PARCC Writing Practice Questions 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In a narrative writing task, which sentence best uses sensory detail to show rather than tell?
- I was very scared in the dark room.
- The damp room swallowed every sound, and my breath caught as a floorboard groaned. (Correct answer)
- The room was dark and I felt afraid.
- It was a scary place to be alone.
Correct answer: The damp room swallowed every sound, and my breath caught as a floorboard groaned.
Sensory details and specific imagery show the emotion instead of naming it directly.
Question 2: A prose-constructed response on PARCC asks you to analyze two texts. What must you primarily include?
- Your personal opinion only
- Textual evidence from both passages to support your analysis (Correct answer)
- A summary of one passage
- A list of vocabulary words
Correct answer: Textual evidence from both passages to support your analysis
PARCC prose-constructed responses require text-based evidence drawn from the provided passages.
Question 3: Which transition word best signals a contrast between two ideas?
- Furthermore
- However (Correct answer)
- Likewise
- Therefore
Correct answer: However
'However' signals a contrast or opposing idea between two statements.
Question 4: When writing an argumentative essay, the strongest thesis statement does which of the following?
- States a clear, debatable claim (Correct answer)
- Asks a question to the reader
- Lists every detail of the essay
- Describes a personal feeling without a claim
Correct answer: States a clear, debatable claim
A strong thesis makes a clear, arguable claim that the essay then supports.
Question 5: Which revision corrects the run-on sentence: 'The storm grew stronger we decided to leave early'?
- The storm grew stronger we, decided to leave early.
- The storm grew stronger, so we decided to leave early. (Correct answer)
- The storm grew stronger we decided, to leave early.
- The storm grew stronger we decided to leave, early.
Correct answer: The storm grew stronger, so we decided to leave early.
Adding a comma and the conjunction 'so' joins the two independent clauses correctly.
Question 6: In a research simulation task, citing where information comes from is important because it:
- Makes the essay longer
- Gives credit to sources and strengthens credibility (Correct answer)
- Replaces the need for analysis
- Is only required in poetry
Correct answer: Gives credit to sources and strengthens credibility
Citing sources credits authors and makes the writer's claims more credible.
Question 7: Which sentence uses parallel structure correctly?
- She likes reading, to write, and jogging.
- She likes reading, writing, and jogging. (Correct answer)
- She likes to read, writing, and jog.
- She likes reading, write, and to jog.
Correct answer: She likes reading, writing, and jogging.
Parallel structure keeps items in a list in the same grammatical form, here all gerunds.
PARCC Writing Practice Questions 2
In a narrative writing task, which sentence best uses sensory detail to show rather than tell?