Name:
Date:
“Feathered Friend”
Arthur C. Clarke
Comprehension
Identify the choice that best answers the question.
FIRST READ:
1.
In the opinion of the narrator in “Feathered Friend,” why is Claribel a
“sensible” choice as a pet for Sven? Choose two options.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
2.
She weighs very little.
She sings quite beautifully.
She is good company for Sven.
Lack of gravity does not affect her.
She gets a bit noisy when she is upset.
In “Feathered Friend,” when does the narrator first realize that Claribel is
aboard the space station?
when Sven runs in with a tiny bundle of feathers
b. when Sven informs the whole crew
c. when a flash of yellow flies past
d. when he hears the bird singing
a.
3.
What happens after the crew revives Claribel in “Feathered Friend”?
The crew waits in hushed silence.
She flies around the space station.
c. She chirps but then keels over again.
d. The crew goes back to eating breakfast.
a.
b.
4.
In “Feathered Friend,” why do crew members pass around an oxygen bottle?
to celebrate Claribel’s recovery
b. to keep themselves from losing consciousness
c. to determine how much oxygen each person needs
d. to remind each other of their loyalty and friendship
a.
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1
GRADE 6 • UNIT 3 • SELECTION TEST
"FEATHERED FRIEND" BY ARTHUR C. CLARKE
Name:
Date:
5.
As the narrator awakens on the morning described in “Feathered Friend,” he
has a headache. What is the most likely reason for that headache?
a night of bad dreams
b. confusion between day and night
c. lack of oxygen in the space station
d. illness spread by close contact with birds
a.
Concept Vocabulary
Identify the choice that best answers the question.
FIRST READ:
6.
Why would a person most likely feel distressed after reading an email? Base
your answer on the meaning of distressed.
if the message contains bad news
b. if the message is from an old friend
c. if the message responds to a request
d. if the message is a meeting reminder
a.
7.
If a puppy is described as whimpering pathetically, which of the following is
most likely true? Base your answer on the meaning of pathetically.
The sound is quiet and mostly unnoticed.
The noise causes people to feel pity or sorrow.
c. The puppy seems energetic and eager to please.
d. Other dogs around it are howling or whimpering, too.
a.
b.
8.
If a group of people lamented in public, which of the following events was
most likely taking place? Base your answer on the meaning of lamented.
a concert
b. a funeral
c. a graduation
d. a holiday party
a.
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2
GRADE 6 • UNIT 3 • SELECTION TEST
"FEATHERED FRIEND" BY ARTHUR C. CLARKE
Name:
Date:
Analyze the Text
Identify the choice that best answers the question.
CLOSE READ:
9.
The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.
Part A Think about the setting of “Feathered Friend.” What is the most likely
reason that “early spacers” were “wiry little fellow[s]”?
Small people have a special love for adventure.
b. Construction is a job for small but muscular people.
c. Large people have difficulty adjusting to zero gravity.
d. Both space and supplies on the space station are limited.
a.
Part B Which of these quotations from “Feathered Friend” best supports the
answer to Part A?
[T]here’s never been a regulation that forbids one to keep pets in a space
station.
b. [A] space suit is not the most convenient of garbs in which to work.
c. [I] was sitting in the little cubbyhole laughingly called my office….
d. A space station has more hiding places than you can count….
a.
10.
When the narrator of “Feathered Friend” says, “Half a million dollars’ worth of
chemical and electronic engineering had let us down completely,” what does he
most likely mean?
Engineering is never an exact science.
b. No one should trust his or her life to scientists.
c. Despite costly technology, systems still do fail.
d. The entire space program is expensive but flawed.
a.
11.
In “Feathered Friend,” why is Claribel said to be like a hummingbird?
She is able to hover in midair.
b. She has shiny, reflective feathers.
c. She drinks from the plants in the spacecraft.
d. She moves her wings in a back-and-forth motion.
a.
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3
GRADE 6 • UNIT 3 • SELECTION TEST
"FEATHERED FRIEND" BY ARTHUR C. CLARKE
Name:
12.
Date:
The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.
Part A In “Feathered Friend,” how do the crew members feel about Claribel?
They ignore her as much as possible.
b. They tolerate her, but she annoys them.
c. They care about her as though she were their own.
d. They are angry with Sven for smuggling her aboard.
a.
Part B Which of these lines from “Feathered Friend” best supports the answer
to Part A?
[B]y that time it no longer mattered, because Claribel was a general pet.
b. [T]he only problem was that Claribel got rather noisy when she was
upset….
c. [W]ho would dream of looking for a canary in a space station?
d. Without Claribel, we should soon have been slightly dead.
a.
Analyze Craft and Structure
Identify the choice that best answers the question.
CLOSE READ:
13.
How does the title of “Feathered Friend” hint at one theme of the story?
It suggests that Claribel’s existence is important to the crew.
b. It points out one key difference between birds and humans.
c. It reminds the reader of the delicate nature of animals.
d. It compares bird flight to human flight.
a.
14.
How does this excerpt from “Feathered Friend” connect most clearly to one of
the themes of the story?
It was one of those accidents that couldn’t possibly happen; we’d had one of our
rare eclipses by Earth’s shadow that night: Part of the air purifier had frozen up, and
the single alarm in the circuit had failed to go off.
It refers to an unexpected natural event.
b. It shows the excitement of manned space travel.
c. It explores the narrator’s concerns about bad air.
d. It reveals that technology is not always dependable.
a.
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4
GRADE 6 • UNIT 3 • SELECTION TEST
"FEATHERED FRIEND" BY ARTHUR C. CLARKE
Name:
15.
Date:
The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.
Part A Which of the following statements best expresses one of the themes of
“Feathered Friend”?
Humans are meant to explore and discover new worlds.
b. Sometimes the oldest, simplest solution is the most valuable.
c. One should always choose teamwork over personal ambition.
d. A bird does not change its feathers because the weather is bad.
a.
Part B Which of these sentences from “Feathered Friend” best supports the
answer to Part A?
To the best of my knowledge, there’s never been a regulation that forbids
one to keep pets in a space station.
b. I’m not a psychologist, but I must admit that his selection was very
sensible.
c. It was quite obvious that she’d already learned how to operate in the
absence of gravity, and did not believe in doing unnecessary work.
d. “I’ve just remembered that miners used to carry canaries down to warn
them of gas.”
a.
Word Study
Identify the choice that best answers the question.
LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT:
16.
Which of the following is one of the meanings of the Greek root -path-?
feeling
b. health
c. sight
d. time
a.
17.
The word antipathy contains the Greek root -path- and the Greek prefix
anti- meaning “against.” Which of the following sentences most clearly
shows the meaning of antipathy? Base your answer on your knowledge of
the Greek root -path-.
Jordan, the newest member of our team, made the winning goal.
b. Diego’s family plans to take a trip to Venezuela this summer.
c. Hannah and her sister hate finding litter on the beach.
d. Can you finish by yourself, or do you need help?
a.
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5
GRADE 6 • UNIT 3 • SELECTION TEST
"FEATHERED FRIEND" BY ARTHUR C. CLARKE
Name:
Date:
Conventions
Identify the choice that best answers the question.
LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT:
18.
Which example from this sentence is a compound word in open form?
The captain pointed out the life jackets and the rowboats—two important and useful
safety features of the all-expenses-paid midnight cruise.
a.
b.
c.
d.
19.
life jackets
rowboats
important and useful
all-expenses-paid
In which of these sentences is a compound word used as an adjective?
The story featured the adventures of a chemical engineer.
b. Throughout the story, the narrator was never named.
c. Early on, the author foreshadowed some key events.
d. It was a lighthearted story with an interesting moral.
a.
20.
Which part of speech is the compound word in the following sentence?
When the paper company downsized, Mr. Porter lost his accounting job.
adjective
b. adverb
c. noun
d. verb
a.
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6