ESL Reading & Writing
Final Exam Study Guide
I. SAT Vocabulary
Know the definitions or synonyms for the following words:
Facile: easy
Perfunctory: with little enthusiasm Puerile: juvenile
Mendacious: inclined to lie Gregarious: social; outgoing
Compel: force
Spectral: ghostly
Forestall: delay
Mandatory: required
Diaphanous: see-through
Fabricate: make up; concoct
Inclement: bad, stormy
Inextricable: hopelessly confused or tangled
Incessant: without interruption
Delude: mislead, deceive
Elucidate: clarify
Ultimate: final
Hapless: unlucky
Abundant: in great numbers Telepathic: capable of reading minds
Benign: harmless
Surreptitious: done in a secret way Alleviate: relieve
Meager: not enough
Indignation: anger at something you think is unfair
Neologism: a new word
Buffet: to hit or strike
Manifest: to show clearly
Pliable: bendable
Chastise: to scold, yell at
II. The Writing Process & Five Paragraph Essays
What are the four steps in a successful writing process?
List two brainstorming techniques. web, listing, clustering, free writing
What are the three main parts of a paragraph? topic sentence, supporting details, concluding
sentence
What is the difference between a subject and a topic sentence? a subject is a broad area of
information while a subject has a more narrow focus
What is another name for a topic sentence? thesis statement
How much of your work is complete if you create an outline? 75%
Name the five paragraphs that an essay needs to have. Introduction, body 1,2 & 3, conclusion
What three elements does an introduction need to have and explain what each element does.
What are four things that you might find in a conclusion? restate thesis, prediction or question,
advice, author insight
III. La Relación
Who was the Author of La Relación? Cabeza de Vaca
Is La Relación a primary or secondary source? How do you know? Primary – Cabeza de Vaca
was there to actually experience the story.
What do the explorers give the Karankawas? beads and bells
What happens when the explorers try to leave the island? Their barge capsizes and they are
forced to return to the island
Why are the explorers afraid to go with the Karankawas to their village? They are afraid the
Karankawas will sacrifice them.
What do the Karankawas want the explorers to do? become medicine men
Directions: Circle the word that is not related in meaning to the other words in that line.
1. a) fool
b) impress
c) ingratiate
d) please
2. a) deluge
b) flatter
c) flood
d) inundate
3. a) construct
b) embody
c) personify
d) represent
Directions: Use the story to answer questions 1 – 6.
1. Cabeza de Vaca most likely asks to be taken to the Indians’ homes because:
a) he feels he has no other choice
b) he doesn’t want to be sacrificed
c) he wants to steal their food
d) his men force him to ask
2. Which detail most clearly places this account in its historical context?
a) Seeing land at hand, we crawled through the surf to some rocks.
b) They looked like giants to us in our fright.
c) Some warned that the Indians would sacrifice us to their idols.
d) They began a celebration that lasted all night.
4. This narrative is a primary source because it is:
a) a nonfiction narrative
b) a participant’s report
c) an accurate history
d) a published document
5. Which is not represented in La Relación?
a)Cabeza de Vaca’s emotions while at sea
b) The Spaniards’ fear of the Native Americans
c) Cabeza de Vaca’s beliefs and values
d) The Native Americans’ ideas about the Spaniards.
6. What was the main purpose of La Relación?
a) To express Cabeza de Vaca’s opinion of the Karankawas
b) To entertain the king with an exciting adventure story
c) To inform the king about the facts of the expedition
d) To persuade the king to send more expeditions across the ocean
IV. Puritan Poetry
Explain and give an example of the following: Metaphor, Simile, Personification, and
Hyperbole.
Who were the Puritans and why did they come to America? Religious people who came to
America from England looking for religious freedom
Who is the author of To My Dear and Loving Husband and Upon the Burning of our House?
Anne Bradstreet
1. The author uses hyperbole in the first four lines of “To My Dear and Loving Husband to
exaggerate the truth that :
a) faithful love is forever
b) other people envy her love
c) her husband is far from home
d) she and her husband love each other
2. Clarify the meaning of line 8 from “To My Dear and Loving Husband.” Which sentence best
restates the line?
a) others are incapable of repaying my love for you
b) only you can understand my love for you
c) nothing but your love can repay me for my love
d) you should not try to repay my love
3. The speaker of “To My Dear and Loving Husband” shows her faith in God when she:
a) says that she and her husband will be together forever
b) prays that God will save her husband from any dangers
c) hopes that God will let other people feel the love that she feels
d) asks God to give her husband the love she is unable to give him
4. The speaker of “Upon the Burning of Our House” learns of the fire when:
a) a neighbor comes to the door and tells her that her house is on fire
b) she returns from town and sees her house burning down
c) she wakes up during the night and hears people screaming
d) her husband smells smoke and tells her that the house is burning
5. What does the personification in lines 8 – 10 of “Upon the Burning of Our House” show about
the speaker?
a) she feels confused about God’s will
b) she prays to God in times of trouble
c) she wants God to replace her home
d) the fire causes her to curse God\
6. Which line form “Upon the Burning of Our House” indicates that the speaker misses her home
after it burns down?
a) “He might of all justly bereft”
b) “Yea, so it was, and so ‘twas just”
c) “That dunghill mists may fly away”
d) “There lay that store I counted best”
7. The “hope and treasure” that the speaker refers to at the end of “Upon the Burning of Our
House” represent:
a) eternal life and happiness from faith in God
b) a new home that she has built on a hill
c) a discussion with God about eternity
d) the healing force of love in her life
8. In “Huswifery,” what does the metaphor that compares the speaker with a loom and God with
a waver suggest about Puritan life?
a) many ministers bought cloth from shop owners
b) making cloth at home was an everyday activity
c) people who made cloth also worshipped God
d) only people who went to church made cloth
9. Clarify the meaning of lines 11-12 from “Huswifery.” Which sentence best restates the lines?
a) I chose the colors of the sky to create the clothes I have made.
b) dye and decorate the fabric with the best colors of heaven.
c) use the colors that are in heaven to create a spool of yarn
d) the fabric is the same color as heaven and needs more flowers on it
10. Both Bradstreet and Taylor have written poetry that expresses the:
a) strong faith that characterizes Puritans
b) daily challenges of living in the new world
c) religious difficulties of their historical period
d) deep love husbands and wives feel for each other