Name: _____________________________

Nonfiction Reading Test

Wintertime
Directions: Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow. Refer to the text
to check your answers when appropriate.

Brrrr. Winter is cold in some places. Many

plants do not grow during winter. Some
plants die. Snow and ice may cover the
ground. It can be hard for animals to find
food during winter. Animals get through
this time in many ways.

Birds and butterflies can fly. Many of them

do not stick around for the winter. They
leave. They go to a place with nice weather.
Then they come home in the spring. We
call this migration. Migrating is a good way
to avoid the cold.

Another good way to avoid the cold is to Other animals tough it out. They do not
sleep through it. Many animals hide during leave. They do not hide. They must survive.
the winter. Their bodies slow down. They Sometimes nature helps them out. Some
save their energy. They do not eat. They animals grow thicker coats in the winter.
live off of their fat. They do this until food Other animals change color. The arctic fox
returns. We call this hibernation. Snakes, is brown in the summer. His coat turns
frogs, and bears hibernate. white in the winter.

Some animals store food in their homes. Winter may be pretty. It is nice to see snow
They do not sleep all winter, but they do on the trees. But it is dangerous too. People
much less. They live on what they saved in are also at risk. You can get frost bitten or
the summer and fall. This is what squirrels, worse. How do you beat the winter? Do
beavers, and raccoons do. Skunks do this you wear a thick coat? Do you stay inside?
too. Or do you live somewhere warm?
1. Which of these animals migrates during the winter?
a. foxes b. snakes
c. bears d. butterflies

2. Which of these animals survives winter by eating stored food?

a. bears b. raccoons
c. frogs d. birds

3. Why does the arctic fox's coat change white during winter?
a. The white coat is prettier and attracts mates.
b. White absorbs the sun and is warmer.
c. The white coat helps him blend with the snow.
d. His body saves energy by reducing hair color.

4. Which does not hibernate?

a. skunks b. frogs
c. snakes d. bears

5. Why is winter a difficult season in some places?

a. There is less food.
b. It is colder.
c. Snow and ice cover the ground.
d. All of these

6. What does it mean to migrate?

a. To grow a thicker coat
b. To move somewhere warmer for a season
c. To enter a long sleep and survive off of body fat
d. To change colors

7. What is the main idea of this text?

a. Animals do funny and interesting things.
b. Most flowers do not grow during the wintertime.
c. Animals survive the winter in many ways.
d. We must prepare for the dangers of winter.

8. How does a hibernating animal survive?

a. A hibernating animal lives off of stored food.
b. A hibernating animal lives off of body fat.
c. A hibernating animal lives somewhere warm.
d. A hibernating animal lives off of the land.

9. How would a thicker coat help an animal survive winter?

a. A thicker coat would help an animal hide better.
b. A thicker coat would protect an animal against attacks.
c. A thicker coat would help an animal stay warm.
d. A thicker coat would help an animal migrate.

10. Which title would best describe this text?

a. Winter: A Time to Migrate
b. Hibernation: Sleeping it off
c. Survive: How Animals Beat the Winter
 d. Birds and Butterflies: Nature's Movers and Shakers

Name: _____________________________
Nonfiction Reading Test
Seat Belts
Directions: Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow. Refer to the text
to check your answers when appropriate.

"Click!" That's the sound of safety. That's the

sound of survival. That's the sound of a seat belt
locking in place. Seat belts save lives and that's a
fact. That's why I don't drive anywhere until
mine is on tight. Choosing to wear your seat belt
is a simple as choosing between life and death.
Which one do you choose?

Think about it. When you're driving in a car, you How about giving money away? Do you like to
may be going 60 MPH or faster. That car is give your money away? Probably not. And when
zipping down the road. Then somebody ahead of you don't wear your seat belt, you are begging to
you locks up his or her brakes. Your driver give your money away. That's because kids are
doesn't have time to stop. The car that you are in required to wear seat belts in every state in
crashes. Your car was going 60 miles per hour. America. If you're riding in a car, and you don't
Now it has suddenly stopped. Your body, have a seat belt on, the police can give you or
however, is still going 60 MPH. What's going to your driver a ticket. Then you will have to give
stop your body? Will it be the windshield or money to the city. I'd rather keep my money, but
your seat belt? Every time that you get into a car you can spend yours how you want.
you make that choice. I choose the seat belt.
Wearing a seat belt does not make you
Some people think that seat belts are uncool. invincible. You can still get hurt or killed while
They think that seat belts cramp their style, or wearing your seat belt. But wearing them has
that seat belts are uncomfortable. To them I say, proven to be safer than driving without them.
what's more uncomfortable? Wearing a seat belt You are much less likely to be killed in a car
or flying through a car windshield? What's more wreck if you are wearing a seat belt. You are
uncool? Being safely anchored to a car, or much less likely to get seriously injured if you
skidding across the road in your jean shorts? are wearing one. So why not take the safer way?
Wearing a seat belt is both cooler and more Why not go the way that has been proven to
comfortable than the alternatives. result in fewer deaths? You do want to live, don't
you?
Let's just take a closer look at your choices. If
you are not wearing your seat belt, you can hop
around the car and slide in and out of your seat
easily. That sounds like a lot of fun. But, you are
also more likely to die or suffer serious injuries.
If you are wearing a seat belt, you have to stay in
your seat. That's no fun. But, you are much more
likely to walk away unharmed from a car
accident. Hmmm... A small pleasure for a
serious pain. That's a tough choice. I think that
I'll avoid the serious pain.
1. Which title best expresses the main idea of this text?
a. Car Accidents: Ways That We Can Prevent Them
b. Slow Down: Save Lives By Driving Slower
c. Seat Belts: Wear Them to Survive Any Wreck
d. Why Not? Improve Your Odds with Seat Belts

2. Which best expresses the author's main purpose in writing this text?
a. To inform readers about seat belt laws
b. To persuade readers to wear seat belts
c. To entertain readers with stories and jokes about seat belts
d. To describe what car accidents are like without seat belts

3. Which best describes the text structure in the fourth paragraph?

a. Compare and contrast b. Chronological order
c. Sequential order d. Problem and solution

4. Which best defines the word alternatives as it is used in the third paragraph?
a. Being safe b. Being unsafe
c. Other choices d. Driving fast

5. Which best expresses the main idea of the fifth paragraph?

a. Seat belts are a waste of money.
b. People don't like to give money away.
c. Not wearing a seat belt may cost you.
d. Seat belt laws save lives.

6. Which best defines the word invincible as it is used in the last paragraph?
a. Uncool b. Difficult or impossible to see
c. Glow-in-the-dark d. Unable to be harmed

7. Which statement would the author most likely agree with?

a. Being safe is more important than being cool.
b. Moving freely around a car is worth the risks.
c. Seat belts will keep you safe in any car accident.
d. You should be most concerned with your comfort.

8. Which argument is not made by the author?

a. Not wearing a seat belt can be expensive.
b. Penalties for not wearing a seat belt should increase.
c. Seat belts keep you from flying through the windshield.
d. Wearing a seat belt is cooler than suffering an injury.
9. Which statement would the author most likely disagree with?
a. Seat belts save lives.
b. Every state in America has seat belt laws.
c. You shouldn't drive anywhere until you are wearing your seat belt.
d. Seat belts increase your chances of being injured in a car wreck.

10. Which best explains why the author starts his essay with the word click?
a. He is trying to scare readers.
b. He is trying to get the reader's attention.
c. He is trying to remind readers how seat belts sound when clasped.
d. He is trying to describe what it's like to ride in a car.
Nonfiction Reading Test
Chess
Directions: Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow. Refer to
the text to check your answers when appropriate.

Chess is called the game of kings. It has

been around for a long time. People have
been playing it for over 500 years. Chess
is based on an even older game from
India. The chess we play today is from
Europe.
White Chess Pieces
Chess is a two-player game. One player
uses the white pieces. The other uses the
black pieces. Each piece moves in a special way. One piece is called the king. Each
player has one. The players take turns moving their pieces. If a player lands on a
piece, he or she takes it. The game ends when a player loses his or her king. There are
a few more rules, but those are the basics.

Some people think that chess is more than a game. They think that it makes the mind
stronger. Good chess players use their brains. They take their time. They think about
what will happen next. These skills are useful in life and in chess. Chess is kind of like
a work out for the mind.

You don't always have lots of time to think when playing chess. There is a type of
chess with short time limits. It's called blitz chess. In blitz chess, each player gets ten
minutes to use for the whole game. Your clock runs during your turn. You hit the time
clock after your move. This stops your clock. It also starts the other player's clock. If
you run out of time, you lose. Games of blitz chess are fast-paced.

Chess is not just for people. Computers have been playing chess since the 1970s. At
first they did not play well. They made mistakes. As time went on they grew stronger.
In 1997, a computer beat the best player in the world for the first time. It was a
computer called Deep Blue. Deep Blue was big. It took up a whole room. By 2006 a
cell phone could beat the best players in the world. Chess sure has come a long way.
Don't you think so?
1. What is the author's purpose in writing the second paragraph?
a. To explain the rules of chess b. To compare different types of games
c. To talk about game pieces d. To persuade people to play chess

2. Which is not a reason that chess is a good workout for the mind according to the text?
a. Good chess players think about what will happen next.
b. Good chess players take a lot of risks.
c. Good chess players take their time.
d. Good chess players use their brains.

3. How long have people been playing chess?

a. Over 100 years b. Over 500 years
c. Over 1000 years d. Over 5000 years

4. Where did the game that chess is based on come from?

a. Europe b. America
c. India d. All of these

5. Which best describes the main idea in the fourth paragraph?

a. This paragraph argues that players should think less.
b. This paragraph explains how blitz chess is played.
c. This paragraph explains time clocks work.
d. This paragraph describes many different ways to play chess.

6. How does a game of chess end according to the text?

a. One player takes all of the other player's pieces.
b. One player makes it to the end of the board.
c. One player becomes king.
d. One player loses his or her king.

7. Which happened first?

a. Computers did not play chess well. b. Deep Blue won an important game.
c. Cell phones got good at playing chess. d. Deep Blue took up a whole room.

8. How is blitz chess different from regular chess?

a. Each player has two kings. b. Players are blindfolded.
c. Players only have ten minutes to play. d. Players start from a random position.

9. If it's your turn in blitz chess, what happens when you hit the clock?
a. Both your clock and the other person's clock keep running.
b. The other person's clock stops running and yours starts.
c. Both clocks stop running.
d. Your clock stops running and the other person's clock begins.
10. When did a computer first beat a strong human player in chess?
a. 2006 b. 1997
c. 1970 d. 1976

Answers

Seat Belts

1. D
2. B
3. A
4. C
5. C
6. D
7. A
8. B
9. D
10. B

Wintertime

1. D
2. B
3. C
4. A
5. D
6. B
7. C
8. B
9. C
10. C

Chess

1. A
2. B
3. B
4. C
5. B
6. D
7. A
8. C
9. D
10. B