Grade 7
Mount Pearl Intermediate
Language Arts Final Exam
June 2011
This exam consists of three (3) sections:
Section A: Short Story
Section B: Poetry
Section C: Demand
25%
25%
50%
Read the following selections and directions very
carefully. Use your time wisely; consider how much
each question is worth, and exactly what the question is
asking you. Be sure to answer in well-developed
paragraphs with the topic sentence, supporting
evidence and concluding statement. Your grade will be
based on the quality and clarity of your responses.
Section A: Short Story (25%)
Read the following short story and answer all the questions that follow.
“Not Ever Again”
Karleen Bradford
“Chip! Over here boy!” Sonia whistled. The golden retriever flashed
through the woods like a happy light on this grey February day. The dog raced
over to Sonia and gazed up at her with adoring eyes. She tousled his ears and
looked back at him with just as much love.
“It’s late, boy. Let’s go home. We’ll take the shortcut.” Sonia struck off
through the woods.
The pathway cut through the trees, then circled a small lake. The instant
Sonia saw the lake she was sorry she had come this way. Last week the lake
had been completely frozen. Today, several mallards were swimming in a small,
open patch of water near the middle. Sonia knew the only thing Chip liked better
than swimming was swimming after mallards. Chip saw the ducks and he
charged.
“Chip! Come! Back, boy, back!”
But there was no stopping him. Chip raced out onto the ice. At the very
edge of the open water, he started barking furiously. Suddenly, the weak ice
gave way and Chip fell in.
“CHIP!” Sonia screamed.
Never go out on the ice. Never! The words had been drilled into her since
she was old enough to roam the woods by herself.
What was she going to do now? She was too far away from anyone to go
for help. They’d never get back in time.
Chip clawed frantically at the ice, but it kept breaking beneath his front
paws. Every time the ice broke, the dog sank under the water. Every time he
sank down, he took longer to fight his way back up. Panic overwhelmed him
completely. He was drowning, right in front of Sonia’s eyes!
Sonia looked at the lake closely. The ice seemed to be fairly solid
everywhere except around the open spot. She grabbed a long, sturdy branch
and stepped out gingerly.
If Chip had been a person, Sonia could have held out a branch for him to
grab. Chip couldn’t do that with his paws, but the dog never missed a chance to
play tug with sticks or anything else around the house. Maybe he’d bite onto the
branch long enough for Sonia to pull him out.
Sonia walked carefully, testing every step. Then she lay flay on her
stomach and inched her way close, holding the branch out in front of her. Now
she could see the terror in her dog’s eyes. She could hear the strangled gasps
as Chip gulped water.
“Stick, boy!” she shouted. “Grab the stick!” But it was no use. Chip
ignored the branch completely. He had only one thought in his mind, and that
was to get out.
Sonia inched closer. Chip was so near to her outstretched hand! If she
could just grab his collar…
Without warning, the ice beneath her gave way. The shock of falling in
was so great she didn’t even register the near-freezing coldness of it.
Unthinkingly, she turned and tried to pull herself back up, but the ice gave way,
exactly as it had for Chip.
At that moment Chip scrambled both big paws onto Sonia’s back. Before
she knew what was happening, she was underwater with all Chip’s weight on top
of her. She pushed Chip off with one hand and fought for the surface with the
other, kicking as hard as she could. But something was wrong. Something was
weighing her down. Her boots! Waterlogged and heavy, they were like anchors
dragging her towards the bottom of the lake. No question of kicking them off –
they were too tightly laced.
Finally Sonia reached the surface and grabbed wildly for the ice again.
Again it broke. Now Sonia realized how heavy her parka was. She took one
mitten in her mouth and tore it off, then tried to find the zipper of her parka. She
had to get rid of her coat. But her hand was already half-frozen. She couldn’t
even feel the end of the zipper, much less get it open.
Chip swam around her, no longer panicking now that Sonia was in the
water. The huge dog bumped into her constantly. The effort of fending the dog
off was so great that Sonia kept going under. Three, four times she went down.
Each time she looked up at the clear green underside of the ice. It seemed so
far away … She had to struggle so hard to reach it … She was so tired … It
would be so easy not to try …
I’m drowning! With a shock Sonia suddenly realized the truth. I’m really
going to drown! Suddenly, instead of fear, she was filled with a terrible anger –
an anger such as she had never known before in her life.
I can’t drown! I can’t drown! I’m too young – I’ve got too much to do! The
thought of her parents flashed through her mind. How long would it take them to
find her? How would they ever believe that she had actually gone out on the ice
after all? Then, stupidly – I haven’t even finished my science project!
The anger was so overpowering that Sonia made another furious attempt
to reach the surface. Her hand clasped the edge of the ice. She just held it
lightly, letting it help her stay up. For a moment she could almost rest. She
looked around her at the empty lake, the darkening woods. There wasn’t another
person to be seen. Anywhere.
Then, incredibly, she heard a noise and saw a light. Two people on a
snowmobile were taking the same shortcut home that she had. With her last
remaining bit of strength, Sonia waved her free arm high in the air.
“Help!” She screamed. “Help me!” The noise of the engine drowned out
her voice. The snowmobile kept on going.
“Out here!” she screamed again, waving frantically. Look over here, she
prayed, look this way! But with a sickening feeling in the pit of her stomach she
realized they didn’t hear her.
The snowmobile cut along the edge of the lake, then turned back towards
the trees. Just as Sonia saw it disappearing into the woods, the noise cut off. It
took Sonia a second to react to the sudden silence. She shouted again. This
time one of the riders turned around.
Within moments the two rescuers flattened themselves onto the ice, one
holding onto the ankles of the other. The closest one held his hands. Fingers
touched fingers. Then Sonia felt a firm grasp on her wrists. Slowly, painfully, her
body was hauled up and over the edge. She broke into sobs as she felt solid ice
underneath her. Another second and they had hauled Chip out too.
Sonia could barely stand, let alone walk, so one of the rescuers carried
her over to the snowmobile. The cold hit her now and she started to shake
uncontrollably.
“Sheer luck,” one was saying to her. “Sheer luck, kid, that I stopped just
then. We’d never have seen you, otherwise.”
Sheer luck. Her life hung by such a thin thread. She looked down at
Chip, now frolicking beside her, none the worse for his dip in the icy water. She
remembered the outrage, the anger she had felt within herself. She had almost
thrown her whole life away. Her eyes followed Chip. She loved that dog so
much. And, undoubtedly, she had saved Chip’s life by going out onto the ice.
But would she do it again?
There was only one answer now.
“No Chip,” she whispered under her breath.
“Not again. Not ever again.”
Part A – Short Story: Selected Response (10%)
Choose the best answer for each question and write the letter on the answer
sheet provided.
1. She grabbed a long, sturdy branch and stepped out gingerly.” The word
gingerly means:
a) sweetly
b) cautiously
c) excitedly
d) anxiously
2. “Waterlogged and heavy, they were like anchors dragging her towards the
bottom of the lake.” What type of figurative language is used in this
sentence?
a) imagery
b) metaphor
c) simile
d) personification
3. Sonia is angry in the story. Why is she angry?
a)
b)
c)
d)
Her dog Chip chased the mallards.
Her dog Chip fell through the ice.
She fell through the ice and is drowning.
The snowmobilers left.
4. What is a good theme in the story, “Not Ever Again” by Karleen Bradford?
a)
b)
c)
d)
Don’t walk on ice that is unsafe.
Don’t take unnecessary risks in life.
Pet friendships are valuable.
Always listen to your parents.
5. “Three, four times she went down. Each time she looked up at the clear
green underside of the ice…she had to struggle so hard to reach it…”
This sentence describes what type of conflict?
a)
b)
c)
d)
internal
interpersonal
extrapersonal
external
6. “The shock of falling in was so great she didn’t even register the nearfreezing coldness of it.” Register means:
a)
b)
c)
d)
recognize
understand
care
dislike
7. The author uses the words “sheer luck” several times near the end of the
story. This repetition emphasizes that:
a) Sonia was a lucky girl.
b) Things could have turned out very differently for Sonia.
c) It was by chance that the two rescuers heard Sonia.
d) All of the above.
8. The woods, the lake, and the absence of other people are all part of the
a)
b)
c)
d)
conflict
plot
setting
imagery
9. The author uses italics several times throughout the story. This
is to:
a) emphasize Sonia’s thoughts and emotions.
b) emphasize Sonia’s bad decision-making.
c) emphasize Sonia’s losing her mind.
d) emphasize Sonia’s actions.
10. When the snowmobilers turned around and finally heard Sonia, they tried
hauling Sonia out of the water. This is the _________ the plot.
a)
b)
c)
d)
rising action
falling action
climax
resolution.
Constructed response (15%)
Answer all of the following questions in well-developed paragraphs on the
looseleaf provided.
1. State and explain a character trait for Sonia in the story, “Not Ever
Again” by Karleen Bradford. Be sure to describe this trait through what
the character says and does. Make sure you explain your answer with at
least 2 supports from the text. (10%)
2. Explain why the title, “Not Ever Again” by Karleen Bradford is an
appropriate title for the story. Be sure to support your answer with
reference from the text as well as your opinion as to what you think those
words mean. (5%)
Section B: Poetry (25%)
Read the following poem and answer all the questions that follow.
Cooks Brook
By Al Pittman
At the pool where we used to swim
In Cooks Brook
Not everyone had guts enough
To dive from the top ledge
Not that it would have been
A difficult dive
Except for the shelf of rock
That lay two feet below the surface
And reached quarter of the way out
Into the width of the pool
One by one the brave few of us
Would climb the cliff to the ledge
And stand poised
Ready to plunge headfirst
Into the dark water below
And always there was that moment of terror
When you’d doubt that you could
Clear the shelf
Knowing full well
It would be better to die
Skull smashed open in the water
Than it would be to climb
Backwards down to the beach
So always there was that moment
When you prayed for wings
Then sailed arms outspread into the buoyant* air
exciting
What you feel is something
Impossible to describe
As the water parts like a wound
To engulf you
Then closes just as quickly
In a white scar where you entered
And you are surprised always
To find yourself alive
Following the streaks of sunlight
That lead you gasping to the surface
Where you make your way
Leisurely to shore
As though there had been nothing to it
As though it was every day of the week
You daringly defied the demons
Who lived so terribly
In the haunted hours of your sleep
*buoyant – cheerful,
Part B - Poetry: Selected Response (10%)
Choose the best answer for each question and write the letter on the answer
sheet provided.
1. Which word best describes how the speaker feels before he dives?
a)
b)
c)
d)
courageous.
Fearful.
Proud.
Carefree.
2. What poetic device is used in the line, “as the water parts like a wound”?
a)
b)
c)
d)
alliteration.
Metaphor.
Simile.
Personification.
3. Mood refers to a feeling a piece of writing creates in the reader. The
mood of this poem is:
a)
b)
c)
d)
happy.
curious.
sad.
exciting.
4. In the final stanza, the line, “as though there had been nothing to it”
refers to:
a)
b)
c)
d)
the dive.
The shore.
The sunlight.
The surface.
5. “Then closes quickly in a white scar” is an example of what figurative
language?
a)
b)
c)
d)
Simile.
Metaphor.
Imagery.
Personification.
6. In the line, “you daringly defied the gods”, the word defied means:
a)
b)
c)
d)
Disagreed with.
Obeyed.
Prayed to.
Rebelled against.
7. “Skull smashed” is an example of what poetic device?
a)
b)
c)
d)
Onomatopoeia.
Personification.
Imagery.
Alliteration.
8. In the line “and stand poised ready to plunge headfirst”, poised means:
a) balanced.
b) nervously.
c) brave.
d) calmly.
9. Tone is the attitude the poet feels about what he is writing through word
choice (diction). What word from the poem shows the speaker’s
attitude?
a)
b)
c)
d)
leisurely
engulf
terror
difficult.
10. A good theme or message for this poem would be:
a)
b)
c)
d)
It takes courage to stand up to bullying.
It takes courage to go diving.
It takes courage to be daring.
It takes courage to accomplish many things.
Part B: Poetry: Constructed Response (15%)
Answer all of the following questions in well-developed paragraphs on the
looseleaf provided.
1. In the poem, “Cooks Brook” by Al Pittman, choose an example of figurative
Language and explain it. Be sure to state what type of figurative language it
is how it is effective. Make sure you follow DDSC/TDSC! (5%)
2. Pretend you are the speaker and write another stanza to show what
happens next to the speaker and the watchers. Your stanza should not
repeat any of the ideas already expressed. Be sure to demonstrate the
same point of view. Your stanza should have the following:




minimum of 10 lines
an example of figurative language
an example of alliteration and/or onomatopoeia.
be original and expressive. (10%)
Part C: Demand (50%)
Your grade will be based on the quality and clarity of your responses.
Question:
We learn life lessons from the many ways of showing courage. Using the novel
you studied and EITHER the poem “Cooks Brook” OR the short story, “Not Ever
Again”. Compare the different ways courage is shown in the novel and the poem
OR short story from this exam. Finally, give an example of courage you have
experienced, seen, or heard about in real life. Make sure you support your
response by being specific in how courage is shown in the novel, poem or short
story, and personal experience ****A portion of this mark will be based on the
planning your response using a thought web or jot notes.
.
***Plan your response with a thought web or jot notes
***Use multi-paragraphs
***Discuss novel
***Discuss poem OR short story
***Make a personal connection
***Pay attention to: content, organization, sentence fluency, word choice, voice,
and conventions.