RR2 RV3 Reading Final Sp15Secure


1For centuries, people have been playing kicking games with a ball. The game of soccer developed from some of these early games. The English probably gave soccer its name and its first set of rules. In European countries, soccer is called football or association football. Some people believe that the name "soccer" came from "assoc.," an abbreviation for the word association. Others believe that the name came from the high socks that the players wear.
2 Organized soccer games began in 1863. In soccer, two teams of eleven players try to kick or head the ball into their opponents’ goal. The goalie, who tries to keep the ball out of the goal, is the only player on the field who is allowed to touch the ball with his or her hands. The other players must use their feet, heads, and bodies to control the ball.
3 Every four years, soccer teams around the world compete for the World Cup. The World Cup competition started in 1930.
4 Brazil is the home of many great soccer players, including the most famous player of all, Pelé. With his fast footwork, dazzling speed, and great scoring ability, Pelé played for many years in Brazil and then later in New York. During his 22 years in soccer, he scored 1,281 goals and held every major record for the sport.
5 People in more than 140 countries around the world play soccer. It is the national sport of most European and Latin American countries. Soccer is definitely the world’s most popular sport!
6 James Naismith, a physical education teacher in Massachusetts, invented basketball in 1891. Naismith’s boss asked him to invent a game that students could play indoors during bad weather. He wanted to find a game that wasn’t as physically rough as soccer, football, or wrestling.
7 Naismith attached peach baskets to a railing ten feet above the floor at either end of the gym. The players used a soccer ball. A person sat on a ladder next to each basket at either end of the gym, and threw out the balls that landed in the baskets. Naismith decided that having only five players on each team would keep the game from getting too rough.
8 Two years later, metal hoops with net bags replaced the peach baskets. Officials pulled a string on the nets to release the balls that went in. In 1894, Naismith added the backboard behind each net and changed to a larger ball. In 1913, people began using the bottomless nets that are used today.
9 During a basketball game, two teams of five players each throw the ball into two baskets at opposite ends of a court. Players bounce, or dribble, the ball to the basket or pass the ball to teammates. A team scores points by getting the ball into their team’s basket. The team with the highest score wins.
10 By the 1900s, basketball was the most popular indoor sport. Athletes in approximately 130 countries play the game. Basketball is especially popular in the United States, China, and Puerto Rico.
11 Baseball began in the United States in the early 1800s. Some people believe that Abner Doubleday invented the game. Others think that baseball came from an old British sport called rounders. Baseball and rounders are very similar. However, in rounders the field players throw the ball right at the runner. If the ball hits the runner, he or she is out. In baseball, a field player just touches the ball to the base or the running player to get the player out.
12 Today’s baseball players use special equipment to help prevent injuries. Field players wear baseball gloves to protect their hands. The catcher wears a metal mask, a chest protector, and shin guards. Batters wear plastic helmets to protect their heads.
13 Every spring in the United States, people of all ages play baseball at local baseball fields. It’s no wonder that baseball is called the national pastime of the United States.
Circle the best answer
  1. Which of the following events happened first?
  1. Basketball was invented
  2. World Cup competition was invented
  3. baseball began in the US
  4. organized soccer games began
  1. Pele is a famous ______
  1. Soccer player
  2. Baseball coach
  3. Basketball player
  4. Baseball player
  1. Read this sentence from the story: With his fast footwork, dazzling speed, and great scoring ability, Pelé played for many years in Brazil, and then later in New York.
What does “dazzling” mean?
  1. difficult
  2. amazing
  3. funny
  4. light
  1. What can you logically guess is true from reading this article? ______
  1. Sports are more popular in Brazil than in the US
  2. Most sports involve kicking a ball
  3. Sports can be very dangerous
  4. Sports are popular in many different countries
  1. Which of the following is an opinion?

  1. The rules of soccer state that goalies are allowed to touch the ball with their hands.

  1. Basketball was first played with peach baskets attached to railings.

  1. Because it is popular in so many countries, soccer is the sport that is the most fun to play.

  1. In baseball, a player can touch the ball to the base or to the runner to get the runner out.

The Violin
1 In the late 1500s, in Italy, a man named Andrea Amati set out to create a beautiful instrument. He determined it should have an hourglass-shaped body with four strings attached to it. It should also have a beautiful neck and fingerboard. When it was all put together, it would make beautiful music. The instrument Amati created was called the violin and it went on to be one of the most popular instruments of all time.
[Picture: Violin. Caption: The violin has an hourglass shape.]
2Everyone love the violin. Kings and queens enjoyed listened to it. Street musicians played it. Composers wrote music that featured it. Orchestras quickly filled their seats with violinists. So that anyone who wanted to could purchase a violin, Amati created a mold. This allowed him to create many violins and still ensure each one had the same shape and quality as the original.
3The people who played the violin were called violinists. To play the violin, the violinist rested his chin on the chin rest. Then he held the neck of the violin in his hand. He drug a stick, called a bow, across the strings to make music. The bow was made of wood and horse hair. As the horse hair brushed across the strings, it caused them to vibrate (move back and forth rapidly). The vibration was how the strings made music.
[Picture: Violinist. Caption: A violinist plays the violin.]
4The violin became part of a family of instruments called string instruments. Its cousins were the viola and cello. Of all the string instruments, the violin had the highest voice and, therefore, was called the soprano. With its beautiful voice, it could be used to convey all sorts of emotion in music. When the violin was plucked, it made a happy, energetic sound. If it was played softly and slowly, it sounded extremely sad. A loud, quickly played violin could easily sound angry.
[Picture: Violin with music. Caption: A violin plays different types of music.]
5In addition to playing music with different emotions, the violin was used in different genres of music. In fact, it continues to be played today. Violins are not only found in orchestras or playing classical music. They are also featured in country music songs, on rock tracks and even sometimes as part of hip hop music.
[Picture: Orchestra violins. Caption: Violins are played in orchestras.]
Circle the best answer.
  1. The main idea of this story is to ______
  1. Share the history of the violin
  2. Tell how the violin was made
  3. Describe the different parts of the violin
  4. Encourage others to play the violin
  1. Why did Andrea Amati create a mold?
  1. to create violins faster
  2. to ensure all violins had the same quality
  3. to let others make the violins
  4. to preserve his violin design
  1. What does the information in brackets [ ] mean?
  1. the author wanted to include additional information
  2. changes the author needs to make to the article
  3. pictures the author plans to include
  4. notes to help the reader understand the article
  1. What is the main idea of paragraph 4?
  1. the violin was popular
  2. the violin can show many emotions
  3. the violin can play many types of music
  4. the violin is a beautiful instrument
  1. How does the violin make music?
  1. its strings vibrate by shaking the violin
  2. the hair on the bow makes the strings vibrate
  3. the violinist holds the bow in his hand
  4. a chin rest gives the violinist a place to rest his chin
______
An Exotic Dish
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