Reading - 16-19 Create a Quiz Addressee Unknown

Details: Category: English Language Arts; Published: Thursday, 01 January 2015 11:45; Written by Brian Jaeger; Hits: 2037

This is a create-your-own quiz for students while reading a story Addressee Unknown and using common ACT distracters.

Use the section of Addressee Unknown chosen by your group.

1- November 12, 1932 / 2- December 10, 1932 / 3- January 21, 1933 / 4- March 25, 1933 / 5- May 18, 1933 / 6- July 9, 1933 / 7- August 1, 1933 / 8- August 18, 1933 / 9- December 8, 1933 / February 12, 1934

Create a six-question, multiple choice (A-D) quiz using the distracters and stems below. The questions are to be based on the stems, and the answers should be based on the distracters. Be sure to highlight the correct answer.

It’s OK to share the work on this assignment, but each student must have copy of the completed assignment in the appropriate folder in order to get credit. Put everyone's name on the paper, too.

Types of Distracters
Distracters are answer choices that intellectually distract you from picking the correct answer. This means that distracters are designed to be tough thinking challenges. If you can learn to overcome the challenges, you become a better thinker. There are four types of distracters. See below for a description of each one.
1. Distortion	When the answer choice is untrue, either completely or only partially. It cannot be verified by the passage.
2. Switch	When the answer choice is true, but it is not the answer to the question you are trying to answer.
3. Unsupported Positive	When the answer choice is untrue, but it seems like a very pleasant choice. It often plays on your biases. Ex: America is the land of the free and citizens should be grateful for what they have.
4. Extreme	When the answer choice includes a word(s) that makes it impossible to be correct. Ex: The government never denies assistance to immigrants.

ACT Reading Distracter Cheat Sheet
Distortion	Switch	Unsupported Positive	Absolute
Choice misstates or distorts the passage Choice takes words/phrases out of context Choice gives an answer not stated in the passage Choice represents a conclusion beyond what the passage can support Choice disagrees with the overall meaning of the passage	Choice gives a correct answer to another question	Choice is an unsupported/unconfirmed positive statement which appeals to a reader’s biases or basic sensibilities, or appears to be universally true	Choice contains an exaggeration (e.g., always) or an unwarranted superlative (ideal/perfect)

ACT Reading Question Stem Cheat Sheet
Main Idea	Supporting Details	Inferences
Which of the following is the main point of the passage? The main argument the author makes about ______________________ is… What is the main theme of (a specific paragraph/line)? The best title/ a reasonable title for this selection is… A major goal of __________________ is to: The primary purpose is to… The author is primarily concerned with … By the end of the selection, we find that…	The author mentions which of the following? According to (a specific paragraph/section/the passage)… Why does the author mention/note/write…? Who/what/where/when did…? According to the passage, all of the following are true about ________________ except… The author compares/contrasts… According to the passage, _____________ resulted in … The passage clearly indicates… The passage states…	Sequentials, Comparatives & Cause-Effect Relationships According to the passage, _________________ probably happens because…
		Meanings of Words As used in the passage, the word ______________ means which of the following? As presented in the passage, ____________ would be best described…
		Generalizations & Conclusions The author suggests that… With which of the following statements would the author agree? The passage is probably taken from [source]… It can be reasonably inferred from the passage that… The passage suggests… The author implies that… The primary purpose of this passage… The attitude of the author toward…
NOTE ABOUT DISTRACTERS: Many question stem formulas used by ACT seem to overlap. For example, a stem that reads, “According to the passage, ___________ resulted in…” may seem like a cause-effect question. However, if the question asks the reader to identify concrete details from the passage, then it is essentially testing supporting details.