ELAR Reading Comprehension 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What does it mean when a question asks you to identify the 'supporting details' in a passage?
- Find details that contradict the main idea
- Locate facts, examples, or reasons that back up the main idea (Correct answer)
- Summarize the entire passage in one sentence
- Identify the most exciting part of the text
Correct answer: Locate facts, examples, or reasons that back up the main idea
Supporting details are the specific facts, examples, statistics, or reasons an author uses to develop and strengthen the main idea.
Question 2: A passage compares how plants and animals respond to cold weather. Which text structure is this an example of?
- Sequential order
- Compare and contrast (Correct answer)
- Problem and solution
- Description
Correct answer: Compare and contrast
Compare and contrast text structure examines similarities and differences between two or more subjects, which this passage does with plants and animals.
Question 3: Which signal words indicate a cause-and-effect relationship in a text?
- However, although, on the other hand
- First, next, then, finally
- Because, therefore, as a result, consequently (Correct answer)
- For example, such as, including
Correct answer: Because, therefore, as a result, consequently
Words like 'because,' 'therefore,' 'as a result,' and 'consequently' signal that one event caused another, indicating a cause-and-effect relationship.
Question 4: What is a 'summary' of a text?
- A word-for-word copy of the most important paragraph
- A brief retelling of the main ideas in the reader's own words (Correct answer)
- A list of all the vocabulary words in the passage
- An opinion about whether the text was interesting
Correct answer: A brief retelling of the main ideas in the reader's own words
A summary is a concise restatement of the most important ideas from a text, written in the reader's own words without personal opinion.
Question 5: In a nonfiction text, what is the purpose of headings and subheadings?
- To decorate the page and make it look professional
- To organize content and help readers identify major topics (Correct answer)
- To provide definitions of difficult vocabulary words
- To replace the need for a table of contents
Correct answer: To organize content and help readers identify major topics
Headings and subheadings are organizational tools that help readers navigate nonfiction text by clearly labeling the main topic of each section.
Question 6: A student reads: 'After three straight days of rain, the river overflowed its banks.' What can be inferred from this sentence?
- The river was completely dry before the rain
- Heavy rainfall caused the river to flood (Correct answer)
- The rain was enjoyable for the community
- The river was known to overflow every day
Correct answer: Heavy rainfall caused the river to flood
The sentence implies that the three days of continuous rain was the cause of the river overflowing, a conclusion supported by context even though not stated directly.
Question 7: Which best describes a 'point of view' in a text?
- The setting or location described in the story
- The perspective from which the narrator tells the story (Correct answer)
- The climax or most exciting moment of the plot
- The resolution at the end of the story
Correct answer: The perspective from which the narrator tells the story
Point of view refers to the perspective of the narrator — whether the story is told in first person (I/we), second person (you), or third person (he/she/they).
ELAR Reading Comprehension 2
What does it mean when a question asks you to identify the 'supporting details' in a passage?