2014-ela-grade-4-sample-annotated-passages

New York State Testing Program
Grade 4 Common Core

English Language Arts Test

Annotated Passages

November 2014

New York State Testing Program Common Core English Language Arts 
Annotated Passages 

 

With  the  adoption  of  the  New  York  P–12  Common  Core  Learning  Standards  (CCLS)  in  ELA/Literacy  and 
Mathematics,  the  Board  of  Regents  signaled  a  shift  in  both  instruction  and  assessment.  Starting  in  the 
Spring 2013, New York State (NYS) began administering tests designed to assess student performance in 
accordance  with  the  instructional  shifts  and  the  rigor  demanded  by  the  Common  Core  State  Standards 
(CCSS). To aid in the transition to new assessments, New York State has released a number of resources, 
including  test  blueprints  and  specifications,  sample  questions,  and  criteria  for  writing  assessment 
questions. These resources can be found at http://www.engageny.org/common‐core‐assessments.  

New York State administered the ELA/Literacy and Mathematics Common Core tests in April 2014 and is 
now making a portion of the questions and passages from those ELA tests available for review and use. 
These  released  questions  and  passages  will  help  students,  families,  educators,  and  the  public  better 
understand  how  tests  have  changed  to  assess  the  instructional  shifts  demanded  by  the  Common  Core 
and to assess the rigor required to ensure that all students are on track to college and career readiness. 

Annotated Passages Are Teaching Tools 

The  released  annotated  passages  herein  are  intended  to  help  educators,  students,  families,  and  the 
public  understand  how  the  Common  Core  is  different.  The  annotated  passages  demonstrate  the  rich, 
authentic,  and  complex  texts  necessary  to  support  instruction  and  measurement  of  the  knowledge, 
skills,  and  proficiencies  described  in  the  Common  Core  Learning  Standards.  These  annotated  passages 
are  intended  to  illustrate  how  NYS  uses  quantitative  metrics  and  qualitative  rubrics  to  select  and  place 
passages for inclusion on the tests. In addition, the annotation can help educators understand in depth 
the  text  complexity  demands  that  are  a  key  requirement  for  growing  students'  reading  abilities  as 
articulated by the Common Core. 

Passage selection for Common Core English Language Arts Assessments 

Selecting  high‐quality,  grade‐appropriate  passages  requires  both  objective  text  complexity  metrics  and 
expert  judgment.  For  NYS  Common  Core  English  Language  Arts  Tests,  both  quantitative  metrics  and 
qualitative  rubrics  are  used  to  determine  the  complexity  of  the  texts  and  their  appropriate  placement 
within a grade‐level ELA exam. 
 

Quantitative Measures of Text Complexity 

Quantitative  measures  of  text  complexity  are  used  to  measure  aspects  of  text  complexity  that  are 
difficult for a human reader to evaluate when examining a text.  These aspects include word frequency, 
word  length  (number  of  characters  per  word),  sentence  length,  and  text  cohesion.  These  aspects  are 
efficiently  measured  by  computer  programs,  and  all  of  the  measures  listed  below  can  be  accessed  for 

free online. (For more information about these metrics, including how to access these measures online, 
please see http://achievethecore.org/page/642/text‐complexity‐collection .) 

Based on research and the guidance of nationally‐recognized literacy experts1, the following ranges for 
quantitative measures were used to guide initial passage selection to place a passage within a possible 
grade‐level band for the Grades 3–8 exams. (Note: in instances where the quantitative measures do not 
place  the  text  in  the  same  grade  level,  the  different  grade  bands  resulting  are  noted  and  the  selection 
process continues to the qualitative analysis.) 
 
 

Updated Text Complexity Grade Bands and Associated Ranges from Multiple Measures2 

 

Degrees of 

Common Core  Reading  The Lexile  Reading 
Flesch‐Kincaid3  Framework®  Maturity 
Band  Power® 

2nd – 3rd  42 – 54  1.98 – 5.34 420 – 820 3.53 – 6.13 

4th – 5th  52 – 60  4.51 – 7.73 740 – 1010 5.42 – 7.92 

6th – 8th  57 – 67  6.51 – 10.34 925 – 1185 7.04 – 9.57 

9th – 10th  62 – 72  8.32 – 12.12 1050 – 1335 8.41 – 10.81 

11th – CCR  67 – 74  10.34 – 14.2 1185 – 1385 9.57 – 12.00 

  

Note  in  looking  at  all  of  these  quantitative  ranges,  there  are  wide  ranges  within  grade  bands,  and 
considerable  degrees  of  overlap  between  the  3–8  grade  bands.  (See  Appendix  A  of  this  document  for 
tables visually representing this overlap for these readability metrics.) The overlap within and between 
grades reflects the range of developmental reading abilities in regards to various facets of literacy.  Put 
simply, different types of texts, text structures, and language demands will challenge individual students 
within and between grades differently. 

Qualitative Measures of Text Complexity 

While quantitative text complexity metrics are a helpful start, they are far from definitive.  Many aspects 
of  writing  cause  text  complexity  metrics  to  produce  flawed  results.    For  example,  a  canonical  high 
school‐level  novel  such  as  John  Steinbeck's  The  Grapes  of  Wrath  has  a  lexile  level  of  680,  which  would 
place  it  in  the  Grade 2–3  band. To account for  these known shortcomings, qualitative  measures are a 

                                                           
1  Nelson,  Jessica;  Perfetti,  Charles;  Liben,  David;  and  Liben,  Meredith,  “Measures  of  Text  Difficulty:  Testing  Their  Predictive  Value  for  Grade 
Levels and Student Performance,” 2012. 

2 The band levels themselves have been expanded slightly over the original CCSS scale that appears in Appendix A at both the top and bottom 
of each band to provide for a more modulated climb toward college and career readiness and offer slightly more overlap between bands. The 
wider band width allows more flexibility in the younger grades where students enter school with widely varied preparation levels. This change 
was provided in response to feedback received since publication of the original scale (published in terms of the Lexile® metric) in Appendix A.  
3  Since  Flesch‐Kincaid  has  no  ‘caretaker’  that  oversees  or  maintains  the  formula,  the  research  leads  worked  to  bring  the  measure  in  line  with 
college and career readiness levels of text complexity based on the version of the formula used by Coh‐Metrix. 

crucial  complement  to  quantitative  measures.  In  the  Steinbeck  example,  a  qualitative  review  reveals 
that even though the author uses short sentences and common words, the level of meaning in his novel, 
as well as the knowledge demands and emotional maturity required for comprehension, would make it 
more appropriate for use in a high school classroom4.   
 
Using qualitative measures of text complexity involves making an informed decision about the difficulty 
of a text in terms of one or more factors discernible to a human reader applying trained judgment to the 
task. The following passage annotations illustrate the application of a qualitative rubric based largely on 
the  qualitative  resources  from  PARCC  and  the  SCASS  rubrics  from  Student  Achievement  Partners.    The 
qualitative  criteria used in these rubrics and the qualitative rubric used for qualitative analysis by NYS 
uses four required qualitative factors and one optional qualitative factor. The rating on these criteria will 
result  in  an  overall  qualitative  rating  of  the  text  along  a  continuum  of  readily  accessible,  moderately 
complex, and very complex. 
 
These criteria are described below: 
 
(1)  Meaning  (literary  texts)  or  Purpose  (informational  texts).  Literary  texts  with  a  single  and  obvious 
level  of  meaning  tend  to  be  easier  to  read  than  literary  texts  with  multiple  levels  of  meaning  (such  as 
satires, in which the author's literal message is intentionally at odds with his or her underlying message). 
Similarly, informational texts with an explicitly stated purpose are generally easier to comprehend than 
informational texts with an implicit, hidden, or obscure purpose. 
(2)  Text  Structure.  Texts  that  are  readily  accessible  within  a  grade‐band  tend  to  have  simple,  well‐
marked,  and  conventional  structures,  whereas  very  complex  texts  tend  to  have  complex,  implicit,  and 
(particularly  in  literary  texts)  unconventional  structures.  Simple  literary  texts  tend  to  relate  events  in 
chronological order, while complex literary texts make more frequent use of flashbacks, flash‐forwards, 
and other manipulations of time and sequence. Simple informational texts are likely not to deviate from 
the conventions of common genres and subgenres, while complex informational texts are more likely to 
conform to the norms and conventions of a specific discipline.  
(3) Language Features. Texts that rely on literal, clear, contemporary, and conversational language tend 
to  be  easier  to  read  than  texts  that  rely  on  figurative,  ironic,  ambiguous,  purposefully  misleading, 
archaic,  or  otherwise  unfamiliar  language  or  on  general  academic  and  domain‐specific  vocabulary.  The 
relative complexity of sentence structures is also an aspect of this criterion, with the presence of mostly 
simple  sentences  being  an  indication  of  a  readily  accessible  text  and  the  presence  of  many  complex 
sentences with subordinate phrases and clauses being a feature of a very complex text. 
(4) Knowledge Demands. Texts that make few assumptions about the extent of readers' life experiences 
and  the  depth  of  their  cultural/literary  and  content/discipline  knowledge  are  generally  less  complex 
than are texts that are written for a specific audience with a specific schema of knowledge on a topic.   
(5) Optional Graphics.  Graphics elements that accompany the passages that are indicators of a readily 
accessible text can be images or features that are simple and/or supplementary images to the meaning 
of  texts,  with  a  primary  focus  being  to  orient  the  reader  to  the  topic.    Complex  and  detailed  graphics 
                                                           
4 See IV, #3 of Key Considerations in Implementing Text Complexity recommendations from the  Supplemental Information for Appendix A of 

the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy: New Research on Text Complexity for more information about 

exceptions to using quantitative measures to place texts within grade bands. 

and/or  graphics  whose  interpretation  is  essential  to  understanding  the  text,  and  graphics  that  provide 
an  independent  source  of  information  within  a  text  are  graphic  features  common  to  moderately  and 
very complex texts. 
 

Passages in the classroom vs. Passages on a test.  

Passages  serve  different  purposes  depending  on  the  context  in  which  they  are  used.  As  stated  in 
Appendix  A  of  the  Common  Core  State  Standards,  in  an  instructional  context  (including  a  student's 
independent reading for the purpose of this discussion) there are aspects of individual readers that will 
impact  comprehension—emotional  maturity/thematic  concerns,  background  knowledge,  and 
motivations  are  some  considerations  that  may  impact  understanding.  Good  instruction  supports  these 
individual aspects of comprehension in an effort to grow learning. In a summative assessment context, 
however,  the  task  is  considerably  more  constrained;  the  task  is  to  determine  the  degree  to  which 
students can independently make meaning of texts. As such, there are no scaffolds, no opportunities for 
collaboration  with  peers,  and  no  framing  by  adults  before  the  student  is  accessing  the  content.  In  the 
testing context, students work independently to read the texts and answer questions that measure their 
abilities to make meaning of the texts and topics they are reading about. Using texts that are grade‐level 
complex according to the CCSS helps to determine where the student is in terms of his/her pathway to 
college  and  career‐readiness,  and  as  such  fulfills  a  crucial  purpose  of  the  Grades  3–8  ELA  testing 
program.
 

Appendix A: Text Complexity Grade Ranges for Quantitative Measures 

 
Table  1:  Text  Complexity  Grade  Ranges  for  Grades  3–8  as  represented  by  Degrees  of  Reading 
Power® Metric  
 

CCLS
Degrees of Reading Power Ranges

Grade 6‐8

Grade 4‐5

Grade 2‐3

40 45 50 55 60 65 70

 
 
Table 2: Text Complexity Grade Ranges for Grades 3–8 as represented by Flesch‐Kincaid5  
readability metric 
 

CCLS
Flesch‐Kincaid Ranges

Grade 6‐8

Grade 4‐5

Grade 2‐3

1 3 5 7 9 11

 

                                                            

5  Since  Flesch‐Kincaid  has  no  ‘caretaker’  that  oversees  or  maintains  the  formula,  the  research  leads  worked  to  bring  the  measure  in  line  with 
college and career readiness levels of text complexity based on the version of the formula used by Coh‐Metrix. 

 
Table 3: Text Complexity Grade Ranges for Grades 3–8 as represented by Lexile Framework® 
 

CCLS
Lexile Ranges

Grade 6‐8

Grade 4‐5

Grade 2‐3

400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200

 
 
 
Table 4: Text Complexity Grade Ranges for Grades 3–8 as represented by Reading Maturity Matrix 
  

CCLS
Reading Maturity Ranges

Grade 6‐8

Grade 4‐5

Grade 2‐3

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

 
 

Directions
204003P
Read this story. Then answer questions XX through XX.

Pecos Bill Captures the
Pacing White Mustang

by Leigh Peck

1 Pecos Bill decided to get a real cowpony, and he asked cowboys, “What’s
the very best horse in these parts?”

2 They answered: “The best horse in all the world is running loose in these
very hills. He runs fast as the lightning, so we call him Lightning. Others
call him the Pacing White Mustang, and some even say that his real name is
Pegasus. We have all tried hard to catch him, but no one has ever got close
enough to him to put a rope on him or even to see him clearly. We have
chased him for days, riding our very best ponies and changing horses every
two hours, but he outran all our best ponies put together.”

3 But Pecos Bill told them: “I’ll not ride a cowpony when I chase this
horse. I can run faster myself than any of your ponies can.”

4 So Pecos Bill threw his saddle and bridle over bridle = a harness, which
his shoulder and set out on foot to look for the includes the reins, that
famous wild white horse. When he got close fits over a horse’s head
enough to take a good look at Lightning, he saw and is used to control or
that only the horse’s mane and tail were pure
white. The beautiful animal was really a light guide the horse

cream or pale gold color—the color of lightning itself. The Spanish people in
the Southwest call such a horse a palomino. He chased Lightning five days

1

and four nights, all the way from Mexico across Texas and New Mexico and
Arizona and Utah and Colorado and Wyoming and Montana, clear up to
Canada, and then down to Mexico again. Pecos Bill had to throw away his
saddle and bridle, as they leaped across cactus-covered plains, down steep
cliffs, and across canyons.
5 Finally Lightning got tired of running from Pecos Bill and stopped and
snorted. “Very well, I’ll let you try to ride me if you think you can! Go
ahead and jump on!”
6 Pecos Bill smiled. And he jumped on Lightning’s back, gripping the
horse’s ribs with his knees and clutching the mane with his hands.
7 First, Lightning tried to run out from under Pecos Bill. He ran ten miles
in twenty seconds! Next he jumped a mile forward and two miles backward.
Then he jumped so high in the air that Pecos Bill’s head was up among the
stars. Next Lightning tried to push Pecos Bill off his back by running
through clumps of mesquite trees. The thorns tore poor Pecos Bill’s face.
8 When that failed, too, Lightning reared up on his hind legs and threw
himself over backward. But Pecos Bill jumped off quickly, and before
Lightning could get on his feet again, Bill sat on his shoulders and held him
firmly on the ground.
9 “Lightning,” Pecos Bill explained, “you are the best horse in all the world,
and I am the best cowboy in all the world. If you’ll let me ride you, we will
become famous together, and cowboys everywhere forever and forever will
praise the deeds of Pecos Bill and Lightning.”
10 Then Pecos Bill turned Lightning loose and told him, “You may decide.
You are free to go or to stay with me.”
11 The beautiful horse put his nose in Pecos Bill’s hand, and said, “I want to
stay with you and be your cowpony—the greatest cowpony in all the world.”
12 Pecos Bill and Lightning went back and found the saddle and bridle
where Bill had thrown them. Lightning let Pecos Bill put the saddle on him,
but he didn’t want to take the bit of the bridle into his mouth. So, Pecos Bill
just put a halter on him, and guided him by pressure of the knees and by
pulling on the reins of the halter.
13 Lightning would not let anybody but Pecos Bill ride him.

2

Grade 4 Word count: 637
Title and Author: Pecos Bill Captures the Pacing White Mustang by Leigh Peck

Quantitative Analysis 54 Summary of Grade 4 Assessment Placement
Degrees of Reading
Power (DRP) 1040 Overall rating: Readily Accessible to Moderately Complex
Lexile: 6.4 The quantitative measures for this text place it in a range of grade levels, and the qualitative measures support its use as a readily accessible to moderate
Flesch-Kincaid: 5.4 fourth grade text. It employs an engaging style and storyline, with memorable action and detail. It has a basic chronological structure and traces a single
Reading Maturity central theme (how Pecos Bill tames the mustang). Descriptions within the plot are clear and straightforward. Most challenging words are glossed or
Matric (RMM) italicized, offering scaffolds for unfamiliar vocabulary. The proper nouns, such as Pegasus and Lightning, also contribute to the complexity, but are
appropriate to the grade.

Qualitative Analysis Literary Text

Criteria Very Complex  Moderately Complex  Readily Accessible  Notes

Meaning Multiple levels of meaning that Multiple levels of meaning that are One level of meaning; theme is  While the theme isn’t immediately

may be difficult to identify, relatively easy to identify; theme is obvious and revealed early in the revealed, it is clear very early on that this is

separate, and interpret; theme is clear, but may be conveyed with text. a tall tale about a cowboy and his horse.

implicit, subtle, or ambiguous and some subtlety.

may be revealed over the

entirety of the text.

Text Prose or poetry contains more Prose includes two or more Prose or poetry is organized clearly  The prose is clear and chronological. The

Structure intricate elements such as storylines or has a plot that is and/or chronologically; the events in beginning sets up a question that is

subplots, shifts in point-of-view, somewhat difficult to predict (e.g., a prose work are easy to predict answered at the conclusion.

shifts in time, or non-standard in the case of a non-linear plot); because the plot is linear; poetry has

text structures. poetry has some implicit or explicit and predictable structural

unpredictable structural elements. elements.

Language Language is generally complex, Language is often explicit and  Language is explicit and literal, with Text uses a variety of grade-appropriate

Features with abstract, ironic, and/or literal, but includes academic, mostly contemporary and familiar sentence structures. As part of the tall tale

figurative language, and regularly archaic, or other words with vocabulary; text uses mostly simple genre, the text uses figurative language and

includes archaic, unfamiliar, and complex meaning (e.g., figurative sentences. hyperbole that may contribute to its

academic words; text uses a language); text uses a variety of complexity.

variety of sentence sentence structures.

structures, including complex

sentences with subordinate

phrases and clauses.

Knowledge The text explores complex, The text explores several themes;  The text explores a single theme; if The text is limited to one major theme and

Demands sophisticated, or abstract text makes few references or there are any references or allusions, makes no references to outside texts.

themes; text is dependent on allusions to other texts or cultural they are fully explained in the text. There are some discipline-specific terms

allusions to other texts or cultural elements; the meaning of included (i.e., harness, reins, halter, and

elements; allusions or references references or allusions may be mesquite), but there is sufficient context to

have no context and require partially explained in context. determine the meaning of these terms.

inference and evaluation. Otherwise, the knowledge demands are

relatively straightforward and vocabulary is

supported with text boxes.

Optional When graphics are present, the Graphics support interpretation of Graphics support and assist in  Graphics helps orient the reader in a

Graphics connection between the text and selected parts of the interpreting text by directly general manner to the story by depicting

graphics is subtle and requires corresponding written text; they representing important concepts Pecos Bill and the mustang.

interpretation. may introduce some new and from the corresponding written text.

relevant information.

Directions
204050P
Read this story. Then answer questions XX through XX.
Excerpt from Lawn Boy
by Gary Paulsen

1 Okay. Since I was twelve, I didn’t have much experience with motors. I’ve
never even had a dirt bike or four-wheeler. I’m just not machine oriented.

2 My birthday present sat there. I tried pushing it toward our garage, but it
didn’t seem to want to move. Even turning around to put my back against it
and push with my legs—which I thought might give me better leverage—
didn’t help; it still sat there.

3 So I studied it. On the left side of the motor was a small gas tank, and I
unscrewed the top and looked in. Yep, gas. On top of the tank were two
levers; the first was next to pictures of a rabbit and a turtle. Even though I’m
not good with machines, I figured out that was the throttle and the pictures
meant fast and slow. The other lever said ON-OFF. I pushed ON.

4 Nothing happened, of course. On the very top of the motor was a
starting pull-rope. What the heck, why not? I gave it a jerk and the motor
sputtered a little, popped once, then died. I pulled the rope again and the
motor hesitated, popped, and then roared to life. I jumped back. No muffler.

5 Once when I was little, my grandmother, in her usual logic-defying
fashion, answered my request for another cookie by saying that my

20

grandfather had been a tinkerer. “He was always puttering with things,
taking them apart, putting them back together. When he was around
nothing ever broke. Nothing ever dared to break.”
6 Loud as the mower was, it still wasn’t moving and the blade wasn’t going
around. I stood looking down at it.
7 This strange thing happened.
8 It spoke to me.
9 Well, not really. I’m not one of those woo-woo people or a wack job. At
least I don’t think I was. Maybe I am now.
10 Anyway, there was some message that came from the mower through the
air and into my brain. A kind of warm, or maybe settled feeling. Like I was
supposed to be there and so was the mower. The two of us.
11 Like it was a friend. So all right, I know how that sounds too: We’ll sit
under a tree and talk to each other. Read poems about mowing. Totally
wack.
12 But the feeling was there.
13 Next I found myself sitting on the mower, my feet on the pedals. I moved
the throttle to the rabbit position—it had been on turtle—and pushed
the left pedal down, and the blade started whirring. The mower seemed to
give a happy leap forward off the sidewalk and I was mowing the lawn.
14 Or dirt. As I said, we didn’t really have much of a lawn. Dust and bits of
dead grass flew everywhere and until I figured out the steering, the mailbox,
my mother’s flowers near the front step and a small bush were in danger.
15 But in a few minutes I got control of the thing and I sheared off what
little grass there was.
16 The front lawn didn’t take long, but before I was done the next-door
neighbor came to the fence, attracted by the dust cloud. He waved me over.
17 I stopped in front of him, pulled the throttle back and killed the engine.
The sudden silence was almost deafening. I stood up away from the mower,
my ears humming, so I could hear him.
18 “You mow lawns?” he asked. “How much?”
19 And that was how it started.

21

Grade 4 Word count: 579
Title and Author: Excerpt from Lawn Boy by Gary Paulsen

Quantitative Analysis Summary of Grade 4 Assessment Placement:
Degrees of Reading 48 Overall rating: Readily Accessible
Power (DRP)
Lexile: This literary text is appropriate for 4th grade assessment.
Flesch-Kincaid: 600 Though quantitatively it falls slightly below the grade band, the treatment of its theme and use of an informal style make it appropriate for grade 4.
Reading Maturity 3.2
Matric (RMM) 6.6

Qualitative Analysis Literary Text

Criteria Very Complex  Moderately Complex  Readily Accessible  Notes
Multiple levels of meaning that One level of meaning; theme is  The theme is revealed in paragraph 8,
Meaning Multiple levels of meaning that are relatively easy to identify; obvious and revealed early in the
theme is clear, but may be text. where the reader sees that the boy and
may be difficult to identify, conveyed with some subtlety. lawnmower belong together, and is
Prose or poetry is organized clearly explicitly stated in paragraph 11. The
separate, and interpret; theme Prose includes two or more and/or chronologically; the events author uses an informal style; first
storylines or has a plot that is in a prose work are easy to predict person narration makes it an accessible
is implicit, subtle, or somewhat difficult to predict because the plot is linear; poetry text.
(e.g., in the case of a non-linear has explicit and predictable  Most of the text is organized in a linear
ambiguous and may be plot); poetry has some implicit or structural elements. fashion except for a shift in time in
unpredictable structural paragraph 5, which requires some
revealed over the entirety of elements.  Language is explicit and literal, attention, but is appropriate to 4th
Language is often explicit and with mostly contemporary and grade. There is one plot line, which is
the text. literal, but includes academic, familiar vocabulary; text uses predictable given the clear storyline.
archaic, or other words with mostly simple sentences.
Text Prose or poetry contains more complex meaning (e.g., figurative The text uses an informal style with a
language); text uses a variety of strong sense of voice (paragraph 11)
Structure intricate elements such as sentence structures. and first person narration. It is
constructed of a variety of sentence
subplots, shifts in point-of- structures. There is some content-
specific vocabulary (i.e., throttle,
view, shifts in time, or non- leverage, pull rope, and tinkerer), but
these do not overly complicate
standard text structures. comprehension.

Language Language is generally complex,
Features with abstract, ironic, and/or
figurative language, and
regularly includes archaic,
unfamiliar, and academic
words; text uses a variety of
sentence structures, including
complex sentences with
subordinate phrases and
clauses.

Knowledge The text explores complex, The text explores several themes; The text explores a single theme; if  Passage requires no prior knowledge in
Demands sophisticated, or abstract text makes few references or
themes; text is dependent on allusions to other texts or cultural there are any references or order for readers to comprehend.
Optional allusions to other texts or elements; the meaning of
Graphics cultural elements; allusions or references or allusions may be allusions, they are fully explained
references have no context partially explained in context.
and require inference and in the text.
evaluation. Graphics support interpretation
of selected parts of the Graphics support and assist in  Graphics help situate reader into the
When graphics are present, the corresponding written text; they interpreting text by directly context and theme of passage.
connection between the text may introduce some new and representing important concepts
and graphics is subtle and relevant information. from the corresponding written
requires interpretation. text.

Directions
304031P
Read this article. Then answer questions XX through XX.

Elephants Don’t Wear Boots

by Lisa Hart
1 Did you ever wonder while snuggling up in your winter coat, how zoo

lions keep warm? Did you ever picture when pulling on your hat and
mittens, a flamingo wearing a scarf? Did you ever consider as you put on
your winter boots that elephants do not wear boots?
2 The lions stretched out on the rocks at the zoo share a secret. The hot
rocks they lie on are not real. Heaters hidden under the fake stones keep the
big cats cozy warm. Zoos use lots of little tricks to help the animals in their
care fight off the chill of winter. Keepers warm up the water in swimming
pools for residents like the otters.
3 Animals such as deer and elk find outside shelter in three-sided barns
with extra bedding.
4 Nature allows many animals like flamingos to adapt to some cold even if
they come from a warm climate. And if the temperatures dip too low for
comfort, keepers simply bring the animals inside.
5 All this extra time indoors presents a challenge for zoo keepers. For one
thing, animals need exercise to make up for the time spent cooped up. A
new toy or a small change in schedule gives a bored beast something to look
forward to. Hiding some food treats lets animals do what comes naturally:
hunt for their meal.
6 Sometimes a zoo resident’s diet needs changing during the winter too.
Zoos give more food to those who build fat to keep warm or become more
active. Animals that burn less energy in the winter need less food.
7 Forget the snow and the cold. Ice presents the real danger at zoos in
winter. A frozen-over watering hole leaves an animal to go thirsty, spelling
disaster. A slip on the ice in an enclosure leads to deadly, serious injuries.
Some animals like elephants never see ice in the wild. Nature did not give
them feet designed for walking on it.

53

8 So once you snuggle into your coat and pull on your hat, mittens, and
boots, pay a visit to a local zoo in winter. You might be surprised at who you
see enjoying the snow.

54

Grade 4 Word count: 356
Title and Author: Elephants Don’t Wear Boots by Lisa Hart

Quantitative Analysis Summary of Grade 4 Assessment Placement:
Degrees of Reading
Power (DRP) 56 Overall rating: Moderately Complex
Lexile: The text's explicit purpose, grounded by the questions in the opening paragraph and coupled with the structure and organization linking ideas within the
Flesch-Kincaid:
Reading Maturity 970 text, make this appropriate for 4th grade assessment. The quantitative measures also support this placement, indicating the sentence structures and
Matric (RMM) 5.9 vocabulary help to make the text and topic accessible.
5.8

Qualitative Analysis for Informational Text

Criteria Very Complex  Moderately Complex  Readily Accessible  Notes

Purpose The text contains multiple purposes, The primary purpose of the text The primary purpose of the text is  The questions in the opening

and the primary purpose is subtle, is not stated explicitly, but is easy clear, concrete, narrowly focused, paragraph and the explanation in the
second create a clear and focused
intricate, and/or abstract. to infer based on the content or and explicitly stated. The text has a purpose for the passage about how
zoos in colder climates keep animals
source. The text may include singular perspective. unaccustomed to those climates
healthy throughout the winter.
multiple perspectives.
Organization is generally evident
Text Connections among an expanded Connections between some  Connections between ideas, through sections arranged by topic.
Structure range of ideas, processes, or events ideas, processes, or events are processes, and events are explicit The connections between paragraphs
are often implicit, subtle, or implicit or subtle; organization is and clear; organization is are more subtle than they are easy to
Language ambiguous. Organization exhibits generally evident and sequential; chronological, sequential, or easy to predict, but the smooth paragraph
Features some discipline-specific traits. Text any text features help facilitate predict because it is linear; any text transitions, and the questions that
features are essential to comprehension of content. features help readers navigate frame the beginning of the passage
Knowledge comprehension of content. content, but are not critical to help to link the ideas presented.
Demands Language is often explicit and understanding content.
Language is generally complex, with literal, but includes some Some domain-specific (i.e., Flamingo
Optional abstract, ironic, and/or figurative academic, archaic, or other  Language is explicit and literal, with and enclosure) and/or multiple
Graphics language, and archaic and academic words with complex meaning; mostly contemporary and familiar meaning words are included in the
vocabulary and domain-specific text uses some complex vocabulary; text uses mostly simple passage. There are some complex
words that are not otherwise sentences with subordinate sentences. sentences as well.
defined; text uses many complex phrases or clauses.
sentences with subordinate phrases
and clauses. The subject matter of the text  The subject matter of the text relies The text demands some
The subject matter of the text relies involves some discipline-specific on little or no discipline-specific understanding of animals and
on specialized, discipline-specific knowledge; the text makes some knowledge; if there are any conditions at zoos, but even without
knowledge; the text makes many references or allusions to other references or allusions, they are fully this knowledge there is generally
references or allusions to other texts texts or outside ideas; the explained in the text. sufficient content included to derive
or outside areas; allusions or meaning of references or meaning.
references have no context and allusions may be partially Graphics are simple and may be
require inference. explained in context. unnecessary to understanding the N/A
Graphics are mainly text.
Graphics are essential to supplementary to understanding
understanding the text; they may the text; they generally contain
clarify or expand information in the or reinforce information found in
text and may require close reading the text.
and thoughtful analysis in relation to
the text.

Directions
304029P
Read this article. Then answer questions XX through XX.

Call of the Wild

by Debra A. Bailey
1 Its body stretched flat in the water, the hunter swims toward the prey.

One hop, and the hunter is out of the water, snatching its catch. Licking its
lips, it prepares to devour its meal.
2 A ruthless killer? An unlucky victim? Nope. The hunter is a fluffy
muskrat, looking more like a bedroom slipper than a dangerous predator. Its
prey is an apple slice, hidden in an exhibit at the Museum of Life and
Science in Durham, N.C.
3 The “hunt” is part of a game called enrichment. And it’s happening at
zoos all over the country.
Game of life
4 When zoo animals are put on display with nothing to do, they get bored,
upset and even sick. That’s especially alarming if the animals are threatened
or endangered and don’t breed because they feel uncomfortable.
5 That’s where enrichment—anything that helps animals act and feel as if
they are back in the wild—comes in. Natural-looking exhibits, hidden foods,
weird smells and even toys are used to promote wild behaviors such as
hunting, playing, sniffing and stalking.
6 “Wild muskrats like to look for their food,” says Thea Staab, a Museum
of Life and Science animal keeper. That’s why she hides apple slices on tree
limbs and sweet potatoes behind fake rocks.
Dip Sticks
7 The same thing goes for the chimpanzees at the Oregon ZooSM in
Portland.

Oregon Zoo is the registered service mark of the Oregon Zoo and Metro Corporation.

44

8 In the wild, chimps poke sticks into termite mounds to catch a tasty
snack. So the zoo built fake termite mounds in the chimp exhibit.

9 “Animals have to work for their food in nature,” says Dr. Blair Csuti,
conservation coordinator for the zoo. “This presents their food the way it is
in the wild.”

10 Of course, the zookeepers don’t use real termites—they might eat the
exhibit instead of the chimps eating them! Instead, the mound is filled with
tasty hot sauce and mustard, perfect for dipping.
Tall Order

11 What do you do when giraffes lick the walls because they have no leafy
trees to nibble?

12 “We take something that looks like giant frozen Lifesavers® candy made
of chunks of bananas, apples and carrots,” says conservation program
assistant Cathy Dubreuil of the Calgary Zoo in Alberta, Canada. “Then we
hang it from the ceiling.”

13 The result? Giraffes lick the ice to free the food—and forget about the
walls.

14 And then there are smells.
15 “Animals just like to sniff things,” says Janine Antrim, behavior specialist

for the San Diego Zoo in California. “We’ll rub the logs in the bear exhibit
with fabric softener sheets, and they love it. They’ll spend hours rubbing and
sniffing those spots.”
16 If you think fabric softener sounds strange, wait till you watch a bear roll
around in perfume, aftershave . . . and elephant dung.
17 Whatever makes them happy!
Lifesavers is the registered trademark of the Nabisco Brands Company.

45

Grade 4 Word count: 455
Title and Author: Call of the Wild by Debra A. Bailey

Quantitative Analysis Summary of Grade 4 Assessment Placement:
Degrees of Reading Power (DRP):
Lexile: 60 Overall rating: Moderately Complex
Flesch-Kincaid:
Reading Maturity Matric (RMM): 910 The qualitative measures point to this text being moderately complex based on qualitative criteria. While some of quantitative analyses
6.5 places this text in the high end of the grade 4-5 grade band, the use of headings, familiar and contemporary vocabulary measures makes the
7.7 text appropriate for use on a 4th grade assessment. In addition, the topic of Call of the Wild, which involves animals coping in captivity

situations, is likely to be a topic of interest for fourth grade students.

Qualitative Analysis for Informational Text

Criteria Very Complex  Moderately Complex  Readily Accessible  Notes

Purpose The text contains multiple purposes The primary purpose of the text The primary purpose of the text is The purpose of the text can be
is not stated explicitly, but is easy  clear, concrete, narrowly focused, inferred in the first two sections and
and the primary purpose is subtle, there is one consistent perspective:
animals in captivity need to be
intricate, and/or abstract. to infer based on the content or and explicitly stated. The text has a engaged in activities.

source. The text may include singular perspective. Organization is generally evident, but
it is not sequential or chronological; it
multiple perspectives. jumps to different animals in different
zoos addressing problems and
Text Connections among an expanded Connections between some  Connections between ideas, solutions within several, but not all,
Structure range of ideas, processes, or events sections. The headings help the reader
are often implicit, subtle, or ideas, processes, or events are processes, and events are explicit navigate the content, supporting the
Language ambiguous. Organization exhibits connections between ideas.
Features some discipline-specific traits. Text implicit or subtle; organization is and clear; organization is
features are essential to The passage contains undefined and
comprehension of content. generally evident and chronological, sequential, or easy to domain-specific terminology (i.e.,
stalking, devour, and dung); academic
Language is generally complex, with sequential; any text features help predict because it is linear; any text terms (i.e., coordinator and specialist);
abstract, ironic, and/or figurative and words with multiple meaning (i.e.,
language, and archaic and academic facilitate comprehension of features help readers navigate exhibits and presents); all embedded
vocabulary and domain-specific sometimes in the same complex
words that are not otherwise content. content, but are not critical to sentence. This is partially balanced by
defined; text uses many complex contemporary and familiar vocabulary
sentences with subordinate phrases understanding content. and tone.
and clauses. Readers have to be familiar with some
Language is often explicit and  Language is explicit and literal, with basic science knowledge of predator-
prey relationships. Author makes
literal, but includes some mostly contemporary and familiar multiple references to museum and
zoo exhibits. While there are
academic, archaic, or other vocabulary; text uses mostly simple additional outside references that are
not explicitly explained (i.e., fabric
words with complex meaning; sentences. softener sheets and aftershave), these
are not crucial to understanding the
text uses some complex important points in the text.

sentences with subordinate N/A

phrases or clauses.

Knowledge The subject matter of the text relies The subject matter of the text  The subject matter of the text relies
Demands on specialized, discipline-specific involves some discipline-specific on little or no discipline-specific
knowledge; the text makes many knowledge; the text makes some knowledge; if there are any
references or allusions to other texts references or allusions to other references or allusions, they are fully
or outside areas; allusions or texts or outside ideas; the explained in the text.
references have no context and meaning of references or
require inference. allusions may be partially
explained in context.

Optional Graphics are essential to Graphics are mainly Graphics are simple and may be
Graphics understanding the text; they may supplementary to understanding unnecessary to understanding the
clarify or expand information in the the text; they generally contain text.
text and may require close reading or reinforce information found in
and thoughtful analysis in relation to the text.
the text.