On-Level Practice Test

Instructions: Use the following story to answer questions 1-10

from “The Last Leaf” by O’Henry

Johnsy and Sue, two artists living in New York City, sit together. Johnsy has recently come down with a terrible case of pneumonia.

“Couldn’t you draw in the other room?” asked Johnsy, coldly.

“I’d rather be here by you,” said Sue. “Besides, I don’t want you to keep looking at those silly ivy leaves.”

“Tell me as soon as you have finished,” said Johnsy, closing her eyes, and lying white and still as a fallen statue, “because I want to see the last one fall. I’m tired of waiting. I’m tired of thinking. I want to turn loose my hold on everything, and go sailing down, down, just like one of those poor, tired leaves.”

When Sue awoke from an hour’s sleep the next morning she found Johnsy with dull, wide-open eyes starting at the drawn green shade.

“Pull it up; I want to see,” she ordered, in a whisper.

Wearily Sue obeyed.

But, lo! After the beating rain and fierce gusts of wind that had endured through the livelong night, there yet stood out against the brick wall one ivy leaf. It was the last on the vine. Still dark green near its stem, but with its serrated edges tinted with the yellow of dissolution and decay, it hung bravely from a branch some twenty feet above the ground.

“It is the last one,” said Johnsy. “I thought it would surely fall during the night. I heard the wind. It will fall to-day, and I shall die at the same time.”…

The day wore away, and even through the twilight they could see the lone ivy leaf clinging to its stem against the wall. And then, with the coming of the night the north wind was again loosed, while the rain still beat against the windows and pattered down from the low Dutch eaves.

When it was light enough Johnsy, the merciless, commanded that the shade be raised.

The ivy leaf was still there.

Johnsy lay for a long time looking at it. And then she called to Sue, who was stirring her chicken broth over the gas stove.

“I’ve been a bad girl, Sudie,” said Johnsy. “Something has made that last leaf stay there to show me how wicked I was. It is a sin to want to die.”

  1. Who is Johnsy?
  2. Sue’s sister
  3. An artist that is sick with pneumonia
  4. A young boy that is terminally ill
  5. A twelve year old girl
  1. What type of plant does Johnsy keep watching?
  2. Oak tree
  3. Sycamore tree
  4. Green Fern
  5. Ivy
  1. Which of the following details from the passage is revealed as part of the exposition/introduction of the story?
  2. Johnsy and Sue are artists.
  3. A terrible storm blew in overnight and threatened to cause the last leaf to fall.
  4. Johnsy is merciless.
  5. Johnsy wants to die.
  1. Which character trait is revealed when Johnsy says, “It will fall today, and I shall die at the same time?”
  2. intelligent
  3. strong-willed
  4. determined
  5. depressed
  1. Towards the end of the story, it says, “The day wore away, and even through the twilight they could see the lone ivy leaf clinging to its stem against the wall.” Which dictionary definition below best fits the intended meaning for twilight as it is used in the story?
  1. Definition 1
  2. Definition 2
  3. Definition 3
  4. Definition 4

6. All of the following could be a possible theme for the story, EXCEPT

a. It is a sin to want to die.
b. Delicate creatures need to be protected and cared for.
c. You should never give up on life.
d. Life is precious.

7. What does the last leaf symbolize?

  1. Johnsy
  2. difficult times
  3. life
  4. the ivy plant

8. How did this selection primarily explore/reveal its themes?

  1. Through flashback
  2. Through symbolic imagery
  3. Through figurative language
  4. Through dialogue

9. Limited omniscient – know the definition…it occurs when the narrator tells what only one character thinks and feels.

10. When is the primary conflict introduced in the story?

  1. Johnsy wants Sue to draw in the other room.
  2. Sue and Johnsy live together.
  3. Storms with high wind keep coming during the night.
  4. Johnsy wants to go sailing down like an ivy leaf.

from “Aha Moment” –Essay by Julia Alvarez

(1) I felt the slamming jolt and the horrible swerve that threw me against the door. (2) Oh Lord, I thought, this is it! (3) Somehow I managed to unbolt the door and scramble out. (4) The flight attendants, in their seats, indicated that I needed to sit down. (5) As I lunged ahead toward my seat, passengers looked up at me with the stricken expression of creatures who know they are about to die.

(6) I looked at the small girl sitting next to me. (7) She was from a small town in east Texas, and this was only her second time on an airplane. (8) She had won a trip to England by competing in a high school geography bee and was supposed to make a connecting flight when we landed in Newark.

(9) In the next seat, at the window, sat a young businessman who had been confidentlyworking. (10) Now he looked worried – something that really worries me: when confident-looking businessmen look worried. (11) The laptop was put away. (12) “Something’s not right,” he said.

(13) The pilot’s voice came over the speaker. (14) I heard vaguely through my fear, “Engine number two…hit…emergency landing…New Orleans.” (15) When he was done, the voice of a flight attendant came on, reminding us of the emergency procedures she had reviewed before takeoff. (16) Of course I never paid attention to this drill, always figuring that if we ever got to the point where we needed to use life jackets, I would have already died of terror.

(17) Now we began a roller coaster ride. (18) I was ready to faint, but when I saw the face of the girl next to me I pulled myself together. (19) I reached for her hand and reassured her that we were going to make it. (20) What a story you’d going to tell when you get home!” I said. (21) “After this, London’s going to seem like small potatoes.”

11. Which sentence would best introduce the setting?

  1. I was in the tiny bathroom in the back of the plane.
  2. The seatbelt was tight around my waist.
  3. Her trip to London may never happen.
  4. Newark is lovely this time of year.

12. Where would the following sentence best introduce the central conflict? “I think we got hit by lightning,” she said.

  1. before sentence 1
  2. after sentence 5
  3. after sentence 11
  4. after sentence 21

13. To change sentence 20 to present tense, which word needs to be replaced?

  1. you’re
  2. your
  3. you is
  4. you’d

14. What does the dialogue in sentence 20 reveal about the narrator?

  1. She is foolish.
  2. She is cruel.
  3. She is clever.
  4. She is kind.

15. Which detail added to sentence 17 would effectively develop the setting?

  1. up and down
  2. of our lives
  3. through the thunderclouds
  4. in the plane

16. Choose the best way to rewrite sentence 4 by using sensory language.

  1. The flight attendants, already strapped and buckled into their seats, waved wildly for me to sit down.
  2. The flight attendants, already in their seats, waved wildly for me to sit down.
  3. The flight attendants, already strapped in their seats, indicated that I needed to sit down.
  4. The flight attendants, in their seats, waved wildly and indicated that I needed to sit down.

17. Which sentence would make the best conclusion?

  1. I let go of her hand and braced for the devastation that was sure to come.
  2. She smiled gratefully, and holding my hand, braced for impact.
  3. She quickly let go of my hand, embarrassed that I had noticed her terror.
  4. She quickly let go of my hand and fastened her seatbelt even tighter in preparation for impact.

Vocabulary (Fill in the blank – Use the word correctly in a sentence.)

  • On-Level: Questions 18-25