Alexandria School District

Alexandria School District

3rd Grade Reading Summative Assessments

Assessments and Rubrics

*Bolded standards meet report card standards

Unit 1: Launching

Unit 2: Character (The High Dive and A Proud Flight)

Unit 3: Non-Fiction (Animal Stories and Amazing Animal Helpers)

Unit 4: Historical Fiction (Rosa Parks and Rosa Park’s Tale)

Unit 5: Biography (After the Fire)

Unit 6: Traditional Literature/Poetry (Grasshopper and Owl, Grasshopper and The Toad, Tulips on Parade)

Unit 7: Celebration

*** Revised 1/19/15 ***

Unit 2 Reading Test: Character Name ______#____

The High Dive

The summer sun warmed the cement under Alisa’s bare feet as she walked around the edge of the town pool. Her friend Maria was waiting for her by the diving boards. “Come on, Alisa,” Maria said. “Let’s jump off the high dive.”

Alisa looked at her with wide eyes. “The high dive? No way.” “Don’t be scared,” Maria said. “It’s really fun.” Alisa walked away and sat on a bench. “You go. I’ll watch you.” Maria shook her head. “You don’t know what you are missing.”

Alisa frowned and bit her lip. She watched Maria climb up the tall ladder. It made Alisa dizzy just imagining being up there. Alisa had been afraid of the high dive since she could remember. The thought of being up so high terrified her. She had never even tried to jump off.

Maria jumped off the board and then climbed out of the pool. She approached Alisa. “Come on, Alisa, you’ve got to try it. It’s awesome,” she said. Alisa looked up at the board. Maybe it was time for a new experience. “Okay,” she said.

Alisa climbed up the ladder for the high diving board. When she got to the top, she gripped the rails tightly. The water down below looked far, far away. She wanted to turn back, to walk back down the ladder, but that would be way too embarrassing. There was only one thing to do. Alisa walked to the edge of the board and took a deep breath. Then she closed her eyes and jumped. A rush of excitement coursed through her as she plummeted into the pool. She emerged from the water, sputtering and splashing. “That was awesome!” she cried.

Unit 2 Reading Test: Character Name ______#____

The High Dive Questions

______1. The theme of this passage is:

a.  friends should encourage each other.

b.  swimming is great exercise.

c.  trying something new.

Use evidence from the text to support why you chose that as the theme:

______

______2. The sentence, “it made Alisa dizzy just imagining being up there,” tells us…

a.  she thinks it looks fun

b.  the sun made her dizzy

c.  it made her nervous thinking about being up there

______3. Which of the following traits apply to Maria?

a.  scared

b.  adventurous

c.  shy

______4. The problem in this story is:

a.  Maria wants Alisa to do something new

b.  Alisa has never been off the high dive

c.  Alisa was afraid to go off the high dive

5. How does Alisa change in this passage? Be specific.

______

Unit 2 Reading Test – Character Name______Date______

A Proud Flight

Long ago, people looked to the sky and saw birds fly. They wondered if there was a way they could fly like birds. People made up myths about flying. A myth is a story that has imaginary people and places in it.

A myth that people in Greece made up was about a young man. The young man was called Icarus. In the story, he and his father, Daedelus, were imprisoned by an evil man. They were kept on an island. They could not escape because there were high walls. The island was surrounded by water.

His father was an inventor. He invented wings made from bird feathers. He used wax to get them to stick to a frame shaped like a wing. They would use the wings to escape.

Because they were made with wax, the wings could melt if they got hot. So Daedelus warned his son not to fly close to the sun. At that time, which was hundreds of years ago, people did not know how very far away the sun is. The story comes from Greece, where the sun feels very hot in summer.

You probably guessed what happened next. Daedelus and Icarus used the wings to escape. They flew over the walls. They flew away from the island. They were flying across the sea.

But Icarus forgot what his father had warned him about. He forgot to stay away from the sun. There were no clouds. The sun shone brightly. It melted the wax. The feathers fell off the wings. They would no longer support him in the air. So he fell to the sea.

Daedelus was sad to see his son fall into the sea. But he could not help him. He knew this could happen. That was why he had tried to tell his son how dangerous it was to fly close to the sun.

Name ______#______

A Proud Flight Questions

1. I think the father, Daedelus, is ______because he ______

2. I think the son, Icarus, is ______because he ______

3. Why do you think Icarus disobeyed his father? ______

4. Icarus’s father probably felt ______because ______

5. What lesson can you learn from this story? ______

Unit 2 Reading: Students will be able to understand the internal and external changes of a character by using strategies such as predicting, visualizing, and inferring. / Date:
Standards / 3
Meets standard
(Proficient) / 2
Approaches standard (Basic) / 1
Does not meet standard
(Below Basic)
3.1.3.3 Describe character’s traits, motivations, or feelings and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events. / Describe characters in a story and how their actions contribute to events. / A general description of character or missing actions that contribute to events. / Vague description and no link to events.
3.1.7.7 Explain how text illustration affects the story (i.e. create mood, emphasize aspects of a character or setting).
** Classroom Assessment, not on summative assessment. ** / Explain how text illustration affects the story. / Describe some text structures its characters, setting, or events. / Does not pay attention to pictures.
3.1.4.4Determine the meaning of words including figurative language such as similes.
** Classroom Assessment, not on summative assessment. ** / Meaning of literal and nonliteral words. / Identify basic words, lacking figurative language. / Cannot determine meaning.

Unit 3 Non Fiction: Amazing Animal Helpers

This dolphin is helping soldiers. How? It looks for hidden objects on the ocean floor. Other animals help people too. Jump inside to learn all about them!

Animals Have Special Jobs!

Many different types of animals help

people. See how these animals lend a hand—or a flipper, hoof, or paw!

Diving Dolphins

A special team of bottlenose dolphins helps the U.S. Navy in the ocean waters near Iraq. The dolphins use sonar to find unsafe objects in the water. Sonar is the use of sound to find things. After the dolphins finish their job, they are rewarded with a favorite snack—fish! The dolphins' work helps keep our troops safe from harm.

Reading Dogs

Some dogs help children become better readers. The dogs sit and listen to the children read. That helps kids feel confident while they read. The dogs do not rush the kids or correct them.

Helpful Horses

Meet Cuddles, a guide horse. She is full-grown at 2 feet tall. That is about the size of a large dog. Cuddles helps guide her owner, who is blind. Cuddles wears special sneakers to protect her hooves.

Marvelous Monkeys

Some monkeys help people who cannot move their arms or legs. The monkeys are trained to do tasks such as getting water from the refrigerator or putting a CD in a music player.

Hot Dogs

Take a look at some ways these furry friends help people.

•  Some dogs look for people who could be buried in snow.

•  A dog can search for people in the water.

•  Other dogs work to cheer up sick children in hospitals.

•  A colorful poodle might visit a child in a hospital.

Unit 3: Non Fiction Informational Text

Unit 3: Animal Studies

Animals are wonderful. If you look closely at how they live you will find many surprises. It is hard to look closely at insects. They are very small. Many of them fly away when you come near. But if you have a chance to watch them you will find how they live.

Watching animals is a job that scientists do. It is called making observations. They have learned a lot about animals. Scientist learned about tiny animals. They have studied insects. They found that insects have tools. They use those tools to live.

They learned about the sawfly. This is just one animal they have studied. Imagine what the sawfly is like. It is a fly but not like many others. They call it the sawfly because it has a kind of saw. It's not a real saw. But it looks like one. And it works like one. It is part of the sawfly. The sawfly uses the saw to make places where the eggs will be safe. It saws at plants. So it makes a place where the eggs can go. Then the sawfly does something very special It makes a sort of homemade glue that fastens them where they are laid. We are not sure how it does that. But if you can watch the sawfly you will see this happen.

Some insects have cutting instruments that work just like scissors. The poppy-bee is one of them. It is a bee that makes it home in wood. This bee has a boring tool, too. It uses the tool to bore into old wood. It looks like a tool that a carpenter uses. Carpenters make things out of wood. The poppy-bee makes its nest out of wood.

Scientists observe birds, too. They have seen birds use their bills to get what they need. Some birds use their bills to cut into wood. They have sharp bills. They can cut a hole in a tree. They drill the hole to get inside the tree where insects live. Then they eat them. Every animal is amazing. Even dogs and cats can surprise you. The more you look at animals the more you will learn. Nature is full of surprises. Every part of every animal has a purpose. Scientists learn more about them every day. Nature is a wonderful part of our world. Scientists have studied nature and written books. They help us know more.

Unit 3: Nonfiction Informational Text

Name ______#______

Animal Studies

Amazing Animal Helpers

1.  What is the main idea of Amazing Animal Helpers?

Main Idea: ______

______

Supporting Detail #1: ______

______

Supporting Detail #2: ______

______

Supporting Detail #3: ______

______

2.  Tell what the story Animal Studies is mostly about?

______

______

______

______

______

______

Unit 3 Reading: Students will be able to use comprehension strategies, use knowledge of text structure, identify main ideas, and use strategies to infer about unfamiliar words. / Date:
Standards / 4
Exceeds standard / 3
Meets standard
(Proficient) / 2
Approaches standard (Basic) / 1
Does not meet standard
(Below Basic)
3.2.2.2 Determine the main idea and supporting details. / Able to identify main idea with more than 2 supporting details and elaborates on them / Able to identify main idea with 2 supporting details / Missing one part / Missing both main idea and supporting details
3.2.9.9. Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in 2 texts on the same topics. / Able to compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in 2 texts on the same topics / Able to accurately identify main idea and key details that are similar in 2 texts and those that are different. / Listed unimportant ideas and details from both passages, OR didn’t make comparisons / Unable to accurately compare and contrast main idea and details from two texts
3.2.1.1. Ask and answer questions based on evidence. / Supports thinking from one specific detail from text / Finds appropriate answer without support / Inaccurate answer
3.2.4.4. Determine the meaning of 3 grade words. / Able to use context clues and decoding skills to understand 3rd grade words. / Able to understand some 3 grade words / Unable to use context clues and decoding skills
3.2.5.5 Use text features. / Use text features / Read some text features / Skip text structures.
3.2.7.7. Use information gained from illustrations and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text. / Develop understandings based on illustrations. / Basic understanding of illustrations. / Skip illustrations.

** Standards not in bold are not on assessed summative assessment. **

Unit 4: Historical Fiction (Student)

Rosa Parks

Rosa Parks was born February 4, 1913 in Tuskegee, Alabama. She spent her childhood in Alabama. When she was 11, she enrolled in the Montgomery Industrial School for Girls. Later, she worked as a seamstress in Montgomery.

Rosa Parks has been called the "mother of the civil rights movement" and one of the most important citizens of the 20th century. In the early 1950s, the bus system in Montgomery, as in many parts of the United States, was segregated. Blacks were required to board the bus at the front, buy their tickets, and then re-board the bus in the back. Sometimes, they weren’t able to get on the bus again before it drove away. They were not allowed to sit in the front of the bus, which sometimes made it difficult to get off at the right stop. Even if they were sitting in the “black section”, they were still required to give their seats up to white passengers if the “white section” was full. In December of 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a city bus to a white passenger. The bus driver had her arrested. She was tried and convicted of violating a local ordinance.

Her act sparked a citywide boycott of the bus system. This refusal to ride the bus introduced the country to a clergyman named Martin Luther King, Jr. who gained national prominence, leading the protest with the words: “There comes a time that people get tired”. Eventually, the U.S. Supreme Court made a decision outlawing segregation on city buses. In December 1956, Montgomery’s public transportation system was legally integrated.