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?
- Reporting the board's plan to ban homework on weekends.
- Giving the author's final view that long projects need weekends.
- Answering the worry that children will forget Friday's lessons.
- Granting a fair point to the teachers who worry about projects.
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 adding a short review at the start of the week for anything that has faded.
- By proving that long projects can be finished in a single evening of hard work.
- By agreeing that weekends should stay open for homework.
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.
- Long projects can be spread across school nights with check-ins.
- Rest is part of learning, and a short review can bring back what has faded.
- 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.
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.
- A large picture on each bin lists what may go inside.
- Tight lids and weekly emptying keep animals out and stop odors from building up.
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?
- 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.
- The roof needs work, and the repairs would be expensive.
- Parking lots do not help downtown shops in any town.
Milo wants to know how the author deals with the parking need in sentences [9] to [11]. Which choice fits?
- By agreeing that the theater should be torn down for parking.
- By arguing that the repair costs are smaller than they look.
- By accepting the need and offering a shared lot that leaves the theater standing.
- 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.
Noah reads the article. What is sentence [6] doing?
- Stating the author's view that printing costs do not matter.
- Answering the claim that students rarely pick up a paper copy of the school paper.
- Answering the cost claim with a smaller plan, after granting that cost matters.
- Reporting the council's claim that printing costs too much.
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.
- Students rarely pick up a paper copy.
- 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.
Ren wants to know how the author answers the claim that students rarely pick up a paper copy. Which choice fits?
- By calling the claim hard to measure and noting paper can be read anytime.
- By proving that most students read the paper weekly.
- By agreeing that no one reads the printed copy.
- By proposing a monthly edition to cut printing costs and keep the paper alive.