it.
    • B sounds like praise, but he adds “when anybody is looking.” It is really a dig at the ant.
    • C is one fact he uses against the ant. It does not explain his interest.
    • D fits. It names the puzzle: how a plain fake fooled so many people.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only choice D gives the reason Twain can’t stop thinking about ants. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the strongest trap, because watching ants for “many summers” shows real interest. But A only tells what he did. D tells why: he is amazed that the ant fooled “so many nations.” A question about fascination wants the cause.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 30 as printed on page 64 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 64, question 30. Open page 64 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).
The passage “Excerpt from A Tramp Abroad” as printed (pages 62–63)The passage “Excerpt from A Tramp Abroad” as printed on page 62 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from A Tramp Abroad” as printed on page 63 of the DOE handbook.

Question 103 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 32

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from A Tramp Abroad”.

Question

Which sentence from paragraph 2 best supports the idea that sheer “leather-headedness” (paragraph 2) amounts to “ignorance” and “idiocy” (paragraph 4)?

  • A“He goes out foraging, he makes a capture, and then what does he do?”
  • B“He lifts it bodily up in the air by main force,”
  • C“When he gets up there he finds that that is not the place;”
  • D“Now he wipes the sweat from his brow, strokes his limbs, and then marches aimlessly off, in as violent a hurry as ever.”
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The answer is (C)

The question asks for a sentence in the excerpt that supports the idea that the ant’s “leather-headedness” (paragraph 2), or the ant’s stubborn determination to engage in foolish and worthless actions, amounts to ignorance and idiocy.

Option C is correct because, in the sentence in Option C, the ant realizes he is in the wrong place only after wasting effort and strength, which reveals his stupidity and lack of awareness.

Option A is incorrect because the sentence in Option A poses the question that the ant should ask himself and does not demonstrate the ant’s ignorance and idiocy.

Option B is incorrect because the sentence in Option B simply describes the ant’s action of lifting the grasshopper leg into a position to carry it.

Option D is incorrect because, while the sentence in Option D describes the ant’s exhaustion, which is caused by his stubborn determination, the sentence does not provide a connection to the ant’s leather-headedness.

Question analysis

This textual evidence question asks which sentence from paragraph 2 best shows that the ant's “leather-headedness” amounts to the “ignorance” and “idiocy” named later in Mark Twain's excerpt. Students must work out an old-fashioned insult and then choose among quotations that all describe the ant behaving oddly.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7L4a context clues
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 On a typical grade 7 test, an evidence question pairs a clear claim with one obviously fitting quotation. Here students must first decode an old-fashioned insult and connect it to judgments made two paragraphs later, which demands more interpretation.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 1099 words; question and choices: about grade 7, 79 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A wrong paragraph number in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Every quotation comes from the ant's absurd trip, so the question is which one shows a failure of sense on its own. Two are fragments cut just before the foolish part, and students who remember the full sentence credit them with more than they show. The marching-aimlessly line is the strongest rival; the key wins because it records a mistake the ant discovers only after great effort, matching paragraph 4's ant that cannot find his way.

  1. Hard words moderate Understanding the question

    “Leather-headedness” is an old insult meaning thick-headed stupidity; a student who reads it as toughness or stubbornness will look for force or persistence instead of foolishness. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

  2. Evidence in several places moderate Working it out

    The claim joins a word in paragraph 2 to “ignorance” and “idiocy” in paragraph 4, where idiocy is an ant that cannot “find his way home again.” (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Work out from context what “leather-headedness” means, then ask of each quotation whether it clearly shows that quality, and how it connects to the judgments in paragraph 4.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Wrong part of the text: A choice is true of another paragraph, stanza or speaker than the one asked about.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook places the ant’s “leather-headedness” in paragraph 4. The word is in paragraph 2, as the question itself says, so the explanation now reads “(paragraph 2)”.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is an evidence question. You need the sentence from paragraph 2 that best proves the ant is foolish. First you must know what the three insults mean.

  2. Learn what the insults mean

    In paragraph 2 Twain says, “his leather-headedness is the point I make against him.” Leather-headed is an old insult. It means thick-headed or dim. Watch out: it does not mean tough or strong.

    In paragraph 4 he calls the ant’s acts “ignorance” (not knowing things) and “idiocy” (being very foolish). His example of idiocy is this: “He cannot stroll around a stump and find his way home again.”

  3. Look for a foolish mistake

    So look for a quote that, by itself, shows the ant making a foolish mistake. Choice C does. The ant drags his load to the top of a weed. Then “he finds that that is not the place.” He learns he is wrong only after all that work. That is a lot like an ant who can’t find his way home.

  4. Check each choice

    • A only asks a question. The foolish answer comes in later words.
    • B shows the ant is strong, lifting his load “by main force.” Strength is not foolishness.
    • C fits. It shows a mistake he finds only after wasting effort.
    • D shows him sweaty and in a hurry. “Aimlessly” hints that he has no plan, but the quote shows no clear mistake.

  5. Choose the answer

    Choice C gives the clearest proof of a thick-headed ant. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong choice, because “aimlessly” means without a goal. But D mostly shows the ant wiping sweat and rushing off. C shows a real error: he works hard to reach a spot, and it is the wrong spot. That matches “ignorance” and “idiocy” best.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 32 as printed on page 65 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 65, question 32. Open page 65 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D). This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 104 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 37
Passage Ruins of a Fabled City

Ruins of a Fabled City

The African country of Zimbabwe took its name from the Shona word meaning “stone enclosures” or “venerated houses.” In fact, today dozens of stone ruins are scattered throughout Zimbabwe and other areas in southeastern Africa. One of these ruins, known as Great Zimbabwe, was once a fabled city that inspired tales that circulated throughout Europe. Where was this remarkable city, and who had built it? For centuries the mystery occupied the minds of explorers and treasure seekers.

The first reports to Europeans of Great Zimbabwe were spread a thousand years ago by Arab traders sailing between the Middle East and the east coast of Africa. The traders told of the fabulous wealth of a mysterious stone city in the African interior. In the trader’s tales, that city became associated with the Europeans’ understanding of Middle Eastern history—the Queen of Sheba, King Solomon and his legendary gold mines, long since lost to the world. By the sixteenth century, Portuguese explorers regularly visited East Africa, searching for King Solomon’s gold, but they never found Great Zimbabwe. In 1552, a Portuguese historian, João de Barros, recorded a story told by Arabs about a city with a “square fortress of masonry within and without, built of stones of marvelous size, and there appears to be no mortar joining them.”

In fact, Great Zimbabwe was a marvel. In one area a massive wall more than thirty feet high and twenty feet thick created a great enclosure. Another area contained a fortress-like series of walls, corridors, and steps built into the bluff that overlooks the ruins. Throughout the city, each stone was precisely fitted to the others without the use of mortar.

In the 1870s Karl Mauch, a German geologist, was the first European to see Great Zimbabwe, by then in ruins. Mauch realized that he had “rediscovered” the fabled city from de Barros’s story. He jumped to the conclusion that Great Zimbabwe had been built by the Queen of Sheba. British authorities sent a British journalist, Richard Hall, to Great Zimbabwe to investigate Mauch’s report. Archaeology was still in its infancy, and Hall, convinced that the structures had been built by ancient people from the Middle East, dug up and discarded archaeological deposits that would have revealed much about the true history of Great Zimbabwe. Later European excavations destroyed even more valuable evidence.

In the twentieth century, after excavating areas that had not been disturbed, David Randall-MacIver, a Scottish Egyptologist, and Gertrude Caton-Thompson, an English archaeologist, concluded that the ruins were unmistakably African in origin. Great Zimbabwe was most likely built during the fourteenth or fifteenth century by the ancestors of the present-day Shona people. Recent carbon-14 dating supports their conclusion. Great Zimbabwe was once home to an estimated 20,000 people, the center of a great Shona kingdom. Wealthy Shona kings traded their ivory and gold in coastal towns for other goods, thus accounting for the discovery of beads and other foreign wares in the ruins.

One mystery of Great Zimbabwe had been solved. Another mystery remains: why was the settlement at Great Zimbabwe abandoned, leaving the magnificent stone architecture to fall into ruins?

Question

What was the main way that Karl Mauch’s conclusions about Great Zimbabwe in paragraph 4 affected later archaeological investigations?

  • AArchaeologists from all over Europe became interested in excavating the area.
  • BArchaeologists made assumptions about the history of the ruins before excavating.
  • CArchaeologists started to believe that many of the past accounts recorded about the ruins were true.
  • DArchaeologists realized it was unlikely that an ancient culture could build such grand structures.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The answer is (B)

The question asks for an explanation of how Mauch’s conclusions influenced later investigations.

Option B is the best option because Mauch’s conclusion that Great Zimbabwe “had been built by the Queen of Sheba” (paragraph 4) affected later investigations of the ruins by causing archaeologists to destroy evidence without examining it, as they assumed that Mauch’s conclusions were accurate (paragraph 4).

Option A is incorrect because, while archaeologists were interested in the area, this was not the main effect of Mauch’s conclusions, as described in the passage.

Option C is incorrect because people searched for Great Zimbabwe because they already believed the stories told by Arab traders and historians like de Barros (paragraph 2), not because of Mauch’s conclusions.

Option D is incorrect because, although the city was considered impressive (paragraph 3), Mauch’s conclusions did not influence whether people believed an ancient culture could have built the city.

Question analysis

This cause-and-effect question asks how Karl Mauch's 1870s conclusions about Great Zimbabwe shaped the investigations that came after him. Students must trace the effect through paragraph 4, where later visitors dug at the site, while keeping the older traders' tales and Portuguese searches in their proper order.

NYS standards
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Grade 7 informational reading asks how events and ideas influence one another, which is exactly this task. The effect is implied rather than stated, but it sits in one paragraph, keeping the demand typical for grade 7.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 524 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 70 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The cause and effect is implied across two sentences of paragraph 4, so students must connect Mauch's leap to the Queen of Sheba with Hall's conviction and the evidence he threw away. The passage's long run of legends makes the older accounts feel like a consequence of Mauch, when they came first. The key rewards reading for what investigators did differently because of him, not what anyone believed at some point.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The passage never says Mauch's conclusion caused anything; the link comes from Hall being sent “to investigate Mauch's report” and arriving “convinced” of Middle Eastern builders. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

    B and C both say later investigators took beliefs about the ruins' history for granted; C differs in one detail, since trust in the old accounts began centuries before Mauch rather than because of him. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

  3. Much to keep track of minor Working it out

    Students must keep the order of believers straight: Arab traders, Portuguese explorers, de Barros in 1552, Mauch in the 1870s, then Hall and later European diggers. (Sweller, 1988; Carpenter, Just & Shell, 1990)

Strategy: Find what Mauch concluded, then read the sentences about the next people to dig at the site and ask how his conclusion shows up in what they did.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is a cause-and-effect question. It asks how Karl Mauch’s ideas changed what later people did at the ruins.

  2. Find the evidence in paragraph 4

    Mauch “jumped to the conclusion that Great Zimbabwe had been built by the Queen of Sheba.” Then Richard Hall was sent “to investigate Mauch’s report.”

    Hall arrived “convinced that the structures had been built by ancient people from the Middle East.” So he “dug up and discarded archaeological deposits.” Later digs “destroyed even more valuable evidence.”

  3. Work out the effect

    To jump to a conclusion is to decide something before you have proof. Mauch did that. Hall came to check Mauch’s report, already sure of a story like Mauch’s. He decided the answer before he dug. So he threw away clues. “Deposits” here means layers of old things in the ground. They could have shown the true history.

  4. Check each choice

    • A The passage never says people from all over Europe became interested.
    • B fits. The diggers made assumptions (beliefs taken as true without proof) before they dug.
    • C People trusted the old tales centuries before Mauch, so he did not cause that.
    • D Hall still thought an ancient people built the city, just not Africans.

  5. Choose the answer

    Mauch’s guess led later diggers to decide the city’s history before they dug. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest trap. It also says people trusted ideas about the ruins. But trust in the old tales began with Arab traders, and de Barros wrote his story down in 1552. Mauch came in the 1870s. C gets the order backward. B names what changed after Mauch.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 37 as printed on page 69 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 69, question 37. Open page 69 of the handbook (PDF)
The passage “Ruins of a Fabled City” as printed (page 68)The passage “Ruins of a Fabled City” as printed on page 68 of the DOE handbook.

Question 105 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 38

Uses the passage above: “Ruins of a Fabled City”.

Question

Which statement best describes Portuguese explorers’ experience searching for Great Zimbabwe?

  • AThey routinely visited East Africa but never located the city.
  • BThey were motivated by the hope of finding a mysterious city.
  • CThey used details from de Barros’s story in order to determine the city’s exact location.
  • DThey studied history books in order to gather information about the city.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The answer is (A)

The question asks for the statement that best summarizes the Portuguese explorers’ experience.

Option A is correct; the Portuguese repeatedly searched for King Solomon’s gold, which they associated with East Africa, but they never found the city (paragraph 2).

Option B is incorrect because, while they did hope to find a city, the explorers’ overall experience was focused on finding wealth.

Option C is incorrect because the information in paragraph 2 does not support the idea that the explorers used details from de Barros’s story to find the city’s location.

Option D is incorrect because the explorers heard stories about the possible wealthy city, but they did not study “history books in order to gather information about the city.”

Question analysis

In this key details question on an informational passage about Great Zimbabwe, students pick the statement that best describes the Portuguese explorers' search for the city. The key facts sit in one sentence of paragraph 2, but that paragraph is crowded with traders, legends and a historian's report that are easy to blur together.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 6 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Below grade 7 This is a locate-and-restate task that depends on one sentence. Typical grade 7 questions ask for more interpretation, so it sits below grade 7 even though the passage itself is dense with history.
Estimated difficulty
Routine: one familiar step, little to misread.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one sentence or line
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 524 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 59 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The answer nearly restates paragraph 2's sentence that the explorers “regularly visited East Africa” but “never found Great Zimbabwe” while hunting for King Solomon's gold. Errors come from mixing that sentence with its neighbors: the traders' talk of a mysterious city, de Barros's record, and the words history and historian. A student who rereads that one sentence and checks each choice against it should not miss this.

  1. A lot to read minor Understanding the question

    Paragraph 2 packs Arab traders, the Queen of Sheba, King Solomon, Portuguese explorers and de Barros into five sentences, so the explorers' one sentence is easy to blur with its neighbors. (Kintsch, 1998; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Scan paragraph 2 for the Portuguese explorers and read that sentence closely; keep only a choice whose every part the sentence states.

Traps

  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.
  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is a key-detail question. The answer is stated in the passage. You just need to find the right sentence and read it closely.

  2. Find the sentence about the Portuguese

    Paragraph 2 has one sentence about them: “By the sixteenth century, Portuguese explorers regularly visited East Africa, searching for King Solomon’s gold, but they never found Great Zimbabwe.”

  3. Put it in your own words

    The sixteenth century means the 1500s. “Regularly” means often, again and again. So the explorers kept coming to East Africa. They were looking for gold. But they never found the city.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits. “Routinely” means regularly, and they never located, or found, the city.
    • B The sentence says they wanted King Solomon’s gold, not a mysterious city.
    • C The passage never links the explorers to de Barros’s story. They never found the city anyway.
    • D The passage never says they studied history books.

  5. Choose the answer

    The Portuguese explorers kept visiting East Africa but never found the city. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest trap, because traders did tell of a “mysterious stone city.” But that is about the traders. The Portuguese were “searching for King Solomon’s gold.” B also leaves out the main fact: they never found the city. A matches the sentence closely.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 38 as printed on page 69 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 69, question 38. Open page 69 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).

Question 106 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 39

Uses the passage above: “Ruins of a Fabled City”.

Question

What was “one mystery of Great Zimbabwe” (paragraph 6) that had been solved?

  • Awhy the settlement was abandoned
  • Bwhere the ivory and gold from the city went
  • Cwhy the ruins remained undiscovered until the 1870s
  • Dwho had built the settlement
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The answer is (D)

The question asks for the specific conclusion that was able to be drawn from the excavations at Great Zimbabwe.

Option D is the correct answer because paragraph 5 states that carbon-14 dating supports Randall-MacIver and Caton-Thompson’s conclusion that Great Zimbabwe was built by ancestors of the Shona people during the fourteenth or fifteenth century.

Option A is incorrect because the mystery behind “why the settlement was abandoned” has not been solved.

Option B is incorrect because the passage never presents the city’s ivory and gold as a mystery; paragraph 5 simply states that Shona kings traded them in coastal towns for other goods.

Option C is incorrect because the reason that Europeans did not discover Great Zimbabwe until the 1870s has not been explained.

Question analysis

This question asks students to identify the “one mystery of Great Zimbabwe” that the final paragraph calls solved. Students need to connect the final paragraph with the findings described before it, keeping track of which questions the passage answers and which it leaves open.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 6 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Below grade 7 Matching a phrase to the fact it refers to is a short, routine task, easier than most grade 7 reading questions. The only demand is linking the last paragraph back to earlier ones rather than reading it alone.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 524 words; question and choices: about grade 5, 39 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • An inaccurate statement in the explanation was corrected.
  • An overstatement of the passage in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The final paragraph names two mysteries in back-to-back sentences, one solved and one open, but only spells out the open one. Students have to look back to the excavations and carbon dating in paragraph 5 to see which question was answered. Rushing produces the most common wrong pick, the abandonment question, because its words sit right beside the phrase the stem quotes.

  1. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    “One mystery” points back to paragraph 1's question “who had built it?” and to paragraph 5's finding, so the answer lies outside the paragraph the stem cites. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Before reading the choices, find the paragraph that reports what excavation and carbon dating showed, note which question it settles, and compare that with each choice.

Traps

  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.
  • True but not the answer: A choice says something accurate about the text that does not answer this question.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook rejects choice B because “the disappearance of the city’s ivory and gold is a mystery that has not been solved.” The passage presents no such mystery: paragraph 5 says Shona kings traded their ivory and gold in coastal towns for other goods. The explanation now says the passage never presents the ivory and gold as a mystery.
  • Explanation: The handbook says paragraph 5 states that carbon-14 dating “proved” Randall-MacIver and Caton-Thompson’s conclusion. The passage says only that recent carbon-14 dating “supports their conclusion,” so the explanation now says “supports”.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks you to find a key detail. Paragraph 6 says one mystery was solved, but it doesn’t say which one. You have to look back to find it.

  2. Find the mystery and its answer

    Paragraph 1 asks: “Where was this remarkable city, and who had built it?”

    Paragraph 5 answers part of that. Scientists concluded “that the ruins were unmistakably African in origin.” The city was built “by the ancestors of the present-day Shona people.” Carbon-14 dating, a lab test that tells how old something is, supports this.

  3. Match it to paragraph 6

    Paragraph 6 says: “One mystery of Great Zimbabwe had been solved.” The solved mystery is the one paragraph 5 answers: who built the city. The next sentence starts, “Another mystery remains.” That one, why people left, is still open.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is the mystery that “remains,” so it is not solved.
    • B The passage tells where the ivory and gold went, but never calls it a mystery.
    • C The passage never explains why Europeans didn’t see the ruins until the 1870s.
    • D fits. Paragraph 5 shows who built it.

  5. Choose the answer

    The mystery that had been solved is who built Great Zimbabwe: the ancestors of the Shona. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

Watch out for A. Its words sit right next to the quoted phrase in paragraph 6, so it is easy to grab. But that sentence says “Another mystery remains,” which means it is still open. Only D is a question the passage actually answers.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 39 as printed on page 69 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 69, question 39. Open page 69 of the handbook (PDF) This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 107 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 40

Uses the passage above: “Ruins of a Fabled City”.

Question

Which statement about the Shona people is best supported by the passage?

  • AThey live along the east coast of Africa.
  • BThey are descendants of the people who built Great Zimbabwe.
  • CThey lived in the Middle East before settling in Africa.
  • DThey were once ruled by King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The answer is (B)

The question asks for the best supported evidence the passage provides about the Shona people. The Shona people are discussed in paragraph 5, where it is explained that Great Zimbabwe was discovered to have been built by the ancient ancestors of the Shona people, making Option B correct.

Option A is incorrect because the ancient Shona people lived in the African interior, not on the coast, and the passage does not give specific details about where the Shona people live presently.

Option C is incorrect because the passage does not give a detailed history about the origins and locations of the Shona people in Africa.

Option D is incorrect because, while early explorers were looking for King Solomon’s gold and evidence of the Queen of Sheba in Africa, the Shona people were not found to be linked to these people.

Question analysis

Students must decide which statement about the Shona people is best supported by the passage on Great Zimbabwe. The Shona appear in only a few sentences of a text crowded with explorers, legends and rival theories, so each choice must be checked against exactly what those sentences say.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 6 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Below grade 7 Locating what a passage says about one group and restating it is a grade 6 skill. The supporting sentence is short and clear, so this falls below typical grade 7 demand despite the passage's crowded content.
Estimated difficulty
Routine: one familiar step, little to misread.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one sentence or line
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 524 words; question and choices: about grade 5, 52 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The Shona are named only in paragraph 5, and the sentence that matters says the city was built by their ancestors. The one real hurdle is the reversal of that relation in the key, which a student who mixes up ancestors and descendants may reject. Every wrong choice borrows a place or name tied to someone else in the passage: the traders' coast, Hall's Middle East, the European legends.

  1. The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer

    The key flips the passage's “ancestors of the present-day Shona people” into “descendants of the people who built,” while wrong choices reuse “east coast,” “Middle East” and “King Solomon.” (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

Strategy: Search the passage for every mention of the Shona and read those sentences closely; choose the statement they directly support, not one that merely sounds historical.

Traps

  • Wrong part of the text: A choice is true of another paragraph, stanza or speaker than the one asked about.
  • Word match: Repeats striking words or phrases from the text, so it looks supported, but its meaning does not fit the question.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks which statement about the Shona people the passage supports. Trust only what the passage says, not what sounds right.

  2. Find every mention of the Shona

    The Shona appear only in paragraph 5. Great Zimbabwe “was most likely built during the fourteenth or fifteenth century by the ancestors of the present-day Shona people.” Later: “Wealthy Shona kings traded their ivory and gold in coastal towns.”

  3. Turn the sentence around

    Your ancestors are family members who lived long before you, like your great-great-grandparents. Your descendants are the people who come after you, like your grandchildren.

    So if the builders were the ancestors of the Shona, then the Shona today are the descendants of the builders. Choice B flips the words, but it says the same thing.

  4. Check each choice

    • A The kings traded in coastal towns. But the city was in the African interior, away from the coast.
    • B fits. It restates paragraph 5.
    • C Builders from the Middle East was Hall’s wrong idea. It is not Shona history.
    • D King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba come from European legends, not Shona history.

  5. Choose the answer

    The passage supports the idea that the Shona today are descendants of the city’s builders. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is tempting because Shona kings traded “in coastal towns.” But trading in a place is not living there. The passage never says where the Shona live now. B is the only choice the passage states, just turned around from “ancestors” to “descendants.”

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 40 as printed on page 70 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 70, question 40. Open page 70 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).

Question 108 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 41

Uses the passage above: “Ruins of a Fabled City”.

Question

The conclusions of David Randall-MacIver and Gertrude Caton-Thompson were significant because they

  • Aproved that Great Zimbabwe was much older than previously thought.
  • Bquestioned why the Shona people left Great Zimbabwe.
  • Csupported the idea that the ancient Shona had a robust society at Great Zimbabwe.
  • Drevealed that Great Zimbabwe was African in origin.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The answer is (D)

The question asks for the impact of Randall-MacIver and Caton-Thompson’s discovery. David Randall-MacIver and Gertrude Caton-Thompson’s conclusions were significant because their excavation of the ruins revealed that Great Zimbabwe was most certainly built by the ancestors of modern-day Africans (paragraph 5), discrediting the long-standing idea that the structure was Middle Eastern in origin. This conclusion is stated in Option D.

Option A is incorrect because paragraph 5 states that Randall-MacIver and Caton-Thompson determined that the city was likely built in the fourteenth or fifteenth century, which was later than earlier explorers had assumed.

Option B is incorrect because the question of why the great city was abandoned was not part of Randall-MacIver and Caton-Thompson’s discovery.

Option C is incorrect because, while paragraph 5 also indicates that the Shona society was strong and healthy, this idea was not the main focus of Randall-MacIver and Caton-Thompson’s discovery.

Question analysis

This question asks why the conclusions of David Randall-MacIver and Gertrude Caton-Thompson about Great Zimbabwe mattered. Students must judge significance, not just recall facts, by weighing several details from paragraph 5 and deciding which one the passage treats as most important.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Weighing why a finding matters is typical grade 7 informational reading. The researchers' conclusion is easy to find, but students must use the earlier theories to see why it mattered, which keeps the task at grade 7.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 11, 524 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 52 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The finding itself is stated almost word for word, so the work is judging significance. Paragraph 5 piles several facts after the conclusion, a date, a population and trading kings, and one of them invites the reading that the researchers' point was a thriving society. Students who remember what Mauch and Hall believed see that overturning the Middle Eastern theory is what the passage treats as the turning point.

  1. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    “Significant” is never explained; students must set “unmistakably African in origin” against the Queen of Sheba and Middle Eastern theories of paragraph 4 to see why it mattered. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Read paragraph 5 alongside paragraph 4, note what earlier investigators believed, and judge each choice by how much it changes or confirms that earlier picture.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks why the two scientists’ conclusion was significant, or important. To see why it mattered, compare it with what people believed before.

  2. Recall the earlier beliefs

    Paragraph 4 tells what people believed. Mauch thought the city “had been built by the Queen of Sheba.” Hall was sure it was built “by ancient people from the Middle East.” For centuries, who built the city was a mystery.

  3. Find what they concluded

    Paragraph 5 says Randall-MacIver and Caton-Thompson dug in places no one had disturbed. They “concluded that the ruins were unmistakably African in origin.”

    Unmistakably means with no doubt. Origin means where something comes from. Their finding proved the old Middle East ideas wrong. That is why it was so important.

  4. Check each choice

    • A The passage dates the city to the 1300s or 1400s. That makes it much younger than the King Solomon legends, not older.
    • B Why the Shona left is the open question in paragraph 6. These two did not study it.
    • C Paragraph 5 does describe a rich kingdom. But that detail is not what made their finding important.
    • D fits. They showed the city was African in origin.

  5. Choose the answer

    Their work was significant because it revealed that Great Zimbabwe was African in origin. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest trap, because paragraph 5 does show a strong Shona kingdom of “an estimated 20,000 people.” But that detail comes after their conclusion. What mattered most was proving the city African, which overturned the Middle East theories. That is D.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 41 as printed on page 70 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 70, question 41. Open page 70 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 109 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 48
Passage Cross-Purposes

Cross-Purposes

What I am is built: concrete and steel.
I defy gravity. I am what every athlete
wants: to remain at the apex of the leap,
up in the air. And yet I am useful, too:
cars, trucks, people, even trains
make their way across my broad back.
Swallows and ospreys1^1 nest in my trusses.

What I am is motion. I am water, and I am older
than anything else you know. No human
built me. I am gravity’s best friend; I pool
and flow wherever gravity takes me.
I am the blood flowing in the runner’s chest,
and I catch everything: from the hills,
the mountains. It all washes down through me.

What you are is an accident,
what happens to rain when rain gives in
to Earth’s gravitational pull.
You are some tears dribbling from a mountain’s
eye, running down the pavements
of small towns, into the cities, to the sea.
You are the path of least resistance.

What I am is power. You, of course,
have none: you are a static lump, an artifact
slowly decaying. But my regal flow
nourishes grasses, permits empires to rise.
Those who made you will break you,
in time, replacing you with yet another
clumsy structure. I have seen. I know.

“Clumsy”? Being rebuilt makes me
a friend of time, does it not? And it means
that I have siblings—those “clumsy” structures,
my sisters and brothers.
We stitch across the rip you make.
We are steel thread to the human needle.
We bind you up. We sew you.

And I sow into you; in every cranny
of your superstructure my vapors cling.
They bring out your softness, your rust.
Boast your best, and boast better yet.
I am listening to the bright hum
of the wind in your wires. Because I am,
above all else, patient. I will wait for you.

1^1ospreys: large birds

Question

Read lines 41–42 from the poem.

Because I am,
above all else, patient. I will wait for you.

Which of the following supports what is implied in these lines?

  • A“I am older / than anything else you know.” (lines 8–9)
  • B“No human / built me.” (lines 9–10)
  • C“It all washes down through me.” (line 14)
  • D“Those who made you will break you,” (line 26)
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The answer is (A)

The question asks how the implication in lines 41–42 is supported by other lines in the poem. The words “patient” and “wait” in line 42 suggest that the speaker (the water) has the ability to outlast the other speaker because the water doesn’t weaken as it ages, making Option A (lines 8–9) the correct response.

Option B is incorrect because the promise made in line 42 is not affected by whether the water was built by humans (lines 9–10).

Option C is incorrect because, in line 14, the water’s ability to wait longer than the structure is not enhanced by what flows through the water.

Option D is incorrect because, in line 26, the water’s knowledge does not make its ability to wait any stronger—rather, its seemingly unending lifespan does.

Question analysis

This textual evidence question gives the water's closing words in “Cross-Purposes,” that it is patient and will wait, and asks which earlier line supports what they imply. Students must first state the implication in their own words, then choose among four lines spoken by the water that each say something true about it.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Most grade 7 evidence items back up a claim the text states outright. Here the claim is only implied, and all four lines come from the same speaker, so students must reason about what patience would achieve, which goes beyond typical grade 7 work.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: 316 words (a poem; reading level not measured); question and choices: about grade 1, 57 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The difficulty is in the first step: putting “I will wait for you” into words as a claim about time, that the water will still be there after the structure is gone. Students who read it as a prediction about the structure's end pick the line about humans breaking it, and those who read it as a contrast with built things pick the line about no human building the water. Only age directly supports a promise to outwait.

  1. Reading between the lines major Working it out

    Lines 41–42 never say the water will outlast the structure; students must state that implication of “patient” and “wait for you” before they can judge which earlier line supports it. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    All four lines are the water's own boasts from different stanzas, each true of it, so every one must be tested against the specific claim of lasting longer. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Put the implied claim of the final two lines into your own words, then ask which earlier line gives a reason to believe that claim rather than just describing the water.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is an evidence question. First, figure out what lines 41–42 hint at. Then find the earlier line that best supports that hint.

  2. Work out the hint

    The water says: “Because I am, / above all else, patient. I will wait for you.” Patient means able to wait calmly for a long time.

    The water is telling the structure that it will still be here after the structure is gone. So the hidden claim is that the water will outlast the structure.

  3. Find a line that supports it

    To outlast something, you need a very long life. So look for a line about the water’s age. In lines 8–9 the water says: “I am older / than anything else you know.” It has already lasted longer than anything else. So it makes sense that it can outlast a bridge too.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits. Great age backs up the claim that the water can wait the structure out.
    • B “No human / built me” tells who made the water, not how long it lasts.
    • C “It all washes down through me” tells what the water carries, not how long it lasts.
    • D shows the structure will end, but not that the water will still be here.

  5. Choose the answer

    The water’s great age supports its promise to outwait the structure. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest trap, because “Those who made you will break you” also points to the structure’s end. But the hint in lines 41–42 is about the water lasting. D says nothing about the water. Only A gives proof of the water’s long life.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 48 as printed on page 74 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 74, question 48. Open page 74 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).
The passage “Cross-Purposes” as printed (pages 72–73)The passage “Cross-Purposes” as printed on page 72 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Cross-Purposes” as printed on page 73 of the DOE handbook.

Question 110 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 52
Passage The Year without a Summer

The Year without a Summer

The eruption of the Philippine volcano Mount Pinatubo in June 1991 sent a huge cloud of gas and dust encircling the globe. The dust and ash from Mount Pinatubo was blamed for a two-year decrease in global temperature, changes in weather patterns, and damage to the ozone layer. The situation brings to mind a time now remembered as “The Year without a Summer,” a meteorological event that occurred 175 years earlier. At that time, harsh weather conditions plagued much of eastern North America and, to a lesser extent, northern Europe.

April 1816 brought typical spring weather to upstate New York and New England; trees budded, and farmers prepared to plow and plant. In May, however, the expected warm temperatures failed to arrive. Most people remained optimistic, waiting for the summer that was “just around the corner.” They waited in vain. During the first week of June, ten inches of snow fell on New England. Throughout the month, temperatures rarely rose above the 30s. Many farmers replanted crops several times, only to see them stunted or destroyed by sleet, hail, and icy winds. July and August brought little improvement. During most days the temperature stayed in the 40s. Farmers’ diaries document the farmers’ daily struggles with near-freezing temperatures, failing crops, and dying farm animals. The few crops that managed to survive were killed by frost in mid-September. Winter came early in New England and was unusually severe. Even the South was affected; on July 4, the high temperature for Savannah, Georgia, was only 46 degrees Fahrenheit!

Some religious leaders warned their congregations that the unusual weather meant that the end of the world was drawing near. Other leaders attributed the cool weather to unusual sunspot activity. The proliferation of the newly invented lightning rod was also blamed as some people believed that lightning rods had interrupted the natural temperature balance of Earth, causing the cooler temperatures.

It was not until October that the first plausible explanation for “The Year without a Summer” was suggested. Friedrich Bessel, a German astronomer, reported seeing thick clouds of dust in the upper atmosphere. He theorized that these dust particles screened portions of Earth from the warming rays of the sun. It was discovered that in April 1815, Mount Tambora, an Indonesian volcano, had erupted with such force that it had sent an estimated 100 cubic miles of fine dust into the atmosphere. Witnesses to the eruption reported that the sky remained dark for two days. The dust then rose high into the stratosphere, where it encircled the world for several years to come.

Skeptics in 1816 doubted that a faraway volcano could steal their summer. However, most present-day researchers believe Bessel’s explanation to be generally correct, demonstrating the global nature of weather. The dust in the atmosphere eventually settled, and the spring of 1817 was back to normal.

Question

What is the most likely reason farmers persisted in replanting their crops?

  • AThey believed that the cold weather could not continue all summer long.
  • BThey thought that crops would be able to survive even though the weather remained cold.
  • CThey believed that the improved weather conditions of July would last.
  • DThey thought the June snowfalls would provide needed moisture.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The answer is (A)

The question asks for the sentence that provides the best reason for the farmers replanting their crops. Paragraph 2 states that “farmers prepared to plow and plant” because they “expected warm temperatures” and were “optimistic.” This suggests that the farmers kept replanting their crops because they expected the weather to return to normal, which is reflected in Option A.

Option B is incorrect because the cold weather and the snow actually worsened growing conditions (paragraph 2).

Option C is incorrect because, while “July and August brought little improvement” (paragraph 2), it is throughout the month of June that farmers replanted crops.

Option D is incorrect because, while the farmers kept replanting their crops with the expectation of normal weather to return, the passage does not state that was because the farmers thought the snow would provide moisture.

Question analysis

This inference question asks why New England farmers kept replanting their crops during the cold summer of 1816. The reason is never stated outright, so students must infer it from paragraph 2's month-by-month account while keeping track of when the replanting took place.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Inferring a group's motive from nearby clues is routine grade 7 work. The clue sits a few sentences before the replanting, and only the order of the months needs care, so the demand is typical.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 469 words; question and choices: about grade 6, 59 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The clue to the farmers' motive sits a few sentences before their replanting, in the optimism of people waiting for a summer that never came. Students who answer from farming sense rather than the passage reach for crops that tolerate cold or snow that waters fields. Keeping the months in order also matters, since the July and August sentence says conditions barely improved.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The reason is never stated beside the replanting; it comes two sentences earlier, where people “remained optimistic, waiting for the summer that was ‘just around the corner.’” (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Much to keep track of minor Working it out

    Paragraph 2 runs month by month, April buds, May's missing warmth, June snow, a cold July and August, September frost, and students must place the replanting in that sequence. (Sweller, 1988; Carpenter, Just & Shell, 1990)

  3. A very close wrong answer minor Choosing the answer

    A and C both say the farmers counted on warm weather coming; C differs in one detail, an improvement in July, which the passage denies with “July and August brought little improvement.” (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

Strategy: Read paragraph 2 in order, noting what people expected each month and when the replanting happened; the best reason fits both.

Traps

  • Reads too much in: A reasonable-sounding conclusion that goes further than the text allows.
  • Twists what the text says: Uses the text's topic and ideas but changes what it says: who did it, how much, when, or why.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is an inference question. An inference is a smart guess based on clues. The passage doesn’t say outright why the farmers kept replanting. You must figure it out.

  2. Find the clues in paragraph 2

    Paragraph 2 goes month by month. In May, “the expected warm temperatures failed to arrive.” Still, people “remained optimistic.” They were waiting for a summer that seemed “just around the corner.”

    Then snow fell in June. That month, “Many farmers replanted crops several times.”

  3. Work out what the clues mean

    Optimistic means hopeful that things will turn out well. “Just around the corner” means coming very soon. So people expected warm weather any day.

    That explains the replanting. Farmers kept planting again because they believed the cold had to end soon. Summer, they thought, was on its way.

  4. Check each choice

    • A fits. They believed the cold could not last all summer.
    • B The passage shows crops dying in the cold, not farmers trusting them to survive it.
    • C The replanting was in June. And “July and August brought little improvement.”
    • D The passage never says the farmers wanted the snow for water.

  5. Choose the answer

    The farmers kept replanting because they expected the cold to end soon. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest trap. Like A, it says farmers expected warm weather. But C says July got better and they trusted that. The passage says “July and August brought little improvement,” and the replanting was in June. A fits the hopeful waiting the passage describes.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 52 as printed on page 77 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 77, question 52. Open page 77 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).
The passage “The Year without a Summer” as printed (page 76)The passage “The Year without a Summer” as printed on page 76 of the DOE handbook.

Question 111 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 53

Uses the passage above: “The Year without a Summer”.

Question

In the winter that followed the summer of 1816, New Englanders most likely experienced

  • Anew weather events that they had not encountered before.
  • Btemperatures that were warmer than usual for that time of year.
  • Cshortages of fruits, vegetables, and other essential crops.
  • Ddifficulty adjusting to a different timeline for planting crops.
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The answer is (C)

The question asks for the outcome that is best implied by the situation the New Englanders faced in 1816.

Option C is the correct answer because, with many crops “stunted or destroyed” (paragraph 2) in the summer of 1816, one would expect food shortages the following winter.

Option A is incorrect because cold weather was familiar to the population in New England, just not for such an extended period of time.

Option B is incorrect because there is no evidence in the passage that people experienced warmer temperatures.

Option D is incorrect because, although some farmers did replant their crops, there is no evidence in the passage that they struggled to adjust to a different timeline for farming.

Question analysis

Students must predict what New Englanders most likely faced in the winter after the cold summer of 1816, an inference question on an informational passage about a historic cold spell. The passage says little about daily life that winter, so students must reason one step beyond the text from what it reports about the summer.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R3 plot elements and ideas
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Drawing a likely consequence from stated facts is typical grade 7 inference work. The needed step goes just beyond what the passage reports, and the text is short and clear, so the demand matches grade 7.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 469 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 50 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A spelling error in the explanation was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

This inference goes one step past the text, from destroyed crops to a hungry winter, and the passage never makes that step for the reader. Meanwhile the one sentence about the winter, early and unusually severe, tempts students toward an answer about unheard-of weather. Students who ask what the summer's losses would mean for daily life months later find the key; those who look only for the word “winter” do not.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The passage says nothing about food that winter; students must reason from “The few crops that managed to survive were killed by frost in mid-September” to empty stores months later. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Something you must already know minor Working it out

    The inference needs the everyday fact that a farm family's winter food comes from the autumn harvest, which the passage leaves unsaid. (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001)

Strategy: List the consequences of the cold summer that paragraph 2 reports, then ask which would still affect people months later, in winter.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook’s “some famers did replant their crops” now reads “some farmers”.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is an inference question. The passage never says what life was like that winter. You must reason from what it does say.

  2. Find what happened to the crops

    Paragraph 2 tells the story. Crops were “stunted or destroyed by sleet, hail, and icy winds.” Then: “The few crops that managed to survive were killed by frost in mid-September.” Finally, “Winter came early in New England and was unusually severe.”

  3. Work out the result

    Stunted means stopped from growing to full size. In 1816, families ate food they grew in summer and saved for winter. But almost all the crops died. So there was very little food to save. That means the winter would bring shortages: not enough food to go around.

  4. Check each choice

    • A New Englanders knew cold winters well. This one was harsher, not a new kind of weather.
    • B The passage says the winter was severe, so it was not warmer.
    • C fits. With the crops gone, food would run short.
    • D Nobody plants crops in winter. The passage says nothing about a new planting schedule.

  5. Choose the answer

    With the crops destroyed, people likely ran short of food that winter. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest trap, because the winter was “unusually severe.” But severe means harsh, not new. Cold winters were normal in New England. C follows from the clearest facts in paragraph 2: the crops died, so there would be little food.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 53 as printed on page 77 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 77, question 53. Open page 77 of the handbook (PDF) This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 112 of 120

2018 Test A English, question 57

Uses the passage above: “The Year without a Summer”.

Question

The cold summer of 1816 was most likely caused by

  • Aunusual sunspot activity.
  • Bthe excessive use of lightning rods.
  • Cdamage to the ozone layer.
  • Dan increase of dust in the atmosphere.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The answer is (D)

The question asks for the likely cause of the cold summer of 1816, based on the reason given in the passage. Researchers today believe that Bessel’s theory that “dust particles screened portions of Earth from the warming rays of the sun” is the most logical and probable (paragraph 5). His ideas are summarized in paragraph 4, and Option D restates his theory, making Option D the correct answer.

Option A is incorrect because this was a possibility considered by some leaders, but there is no evidence in the passage that this theory was supported by thorough scientific research.

Option B is incorrect because this theory was thought to be a possible cause by some people, but Bessel’s theory is the most probable.

Option C explains damage that was caused by the Mount Pinatubo eruption in 1991 (paragraph 1), but that damage is not the cause of the cold summer of 1816.

Question analysis

Students must identify the most likely cause of the cold summer of 1816 according to “The Year without a Summer.” The passage reports several explanations from different people and times, so students must notice which one the author and today's researchers treat as correct.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 6 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Below grade 7 This asks for a cause the passage names and endorses, a quick locate task below typical grade 7 demand. The only care needed is to separate the accepted explanation from theories the passage sets aside.
Estimated difficulty
Routine: one familiar step, little to misread.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 469 words; question and choices: about grade 5, 30 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The passage settles this question in plain terms, calling Bessel's idea the first plausible explanation and saying present-day researchers accept it. The wrong choices are causes the passage mentions without endorsing, two of them in its exact words, so a student matching phrases rather than following the argument can be misled. The 1991 ozone damage is the trap for anyone who blends the two eruptions.

  1. Much to keep track of minor Working it out

    The passage mentions four proposed causes, the end of the world, sunspots, lightning rods and Bessel's dust, plus the ozone damage of 1991, and only the dust is endorsed by today's researchers. (Sweller, 1988; Carpenter, Just & Shell, 1990)

  2. The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer

    Two wrong choices copy the passage exactly, “unusual sunspot activity” and “damage to the ozone layer,” while the key recasts Bessel's “thick clouds of dust” as “an increase of dust.” (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

Strategy: Find where the passage calls an explanation “plausible” and where present-day researchers weigh in, then match the explanation they accept to a choice.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This is a key-detail question. It asks what most likely caused the cold summer. Careful: the passage mentions several causes, but it backs only one.

  2. Find the cause the passage backs

    Paragraph 4 gives “the first plausible explanation.” Bessel saw “thick clouds of dust in the upper atmosphere.” He thought “these dust particles screened portions of Earth from the warming rays of the sun.”

    Paragraph 5 adds that “most present-day researchers believe Bessel’s explanation to be generally correct.”

  3. Put it in your own words

    Plausible means believable. Screened means blocked, like a window shade. Portions means parts. So the dust blocked some sunlight, and parts of Earth got colder. The dust came from the Mount Tambora eruption. Scientists today agree with this idea.

  4. Check each choice

    • A Sunspots were a guess from 1816. The passage never calls it likely.
    • B Lightning rods were another 1816 guess. The passage doesn’t back it either.
    • C Ozone damage was blamed on Mount Pinatubo in 1991. It had nothing to do with 1816.
    • D fits. More dust in the atmosphere blocked the sun.

  5. Choose the answer

    Dust from the volcano is the cause today’s scientists accept. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is a trap because its words, “unusual sunspot activity,” come straight from paragraph 3. But the passage only reports that guess. It never says the guess was right. C mixes up the two volcanoes. D is the one cause the passage calls “plausible” and says scientists accept.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 57 as printed on page 78 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 78, question 57. Open page 78 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 113 of 120

2018 Test B English, question 10
Passage The Tunguska Fireball

The Tunguska Fireball

On June 30, 1908, an enormous fireball shot across the sky and exploded high above the remote Tunguska River Valley in the Siberian region of Russia. Twenty miles away, huts were flattened and people were flung into the air. Villagers 40 miles away felt the heat and heard explosions, and tremors were recorded at a German seismic station more than 3,000 miles away.

What caused the intense light and the horrendous destruction of the Tunguska Fireball, as it came to be called? Scientists and laypeople have debated the question for over 100 years. Not until 1927 did a scientific expedition, led by Russian scientist Leonid Kulik, reach the remote site. Kulik discovered a vast region of scorched and downed trees, their trunks pointing away from the center of the blast. Convinced that a meteorite was responsible, Kulik searched for evidence—a crater, a buried meteorite, even fragments of the exploded mass. He never found it.

Other scientists, amateur astronomers, and the public suggested alternative theories of what had happened. Some thought it was an earthquake. Perhaps, others said, a black hole—a theoretical object in space where gravity is so strong that even light cannot get out—had collided with Earth or an alien spaceship carrying nuclear material had crashed.

For many years Russian scientists believed that the Tunguska Fireball was a comet—a cluster of dust and frozen gases—that had exploded a few hundred feet above the ground. They pointed to the lack of meteoric evidence and the June 30 date, a time of year when Earth was passing through cometary debris. Other scientists disagreed, arguing that a comet would have burned quickly in Earth’s atmosphere and could not have created such a blast.

Many Western scientists believed that a meteorite was responsible, despite the lack of evidence. The pattern of fallen trees suggested that they were knocked down by a blast about 4 miles above the ground with an energy of 15 megatons of TNT, consistent with a meteoric blast. Yet repeated searches of the surrounding forest and wetlands revealed no evidence of a meteorite.

During the 1990s an Italian physicist named Menotti Galli became interested. Galli had previously investigated whether particles from outer space can add carbon atoms to the cellulose in trees. Perhaps the trees at the Tunguska site hid evidence of such extraterrestrial material. Galli and his colleagues traveled to the site by helicopter to gather core samples from spruce trees that had lived through the blast. They analyzed the particles trapped in the trees’ resin, and the results were remarkable. Based on studying the trees’ rings during the time period when the Tunguska Fireball occurred, the researchers found that the resin contained high levels of high-proton elements, such as copper, gold, and nickel. In fact, it contained ten times more such particles than resin dating from either before or after that time period. Some previously discovered meteorites had also contained elevated levels of these elements, suggesting that the particles had an extra-earthly origin. But then where is the crater? Is it nearby Lake Cheko, as some claim? Or was the meteorite reduced to dust in the atmosphere? Can scientists rule out a comet carrying those elements? The mystery remains unsolved.

Question

What evidence best indicated the location of the blast?

  • Aa lake formed from a crater
  • Btremors recorded at a seismic station
  • Cdamage caused to buildings
  • Dthe position of the trunks of fallen trees
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks for evidence that best supports a detail in the passage. When scientists were able to travel to the site almost two decades after the blast, they found a circle of “scorched and downed trees” that marked the blast site (paragraph 2), making Option D the correct answer.

Option A is incorrect because, although the scientists searched for a crater, they never found one (paragraph 2).

Option B is also incorrect because the tremors recorded at a seismic station thousands of miles away detailed the magnitude of the event, not the location (paragraph 1).

Option C is incorrect because, although huts were flattened when the blast occurred, the destruction of the huts was not evident when the site was found almost two decades later (paragraph 1).

Question analysis

This evidence question uses a science article about the Tunguska Fireball, the mysterious 1908 explosion over Siberia. Students decide which piece of evidence best showed where the blast took place. The article piles up details about the explosion’s effects and the search that followed, so students must judge which detail really points to a place.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Finding the detail that answers a direct question is routine grade 7 reading, but this science article on a 1908 Siberian explosion uses dense, technical sentences. Students must also work out what a clue reveals, because the text never labels it.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 531 words; question and choices: about grade 5, 33 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A misspelled place name in the passage was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Every choice is connected to the blast, so the question turns on the word “location.” Students who remember the passage’s many effects, from tremors to flattened huts, have to ask which of them could point to a spot, and the crater that never turned up is the most natural guess. The direction the fallen trunks point is the only clue in the passage that does this.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The passage never says the trees revealed where the blast happened; students must see that trunks “pointing away from the center of the blast” point back toward that center. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer

    The seismic-station choice repeats the passage’s words almost exactly, while the right choice turns “their trunks pointing away” into the plainer “the position of the trunks of fallen trees.” (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

Strategy: For each clue in the choices, find what the passage says about it, then ask whether that clue could help someone pinpoint where the blast happened.

Traps

  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.
  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Passage: The handbook’s passage asks, “Is it nearby Lake Cheka, as some claim?” The lake near the Tunguska blast site that some scientists have proposed as the crater is Lake Cheko, so the site now spells it that way. No answer depends on the spelling.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks which clue best showed where the blast happened. You need evidence about location, not about how strong the blast was.

  2. Find the clue in paragraph 2

    Paragraph 2 tells what Leonid Kulik found when he reached the site in 1927: “Kulik discovered a vast region of scorched and downed trees, their trunks pointing away from the center of the blast.”

  3. Work out what the trees show

    “Scorched” means burned. “Downed” means knocked over. The blast pushed the trees outward, so they fell pointing away from it, like spokes on a bike wheel. Follow the fallen trunks backward, and they all lead to the same spot. That spot is the center of the blast.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. Kulik looked for a crater, but “He never found it.” The lake comes up only as a question at the end.
    • B is wrong. The tremors were recorded “more than 3,000 miles away.” They show how strong the blast was, not where it was.
    • C is wrong. Huts were flattened 20 miles away. That shows how far the damage reached, not where the center was.
    • D is right. The fallen trunks point away from the center, so they mark it.

    Watch out: You might expect a blast from space to leave a crater. But the passage says no crater was found.

  5. Choose the answer

    The direction of the fallen trees points back to the center of the blast. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

A is the closest wrong answer, because a crater would mark a spot. But no crater was ever found. The passage only asks whether Lake Cheko might be one. The trees are real evidence. Their trunks all point away from one center, so they show where the blast happened.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 10 as printed on page 125 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 125, question 10. Open page 125 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D). This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.
The passage “The Tunguska Fireball” as printed (page 124)The passage “The Tunguska Fireball” as printed on page 124 of the DOE handbook.

Question 114 of 120

2018 Test B English, question 11

Uses the passage above: “The Tunguska Fireball”.

Question

The June 30 date of the Tunguska event was significant to some scientists because it

  • Asuggested that the explosion may have been caused by a comet.
  • Bhighlighted why tree resin from the time of the blast contained high-proton elements.
  • Cindicated that the blast may have resulted from Earth’s impact with a black hole.
  • Dexplained why debris from outer space would have burned up in the atmosphere.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks why the June 30 date bears significance to some scientists. Scientists noted that Earth was passing through cometary debris on June 30, 1908 (paragraph 4), which supports the idea stated in Option A, making it the correct response.

Option B is incorrect because, while it states a detail from the passage, the detail is not connected to the June 30 date.

Option C is incorrect because it states a theory regarding the cause of the impact that is not tied to the date of June 30.

Option D is incorrect because this detail is used in the passage to suggest that such a blast could not have been caused by a comet.

Question analysis

This key-details question from the Tunguska Fireball article asks why the date of the 1908 explosion mattered to some scientists. Students must find where the passage connects the date to a theory about the blast. Several choices borrow real details from elsewhere in the article, which makes careless matching easy.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 6 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Below grade 7 Locating a stated reason in one paragraph is lighter than most grade 7 reading tasks, which ask students to analyze or infer. Here the date is linked to its explanation in a single sentence, and the main work is finding it.
Estimated difficulty
Routine: one familiar step, little to misread.
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 531 words; question and choices: about grade 7, 65 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

This is a locate-and-read question: once the second mention of June 30 is found in paragraph 4, the link to cometary debris is stated plainly. The only real trap sits in the same paragraph, where the next sentence brings in a comet burning up in the atmosphere. Students who read one sentence too far can attach the date to the objection instead of the theory.

  1. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    June 30 first appears in paragraph 1 only as the date of the blast; its significance comes three paragraphs later, inside the Russian scientists’ case for a comet. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The sentence says only that the scientists “pointed to” the date, and students must connect that back to the comet theory stated one sentence earlier. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Skip past the opening, scan for the next mention of June 30, and read that whole sentence to see what the scientists used the date to support.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks why the date June 30 mattered to some scientists. Find where the passage uses the date as a clue, and see what it was a clue for.

  2. Find the date in paragraph 4

    Paragraph 4 begins: “For many years Russian scientists believed that the Tunguska Fireball was a comet.” The next sentence says they “pointed to the lack of meteoric evidence and the June 30 date, a time of year when Earth was passing through cometary debris.”

  3. Put the clue in plain words

    A comet is “a cluster of dust and frozen gases” that moves through space. “Cometary debris” means bits left behind by comets. Around June 30, Earth passes through those bits. So the scientists said the date fits a comet. The date was a clue for the comet idea.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is right. The date suggested that the blast came from a comet.
    • B is wrong. The tree resin comes from Galli’s work in paragraph 6. It has nothing to do with the date.
    • C is wrong. The black hole idea in paragraph 3 is never linked to the date.
    • D is wrong. Other scientists said a comet “would have burned quickly.” That argues against the comet. It does not explain the date.

    Watch out: D comes from the very next sentence, so it is easy to mix up. But that sentence argues against the comet, and it is not about the date.

  5. Choose the answer

    The Russian scientists used the date to support the comet idea. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong answer, since it comes from the same paragraph. But the burning-up point is what other scientists used against the comet idea. The date was used for it. A matches what the Russian scientists “pointed to”: Earth was passing through comet bits on June 30.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 11 as printed on page 125 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 125, question 11. Open page 125 of the handbook (PDF)

Question 115 of 120

2018 Test B English, question 12

Uses the passage above: “The Tunguska Fireball”.

Question

What did Galli’s analysis of tree resin at the site reveal?

  • ACertain elements were unusually abundant around the time of the blast.
  • BParticles from outer space can add carbon atoms to trees.
  • CSpruce trees were able to survive the Tunguska explosion.
  • DMeteorites are composed of gold, copper, and other high-proton elements.
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks for the evidence found after Galli’s analysis. Galli discovered unusually high levels of some elements, such as copper, gold, and nickel, which are common elements in particles from outer space that were abundant in the tree resin (paragraph 6), as stated in Option A.

Option B is incorrect because it refers to a prior finding of Galli’s, not what his analysis of the tree resin revealed.

Option C is incorrect because, although the spruce trees did survive the blast, they were the trees Galli studied rather than a revelation from his studies.

Option D is incorrect because it was previously known that meteorites contained these elements, and that information was not revealed by Galli’s analysis.

Question analysis

This key-details question asks what an Italian physicist’s study of tree resin at the Tunguska site revealed. Students read one dense paragraph about his research and pick the finding it reports. Several statements in that paragraph sound like discoveries, so students must tell the study’s result from background facts.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Reading closely for what a study found is typical grade 7 work with informational text. The extra effort here comes from technical vocabulary such as resin, cellulose and high-proton elements, packed into one long paragraph.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 531 words; question and choices: about grade 8, 51 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The Galli paragraph mixes four kinds of statement, his earlier research, his hunch, his method and his findings, and only the findings answer the question. Students who match words rather than sentence roles are drawn to the one about carbon atoms, which repeats the passage most closely. The right choice uses none of the passage’s technical terms, so it can look less supported than it is.

  1. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice restates “ten times more such particles than resin dating from either before or after” as “unusually abundant around the time of the blast,” while a wrong one copies Galli’s earlier question almost word for word. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  2. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    “Cellulose,” “resin” and “high-proton elements” go unexplained in the 189-word Galli paragraph, so students who stall on them may lose track of which sentence reports the result. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: In the Galli paragraph, find the sentences that report what the resin analysis itself showed, and check each choice against those sentences rather than the rest of the paragraph.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks what Galli’s study of the tree resin found. Resin is the sticky sap inside a tree. You need the result of the study, not facts from before it.

  2. Find the results in paragraph 6

    Paragraph 6 says “the resin contained high levels of high-proton elements, such as copper, gold, and nickel.” Then it adds: “it contained ten times more such particles than resin dating from either before or after that time period.”

  3. Put the results in plain words

    Elements are basic materials, like gold and copper. The resin from the time of the blast had ten times more of them than resin from before or after. “Unusually abundant” means there was much more than normal. That is just what Galli found.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is right. Certain elements were much more common around the time of the blast.
    • B is wrong. Galli “had previously investigated” this question before the trip. It was not a result of this study.
    • C is wrong. The spruce trees did survive, but that is why he could study them. It is not what he found.
    • D is wrong. Only “some previously discovered meteorites” had these elements. That was known before Galli, and it does not say what all meteorites are made of.

    Watch out: B uses words from paragraph 6, but they describe Galli’s earlier work.

  5. Choose the answer

    The resin showed far more of these elements than usual, right around the time of the blast. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong answer, because it comes almost word for word from paragraph 6. But that sentence tells what Galli “had previously investigated” before this trip. The question asks what the Tunguska resin showed. Only A gives that result.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 12 as printed on page 125 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 125, question 12. Open page 125 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).

Question 116 of 120

2018 Test B English, question 13

Uses the passage above: “The Tunguska Fireball”.

Question

Based on the passage, what is the most likely reason it took nineteen years from the date of the explosion before scientists first visited the Tunguska site?

  • AThe scientists feared radioactivity from a nuclear explosion.
  • BThe site was far from civilization and difficult to reach.
  • CScientists hoped to establish a cause before exploring the site.
  • DCraters from the explosion hampered travel to the area.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks for the most likely reason it was difficult for scientists to discover the site of the Tunguska explosion. Paragraph 2 notes that the site of the blast was very “remote,” as stated in Option B.

Option A is incorrect because, although one theory in paragraph 3 involves an alien spaceship carrying nuclear material, the passage never suggests that scientists feared radioactivity or stayed away from the site because of it.

Option C is incorrect because, even before visiting the site, scientists debated possible causes of the explosion (paragraphs 2–3).

Option D is incorrect because the passage states in paragraph 2 that no evidence of a crater, or craters, was ever found.

Question analysis

This inference question asks why nineteen years passed between the 1908 Tunguska explosion and the first scientific expedition to the site. The passage never states the reason outright, so students must work it out from clues in the article. Reasons that sound sensible but rest on nothing in the text are the main trap.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Making a logical inference from stated details is core grade 7 reading, and this one sits squarely at that level. Students connect a few details and set aside reasons that sound sensible but lack support in the text.
Estimated difficulty
Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 10, 531 words; question and choices: about grade 8, 64 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A statement in the explanation that the passage contradicts was corrected.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Because the reason is never stated, the wrong choices are all reasons a reader could invent: fear of radiation, a wish to settle the cause first, craters in the way. The question rewards checking each invented reason against the text, where the craters are ruled out outright and the other two have no support. The word “remote,” used twice, is the only real evidence, and the right choice rewords it.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    No sentence explains the 19-year wait; students must connect “the remote Tunguska River Valley” in paragraph 1 with “reach the remote site” in paragraph 2 and conclude the place was hard to get to. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer

    The right choice never uses the passage’s key word “remote,” spelling it out as “far from civilization and difficult to reach,” so a word-matching student may not recognize it. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  3. Evidence in several places minor Working it out

    The stem’s “nineteen years” appears nowhere in the passage; students must link 1908 in paragraph 1 to “Not until 1927” in paragraph 2 to find the sentence that matters. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)

Strategy: Test each reason against the passage: keep it only if a word or detail in the text backs it up, and drop any that the text contradicts or never mentions.

Traps

  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook rejects Option A because none of the explanations in the passage “suggest a nuclear explosion or radioactivity,” but paragraph 3 mentions “an alien spaceship carrying nuclear material.” The site now says that, although that theory involves nuclear material, the passage never suggests scientists feared radioactivity or stayed away from the site because of it, so Option A is still wrong.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks you to make an inference: a smart guess based on clues in the passage. Why did it take nineteen years for scientists to reach the blast site?

  2. Find the dates and the clue word

    The blast happened in 1908 (paragraph 1). Paragraph 2 says: “Not until 1927 did a scientific expedition, led by Russian scientist Leonid Kulik, reach the remote site.” From 1908 to 1927 is 19 years. Paragraph 1 also calls the place “the remote Tunguska River Valley.”

  3. Figure out what remote means

    “Remote” means far away from towns, roads and people. A remote place is hard to get to. The word “reach” hints that getting there was the hard part. Even in the 1990s, Galli’s team traveled “to the site by helicopter.”

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. The passage mentions “nuclear material” only in one wild guess. It never says anyone feared it.
    • B is right. It spells out what “remote” means: far away and hard to reach.
    • C is wrong. Nothing says scientists waited to find the cause first. Going to the site was a way to find it.
    • D is wrong. No crater was ever found, so craters could not block the way.

    Watch out: C sounds sensible, because people argued about the cause for years. But the passage never links that argument to the wait.

  5. Choose the answer

    The site was far from everything and hard to get to. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer, because the passage does mention a long debate about the cause. But no sentence says scientists stayed away to settle the cause first. The word “remote” appears twice, in paragraphs 1 and 2. It points straight to B.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 13 as printed on page 125 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 125, question 13. Open page 125 of the handbook (PDF) This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 117 of 120

2018 Test B English, question 17
Passage Excerpt from A Voice in the Wilderness

Excerpt from A Voice in the Wilderness

by Grace Livingston Hill

With a lurch the train came to a dead stop and Margaret Earle, hastily gathering up her belongings, hurried down the aisle and got out into the night.

It occurred to her, as she swung her heavy suit-case down the rather long step to the ground, and then carefully swung herself after it, that it was strange that neither conductor, brakeman, nor porter had come to help her off the train, when all three had taken the trouble to tell her that hers was the next station; but she could hear voices up ahead. Perhaps something was the matter with the engine that detained them and they had forgotten her for the moment.

The ground was rough where she stood, and there seemed no sign of a platform. Did they not have platforms in this wild Western land, or was the train so long that her car had stopped before reaching it?

She strained her eyes into the darkness, and tried to make out things from the two or three specks of light that danced about like fireflies in the distance. She could dimly see moving figures away up near the engine, and each one evidently carried a lantern. The train was tremendously long. A sudden feeling of isolation took possession of her. Perhaps she ought not to have got out until some one came to help her. Perhaps the train had not pulled into the station yet and she ought to get back on it and wait. Yet if the train started before she found the conductor she might be carried on somewhere and he justly blame her for a fool.

There did not seem to be any building on that side of the track. It was probably on the other, but she was standing too near the cars to see over. She tried to move back to look, but the ground sloped and she slipped and fell in the cinders1^1, bruising her knee and cutting her wrist.

In sudden panic she arose. She would get back into the train, no matter what the consequences. They had no right to put her out here, away off from the station, at night, in a strange country. If the train started before she could find the conductor she would tell him that he must back it up again and let her off. He certainly could not expect her to get out like this.

She lifted the heavy suit-case up the high step that was even farther from the ground than it had been when she came down, because her fall had loosened some of the earth and caused it to slide away from the track. Then, reaching to the rail of the step, she tried to pull herself up, but as she did so the engine gave a long snort and the whole train, as if it were in league against her, lurched forward crazily, shaking off her hold. She slipped to her knees again, the suit-case, toppled from the lower step, descending upon her, and together they slid and rolled down the short bank, while the train . . . ran giddily off into the night.

The horror of being deserted helped the girl to rise in spite of bruises and shock. She lifted imploring hands to the unresponsive cars as they hurried by her—one, two, three, with bright windows, each showing a passenger, comfortable and safe inside, unconscious of her need.

A moment of useless screaming, running, trying to attract some one’s attention, a sickening sense of terror and failure, and the last car slatted itself past with a mocking clatter, as if it enjoyed her discomfort.

Margaret stood dazed, reaching out helpless hands, then dropped them at her sides and gazed after the fast-retreating train, the light on its last car swinging tauntingly, blinking now and then with a leer in its eye, rapidly vanishing from her sight into the depth of the night.

She gasped and looked about her for the station that but a short moment before had been so real to her mind; and, lo! on this side and on that there was none!

The night was wide like a great floor shut in by a low, vast dome of curving blue set with the largest, most wonderful stars she had ever seen. Heavy shadows of purple-green, smoke-like, hovered over earth darker and more intense than the unfathomable blue of the night sky. It seemed like the secret nesting-place of mysteries wherein no human foot might dare intrude. It was incredible that such could be but common sage-brush, sand, and greasewood wrapped about with the beauty of the lonely night.

No building broke the inky outlines of the plain, nor friendly light streamed out to cheer her heart. Not even a tree was in sight, except on the far horizon, where a heavy line of deeper darkness might mean a forest. Nothing, absolutely nothing, in the blue, deep, starry dome above and the bluer darkness of the earth below save one sharp shaft ahead like a black mast throwing out a dark arm across the track.

As soon as she sighted it she picked up her baggage and made her painful way toward it, for her knees and wrist were bruised and her baggage was heavy.

A soft drip, drip greeted her as she drew nearer; something plashing down among the cinders by the track. Then she saw the tall column with its arm outstretched, and looming darker among the sage-brush the outlines of a water-tank. It was so she recognized the engine’s drinking-tank, and knew that she had mistaken a pause to water the engine for a regular stop at a station.

1^1cinders: track bed made from the residue of burnt coal

From A VOICE IN THE WILDERNESS by Grace Livingston Hill—Public Domain

Question

Which sentence from the excerpt best supports the idea that traveling to new places by train is unfamiliar to Margaret?

  • A“With a lurch the train came to a dead stop and Margaret Earle, hastily gathering up her belongings, hurried down the aisle and got out into the night.” (paragraph 1)
  • B“Perhaps something was the matter with the engine that detained them and they had forgotten her for the moment.” (paragraph 2)
  • C“Did they not have platforms in this wild Western land, or was the train so long that her car had stopped before reaching it?” (paragraph 3)
  • D“She could dimly see moving figures away up near the engine, and each one evidently carried a lantern.” (paragraph 4)
Show the answer

Correct answer: C

The question asks for evidence from the passage that best supports the claim that Margaret is unfamiliar with traveling to new places. If Margaret has never traveled to this region by train before, she must guess or attempt to interpret what she sees. This idea is best represented in the sentence in paragraph 3 (Option C) where she questions whether the stations in the West have platforms.

The sentence in paragraph 1 (Option A) is an incorrect response because Margaret’s actions in the sentence are decisive as she gathers her belongings to disembark; she is familiar with rail travel.

The sentence in paragraph 2 (Option B) is an incorrect response because, in the sentence, Margaret is using her knowledge about trains to attempt to interpret the actions of others; she is familiar with trains, even if a particular destination has not been mentioned.

The sentence in paragraph 4 (Option D) is an incorrect response because, while the sentence shows that Margaret is trying to better understand her situation in the darkness, her ability to identify the train’s engine and the figures carrying lanterns indicates some familiarity with her mode of travel.

Question analysis

This textual-evidence question asks which sentence from the train scene in A Voice in the Wilderness best shows that traveling to new places is unfamiliar to Margaret. Students compare four quotations from the opening paragraphs of the excerpt. The pull comes from lines that reveal her state of mind but prove something other than the claim.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
Grade level
Grade 7 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Choosing the quotation that best supports an idea is standard grade 7 evidence work. Here most of the quotations hint at Margaret’s unease, so students must match the claim precisely rather than settle for any sign of uncertainty.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
Evidence
Answered from several paragraphs or stanzas
Reading level
Passage: about grade 8, 981 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 113 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

All four sentences show Margaret uncertain, so mood alone cannot decide this. The claim has two parts, travel by train and new places, and the right sentence is the only one where her uncertainty is about the region itself. Students lose the point when they settle for a sentence that shows doubt about the delay or the darkness instead.

  1. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

    The four quotations come from the first four paragraphs and all show Margaret unsure in the dark, so each has to be tested against the claim’s specific idea of new places. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

  2. Reading between the lines minor Working it out

    The right sentence is a question about “this wild Western land,” and students must infer that only a newcomer to the West would wonder whether its stations have platforms. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

Strategy: Underline the key words of the claim, then test each quotation against every one of those words rather than against its general mood.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for evidence: the sentence that best proves an idea. The idea is that traveling by train to new places is unfamiliar, or new, to Margaret.

  2. Underline the key words

    The idea has two parts: train travel and new places. All four sentences show Margaret unsure in the dark. But the right one must show that this place is new to her.

  3. Look closely at paragraph 3

    Paragraph 3 asks: “Did they not have platforms in this wild Western land, or was the train so long that her car had stopped before reaching it?” A platform is the raised floor where you get on and off a train. Margaret wonders whether stations out West even have platforms. She calls it “this wild Western land.” Only someone new to a place would wonder that.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. It shows her getting off quickly. Nothing shows the place is new to her.
    • B is wrong. She guesses about engine trouble. That shows she knows how trains work.
    • C is right. She does not know what stations are like in this new land.
    • D is wrong. She can’t see well because it is dark. She still knows the engine and the lanterns.

    Watch out: B starts with “Perhaps,” so it sounds unsure. But she is guessing about one train, not about a new place.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only the question about platforms shows that the place is strange to her. So the answer is C.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

B is the closest wrong answer, because Margaret is unsure in it too. But in B she guesses about the engine, like any rider who knows trains. In C, she wonders what stations in “this wild Western land” are like. That shows the place is new to her.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 17 as printed on page 130 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 130, question 17. Open page 130 of the handbook (PDF)
The passage “Excerpt from A Voice in the Wilderness” as printed (pages 128–129)The passage “Excerpt from A Voice in the Wilderness” as printed on page 128 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from A Voice in the Wilderness” as printed on page 129 of the DOE handbook.

Question 118 of 120

2018 Test B English, question 25
Passage Excerpt from “Niagara Falls”

Excerpt from “Niagara Falls”

by Rupert Brooke

The real secret of the beauty and terror of the Falls is not their height or width, but the feeling of colossal power and of unintelligible disaster caused by the plunge of that vast body of water. If that were taken away, there would be little visible change, but the heart would be gone.

The American Falls do not inspire this feeling in the same way as the Canadian. It is because they are less in volume, and because the water does not fall so much into one place. By comparison their beauty is almost delicate and fragile. They are extraordinarily level, one long curtain of lacework and woven foam. Seen from opposite, when the sun is on them, they are blindingly white, and the clouds of spray show dark against them. With both Falls the colour of the water is the ever-altering wonder. Greens and blues, purples and whites, melt into one another, fade, and come again, and change with the changing sun. Sometimes they are as richly diaphanous1^1 as a precious stone, and glow from within with a deep, inexplicable light. Sometimes the white intricacies of dropping foam become opaque and creamy. And always there are the rainbows. If you come suddenly upon the Falls from above, a great double rainbow, very vivid, spanning the extent of spray from top to bottom, is the first thing you see. If you wander along the cliff opposite, a bow springs into being in the American Falls, accompanies you courteously on your walk, dwindles and dies as the mist ends, and awakens again as you reach the Canadian tumult. And the bold traveller who attempts the trip under the American Falls sees, when he dare open his eyes to anything, tiny baby rainbows, some four or five yards in span, leaping from rock to rock among the foam, and gambolling beside him, barely out of hand’s reach, as he goes. One I saw in that place was a complete circle, such as I have never seen before, and so near that I could put my foot on it. It is a terrifying journey, beneath and behind the Falls. The senses are battered and bewildered by the thunder of the water and the assault of wind and spray; or rather, the sound is not of falling water, but merely of falling; a noise of unspecified ruin. So, if you are close behind the endless clamour, the sight cannot recognise liquid in the masses that hurl past. You are dimly and pitifully aware that sheets of light and darkness are falling in great curves in front of you. Dull omnipresent foam washes the face. Farther away, in the roar and hissing, clouds of spray seem literally to slide down some invisible plane of air.

Beyond the foot of the Falls the river is like a slipping floor of marble, green with veins of dirty white, made by the scum that was foam. It slides very quietly and slowly down for a mile or two, sullenly exhausted. Then it turns to a dull sage green, and hurries more swiftly, smooth and ominous. As the walls of the ravine close in, trouble stirs, and the waters boil and eddy. These are the lower rapids, a sight more terrifying than the Falls, because less intelligible. Close in its bands of rock the river surges tumultuously forward, writhing and leaping as if inspired by a demon. It is pressed by the straits into a visibly convex form. Great planes of water slide past. Sometimes it is thrown up into a pinnacle of foam higher than a house, or leaps with incredible speed from the crest of one vast wave to another, along the shining curve between, like the spring of a wild beast. Its motion continually suggests muscular action. The power manifest in these rapids moves one with a different sense of awe and terror from that of the Falls. Here the inhuman life and strength are spontaneous, active, almost resolute. . . . A place of fear.

One is drawn back, strangely, to a contemplation of the Falls, at every hour, and especially by night, when the cloud of spray becomes an immense visible ghost, straining and wavering high above the river, white and pathetic and translucent. The Victorian lies very close below the surface in every man. There one can sit and let great cloudy thoughts of destiny and the passage of empires drift through the mind; for such dreams are at home by Niagara. I could not get out of my mind the thought of a friend, who said that the rainbows over the Falls were like the arts and beauty and goodness, with regard to the stream of life—caused by it, thrown upon its spray, but unable to stay or direct or affect it, and ceasing when it ceased. In all comparisons that rise in the heart, the river, with its multitudinous waves and its single current, likens itself to a life, whether of an individual or of a community. A man’s life is of many flashing moments, and yet one stream; a nation’s flows through all its citizens, and yet is more than they. In such places, one is aware, with an almost insupportable and yet comforting certitude, that both men and nations are hurried onwards to their ruin or ending as inevitably as this dark flood. Some go down to it unreluctant, and meet it, like the river, not without nobility. And as incessant, as inevitable, and as unavailing as the spray that hangs over the Falls, is the white cloud of human crying. . . . With some such thoughts does the platitudinous2^2 heart win from the confusion and thunder of a Niagara peace that the quietest plains or most stable hills can never give.

From LETTERS FROM AMERICA by Rupert Brooke—Public Domain

1^1diaphanous: sheer, translucent

2^2platitudinous: clichéd, common

Question

The central idea that the Falls communicate a feeling of “unintelligible disaster” (paragraph 1) is conveyed in paragraph 2 through a description of

  • Athe glow of the precious stones visible within the water.
  • Bthe dynamic flow of the colors that are visible in the water.
  • Cthe sudden appearance and disappearance of rainbows.
  • Dthe sounds associated with a sense of falling.
Show the answer

Correct answer: D

The question asks for a specific detail from paragraph 2 that conveys the central idea that the Falls communicates a feeling of “unintelligible disaster” (paragraph 1). The sound of falling is described in paragraph 2 as “a noise of unspecified ruin,” so Option D is correct because it best connects with the idea of “unintelligible disaster” mentioned in paragraph 1.

Option A is incorrect because, although the water is described as “diaphanous as a precious stone” in paragraph 2 because of the “glow” coming from the interaction of the light, there are no stones within the water.

Option B is incorrect because the details in paragraph 2 about the flow of colors in the water are described as an “ever-altering wonder,” which conveys a sense of beauty and not a sense of disaster.

Option C is incorrect because the rainbows in paragraph 2 are described as “vivid” and accompanying someone “courteously” while he or she walks, which contributes to the idea that the appearance and disappearance of the rainbows are a pleasant experience and not disastrous.

Question analysis

This question on Rupert Brooke’s essay “Niagara Falls” asks which descriptive detail in paragraph 2 conveys the central idea that the Falls feel like an “unintelligible disaster.” Students must connect an idea from the opening paragraph to supporting evidence in a very long paragraph packed with vivid images, and judge the feeling each image creates.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Linking a detail to a central idea is standard grade 7 work, but the evidence sits inside a paragraph of several hundred words of century-old prose, with words like “diaphanous” and “gambolling,” and must be matched by meaning rather than wording.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 987 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 58 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

The challenge is to find, in the essay’s longest paragraph, the one image that feels like disaster rather than beauty. Most of the paragraph is lovely, colors and rainbows that change and return, and the wrong choices draw on those passages. Students who keep the feeling of “unintelligible disaster” in mind, rather than just looking for things that appear and disappear, will find it in the sound of the water near the end.

  1. A lot to read moderate Understanding the question

    Paragraph 2 runs 407 words through colors, rainbows and a trip behind the water, and the sentence that matters, ending “a noise of unspecified ruin,” comes near its end. (Kintsch, 1998; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

  2. Figurative or literary language moderate Understanding the question

    Students must judge the feeling each image creates, and only the sound “not of falling water, but merely of falling” carries a sense of disaster; the colors and rainbows are wonders. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  3. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    The key phrase “unintelligible disaster” must be matched to “unspecified ruin,” and words such as “diaphanous” and “intricacies” crowd the images around it. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Keep the words “unintelligible disaster” in mind, find each choice’s detail in paragraph 2, and ask what feeling the author’s words give that detail.

Traps

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    Paragraph 1 says the Falls give a feeling of “unintelligible disaster.” “Unintelligible” means impossible to understand. You need the detail in paragraph 2 that feels like a disaster you can’t understand.

  2. Find the matching words

    Near the end of paragraph 2, the author goes behind the Falls. He says “the sound is not of falling water, but merely of falling; a noise of unspecified ruin.”

  3. Work out what the words mean

    “Merely” means just. The noise is not of water but of falling itself, as if everything were crashing down. “Ruin” means destruction, much like disaster. “Unspecified” means not named or not clear. So the sound is a crash of destruction you can’t explain. That matches “unintelligible disaster.”

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. The water is only compared to a precious stone. There are no stones, and the image is lovely, not scary.
    • B is wrong. The colors are called “the ever-altering wonder.” That is beauty, not disaster.
    • C is wrong. The rainbows are “very vivid” and walk beside you “courteously,” which means politely. They are pleasant.
    • D is right. The sound of falling is the “noise of unspecified ruin.”

    Watch out: A rainbow that “dwindles and dies” sounds sad. But it “awakens again,” and the rainbows are a delight.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only the sound of falling carries the sense of a disaster. So the answer is D.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer, because a rainbow that “dwindles and dies” might seem gloomy. But the author makes the rainbows friendly and beautiful. “A noise of unspecified ruin” almost repeats the words “unintelligible disaster,” so D is the best match.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 25 as printed on page 135 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 135, question 25. Open page 135 of the handbook (PDF)
The passage “Excerpt from “Niagara Falls”” as printed (pages 134–135)The passage “Excerpt from “Niagara Falls”” as printed on page 134 of the DOE handbook.The passage “Excerpt from “Niagara Falls”” as printed on page 135 of the DOE handbook.

Question 119 of 120

2018 Test B English, question 28

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “Niagara Falls””.

Question

Which sentence from the excerpt best supports the idea that the essence of the Falls lies in their emotional impact?

  • A“If that were taken away, there would be little visible change, but the heart would be gone.” (paragraph 1)
  • B“By comparison their beauty is almost delicate and fragile.” (paragraph 2)
  • C“One is drawn back, strangely, to a contemplation of the Falls, at every hour, and especially by night, when the cloud of spray becomes an immense visible ghost, straining and wavering high above the river, white and pathetic and translucent.” (paragraph 4)
  • D“A man’s life is of many flashing moments, and yet one stream; a nation’s flows through all its citizens, and yet is more than they.” (paragraph 4)
Show the answer

Correct answer: A

The question asks for the sentence from the excerpt that best supports the idea that the essence of the Falls lies in their emotional impact. The first sentence in the excerpt establishes that the “real secret of the beauty and terror of the Falls” is “the feeling of colossal power and of unintelligible disaster.” Option A is correct because the sentence in Option A best supports this notion by identifying these qualities as “the heart,” or essence, of the Falls.

While “delicate” and “fragile” are words that can be connected with certain kinds of emotions, in the sentence in Option B, they are connected with physical beauty, so Option B is incorrect.

Option C is incorrect because, while the sentence in Option C describes the power of the Falls to engage one in thought, it does not best support the idea that the essence of the Falls lies in their emotional impact.

Option D is incorrect because the sentence in Option D describes thoughts one may have while watching the Falls and is not focused on the Falls’ emotional impact.

Question analysis

In this textual evidence question, students choose the quotation from Rupert Brooke’s “Niagara Falls” that best supports the idea that the essence of the Falls lies in their emotional impact. Every choice is a vivid sentence from the excerpt, so the challenge is matching that precise idea instead of settling for a line that only sounds emotional.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7R2 theme or central idea
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
At grade 7 Grade 7 evidence questions usually offer one sentence that clearly matches the claim. Here all four quotations are long or figurative lines of older prose, and the claim itself, about an essence, is abstract.
Estimated difficulty
Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 987 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 115 words.
Corrected from the DOE handbook
  • A misquotation of the passage in the explanation was corrected.
  • A stray apostrophe in the explanation was removed.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Every quotation carries feeling, so the test is whether a sentence says what the Falls’ essence is, not merely whether it is emotional. The right one is short and plain and depends on the sentence before it, which defines “that” as the feeling of power and disaster. Students who choose by the intensity of the language pass over it for the ghostly night scene or the reflections on life.

  1. Reading between the lines moderate Working it out

    The right sentence never says “emotion” or “essence”: students must see that “that” points back to “the feeling of colossal power,” and that “the heart” means the essence. (Graesser, Singer & Trabasso, 1994; Kintsch, 1998)

  2. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    The claim’s key word, “essence,” has to be matched to the text’s “real secret” and “heart,” two everyday words used here in an abstract sense. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Restate the idea in your own words, that the Falls matter because of how they make people feel, and test each quotation: does it say what the Falls’ essence is, or something else?

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.

The wrong answers, classified

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

  • Explanation: The handbook quotes the first sentence as saying the “real secret of the beauty and terror of the Falls . . . lies in the feeling of colossal power and unintelligible disaster.” The passage says the real secret “is not their height or width, but the feeling of colossal power and of unintelligible disaster.” The site now quotes it exactly.
  • Explanation: The handbook writes “the power of the Falls’ to engage one in thought”; the site drops the stray possessive apostrophe: “the power of the Falls to engage one in thought.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks for evidence for an idea: the essence of the Falls lies in their emotional impact. “Essence” means the most important part, what makes something what it is. “Emotional impact” means the way it makes people feel.

  2. Read the opening of paragraph 1

    The essay begins: “The real secret of the beauty and terror of the Falls is not their height or width, but the feeling of colossal power and of unintelligible disaster.” So the real secret of the Falls is a feeling.

  3. Read the sentence that comes next

    Next comes: “If that were taken away, there would be little visible change, but the heart would be gone.” “That” means the feeling. Take the feeling away, and the Falls would look the same. But “the heart” would be gone. Here, the heart means the most important part, the essence. So the essence is the feeling.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is right. It says the Falls would lose their heart without the feeling they create.
    • B is wrong. It compares how the two Falls look, not what their essence is.
    • C is wrong. It shows the Falls pull people back, but it never says the feeling is their essence.
    • D is wrong. It compares a river to human lives and nations.

    Watch out: C is full of feeling, with the spray like a ghost. But it describes a view, not what the Falls truly are.

  5. Choose the answer

    Only A says that the feeling is the heart of the Falls. So the answer is A.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

C is the closest wrong answer, because it is an emotional description. But it does not say where the essence of the Falls lies. A does. Without the feeling, almost nothing you can see would change, yet “the heart would be gone.”

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 28 as printed on page 136 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 136, question 28. Open page 136 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D). This is the DOE’s version, before the corrections listed in the analysis.

Question 120 of 120

2018 Test B English, question 30

Uses the passage above: “Excerpt from “Niagara Falls””.

Question

In paragraph 4, the idea that human life and history travel toward the same ending is illustrated mainly through

  • Athe discussion of how the rainbows visible in the Falls are like the art and beauty created by humankind.
  • Bthe comparison between the movement of water in the Falls and the human experience.
  • Cthe inclusion of details that show that every observer’s experience with the Falls is different.
  • Dthe acknowledgment that contemplating the Falls at night sparks an awareness of humankind’s destiny.
Show the answer

Correct answer: B

The question asks how the discussion of human life and history is illustrated in paragraph 4 of the excerpt. The author concludes in paragraph 4 that the Falls can be compared to people and history by writing, “both men and nations are hurried onwards to their ruin or ending as inevitably as this dark flood,” making Option B correct.

Option A is incorrect because the discussion of rainbows in paragraph 4 focuses on the fate of art and beauty, not of humanity (“I could not get out of my mind the thought of a friend, who said that the rainbows over the Falls were like the arts and beauty and goodness, with regard to the stream of life—caused by it, thrown upon its spray, but unable to stay or direct or affect it, and ceasing when it ceased”).

Option C is incorrect because, in paragraph 4, the author talks about people in general when discussing “men and nations” and provides no evidence of the differences in specific individuals’ experience of the Falls.

Option D is incorrect because, while the setting at night does provide a place of contemplation, the author notes the “dark flood” as the overall illustration of the human experience.

Question analysis

In this question about the closing paragraph of Brooke’s “Niagara Falls,” students identify the main way the author illustrates the idea that human lives and history move toward the same ending. The paragraph is dense and philosophical and holds several images and reflections, so students must find the one that carries this particular idea.

NYS standards
  • 7R1 textual evidence and inferences
  • 7L5 figurative language and word relationships
Grade level
Grade 8 reading and task
Compared with grade 7
Above grade 7 Grade 7 students often trace how an idea is illustrated in a modern text; this paragraph is abstract reflection in long, formal sentences, with words like “certitude” and “multitudinous,” and offers several competing images to sort through.
Estimated difficulty
Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
What makes it hard
Evidence
Answered from one paragraph or stanza
Reading level
Passage: about grade 9, 987 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 80 words.
Students, last 30 days
Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)

Why it is hard

Paragraph 4 holds three images, the night spray as a ghost, the friend’s rainbows, and the river as a life, and the question asks which one carries the idea of a shared ending. Students who recognize the stem’s idea in the word “destiny” or in rainbows “ceasing when it ceased” can stop too soon. The test is the word “illustrated”: only the comparison of the dark flood to men and nations shows them traveling to an end.

  1. Complex sentences major Understanding the question

    The key sentence buries its point in qualifiers: “one is aware, with an almost insupportable and yet comforting certitude, that both men and nations are hurried onwards to their ruin or ending as inevitably as this dark flood.” (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

  2. The right answer is reworded moderate Choosing the answer

    The right choice sums up the river-as-life comparison in plain words, “movement of water” and “human experience,” while wrong choices reuse the paragraph’s own “rainbows,” “art and beauty,” “night” and “destiny.” (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)

  3. Hard words minor Understanding the question

    “Multitudinous,” “certitude,” “insupportable” and “unavailing” all fall in the sentences that carry the idea, so students must read through them to reach the comparison. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

Strategy: Locate the sentences in paragraph 4 about what happens to people and nations, then decide which choice best describes how those sentences make their point.

Traps

  • Supports only part of the claim: In a question about evidence: a line that backs one half of the claim but not the other, or a related point rather than the claim itself.
  • Outside knowledge: A choice is plausible in the real world but not supported by this text.

The wrong answers, classified

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Working it out, step by step

  1. Figure out what the question asks

    This asks how paragraph 4 shows one idea: that people and nations all move toward the same ending. You need the main way the author makes that point.

  2. Find the sentences about people and nations

    Paragraph 4 says the river, “with its multitudinous waves and its single current, likens itself to a life, whether of an individual or of a community.” Later it says “both men and nations are hurried onwards to their ruin or ending as inevitably as this dark flood.”

  3. Put the comparison in plain words

    “Multitudinous” means very many. The river has many waves but one current. In the same way, a life has many moments but one path. “Inevitably” means in a way that cannot be stopped. The water rushes over the Falls no matter what. Every person and every nation reaches an end, too. The author shows this by comparing the moving water to human life.

  4. Check each choice

    • A is wrong. The rainbows stand for art and beauty, not for people and nations.
    • B is right. The river’s rush to its end is compared to human lives and history.
    • C is wrong. The author speaks of people in general. He never shows observers seeing the Falls differently.
    • D is wrong. Night is when the thinking happens. It is not the picture that shows the shared ending.

    Watch out: D uses real details from paragraph 4, night and destiny. But they tell when the author thinks, not how he shows the idea.

  5. Choose the answer

    The idea is shown through the river and its comparison to people. So the answer is B.

Why this answer and not the closest wrong one

D is the closest wrong answer, because paragraph 4 does mention night and “thoughts of destiny.” But those details only set the scene for thinking. The shared ending is shown through the river: people and nations are hurried onward like the dark flood. That comparison is B.

More questions like this

The original DOE question
Question 30 as printed on page 137 of the DOE handbook.
As printed in the DOE’s Specialized High Schools Student Handbook 2018–2019, page 137, question 30. Open page 137 of the handbook (PDF) The handbook letters this question’s choices E–H; here they are A–D (E = A, F = B, G = C, H = D).