Grade Three Reading Achievement – October 2003
Annotated Item 11
Standard and Benchmark Addressed
Standard:
Benchmark:
Reading Applications: Informational, Technical and Persuasive Text
B. Ask clarifying questions concerning essential elements of informational
text.
Passage:
Where Do Snowflakes Begin?
Snowflakes begin inside the clouds. The snowflake crystals form within storm clouds
high above the earth. There are many different cloud layers in the upper air. You can
see them floating freely, changing shape.
The air around our planet is always moving. The higher the air is from the earth, the
colder it is. The higher the clouds are, the colder they are.
The highest, coldest cloud layers are often called ice clouds. Their real name is cirrus
clouds. You can recognize cirrus clouds because they look like feathers, or scratches
on a piece of glass, or frost on a window.
Another kind of cloud looks like a fat puff of cotton. These clouds are called cumulus
clouds. Cumulus clouds are often dark, because they pick up dust from the air.
Sometimes when you see cumulus clouds in the sky, it means there is going to be a
storm.
Snowflakes can form in any cloud that is colder than freezing. Many snowflakes begin in
cirrus clouds. But these flakes rarely make it to the ground. They fall a little way, and
when they meet warmer air, they become water droplets and never touch the earth.
But when a snowflake forms in the lower cumulus clouds, and when the cloud and the
air on the earth are cold enough, the flake will stay in the form of snow and fall to the
ground. The gravity of the earth pulls the snowflake down, spinning and changing shape
along the way.
“Where Do Snowflakes Begin?” by Joan Sugarman. Reprinted by permission of the author.
Multiple Choice Question
11. This paragraph is from the selection.
“But when a snowflake forms in the lower cumulus clouds, and when the cloud and the
air on the earth are cold enough, the flake will stay in the form of snow and fall to the ground.
The gravity of the earth pulls the snowflake down, spinning and changing shape along the way.”
Grade Three Reading Achievement – October 2003
Annotated Item 11
Which question is answered in this paragraph?
A. How does a snowflake fall to the ground?
B. How cold does the ground need to be?
C. How long will snow stay on the ground?
Commentary:
This multiple-choice question asks students to identify a question that can be answered from all
or part of a text. Answer choice A is correct because the correct answer to the question being
asked can be found in two places in the selected paragraph. Answer choice B is incorrect
because information is given relative to the necessary air temperature for snow formation. There
is no indication that this transfers to ground temperature as well. Answer choice C is incorrect
because it is asking for information that is not included in the paragraph provided.
Performance Data
The percent of public school students selecting answer choice A for question 11 on the October
2003 Grade 3 Reading Achievement Test was 68 %.
Keyword:
Link Passage:
Clarifying Questions
Where do Snowflakes Begin?