STUDY GUIDE Grammar and Language, 3Rd Nine Wks Name: ______

STUDY GUIDE – Grammar and Language, 3rd nine wks Name: ______

1. I logged on to Ticketmaster at 12:00 a.m. to be sure to get tickets.

a. simpleb. compoundc. complex d. compound-complex

2. By 10:00 a.m., I had already run two miles, gone to the grocery store, and cleaned my bathroom.

a. simpleb. compoundc. complex d. compound-complex

3. I asked my mother if I could get a new iphone, but she told me no.

a. simpleb. compoundc. complex d. compound-complex

4. The villain chuckled as he snuck silently into the back room.

a. simpleb. compoundc. complexd. compound-complex

5. Choose the simple sentence.

a. The boat couldn’t stay afloat; it was taking in too much water. c. You should eat breakfast because it’s good for you.

b. Every morning, Troy goes for a morning jog around Star Lake. d. He left after I left.

6. Choose the simple sentence.

a. The bear crawled.b. Everyone loved the bear and its babies.

c. The large brown bear, Tabitha, walked into the house from the woods outside.

d. All of the abovee. A and B but not C

7. Choose the compound sentence.

a. Although I stayed up until midnight, I couldn’t finish my project on time.

b. I worked for three hours straight but didn’t have all the supplies I needed.

c. Next time, I’ll plan ahead and buy all the materials I need before I start.

d. I hope that I don’t get too many points taken off; I really need a good grade!

8. Choose the compound sentence.

a. Mary and Samantha arrived today and left late last night after midnight.

b. I did not see them at the station because Mary and Samantha arrived at the bus station before noon.

c. Joe waited for the train, but the train was late.

d. Joe left the train station as soon as he could get away.

e. Both A and C are compound.

9. Choose the complex sentence.

a. The wind was blowing so hard that my umbrella turned inside-out.

b. The small clownfish with the damaged fin could easily swim through the anemone.

c. The timid, gray mouse ran into the corner then began squeaking with fear.

d. Looking through the newspaper, I saw an ad for a huge sale on boots at the all this Friday.

10. Choose the complex sentence.

a. Joe waited for the train, but the train was late.

b. I did not see them at the station because Mary and Samantha arrived at the bus station before noon.

c. Mary and Samantha arrived today and left late last night.

d. Joe, who is a very punctual person, was angry that the train was late.

e. Both B and D are complex.

11. Choose the compound-complex sentence.

a. When I went shopping, I bought a new pair of sandals, a sweater, and a pair of leggings for under fifty dollars.

b. My brother teased me mercilessly until I began to cry, so I tattled on him to my mother.

c. While many students will study for this test and try very hard to do well, others will not, sadly.

d. If I were you, I would read every question and answer very carefully before answering.

12. Which sentence is unclear due to a misplaced or dangling modifier?

a. On the lake shore, the ducks quacked harshly, begging for food.

b. While changing classes, the fire alarm blared, frightening the students.

c. Our school won the championship in basketball this year.

d. Because the bus had a flat tire, it was late to pick us up this morning.

13. Which sentence is unclear due to a misplaced or dangling modifier?

a. Rising high into the air, I saw the helicopter turn left and move out of sight.

b. Angry about striking out, the batter threw his helmet to the ground.

c. After dinner, we played a game of Catch Phrase.

d. The car with the burned-out taillight raced rapidly down the dragway.

14. Read this sentence. I was a bridesmaid in my best friend’s wedding last summer.

I want to add where this wedding took place. Where is the BEST place to insert the phrase “in her neighbor’s garden.”

a. at the beginning of the sentencec. after “friend’s”

b. after “bridesmaid”d. after “wedding”

15. Which sentence correctly uses a comma between the adjectives?

a. My cat birthed a litter of five, orange kittens.

b. My grandfather always longs for the good, ol’ days.

c. The child dropped the bright, red ball down the drainpipe.

d. There is nothing like a freezing, cold Coke with a bowl of popcorn.

16. Which sentence requires a comma between the adjectives?

a.I love to wear my gray silk pajama pants at night.

b. The new wooden bridge helped us to easily cross the stream.

c. The warm tasty doughnuts were perfect with my coffee.

d. My dad’s expensive stamp collection is missing.

17. Joe was the Shakespeare of rap. What does this mean?

a. Joe is older than most rappers.c. Joe’s rap songs are sonnets.

b. Joe talks like he were from another era.D. Joe is great with words.

18. The allusion “It wasn’t raining when Noah built the ark” means

a. Noah planned ahead.c. Noah had big plans, but couldn’t follow through.

b. Noah was crazy.d. Noah wouldn’t survive the flood.

19. Which word(s) has the most negative connotation?

a. delayedb. latec. tardy

20. Which word(s) has the mostpositive connotation?

a. whiny babyb. youthfulc. immature

21. Which word(s) has the mostnegative connotation?

a. snoopb. find c. detect

Complete the questions below:

22. “Rigorous” means the opposite of uncomplicated. What do you think “rigorous” means? ______

23. “Complacent” means the opposite of concerned. What do you think “complacent” means? ______

24. “Zealous” means the opposite of unenthusiastic. What do you think “zealous” means? ______

25. “Indolent” means the opposite of hard-working. What do you think “indolent” means? ______

26. “Sedentary” means the opposite of active. What do you think “sedentary” means? ______

READING LITERATURE AND INFORMATIONAL TEXT

The field sits breathless in the orangy glow of the evening sun. I stare at the potato-colored earth of the infield, that wide, dun arc, surrounded by plastic grass. As I contemplate the prickly turf, which scorches a sliding player as if he were being seared by hot steel, it stares back in its uniform ugliness. The seams that send routinely hit ground balls veering at tortuous angles are vivid, gray as scars.

I remember the ballfields of my childhood, the outfields full of soft hummocks and brown-eyed gopher holes.

I stride down from the stands and walk out to the middle of the field. I touch the stubble that is called grass, take off my shoes, but find it is like walking on a row of toothbrushes. It was an evil day when they stripped the sod from this ballpark, cut it into yard-wide swathes, rolled it, memories and all, into great green-and-black cinnamon roll shapes, trucked it away. Nature temporarily defeated. But Nature is patient.

Source: W.P. Kinsella, "The Thrill of the Grass," in The Norton Book of Sports, George Plimpton, ed., New York , W.W. Norton, 1992, p. 123

30. Reread the first paragraph closely. How does the author feel about the new, artificial turf?

a. He prefers it to regular grass.c. He feels that it makes the game more difficult.

b. He isn’t sure, but is willing to give it a chance.d. None of the above.

31. What does “Find it is like walking on a row of toothbrushes” mean?

a. I needed to brush my teeth.c. The grass looked like my toothbrush.

b. The grass felt like the bristles of a toothbrush.d. My foot hurt like the end of a toothbrush was stabbing it.

32. What figure of speech is “The field sits breathless”?

simileb. metaphorc. personificationd. hyperbole

Text ComparisonsMaggie and the Mission

Maggie pulled her red hat over her head as she stepped into the cold. Her brother,Jamie, had taken Maggie to her favorite diner after school to get a cup of hot chocolate. Asthey sipped their warm treats, Maggie told Jamie about her homework. Her teacher had askedMaggie’s class to brainstorm community service projects the class could do together. When itstarted to get dark outside, they headed back home.Yuck, she thought as her rain boot landed in a big puddle of slush. January was not herfavorite month in New York City. It was cold and wet, and she could hardly play outside! Shedreamt of her warm bed as a cold wind whipped past her. The block was empty—the twowere the only pair walking down the snowy sidewalk. Well, at least that’s what Maggiethought. All of a sudden, out of the corner of her eye, she saw something move. Maggiestopped in her tracks. She looked toward the source of the movement in curiosity. A bundle ofblankets was piled on top of several cardboard pieces that had been placed over the sidewalk.

Maggie stepped closer. She didn’t see any movement anymore. But then, out of the blanketsemerged a man. He wore an old, ragged jacket—it looked like one Maggie had seen in movies,the kind that soldiers wear. There were holes in the elbows. On his hands he wore dirty blackgloves, and the fabric for the thumb on the right hand had been torn off.

“Hello!” Maggie said, wishing she had more blankets for him.

“Well hello, could you help a fellow out?” he replied in a deep voice.

“Oh, I don’t have anything...” Maggie said, as she felt around her pockets. Jamie pulledout a dollar bill from his wallet and placed it in the man’s hands.

“Thank you so much,” he said.

Maggie and Jamie smiled at him and kept on walking.

Once they arrived home, Maggie told her dad about the man on the street. He was busypreparing dinner.

“It’s really hard for them out there, especially during the winter months. The homelessshelters in the city don’t have enough room for everyone,” he told her.

Her dad went back to cooking, but Maggie couldn’t stop thinking about the man. Duringdinner, she remained quiet and thought about what she could do to help those without ahome. She figured it would be perfect for her class’s community service project.

Once she finished eating, she rushed to the computer to do some research. She foundthe Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress that had been published by the U.S.government in January 2013. It said that 610,042 Americans were homeless on any givennight. That meant one in 514 people. Maggie could hardly wrap her head around that number. She began to look up different homeless shelters around New York City.

ABOUT HOMELESSNESS:

Homelessness is an issue that affects people of every age and from every country. If youwalk down the street in many big cities in the United States, you might notice people sleepingon the sidewalk or begging for food or money. These individuals are very visible to passersby,and it is difficult to ignore them. But there are also homeless people who do not sleep on thestreets. They are not as visible to the public eye, but they are also homeless. These people

often spend their nights sleeping in shelters, which provide food, rooms, and often a variety ofsocial services (like daycare). We might not see these people on the streets, but it does notmean that they aren’t suffering.

When thinking about homelessness, one of the first questions that might come to mindis: why are people homeless? People become homeless for a variety of reasons, often outsideof their own personal control. Two key reasons have been identified on why people becomehomeless. The first is a lack of affordable housing. The second is poverty, or the condition ofbeing poor. The government is usually responsible for providing affordable housing to peopleand families in need. It builds large apartment buildings or housing developments for peoplewho cannot afford to live elsewhere. Sometimes there is not enough affordable housing for allthe people who need it. Those who are unable to secure housing may become homeless.Homelessness and poverty are quite clearly linked. Poor people must often choosebetween such important things as buying food or paying for medical care versus paying therent. When poor people are faced with these difficult decisions, housing is often the firstexpense to be dropped because it generally requires the largest amount of money. Many ofthe homeless in America are simply unable to find jobs due to a lack of opportunity. Others arementally ill or addicted to drugs. Still others who are homeless have previously relied on publicassistance but have lost that assistance for one reason or another. An example of a publicassistance program is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which provides help forpeople who struggle to afford healthy and nutritious food.

33. How does the information presented in “Maggie and the Mission” differ from that in “About Homelessness?”

34. Which article has a more impersonal tone? Find a quote from the text that supports your opinion.

35. What information is discussed in “Maggie and the Mission” that is not discussed in “About Homelessness”?

36. What information is discussed in both articles?

37. What kind of person can you infer that Maggie is? Find a quote from the text that supports your opinion.

About Homelessness (an excerpt)