CAASPP Reading Comprehension 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A student reads a paragraph that begins with a claim and ends with supporting evidence. What is the author's primary purpose in structuring the paragraph this way?
- To entertain readers with an interesting story
- To persuade readers by backing a claim with evidence (Correct answer)
- To describe a sequence of historical events
- To compare two different scientific theories
Correct answer: To persuade readers by backing a claim with evidence
When an author states a claim and follows it with evidence, the structure is designed to persuade or convince the reader.
Question 2: In a nonfiction passage, the word 'predominantly' is used to describe a habitat. Based on context clues, what does 'predominantly' most likely mean?
- Rarely or occasionally
- Mainly or for the most part (Correct answer)
- Dangerously or recklessly
- Clearly or obviously
Correct answer: Mainly or for the most part
'Predominantly' means mainly or mostly, describing something that is the primary or dominant characteristic.
Question 3: A narrator describes events from the perspective of 'we,' sharing the thoughts of the whole group. Which point of view is being used?
- First-person singular
- Second-person
- Third-person omniscient
- First-person plural (Correct answer)
Correct answer: First-person plural
When a narrator uses 'we' and shares the collective experience, this is first-person plural point of view.
Question 4: An author includes a sidebar with statistics next to the main article. What is the most likely reason for including this text feature?
- To replace the main article with more accurate data
- To provide additional data that supports the main text without interrupting the flow (Correct answer)
- To entertain readers who find the main text too difficult
- To introduce a counterargument to the main article's thesis
Correct answer: To provide additional data that supports the main text without interrupting the flow
Sidebars present supplemental information, such as statistics, that enriches the main text without disrupting its narrative flow.
Question 5: After reading a story, a student notices that the main character becomes more confident after facing a challenge. This change describes the character's:
- Setting
- Theme
- Development or arc (Correct answer)
- Conflict type
Correct answer: Development or arc
A character's growth or transformation over the course of a story is called character development or character arc.
Question 6: Which of the following best describes the difference between a text's topic and its central idea?
- The topic is the author's opinion; the central idea is the subject.
- The topic is the broad subject; the central idea is the specific message the author conveys about that subject. (Correct answer)
- The topic and central idea are the same thing stated differently.
- The central idea is always stated in the first sentence; the topic appears last.
Correct answer: The topic is the broad subject; the central idea is the specific message the author conveys about that subject.
The topic is the general subject (e.g., 'bees'), while the central idea is the specific point the author makes about that topic (e.g., 'bees are essential pollinators').
Question 7: A poem uses the phrase 'the thunder grumbled like a grouchy giant.' This is an example of which literary device?
- Alliteration
- Personification (Correct answer)
- Hyperbole
- Onomatopoeia
Correct answer: Personification
Personification gives human qualities—like grumbling in frustration—to nonhuman things such as thunder.
CAASPP Reading Comprehension 2
A student reads a paragraph that begins with a claim and ends with supporting evidence.
What is the author's primary purpose in structuring the paragraph this way?