Reading exercise

READING COMPREHENSION TEST 1

FIRST NAME ____________________________ INITIAL _____________
Put a circle around the number next to each correct answer.
I. Can we SEE that the earth is a globe? Yes, we can, when we watch a ship that sails out to sea. If we watch closely, we see the ship begin to disappear. The bottom of the ship disappears first, and then the ship seems to sink lower and lower, until we can only see the top of the ship, and then we see nothing at all. What is hiding the ship from us? It is the earth. Stick a pin most of the way into an orange, and slowly turn the orange away from you. You will see the pin disappear, just as a ship does on the earth.
A. This story is mainly about -
1. the shape of the earth.
2. traveling to the New World.
3. sailing ships in the old days.
4. the shapes of fruits, such as oranges.
B. The ship in this story -
1. probably sank to the bottom of the ocean.
2. was going farther and farther away.
3. was actually a toy.
4. was a sailing ship.
C. A globe is shaped like -
1. a box.
2. a pyramid.
3. an orange.
4. an ice cream cone.
D. The pin on the orange is most like -
1. the ship on the earth.
2. a person watching the ship.
3. a sailor on the ship.
4. a needle for mending a rip.
II. At the bottom of the sea there are creatures that do not know what light means. They have neither eyes nor ears, and they can only feel. For them there is no day or night. There are no seasons, no sun, no moon, and no stars. It is as if a child spent its life in darkness in bed, with nothing to see or hear.
How different our own life is! Sight shows us the ground beneath our feet and the heavens above us - the sun, moon, and stars, shooting stars, lightning, and the sunset. It shows us day and night. We hear voices, the sound of the sea, and music. We feel, we taste, we smell. How fortunate we are!
A. This story is mainly about -
1. sea creatures at the bottom of the sea.
2. changes in day and night and the seasons.
3. how wonderful our lives are.
4. the differences among creatures of the earth.
B. The sea creatures in the story -
1. have the same senses that we do.
2. have no sense of touch.
3. hear the sounds of the ocean.
4. live in darkness.
C. A child in darkness in bed is like -
1. someone who lives where there are no seasons.
2. an animal without the sense of touch.
3. a sea creature without sight or hearing.
4. a deaf child.
D. The "heavens" in this story are -
1. the Milky Way.
2. the sky.
3. the home of God.
4. the place above the clouds.
III. After months of colder weather, the days get longer, the buds come out in the trees, birds sing, and the world puts on a green dress. Spring passes into summer. Everyone knows that summer will not last. The power of all the wisest men and women in the world cannot keep it for us. The corn becomes ripe, the leaves turn brown and then drop to the ground, and the world changes its green dress for a dress of autumn colors.
A. During which season does the world put on a green dress?
1. Summer
2. Spring
3. Winter
4. Autumn
B. This story is mainly about -
1. the wisdom of nature.
2. the beauty of the seasons.
3. change.
4. the shortness of summer.
C. What is the season described at the end of the story?
1. Summer
2. Spring
3. Autumn
4. Winter
D. What is it that the world cannot keep for us?
1. Spring
2. Summer
3. Power
4. The world`s dress
IV. North America has four great slopes - one slope that rivers flow down toward the Atlantic Ocean, one slope that rivers flow down toward the Hudson Bay and Arctic Ocean, one slope that rivers flow down toward the Gulf of Mexico, and one slope that rivers flow down toward the Pacific Ocean. Land also slopes toward the Great Lakes, but water there empties into the St. Lawrence River and goes on into the Atlantic Ocean.
A.