ards appear in parentheses. Language (Framework, pages 1926) Reading and Literature (Framework, pages 3564)
The English Language Arts Curriculum Framework is available on the Department Web site at
www.doe.mass.edu/frameworks/current.html.
In Test Item Analysis Reports and on the Subject Area Subscore pages of the MCAS School Reports
and District Reports, ELA Reading Comprehension test results are reported under two MCAS reporting
categories: Language and Reading and Literature, which are identical to the two Framework content
strands listed above.
Test Sessions and Content Overview
The MCAS grade 8 ELA Reading Comprehension test included three separate test sessions. Each session
included selected readings, followed by multiple-choice and open-response questions. Common reading
passages and test items are shown on the following pages as they appeared in test booklets. Due to
copyright restrictions, certain reading passages cannot be released to the public on the Web site. For further
information, contact Student Assessment Services at 781-338-3625.
Reference Materials and Tools
The use of bilingual word-to-word dictionaries was allowed for current and former limited English
proficient students only, during all three ELA Reading Comprehension test sessions. No other reference
materials were allowed during any ELA Reading Comprehension test session.
Cross-Reference Information
The table at the conclusion of this chapter indicates each items reporting category and the Framework
general standard it assesses. The correct answers for multiple-choice questions are also displayed in
the table. 171
DIRECTIONS
This session contains three reading selections with eighteen multiple-choice questions and two
open-response questions. Mark your answers to these questions in the spaces provided in your
Student Answer Booklet.
from
A D
og
Y
ear
by Jon Katz
We hardly had a bad moment, the three of us,
so neatly did we fit together, interlocking pieces of
the puzzle that is the varied partnership between
humans and dogs.
Julius and Stanley embodied the noblest
characteristics of their proud breed. They
were handsome, loyal, utterly dependable, and
affectionate. Julius came first. My daughter was
young, and while there are different viewpoints
about this, I personally dont believe theres a
more rewarding moment for a parent than handing
a happy, squirming, doe-eyed Lab puppy over to a
small kid. I carry the look on her face in my memory, and while there are times when I
cant remember what day of the week it is, I can always recall the wonder and joy in her
eyes as if it had just happened.
Although I bought the dog with my daughter in mind, she was soon playing computer
games and collecting garish-looking dolls, and I was out in the chill winter mornings
cheering and exulting when a puzzled but earnest puppy took a dump outside.
Julius became mine, of course, the two of us bonding as if by Krazy Glue.
A year later, the breeder called and invited me to take a ride with my daughter to see
the new litter. I was just looking, I assured my muttering and incredulous wife, Paula,
whod dragged Juliuss old plastic dog crate out of the basement, ready to house its new
resident, before Id left the driveway.
My daughter and I returned with tiny, heart-melting Stanley. Julius was initially
dubious about this new pest he had to contend with, but within a couple of days the two
Labs loved each other as much as I loved them both, and they loved me and my family
and, well, everybody who passed by.
In A Dog Year, Jon Katz writes about the strong bond that develops between him and his two yellow
Labrador retrievers, Julius and Stanley. Read the excerpt and answer the questions that follow.
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English Language Arts
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eading
C
ompRehension
: s
ession
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It was a happy relationship from the first, and it only grew better, more comfortable.
Both dogs were housebroken within days, settling happily into hours of rawhide-
chewing.
Our lifestyles, as they say, meshed perfectly. Neither dog had much interest in
running around.
Their great genius was doing nothing in particular with great style and dedication.
Both disdained traditional canine tasks such as pursuing squirrels or rabbits, digging,
or destroying property. Their chosen work was to reflect on the state of the world, lick
neighborhood kids, and accompany me through midlife.
In the morning, neither dog moved a muscle until I did; then both slithered into bed
for a family cuddle. After I was up and dressed, they sat quietly and attentively beneath
the kitchen table, staring hypnotically at their food bowls, as if the power of their gazes
would conjure up something tasty.
After breakfast, the early walk through our pleasant suburban neighborhood was
leisurely, Julius and Stanley forensically sniffing along behind. Certain shrubs and
rocks were always carefully inspected, each at a quite deliberate pace, the only area
in which they would not compromise. Nothing could rush them; theyd go over every
millimeter of a saplings bark, undistractedly, until satisfied. A rabbit could hop right
byand sometimes didwithout interrupting them.
For a half hour or so, the dogs proceeded at such stately paces and behaved so
dependably that I was free to think about the coming day, what I wanted to write, how I
wanted to write it. Our walks were tranquil, interrupted only by a stream of friends and
admirers, from dog buddies to school-bus drivers.
Despite their historic roles as hunting dogs, however, they disdained rain and snow,
and in inclement weather mastered a convenient hundred-yard dash to the nearest tree,
then turned and hustled back inside.
Then it was time for work. I prepared a sandwich for each, taking two big rawhide
chews and slathering a layer of peanut butter in between. Julius and Stanley carried the
concoctions to the backyard and settled in for a deliberate gnaw, after which they were
spent, and needed to refresh themselves with a long rest.
If the weather was fine, the dogs would spend much of the morning dozing in the
yard. They might rouse themselves to bark at a passing dog. Mostly not.
On unpleasant days, they came into my study and offered themselves as footrests,
both tucked underneath my desk, one on my left, one on my right.
I never had to provide much in the way of instruction. These guys knew how to
relax. When the computer chimed as it booted up (I am an unswerving Macintosh man),
the dogs dropped to the floor as if theyd been shot. They didnt move until they heard
the monitor thunk off, at which point theyd rise (cautiously), ready for another stroll.
After a year or so, Julius and Stanley had achieved a Labrador state of grace, the
ability to become an organic part of your life rather than an intrusion into it.
For a writer, having two such quiet and patient companions is a godsend. They
warded off loneliness. They also kept me from a purely sedentary existence. After
lunch, wed rack up another mile or two at our usual unhurried pace.
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Through the day, I supplied rawhide chews, pigs ears, indeterminable and smelly
dried bull parts, and a rain of treats and biscuits. It was ridiculously indulgent, of course,
but I could not do enough for these boys, nor they for me. I tried to repay them for their
love and unflagging loyalty, even though that was unnecessary and impossible.
They had their idiosyncracies. Julius was so unconcerned about wildlife (the sort
his brethren traditionally retrieved) that hed been known to nap inches from a rabbits
nest in the garden. And when Stanley wanted to chase a ballwhich was much of the
timehe would nip me in the butt to get me moving.
Once in a great while somebody would strew the garbage around the house, in the
centuries-old tradition of Labs in Newfoundland who worked with fishermen, loved the
cold, wet outdoors, and had to forage for food; they got to be pretty flexible about what
theyd put in their stomachs. If I left them alone in the house, they collected odd articles
of clothingmy wifes fuzzy bedroom slippers were a favoriteand slept with them.
It had been years since either dog had been on a leash or given me reason, despite
the technicalities of local leash laws, to use one. Every kid in the neighborhood knew
them and waved at them from bikes and car windows, through soccer-field fences. For
many, they provided the first introduction to dogs, and they set a high standard. Over
the years, many people told me that Julius or Stanley had inspired them to go out and
get a dog.
When night fell, so did the Labs, settling on their cedar beds for a final rawhide
snack, and descending into a deep, unmoving sleep.
After some yearsStanley was seven and Julius eightwe moved almost like a
school of fish, the three of us veering in one direction, then another. We turned corners
at the same time, sat in various parks and yards sharing lunch.
All the one ever asked was to live, play, and work alongside me. All the other one
wanted besides that was the chance to swim in ponds once in a while and chase a ball a
few times a day. They got what they wanted. So did I.
From A DOG YEAr by Jon Katz, copyright © 2002, 2003 by Jon Katz. Used by permission of Villard Books, a division of
random House, Inc. Photograph by Eric Etheridge.
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ID:228515 C Common 1
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