Grade 5

FCAT 2.0 Reading

Sample Answers

This booklet contains the answers to the FCAT 2.0 Reading sample questions, as well as
explanations for the answers. It also gives the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards
(NGSSS) benchmark assessed by each item. Although the Florida State Board of Education
adopted the Common Core State Standards in the summer of 2010, these standards have not yet
been implemented. For this reason, the FCAT 2.0 tests and sample questions and answers are
based on the 2007 NGSSS. The benchmarks included in this booklet provide teachers with
additional information. For more detailed information, follow this link to the Florida NGSSS
website: http://www.floridastandards.org/index.aspx, or follow this link to the current
benchmark language in the FCAT 2.0 Reading Test Item Specifications:
http://fcat.fldoe.org/fcat2/itemspecs.asp.

Multiple-choice items in FCAT 2.0 Reading tests are scored by awarding one point for each
correct answer.

The intent of these sample test materials is to orient teachers and students to the types of
questions on FCAT 2.0 tests. By using these materials, students will become familiar with the
types of items and response formats they will see on the actual test. The sample questions and
answers are not intended to demonstrate the length of the actual test, nor should student
responses be used as an indicator of student performance on the actual test. Additional
information about test items can be found in the FCAT 2.0 Test Item Specifications at
http://fcat.fldoe.org/fcat2/itemspecs.asp.

The sample questions for students and the sample answers for teachers will only be available
online, at http://fcat.fldoe.org/fcat2/fcatitem.asp.
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5 FCAT 2.0 Reading Sample Answers

Passage: “The Boy Lincoln’s Best Teacher”

“The Boy Lincoln’s Best Teacher” by Wayne Whipple. In the public domain. “Young Abe Lincoln reading”: Copyright © North Wind Picture Archives / Alamy.

1 The correct answer is C (the most affectionate person in Abe’s family).

Type of Text: Informational

Benchmark: LA.5.1.6.7 The student will use meaning of familiar base words and
affixes to determine meanings of unfamiliar complex words. [Also assesses
LA.5.1.6.11 The student will use meaning of familiar roots and affixes derived from Greek
and Latin to determine meanings of unfamiliar complex words.]

The correct answer is C. The base word of fondest is fond, meaning affectionate or tender.
The words It would be strange if her eyes did not fill also support the idea that the mother is
very appreciative and affectionate as a result of Abe’s kind actions.

2 The correct answer is H (modest).

Type of Text: Informational

Benchmark: LA.5.1.6.8 The student will use knowledge of antonyms, synonyms,

homophones, and homographs to determine meanings of words.

The correct answer is H. Modest is a synonym for humble. Included in the excerpt is the
phrase from the hut to the White House, which also supports understanding of the word.

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3 The correct answer is C (His childhood home reveals the simple beginnings
where Abraham Lincoln was raised).

Type of Text: Informational

Benchmark: LA.5.2.1.2 The student will locate and analyze the elements of plot
structure, including exposition, setting, character development, rising/falling
action, problem/resolution, and theme in a variety of fiction.

The correct answer is C. By showing how simple Abe’s house and the backwoods were,
the author helps to explain why the future president was a humble man who rose to
greatness against all odds. There were no regular schools in the backwoods then, so he never
had a year’s schooling in his life. He still managed to make the noble pilgrimage from their hovel
to the highest home in the land. “The Backwoods Boy” made it from the hut to the White House,
and to his mother, it would have seemed “too good to be true.”

4 The correct answer is I (Abraham Lincoln’s mother contributed to his

successful career).

Type of Text: Informational

Benchmark: LA.5.1.7.3 The student will determine the main idea or essential
message in grade-level text through inferring, paraphrasing, summarizing, and
identifying relevant details.

The correct answer is I. Abe’s mother, Nancy, insisted on sending the children to school, and
she had a large share in Abe’s early education . . . The best thing of all was the reading of “The
Pilgrim’s Progress.” It showed that she valued and encouraged learning. The passage
concludes by returning to her contribution. In reading to her son, she was fostering a spirit in
her little son that would help him make the noble pilgrimage from their hovel to the highest home
in the land.

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5 The correct answer is C (by describing childhood events that shaped

Lincoln’s future).

Type of Text: Informational

Benchmark: LA.5.1.7.5 The student will identify the text structure an author uses
(e.g., comparison/contrast, cause/effect, and sequence of events) and explain how
it impacts meaning in text.

The correct answer is C. The author begins the passage by introducing Abe’s first two
teachers and sharing a recollection of his early school days. It is then revealed that The
best thing of all was the reading of “The Pilgrim’s Progress” during the long Winter evenings,
showing that he appreciated how his mother was fostering a spirit in him. Next, the time
when he surprised his family by bringing spicewood branches for the fire is described in
detail to show a little boy’s love and gratitude for his mother. All of the events helped shape
him into a great president.

Poem: “Night and Day”

“Night and Day” by Robert Louis Stevenson. In the public domain. Photograph: “Tree at Sunset”: Copyright © images/Alamy.

6 The correct answer is F (glow, shine).

Type of Text: Literary

Benchmark: LA.5.1.6.9 The student will determine the correct meaning of words
with multiple meanings in context. [Also assesses LA.5.1.6.6 The student will identify
shades of meaning in related words (e.g., blaring, loud).]

The correct answer is F. The words glow and shine are the two closest words in meaning
of the available choices of pairs. The poem also offers a possible context clue to the
correct answer as both glow and shine are within the poem and focus on what could be
seen during the darkness (3rd stanza) and the daytime (8th stanza).

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7 The correct answer is C (to suggest that the evening covers everything).

Type of Text: Literary

Benchmark: LA.5.2.1.7 The student will identify and explain an author’s use of
descriptive, idiomatic, and figurative language (e.g., personification, similes,
metaphors, symbolism), and examine how it is used to describe people, feelings,
and objects.

The correct answer is C. The poem specifies that it is Under evening’s cloak that things
vanish, which presents the idea of this cloak as a vast covering that blankets all people
and objects.

8 The correct answer is G (the way the morning lights up the garden).

Type of Text: Literary

Benchmark: LA.5.2.1.7 The student will identify and explain an author’s use of
descriptive, idiomatic, and figurative language (e.g., personification, similes,
metaphors, symbolism), and examine how it is used to describe people, feelings,
and objects.

The correct answer is G. The poem’s phrases glow with day and Under glowing heaven both
clearly express the image of the garden being lit up by the morning sun.

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9 The correct answer is A (Night and day change the appearance of the garden).

Type of Text: Literary

Benchmark: LA.5.2.1.2 The student will locate and analyze the elements of plot
structure, including exposition, setting, character development, rising/falling
action, problem/resolution, and theme in a variety of fiction.

The correct answer is A. The garden is an important part of the poem and its setting
because the speaker uses the garden to highlight the influence of day and night on the
appearance and behavior of objects in nature, such as the flowers of the garden. At night,
the speaker observes the Garden darkened and daisy shut, while in the daylight the flowers
vividly appear Green and rosy painted.

10 The correct answer is I (Night makes the world seem to disappear, while day
makes everything visible again).

Type of Text: Literary

Benchmark: LA.5.1.7.7 The student will compare and contrast elements in

multiple texts.

The correct answer is I. This answer is the only one that accurately reflects the poem’s
contrast between night and day. The night is compared to a cloak under which all things
vanish. The speaker says of his garden that at eve from his eyes it fainted or became a
disappearing image. In contrast with the role of night, in the morning the speaker sees
his garden glow with day. When the day begins to break, Houses, trees, and hedges,
Clearer grow.

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Article: “from The Story of My Life”
“from The Story of My Life” by Helen Keller. In the public domain / The Project Gutenberg. Photograph: Public Domain / Library of Congress.

11 The correct answer is D (by revealing the challenges that Helen Keller had
conquered in her life).

Type of Text: Informational

Benchmark: LA.5.2.2.1 The student will locate, explain, and use information
from text features (e.g., table of contents, glossary, index, transition words/phrases,
headings, subheadings, charts, graphs, illustrations).

The correct answer is D. This answer focuses on the key information about the challenges
and disabilities that Helen Keller faced from her early childhood onward and her
eventual success in overcoming them. This is underscored when the introduction reveals
that she was without hearing, vision, or the ability to speak before she was two years old.

12 The correct answer is F (She wanted to be a part of the activities going on

around her).

Type of Text: Informational

Benchmark: LA.5.1.6.7 The student will use meaning of familiar base words
and affixes to determine meanings of unfamiliar complex words. [Also assesses
L.A.5.1.6.11 The student will use meaning of familiar roots and affixes derived from
Greek and Latin to determine meanings of unfamiliar complex words.]

The correct answer is F. As indicated in the stem, the Latin root of communication,
communicare, means “to take part in,” which strongly suggests the idea that the young
Helen Keller wanted to participate in activities with her family. The overall article
reinforces this idea.

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13 The correct answer is B (Fold the page on the dotted lines to make it into a
paper airplane).

Type of Text: Informational

Benchmark: LA.5.1.6.9 The student will determine the correct meaning of words
with multiple meanings in context. [Also assesses LA.5.1.6.6 The student will identify
shades of meaning in related words (e.g., blaring, loud).]

The correct answer is B. Only option B uses the word fold in such a way as to indicate the
act of bending an object, such as a piece of paper or a blanket, over upon itself.

14 The correct answer is I (She was using her sense of touch to try to
understand them).

Type of Text: Informational

Benchmark: LA.5.1.7.3 The student will determine the main idea or essential
message in grade-level text through inferring, paraphrasing, summarizing, and
identifying relevant details.

The correct answer is I. According to information in the article, Keller stood between two
persons who were conversing and touched their lips. She then reveals to the reader that she
could not understand, and was vexed.

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15 The correct answer is B (to explain why her parents thought she needed
a teacher).

Type of Text: Informational

Benchmark: LA.5.1.7.2 The student will identify the author’s purpose (e.g., to
persuade, inform, entertain, explain) and how an author’s perspective influences
text.

The correct answer is B. In the article, Keller makes a direct connection between the act of
locking her mother in the pantry and the resulting conviction on the part of both her
parents that she must be taught as soon as possible. The answer is further supported by the
next sentence, After my teacher, Miss Sullivan, came to me. . ., which introduces Keller’s
teacher.

16 The correct answer is I (Being different can be a challenge but can also
encourage creativity).

Type of Text: Informational

Benchmark: LA.5.1.7.6 The student will identify themes or topics across a

variety of fiction and nonfiction selections.

The correct answer is I. This answer is the only one that accurately addresses a major
overarching lesson in the article. Throughout the article, Keller describes the creative
ways in which she communicates with her family and participates in their daily life
during her childhood. Keller also highlights her creativity and spontaneity by sharing
how on one occasion she put on my idea of a company dress in order to help her mother
entertain visitors.

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To offer students a variety of texts on the FCAT 2.0 Reading tests, authentic and copyrighted stories, poems, and articles
appear as they were originally published, as requested by the publisher and/or author.
Every effort has been made to trace the ownership of all copyrighted material and to secure the necessary permissions to
reprint selections.

Copyright Statement for This Office of Assessment Publication

Authorization for reproduction of this document is hereby granted to persons acting in an official capacity within the
Uniform System of Public K–12 Schools as defined in Section 1000.01(4), Florida Statutes. The copyright notice at the bottom
of this page must be included in all copies.
All trademarks and trade names found in this publication are the property of their respective owners and are not associated
with the publishers of this publication.
This publication is provided by the Florida Department of Education to Florida public schools free of charge and is not
intended for resale.
Permission is NOT granted for distribution or reproduction outside of the Uniform System of Public K–12 Schools or for
commercial distribution of the copyrighted materials without written authorization from the Florida Department of
Education. Questions regarding use of these copyrighted materials should be sent to the following:
The Administrator

Office of Assessment

Florida Department of Education

Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0400

Copyright © 2012

State of Florida

Department of State

The Florida Department of Education and its test contractors currently employ strategies to protect the
environment in the production and destruction of FCAT 2.0 materials. The Department encourages
schools and districts to recycle non-secure FCAT 2.0 interpretive publications after use.

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