Common Core Workout Book Lesson 1
Answers:
1. B
2. A
3. Ming wants to start a lawn-mowing
business, and her mom sends her to Mr.
Daley’s overgrown house. Ming is
nervous to talk to Mr. Daley because he
is cranky. Then Ming saves his cat, and
he hires her to take care of the lawn.
Common Core Workout Book Lesson 2
Answers:
1. D
2. B
3. When Mademoiselle Martine asks Olivia if she
truly enjoys ballet, Olivia must decide whether to
admit that she really doesn’t enjoy dancing. She
decides to be honest, and she tells her, “I might
enjoy it if I wasn’t so terrible at it.” She also tells
her she’s not coordinated and terrified about
performing at the recital. Her admission moves the
plot forward because Mademoiselle Martine
responds by asking her to play piano at the recital.
Olivia feels relieved and happy, and her problem
with dancing is solved.
4. In the beginning of the story, Jacob wants to
see the black rhinos, thinking, “What a thrill it
would be to see a real rhinoceros in the wild!
And he’d have the best stories to tell his
classmates when he returned to school.” Then
the park ranger tells Jacob about how poachers
kill the rhinos to take their horns, and then he
sees poachers arrive with guns and a saw. He
changes since he now wants to “learn more
about the Etosha rhinos and try to convince
others to help save them from extinction.”
Common Core Workout Book Lesson 3
Answers:
1. C
2. B
3. A
4. D
5. The tone of the story is lively, showing the
excitement and adventure of Sam’s and Tom’s
fishing story. Sam uses interesting figures of
speech when she talks, such as “I’m at the end
of my rope.” Descriptive sentences use figures
of speech and lively word choices such as
“mask of frustration” and “buried the hatchet.”
The tone shows interest and excitement in the
characters, what they say, and what they do.
6. B
7. C
8. The metaphor “Our future is a book of
tragedy” means that Beowulf’s kingdom will
probably be conquered by enemies. The events
in the story support this. For example, only
Wiglaf was brave enough to stand with Beowulf
against the dragon. The other warriors
returned only after the danger had passed. If
the warriors couldn’t help defend the king
against one dragon, how could they defend the
kingdom against enemies? Wiglaf points this
out by saying, “Failing to defend your king is
like giving the keys to the kingdom to your
enemies as a gift.”
9. A
10. D
Common Core Workout Book Lesson 4
Answers:
1. C
2. D
3. Both “The Eagle (A Fragment)” and “A Red,
Red Rose” are arranged in short lines of verse.
However, the poems’ stanza lengths are
different. “The Eagle” is set in two three-line
stanzas. In contrast, “A Red, Red Rose” is set in
four four-line stanzas. The poems use different
rhyme schemes, too. In “The Eagle,” all lines in
a stanza rhyme. In “A Red, Red Rose,” the
second and fourth lines of each stanza rhyme.
For example, the rhyming words from lines two
and four are “June” and “tune.” While they
have similarities, they also have differences.
4. C
5. C
6. Even though both poems use short lines, the
lines are arranged in different ways. In “Rain,”
the lines form one stanza with rhyming words
at the ends of lines two and four. The rhyming
lines are indented, drawing attention to the
rhyme scheme. The stanza expresses one
complete thought. In “Hiawatha,” there is one
stanza shown, but no rhyme scheme, and no
lines are indented. In this poem, a way of
describing Hiawatha is developed in several
lines with a twist at the end. For example, lines
one to three describe his speed, ending with, if
he shot an arrow, “the arrow fell behind him”
because he ran so fast.
Common Core Workout Book Lesson 5
Answers:
1. B
2. C
3. The difference in viewpoints creates
suspense for the reader. It is told from Juan’s
point of view, so the reader only sees what
Juan sees. What makes Juan curious is what
makes the reader curious. He thinks the girls
are building a race car, but Juan doesn’t know
the truth. When Juan finds out the truth, the
reader finds out.
4. The different viewpoints in “Charlotte’s Big
Scare” create humor. Charlotte knows that she
is trying to look scared, but no one believes it,
which is funny. For example, when she tries to
look scared in math, her teacher says, “Don’t
look so surprised.” Or when she tries to look
scared at lunch, the lunch lady says, “If you
think it smells bad, young lady, you don’t have
to eat it.” Charlotte’s inability to look scared
and the other characters’ reactions from
different viewpoints make the story funny.
5. A
6. B
4. At the beginning of the story, “a cloud
covered the sun” and “made Ming
shiver.” By the end of the story, “the sun
reappeared, and Ming smiled.” The
weather reflects Ming’s worry at the
beginning of the story, and her
happiness at the end.
5. Lucy the cat influences the story by bringing
Mr. Daley and Ming together. Lucy is like a
friend to Mr. Daley because she is his only
companion. He talks to Lucy like she is a
person. Mr. Daley and Ming are having a hard
time communicating, but when Lucy escapes
and Ming saves her, Mr. Daley’s attitude
changes. He becomes excited about having his
lawn fixed up and having Ming around all
because of Lucy.
6. C
7. D