[b]1. A student is writing a report about sinkholes for a science assignment. Read the draft and complete the task that follows.[/b]



[u]Sinkholes are holes in the ground that can open up without warning.[/u] They can swallow up buildings, roads, and cars. They can hurt people. They can also cause major damage. A sinkhole forms when holes appear in the rock beneath the ground. Water dissolves the rock over time. Some types of rock dissolve more easily than others such as limestone and volcanic rock. These rocks are found in more than one third of U.S. land. Buildings and roads can hide sinkholes. As a hole forms, it stays covered. A truck driving over the spot, or heavy rains and snow, can crack the cement. Then the ground opens into a sinkhole. Sinkholes can be just three feet deep. Or they can be huge pits. Some are hundreds of feet deep.



[b]The student needs to revise the draft to eliminate ideas that do not support the main idea. Write down TWO sentences that do not support the underlined main idea and so should be removed.[/b]

[b]2. A student is writing an opinion letter to her teacher about homework in her classroom. Read a draft of the letter and complete the task that follows.[/b]



 Dear Mrs. Johnson,



I am writing to make a suggestion that you stop sending homework home every night. We work very hard all day at school and it is exhausting to continue that once we get home. If we had the evenings to take a break from all the schoolwork, we would be ready and more willing to learn the next day. In addition, brain breaks are proven to improve students' ability to think and learn. This would result in more participation in class and better grades. I know that you might say that we need the extra practice, but I bet students would be willing to work harder at school if we could get rid of homework.



Sincerely,

Tina Gray





[b]Which sentence is the BEST closing statement for this student's letter?[/b]

[b] A student wrote a sentence that contains errors in punctuation. Write the TWO words that should be followed by a comma.[/b]



 Mrs. Taylor stated "Although we had searched the entire school three times we never could find the missing laptop cart."

[b]A student wrote a sentence that contains errors in punctuation. Write the THREE words that should be followed by a comma.[/b]



Did Sarah do anything exciting while he was on vacation? Yes she went to the beach shopping an amusement park, and out to dinner.

[b]A student is writing a research report tornadoes. Read the sentences from his report and the directions that follow.[/b]



 In the U.S., tornado season typically occurs from April to July. Tornadoes usually form during giant thunderstorms called supercells. Wind speeds from tornadoes can reach over 200 mph. During a tornado, the National Weather Service advises people to take shelter in a storm cellar, a basement, or the innermost room on the lowest level of a building. Being below ground is the safest place during a tornado. 



[b]Select all of the sources that would most likely give the student more information about the ideas he has written.[/b]