Grade 8 Writing - 2007 VDOE Released Items

Casey decides to use a hospital as the setting for her story. Which of the following would be most helpful for her to use in describing the setting?
1. A magazine article about health
2. A list of the hospitals in her city
3. A book giving the history of a particular hospital
4. A visit to a hospital
This story map will help Casey to —
1. draw on past experiences for her story
2. think of an original idea for her story
3. keep the events she wants to use in her story in order
4. use good grammar in her story
How can Casey best combine sentences 2 and 3 into one sentence without changing their meaning?
1. She did not like hospitals, hospitals were always so cold, and everything in them was so white.
2. She did not like hospitals because they were always so cold, and everything in them was so white.
3. She did not like hospitals, and they were always so cold, and everything in them was so white.
4. She did not like hospitals hospitals were always so cold, everything in them was so white.
How can Casey best rewrite sentence 6?
1. The hospital bed, up to her chin in blankets, held her grandmother, looking small and frail.
2. Up to her chin in blankets and looking small and frail, her grandmother lay in the hospital bed.
3. Looking small and frail up to her chin, her grandmother in the hospital bed in blankets.
4. Up to her chin in blankets, the hospital bed, looking small and frail, lay her grandmother.
How can Casey best rewrite sentence 10 to make a complete sentence?
1. Jennifer fearful that she might hurt her grandmother or pull out a tube that she wasn’t supposed to touch.
2. Fearful that she might hurt her grandmother or pull out a tube that she wasn’t supposed to touch, she felt.
3. Fearing that she might hurt her grandmother or pull out a tube that she wasn’t supposed to touch.
4. She feared that she might hurt her grandmother or pull out a tube that she wasn’t supposed to touch.
In sentence 21, how is they correctly written?
1. them
2. it
3. those
4. As it is
In sentence 23, how is real correctly written?
1. really
2. more real
3. most real
4. As it is
In sentence 24, how is makes correctly written?
1. made
2. make
3. making
4. As it is
In sentence 27, how is nurse? correctly written?
1. nurse?”
2. nurse.
3. nurse,
4. As it is
In sentence 31, how is Nursing School correctly written?
1. Nursing school
2. nursing School
3. nursing school
4. As it is
In sentence 33, how is was as a matter of fact correctly written?
1. was, as a matter of fact,
2. was as a matter of fact,
3. was as a matter, of fact,
4. As it is
Ellie wants to add this information to her outline: Winner of numerous other writing awards and honors. Where should she add it?
1. I. Early years
2. II. School
3. III. Professional career
4. IV. Setbacks
How can Ellie best rewrite sentence 5 so that it no longer needlessly repeats information?
1. He went back to Maine with his mother when he was eleven, but before he returned to Maine he lived in Indiana and Connecticut.
2. He returned to Maine when he was eleven; however, he lived in Indiana and Connecticut before he went back to Maine with his mother.
3. When he was eleven, he went back to Maine with his mother, but before he returned to Maine, he lived in Indiana and Connecticut.
4. He lived in Indiana and Connecticut before returning to Maine with his mother when he was eleven.
Ellie wants to replace Consequently in sentence 7 with a word that better fits the meaning of the sentence. Which of the following could she best use?
1. Therefore
2. In addition
3. However
4. Because of this
How can Ellie best combine sentences 13 and 14 without changing their meaning?
1. King got trained as a high school English teacher while he still could not find a job.
2. Even though he was a trained high school English teacher, he was unable to find a job.
3. Though he was not able to find a trained job, King was a high school English teacher.
4. King was not able to find a job because he was a trained high school English teacher.
Which of the following sentences should Ellie delete because it is not related to the topic of her paper?
1. Sentence 2
2. Sentence 10
3. Sentence 16
4. Sentence 22
In sentence 32, how is work has been correctly written?
1. work are
2. work have been
3. work is
4. As it is
In sentence 34, how is copys of correctly written?
1. copys’ of
2. copy’s of
3. copies of
4. As it is
In sentence 36, how is In addition he has directed and written correctly written?
1. In addition he has directed, and written
2. In addition, he has directed and written
3. In addition he has directed and written,
4. As it is
In sentence 38, how is very bad correctly written?
1. worse
2. very badly
3. the worst
4. As it is
In sentence 41, how is Each episodes plot correctly written?
1. Each episode’s plot
2. Each episodes’ plot
3. Each episodes’s plot
4. As it is
In sentence 42, how is ghostly figure correctly written?
1. ghosty figure
2. ghostlier figure
3. more ghosty figure
4. As it is
In sentence 44, how is continue correctly written?
1. continues
2. continued
3. has continued
4. As it is
In sentence 45, how is games trades, and players correctly written?
1. games trades, and, players
2. games, trades, and players
3. games, trades, and, players
4. As it is

Grade 8 Writing - 2007 VDOE Released Items

Multiple-Choice ExerciseContent © 2007 Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Education; Permission to Use Granted by VDOE; Author of Activity: Tami Maloney; All rights reserved. No commercial, for-profit use of this material is allowed. E-mail comments and questions to Tami Maloney.

Multiple-Choice Exercise
Content © 2007 Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Education; Permission to Use Granted by VDOE; Author of Activity: Tami Maloney; All rights reserved.
No commercial, for-profit use of this material is allowed. E-mail comments and questions to Tami Maloney.