Na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na Batman!

 Read the description of this book as found on the back cover:

They are the world's greatest super heroes, fighting endlessly against corruption and injustice. Each of them alone is a formidable opponent of evil, but banded together their powers are unmatched. Ever ready, they stand united as the JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA. Ancient pyramids awakened by the blood of a treacherous murder have unleashed death and destruction over Gotham. The harder the Superheroes try to fight the pyramids the more the neolithic stones react like a negative battery, draining the heroes of their powers and descending them into their own personal hell, to that which they fear most. Batman is the only one who manages to escape this wrath. As he strives to save his friends and Gotham, he embarks on a journey filled with black magic, shamans, and ancient rituals of terror and sacrifice. With a triumphant and explosive ending, this is a book that anyone who enjoys a great tale of sorcery will enjoy.

Based on the above passage, what is the best definition for the word "neolithic"?

a. electrified

b. very old

c. futuristic

d. radioactive

Scroll down for the answer.

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This could be tricky since the prefix neo (which means new) might lead you to think futuristic and the power draining effect they have might lead you to think radioactive.  However, the references to the pyramids was the hint that "neolithic" means one of the stone ages, so the best answer is b. very old.

Sadly, there's no wisecracking blue genie in this one!

In the book, 1001 Arabian Nights, there is a sultan that hates women and likes to marry one and then have her killed the next night.  After killing many women this way, he finally marries a woman named Scheherazade who tricks him into letting her live by telling him stories each night, but not finishing them.  That way he must let her live to hear the end of the story.

In the movie version, the sultan was betrayed by his first wife and is planning on killing the next, which is Scheherazade.  He has never actually had a wife killed and because she saves him from his madness, he never does.

What was the director's purpose in changing the story in this manner?


a. to create an indifferent tone
b. to focus on the irony of the situation
c. the director probably never read the original story.
d. it makes the sultan a more sympathetic character






Scroll down for the answer.














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a. is incorrect.  An indifferent tone means that the director doesn't care one way or the other.  Since he made the change, we can assume he cares.
b. is incorrect.  There is no irony in this situation.  Many students automatically pick the irony answer since it sounds intelligent.  Don't fall for that trick.
c. is incorrect. 
d. is correct.  If the sultan is killing women, it makes it hard to accept him as a guy who deserves to get the woman at the end of the movie.


~

Didn't You Read Percy Jackson?

 Watch the commercial:

Based on the allusion presented in the commercial, we can assume that a rival for Mercedes is:

a. Mercury
b. BMW
c. Lexus
d. Cadillac











Scroll down for the answer.







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a. is the correct answer.  This should be pretty easy allusion to get.  The state test will often shy away from allusions because it relies on you knowing something outside of the text.  However, allusions to mythology are fair game, as it is expected that everyone is familiar with basic classical mythology.

Freebie - Ace the State Test

 Hello teachers!  Never fear, your daily question is just a downwards scroll away, but I wanted to give you a chance to grab the Last Minute EOC Tips presentation.  You can get it by going to https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Extreme-English-Teacher and grabbing the Free Download (should see it at the top right, but if not, just scroll the products until you see it).  I hope it helps!  If it does, please consider leaving a review.

Kill the Beast!

Read the following passage.


In the book, Lord of the Flies, a plane crashes, stranding several young boys on an island with no adults.  Early in the book, we meet Ralph, a kid with golden tan skin and blond hair and Piggy, a fat boy with glasses and asthma.  Another major character they meet is Jack, the leader of the choir who has red hair and lots of freckles.


Make a prediction based only on what is given in the above passage.  Which boy will be the most violent of the three? 


a. Jack
b. Ralph
c. Piggy

Scroll down for the answer.




















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a. is the correct answer.  How could you know?  Well, all we have is their description.  Jack has red hair.  Red is an archetype (a type of symbol) that means violence.


~

I'm So Ready for Summer

Ray Bradbury's short story, "All Summer in a Day" takes place on Venus.  When it was written, nobody knew what the surface of Venus was like, so Bradbury guessed that it was rainy.  Read this excerpt:

"Margot stood apart from them, from these children who could never remember a time when there wasn't rain and rain and rain.  They were all nine years old, and if there had been a day, seven years ago, when the sun came out for an hour and showed its face to the stunned world, they could not recall."

What is the reason for the repetition of the word rain in this passage?

a. to emphasis and draw attention to the fact that it always rains on Venus.
b. for the rhyme and meter of the line.
c. for the alliterarion value.
d. it is part of the verbal irony of the passage.






Scroll down for the answers.





________________________

a. is correct.  By repeating words the author makes you take notice of it.
b. is incorrect.  Look for rhyme and meter in poetry, not prose.
c. is incorrect
d. is incorrect


~

Did You Ever Think as a Hearse Goes by....

 Read the following passage from Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman and answer the question:

Mr. Vandemar, on the other hand, simply walked. It was too consistent, too steady and inexorable a walk to be described as a stroll: Death walks like Mr. Vandemar.

Which literary device represents Death?

a. allusion
b. hyperbole
c. tone
d. personification

Scroll down for the answer.

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Answer: D - one of the clues that alerts the reader of personification is that sometimes the thing personified will be capitalized (like Death here).  This is not always the case, but when you see something like Death or Time capitalized, then think personification.

Thanks to Ms. Parsons for this question!  I was trying to come up with some clever thing to say about Death and her class, but nothing really seemed to work (they were all either cheesy, morbid, or both), so... :(