How an author answers the other side
Grade 8 Reading Worksheet
Circle the best answer.
Read this first
Homework-Free Weekends (article)
[1] The Eastbrook school board is considering a rule that would ban homework on weekends. [2] Some teachers argue that students need those extra days to finish long projects that cannot be completed in the evenings. [3] Others say that children who do not practice on Saturday and Sunday will forget much of what they learned on Friday.
[4] I support the ban, but I do not think it should leave long projects without a sensible plan. [5] The teachers who worry about projects are right that big assignments need time. [6] For that reason, a long project could be assigned two weeks ahead, with a short check-in every Wednesday. [7] That way, the work is spread across school nights, and weekends stay free. [8] The worry about forgetting is harder to dismiss, yet rest is an important part of learning too. [9] Students who sleep well and spend time outdoors often return on Monday ready to think clearly. [10] A short review at the start of the week can bring back anything that has faded.
Tala reads the article. What is sentence [5] doing?
- Answering the worry that children will forget Friday's lessons.
- Giving the author's final view that long projects need weekends.
- Granting a fair point to the teachers who worry about projects.
- Reporting the board's plan to ban homework on weekends.
Zee wants to know how the author answers the teachers' worry about long projects. Which choice fits?
- By granting that big assignments need time, then spreading them across two weeks.
- By agreeing that weekends should stay open for homework.
- By proving that long projects can be finished in a single evening of hard work.
- By adding a short review at the start of the week for anything that has faded.
Ari wants the reason the author gives in answering the worry about forgetting. Which choice names it?
- Children who skip practice on Saturday and Sunday will forget Friday's lessons.
- Rest is part of learning, and a short review can bring back what has faded.
- Long projects can be spread across school nights with check-ins.
- Students forget very little over a weekend, so review is not needed.
Compost Bins on Willow Street (article)
[1] A group of neighbors has asked the city council to place shared compost bins along Willow Street. [2] Some residents fear that the bins would smell unpleasant and attract rats and flies. [3] Others doubt that enough people would sort their food scraps correctly without constant supervision.
[4] The smell concern is serious, and it deserves a careful answer. [5] But the bins in the plan have tight lids and sit on a hard base, which keeps animals from digging in. [6] The city would empty them every week, long before any strong odor can build up. [7] A closed bin that is emptied weekly should be no worse than an ordinary trash can.
[8] The sorting concern deserves its own answer. [9] A large picture on each bin lists what may go inside, so a mistake is easy to avoid. [10] If the bins fill with the wrong items, the city can remove them after a trial period. [11] Because the trial has an exit, the neighbors lose very little by trying.
Bo reads the article. What is sentence [4] doing?
- Acknowledging a worry from the other side before answering it.
- Stating the author's whole case for placing the bins.
- Reporting what residents fear the bins would attract.
- Answering the doubt about whether neighbors will sort correctly.
Esme wants the reason the author gives against the smell concern. Which choice names it?
- Compost bins give off no smell, so the concern has no basis.
- Residents fear that the bins would attract rats and flies.
- Tight lids and weekly emptying keep animals out and stop odors from building up.
- A large picture on each bin lists what may go inside.
Jun reads sentence [10], which says the city can remove the bins after a trial period. How does that help answer the sorting worry?
- It limits the risk: if sorting goes wrong, the bins can be removed.
- It shows that rats cannot get into bins that have tight lids and a hard base.
- It shows that neighbors will sort their scraps correctly.
- It agrees that the bins should not be placed on the street.
The Old Rialto Theater (article)
[1] The town of Clarendon may tear down the old Rialto Theater and turn the land into a parking lot. [2] Supporters of the plan say the building is deteriorating and would cost too much to repair. [3] They also argue that additional parking would help the shops nearby.
[4] I want the theater saved, and I will explain why the plan is incomplete. [5] It is true that the roof needs work, and the repairs would be expensive. [6] But demolition has a cost as well, and the new lot would hold only forty cars. [7] A restored theater could host plays, films and school concerts, which bring visitors who also eat and shop downtown. [8] Those visitors would be a steadier help to the nearby shops than a parking lot that sits empty on most evenings.
[9] Parking is a genuine need, and I do not dismiss it. [10] Instead, I suggest a shared lot one block away, within a short walk of the shops. [11] Saving the Rialto and adding parking do not have to be competing choices.
Kira reads the article. What is sentence [5] doing?
- Answering the argument that parking would help the nearby shops.
- Granting that repairs are costly before showing that demolition has costs too.
- Giving the author's final view that the roof cannot be fixed.
- Reporting the supporters' claim that the building is deteriorating and costly to fix.
Luz wants the reason the author gives against the claim that more parking would help the shops. Which choice names it?
- The roof needs work, and the repairs would be expensive.
- Parking lots do not help downtown shops in any town.
- Additional parking would help the shops nearby and bring more customers to town.
- Theater visitors also eat and shop, which helps more than an empty lot does.
Milo wants to know how the author deals with the parking need in sentences [9] to [11]. Which choice fits?
- By accepting the need and offering a shared lot that leaves the theater standing.
- By arguing that the repair costs are smaller than they look.
- By agreeing that the theater should be torn down for parking.
- By proving that no one in town needs parking.
Print or Screen? (article)
[1] The student council at Harbor Middle School wants the school newspaper to move entirely online. [2] The council says that printing costs too much money. [3] It adds that students rarely pick up a paper copy, while they check their screens all day.
[4] I think the paper should keep a printed edition, and I will say why. [5] Printing is costly, and I accept that the cost matters. [6] But a printed edition once a month could replace the four weekly issues, which cuts the bill sharply. [7] A printed copy also reaches the families who have no reliable internet at home. [8] These families are the very readers the paper should want to reach most.
[9] The second claim is harder to measure. [10] A paper copy is left on a desk or a kitchen table, where it can be read at any time without a charge or a password. [11] Students who rarely open a page on a screen may still glance at the headlines on a table.
Pia wants a reason that shows a group the paper would lose if it moved entirely online. Which choice names it?
- Four weekly issues could be replaced by one monthly printed edition.
- Most families in the town have no reliable internet at home or at school.
- A printed copy reaches families who have no reliable internet at home.
- Students rarely pick up a paper copy.