Metacognitive Reading Strategies Quiz

Test your understanding of reading strategies using examples from Tuck Everlasting

Prologue from Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

The first week of August hangs at the very top of summer, the top of the live-long year, like the highest seat of a Ferris wheel when it pauses in its turning. The weeks that come before are only a climb from balmy spring, and those that follow a drop to the chill of autumn, but the first week of August is motionless, and hot. It is curiously silent, too, with blank white dawns and glaring noons, and sunsets smeared with too much color. Often at night there is lightning, but it quivers all alone. There is no thunder, no relieving rain. These are strange and breathless days, the dog days, when people are led to do things they are sure to be sorry for after.

One day at that time, not so very long ago, three things happened and at first there appeared to be no connection between them.

At dawn, Mae Tuck set out on her horse for the wood at the edge of the village of Treegap. She was going there, as she did once every ten years, to meet her two sons, Miles and Jesse.

At noontime, Winnie Foster, whose family owned the Treegap wood, lost her patience at last and decided to think about running away.

And at sunset a stranger appeared at the Fosters' gate. He was looking for someone, but he didn't say who.

No connection, you would agree. But things can come together in strange ways. The wood was at the center, the hub of the wheel. All wheels must have a hub. A Ferris wheel has one, as the sun is the hub of the wheeling calendar. Fixed points they are, and best left undisturbed, for without them, nothing holds together. But sometimes people find this out too late.

Question 1
Which metacognitive reading strategy involves connecting new information to what you already know before reading?
Correct Answer: B) Prior Knowledge
Prior Knowledge, also known as pre-reading, involves activating what you already know about a topic before reading. This helps you comprehend new information by connecting it to existing knowledge.
Question 2
Read this quote from the prologue:
"The first week of August hangs at the very top of summer, the top of the live-long year, like the highest seat of a Ferris wheel when it pauses in its turning."
Which metacognitive strategy would help you understand this descriptive passage?
Correct Answer: C) Visualizing
Visualizing involves making mental images while reading. This passage is highly descriptive and uses simile ("like the highest seat of a Ferris wheel"), making it perfect for creating mental pictures of the summer setting.
Question 3
Read this quote from the prologue:
"At dawn, Mae Tuck set out on her horse for the wood at the edge of the village of Treegap. At noontime, Winnie Foster, whose family owned the Treegap wood, lost her patience at last and decided to think about running away. And at sunset a stranger appeared at the Fosters' gate. He was looking for someone, but he didn't say who. No connection, you would agree."
Which question demonstrates the "Questioning" strategy?
Correct Answer: B) How are these three events connected?
The Questioning strategy involves asking meaningful questions to clarify meaning and focus attention on what's important. Since the text mentions "no connection" but hints they will come together, asking about connections demonstrates active questioning.
Question 4
Based on the prologue's description of August as "strange and breathless days, when people are led to do things they are sure to be sorry for after," what prediction might you make?
Correct Answer: B) Characters will make important decisions they might regret
Making Predictions involves using textual clues to anticipate what will happen next. The phrase about people doing "things they are sure to be sorry for after" strongly suggests characters will make regrettable decisions.
Question 5
Read this quote from the prologue:
"The weeks that come before are only a climb from balmy spring, and those that follow a drop to the chill of autumn, but the first week of August is motionless, and hot."
Which metacognitive strategy would be most helpful if you encountered an unfamiliar word like "balmy" in this text?
Correct Answer: B) Self-Monitoring
Self-Monitoring involves recognizing when you don't understand something and taking action to clarify it. When you encounter unfamiliar words, self-monitoring helps you identify the problem and use context clues to determine meaning.
Question 6
The prologue mentions that "The wood was at the center, the hub of the wheel." What does this metaphor suggest about the wood's importance to the story?
Correct Answer: B) The wood is central to connecting all the story elements
Finding Themes involves identifying the author's main ideas. The metaphor of the wood as "the hub of the wheel" suggests it's a central, fixed point that holds everything together - indicating its crucial role in the story's development.
Question 7
Read this quote from the prologue:
"One day at that time, not so very long ago, three things happened and at first there appeared to be no connection between them. At dawn, Mae Tuck set out on her horse for the wood... At noontime, Winnie Foster... lost her patience at last and decided to think about running away. And at sunset a stranger appeared at the Fosters' gate... No connection, you would agree. But things can come together in strange ways."
When using the Summarizing strategy, which would be the most important detail to include from the prologue?
Correct Answer: C) Three seemingly unconnected events that will somehow come together
Summarizing requires identifying the most important information. The central concept of the prologue is that three unrelated events will connect in strange ways, which sets up the entire story's premise.
Question 8
Strong readers who use metacognitive strategies tend to do all of the following EXCEPT:
Correct Answer: C) Read passively without thinking about the text
According to the Open ELA chapter, strong readers are active readers who engage with the text. Reading passively without thinking contradicts the metacognitive approach, which emphasizes thinking about thinking and being self-aware while reading.
Question 9
The author mentions that "Fixed points they are, and best left undisturbed, for without them, nothing holds together. But sometimes people find this out too late." This statement suggests which type of literary element?
Correct Answer: B) Foreshadowing
Making Predictions helps readers recognize literary devices like foreshadowing. The phrase "sometimes people find this out too late" hints at future conflict or problems, warning readers that something will go wrong when the "fixed point" is disturbed.
Question 10
Which question would best help you use the "Finding Themes" strategy with this prologue?
Correct Answer: B) What is the author saying about fate, connections, and consequences?
Finding Themes involves identifying the author's main ideas and big concepts. The prologue explores themes of interconnectedness, fate, and consequences through the imagery of wheels, hubs, and people doing things they'll regret.