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8th Grade 2nd 9Wks ELA EQT Practice Test
1 Class Period – 30 Questions
Read the selection. Then answer the questions that follow.
Geraldine Moore the Poet
Toni Cade Bambara
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Geraldine paused at the corner to pull up her knee socks.
The rubber bands she was using to hold them up made her
legs itch. She dropped her books on the sidewalk while
she gave a good scratch. But when she pulled the socks up
again, two fingers poked right through the top of her left
one.
“That stupid dog,” she muttered to herself, grabbing her
books and crossing against traffic. “First he chews up my
gym suit and gets me into trouble, and now my socks.”
Geraldine shifted her books to the other hand and kept
muttering angrily to herself about Mrs. Watson’s dog,
which she minded two days a week for a dollar. She
passed the hot-dog man on the corner and waved. He
shrugged as if to say business was very bad.
Must be, she thought to herself. Three guys before you
had to pack up and forget it. Nobody’s got hot-dog money
around here.
Geraldine turned down her street, wondering what her
sister Anita would have for her lunch. She was glad she
didn’t have to eat the free lunches in high school any
more. She was sick of the funny-looking tomato soup and
the dried- out cheese sandwiches and those oranges that
were more green than orange.
When Geraldine’s mother first took sick and went away,
Geraldine had been on her own except when Miss Gladys
next door came in on Thursdays and cleaned the
apartment and made a meat loaf so Geraldine could have
dinner. But in those days Geraldine never quite managed
to get breakfast for herself. So she’d sit through social
studies class, scraping her feet to cover up the noise of her
stomach growling.
Now Anita, Geraldine’s older sister, was living at home
waiting for her husband to get out of the Army. She
usually had something good for lunch—chicken and
dumplings if she managed to get up in time, or baked ham
from the night before and sweet-potato bread. But even if
there was only a hot dog and some baked beans—
sometimes just a TV dinner if those soap operas kept
Anita glued to the TV set—anything was better than the
noisy school lunchroom where monitors kept pushing you
into a straight line or rushing you to the tables. Anything
was better than that.
Geraldine was almost home when she stopped dead. Right
outside her building was a pile of furniture and some
boxes. That wasn’t anything new. She’d seen people get
put out in the street before, but this time the ironing board
looked familiar. And she recognized the big, ugly sofa
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standing on its arm, its underbelly showing the hole where
Mrs. Watson’s dog had gotten to it.
Miss Gladys was sitting on the stoop, and she looked up
and took off her glasses. “Well, Gerry,” she said slowly,
wiping her glasses on the hem of her dress, “looks like
you’ll be staying with me for a while.” She looked at the
men carrying out a big box with an old doll sticking up
over the edge. “Anita’s upstairs. Go on up and get your
lunch.”
Geraldine stepped past the old woman and almost bumped
into the superintendent. He took off his cap to wipe away
the sweat.
“Darn shame,” he said to no one in particular. “Poor
people sure got a hard row to hoe.”
“That’s the truth,” said Miss Gladys, standing up with her
hands on her hips to watch the men set things on the
sidewalk.
Upstairs, Geraldine went into the apartment and found
Anita in the kitchen.
“I dunno, Gerry,” Anita said. “I just don’t know what
we’re going to do. But everything’s going to be all right
soon as Ma gets well.” Anita’s voice cracked as she set a
bowl of soup before Geraldine.
“What’s this?” Geraldine said.
“It’s tomato soup, Gerry.”
Geraldine was about to say something. But when she
looked up at her big sister, she saw how Anita’s face was
getting all twisted as she began to cry.
That afternoon, Mr. Stern, the geometry teacher, started
drawing cubes and cylinders on the board. Geraldine sat
at her desk adding up a column of figures in her
notebook—the rent, the light and gas bills, a new gym
suit, some socks. Maybe they would move somewhere
else, and she could have her own room. Geraldine turned
the squares and triangles into little houses in the country.
“For your homework,” Mr. Stern was saying with his
back to the class, “set up your problems this way.” He
wrote GIVEN: in large letters, and then gave the formula
for the first problem. Then he wrote TO FIND: and listed
three items they were to include in their answers.
Geraldine started to raise her hand to ask what all these
squares and angles had to do with solving real problems,
like the ones she had. Better not, she warned herself, and
sat on her hands. Your big mouth got you in trouble last
term.
In hygiene class, Mrs. Potter kept saying that the body
was a wonderful machine. Every time Geraldine looked
up from her notebook, she would hear the same thing. “
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33 “I can’t write a poem, Mrs. Scott, because nothing
lovely’s been happening in my life. I haven’t seen a
flower since Mother’s Day, and the sun don’t even shine
on my side of the street. No robins come sing on my
window sill.”
34 Geraldine swallowed hard. She thought about saying that
her father doesn’t even come to visit any more, but
changed her mind. “ Just the rain comes,” she went on,
“and the bills come, and the men move out our furniture.
I’m sorry, but I can’t write no pretty poem.”
35 Teddy Johnson leaned over and was about to giggle and
crack the whole class up, but Mrs. Scott looked so serious
that he changed his mind.
36 “You have just said the most . . . the most poetic thing,
Geraldine Moore, said Mrs. Scott. Her hands flew up to
touch the silk scarf around her neck. “Nothing lovely’s
been happening in my life.” She repeated it so quietly that
everyone had to lean forward to hear.
37 “Class,” Mrs. Scott said very sadly, clearing her throat,
“you have just heard the best poem you will ever hear.”
She went to the board and stood there for a long time
staring at the chalk in her hand.
38 “I’d like you to copy it down,” she said. She wrote it just
as Geraldine had said it, bad grammar and all.
39 Nothing lovely’s been happening in my life.
I haven’t seen a flower since Mother’s Day,
And the sun don’t even shine on my side of the street.
No robins come sing on my window sill.
Just the rain comes, and the bills come,
And the men move out our furniture.
I’m sorry, but I can’t write no pretty poem.
40 Mrs. Scott stopped writing, but she kept her back to the
class for a long time—long after Geraldine had closed her
notebook.
41 And even when the bell rang, and everyone came over to
smile at Geraldine or to tap her on the shoulder or to kid
her about being the school poet, Geraldine waited for
Mrs. Scott to put the chalk down and turn around. Finally
Geraldine stacked up her books and started to leave. Then
she thought she heard a whimper—the way Mrs.
Watson’s dog whimpered sometimes—and she saw Mrs.
Scott’s shoulder shake a little.
“Geraldine Moore the Poet” by Toni Cade Bambara.
Reprinted by permission of the Estate of Toni Cade
Bambara.
Right now your body is manufacturing all the proteins
and tissues and energy you will need to get through
tomorrow.”
And Geraldine kept wondering. How? How does my body
know what I’ll need, when I don’t even know what I’ll
need to get through tomorrow?
As she headed down the hall to her next class, Geraldine
remembered that she hadn’t done the homework for
English. Mrs. Scott had said to write a poem, and
Geraldine had meant to do it at lunchtime. After all, there
was nothing to it—a flower here, a raindrop there, moon,
June, rose, nose. But the men carrying off the furniture
had made her forget.
“And now put away your books,” Mrs. Scott was saying
as Geraldine tried to scribble a poem quickly. “Today we
can give King Arthur’s knights a rest. Let’s talk about
poetry.”
Mrs. Scott moved up and down the aisles, talking about
her favorite poems and reciting a line now and then. She
got very excited whenever she passed a desk and could
pick up the homework from a student who had
remembered to do the assignment.
“A poem is your own special way of saying what you feel
and what you see,” she said, passing Geraldine’s desk.
“Sometimes an idea takes the form of a picture—an
image.”
Mrs. Scott went on, her lips moist. It was her favorite
subject.
For almost half an hour, Mrs. Scott stood at the front of
the room, reading poems and talking about the lives of the
great poets. Geraldine drew more houses and designs for
curtains.
“So for those who haven’t done their homework, try it
now,” Mrs. Scott said. “Try expressing what it is like to
be . . . to be alive in this . . . this glorious world.”
“Oh, brother,” Geraldine muttered to herself as Mrs. Scott
moved up and down the aisles again, waving her hands
and leaning over the students’ shoulders and saying,
“That’s nice,” or “Keep trying.” Finally she came to
Geraldine’s desk and stopped, looking down at her.
“I can’t write a poem,” Geraldine said flatly, before she
even realized she was going to speak at all. She said it
very loudly, and the whole class looked up.
“And why not?” Mrs. Scott asked, looking hurt.
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Passage Questions
1 The setting at the beginning of the story helps the reader
understand that Geraldine —
A. needs a new gym suit
B. faces many challenges in her life
C. lives with her sister
D. gets help from Miss Gladys
5 In paragraph 4, what mood does the author establish?
A. Gloomy
C. Alarming
B. Peaceful
D. Lighthearted
6 Paragraph 6 is important to the story because it —
A. explains that Geraldine’s mother is sick
B. introduces Miss Gladys
C. describes Geraldine’s behavior in class
D. describes what Geraldine’s life is like
2 Which word provides insight to a theme?
A. Poverty
B. Parents
C. Peace
D. Practice
3 From paragraph 2, the reader can infer that Geraldine
cannot —
A. walk by herself
C. afford new socks
B. play with animals
D. wear gym suits
7 The tomato soup that Anita serves Geraldine in paragraphs
14–15 symbolizes —
A. Gerry’s improved mood
B. their mother
C. Anita’s caring nature
D.
difficult times
4 Which line from the story best helps the reader determine
the point of view?
A. fingers poked right through (paragraph 1)
B. That stupid dog (paragraph 2)
C. minded two days a week (paragraph 3)
D. she thought to herself (paragraph 4)
8 From Anita’s reaction in paragraph 14, the reader can
predict that Geraldine’s mother will not —
A. help Geraldine write poetry
B. recover soon
C. appreciate Anita’s help
D. return home
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Read the following poem. Then answer the questions that follow.
Reply to the Question: “How can You Become a Poet?”
Eve Merriam
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take the leaf of a tree
trace its exact shape
the outside edges
and inner lines
Passage Questions
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memorize the way it is fastened to the twig
(and how the twig arches from the branch)
how it springs forth in April
how it is panoplied in July
10 In lines 10–14, the poem appeals to what senses?
A. Sight, hearing, touch
B. Sight, smell, touch, hearing
C. Sight, smell, touch, hearing, taste
D. Sight, touch, taste
by late August
10 crumple it in your hand
so that you smell its end-of-summer sadness
chew its woody stem
11 From the verbs memorize, crumple, chew, listen,
and watch, you can infer that the speaker feels —
A. unsure of how to write a poem
B. thrilled to be part of nature
C. expert enough to give advice
D. upset that summer is fading
listen to its autumn rattle
watch it as it atomizes in the November air
15 then in winter
when there is no leaf left
invent one
“Reply to the Question,” from Rainbow Writing by Eve Merriam.
Copyright © 1976 Eve Merriam.
Used by permission of Marian Reiner.
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From the poem’s title, you can tell that the
speaker’s purpose is to —
A. explain something
B. write a song
C. describe a poem
D. tell a story
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Read the next selection. Then answer the questions that follow it.
Brazilian Wins, Lance Solid in First NYC Marathon Dandy Debuts
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NEW YORK (AP)—A Brazilian man finished strong to
stun the favored Africans, ending their decade-long hold
on the New York City Marathon. A Latvian woman ran
away from the field to win her second straight title, and
later wondered why no one challenged her.
And, despite another day of disappointment for
Americans, marathon rookie Lance Armstrong thrilled the
crowds Sunday in what he called “without a doubt the
hardest physical thing I have ever done.”
Marilson Gomes dos Santos of Brazil made a remarkable
New York debut, breaking away from the lead pack in the
last quarter of the race and holding off an all-star field of
challengers to become the first South American to win the
race, man or woman. Gomes finished in 2 hours, 9
minutes and 58 seconds.
Women’s defending champion Jelena Prokopcuka sped
away early and ran alone at the end, becoming the first
woman in more than a decade to win two straight titles in
New York. She won in 2:25:05.
Armstrong crossed the finish line in 2:59:36 seconds,
barely meeting his goal of breaking 3 hours. The seventime Tour de France champion struggled at times, but—as
he has so many times on his bicycle in the Alps—found
the energy to meet the challenge.
He was battling shin splits and had never before run
longer than 16 miles.
“I didn’t train enough for a marathon,” he said, his right
shin heavily taped as he shuffled into a post-race news
conference. “In 20 years of pro sports and endurance
sports, even the worst days on the Tour, nothing felt like
that or left me the way I feel now.”
In the final mile, as the race headed back into Central
Park, Gomes surrendered about half the 30-second margin
he had built over the Kenyans. He glanced over his
shoulder several times, at one point doing a double-take
when he saw a figure right behind him. But it was a
woman runner, who had started a half-hour before the
men.
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“It wasn’t a surprise, to win a marathon you have to have
courage and today I had courage,” Gomes said through an
interpreter. “I pushed the pace to get less people in the
(lead) group. I kept pushing and they kept staying
behind.”
It certainly was a surprise to defending champion Paul
Tergat, who acknowledged later he didn’t know much
about Gomes. He and Kenyan compatriot Stephen
Kiogora worked together to push Gomes at the end, but
ran out of room. Kiogora was second in 2:10:06, while
Tergat was third. Kenyan men also took the fourth, fifth
and seventh spots, with Olympic champion Stefano
Baldini of Italy in sixth.
It was the first time in 10 years that an African man didn’t
win the race.
“Gomes, I did not know exactly who he was. When he
decided to break, I think for some reason nobody wanted
to move. We waited to see who else was going to move,”
Tergat said. “The guy was motivated. To try to close at
the last stages, it was too late.”
The top American was Peter Gilmore, who finished 10th
in 2:13:13. U.S. runner Dathan Ritzenhein, making his
marathon debut, was 11th in 2:14:01. Meb Keflezighi,
who was third and second the last two years, finished 21st
while battling a case of food poisoning.
The women’s race became little more than a coronation
after Prokopcuka made her bold move away from the lead
pack, crushing the hopes of Deena Kastor, the world’s
top-ranked marathoner, who was favored to become the
first American woman to win the race since 1977.
Prokopcuka lead nearly from start to finish on a perfect
day for a marathon—cool, cloudy and little wind. Kastor
finished sixth in 2:27:54. Prolopcuka is the first woman to
win two straight titles since Tegla Loroupe of Kenya in
1994–95.
A record 38,368 runners started the race.
From “Dandy Debuts: Brazilian Wins, Lance Solid in First NYC Marathons,”
Associated Press, November 5, 2006. Copyright © 2006 Associated
Press. Used by permission of the Associated Press.
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Passage Questions
12 Based on paragraph 3, the reader can conclude that
competition among elite runners is —
A. friendly
B. intense
C. nonexistent
D. secretive
15 From the article, the reader can predict that if Armstrong
runs another marathon, he will —
A. eat different foods
B. train more seriously
C. give up bicycling
D. wear better shoes
13 Paragraph 5 is mainly about Lance Armstrong —
A. performing better as a runner
B. failing to break three hours
C. meeting his goal despite difficulty
D. lacking energy and strength
16 Which line from the article tells you the most about the
setting?
A. nobody wanted to move (paragraph 12)
B. a case of food poisoning (paragraph 13)
C. world’s top-ranked marathoner (paragraph 14)
D. cool, cloudy and little wind (paragraph 15)
14 Which detail best supports the idea that Armstrong faced
challenges in the marathon?
A. He had never run more than 16 miles at a time.
B. Armstrong refused to train for the marathon.
C. He won the Tour de France seven times in a row.
D. Armstrong was a professional athlete for 20
years.
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17 From paragraph 1, the reader can infer that “stun” does
NOT mean
A. violent
B. amaze
C. shock
D. dumbfound
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Vocabulary
Use context clues and your knowledge of idioms
to answer the following questions
18 What does the idiom hard row to hoe mean in paragraph
11 of “Geraldine Moore the Poet”?
“… people sure got a hard row to hoe.”
A. Difficult task or destiny
B. Series of unfortunate events
C. Disadvantages for survival
D. Poor attitude toward life
21 What does the word compatriot mean in paragraph 10 of
“Dandy Debuts”?
“He and Kenyan compatriot Stephen Kiogora worked
together …”
A.Person who gives advice
B. Companion or associate
C. Individual opponent
D. Teacher or mentor
19 What does the idiom big mouth mean in paragraph 20 of
“Geraldine Moore the Poet”?
“Your big mouth got you in trouble last term.”
A. Having a charming smile
B. Speaking loudly
C. Being able to persuade others
D. Talking too much
Use context clues and your knowledge of
homographs to answer the following questions.
22 Which sentence uses swallowed as it is used on page 268,
paragraph 34 of “Geraldine Moore the Poet”?
A. When she finally spoke, she nearly swallowed her gum.
B. Everything on the block was swallowed up by the
enormous fire.
C. The salesperson swallowed the insult and continued
to speak.
D. Nervous about the audition, the actor swallowed
his lines.
20 What does the word endurance mean in paragraph 7 of
“Dandy Debuts”?
“In 20 years of pro sports and endurance sports …”
A. Great ability to withstand stress
B. Specific distance to complete
C. Strong potential for success
D. High level of competition
23 Which sentence uses case as it is used on page 277,
paragraph 13 of “Dandy Debuts”?
A. We put a poster in the display case.
B. It was merely a case of mistaken identity.
C. She makes a good case for raising taxes.
D. The lawyer pleaded the defendant’s case.
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Revising and Editing
Read the short story and answer the questions that follow.
(1) You may have noticed that I don’t purr. (2) There is a
breed of dog on the continent of australia that never barks. (3) I
am a cat that does not purrs.
24 What change, if any, should be made in sentence 2?
A. Change breed to Breed.
B. Change continent to Continent
C. Change australia to Australia
D. Make no change
(4) My first memories are of waking to a hum—not of cats
purring, but of tires rushing on concrete. (5) My brothers and
sisters and I was born by the side of the road. (6) Mar purred
during our meals, and some of the other kittens did too—but not
me. (7) Ma was forever feeding us, cleaning us, and teaching us
to dig holes. (8) She always served us a breakfast of warm milk.
25 In sentence 4, the words hum and purring appeal to the sense
of —
A. sight
C. taste
B. hearing
D. touch
(9) One particular day there was no decent breakfast for our
litter of kittens— all very handsome Siamese cats with beautiful
blue eyes. (10) We were naturally pretty, unlike those kittens with
the phony, milky-blueeyes.
26 What change, if any, should be made in sentence 5?
A. Change was to were
C. Insert a comma after I
B. Change I to me
D. Make no change
(11) Since no breakfast appeared, I scoped out the scene. (12)
The frenzy of one car swerving to the shoulder of the road had
replaced the normal, gentle, just-before-sunrise sound of traffic in
transit. (13) I didn’t purr, but my empty stomach was roaring. (14)
The insistent rumbling of hunger was soon wiped out by a
screeching of brakes and the whiff of a ham-and-egg breakfast
taco.
27 Which sentence should you revise to maintain active voice?
A. Sentence 12
B. Sentence 13
28 What change, if any, should be made to sentence 20?
A. Change Ma’s to ma’s
B. Change Spanish to spanish
C. Change english to English
D. Make no change
(15) “I know this isn’t your regular breakfast, but you can
have it if you’ll purr for me.” (16) The voice wasn’t Ma’s, but it
was coaxing, and so was the hands that put me in the car and
delivered me to a big wicker basket with a soft down pillow. (17)
I ate the breakfast, minus the tortilla, but I didn’t purr.
29 In paragraph 5, the writer reveals a conflict between —
A. Rosie and Lincoln about Lincoln’s purring
B. Ma and the kittens about sleeping in a basket
C. Lincoln and Dusty about sleeping on the soft pillow
D. Ma and Rosie about who will raise Lincoln
(18) The woman who took care of me was called Rosie. (19)
She called me Lincoln for the name of the highway where she
found me. (20) Rosie, who had a voice as soft as Ma’s purr, spoke
english and Spanish, but not “cat.” (21) Back then, my vocabulary
was limited. (22) I knew mew, which means “Move over and let
me closer to the dinner table,” and howl, which means “That’s my
tail you’re biting.” (23) Still, my vocabulary had always seemed
satisfactory, if not impressive. (24) Rosie, however, kept insisting
that I learn to purr.
30 What change, if any, should be made in sentence 16?
A. Change wasn’t to weren’t C. Change put to puts
B. Change was to were
D. Make no change
(25) Otherwise life was good—food and toys were plentiful.
(26) I had cool, clear water during the summer. (27) There was a
fireplace during winter and an air-conditioning vent for the other
seasons. (28) My environment was quiet and serene, without a
purr within earshot. (29) I was a happy cat.
(30) One day Rosie picked me up, looked me straight in the
eye, and said, “You’re getting older. (31) You need a companion.
(32) You’re alone too much of the time.”
(33) Frankly, I had no problem with being alone because I
remembered what life in the litter was like. (34) Struggling to be
first in line, the “lunch counter” was where everyone scrambled to
get the best spot. (35) Being alone was fantastic.
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C. Sentence 14
D. Sentence 15
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Answer Key
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
B
A
C
D
A
A
D
B
A
C
C
B
C
A
B
D
A
A
D
A
B
A
B
C
B
A
C
C
A
B
RL 8.4
RL 8.2
RL 8.1
RL 8.6
RL 8.4
RL 8.3
RL 8.4
RL 8.1
RL 8.6
RL 8.4
RL 8.4
RI 8.1
RI 8.5
RI 8.2
RI 8.1
RI 8.3
RI 8.4
L 8.5b
L 8.5b
L 8.4b
L 8.4b
L 8.4a
L 8.4a
L 8.2
W 8.3d
L 8.1
W 8.3b L 8.1b
L 8.2
W 8.3a
L 8.1
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