Compare a story with a true account of the same time

Grade 7 Reading Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Paying for the Statue's Base (pair: an account and a story)

   The account: Paying for the Statue's Base
   [1] The Statue of Liberty was a gift from the people of France, but the United States had to build the pedestal, the tall base that would hold it up. [2] By 1884, the American committee in charge of the pedestal had run out of money. [3] Joseph Pulitzer, who published a New York newspaper called the World, asked its readers to help pay for the base. [4] He promised that the paper would print the name of every person who gave, no matter how small the gift. [5] Roughly 125,000 people sent money, and most of them gave about one dollar or less, so the fund grew from many small gifts. [6] Within about six months, the paper had collected more than $100,000, which was enough to finish the pedestal. [7] The World had reached that total by August 11, 1885, after months of appeals in its pages.

   The story: A Jar of Pennies
   [8] In the spring of 1885, ten-year-old Tala Kowalski found Mr. Kowalski frowning at a newspaper spread across the kitchen table. [9] “The great statue from France is waiting for a place to stand,” he said, “but nobody has paid for the base yet.” [10] Tala thought of the jar of pennies under the bed, saved for a pair of ice skates Tala wanted more than anything. [11] The newspaper promised that every gift would be printed by name, even a small one. [12] That evening, Tala counted thirty cents on the kitchen table and wrapped the coins carefully in a note. [13] Mrs. Kowalski added a stamp, and Mr. Kowalski wrote the family's name in careful letters on the front. [14] Weeks later, a neighbor knocked on the door, waving the newspaper and grinning from ear to ear. [15] There, in a long column of names, was “Kowalski family, thirty cents.”

2. 1.

   Ari reads the account and the story. Which story sentence matches the account's fact in sentence [2], that money for the pedestal had run out?

   • Sentence [10]: Tala thinks of the jar of pennies, saved for ice skates.
   • Sentence [9]: Tala's father says nobody has paid for the base.
   • Sentence [12]: Tala counts thirty cents for the pedestal fund.
   • Sentence [15]: a long column of names includes the Kowalski family.
3. 2.

   Bo reads the account and the story. Which detail in the story did the author invent, with no matching fact in the account?

   • The year 1885: the account gives a different year.
   • The newspaper's promise to print every gift by name: the account never mentions this.
   • The jar of pennies saved for ice skates: the account never mentions Tala or the jar.
   • The Kowalski family: the account lists this family among the givers.
4. 3.

   Esme reads the account and the story. What does the story show that the account does not?

   • It shows the full list of 125,000 names.
   • It shows that the committee had run out of money for the pedestal.
   • It shows that the fund passed $100,000 within about six months.
   • It shows how one family gave a small gift and watched for its name.
5. 4.

   Kira reads the account and the story. Which detail in the story is real history, also given in the account?

   • A newspaper promising to print the names of givers: the account says the paper did.
   • A child named Tala Kowalski sending a gift: the account lists that gift.
   • A gift of thirty cents: the account gives this exact amount.
   • A neighbor waving the newspaper: the account describes this visit.

6. The Pony Express (pair: an account and a story)

   The account: The Pony Express
   [1] In April 1860, a mail service called the Pony Express began carrying letters between St. Joseph, Missouri, and Sacramento, California, where the mail could go on to San Francisco by boat. [2] The route covered more than 1,800 miles, and the mail made the trip in about ten days, which was very fast for the time. [3] No horse could run that far without a rest, and no single rider could ride the whole route. [4] Instead, riders switched to fresh horses at relay stations along the route. [5] Each rider covered one section of the trail, carried the mail in a leather pouch, and then passed it on to the next rider. [6] The service lasted only about eighteen months, and the company that ran it lost money. [7] In October 1861, a telegraph line was finished across the country, and the Pony Express shut down.

   The story: Dust on the Road
   [8] Every morning, eleven-year-old Esme Mooney carried a bucket of cold water to the corral behind the Mooney family's relay station on the plains. [9] Mr. Mooney saddled the fastest horse and tied it near the fence, because a rider was due before noon. [10] Esme shaded both eyes and watched the long road until a puff of dust rose in the distance. [11] The rider galloped in, slid from the tired horse, and swung the leather mail pouch onto the fresh saddle in a single motion. [12] “Ten days to California!” he shouted, and the new horse leapt forward. [13] Esme waved until the dust settled, then led the tired horse slowly to the water trough. [14] Months later, a traveler rode through with news that wires now stretched across the country, and the station would soon be empty. [15] Mr. Mooney stopped saddling the fast horse, and the corral grew quiet and still.

7. 5.

   Milo reads the account and the story. Which story sentence shows a rider switching horses, as in account sentence [4]?

   • Sentence [8]: Esme carries a bucket of water to the corral.
   • Sentence [9]: Esme's father saddles the fastest horse and ties it near the fence.
   • Sentence [11]: the rider slides from the tired horse and swings the pouch onto a fresh saddle.
   • Sentence [14]: a traveler brings news that wires now stretch across the country.
8. 6.

   Noah reads the account and the story. Which detail in the story did the author invent, with no matching fact in the account?

   • The telegraph ending the service: the account gives another reason for the end of the route.
   • Esme Mooney and the Mooney family's station: the account names no family or child.
   • Riders switching horses at relay stations: the author made this up.
   • The ten-day trip: the author invented the number of days.
9. 7.

   Pia reads the account and the story. What does the story add that the account does not give?

   • It adds the exact number of riders who worked for the service.
   • It adds that horses were needed for the route.
   • It adds a child's view of waiting for the rider, with dust, water and a quiet corral.
   • It adds the month and year when the Pony Express began, and the month it shut down for good.
10. 8.

    Ren reads the account and the story. Which story sentence matches the telegraph fact in account sentence [7]?

    • Sentence [15]: Esme's father stops saddling the fast horse, and the corral grows quiet.
    • Sentence [14]: a traveler brings news that wires now stretch across the country.
    • Sentence [13]: Esme waves until the dust settles.
    • Sentence [12]: the rider shouts ten days to California.
11. 9.

    Tala reads the account and the story. Which detail in the story is real history, also given in the account?

    • A traveler bringing news of wires: the account describes this visit.
    • A child named Esme Mooney: the account lists the Mooney family as station keepers.
    • A rider due before noon: the account gives this schedule.
    • A rider changing to a fresh horse: the account says riders switched horses at relay stations.
12. 10.

    Zee reads the account and the story. What does the account give that the story cannot show from one station?

    • The whole route: St. Joseph to Sacramento, more than 1,800 miles.
    • That a rider stopped at the family's corral.
    • Esme's feelings while Esme watches the road and waits for the dust to rise.
    • The names of the riders on the route.