Read the sign. Answer questions 1 to 4

Read the e-mail. Answer questions 5 and 6

To: Jess

From: Erika

Subject Aquarium Trip

I had a really great time at the aquarium this weekend with my mom and dad. We saw a lot of big fish, and I even got to feed some. I also saw some sharks. They were not too scary. I can show you some funny pictures of them. Do you want to know what I liked most about the trip? I got to see penguins jumping and swimming in the water. I hope you can go to the aquarium with me the next time I go. 
From, 
Erika 

Read the e-mail. Answer questions 7 and 8

To: Cory

From: Daniella

Subject Our friend Lee

Thank you for telling us again that Lee is moving to a new school next week. Art class is his favorite class, and I thought we could make a painting for him as a present. Do you think this is a good idea?

I do not have any paint at home, so I am going to the art store tomorrow after school with my mom. We can work on the painting together. Lee's last day at our school is Friday, so we have to finish it before then. Let me know what you think. 

Daniella

Read the e-mail. Answer questions 9 and 10

To: Lucy.Rae

From: Grandma.Rae

Subject: Something special for you

You know that early in the morning I like to take a nice walk on the beach near my house, right? Well, today while I was walking, I felt something hard under my foot. I looked down and saw a beautiful seashell hiding in the sand. It is blue and white, and since it had no animal inside, I took it home with me. I know how much you like seashells, so I'll give it to you the next time I see you! 

Love,

Grandma 

Read the instructions. Answer questions 11 and 13

Read the instructions. Answer questions 14 and 16

Read a story about Amy and Betsy. Answer questions 17 to 20.

"I want to go camping like you and Dad did a few weeks ago," Betsy said to her older sister Amy. "I will like it."

"I am not so sure, Betsy," Amy explained. "You need to be older, and you have to be brave in the forest. I think that the wild animals will scare you."

This made Betsy angry. If her sister could do it, she could, too! She wanted to show Amy that she was brave. 

"Amy, we can ask mom if we can camp out tonight in the yard behind our house. I can show you that I can stay out there the whole night and not be scared."

"That is a good idea, Betsy. And when you get scared, I will be there to take care of you!" Amy said. Betsy wanted to show that Amy was wrong.

That night, Betsy and Amy were in a tent behind their house. They used two small flashlights to read books to each other. Amy tried to scare her sister, but Betsy was not scared.

Suddenly, Betsy saw a dark shadow covering the side of the tent. She smiled because she knew that the shadow belonged to their cat, Max. Betsy turned to Amy, and Amy's eyes were wide open. Amy shouted, "Wild animal! Wild animal!" Max burst into their tent, happy to see the children. 

Betsy was happy, too. She showed that she was not afraid to go camping. 

Read a story about Kaila. Answer questions 21 to 24

"Kaila, clean your room! Your grandfather will be here soon!" Kaila's mother called out. Kaila was sitting on her bed reading a magazine.

"Okay, Mom," Kaila said. She wanted to read her magazine, but she knew her mother wanted the room cleaned now.

Kaila put the magazine down and looked around her room. There were many clothes and magazines on the floor and under her bed. She did not think she could finish before her grandfather arrived.

"I can start by putting my clothes in the closet," she thought to herself. "This is the one thing I can finish before my grandfather comes."

She opened her closet doors and began putting her clothes away. Then she saw something in the back of the closet on the floor. It was a small wooden box. 

"Where did that come from?" Kaila thought to herself. She opened the lid. Inside the box were several photographs of a young boy. The photographs looked very old.

Kaila's mother opened the door. "Are you almost done cleaning your room, Kaila?" she asked.

"Not yet, but look what I found," Kaila said, showing her mother the photographs. "Who is this?" 

Kaila's mother looked at the photographs and smiled. "That's your grandfather when he was a boy. He grew up in this house. In fact, this used to be his room."

"Wow. I did not know that," Kaila said. "I cannot wait until he gets here. I think he will enjoy seeing these." 

Read about hot air balloons. Answer questions 25 and 26.

Hot air balloons are special balloons that are very large and can fly in the sky. Hot air balloons can even carry people! People can stand in big baskets attached to the bottom of the balloon and fly up in the air. The balloon floats up into the air because of hot air. When air is heated, it becomes lighter and it rises on top of the colder air. That's why there is a small flame at the bottom of the balloon. This small fire heats the air inside the balloon. The hot, light air inside the balloon causes it to go up into the air. 

Read about owls. Answer questions 27 and 28.

Animals protect themselves from danger in many different ways. Some animals change colors so other animals cannot see them. The white-faced owl is a bird that has an interesting way to scare away other animals. White-faced owls change their shape when they meet dangerous animals. For example, if the owl sees another animal that is the same size, the owl will puff its feathers and wings so that it looks really big. But if this owl sees a larger bird, it will make itself look very thin, as if it is sick. These owls pretend to be sick and thin so that larger birds will not want to eat them. 

Read about guitars. Answer questions 29 and 30.

Musicians have played guitars for a long time. There is a stone picture from the Middle East that is 3300 years old, and it shows a man playing a musical instrument with three strings that looks like a guitar. The strings are important because a person moves the strings to make music. These old instruments were made out of different materials such as wood, shells, and some strings were made of silk. About 200 years ago, a man in Spain named Antonio Torres started to design instruments with six strings and a bigger body. His new guitars also had a bigger, louder sound. These were the first modern guitars, like the ones people play all over the world today.