Practice for Regents Exam Reading Section

Objectives:
● Students will improve skills needed to do well on the Regents reading section: Making inferences, recognizing key facts and the main point in a text, understanding the purpose of individual sentences, etc.

Standards: This lesson meets Common Core Standards for Reading. (See end of lesson for a complete list.)

Note: The Regents English exam has a section that requires students to read a passage between 400 and 600 words long, and answer six multiple-choice questions. The passage here is slightly longer than the typical Regents passage and there are more than six questions on the practice test, which is included at the end of the lesson.

Vocabulary: Intrigued, Eco-friendly, Delve, Outspokenness

Instructions: Before the class, make copies of the multiple choice questions and hand them out.

Since the class will be reading only the very end of the story, you have to give them some background on the whole story. Tell them something like, “You are going to read the last part of a story written by a student about one of her teachers. The writer’s name is Julieta Velazquez and she calls the teacher ‘Ms. P’ in the story.”

Next, put these directions on the board or read them slowly: “Read the story starting from the subhead ‘The Art of Argument.’ Read until the end. Then select the best suggested answer to each question and circle the correct answers.” (Note: After the exercise, you can assign your students to read the rest of the story.)

Answer Key: Question 1-Answer 2, 2-4, 3-1, 4-3, 5-2, 6-1

Common Core Anchor Standards for Reading:
Key Ideas and Details
● Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.

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Regents Practice Question Sheet

Name________________________________________Date_______________________

1) What was the outcome of the writer’s debate with her teacher?

1) The teacher changed her mind about Costa Rica.
2) The author realized she had to prepare harder for future debates.
3) The teacher congratulated the writer for her presentation.
4) The writer decided never to argue with a teacher again.

2) Why does Julieta admire her teacher?

1) The teacher is tolerant of her students’ opinions.
2) She knows a lot about Costa Rica.
3) She is an effective debater.
4) She thinks her students should learn more about current events.

3) In the phrase, “Ms. P rebutted my opinion,” what does rebutted mean?

1) Disproved
2) Questioned
3) Ignored
4) Restated

4) According to Julieta, why is understanding the news so important?

1) To get better grades
2) To be better at debating teachers
3) To participate in a democratic society
4) To make more money

5) Which statement would the writer agree with?

1) She should have kept arguing with Ms. P. about Costa Rica.
2) She didn’t enjoy arguing with Ms. P.
3) You should never argue with your teachers.
4) Other teachers are just as forceful as Ms. P.

6) What would be the best title for this passage?

1) A Valuable Lesson
2) Don’t Mess With Ms. P
3) My Views on Costa Rica
4) My Unfair Teacher