Reading Standards for Literature > Story Structure and Meaning (CCSS.RL.8.3) Practice Test
•20 Questions(1) The paint on the middle school hallway flaked like confetti, leaving gray chips that skittered across the floor when students hurried by. Lena had stared at those scars all year, imagining a bright mural of the town's river winding past the school, but her idea felt too big to carry into the student council meeting.
(2) The room buzzed with voices and the scrape of chair legs. Jonah tapped his pencil and said, "We can't keep patching over the paint chips; it's our school." He looked at Lena like he expected her to jump in. Lena swallowed, then lifted her hand.
(3) Mr. Patel, the council advisor, nodded. "Ideas are welcome," he said, "but big projects mean budgets, approvals, and responsibility. I'm not saying no. I'm saying dreams take paperwork." He smiled, but his eyes were serious.
(4) After the meeting, Lena walked the hallway to think. Ms. Ruiz, the custodian, pushed a cart past the trophy case and sighed at the wall. "Paint peels like that because moisture is seeping in," she said. "I wipe it up, and it just comes back." Lena traced a crack with her finger and thought about what it would take to change it.
(5) As Lena turned toward the office, Principal Dr. Chen stepped out, hands full of folders. "I heard there's mural talk," she said, balancing the papers. "If you want to be heard, bring proof the mural helps." She gestured toward the hallway. "We have to show parents and the board why this matters."
(6) In the library, Lena found a dusty box of old yearbooks and clippings. There were photos of a mosaic students made in 1998, letters from alumni about how painting a stairwell made them feel proud. One article quoted a nearby school that saw fewer scribbles after students painted a mural together.
(7) On the bus ride home, Lena opened a new document on her tablet: proposal. She listed benefits, took photos of the peeling paint to show the need, and planned a survey asking students how a mural might affect them. Her fingers flew as if the hallway had handed her a deadline.
(8) That night, her phone buzzed with Jonah's message: "I've got extra brushes if this actually gets approved." Lena grinned. She wasn't holding brushes yet, but she finally held a plan.
Which line provokes Lena's decision to gather evidence and present a plan?
Which line provokes Lena's decision to gather evidence and present a plan?