Assessment Practice
DIRECTIONS Read these poems and answer the questions that follow.
Rain Sizes
assess
Taking this practice
test will help you
assess your knowledge
of these skills and
determine your
readiness for the Unit
Test.
Rain comes in various sizes.
Some rain is as small as a mist.
It tickles your face with surprises,
And tingles as if you’d been kissed.
5
review
After you take the
practice test, your
teacher can help you
identify any standards
you need to review.
10
RL 4 Determine the meaning of
words and phrases as they are
used in a text, including figurative
meanings. RL 6 Explain how an
author develops the point of view
of the speaker in a text.
L 1 Demonstrate command of the
conventions of grammar.
L 4b Use Greek or Latin roots as
clues to the meaning of a word.
by John Ciardi
15
Some rain is the size of a sprinkle
And doesn’t put out all the sun.
You can see the drops sparkle and twinkle,
And a rainbow comes out when it’s done.
Some rain is as big as a nickle1
And comes with a crash and a hiss.
It comes down too heavy to tickle.
It’s more like a splash than a kiss.
When it rains the right size and you’re wrapped in
Your rainclothes, it’s fun out of doors.
But run home before you get trapped in
The big rain that rattles and roars.
Practice
Test
Take it at thinkcentral.com.
1. nickle: a spelling variation of the word nickel.
KEYWORD: HML6N-666
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Rain in Ohio
by Mary Oliver
The robin cries: rain!
The crow calls: plunder!
5
The blacksnake climbing
in the vines halts
his long ladder of muscle
while the thunderheads whirl up
out of the white west,
their dark hooves nicking
the tall trees as they come.
10
Rain, rain, rain! sings the robin
frantically, then flies for cover.
The crow hunches.
The blacksnake
15
pours himself swift and heavy
into the ground.
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Reading Comprehension
Use “Rain Sizes” to answer questions
1–6.
1. Which statement describes the pattern of
rhyme in this poem?
A. The first and third and the second and
fourth lines in each stanza rhyme.
B. The first and second lines in each
stanza rhyme.
C. All four lines in each stanza have the
same rhyme.
D. The first and second and the third and
fourth lines in each stanza rhyme.
2. Which description of rain is a simile?
A. Rain comes in various sizes. (line 1)
B. Some rain is the size of a sprinkle (line 5)
C. And a rainbow comes out when it’s done.
(line 8)
D. Some rain is as big as a nickle (line 9)
3. In line 4, the speaker uses a simile to
compare the misty rain to —
A. someone’s face
B. a kiss
C. a surprise
D. rainbows
5. Which image appeals to your sense of
hearing?
A. Some rain is as small as a mist.
B. You can see the drops sparkle and twinkle.
C. And comes with a crash and a hiss.
D. It comes down too heavy to tickle.
6. You can infer that the speaker in “Rain
Sizes” —
A. does not notice the rain
B. enjoys all types of rain
C. stays indoors when it rains
D. wishes the sun would come out
Use “Rain in Ohio” to answer questions
7–11.
7. In line 5, the speaker uses the metaphor
“his long ladder of muscle” to emphasize
the snake’s —
A. length and power
B. speed and cunning
C. size and dangerousness
D. scaly skin and strong back
4. Which phrase from the poem is an
example of onomatopoeia?
A. Tickles your face (line 3)
B. Put out all the sun (line 6)
C. Run home before (line 15)
D. Rattles and roars (line 16)
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Assessment Practice
8. Read lines 6–9.
“while the thunderheads whirl up
out of the white west,
their dark hooves nicking
the tall trees as they come.”
What are the thunderheads being
compared to?
A. Tumbleweeds rolling
B. Wagons rumbling
C. Horses galloping
D. Trees swaying
9. Read lines 10–11.
“Rain, rain, rain! sings the robin
frantically, then flies for cover.”
11. What can you infer about how the birds
and the snake feel about the approaching
storm?
A. Curious
B. Confused
C. Fearful
D. Happy
Use both selections to answer
question 12.
12. In both poems, the descriptions of rain —
A. are scientific
B. include vivid imagery
C. use the same metaphors
D. have rhyming words
SHORT CONSTRUCTED RESPONSE
You can infer that when the robin sings
“Rain, rain, rain!” it is —
A. expressing joy
B. sounding a warning
C. signaling its location
D. looking for a mate
10. The metaphor in lines 13–15 compares
the blacksnake’s movement to —
A. flowing liquid
B. distant thunder
C. heavy rains
D. the still air
Write two or three sentences to answer each
question.
13. In “Rain Sizes,” what idea does the
speaker emphasize by repeating the phrase
“some rain is”?
14. Do you think “Rain in Ohio” describes
the approach of a wild thunderstorm or a
gentle rain? Give two examples from the
poem to support your idea.
Write a paragraph to answer this question.
15. Find three images in “Rain in Ohio” that
describe how the robin, the crow, and the
blacksnake react to the storm. Are their
reactions the same or different? Explain.
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Vocabulary
Use context clues and the definitions
of Latin or Greek words to answer the
following questions.
1. The Latin word prendere means “to seize.”
What word in the poems comes from the
word prendere ?
A. Drop
B. Fun
C. Ladder
D. Surprise
2. The Greek word phrēn means “the mind.”
What word in the poems comes from the
word phrēn?
A. Flies
B. Frantically
C. Home
D. Whirls
3. The Latin word pūrus means “pure.” What
word in the poems comes from the word
pūrus?
A. Down
B. Pours
C. Put
D. Rain
4. The Latin word quiritare means “to shriek
or scream.” What word in the poems
comes from the word quiritare?
A. Calls
B. Cries
C. Rattles
D. Roars
5. The Latin word assisa means “a fixed
quantity.” What word in the poems comes
from the word assisa?
A. Long
B. Plunder
C. Size
D. Swift
6. The prefix co- means “with,” and the
Latin word operire means “to close
completely.” What word in the poems
comes from the Latin word cooperire?
A. Cover
B. Crow
C. Ground
D. Home
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Assessment Practice
Revising and Editing
1. What is the BEST way to show correct
subject-verb agreement?
A. My cousin play a midfield position
in lacrosse.
B. My cousins plays a midfield position
in lacrosse.
C. My cousin do play a midfield position
in lacrosse.
D. My cousin plays a midfield position
in lacrosse.
5. What is the BEST way to show correct
subject-verb agreement?
A. Either the guides or the teacher
explain the owl’s diet.
B. Either the guide or the teacher explain
the owl’s diet.
C. Either the guide or the teacher
explains the owl’s diet.
D. Either the guide or the teachers
explains the owl’s diet.
2. What is the BEST way to show correct
subject-verb agreement?
A. There are stars out tonight.
B. There are star out tonight.
C. There is stars out tonight.
D. There was stars out tonight.
6. What is the BEST way to show correct
subject-verb agreement?
A. My brother and sisters sings in the
chorus.
B. My brother and sisters is singing in
the chorus.
C. My brother and sisters sing in the
chorus.
D. My brothers and sister sings in the
chorus.
3. What is the BEST way to show correct
subject-verb agreement?
A. Is the boat at the dock?
B. Are the boat at the dock?
C. Is the boats at the dock?
D. Was the boats at the dock?
4. What is the BEST way to show correct
subject-verb agreement?
A. A coin and shells was in his pocket.
B. A coin and shells is in his pocket.
C. Coins and shells was in his pocket.
D. A coin and shells are in his pocket.
7. What is the BEST way to show correct
subject-verb agreement?
A. Was there empty seats on the bus?
B. Are there empty seats on the bus?
C. Are there an empty seat on the bus?
D. Is there empty seats on the bus?
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