5th Grade Extended Response Resources

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Chicago Public Schools Spring Benchmark
Reading Grade 5
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The Bird That Was Ashamed of Its Feet
A Cherokee Tale
by Gayle Ross
There was a bird called Meadowlark, whose feet grew so big that he
was ashamed of them. While the other birds flew through the air and
sang in the treetops, Meadowlark hid himself in the tall grass where
no one could see him. He spent all his time staring down at his big feet
and worrying about them.
"There must have been a terrible mistake," thought Meadowlark,
turning his feet this way and that. No matter how he looked at them,
all Meadowlark could see was how big his feet were. "I'm sure anyone
who saw my big feet would laugh at them, but I do not think this is
funny at all." And so Meadowlark continued to hide himself away in the
tall grass.
One day Grasshopper was going about his business, making his way through the tall grass, when he
bumped smack into Meadowlark, sitting on the ground and staring sadly at his feet.
"What are you doing here?" asked Grasshopper. "You are not one of those birds who live on the
ground! You should be in the treetops with the other birds. Why do you not fly and sing as they do?"
"I am ashamed," answered Meadowlark. "My feet are so big and ugly that I am afraid that everyone
will laugh at me!"
Grasshopper looked down at Meadowlark's feet, and his eyes grew big with amazement. It was true;
Meadowlark's feet were huge! Grasshopper did his best not to smile; he did not want to hurt
Meadowlark's feelings.
Finally he said, "Well, it is true that your feet are perhaps a bit larger than those of other birds your
size.- But, if your feet are big, you may be sure that they will be useful to you someday. Big feet will
not keep you from flying. Big feet will not stop you from singing. You are a bird and you should act
like one!" And Grasshopper went on about his business.
After Grasshopper had gone on his way, Meadowlark sat and thought about his words. "Perhaps he
is right," said Meadowlark. "The size of my feet cannot change the sound of my voice or the power of
my wings. I should use my gifts." And so Meadowlark took Grasshopper's advice and flew out to sing.
He landed in the top of a tree, threw back his head, and let his song pour from his throat. Meadowlark
could really sing! Piercingly sweet and beautiful, the liquid notes of Meadowlark's song spread
through the forest.
Copyright © 2010
By Educational Testing Service. All rights reserved.
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GOON
Chicago Public Schools Spring Benchmark
Reading Grade 5
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One by one, the animals stopped what they were doing and gathered to listen to Meadowlark's
voice. Raccoon, Possum., and Skunk; Deer, Bear, and Wolf; even Rabbit paused in his scurrying about
to listen in wonder to this marvelous singer. The other birds flocked around Meadowlark, listening.
Even Mockingbird fell silent, entranced by the melody that Meadowlark sang.
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When Meadowlark began to sing, he forgot everything else, even his big feet. He closed his eyes
and lost himself in the joyful song. When at last he finished his song and looked around, there were all
the other birds and animals, staring at him. With a rush of shame, Meadowlark remembered his feet.
Thinking that the others were staring at him because he was so ugly, Meadowlark flew back down to
the tall grass and hid. And this time he would not come out.
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Not very far from the tall grass where Meadowlark hid, there was a wheat field. Now, there was a
Quail who had made her nest and laid her eggs in the middle of this wheat field. Every day she sat on
her nest and waited for her eggs to hatch. As the wheat grew ripe and her eggs had still not hatched,
Quail began to worry. Sure enough, one afternoon she heard people talking about how they were going
to come out and cut the wheat the very next day. Quail began to cry.
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Now Grasshopper heard Quail crying, and he came to see what was wrong. "The people are coming
to cut the wheat," Quail cried, "and my family will have to move!"
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Suddenly Grasshopper had an idea. "Wait here," he told Quail. "I think I know someone who can
help."
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Grasshopper hurried to find Meadowlark. "Quail needs help to move her family," said Grasshopper,
"and I think your big feet are the answer."
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When Meadowlark heard of Quail's trouble, he agreed at once to try to help. He flew to Quail's
nest. There he found that his big feet were just the right size to pick up Quail's eggs. Very carefully,
Meadowlark lifted Quail's eggs and flew with them to the safety of the tall grass. There Quail built a
new nest, and it was not long before the eggs hatched. As Meadowlark watched Quail tending her
beautiful babies, he thought to himself, "My feet may be big and ugly, but they did a good thing. I
should not be ashamed of them!"
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And so Meadowlark flew out of the tall grass, back to the treetops where he began to sing. He is
singing to this day, and his song is still so beautiful that everyone stops to listen.
'The Bird That Was Ashamed of Its Feet: A Cherokee Tale" from Best Stories from the Texas Storytelling Festival. Copyright © 1995 by Gayle Ross.
Reprinted by permission of Gayle Ross, Fredericksburg, TX.
Copyright ©2010
By Educational Testing Service. All rights reserved.
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^Teaching* Learning
Reading and Language Arts
Teacher Name:
Spring Reading Benchmark Assessment
Extended-Response Prompt
Grade 5
Passage Title: "The Bird That Was Ashamed of Its Feet"
Meadowlark's perception of himself changed throughout the story. What lessons can a
young person learn from Meadowlark's perception of himself and how it changed? Use
information from the text and your own ideas and conclusions to support your answer.
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Reading
This passage is about a boy who discovers the importance of sticking with a goal or task even
when others give up on him.
FLOP!
by Diana R. Jenkins
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"You're serious?"
Hershel looked me in the eye and said, "Jesse, I'm not joking."
"You're going out for track?"
He nodded. "So, will you help me train?"
I rolled my eyes and said, "You know me — I am so not into team sports!"
"Then why do you always wear a baseball cap?" he demanded. "Why do you
own three footballs? Why do you have a basketball hoop over your — "
"So I'm a fan! But I've never tried out for anything — ever!" Why bother? I
always figured. I wasn't good enough to make any team. "Listen, Hersh . . . ,"
I started. But how do you tell the most uncoordinated guy in school that he
doesn't stand a chance? "Listen, I . . . well, all right. I'll help you."
"OK! My house. After school. Today!" he ordered.
So after school I dumped my books and hurried next door. Hershel had his legs
twisted around each other. His left hand was holding his right ear.
"What are you doing?" I asked.
"I'm stretching," he said. "And scratching." He scratched his ear and promptly
fell over.
I sighed and helped him up. "That's not how you stretch!"
"I figured," he said, dusting himself off and grinniag. "So how do you do it, Coach?"
This is hopeless! I thought. Out loud, I said, "Well, first you need to warm up."
I had Hershel walk around the block,
then I showed him the right way to
stretch. He only fell down twice!
"OK, now we work on distance,"
_^
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^^^^^^.
'il '"iriaMhiF * " J I said, "Run around the block four
times."
Hershel took off, his arms and legs
pumping. He couldn't quite catch up
with Mrs. Emerson and her ancient
poodle, but he came close. Then he
turned the corner and was out of
sight.
GOON^
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Reading
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I waited.
At last he returned, his arms flapping loosely, his mouth opening and closing
like a baby bird's beak. He collapsed onto the grass, clutching his chest. Finally he
sat up. "Well, that's one down. Three to go!" he declared. He got up and ran
down the block.
Each lap was slower than the one before it. Each time, Hershel collapsed, then
got up again. When he staggered off for the fourth lap, I followed him. ''Maybe
that's enough for today," I said.
He grinned at me. "What kind of coach are you? You can't let me quit now!" He
wobbled off.
Let him quit! How could I stop him?
The next afternoon I told Hershel, "You need to practice sprints."
"OK," he said. "What are they?"
"Fast, short runs," I explained. "Like from your driveway to the stop sign."
Maybe he can handle that, I thought.
I was wrong. Hershel's legs worked like crazy, but it took a year for him to reach
the stop sign. I could have crawled there and beaten him!
"How was that, Jesse?" he gasped.
I handed him the water bottle. "I hate to say this, but you're not much of a
sprinter. Actually . . . you're pretty hopeless."
"Yeah," he replied. He took a big swig of water.
Yes! I thought. Finally he —
"Really, I'm more of a distance guy," he said. "So I guess it's time for my laps,
huh, Coach?" He thrust the water bottle at me and took off around the block.
He was already tired, so the four laps took forever! My dad called me in for supper
just as Hershel started his last lap. "Don't worry!" Hershel called. "I'll finish."
Like I didn't know that!
He trained for three weeks. Every day I wanted to tell Hershel that he was wasting
his time. But I just couldn't say anything when I saw him working so hard.
Finally, it was the day before tryouts. "Are you going to watch?" Hershel asked.
I didn't want to see him flop. All that work — for nothing! But I said, "No. I
don't want anybody to think I'm trying out."
"You could try out, you know," said Hershel. "You haven't been training like I
have, but you might make it."
What? As if he was Superjock! "I have a better chance than you do!" I snapped.
"I don't even know why you're bothering!"
Hershel just stood there a minute before he said quietly, "At least I try." Then he
walked away.
GOON**
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Reading
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It turned out I was right:
Hershel didn't make the team.
I wasn't glad to be right. All I
could think about was how
Hershel had kept trying and
trying — and I'd never tried
at all.
So when I saw Hershel turning
away from the sports bulletin
board, I went up and said, "Hey
did you see the announcement
about baseball tryouts?"
"Yeah/'he said. "So?"
I swallowed. "I'm trying out.
Do you want to train with me?"
He paused, then smiled. "OK," he said. Then he barked, "My house! After
school! Today!"
"I'll be there," I told him.
What is the meaning of the
word snapped in the sentence
below?
What does announcement mean
as used in paragraph 40?
"1 have a better chance than
you do!' I snapped."
A
B
C
D
A
B
C
D
Said to many people
Spoken in a low voice
Spoken in a sharp manner
Said to help calm emotions
Statement
Argument
Excitement
Resentment
GOON^
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Reading
Assessment Objective: 1.5.22 Draw inferences, conclusions, or generalizations about text, and
support them with textual evidence and prior knowledge.
How are Hershel and Jesse alike and different? Use information from the passage and
your own ideas and conclusions to support your answer.
STOP
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Reading
People seem to love buildings that look like animals or picnic baskets or milk bottles. This passage
is about buildings that look like other things, and one especially that looks like an elephant.
Buildings in Disguise
by Joan Marie Arbogast
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Some buildings don't look
like buildings. They look
like oversize elephants,
beagles, or ducks. These
buildings are meant to grab
your attention, and they
usually do. Architects1 call
these structures mimetic
because they mimic other
objects.
As engineer and landdeveloper James V. Lafferty
Jr. admired his very unusual
building, he knew people
would come to see it. But
that was only part of his plan. The other was to convince people to purchase
parcels of his land along the Atlantic coast.
That was back in 1881 — and his idea worked! His plan, after all, had been
simple. Make it big. Make it fun. Make it in disguise. And that's exactly what he
did. With the help of an architect and a crew of burly builders, Mr. Lafferty
constructed a one-of-a-kind, sixty-five-foot-tall elephant-shaped building near the
growing seaside resort of Atlantic City, New Jersey. People came from miles
around to see his extraordinary building.
Curious customers climbed the spiral staircases to the howdah, or canopied2
carrier, on the elephant's back. There they viewed the lots for sale. Some eager
land-buyers even sealed their deals inside the elephant's belly.
To prevent others from copying his idea, Mr. Lafferty applied for and received a
patent on his building in 1882.
^architects — people who design buildings
^canopy — a protective rooflike covering
GOON**
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Reading
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Two years later, Lafferty built Elephantine Colossus in Coney Island,
New York — the amusement park of its time. This spectacular building towered
122 feet, nearly twice the height of Lucy [the name given to the original elephant
building]. Visitors paid to view its innards of seven floors and thirty-one rooms.
But in 1896, a fire leveled the mammoth pachyderm.3In 1887, Mr. Lafferty sold his original elephant to Anton Gertzen, who'd helped
construct the unusual building. The Gertzen family owned and operated the
elephant as a tourist attraction for nearly eighty years.
During the early 1900s, tourists paid ten cents to enter the awesome structure.
People traveled the states and sailed the sea to examine this remarkable building.
Though Lucy survived severe storms along the Atlantic coast for eighty years, the
terrible storm of 1962 left her tattered and torn. Years of saltwater mists had already
weakened her wooden "bones." Years of sandy winds had worn her tin "skin" thin.
No longer safe for curious tourists, Lucy's doors were locked to the public.
Afraid that their unusual landmark would be toppled to make room for
condominiums, concerned citizens formed the Save Lucy Committee, which
sprang into action in 1969. Even children pitched in to protect the aging
elephant. The group raised enough money to move their beloved pachyderm to a
safe spot in a city park farther from the water's edge.
Though Lucy moved only two short blocks, it took nearly seven hours to inch
her down the road. Once secured in her new location, lengthy repairs and
restorations began. Then, in 1976, Lucy was honored as a National Historic
Landmark.
Today Lucy welcomes guests through her doors as she did when she was young.
People still climb to the howdah on Lucy's back, where they can view the
seascape and the city of Margate, New Jersey, that Lucy helped to create.
Lucy is our nation's oldest functioning example of mimetic architecture. She's
also our oldest zoomorphic (animal-shaped) structure. Both are designed to grab
your attention. And Lucy has for more than 120 years!
The Future of Mimetic Architecture
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Sweet Willy is one of the youngest buildings to enter the mimetic scene. His
construction was completed in 2003. This thirty-foot beagle stands in
Cottonwood, Idaho, among fields of canola and prairie wheat. Designed and built
by husband and wife Dennis J. Sullivan and Frances Conklin, the beagle serves as
a three-dimensional billboard for their chainsaw art studio.
^pachyderm — a hoofed mammal, such as an elephant
GOON**
IL09-I2-5SB
Reading
is
"The initial drawing for Sweet Willy was
made on a napkin at a restaurant in 1998,
when Dennis and I were brainstorming
possible billboard designs/' explained
Conklin. "One idea led to another, and
before dinner was cold, we had decided to
make this giant billboard not only wordless,
but also large enough to be a lodging." Inside
this pup's belly is the main bedroom; a loft is
tucked in his head.
16 Wooden two-by-four studs form Willy's
"skeleton." Wire mesh forms his "hide."
Stucco and shingles form his "fur."
17 Why would the artists choose a beagle for their billboard? Because they sculpt
and paint their canine friends. One of their favorite subjects to carve is Seaman,
the Newfoundland that accompanied explorers Lewis and Clark through this area
years ago.
is
But Sweet Willy won't be one of the youngest mimetic buildings for long.
Somewhere, someone will construct another eye-catching, head-turning building
to lure potential customers through its doors.
GOON^
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IL09-I2-5SB
Reading
Assessment Objective: 1.5.22 Draw inferences, conclusions, or generalizations about text, and
support them with textual evidence and prior knowledge.
Why would people want to save structures like Lucy and Sweet Willy? Use
information from the story and your own ideas and conclusions to support your
answer.
STOP
IL09-I2-5SB
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Reading
2011ISAT Grade 5 Sample Book
7
This passage shows how friendship can be so important.
All the Way to the Duck Pond
by Sandra Beswetherick
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"Here's an easy out," Wade says from behind his catcher's mask.
"Don't listen to him/' I tell Nicole as she goes up to bat.
It's spring, and for the past three weeks that's meant baseball in gym class.
Teams. With me and my best friend, Nicole, almost always being chosen last.
"Everyone move in!" calls Amanda, signaling to the fielders from the pitcher's
mound.
"You'll be sorry!" I shout.
"Yeah, right," Wade says as he squats down behind home plate.
Brandon, the best baseball player in the whole school, collapses on third base
and yawns. "Hurry up, shrimp. Don't take all day."
Shrimp. That's what practically everyone at school calls Nicole and me. The
shrimps. It isn't our fault we're the smallest. And just because we're small doesn't
mean we aren't good.
"Ignore him, Nicole," I say from our bench behind home plate. "What he says
doesn't matter."
Nicole glances back at me.
At least I -wish it didn't matter. It'll get you down if you let it.
"You can hit that ball!" I say. "I've seen you!"
"Yeah? Where?" asks Laura, sitting beside me on the bench.
"In the city park next to her house," I say right back. "Last Saturday."
Laura doesn't believe me. No one does. No one believes that Nicole can clobber
that ball. And it's making Nicole not believe it, too. Her body's all stiff. She's
standing all wrong. She's choking up too far on the bat.
GOON**
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20111SAT Grade 5 Sample Book
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Reading
Amanda pitches. The ball goes way up, then drops down. Why can't she pitch
to Nicole the same way she pitches to everyone else?
Nicole swings hard, misses, and spins like a top.
Ron, the first baseman, laughs. Brandon, lying on his back, folds his hands under
his head, using third base as a pillow. Even Ms. Perce makes a face that says ouch.
"Nicole, you can do it!" I say. "Just pretend you're in the park, like last
Saturday!"
Last Saturday—when we didn't play on teams. When we just took turns with
the neighborhood kids. And when no one called us shrimps or dared to move in
from the outfield when we were at bat.
Nicole looks at me again. This time she smiles, I think, even though the smile is
crooked. But she fixes her grip on the bat.
Amanda pitches really slowly again. It's as if the ball will never reach home
plate. But Nicole leans forward and swings.
Thurik!
She hits it! For the first time ever at school, she actually hits it! The ball pops
up, then bounces to the ground behind her. Foul ball.
"See, Nicole?" I shout. "You can hit that ball!"
"Big deal," Laura says. "It didn't go anywhere."
"Hit it again!" I yell, ignoring Laura. "Harder!"
Nicole's smile isn't so crooked anymore. She takes a deep breath and lets it out.
She spreads her feet wider apart and bends her knees a little. Then she takes a few
practice swings.
Nicole's getting ready to show everyone. I just know it. She's going to blast that
ball like she did last Saturday when she whammed it into the duck pond.
"Action, at last!" It's Brandon on third. He's standing up, getting ready. "Let's
see you really slam it." This time he isn't teasing.
Nicole glances in his direction. Her smile grows wider. She takes one more
practice swing.
Amanda throws the ball. It's another slow one.
"Come on, Nicole!" My hands are clenched together in a knot. "Hit it all the way
to the duck pond!" I don't care if nobody but Nicole understands what I mean.
34
Nicole steps forward, bringing the bat back over her shoulder. I squeeze my
hands even tighter and almost close my eyes.
35
36
Craaack!
The ball sails high over Amanda's head. Amanda stands there with her mouth
hanging open, watching it go. And the fielders—for a second, it's as if their feet
grew roots into the ground.
GOON**
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Reading
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2011ISAT Grade 5 Sample Book
"Run, Nicole!" I holler.
She crosses first base, then keeps going to second and third. Dust flies up
behind her.
"Home, Nicole!" I'm jumping up and down, going wild. I'm the only one
cheering because everyone else is too surprised. Even Ms. Perce looks amazed as
Nicole goes tearing past her.
"Yeesss!" I scream.
It's a home run! A for-real home run! I knew she could do it. Nicole knew it,
too. She just needed someone to help her believe.
"Hey, shrim—I mean, Nicole," Brandon calls. "All right!"
The way Nicole crosses home plate—it's as if she made home runs every day of
the week. Then she picks up the bat and hands it to me. "Your turn," she says,
smiling.
"OK!" yells Amanda to the fielders. "Everyone spread out!"
I step up to home plate, bat in my hands, ready for whatever pitches come
my way.
Which is a synonym for the
word collapses in paragraph 7?
A
B
C
D
What happened before the
baseball game at school started?
A Nicole hit a homerun in
the park.
B Nicole hit a homerun in
gym class.
C Nicole teased children on
the field.
D Nicole was often picked first
for teams.
Falls
Steals
Squats
Jumps
GOON**
14
2011ISAT Grade 5 Sample Book
Reading
Assessment Objective: 2.5.04 Identify the author's message or theme.
r
What does the author want the reader to learn from Nicole's success? Use information
from the passage and your own observations and conclusions to support your answer.
STOP
19
VIi Wf Usson
. • does
•••
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',...-.''..
is -VWs an ^\v^j^oo^
\
is abotrta- young girl's struggle to
more than sKiii deep?
.
.
by Elizabeth Ellis
1.
- . •
.' •
,'-."•'
When I was a kid about 12 years old, I was already as tall as I am. now, and I had
a lot of freckles. I had reached the age when I had begun to really look at myself
in the mirror, and I was underwhelmed.
I had a cousin whose name was Janette Elizabeth, and Janette Elizabeth looked
exactly like her name sounds. She had waist-length naturally curly blond hair
too, but to me her unforgivable sin was that she had a flawless peach es-and-cream
complexion. I couldn't help comparing -myself with her and thinking that my life
would be a lot different if I had beautiful skin too—skin that was all one color.
And then, I found the answer: an advertisement for freckle-remover cream. I
knew that I could afford it if I saved my money. The ad assured me that the
product would arrive in a "plain brown wrapper." Plain brown freckle color.
For three weeks I went to the mailbox every day precisely at the time the mail
was delivered. I knew that if someone else in my family got the mail, rwould
never hear the end of it. There was no way that they would let me open the box
in private. Finally, after three weeks of scheduling my entire day around the mail
truck's arrival, my package came.
I went to my room with'it, sat on the edge of my bed, and opened it. I was sure
that I was looking at a miracle. But I had gotten so worked up about the package .'
that I couldn't bring myself to put the cream on. What if it didn't work? What; '...
would I do then?
.
'" • ' 7:
I fell asleep that night without even trying the stuff. And when I got up the '. -:. ^
next morning and looked at my freckles in the mirror, I said, "Mary Ellen, this is'~e,'{';.:
silly. You have to do itnow!" I smeared the cream all over my body. There wasn't ^
vas much of it as I had thought there would be. I could see that I was going to _.\ *';£:•.
:need a part-time job to keep me in freckle remover.
c that day I took my hoe and went with my brother and cousins to hoe
the summer. Of course, when you stay oidf-^.V^®
not working in the shade. And there was something ;~.^||;
realized about freckle remover. If you wear it in the sun, it '^J^fil
knowing nothing about the freckle-remover cream, began to say tilings liKevj^I^elf;
-"- •;• never .seen you with that many freckles before." When I saw myself in the mir|or/j£
; ':'' . I dissolved into tears and hid in the bathroom,
•
•
] V: v £••
9
My mother called me to the dinner table, but I ignored her.' When she came to v
the bathroom door and demanded that I come out and eat, I burst out the door
and ran by her, crying. I ran out to the well house and threw myself down. I was
__ so-j^ng wjien niy grandfather came out to see what was wrong with me.
Ttold him about how I'd sent for the freckle remover, and he didn't laugh—
though he did suggest that one might get equally good results from finding a
four-leaf clover.
10
It was clear that Grandpa didn't understand, so I tried to explain why I didn't
want to have freckles and why I felt so inadequate when I compared my
appearance with Janette Elizabeth's. He looked at me in stunned surprise, shook
his head, and said, "But child, there are all kinds of flowers, and they are all
beautiful." I said, "I've never seen a flower with freckles!" I ran back to my room,
slamming the door.
11 When my mother came and knocked, I told her to go away. She started to say
the kinds of tilings that parents say at times like that. But my grandfather said,
1 "Nancy, leave the child alone," She was a grown-up, but he was her father. So she
left me alone.
12 I don't know where Grandpa found it. It isn't at all common in the mountains
where we lived. But I know he put it in my room because my mother told me
later. I had cried myself to sleep that night, and when I opened my swollen, sticky
eyes the next morning, the first thing I saw, lying on the pillow next to my head,
was a tiger lily.
£**WW
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Chicago Public Schools Fall Benchmark
Reading Grade 5
dt /
The Art of Ventriloquism
Make a New Friend
by Shari Thompson Babcock
1
Have you ever wished that you could make your little sister's teddy bear talk to her? Or have you
ever wanted to bring a puppet to life? If so, you may be interested in learning the art of ventriloquism.
A ventriloquist can make an ordinary object seem to be alive by giving it a personality, movement, and
speech.
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Your object can be a stuffed animal, a sock with two buttons sewn on as eyes, a puppet, a doll, or
even your.fist Give your new "friend" a name, then decide on the personality that he or she will have.
A Personality for Your "Friend"
3
Will your friend be quiet or talkative? Friendly or shy? Happy or gloomy? Does.your friend have
any unusual pets or unusual habits? These are all things that make up a personality.
Make Your "Friend" Move
4
The next step is to give your friend movements that agree with the personality you have chosen. For
example, a rabbit puppet might need quick movements. A shy bunny could cuddle up to you and bury
his face in your neck when someone speaks to him. Then, when he thinks no one is looking, he can
""peek up over your shoulder to see what is going on. You could also have him whisper in your ear when
he wants to speak. Then you can tell the person what he said, pretending he's too shy to speak to others
himself.
5
Don't be afraid to exaggerate the movements you have your friend make. If your friend is agreeing,
let him nod his head forcefully. If he is saying no, turn his head firmly from side to side. If he's
laughing, don't be afraid to have his whole body shake. Make your friend come alive by adding
gestures that show when he is surprised, excited, or angry.
•^
Make Your-"Friend" Talk-
.
.
6
The third way a ventriloquist brings something to life" is through speech. A good ventriloquist will
control his mouth and lips so that it will appear that his voice is coming from the object he is using.
This will take practice, but you can do it.
7
First, decide on a voice that is different from your own. It could be higher or lower than yours, or
could even have a special accent Then, find a clean teaspoon, and hold the handle flat between your
front teeth. This is about how far apart your teeth should be when you are speaking for your friend.
Now, using the voice you created for your friend and holding: the handle of the teaspoon tightly
between your teeth, look into a mirror and talk. Practicing with the spoon in your mouth will help you
learn to keep your mouth from moving. Try holding your lips still while repeating your friend's name.
Now try telling a joke in your normal voice and have your friend say the punch line in his voice.
Copyright © 2009
By Educational Testing Service. Allrightsreserved.
1«
'^
GO O N
Chicago Public Schools Fall Benchmark
Reading Grade 5
8
You will notice that there are a few sounds that are impossible to make without moving your lips.
They are the sounds of £,/, ra, p, v, and w. Here are a few different sounds that you can use instead:
For the letter b, try d.
For the letter f, try a soft th, as in wif/z.
For the letter m, try ng, as in song.
For the letter p, try t or k.
For the letter v, try a hard th, as in there,.
For the letter w, try oo, as in cool.
9
Don't be afraid to experiment. You may find other
sounds to use in place of these.
10
All the things you have learned so far are important.
But the most important thing to do to become a
ventriloquist is to practice. As you talk with your
puppet friend before the mirror, carefully watch for the
words that make your lips move. Practice those words
until you can say them without your lips moving at all. Also watch the movements your friend makes.
Do they make him seem alive? Do they fit the personality you created?
11
Ventriloquism is fun. It also requires hard work to become good at It. But if you are willing to take
the time to give your friend an interesting personality, to practice lively movements, and to work on
good mouth control, then you will be well on your way to becoming a ventriloquist!
"The Magic of Ventriloquism" by Shari Thompson Babcock, from Highlights for Children., April 2000, copyright © 2000 by Highlights for Children, Inc..
Columbus, Ohio. Used b}' permission.
Copyright © 2009
By Educational Testing Service. All rights reserved.
13
GOON
CHICAGO
PUBLIC
SCHOOLS
Fall 2010 Reading Benchmark Assessment
Extended-Response Prompt
Student Name:
Teacher Name:
Grades
Passage Title: "The Art of Ventriloquism: Make a new Friend"
Explain why the author thinks ventriloquism is hard work. Use information from the passage
and your own observations and conclusions to support your answer.