Practice 1: Read the following announcement and answer the question.
This week’s dance has been cancelled. We are sorry to everyone that has been looking forward to it. It
was supposed to be on Friday night, but we were notified that because of circumstances beyond their control
the band can’t play that day.
After the band’s cancellation, we tried to get a DJ but it was too late. All of the local DJs were playing
somewhere else. Don’t worry — we are rescheduling for next Friday, June 20. This time we will have DJ
Morry Morris.
For those of you who have already bought tickets, you may use them to enter the dance on the
rescheduled date. If you want a refund, you can bring your ticket to the student council office next week. Again, we are sorry and thank you for your understanding.
Why is “the band’s cancellation” mentioned in the announcement?
A. To point out why the dance is cancelled
B. To inform the students the dance was cancelled
C. To tell the students the new DJ cancelled the dance
D. To explain why they couldn’t get any DJ for the dance
Practice 2:
The Hudson River is one of the most significant rivers in America, though it is not the largest. It was named
after Henry Hudson, an English explorer who charted the river for the Dutch East India Company. The
Hudson goes for 315 miles, starting in the Adirondack Mountains in New York State. It enters the ocean
around New York City.
Washington Irving, an American writer, was one of the first to write about the Hudson River. He lived in
the Hudson River Valley and wrote about the unique characteristics of this area. He developed the first kind
of American folklore and told a story of a man named Rip Van Winkle. Rip Van Winkle fell asleep one day
while climbing the mountains around the Hudson River. He did not wake up for twenty years. When he finally
woke up, America had become a free country.
The river has not only been written about by famous writers, but has had practical purposes as well. It was
an important means of transportation as America developed. The Eric Canal was built to connect the river to
Lake Erie, one of the nation’s great lakes. This canal allowed the many cities on the Great Lakes to get goods
from Europe. The Hudson River Valley area was also good for building railroads. All in all, the Hudson River is an important river in America.
1. What would be the best title for this passage?
A. Washington Irving’s River 
B. The Biggest River in America 
C. A River of American Importance
D. Why Americans Built the Erie Canal
2. Why does the author mention “Washington Irving*’ in paragraph 2?
A. To give an example of an American writer
B. To prove that many writers live in New York 
C. To explain why Rip Van Winkle did not wake up
D. To show that writers wrote about the Hudson River
3. Why does the author talk about “the Erie Canal” in paragraph 3?
A. To point out the need to build a railroad 
B. To explain why writers liked the Hudson 
C. To prove that Americans were good builders
D. To show how transportation was used on the river