FL FAST 5th Grade Reading Practice Test 2

PASSAGE SET 1 - The Quietest Voice in Room 12 [1] Mira Santos knew exactly where to sit during Student Council Club: third row, second chair, behind tall Devin Park. From there she could see the whiteboard, but no one could see her unless they tried. That was the way Mira liked it. Ideas crowded her notebook like birds on a telephone wire, but the moment she imagined saying them aloud, her throat tightened. [2] On Monday, Mrs. Alvarez announced that the club would design a mural for the empty wall beside the cafeteria. The mural should represent the school community. Everyone started talking at once. Kai wanted dolphins. Jada wanted planets. Devin wanted the school mascot, a panther, painted as large as a truck. Mira sketched quietly: a panther made of tiny colorful handprints, each print different but fitting into one strong shape. [3] That afternoon, Mira showed the sketch to her grandmother, who had once painted signs for neighborhood stores. Abuela studied it carefully. This is not a whisper, she said. This is a bell. Mira smiled, but she tucked the paper into her backpack as if it were something fragile. At school the next day, she planned to slide the sketch onto Mrs. Alvarez's desk and disappear. [4] Before she could, Devin found the drawing sticking out of her folder. That's actually amazing, he said, holding it up. The room grew quiet. Mira felt heat climb her neck. Mrs. Alvarez asked her to explain the idea. Mira stared at the floor and managed only a few words about teamwork and different hands. Her voice was so small that Jada leaned forward to hear. [5] The club voted for Mira's design, but winning did not feel like winning. It meant she had to lead the painting committee. On Friday, the students gathered with tarps, brushes, and buckets of paint. Within ten minutes, arguments splattered everywhere. Kai said Devin was making the panther's back too wide. Jada complained that the handprints were crooked. Someone knocked over blue paint, creating a puddle shaped like a lake. [6] Mira wanted to vanish behind a stack of paper towels. Then she noticed that every student was waiting for someone else to fix the mess. She remembered Abuela's words: a bell. A bell did not hide in a backpack. Mira clapped once, sharply. Everyone froze. [7] First, she said, we save the floor. Devin, grab more towels. Kai, ask the office for a mop. Jada, help me turn the blue spill into part of the background. Her voice shook at first, but each sentence made the next one stronger. Soon the spill became a bright pond beneath the panther's paws. [8] By the end of the afternoon, the wall was alive with color. Tiny handprints formed muscles, whiskers, and a curved tail. Mira stepped back, expecting to feel relieved that the day was over. Instead, she felt proud in a new, unfamiliar way. She had not become louder than everyone else. She had become clear enough for others to follow. [9] At the unveiling, Mrs. Alvarez asked Mira to say a few words. Mira looked at the panther, built from many hands, and then at the students watching her. This mural shows that one idea can begin quietly, she said, but it grows stronger when people share the work. Her voice reached the back row, including the second chair where she used to disappear. Question 1: How does Mira change from the beginning of the passage to the end?

Compare where Mira sits at the beginning with what she does during the mural project and unveiling.

(Use the passage from Question 1 to answer this question.) Question 2: What does the word fragile mean as it is used in paragraph 3?

Look at how Mira handles the paper after her grandmother praises it.

(Use the passage from Question 1 to answer this question.) Question 3: Part A: What can you infer is the main reason Mira is nervous about sharing her mural design?

Think about what happens to Mira's body and behavior when others notice her drawing.

(Use the passage from Question 1 to answer this question.) Question 4: Part B: Which detail from the passage best supports your answer to Part A? a) Ideas crowded her notebook like birds on a telephone wire, but the moment she imagined saying them aloud, her throat tightened. b) Kai wanted dolphins. Jada wanted planets. c) The club voted for Mira's design, but winning did not feel like winning. d) Tiny handprints formed muscles, whiskers, and a curved tail.

Choose the detail that shows both Mira's ideas and her fear of speaking.

(Use the passage from Question 1 to answer this question.) Question 5: From which point of view is the passage told? How do you know?

Look for whether the narrator says I, and notice whose inner thoughts are shown.

(Use the passage from Question 1 to answer this question.) Question 6: What is a theme of the passage?

Think about what Mira learns about her own voice.

(Use the passage from Question 1 to answer this question.) Question 7: Explain the meaning of Abuela's metaphor, This is not a whisper. This is a bell.

Consider how a whisper and a bell are different.

(Use the passage from Question 1 to answer this question.) Question 8: What is the main conflict in the passage?

Ask yourself what problem Mira must overcome inside herself.

(Use the passage from Question 1 to answer this question.) Question 9: What can you infer about Abuela's role in Mira's transformation?

Notice which words Mira remembers when she decides not to hide.

(Use the passage from Question 1 to answer this question.) Question 10: In paragraph 8, the word unfamiliar contains the prefix un-. What does unfamiliar mean in the sentence?

The prefix un- often means not.

PASSAGE SET 2 - Living Shields Along the Coast [1] Florida's coastline is beautiful, but it is also vulnerable. Storm waves, rising seas, and strong tides can wear away beaches and damage buildings. For many years, people responded by building seawalls made of concrete or stone. These walls can block waves in one location, but they may cause sand to disappear faster in nearby areas. Today, many scientists and city planners are studying natural protections, such as mangrove forests and oyster reefs, because these living systems can reduce damage while supporting wildlife. [2] Mangroves are trees that grow where land and salt water meet. Their tangled roots look messy, but they perform several important jobs. During storms, the roots slow moving water. When water slows, it drops sand and mud instead of carrying them away. Over time, this process can help build up soil. Mangroves also provide nurseries for young fish, crabs, and shrimp. Birds nest in their branches, and insects feed on their flowers. [3] Oyster reefs protect coasts in a different way. Oysters attach to one another and form hard clusters under the water. These reefs act like low, bumpy speed bumps for waves. As waves pass over the reef, some of their energy is reduced. Oysters also filter water while they feed. A single adult oyster can filter many gallons of water each day, removing tiny particles that make the water cloudy. [4] Although mangroves and oyster reefs both protect shorelines, they are not identical. Mangroves grow above the waterline in warm coastal wetlands, while oyster reefs are usually found underwater in bays and estuaries. Mangroves trap sediment with roots, but oyster reefs break wave energy with their rough surfaces. Both systems create habitat, yet they shelter different animals at different life stages. This comparison helps planners choose the best protection for a specific place. [5] Natural protections can also create a chain of causes and effects. When a community restores an oyster reef, the reef weakens waves. Weaker waves stir up less bottom sediment. Clearer water allows more sunlight to reach seagrass. Healthier seagrass can shelter fish, which may help local fishing businesses. In this way, one restoration project can lead to several environmental and economic benefits. [6] However, living shorelines require patience and careful planning. A new mangrove planting may take years to become large enough to block strong waves. Oyster reefs need clean enough water and a firm place for young oysters to attach. If a shoreline is hit by extremely powerful storms every season, a natural system alone may not be enough. In some places, engineers combine natural features with low rock structures or raised walkways. [7] The purpose of studying these approaches is not to prove that concrete is always bad or that nature is always simple. Instead, the goal is to understand consequences. A seawall may protect a road quickly, but it may reflect wave energy onto a neighboring beach. A mangrove forest may take longer to grow, but it can expand habitat while reducing erosion. By comparing options and tracing cause-and-effect relationships, communities can make wiser decisions about living with the coast. Question 11: What is the main idea of the passage?

Look for the idea that connects mangroves, oyster reefs, seawalls, and planning decisions.

(Use the passage from Question 11 to answer this question.) Question 12: How is the passage mainly organized?

Notice whether the author explains results, similarities, and differences.

(Use the passage from Question 11 to answer this question.) Question 13: According to paragraph 2, how do mangrove roots help protect the coast?

Find the cause-and-effect relationship involving roots, water speed, and sediment.

(Use the passage from Question 11 to answer this question.) Question 14: What does the word vulnerable mean in paragraph 1?

Use the examples after the word to figure out its meaning.

(Use the passage from Question 11 to answer this question.) Question 15: Part A: What can you infer about why city planners compare mangroves and oyster reefs before beginning a project?

Think about the differences in where each system grows and how each system reduces damage.

(Use the passage from Question 11 to answer this question.) Question 16: Part B: Which detail from the passage best supports your answer to Part A? a) Their tangled roots look messy, but they perform several important jobs. b) Oysters attach to one another and form hard clusters under the water. c) This comparison helps planners choose the best protection for a specific place. d) A single adult oyster can filter many gallons of water each day, removing tiny particles.

Choose the detail that explains the reason for making the comparison.

(Use the passage from Question 11 to answer this question.) Question 17: Which sentence from the passage is an opinion rather than a fact? Explain your choice.

Look for a word that expresses a personal judgment rather than something that can be measured.

(Use the passage from Question 11 to answer this question.) Question 18: What is the author's purpose in writing this passage?

Decide whether the author is mostly telling a story, persuading with emotion, or explaining information.

(Use the passage from Question 11 to answer this question.) Question 19: Describe one cause-and-effect chain explained in paragraph 5.

Follow the sequence that begins with restoring an oyster reef.

(Use the passage from Question 11 to answer this question.) Question 20: The word restoration contains the suffix -tion. What does restoration mean in paragraph 5?

The suffix -tion often turns a verb into a noun meaning an action or process.

PASSAGE SET 3 - Two Maps of Morning I say the morning is a locked blue door, My sister says it is a road of gold. I count the clouds like warnings on the shore, She hears the sunrise calling, Be bold. I keep my shoes lined neatly by the mat, She ties her laces while she hums a tune. My thoughts are turtles, hiding slow and flat, Her plans are rockets racing past the moon. The wind taps softly, asking me to stay, The wind shouts forward, tugging at her sleeve. I see the puddles blocking half the way, She sees small mirrors where the sky can leave. I carry questions folded in my pack, She carries answers bright as summer rain. Yet when the path bends into shadowed black, She borrows my map; I borrow her flame. By noon we walk with neither fear nor pride, Two different compasses, side by side. Question 21: How do the two perspectives in the poem differ?

Compare the images used for the morning by each person.

(Use the passage from Question 21 to answer this question.) Question 22: What mood is created by the first speaker's descriptions?

Look at words and images connected to the speaker who says I.

(Use the passage from Question 21 to answer this question.) Question 23: Part A: What is a theme of the poem?

Think about what happens when the path bends into shadow.

(Use the passage from Question 21 to answer this question.) Question 24: Part B: Which detail from the poem best supports your answer to Part A? a) I say the morning is a locked blue door, b) Her plans are rockets racing past the moon. c) She borrows my map; I borrow her flame. d) I see the puddles blocking half the way,

Choose the line that shows the two people sharing strengths.

(Use the passage from Question 21 to answer this question.) Question 25: Identify one simile or metaphor from the poem and explain its meaning.

Look for a comparison that describes thoughts, plans, answers, or morning.

(Use the passage from Question 21 to answer this question.) Question 26: How does the poet use personification in the poem?

Find a nonhuman thing that acts as if it has a voice or hands.

(Use the passage from Question 21 to answer this question.) Question 27: Describe the poem's rhyme pattern in the first stanza.

Look at the last word of each line in the first four lines.

(Use the passage from Question 21 to answer this question.) Question 28: What does the phrase Two different compasses, side by side suggest at the end of the poem?

Think about what a compass does and why two compasses can still be side by side.

PASSAGE SET 4 - PAIRED TEXTS Text 1: At Promontory [1] Wei Lin had carried iron spikes in a leather pouch for months, but he had never carried one like the polished spike resting on a velvet cloth near the tracks. Men in dark coats stood around it, speaking proudly as if the small gold object had laid the rails itself. Wei wiped dust from his sleeve and looked toward the line of Chinese workers standing several yards away. Their hats shaded their eyes; their hands, cracked from blasting tunnels and lifting ties, hung at their sides. [2] The morning air in Utah tasted of coal smoke and spring wind. Locomotives faced each other like two impatient horses. Wei remembered the Sierra Nevada mountains, where snow had buried tools overnight and where danger waited inside each tunnel. He remembered lowering baskets of explosives down cliffs because no machine could reach the stone. He also remembered laughter over rice pots and songs that rose softly after dark. [3] A photographer arranged the important men near the tracks. Wei and several workers stepped closer, hoping to be included. A foreman waved them back, not unkindly, but firmly. Ceremony space, he said. Wei looked at the rails stretching east and west. He wondered how a place built by many hands could suddenly become too small for those hands to stand in. [4] When the golden spike was tapped, cheers rose. Telegraph wires carried the word Done across the country. Wei felt the sound pass through him, both sharp and hollow. He was proud that the railroad joined distant coasts. He knew families, letters, goods, and dreams would travel faster because of the work. Yet he also knew that many names would not travel with the news. [5] That evening, after the crowds thinned, Wei picked up a plain iron spike left beside a pile of wood. It was scratched, heavy, and ordinary. He slid it into his pouch. The golden spike would be remembered in speeches. This iron one would remind him of frozen fingers, brave friends, and the steady music of hammers. It would remind him that history is sometimes written in gold, but built in iron. Text 2: The Meeting of the Rails [1] On May 10, 1869, the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroads met at Promontory Summit in Utah Territory. The event completed the first transcontinental railroad in the United States, connecting rail lines from the eastern states with lines reaching California. Before the railroad, a trip across the country could take months by wagon or ship. Afterward, passengers and freight could cross the continent in about a week. [2] The ceremony at Promontory included speeches, photographs, and a symbolic final spike. Leland Stanford, president of the Central Pacific Railroad, tapped a ceremonial golden spike into a prepared tie. A telegraph message announced the completion to cities across the nation. Many newspapers celebrated the railroad as a victory of engineering, business, and national unity. [3] The achievement depended on thousands of workers from different backgrounds. Union Pacific crews included many Irish immigrants and Civil War veterans working westward across the plains. Central Pacific crews included large numbers of Chinese immigrants working eastward through the Sierra Nevada. These workers faced avalanches, extreme heat and cold, dangerous explosives, and long hours. Some workers died during construction. [4] Public accounts in 1869 often focused on railroad leaders, investors, and politicians. Photographs from the ceremony show officials and workers gathered near the locomotives, but many Chinese workers who built the Central Pacific line were not centered in the most famous images. In later years, historians examined payroll records, letters, and oral histories to better understand the workers' contributions. [5] The transcontinental railroad changed the United States in complicated ways. It lowered travel time, expanded trade, and helped towns grow along the route. It also increased pressure on Native American lands and changed ecosystems as settlement spread. Studying the event from multiple perspectives helps readers see both the celebration and the costs of this major historical change. Question 29: In Text 1, how does Wei Lin feel during the ceremony?

Look for sentences that show both positive and painful feelings.

(Use the paired texts from Question 29 to answer this question.) Question 30: What is the main purpose of Text 2?

Notice whether the text tells a personal story or explains historical facts.

(Use the paired texts from Question 29 to answer this question.) Question 31: Part A: What idea about history is suggested by both texts?

Think about what both texts say about who was remembered and who was overlooked.

(Use the paired texts from Question 29 to answer this question.) Question 32: Part B: Which detail from the paired texts best supports your answer to Part A? a) Locomotives faced each other like two impatient horses. b) The ceremony at Promontory included speeches, photographs, and a symbolic final spike. c) Public accounts in 1869 often focused on railroad leaders, investors, and politicians. d) Before the railroad, a trip across the country could take months by wagon or ship.

Choose the detail that explains whose stories were emphasized in public accounts.

(Use the paired texts from Question 29 to answer this question.) Question 33: How are the points of view in Text 1 and Text 2 different?

Compare a personal experience with a factual explanation.

(Use the paired texts from Question 29 to answer this question.) Question 34: What does the word symbolic mean in paragraph 2 of Text 2?

Think about why the golden spike mattered even though it was not a regular working spike.

(Use the paired texts from Question 29 to answer this question.) Question 35: Compare how Text 1 and Text 2 describe the workers who built the railroad.

Look at the kinds of details each text uses about workers.

(Use the paired texts from Question 29 to answer this question.) Question 36: Which detail from Text 1 best shows irony at the ceremony?

Look for a moment when the opposite of what seems fair or expected happens.

(Use the paired texts from Question 29 to answer this question.) Question 37: According to Text 2, what were two positive effects of the transcontinental railroad?

Look in paragraphs 1 and 5 of Text 2.

(Use the paired texts from Question 29 to answer this question.) Question 38: According to Text 2, what were two negative or complicated effects of the transcontinental railroad?

Find the sentence that begins with it also in Text 2.

(Use the paired texts from Question 29 to answer this question.) Question 39: What does the final sentence of Text 1 mean: history is sometimes written in gold, but built in iron?

Compare the golden spike with the iron spike Wei keeps.

(Use the paired texts from Question 29 to answer this question.) Question 40: Which text gives a more complete overview of the historical event, and which text helps readers better understand one worker's experience? Explain.

Think about the difference between broad historical information and a close personal account.