Read a work email, a business letter or a notice

Grade 9 Reading Worksheet - Challenge Me

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Street Sweeping Citation Appeal (city notice, appeal letter and news release, invented)

   City of Fairhaven (invented), Department of Public Works
   Notice: Street Sweeping Rules, effective Tuesday, April 1

   [1] Residential streets will be swept on the first and third Tuesday of each month from 8 a.m. to noon, April through November. [2] During those hours, no vehicle may be parked on the side of a street marked by a green sweeping sign. [3] In this notice, "parked" means left with no driver inside, whether or not the engine is running, and a vehicle with a driver at the wheel is "standing." [4] A standing vehicle must move when the sweeper approaches. [5] A vehicle parked in violation will receive a $45 citation. [6] A citation may be appealed in writing within 21 days of the date it was issued, and the appeal must state its grounds. [7] A missing or damaged sign is grounds for dismissal only if it was reported to the department before the citation was issued.

   Appeal letter, dated Friday, April 18
   To: Citation Review Office, City of Fairhaven
   Re: Citation A-4471, issued Tuesday, April 1, at 9:10 a.m. on Alder Street

   [8] I was not parked, because I stepped into the bakery for two minutes and my engine was running the whole time. [9] The green sign on my block had been bent to the ground, and I reported it to the department that afternoon. [10] Finally, April 1 was the first day of the new rules, and my mailed copy of the notice reached me on April 2. [11] For these reasons, I ask that the citation be dismissed.

   Jordan Ellis

   City news release, Thursday, April 3
   [12] Because some mailed copies of the sweeping notice arrived after April 1, the department will reduce citations issued on April 1 to written warnings for drivers who appeal within the 21-day period. [13] Citations issued on later sweeping days remain in full effect.

2. 1.

   Jordan Ellis argues in sentence 8, 'I was not parked.' Measured against sentence 3, how strong is that ground, Ari?

   • Weak: the running engine does not matter, and with Jordan in the bakery no driver was inside, so it was parked.
   • Strong for a brief stop: sentence 4 lets a vehicle stay where it is until the sweeper approaches it.
   • Weak, and fatal to the appeal, since one ground that fails makes the whole letter invalid under sentence 6.
   • Strong: a car with its engine running is still in use, so it was not parked and sentence 2 did not apply.
3. 2.

   Jordan Ellis reported the bent sign 'that afternoon.' Does that report give grounds for dismissal under sentence 7, Luz?

   • Yes: a sign bent to the ground is damaged, and a damaged sign is grounds for dismissal under sentence 7.
   • No: a bent sign still marks the street, so it is neither missing nor damaged in the sense sentence 7 means.
   • No: the citation was issued at 9:10 a.m., so an afternoon report came after it rather than before it.
   • Yes: the report came on April 1, the same day as the citation, which is the timing sentence 7 requires.
4. 3.

   The release blames copies that 'arrived after April 1' and turns citations into warnings instead of cancelling them. What does that choice signal about the department's position, Tala?

   • It is a routine update, since the release mainly reports when the mailed copies of the notice arrived.
   • It faults the mailing, not the rules: drivers get relief, but a warning still treats the stop as a violation.
   • It shows the department doubts its own meaning of 'parked,' since it no longer holds April 1 drivers to it.
   • It admits the rules were unfair, so the department expects to drop sweeping citations for the rest of April.
5. 4.

   Jordan Ellis never mentions the release. Taking all three documents together, what outcome does the appeal best support, Jun?

   • The $45 citation stands: the car was parked under sentence 3, and the sign was reported too late under sentence 7.
   • Dismissal: by admitting the notices came late, the release accepts sentence 10's ground and so cancels the citation.
   • A written warning: the first two grounds fail, but the appeal was filed in time for an April 1 citation.
   • A written warning, since the sign was reported on April 1, which meets the condition sentence 7 sets.

6. Blender Warranty and Return (warranty, store policy and customer email, invented)

   Brightline Appliances (invented)
   Limited Warranty for the Model 4 Blender

   [1] Brightline warrants this blender against defects in materials and workmanship for one year from the date of purchase, under normal household use. [2] "Normal household use" means preparing food and drinks for a household, and it does not include use in a café, a restaurant or any other business. [3] Under this warranty, Brightline will repair the blender or, at its choice, replace it; this warranty does not provide refunds. [4] Damage caused by dropping the blender, by running it empty or by any use other than normal household use is not a defect. [5] To make a claim, the owner must mail the blender and the receipt to Brightline's service center, at the owner's expense.

   Corner Kitchen Supply (invented)
   Return Policy, posted at the register

   [6] Unopened items may be returned within 30 days of purchase for a full refund. [7] Opened items may be returned within 14 days for store credit if they have a defect covered by the maker's warranty. [8] After 14 days, an opened item with a defect must be sent to the maker under its warranty.

   From: Noor Haddad
   To: Corner Kitchen Supply
   Date: Monday, March 10
   Subject: Broken blender

   [9] I bought a Brightline Model 4 blender from you on February 28 and opened it at home that evening. [10] I used it every morning to make smoothies for the juice stand I run at the farmers' market, and on March 8 the motor stopped. [11] I would like a full refund, since your policy promises one within 30 days. [12] If you will not refund it, please send it to Brightline for me, because the warranty covers the motor.

7. 5.

   Apply the warranty's sentence 2 to the store's sentence 7. What does sentence 10 mean for Noor Haddad's March 10 return, Pia?

   • A full refund: the return comes within 30 days, as Noor Haddad says the store's policy promises.
   • Store credit: the blender is opened, and March 10 falls inside the 14 days that sentence 7 sets for opened items.
   • No credit: the juice stand is a business, so the motor failure is not a covered defect, which sentence 7 requires.
   • Store credit: smoothies are food and drinks, so making them is normal household use, and March 10 is within 14 days.
8. 6.

   Which verdict on Noor Haddad's two requests, in sentences 11 and 12, is best supported by the three documents' exact wording, Bo?

   • The first holds in part: since the blender was opened, the store owes store credit in place of the refund.
   • The second holds: the warranty covers the motor for a year, so Brightline must repair or replace the blender.
   • The second holds: sentence 8 says opened items must be sent to the maker, so the store must send it.
   • Neither holds: the refund needs an unopened item, and the juice-stand use falls outside the warranty, motor or not.

9. Summer Explainer Program (offer letter, program rules and staff email, invented)

   Northgate Science Museum (invented), Youth Programs Office
   May 5

   Dear Ms. Alvarez:

   [1] We are pleased to offer you a place in the Summer Explainer Program, which runs from Monday, June 23, through Friday, August 15. [2] Explainers work three scheduled shifts a week, and the position pays a stipend of $1,200 in two equal parts, on July 18 and August 15. [3] This offer is conditional on your return of the signed program agreement by May 19 and on your attendance at the full orientation on Saturday, June 21. [4] The enclosed program rules form part of this offer, so please read them closely.

   Sincerely,
   Dr. Helen Park, Director of Youth Programs
   Enclosure: Program rules

   Program Rules
   [5] A "full day" is a scheduled shift of at least six hours, not counting the lunch break. [6] An explainer may miss up to three full days for any reason, as long as the explainer tells the program office at least one day ahead. [7] An explainer who misses more than three full days, or who misses any shift without telling the office, forfeits the second stipend payment. [8] A shorter shift that is missed for a school or family event does not count toward the three-day limit. [9] An explainer who cannot attend orientation because of a school or family event may attend a make-up session on Sunday, June 22, if the office approves it in advance.

   From: Helen Park
   To: All explainers
   Date: Monday, July 7
   Subject: Shorter Fridays

   [10] Because of the heat, the museum will close at 2 p.m. on Fridays for the rest of the summer, so Friday shifts will now run from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. with a half-hour lunch. [11] Nothing else in the program rules is changing.

10. 7.

    Ms. Alvarez has missed three full days, each reported ahead. A week ahead, she tells the office she will miss Friday, July 25, for a cousin's wedding. What follows, Kira?

    • The second payment is lost: Fridays were full days when the rules were written, and sentence 11 changes nothing.
    • The second payment is lost: a Friday is a normal workday, so this is a fourth full day missed.
    • The second payment is safe, since telling the office a week ahead excuses any shift, however many are missed.
    • The second payment is safe: a Friday now gives 4.5 hours of work, so this family-event shift is not counted.
11. 8.

    At orientation, a staff member tells explainers, 'Short shifts never count against you.' Measured against the rules and the July 7 email, what is the best verdict, Ren?

    • Accurate since July 7: Friday shifts are short now, so missing a Friday cannot affect the stipend.
    • Inaccurate: a missed shift counts toward the limit whatever its length, as it did before the July 7 email.
    • Partly: a short shift missed for a school or family event is not counted, but missing one without notice forfeits.
    • Accurate: sentence 8 keeps shorter shifts out of the three-day limit, so missing one has no effect on the stipend.
12. 9.

    Ms. Alvarez's sister graduates on June 21, and the office approves the June 22 session in advance. Is the condition in sentence 3 still met, Esme?

    • Yes, but the June 22 session counts as one of the three full days an explainer is allowed to miss.
    • Yes: sentence 4 makes the rules part of the offer, so the approved June 22 session meets the condition.
    • No: sentence 3 names June 21, and an enclosed rule cannot change a date that the signed letter sets.
    • Yes: sentence 6 lets an explainer miss up to three days for any reason, and orientation is one of them.
13. 10.

    Sentence 2 says the stipend is paid 'in two equal parts,' yet sentence 7 can forfeit one. Which revision of sentence 2 removes the doubt without changing any terms, Noah?

    • …pays a stipend of up to $1,200, reduced by $100 for each full day an explainer misses.
    • …pays $600 on July 18, and a second $600 on August 15 to explainers with no missed days.
    • …pays a stipend of $1,200, with $600 on July 18 and $600 on August 15, as long as the agreement is signed.
    • …pays a stipend of up to $1,200 in two equal parts, on July 18 and August 15, under the enclosed program rules.