The message of a poem, line by line

Grade 8 Reading Worksheet - Challenge Me

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Credit Line (original poem)

   Stanza 1
   [1] I made the poster for the science fair.
   [2] I had the vision; I decided on blue.
   [3] Kira held the tape, which is not hard,
   [4] and Noah drew the border, though I chose the shade.

   Stanza 2
   [5] The title was my idea. Pia did the lettering,
   [6] since mine looked rushed, and Ren found the facts
   [7] I'd said I would. I put them in a font
   [8] I picked myself, which matters more than people think.

   Stanza 3
   [9] The judges stopped. “Who made this?” one of them asked.
   [10] “I did,” I said. Then, quieter, “Mostly.”
   [11] Four people looked at me, and then at the poster,
   [12] and the blue seemed paler than the blue I'd picked.

   Stanza 4
   [13] Nobody argued. That was the strange part.
   [14] I stood there holding all of the credit
   [15] like a poster board too wide to fit through a doorway,
   [16] and found the only way through was to set some down.
   Annotations: stanza 1 = the credit; stanza 2 = more credit; stanza 3 = the question; stanza 4 = the weight.

2. 1.

   Ari reads past what the speaker says. Which theme keeps both the speaker's real work and the helpers' work in view?

   • Shared work needs many hands, so the speaker's choices of blue and a font were not part of the poster's success.
   • A person who takes credit at a science fair will be caught and lose the respect of the judges and classmates.
   • The speaker did the most important work on the poster, so claiming the credit was fair and the helpers' parts were small.
   • Taking all the credit for shared work does not hold up, though the speaker's own part in the poster was real.
3. 2.

   Bo writes a summary of the whole poem. Which sentence is an objective summary, with the events in order and no opinions?

   • The speaker describes making a fair poster with help from four classmates, tells a judge it was mostly the speaker's work, and ends by setting some credit down.
   • The speaker describes making a fair poster with help from four classmates, tells a judge it was mostly the speaker's work, and then four people look on.
   • The speaker greedily takes the credit for a poster four classmates built, then wisely gives some of it up after a judge asks.
   • Carrying more credit than a person earned is too heavy, so honest sharing is the way to move forward.
4. 3.

   Esme looks at how the speaker answers the judge. All four lines are true. Which line proves this most strongly: “The speaker claims the work and then softens the claim”?

   • [10] “I did,” I said. Then, quieter, “Mostly.”
   • [8] I picked myself, which matters more than people think.
   • [11] Four people looked at me, and then at the poster,
   • [9] The judges stopped. “Who made this?” one of them asked.
5. 4.

   Jun reads what the speaker lets slip in stanzas 1 and 2. Which theme explains why the helpers' names appear in the speaker's boast?

   • The speaker lists each helper to be fair and generous, which shows the speaker gives credit freely.
   • People who claim sole credit can give away the truth in their own details, which shows the work was shared.
   • A person who lists helpers while taking credit is lying on purpose to win a prize at the fair.
   • The helpers did the real work, so the speaker's part, such as the idea for the title, deserves no credit at the science fair.
6. 5.

   Zee looks at the end of the poem. All four lines are true. Which line proves this most strongly: “Sharing the credit solves the problem of carrying it”?

   • [16] and found the only way through was to set some down.
   • [15] like a poster board too wide to fit through a doorway,
   • [13] Nobody argued. That was the strange part.
   • [14] I stood there holding all of the credit

7. Boxes (original poem)

   Stanza 1
   [1] The walls look taller now that nothing's on them.
   [2] A rectangle of lighter paint shows where
   [3] the bookshelf stood for nine years. I tape boxes
   [4] and label them in marker: BOOKS, BOOKS, SHOES.

   Stanza 2
   [5] Outside, the truck is open like a mouth,
   [6] and Milo, from next door, comes over with a plant
   [7] and a phone number on a folded note.
   [8] I say thank you wrong; the words come out too quiet.

   Stanza 3
   [9] I've seen the new place once: a yellow house,
   [10] a sloping yard, a school whose mascot I can't like.
   [11] I try the phrase “my new room” out loud.
   [12] It fits like someone else's borrowed shirt.

   Stanza 4
   [13] The truck pulls out. I watch the old house shrink,
   [14] and part of me is hoping for the hill
   [15] where everything is new, and part stays on the porch,
   [16] and neither part is wrong, and neither wins.
   Annotations: stanza 1 = the empty room; stanza 2 = the goodbye; stanza 3 = the new place; stanza 4 = the drive.

8. 6.

   Kira marks the empty wall, the borrowed shirt and the last line. Which theme keeps both of the speaker's feelings?

   • The speaker packs boxes, says thank you to a neighbor, looks back at the old house and drives away in a truck.
   • Leaving a home is mostly sad, because the new place feels borrowed and the old place feels like the real one.
   • Hope for a new place wins in the end, so moving is a good idea even when it hurts.
   • Leaving a home brings loss and hope together, and the poem lets neither feeling cancel the other.
9. 7.

   Noah writes a summary of the whole poem. Which sentence is an objective summary, with the events in order and no opinions?

   • The speaker sadly packs the last boxes, awkwardly thanks a neighbor, tries out the words my new room and bravely watches the old house shrink.
   • The speaker packs the last boxes, thanks a neighbor who brings a plant and a note, tries out the words my new room, and watches the old house shrink.
   • Moving mixes sadness and hope, and a person can feel both for the old home and the new one at once.
   • The speaker packs the last boxes, thanks a neighbor who brings a plant and a note, and tries out the words my new room.
10. 8.

    Ren reads the quiet thank-you in stanza 2 and the borrowed shirt in stanza 3. Which theme keeps both the kindness and the strangeness?

    • Kind neighbors can fix the sadness of a move, so a plant and a note are enough to make a person feel at home.
    • Belonging takes time at both ends of a move, so goodbyes and new rooms can feel awkward even when people are kind.
    • The speaker thanks a neighbor too quietly and then tries out the phrase my new room, which fits like a borrowed shirt.
    • Moving is hard because the new place feels borrowed, so the speaker's feelings about the old house are the true ones.
11. 9.

    Luz writes another summary of the whole poem. Which sentence is an objective summary, with the events in order and no opinions?

    • The speaker tapes boxes in a room with bare walls, tries out the words my new room, receives a neighbor's plant and note, and watches the old house shrink.
    • A person who leaves a home may find hope and sadness arriving together, so neither feeling has to be argued away.
    • The speaker neatly tapes boxes in a room with bare walls, gratefully takes a neighbor's plant, and bravely watches a beloved house shrink.
    • The speaker tapes boxes in a room with bare walls, receives a neighbor's plant and note, tries out the words my new room, and watches the old house shrink.
12. 10.

    Tala looks at the goodbye in stanza 2. All four lines are true. Which line proves this most strongly: “The speaker feels grateful to the neighbor but cannot show it well”?

    • [8] I say thank you wrong; the words come out too quiet.
    • [6] and Milo, from next door, comes over with a plant
    • [5] Outside, the truck is open like a mouth,
    • [7] and a phone number on a folded note.