Sunday, July 19, 2015

GED, HiSET and TASC Reading Test Practice Passages

GED, HiSET and TASC Reading Test Practice Passages

GED, HiSET and TASC Reading
Passing the GED, HiSET and TASC Reading and Language Arts, and Math Test gives those who do not complete high school, or who do not meet requirements for high school diploma, the opportunity to earn their high school equivalency credential, in the majority of the United States, Canada, or internationally. GED, HiSET and TASC are test that can be easily passed if you take time and study! 






Reading Passages ELA (CAHSEE) Grade Level Nonfiction Passages 

8th-10th Grade Reading Leve passages
  1. An African Heritage in Chicago identify and support the main idea in a nonfiction passage
  2. Bold Plans, Big Dreams, City Progress identify and support the theme of a text
  3. Changing the Ecosystem infer and support the main idea of a passage
  4. Changing the Ecosystem with Multiple Choice Questions and Activities
  5. Chicago is a City of Possibilities: Deval Patrick, Leader for Chicago analyze a text and write an extended response based on it
  6. Deval Patrick's Acceptance Speech infer and support the main idea of a passage
  7. George Washington Carver
  8. Gwendolyn Brooks, An African American Poet
  9. Honest Abe infer and support the main idea of a passage
  10. Inaugural Address by John F. Kennedy evaluate information, summarize, and identify and support a main idea
  11. Inferential Questions: Harold Washington's Acceptance Speech
  12. Labor Day Address--Barack Obama Speech infer and support the main idea of a passage
  13. Learn about Physical Therapists evaluate information, summarize, and identify and support a main idea
  14. Learn about South Africa evaluate information, summarize, and identify and support a main idea
  15. Maintaining Cultural Continuity infer and support the main idea of a passage
  16. New Leadership analyze a speech
  17. Settlement infer and support the main idea of a passage
  18. Settlement with Multiple Choice Questions and Activities
  19. Transportation Changes infer and support the main idea of a passage
  20. What is Your Own Big Plan? (Barack Obama speech) analyze a text and respond to the issues it presents, write an extended response to a persuasive text
  21. What Values Have Shaped Chicago? identify the main idea of a passage
  22. Why is Community Service Important? identify the main idea and supporting information
  23. Chicago High Schools infer predictions
  24. Chicago Legacy: DuSable's Choices and Changes infer and support the main idea of a passage
  25. Deval Patrick's Acceptance Speech infer and support the main idea of a passage
  26. Harold Washington's Acceptance Speech
  27. Frederick Douglass Speech on Women's Suffrage
  28. John F. Kennedy's Remarks in the Rudolph Wilde Platz, Berlin
  29. Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address
  30. President Barack Obama's Speech to Students
  31. President Franklin D. Roosevelt's First Inaugural Address
Deforestation: Facts, Causes & Effects
Deforestation is the act of permanently destroying forests in order to make land available for a variety of purpuses intends to provide benefit to the humans. However, in the process it results in far more damage that all its benefits.
Facts
·         According to an estimate by the United Nation’s Food and Agricultural Organization or FAO, the world is losing around 18 million acres, which translates into 7.3 million hectares, of forestland every year. This is approximately the size of the country of Panama, and the world is losing its forest cover at this rate. This is translated into around 36 football fields’ worth of tress that the planet is losing every minute as per the latest studies conducted by the World Wildlife Fund or WWF.
·         Moreover, the real cause of concern is due to the fact that an overwhelming majority of the cleared forestlands lies in the tropical belt, which is home an alarmingly high number of flora and fauna that are endemic to the region. In fact, around half of the total forests cleared every year lie in the tropical zone as per the FAO estimates. The country that has suffered from the highest amount of deforestation is Indonesia where an estimated 15.79 million hectares of tropical forestlands have been lost.
·         In addition to the loss of valuable lifeforms, deforestation is also being held responsible for an estimated 6 percent to 12 percent of the annual carbon dioxide emissions around the globe, according to Nature Geoscience.
·         Finally, forests cover approximately 30 percent of the landmass across the globe, which is rapidly shrinking due to deforestation. Countries being worst sufferers or most vulnerable to the vagaries of deforestation include Indonesia, Brazil, Thailand, Democratic Republic of Congo, Russia, Alaska in USA, and parts of Eastern Europe.
Causes
The causes behind deforestation are numerous, with some being of more consequence that the others.
·         Forests are cleared to make land available for housing and cultivation. The rapid increase in the pace of urbanization has been mainly because of the huge rise in the human population, while an aspiration middle class is also leading to growth of cities around the globe. Moreover, a burgeoning population pressure is leading to an increase demand for land for cultivation to supply enough food grains.
·         Many forests are being cleared because of the huge demand for timber to manufacture commercial items such as paper, furniture, and homes. In fact, the forest based industries form a backbone of a many national economies around the world, with the continuing abuses of the forests being a result of the attempt to extract more resources from them.
·         Forestlands are cleared to obtain various valuable consumer items such as palm tree oil. Moreover, sometimes the forests are cleared to make room for cattle ranching, and various other associated commercial activities.
·         Finally, many indigenous tribes and people from low income groups cut down trees in order to obtain fuel wood for their homes.
Effects
Deforestation has had a number of serious ill effects on the planet earth and all her inhabitants, which people had not bargained for when they launched their massive deforestation drives.
·         Deforestation has directly led to a significant rise in the amount of carbon released into the atmosphere. Loss of trees is also compromising the ability to consume carbon dioxide emitted through various human activities, all of this leading rise in the level of Greenhouse Gases such as CO2 and water vapor, and the phenomenon termed as Global Warming.
·         Deforestation is also causing disruption to the water cycle and the weather pattern, which does not bode well for agriculturists around the globe.
·         Deforestation is leading to loss of various species of plants and animals, as well as, as an increase in the rate of soil erosion.
Government and international organizations, as well as, the general populace need to realize that deforestation is leading to inevitable destruction of the global ecosystem through which is going bode nothing good for the human civilization.
Questions
1.      What is the full form of FAO?

a)      Food and Agriculture Organization
b)      Food and Agricultural Organization
c)      Food and Agronomic Organization

2.      According to UN reports, what is the amount of forest cover lost every year?

a)      15 million hectares
b)      18 million hectares
c)      7.3 million hectares

3.      Which is the country that has suffered the most from deforestation?

a)      Democratic Republic of Congo
b)      Indonesia
c)      Brazil

4.      Which factors, as per the author, are behind the ongoing deforestation around the globe?

a)      Population pressure, forest based industries, demand for forest products, and fuel wood
b)      Population pressure, heavy industries, lack of demand for forest products
c)      Drop in population growth rates, fuel wood, rise in demand for forest products, and decrease in demand for food grains

5.      Which among the following is not a Greenhouse Gas?

a)      Carbon dioxide
b)      Sulfur dioxide
c)      Water vapor

6.      Deforestation is having harmful impact upon which of the following natural processes, as per the author

a)      Water cycle and weather pattern
b)      Nitrogen cycle and weather pattern
c)      Carbon cycle and direction of the oceanic currents

7.      The author has hoped for the governments, international organizations, and the general populace to realize that

a)      Deforestation can make the countries and their people extremely prosperous
b)      Deforestation is bound to turn out disastrous for the humans and other inhabitants of planet earth
c)      Deforestation is the answer to all the economic and social woes faced by the modern society 


Can you Win Arguments with Your Parents with Facts?
Parents often find it difficult to communicate with their children, especially during the adolescence period when the raging hormones turn almost every person into somewhat of a rebel. However, the situation is tricky equally from both sides, and teenagers have to face the brunt of lack of understanding between them and their parents as well. The problem lies in the fact that no one is quite sure regarding root cause of this troubling issue, and this leads to farther alienation between parents and their teenage children. However, you can averse this situation with a little bit of effort on both you and your parents’ part.

Most teenagers believe that it is next to impossible to win arguments with their parents, because of the lack of understanding about the change of cultural milieu between different generations. They believe that their parents argue with them based on nostalgia and emotions, rather than hard facts that are irrefutable but not quite overwhelming as raw emotion. Thus, you may feel less inclined to have arguments with your parents based solely upon facts and nothing else, because of the belief that with any such approach it is going to land you in an unenviable situation. However, such a notion is as far from the truth as possible, and it is possible to have reasoned arguments with your parents, and even convince them if you have solid reasons backing your argument.

The most important criterion for having a reasoned argument is to ensure that both parties are willing to hear each other out, and give value to reasons that have facts and logic to back them. Even if you consider it highly unlikely to be the case, while you are having an argument with your parents regarding anything from wearing your favorite clothes to college to life in general, it is generally the truth.
Your parents have nothing but the best of thoughts for you, and they are certainly not your nemesis when it comes to living your life on your own terms. However, the concern that they feel towards you and your wellbeing may often seem to be unduly protective and restrictive on their part. This however is not necessarily a reason why you must hold a grudge towards your parents. Instead, you can help them understand your own point of view in a calm and reasoned manner without having to hurt their feelings, and dismissing any or all of their thoughts without judging them first on their merit.

The best thing to do in case you are having serious difference of opinion with your parents is to have calm chat with them, while you present all the fact in your favor to bolster your argument. Even if you consider the facts and logic presented by you to be infallible, be prepared to have your parents show serious doubts about the sanguinity of your claims. This might be because of a difference of perspective, and not necessarily because your parents do not trust your judgment or the validity of your argument.

The most efficient way to win arguments with your parents with facts is by convincing them that the decision you have taken or about to take is to the best of your interests. Since the only concern your parents have is regarding your wellbeing, any argument that focuses on this aspect is likely to enjoy the most amicable countenance from your parents. Therefore, if you have facts to back your argument, and prove that you are quite aware of the implications of your actions, there is no reason to believe that you cannot win arguments with your parents based solely upon facts.

Questions
1.      During which period do parents face most difficulty in communicating and connecting emotionally with their children?
a)      Infancy
b)      Adolescence
c)      Adulthood

2.      What reasons do teenagers give to justify their belief regarding the inability of their parents to understand the logic behind their arguments?
a)      Generational gap regarding changing social milieu
b)      Intentional misunderstanding
c)      Both

3.      What is reality regarding having arguments with parents?
a)      That they are not ready to pay attention to any reasoning
b)      That they are ready to concede to well reasoned arguments
c)      That they lack the ability appreciate reasoned arguments

4.      What is/are the most important criteria for having a reasoned argument?
a)      Willingness to listen to other end of the argument
b)      Attach value to well reasoned arguments
c)      Both

5.       Why do parents tend to become overprotective of their children?
a)      Out of concern for their wellbeing
b)      To humiliate them in front of their friends
c)      To ensure that they lack the skills to survive on their own

6.      What might be the reason/s behind parents shooting down arguments that seems infallible to their children?
a)      Because parents do not trust their children’s judgment
b)      Because parents might possess a different perspective than their children
c)      Both

7.      What method does the author suggest to teenagers to win arguments with their parents?
a)      By making them understand about the positive impact of the decisions made by their children
b)      By deceiving them with false promises

c)      By keeping them in the dark and not share anything of importance 

Captain James Cook Mini Biography
1.      James Cook is one of the most renowned explorers and navigators that the world has ever seen, and according to many has done more to fill the unknown spots on the map of the world than anyone else in history has. He is famous for having discovered the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of New Zealand and Australia on his ship Endeavor, while also disapproving the existence of the fabled southern supercontinent, Terra Australis. He also provided the most detailed and accurate map of the Pacific through his many voyages.
2.      James Cook was born on October 27, 1728, to a Scottish farmhand in Marton-in-Cleveland, Yorkshire, England. Cook worked as a farmhand alongside his father as he grew up, and had the first real exposure to the life on sea when he turned 18. Cook received an offer for apprenticeship from a Quaker ship-owner in Whitby, England when he came of age. This apprenticeship proved to be a life changing experience for Cook, and he developed intimate relation with the ships and the sea. 
3.      The apprenticeship with the Quaker ship-owner was just a beginning to a long and eventful career on the high seas. James Cook dreamt of joining the British Navy, and this desire eventually led him to joining the same a few years later. He showed great skill and fortitude during his life in the navy, and this resulted in Cook being promoted to the rank of ship’s master by the time he was 29 years of age.
4.      James Cook shone in his role as a ship’s master in the British Navy, and this became even more apparent during the Seven Years War, which lasted from 1756 to 1763. During the war, Cook served the Royal Navy by commanding a captured ship with great success. However, his real claim to fame lay far away from the hustle and bustle of naval warfare, in the field of exploration to the far edges of the known world during the latter half of the eighteenth century.
5.      James Cook was chosen to command the first scientific expedition to ever head for the Pacific Ocean. This was a monumental endeavor because of the limited knowledge in hand during those times regarding the geography of the region. Cook’s ship was aptly named HMS Endeavor to reflect upon the mammoth efforts made by the captain and crew to extend the horizon of knowledge regarding the world.
6.      James Cook discovered and charted New Zealand in 1770 on his ship the HMS Endeavor, and this was in addition to the discovery and exploration of the Great Barrier Reef of the coast of Australia. The Great Barrier Reef was an incredible feat because of the fact that its infamy as one of the most dangerous areas to navigate for any ship.
7.      James Cook returned to England after having completed his scientific expedition. However, he was soon chosen for a mission to circumnavigate and explore the Antarctica. On this voyage, Captain Cook charted a number of islands that exist in the Pacific such as Tonga, Easter Island, New Caledonia, the South Sandwich Islands, and South Georgia. Apart from that, he also disapproved the existence of the mythical southern supercontinent, Terra Australis.
8.      James Cook also made valuable contribution towards improving the health condition of sailors while on long expeditions by trying to control scurvy, which is caused by vitamin efficiency, and was a huge problem for sailors. He sought to do so by feeding his crew a meal consisting of watercress, sauerkraut, and orange extract.
9.      James Cook met his demise while fighting a skirmish with the islanders of Kealakekua Bay, Hawaii, during a winter layover on February 14, 1779.
Questions
1.      James Cook is famous as a –
a)      Explorer and pirate
b)      Explorer and navigator
c)      Admiral and navigator
2.      Which among the following is not a famous achievement of James Cook?
a)      Discovering New Zealand
b)      Discovering and charting the Great Barrier Reef
c)      Discovering Antarctica
3.      Under whom James Cook did do his first apprenticeship?
a)      A naval officer
b)      His father, a farmhand
c)      A Quaker ship-owner
4.      What role did James Cook play as a naval officer during the Seven Years War?
a)      He was the admiral of the Royal Navy
b)      He commanded a captured ship for the Royal navy
c)      He took no part in the war
5.      Where did James Cook head during his first scientific mission and on which ship?
a)      The Atlantic, HMS Excalibur
b)      The North Sea, HMS Enterprise
c)      The Pacific, HMS Endeavor
6.      What is the name of the fabled southern supercontinent whose existence James Cook refuted through his explorations?
a)      Terra Australia
b)      Terra Australis
c)      Terra Australasia 
7.      James Cook sought to fight scurvy with a combination of what diet?
a)      Sandwiches, sauerkraut, and orange juice
b)      Sauerkraut, orange extract, and onions
c)      Watercress, sauerkraut, and orange extract 

Claude Monet French Impressionist Painter
1.      Oscar Claude Monet, better known as Claude Monet, is among the most celebrated name in the world of art, and he has been the leading figure in the art movement known as Impressionism, which sought to enrich visual art by capturing light and natural forms. Born to Adolphe Monet, who was into his family’s shipping business, and Louis, a homemaker, on November 14, 1840 in Paris, Claude became fascinated with drawing from an early age. His mother consistently supported his artistic endeavors till her death in 1857, while his father wished him to join the family’s shipping business.
2.      One of the earliest influences upon Claude Monet was a local landscape artist, Eugene Boudin, whom he met in port town of Le Havre where he had moved to at the age of five. Boudin introduced Monet to Plein Air painting or painting outdoors, which went on to become the cornerstone of his work. Later on, he moved back to Paris in 1859, and enrolled himself at the Academie Suisse as a student, where the paintings of the Barbizon school had much influence upon him.
3.      Claude Monet served in the military from 1861 to 1862, during which he was stationed in Algeria. However, he returned to Paris upon being discharged for health reasons, and studied with Charles Gleyre. It was through Gleyre that Monet met the likes of Auguste Renoir, Alfred Sisley, and Frederic Bazille. The four artists became close friends eventually. Moreover, hoe also received strong support and advice from the landscape painter Johann Barthold Jongkind, who had a strong impact upon the style of the young artist.
4.      Monet won acceptance to an annual juried art show held in Paris, the Salon in 1865. He was again selected the following year and won accolades for a landscape, and portrait tiled Camille, which featured his then lover and future wife Camille Doncieux. The couple fought crushing poverty, especially during the time their first son was born in 1867. In fact, Monet even attempted suicide by trying to drown himself in the Seine River the following year.
5.      Monet soon found a patron in the form of Louis-Joachim Guadibert, which enabled him to take care of his family, and this culminated in him marrying his long-term mistress and lover Camille in 1870. After a brief stint in England to avoid the Franco-Prussian War, Monet returned to Paris and visited a number of his artists friends such as Renoir, Pissarro, as well as, Edouard Manet. Together they formed the Societe Anonyme des Artistes, Peintres, Sculpteurs, Graveurs, which served as an alternative platform to the Salon to exhibit their works.
6.      ‘Impression, Sunrise’ (1873), one of Monet’s most influential works, revolutionized the exhibition held in April 1874 by the society, and gave name to the movement Impressionism which critics sought to downplay as more a sketch than a finished painting.
7.      Monet’s wife passed away in 1879, and he moved in with the couple Ernest and Alice Hoschede, and the six children. However, he slowly grew closer to Alice, and the two moved in together in Giverny in 1883, and ultimately marrying after Earnest passed away in 1892.
8.      Claude Monet found much impression in Giverny, and painted several series of water lilies and Japanese style bridges over ponds for much of his later life. His final project was also a series of 12 water lily paintings commissioned by a museum in Paris, the Orangerie des Tuileries. He also spent much time painting the structure of the Rouen Cathedral in northwestern France, and the Thames River in London.
9.      Claude Monet passed away on December 5, 1926 in Giverny. However, his impact on the world of art continues to be felt till this date.
Questions
1.      What was the profession of Claude Monet father, Adolphe Monet?
a)      A landscape artist
b)      Family’s shipping business
c)      A portrait maker
2.      Eugene Boudin introduced Monet to what type of painting practice?
a)      Plein Air Painting
b)      Landscape Painting
c)      Impressionist Painting
3.      What was the name of the artist who provided strong support and advice to the young Monet?
a)      Auguste Renoir
b)      Johann Barthold Jongkind
c)      Edouard Manet
4.      Monet founded the Societe Anonyme des Artistes, Peintres, Sculpteurs, Graveurs with his friends as –
a)      An association to secure better bargaining rights for the painters
b)      An alternate platform to the Salon to exhibit their works
c)      An opportunity to earn better money as an alternate profession
5.      What was the logic behind the coining of the phrase ‘Impression’ upon Monet’s work ‘Impression, Sunrise’?
a)      Because it created a strong impression in the mind of the viewer
b)      To derogatively suggest that it resembled a sketch more than a completed painting
c)      To suggest that it impressed with its rich detailing and texture
6.      Which place of dwelling had a lasting impact upon the creative sensibility of Claude Monet?
a)      Paris
b)      La Havre
c)      Giverny
7.      Which series have been the most famous and distinguishing of Claude Monet’s work ion nature?
a)      The paintings of Rouen Cathedral
b)       The paintings on River Thames
c)      The paintings on water lilies 

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