RLA Reading Comprehension 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Read this sentence: 'The senator's speech was met with thunderous applause from her supporters, yet critics remained unconvinced.' What does the word 'yet' indicate?
- A sequence of events in time
- A contrast between two reactions (Correct answer)
- A cause-and-effect relationship
- An example being provided
Correct answer: A contrast between two reactions
'Yet' is a contrast signal word, showing that supporters and critics had opposite reactions to the same speech.
Question 2: An author's tone in a personal essay is described as 'wistful.' Which excerpt best reflects this tone?
- The data clearly demonstrates a 12% increase in productivity.
- I still remember the smell of my grandmother's kitchen—a warmth I can never quite recapture. (Correct answer)
- You must act now before it is too late!
- The defendant entered the courtroom at 9:02 a.m.
Correct answer: I still remember the smell of my grandmother's kitchen—a warmth I can never quite recapture.
Wistful tone involves longing or gentle sadness for the past, which is captured in the nostalgic memory of the grandmother's kitchen.
Question 3: A passage describes a problem (drought) in paragraph 1 and possible solutions (irrigation, drought-resistant crops, water conservation) in paragraphs 2–4. What text structure does this represent?
- Compare and contrast
- Chronological order
- Problem and solution (Correct answer)
- Cause and effect
Correct answer: Problem and solution
Identifying a problem and then presenting ways to address it is the defining feature of problem-and-solution text structure.
Question 4: Which of the following is an example of a primary source?
- A biography about Abraham Lincoln written in 2005
- A textbook chapter summarizing the Civil War
- A diary entry written by a Civil War soldier in 1863 (Correct answer)
- A documentary film about the Civil War
Correct answer: A diary entry written by a Civil War soldier in 1863
A primary source is an original document or artifact from the time period being studied; a soldier's diary from 1863 is a firsthand account.
Question 5: A reader is trying to determine if a source is credible. Which question is LEAST helpful in evaluating credibility?
- Who is the author, and what are their qualifications?
- When was the information published or last updated?
- Does the website have a visually appealing design? (Correct answer)
- Are sources and evidence cited within the text?
Correct answer: Does the website have a visually appealing design?
Visual design has no bearing on accuracy or credibility; evaluating authorship, publication date, and cited evidence are the meaningful checks.
Question 6: Passage: 'Mariana handed in her report three days early, color-coded every section, and stayed after school to help her classmates. She truly was the most dedicated student in the class.' The last sentence is an example of:
- A stated fact supported by data
- An author's explicit opinion based on described evidence (Correct answer)
- An unsupported personal attack
- A counterargument
Correct answer: An author's explicit opinion based on described evidence
The claim that Mariana was 'most dedicated' is an explicit opinion, though the author supports it with specific examples from the passage.
Question 7: Which text feature would BEST help a reader quickly find information about a specific topic within a nonfiction book?
- The dedication page
- The glossary
- The index (Correct answer)
- The table of contents
Correct answer: The index
An index lists specific topics alphabetically with page numbers, making it the fastest way to locate a particular subject within a book.
RLA Reading Comprehension 3
Read this sentence: 'The senator's speech was met with thunderous applause from her supporters, yet critics remained unconvinced.' What does the word 'yet' indicate?