Inside Reading Unit 2 Test

Name: ______________________________________ Date: _______________________

Read this passage carefully and answer the questions that follow.

Time to Go to Bed

The time people go to bed varies across cultures and from person to person. Some people think
they do their most creative work late at night. Others like to get to bed early so they can wake up
early and get to work. Compare the sleep patterns of a college student and a farmer and you’ll
see almost opposite schedules. But according to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, sleep
patterns didn’t used to be so different. Before coffee shops and electricity, people slept in two
segments, or parts. They first went to sleep after the sun went down. Then they woke up around
midnight and stayed up for about an hour before going back to sleep for a second time. This was
true in different cultures. However, these sleep patterns shifted with the invention of the light
bulb. Coffee houses, factories, and other places could stay open all night. And with the
development of the computer, sleep patterns have shifted even more. It’s not uncommon for
people to stay up all night working on the computer, playing games, or using social media. In
fact, the glow of a computer screen is as common as sunlight for some people. They might even
see the computer screen more than they see the sun.

Researchers have found that in cultures that don’t use electricity, people still sleep in two
segments at night. In a recent study, the same sleep pattern appeared. In the study, people had
electricity taken away from them. After time, they too slept in two segments at night. Our sleep
patterns may be different now. However, without electricity, they look very similar.

Reading Comprehension

Mark each statement as T (True) or F (False) according to the Reading.

1. ____ Today the sleep patterns of most people are the same.

2. ____ In the past, the sleep patterns of most people were the same.

3. ____The invention of the computer was the first thing to change people’s sleep patterns.

4. ____ People in the past slept during the night in one long segment.

5. ____ After people started using light bulbs, sleep patterns changed.

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Reading Skill: Pronoun References

Read each sentence from the passage above. Underline each pronoun and write the noun it
refers to on the line. If there is not an earlier noun reference, write no noun reference.

6. Before coffee shops and electricity, people slept in two segments, or parts. They first
went to sleep after the sun went down.
____________

7. It is not uncommon for people to stay up all night working on the computer, playing
games, or using social media.

______________

8. In the study, people had electricity taken away from them.

____________

9. Sleep patterns may be different now. However, without electricity, they look very similar.

____________

Vocabulary: Word Families

Choose the word form that correctly completes each sentence.

10. The new car __________ to be working well.

a. appearance
b. disappears
c. appears

11. Sleep patterns today are ___________ from the past.

a. differently
b. different
c. difference

12. I had trouble completing the test. The directions were __________.
a. confuses
b. confusing
c. confusion

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 13. The time people go to bed __________. Often it is based on what their job is and when
they work.
a. varies
b. varied
c. vary

Vocabulary: Fill in the blank

Read the passage below. Fill in each blank with the correct word to complete the
passage.

accurate development feature shifts similar systems

Throughout history, people have used different (14) __________ to tell time. Before the (15)
______________ of the modern clock, people used the sun to tell what time it was. As the earth
spins and the position of the sun changes, the sun’s shadow (16) ___________. A sundial uses
the change in the sun’s shadow to track the time. You may have seen sundials in parks or other
places. Some sundials look (17) ___________ to clocks because they are circular and have
markings on them. Lines are drawn at angles from a center post that creates the shadow. In order
for a sundial to be (18) ___________, the angles must be drawn correctly, and the sundial must
point north. Another (19) _________ of a sundial is that it is read clockwise, just like a clock.

Writing Prompt

20. How much time do you think you spend on a computer each day? Is it more or less than
the amount of time you spend in the sun? How might this affect your sleep patterns? Explain
your answer. Write at least four sentences.

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