Pioneers Olympic School

Comprehension
Junior 6

Name: ------------------------------------------
Class :-------------------------------------------

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 New Grill
It was Memorial Day, and that meant several things. It meant
remembering soldiers that had lost their lives. It meant
spending time with family. It meant fireworks and parades. It
also meant nice early summer fun. It wouldn’t be much of a
summer without cooking on a grill.
Grilled food seemed to make every weekend more fun and
every occasion more delicious. Dave’s family had bought a
new grill for Memorial Day weekend. The old one had rusted
through and really didn’t get the job done anymore. It’d been
time for a new one, and Dave’s father finally went and got
one, because they were on sale for the holiday.
The new grill was a round kettle style grill. It was black and
was set up on a tripod with wheels. It had an ash catcher in the
bottom for easy cleanup. It also had coated racks to prevent
rusting, and a warming rack above the main grill rack. It
wasn’t the most expensive grill, but it was nice.
Dave helped his dad put the grill together, which took about 30
minutes. They wanted to do it right, but it wasn’t very hard.
They could follow the directions easily. After that, they set it
outside on the back patio, got some charcoal and lighter fluid,
and got ready to grill.
They set the charcoal briquettes in a pyramid, doused them
with lighter fluid, and used a match to start the fire. When the
briquettes were burning well, they stood around and watched
until the edges began to get gray. The fire burned out a few
minutes later, and they spread the charcoal back out flat. The
grill grate went back into the grill to warm up.

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It was probably 15 minutes later that they finally put the food
on the grill. It wasn’t good to do it too quickly, or the food
would taste like lighter fluid. They wanted the nice, smoky,
charcoal flavor – not lighter fluid flavor.
Half a dozen burgers, a few ribs, and a pack of bratwurst went
on the grill. After those got close to done, they put some buns
for the burgers and sausages on the top grate to heat up and
toast a little. Mom had prepared potato salad, cole slaw, and a
few desserts.
The grill worked great, and the food came out tasting so good!
Memorial Day was a great time to grill, to remember, and to
spend time with family.
Use the information in the story to answer the questions below.
1 .What holiday does the story take place during?
A. Labor Day
B. Veteran’s Day
C. Memorial Day
D. Flag Day
2Why do people like grilled food on any occasion?
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3.Why did Dave's family had to buy a new grill?
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4.Which of these was NOT a reason why Dave’s family got a
new grill?
A. It was on sale.
B. The old one was rusty.
C. It was a great holiday to cook out.
D. Dave’s mom wanted a new one.

5. Which of these is NOT a feature of the new grill?

A. coated racks to prevent rusting
B. electric fire starter
C. tripod legs with wheels
D. ash catcher built into the bottom

6. Which of these is one of the things being grilled on the grill?

A. hot dogs
B. pork loin
C. bratwurst
D. corn
7 .TRUE OR FALSE: Dave’s family seems to enjoy time
together on the holidays.
A. True
B. False
8. Give a synonym for:
1- unforgettable ---------------------- 2- tasty -------------------

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 Doctor Dolittle
By Hugh Lofting
The Leader of the Lions
Doctor John Dolittle has an amazing ability. He is able to
talk with animals and understand their language. In this selection
from The Story of Doctor Dolittle, Doctor Dolittle has travelled to
Africa to help sick animals in the monkey kingdom.
John Dolittle now became dreadfully, awfully busy. He
found hundreds and thousands of monkeys sick—gorillas,
orangutans, chimpanzees, dog-faced baboons, marmosets, gray
monkeys, red ones—all kinds. And many had died.
The first thing he did was to separate the sick ones from the
well ones. Then he got Chee-Chee and his cousin to build him a
little house of grass. The next thing: he made all the monkeys who
were still well come and be vaccinated.
And for three days and three nights the monkeys kept
coming from the jungles and the valleys and the hills to the little
house of grass, where the Doctor sat all day and all night,
vaccinating and vaccinating.
But so many were sick, there were not enough well ones to do
the nursing. So he sent messages to the other animals, like the
lions and the leopards and the antelopes, to come and help with
the nursing.
But the Leader of the Lions was a very proud creature. And
when he came to the Doctor’s big house full of beds he seemed
angry and scornful.

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 “Do you dare to ask me, Sir?” he said, glaring at the Doctor.
“Do you dare to ask me — ME, THE KING OF BEASTS, to wait
on a lot of dirty monkeys? Why, I wouldn’t even eat them
between meals”!
Although the lion looked very terrible, the Doctor tried hard
not to seem afraid of him.
"I didn’t ask you to eat them,” he said quietly. “And besides,
they’re not dirty. They’ve all had a bath this morning. YOUR coat
looks as though it needed brushing—badly. Now listen, and I’ll
tell you something: the day may come when the lions get sick.
And if you don’t help the other animals now, the lions may find
themselves left all alone when THEY are in trouble. That often
happens to proud people”.
“The lions are never IN trouble—they only MAKE
trouble,” said the Leader, turning up his nose. And he stalked away
into the jungle, feeling he had been rather smart and clever.

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Answer the following questions:
1- What special ability has Dr. Dolittle got?
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2-What was wrong with the animals?
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3-What was the first thing Doctor Dolittle did?
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4-What did Doctor Dolittle want the lions to do?
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5-What does Doctor Dolittle say happens to proud people?
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6-“ The lions are never IN trouble—they only MAKE
trouble,” Comment on this statement mentioning what does it
tell you about the lions.
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 Black Friday Shopping!

Joan couldn’t resist a sale. The better the sale, the more she
wanted to buy. Words like Buy One Get One, 50% Off, or
Clearance, were music to her ears. Therefore, there was no bigger
day of the year for her habit than Black Friday.
Black Friday was the day after Thanksgiving, when many
businesses started selling really well. When businesses were ‘in
the black,’ they were making money. That was fine by Joan, so
long as she was spending her money wisely and getting great
deals!
Joan set her alarm for 4 A.M., having laid out her clothes and
sensible shoes the night before. Her purse and everything were
ready, so when that alarm rang, she sprang out of bed and was out
the door in less than 10 minutes. She drove quickly, following a
route she’d mapped out to avoid traffic. Her parking spot was
strategically located between her favorite stores.

She hit the mall like a hurricane, a force of nature in the realm of
shopping. She dodged slow-moving zombie shoppers who’d been
out all night waiting for one special item. She darted between
carts and made acrobatic moves to snag just the items she
wanted. She made people watch in awe as she found the shortest
lines, magically seeming to whiz through store after store.

With arms loaded up with bags, she returned to her car to offload.
She pounded an energy drink, took a couple minutes to focus on
her shopping list, and then it was once more into the fray! She
returned to the stores, dancing around people who didn’t know the
art of the shopping game. She weaved between crowds of people
like a ghost, unseen by those of lesser shopping talents than her.

When she was finally done, she returned to her car with another
armload of bags. Her work done, she retreated home for some rest
for herself and for her credit card. Until next year, that is… Black
Friday Shopping!

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Use the information in the story to answer the questions
below.

1. What does Joan liked doing?

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2. What day is Joan going shopping on?

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3. How would you BEST describe Joan’s shopping technique?

A. careless and free
B. measured and patient
C. planned and coordinated
D. hectic and wild

4. How would you BEST describe Joan’s personality?

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5. TRUE OR FALSE: Joan seems like the kind of person that

works hard to get what she wants?
A. True
B. False
6- What did she do at the end of her shopping trip and why?
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 Costumes and Photographs
Story By: Andrew Frinkle
Robert was a photographer. He liked to take pictures of nature, of
great architecture, of historical things, and even of people. His job
meant that he had to take a lot of pictures of people, though. That was,
unfortunately, where money was made. So, he took lots of pictures of
people, but went out on weekends and evenings to take pictures of
what he wanted to photograph. One day, a young girl named Chelsea
started to change his mind, though.
Chelsea was 10. She was a ham. No, she wasn’t a piece of meat
she was just silly and funny. He met her one day in the photo studio
when she came in with her family for a family portrait. Family
portraits were almost as annoying as baby photos. There was always
one weird kid that stared at the wall, an awkward teenager that hid
behind their hair and stared at the floor, an uncle that didn’t wear
proper clothes for a family photo, or a strange grandma with hair that
leaned in such a way that it was hard to photograph in a flattering
fashion. Chelsea’s family was not like that.
Chelsea’s family was picture perfect. Mom and dad were above-
average looking, well-dressed, and could pose without ruining the
shot. The little boy was polite, well-behaved, and smiled like a champ.
The girl was different. She was cute, but silly. She knew exactly how
to strike a pose that was funny without ruining the picture. They were
a great family as a whole.
After they finished their photo shoot and started choosing the pictures
the family like, Robert wondered if he could get Chelsea to do more
photos. She was the kind of kid whose picture they loved to put up on
the walls to show the character and quality of photos the studio could
take. Robert asked the family if they minded, and they deferred to
Chelsea, since she’d have to sit in the pictures. Chelsea agreed with a
grin, but with one condition: she had to choose costumes from their
selection of props. Robert agreed, laughing. Chelsea disappeared with

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one of the studio assistants, only to come back dressed like a bride.
Robert took several great photos, and Chelsea disappeared again.
This time, she came back looking like a mummy. They took some
silly Halloween shots that had the whole family laughing. The third
costume change switched Chelsea into a teddy bear, which she
performed in a very realistic fashion, making scary faces and
pretending to climb the fake trees in the corner of the shop.
Robert, Chelsea, and Chelsea’s family had such a good time that they
made it a regular thing. Whenever Robert was feeling down about his
photography, Chelsea would come in to take silly pictures and cheer
him up. In return for her photo shoots, Chelsea and her family got free
pictures printed to hang on their walls.
In the end, Robert became great friends with Chelsea’s family, and
since he had a daughter of his own only a year or two younger, the
two became best friends.
Use the information in the story to answer the questions below.
1-What is Robert’s job?
A. He’s a photographer.
B. He’s a movie star.
C. He doesn’t have a job, but he takes pictures as a hobby.
D. He’s a painter.

2-What sort of photos bore Robert?

A. nature pictures
B. historical pictures
C. architectural pictures
D. family pictures

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3.Who comes along and changes Robert’s opinion on family pictures?
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4-What do Chelsea and her familyget out of the extra photo shoots?
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5-Which of these is NOT a way Robert benefits from the
arrangement?
.A. He is motivated and happier about his job
.B. His daughter also made a friend
.C. He gets money
D. His studio gets nice pictures as advertisements

6- What is the meaning of "ham" in the passage?

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7- Get out from the passage a synonym for "smile" -------------
8- Describe Chelsea and her family.
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 Five Flavours

Henry was always thinking about eating. He was hungry, and he

liked to cook. It occurred to him that most things that were good
seemed to be a combination of flavors. Like, chocolate was good,
but mixed with raisins and peanuts, it became great! Or, pineapple
went great with pizza, because the sweetness worked well with the
saltiness.

He thought for a while, and came up with 5 basic flavors that

everything had. He came up with: salty, sweet, sour, spicy, and
savory. They were the 5 S’s that he tried to get in every meal. It
took a while to come up with this list, and then he made a list of
his favorite ingredients for each flavor.

Salty was easy, because he liked salty foods. Chips and snacks
were often salty. Cheese and meats were usually salty, too.

Sour was a bit harder, because he didn’t like sour stuff a lot. He
liked lemons and limes in lemonade and limeade, but not a lot
more. Sour candies were good sometimes, and so were
grapefruits. Sour was a harder flavor to like.

Spicy was pretty fun. He loved eating hot sauce. He ate it on his
eggs, on his pizza, and on his burgers. He threw pickled hot
peppers on his sandwiches, too. The vinegar made them a bit sour
also, which helped him get his sour flavors.

Sweet was really easy. Desserts were usually sweet, and he had no
trouble with them. He could eat fruit all day, or sweet yogurts and
puddings. Candy and chocolate were sweet, too.

Savory was sort of a weird flavor to think about. It wasn’t

something he often considered. It was usually the thing that made
food smell so good and got your saliva going. It meant things like

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smoked cheeses, nuts, and garlic. They were the aroma makers
that made a restaurant smell amazing.

So Henry had figured out all of his flavors, and started combining
them. On pizza, he had sweet pineapple, spicy hot peppers, salty
sausage, and savory smoked cheeses. All he was really missing
was sour, so he had some lemonade. For another meal, he had
sweet and spicy honey chicken with crushed almonds and salty
fried noodles. A wedge of lime crushed over the top gave him all
the flavors! It really rounded out the meal and made things more
delicious.

Use the information in the story to answer the questions

below.

1. Which of these is not one of Henry’s 5 flavours?

A. sweet
B. spicy
C. bitter
D. savory

2. What are the 5 flavours Henry thought about?

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3. Give an example of Henry’s savory flavour.

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4. Which of these is not an example given for Henry’s sweet
flavour?
A. cheese
B. chocolate
C. candy
D. pudding

5. Give an example of Henry’s sour flavour?

6- Give a synonym for "taste": -----------------------------

7- Search for a phrasal verb that means to find an idea: ------------

8- What about your favourite flavour? Talk about it mentioning

why is it your favourite?

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15
 Getting Ready for Class

Jane was always getting yelled at for not being ready for
class. It happened so often, that she could see her teacher’s
mouth open to yell at her as soon as she stepped through the
door. What had been gentle reminders at first had become
insistent and irritated comments. She didn’t really blame her
teacher that much, though. She knew she hated repeating
herself, so why wouldn’t her teacher?
Just once, if it drove herself crazy, she wanted to impress her
teacher by being ready. She got her things out the night
before, and then organized them carefully. She made sure
her agenda was signed by her parents. She sharpened three
pencils to razor tips. She double checked to make sure there
wasn’t a single question left unanswered in her homework.
Then she made sure she’d read her pages in the novel she
was supposed to keep up in. Things looked good.
After a late night preparing, she fell asleep, but woke up late.
In the rush for the bus in the morning, she somehow forgot
her backpack. Between breakfast, putting shoes on, and
taking out the trash, she forgot her entire backpack! Man,
was she going to catch it at school. Here she was trying to
impress her teacher, and she’d just disappoint him further.
Jane felt sick. It was like someone had punched her in the
guts. She dreaded the arrival at school. Whining as she
stepped down off the bus, she decided to go take her

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medicine and get the punishment she deserved. How could
she be so irresponsible?
Right as she was about to go into class, she heard her name
being paged over the school intercom. She had to go to the
office? Had her teacher already told the principal? Had they
said that she had left her whole backpack at home? With
leaden feet, she stumbled into the office, only to find her
mother waiting for her.
“You forgot your backpack. I know you tried hard to
get ready, so I wanted to make sure you had your things”.
Jane laughed in relief and rushed off to class after
hugging her mother.
That day, the teacher didn’t yell at her. Instead, when he got
ready to yell, he closed his mouth and smiled. He was happy
to see she was ready, and Jane was happy to be doing the
right thing.

Use the information in the story to answer the questions

.below
1- .Why is Jane usually getting in trouble in class?
A. She says rude things.
B. She’s often late.
C. She’s not prepared.
D. She sleeps in class.

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2-What does Jane plan to do the night before school?
A. Get a lot of sleep.
B. Do her homework
C. Eat a good breakfast.
D. Get everything ready for the next day.

3 .What happens the next morning?

A. Jane forgets her backpack.
B. Jane sleeps in and misses the bus.
C. Jane’s backpack rips.
D. Jane’s brother gets sick on her homework.

4 .Why is Jane really upset when she gets to school?

A. She tried hard to get ready for school, and then she didn’t
do her homework.
B. She hates school.
C. She really wanted to do things right, but forgot her lunch
money.
D. She wanted to make her teacher happy, but thought she’d
disappoint him again.

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5 .How does Jane’s teacher react when she has her things
ready?
A. He is mean still.
B. He smiles and seems happy.
C. He’s angry and yells at someone else.
D. He doesn’t notice.
6- Give a synonym for the word "fear" --------------------
7- What is the important role that Jane's mother plays in the
crises that Jane has?

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