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Date
The Nursery
Mark works at a nursery. But he doesn't take care of
babies. He is responsible for the growth and health of
plants.
Mark follows a watering schedule. He waters some plants
everyday. He waters some plants once a week. And he
waters some once a month. Plants are very sensitive to
water. Water helps plants grow. But when plants get too
much water, their roots rot. And when they don’t get
enough water, their leaves crumple and die.
Mark lets the plants absorb water at their own rate. He
never pours water directly on the soil. He pours water in
basins. The basins sit beneath the plants. The basins have
flat bottoms like plates. But they have high sides like bowls. The plants can draw water from the
basins. They only draw water when they need it.
As Mark waters, he examines the plants. He looks for decaying roots and leaves. When he finds
some, he knows the plants are sick. To prevent them from getting worse, he follows several steps.
Step one is to repot the plants with rotting roots. Repotting is easy. First, Mark takes the plant out of
its pot. Then he puts the plant in a new pot. Finally, he adds sandy soil. The sand in the soil keeps
the roots dry. Then the plants recover.
Step two is to look for dead leaves. When Mark finds some, he removes them carefully. That
reduces the plants’ risk of getting sick again. Delicate plants are more likely to get diseases and
attract bugs.
Step three is to spray the healthy leaves with soapy water. Bugs don’t like soapy water. It kills them!
Mark performs his tasks carefully. He likes to practice his gardening skills. His ambition is to own his
own nursery someday.
1) Mark works at a nursery. This means he
A. takes care of babies
B. sells antique furniture
C. grows plants
D. makes bread
2) According to the passage, when plants get too much water, their roots
A. crumple
B. revive
C. grow
D. rot
3) Why does Mark spray healthy leaves with soapy water?
A. Soapy water cleans the plants.
B. Soapy water kills bugs.
C. Soapy water cures rotten roots.
D. Soapy water makes the plants grow faster.
4) Using the information in the passage, we can tell that Mark is
A. dutiful
B. powerful
C. cheerful
D. forgetful
5) As used in the final paragraph, the word ambition most nearly belongs to which of the following
word groups?
A. joy, pleasure, delight
B. fear, worry, dread
C. hope, dream, desire
D. taste, smell, sight
6) Describe Mark’s most important tasks in your own words.
7) How do you think Mark prepared for his job? What did he have to learn before he started working
at the nursery? Explain your ideas.
Answers and Explanations
1) C
Core Standard: Key Ideas and Details
nursery (noun): a place where young plants and trees are grown for sale or for planting elsewhere;
a room in a house for the special use of young children; a place where young children are cared for
during the working day.
Paragraph 1 says, “Mark works at a nursery.” It also says, “He is responsible for the growth and
health of plants.” Paragraph 2 links water with plant growth. It says, “Water helps plants grow.”
These sentences let us know that (C) is correct. Although a nursery can also be a place where
babies are taken care of, this is not how the word is used in this passage.
Paragraph 1 says, “Mark works at a nursery. But he doesn’t take care of babies.” This information
helps us to eliminate (A).
The passage does not provide support for choices (B) and (D). Therefore, they are incorrect.
2) D
Core Standard: Key Ideas and Details
Paragraph 2 says, “But when plants get too much water, their roots rot.” Using the sentence, we can
tell that (D) is correct.
Paragraph 2 says, “And when they don’t get enough water, their leaves crumple and die.” This
sentence helps us to understand that leaves crumple when plants need water, not when they get too
much water. This information helps us understand that (A) is incorrect.
The passage describes how Mark revives sick plants. But when plants get too much water, their
roots do not revive. As paragraph 5 suggests, the roots only revive when they are dry. It says, “The
sand in the soil keeps the roots dry. Then the plants recover.” Using this information, we can
eliminate (B).
The passage does not provide support for choice (C). Therefore, it is incorrect.
3) B
Core Standard: Key Ideas and Details
Paragraph 7 says, “Step three is to spray the healthy leaves with soapy water. Bugs don’t like soapy
water. It kills them!” These sentences tell us that soapy water kills bugs. Therefore, (B) is correct.
Soapy water may also clean the plants. But the passage does not suggest that the plants need to be
cleaned. It does not suggest that Mark has this purpose in mind when he sprays the healthy leaves
with soapy water. Since the passage does not support choice (A), we know we can eliminate it.
Paragraph 5 describes how Mark cures rotten roots. He takes the plants from their old pots and puts
them in new pots with sandy soil. Paragraph 5 does not mention soapy water. And paragraph 7,
which mentions soapy water, does not mention roots. Using this information, we know that (C) is
incorrect.
The passage does not provide support for choice (D). Therefore, it is incorrect.
4) A
Core Standard: Integration of Knowledge
Paragraph 1 says, “He is responsible for the growth and health of plants.” The word responsible tells
us that Mark has many duties. The rest of the passage describes Mark’s duties. And we learn that
Mark does his duties well. In paragraph 2, we learn that he does not water too much or too little. He
follows a schedule. In paragraph 3, we learn that he puts the water in basins, not soil. Paragraph 4
tells us that he “examines” the plants’ leaves to find sick plants. Then he treats them. Paragraph 5
tells us how he cares for plants with rotting roots. Paragraph 6 says he “reduces the plants’ risk of
getting sick again” by removing dead leaves. Paragraph 7 describes how he protects plants from
bugs. And paragraph 8 confirms that Mark is dutiful. It says, “He performs his tasks carefully.” This
information helps us understand that (A) is the correct choice.
The passage does not provide support for choices (B), (C), and (D). Therefore, they are incorrect.
5) C
Core Standard: Craft and Structure
ambition (noun): a strong desire to do or to achieve something, typically requiring determination and
hard work.
Paragraph 8 says, “Mark performs his tasks carefully. He likes to practice his gardening skills. His
ambition is to own his own nursery someday.” The paragraph helps us understand what Mark is
getting out of his work. He is getting practice. And he expects the practice to help him in the future.
According to the paragraph, it will help him to own his own nursery. Planning to own one’s own
nursery is a hope, dream, or desire as well as an ambition. Like the word ambition, the words hope,
dream, and desire all relate to the future. For these reasons, (C) is correct.
Gardening can be a joy, pleasure, and delight. But Mark does not express those feelings in the
passage. And those are feelings related to present experiences, not experiences in the future. Using
this information, we can eliminate (A).
Mark might experience fear, worry, or dread when he finds sick plants, but paragraph 8 is not about
sick plants. It is about opening a nursery of his own. This helps us to know that choice (B) is
incorrect.
The passage does not provide support for choice (D). Therefore, it is incorrect.