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Braille Challenge2015 PreliminarySophomoreReading Comprehension – Passage 1Pearl S. BuckBy Anastasia Knudsen1It is a chilly Christmas morning when my grandma hands me a small, rectangular package, her eyes sparkling with anticipation. "Open it."2I've gone through this same episode every year, so by now it's pretty much a ritual. My grandmother loves Pearl S. Buck and often gives me a gift that has something to do with her. To be honest, I hardly know anything about her. I only know she wrote books. However, everyone is always telling me to find out more about her because she was an incredible person. One afternoon, I Google Pearl S. Buck out of curiosity. Rather quickly I find out that for her, writing books just wasn't enough. It wasn't just a hobby. It wasn't simply for her own pleasure. It was a way to communicate her huge ideas to the world.3She was born in 1892 in Hillsboro, West Virginia, to missionaries. When she was three months old, her parents took her to China. This exposed her to a different way of life. A vast majority of her books are about her experiences in China. Other books are about her political views and her ideas. She addressed some hard topics long before it was safe to do so.4In 1949, she found out that adoption agencies considered Asian and mixed-race children unadoptable. Infuriated, she opened Welcome House, Inc., the first international, interracial adoption agency. For almost 50 years Welcome House has found homes for over 5,000 children.5When I read about Welcome House, I have to smile. She was able to save 5,000 children from lives of rejection, poverty, and depression. That in itself is unbelievable, but she had many other accomplishments. In 1932, she won the Pulitzer Prize for her novel The Good Earth, which was a bestseller in the United States. In 1938, she was awarded the Nobel Prize in literature.6I close down the Internet window and exhale, leaning back in my chair. I sit there for a few moments, unsure of whether I'm dumbfounded or inspired.7I can definitely say now I know why my grandmother loves Pearl S. Buck so much. I've always wanted to become an author, and maybe someday I'll travel around the world as well. For now, I can write my own novels, crossing out passages and underlining sentences, and think of Pearl S. Buck. She makes me ask myself, "How is my book going to make the world a better place?" Authors have power tingling at their fingertips. They can use that power for construction or destruction. 18Pearl S. Buck did everything she could to open our eyes to the world to see how we can change it. I just know that she's going to play an influential role in my life and in my writing.Thirteen-year-old Anastasia Knudsen of Morgantown is home-schooled and loves writing and music. She plays piano and guitar, takes voice lessons, and writes her own songs. She also writes novels and is working on a four-book series. She aspires to one day be a country singer or a music therapist, as well as a novelist."Pearl S. Buck" by Anastasia Knudsen, first published in the November 2013 issue of Wonderful West Virginia Magazine. Used with permission.Questions for “Pearl S. Buck”1. Which fact about Pearl S. Buck is true?a. She was born and raised in West Virginia.b. She was born and raised in China.c. She was born in China and moved to West Virginia when she was young.d. She was born in West Virginia and moved to China when she was young.2. Why did Pearl S. Buck establish Welcome House, Inc.?a. She wanted to help Asian and mixed-race children learn English.b. She wanted to start an orphanage for Asian and mixed-race children.c. She wanted to find families who would adopt Asian and mixed-race children.d. She wanted to bring Asian and mixed-race children to the United States.3. Read the following sentence from Paragraph 7: "For now, I can write my own novels, crossing out passages and underlining sentences, and think of Pearl S. Buck." What does this sentence tell us about the author of this essay?a. She thinks hard about how to communicate her ideas.b. She enjoys the process of writing.c. She wants to write about the same topics as Pearl S. Buck.d. She wishes she had as much talent as Pearl S. Buck. 24. Pearl S. Buck's parents went to China because they wanted to _____a. take a vacation in a foreign country.b. teach the Chinese people how to speak English.c. convert the Chinese people to their religion.d. have their baby daughter grow up there. 5. When the author of this essay learns about Pearl S. Buck's accomplishments, she’s not sure whether she is "dumbfounded or inspired." Which word is a synonym of dumbfounded? a. stupidb. astonishedc. encouragedd. confused6. In her essay, the author does NOT tell her readers _____a. her hobbies and interests.b. whether she has read Pearl S. Buck's novels.c. when and where Pearl S. Buck was born.d. the title of any of Pearl S. Buck's novels. 7. How did the author learn about the life of Pearl S. Buck?a. She read a biography from the library.b. She studied Pearl S. Buck in school. c. She asked her grandmother.d. She searched for information on the Internet.8. From this essay, you can tell that mixed-raced children _____a. usually have one Asian parent.b. mostly live in China.c. have been discriminated against.d. are often orphans.9. What is NOT true about this essay?a. The author intermixes information about Pearl S. Buck with personal connections.b. The author presents the events in Pearl S. Buck's life in chronological order.c. The author concludes her essay by explaining how Pearl S. Buck has inspired her. d. The author does not mention Pearl S. Buck in her lead. 310. According to this essay, Pearl S. Buck _____a. established Welcome House before she received the Nobel Prize for Literature.b. wrote about her political views in some of her books.c. adopted several children from Asia.d. is still writing books about causes that are important to her.11. Anastasia Knudsen does all of the following EXCEPT _____a. take singing lessons.b. compose songs.c. write books.d. go to public school. 4Braille Challenge2015 PreliminarySophomoreReading Comprehension – Passage 2Neverlandby Nicole Guenther1There might be no Neverland,2No heaven, no after.3Only cold Earth.4There might be nothing — 5Yet isn’t that something?6So pretend today will last forever.7And fly now, soar,8Gravity only exists 9If you believe in it.10Fly with sunbeams11Tangled in your glowing hair12And fly with moonbeams13Softening your face14And fly on the back of Pegasus.15Fly close to the sun,16And don’t be burned,17Fly to the moon,18And leave your handprint 19Denting it for who knows how long.20Bring me with you 21When you go,22Lifting gently from23This battered planet.24We will skim the galaxies25Like tadpoles in a puddle26Or young eagles 27Weightless28For the first time.29We will fly past30Where all the maps and pictures show31To un-named universes 132Where we will orbit 33Other suns34And we will35Never36Land.Reprinted with permission of Stone Soup, September/October 2004Questions for “Neverland”1. How many people are flying in the third stanza of the poem?a. oneb. twoc. threed. too many to count2. What happens over the course of the poem?a. The travelers are burned by the sun. b. The travelers soar with young eagles as they fly.c. The travelers use maps to guide them in their journey.d. The travelers fly farther and farther away from home.3. What is the poet's message in the first stanza? a. There is nothing to live for on this frigid planet.b. Make the most of today because no one knows what the future holds.c. Heaven does not exist, so live life to the fullest on Earth. d. Pretend that your life is good, and your attitude will change. 4. In the third stanza, how does Earth appear to the travelers?a. unspoiledb. blurredc. damagedd. far away5. What solution does the poem suggest for the world’s problems?a. Join with others and solve them.b. Pretend they don’t exist.c. Escape them and find new worlds.d. Write poetry about them. 26. The travelers are like tadpoles and eagles because _____a. they weigh almost nothing.b. they can either swim or fly. c. they move quickly and lightly.d. they no longer live on Earth.7. All of the following happen in the last two lines of the poem EXCEPT:a. The poet splits a compound word.b. The poet changes a noun into an adverb and a verb.c. The poet emphasizes the theme of flight in a new way.d. The poet brings the travelers' journey to an end. 3 ................
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