Directions: It should take about 2030 minutes to read
the passages in this book and answer the 12 questions in the Answer
Section. Read each passage, then refer back to it as needed when answering
the questions in the Answer Section.
Read the
story "The Star Llama" and then answer Numbers 1 through
6 in the Answer Section.
nce
there was a young Inca boy. He had no family except for an old llama.
Each day the boy and his llama walked many miles, looking for a home.
Each night they curled up together and slept. But one starry evening,
the old llama died. The boy buried his friend next to an icy stream.
Then he sat under a tree and cried. What would he do? He had no family
and no home.
The boy cried for a very long time. But there was no one to comfort
him. There were only the stars in the sky.
Suddenly, the sky filled with bright light. The boy held his breath.
He was afraid to move. One bright star fell to the ground. Slowly,
the star took the shape of the old llama. She bent her head and drank
from the stream. She looked at the boy and smiled. As she jumped back
into the sky, bits of llama wool fell.
As the Sun began to rise, the boy picked up the soft, warm wool. It
glowed in his hands like starlight. He carried the wool to the city
and sold it. With the money, he bought a house. He bought two young
llamas. He never forgot the star llama. And he was never lonely again.
Read the
story "Blueberries" and then answer Numbers 7 through 12
in the Answer Section.
o
you know how blueberries grow? They grow on bushes. Each blueberry
is small and round. Many blueberries can grow on one bush. At first,
the blueberries are green. The green berries are not ready to eat
yet. They need a lot of sun and rain to help them become fat and sweet.
When the berries turn blue, they are ripe and ready to be picked.
Some farmers grow blueberries in big fields. The people who live nearby
can earn money by helping to pick the blueberries. Each one takes
a pail out to the field and fills it with blueberries. They work fast
so that they can fill many pails. They want to earn as much money
as they can. When they are done picking, their fingers are blue from
the juice of the berries!
After the blueberries are picked, they are put into boxes and sent
to stores. People buy the blueberries and take them home to eat. Some
people like to wash the berries and eat them one by one. Other people
like to cook with blueberries. They make blueberry muffins and pancakes.
No matter how you eat them, blueberries taste great!