Grade 8
Read Passages A and B.
Then respond to the questions that follow.
Passage A:
The Physics of Skydiving
Skydiving is not for everyone. But even if you never plan on jumping from a
plane, it is an activity that can be cool to think about. First, the plane you
take off in typically climbs to upwards of 14,000 feet above the ground.
Then, through an open door in the plane, you see something like this:
Kind of makes your palms begin to sweat just looking at this, huh? As this
picture shows, the next step is to jump. If you were brave enough to get to
this step, you would have received some safety lessons on how to make it
down to the ground in one piece. With this knowledge, you can just enjoy
the ride! And what a ride it is. If you’ve ever ridden a roller coaster, you
know the feeling of roaring down the steep parts of the track. Your stomach
probably turns a little as you experience the massive downward acceleration.
Skydivers get a similar feeling, but the feeling is more intense. One reason is
because the skydiver is falling from the sky for about 30-60 seconds, much
longer than the descent you experience on a roller coaster.
And just how fast is a typical skydiver falling? That depends. For example,
how much drag is there? Drag, in this case, is air resistance. It is a force
© 2014 The Georgia Center for Assessment
pushing upwards against the skydiver. A skydiver’s speed also depends upon
where the skydiver is in his/her dive. Immediately after jumping from the
plane, skydivers are accelerating until they reach what is called terminal
velocity. Terminal velocity is the point at which the force of the skydiver’s
downward motion equals the drag force acting against the skydiver. At this
point, the skydiver stops accelerating and continues to fall at a constant
speed, until the parachute opens. Most skydivers reach a terminal velocity of
60 meters per second, which equals about 135 miles per hour. Quite a ride!
© 2014 The Georgia Center for Assessment
Passage B:
My First Jump
I woke up well before my alarm was set to go off at 6:30 a.m. Sleep did not
come easily last night. I would be out for maybe an hour at a time, and then
my eyes would pop open. Was it dawn yet? No. Only 2:10 a.m. A while later,
it was 3:23 a.m. Finally, at 6:14 a.m., I decided it was time to get out of
bed. Mom said we would leave at 7:00 a.m.
When I arrived in the kitchen, mom was making coffee. She turned to me
and grinned. “Big day today, huh?”
I grinned back and nodded.
Mom had made biscuits, my favorite, for breakfast. When I tried to eat one,
it was difficult, so difficult that I had to force myself to finish. I knew I
needed to put some food in my stomach, but it was already filled with
nervous energy and excitement.
“Time to go,” mom said.
She had packed our chute the night before. This would be mom’s hundredth
skydive, but it would be only my first. I was finally old enough, and mom
and I would be doing a tandem dive. We piled into her jeep and headed to
the airfield.
We took off in a Cesna 182, piloted by mom’s best friend Alicia. Alicia had
been a pilot since she was 17, and she was the person I admired most, next
to my mom, of course. The plane climbed for several minutes before we
reached what Alicia called cruise altitude, 9,000 feet, the height from which
we would be making our jump. Looking out of the rear window on the
plane’s right side, also called the starboard side, I started to feel pretty
anxious. My palms were so damp I could see them glisten.
“Okay, we’re just about there,” Alicia said. She had to shout because the
noise of the engines was monstrous. Normally, I wear headphones on a
plane to dampen the noise, but these would not fit over the crash helmet I
was wearing. The lining in the helmet didn’t do much to block out the noise.
© 2014 The Georgia Center for Assessment
Mom looked at me. I think she could tell I was simultaneously nervous and
pumped up.
“You’re going to have a blast,” she said. “Come on; let’s get rigged up.”
We would be doing a tandem skydive, meaning that I would be attached to
her, and we would complete the dive together, as one unit, a team. Mom
said that most people did a tandem dive on their first jump, so I should not
feel like a wimp who is too chicken to go alone. “If anyone accuses you of
being a chicken,” mom said, “just ask whether they have ever jumped out of
a plane!”
“Okay, we’re level at 9,000,” Alicia shouted.
It was time. My mom and I were rigged up so that I stood in front of her;
my back was basically attached to her stomach. Therefore, as we readied
ourselves to exit the plane, I was the one facing the door most immediately.
Mom gave me instructions on how to open the door from which we would be
diving. “It would be a snug exit,” she said, meaning there is not much room
in the rear cabin of the plane. We would be squeezing through the exit door
like Lucy, our Beagle, squeezes through the doggy portal on our house’s
back door. When mom gave me some final instructions, her voice was clear
and calm, even though she had to speak loudly to be heard over the roar of
the plane’s engines. Opening the door was not as difficult as I imagined it
would be. It required an upward sliding motion, just like mom and I had
practiced before we took off. With that taken care of, all that remained was
jumping from the plane.
The view to the ground was terrifying, but mom gave my arms a reassuring
squeeze. This was it.
Mom reached her hand into my view, and I could see three of her fingers
extended.
Then two.
Then one.
Then a push.
Exit!
© 2014 The Georgia Center for Assessment
It is impossible to describe fully the initial sensation of jumping out of an
airplane, and it is probably different for everyone. My stomach turned a little
at first, kind of like the sinking feeling you get on that first drop of a roller
coaster. But soon after that, I got into this zone where everything just felt
free. I spread my arms out wide, and I could sense my mom doing the
same. We were like a pair of eagles soaring downward through the clearest
sky I’ve ever seen. I’ve never felt closer to my mom in my life.
© 2014 The Georgia Center for Assessment
Multiple Choice Questions
For questions 1-3, please circle the correct answer.
1. The two passages focus on the same central idea. The central idea of
both passages is best described as
A.
B.
C.
D.
Drag force acts against a skydiver.
Skydiving is not an activity for kids.
Skydiving might seem scary, but it is also exciting.
There are many kinds of planes that can be used for skydiving.
2. Which of the following affects how quickly a skydiver accelerates
during freefall?
A.
B.
C.
D.
the
the
the
the
drag force
time of day
type of parachute the skydiver uses
type of airplane the skydiver jumps from
3. What is the meaning of the phrase “starboard side” in Passage B: My
First Jump?
A.
B.
C.
D.
the
the
the
the
left side of an airplane
front side of an airplane
right side of an airplane
back side of an airplane
Please go to the next page.
© 2014 The Georgia Center for Assessment
Constructed Response Question
How does the concept of terminal velocity help the reader understand the central
idea that both passages share? Use one detail from each passage to support your
answer. Please write your response in the box below.
Please go to the next page.
© 2014 The Georgia Center for Assessment
Extended Response Question
Passage A and Passage B explore the same central idea but are told from
different points of view. Write an informational essay explaining how the
different points of view affect your understanding of the central idea. In
your essay, be sure to
 Identify the point of view of Passage A, and explain how it affects
your understanding of the central idea.
 Identify the point of view of Passage B, and explain how it affects
your understanding of the central idea.
 Use evidence from both passages to support your explanation.
Please plan and then write your essay using the space provided on the
following pages.
© 2014 The Georgia Center for Assessment
PLANNING/PRE-WRITING PAGE
Name
Teacher/School
FINAL DRAFT PAGE
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