RL1: Provides textual evidence that most strongly supports analysis of what the text says explicitly. (1)
RL4.1: Demonstrates the ability to determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text (e.g., figurative, connotative) and/or provides an analysis of the impact of specific word choice on meaning and/or tone. (1)
L4.1: Demonstrates the ability to use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence or paragraph; a word’s position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a word pr phrase. (1)
Item (Asterisks mark correct answers)
Part A: What does Watson mean by the word indelibly in paragraph one of the excerpt from The Hound of the Baskervilles?
His memories of the scenes are frightening.
His memories of the scenes are impossible to forget.*
He does not clearly remember the scenes.
He does not trust his memories of the scenes.
Part B: Which two details from paragraph one best help clarify the meaning of indelibly?
“It must be confessed that the natural explanation offers almost as many difficulties as the other.”*
“And always, apart from the hound, there is the fact of the human agency in London, the man in the cab, and the letter which warned Sir Henry against the moor.”
“This at least was real, but it might have been the work of a protecting friend as easily as of an enemy.”*
“Where is that friend or enemy now?”
Item #
3
Aligned evidence statements
RL1: Provides textual evidence that most strongly supports analysis of inferences drawn from the text. (2)
RL2: Provides an analysis of how the theme or central idea relates to the characters, setting, and/or plot (3)
Item (Asterisks mark correct answers)
Part A: What idea does the setting in paragraph two reveal?
The setting shows that the characters are confused.
The setting shows that mysterious events are about to occur.
The setting shows that the weather mirrors the characters’ moods.*
The setting shows that the moor is beautiful.
Part B: Which phrase from paragraph two best supports the answer to part A?
“A dull and foggy day with a drizzle of rain”
“the dreary curves of the moor”
“It is melancholy outside and in”*
“which is the more terrible because I am unable to define it”
Item #
4
Aligned evidence statements
RL1: Provides textual evidence that most strongly supports analysis of inferences drawn from the text. (2)
RL2: Provides an analysis of how the theme or central idea relates to the characters, setting, and/or plot. (3)
Item (Asterisks mark correct answers)
Part A: What central idea is expressed in paragraph four from the excerpt?
Watson wants to learn more about the stranger.*
Watson knows the identity of the stranger.
Watson will wait before deciding what to do with the stranger.
Watson wants to kill the stranger.
Part B: What does the central idea from Part A show about Watson’s character?
Watson is a man of swift action and violence.
Watson is a clever detective who always solves the crime.
Watson is not smart enough to understand what is obvious.
Watson is a careful thinker who considers all options.*
Part C: What phrase from paragraph three supports the answer to Part B?
“is surely not to be thought of”
“I am his agent”
“Suppose that there were really some huge hound”*
“Where is that friend or enemy now?”
Item #
5
Aligned evidence statements
RL1: Provides textual evidence that most strongly supports analysis of inferences drawn from the text. (2)
RL3: Provides an analysis of how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama provoke a decision. (2)
Item (Asterisks mark correct answers)
Part A: At the end of paragraph four, Watson decides that “To this one purpose I must now devote all my energies.” Why does Watson make this decision?
He suddenly realizes where the stranger is hiding.
He worries that the hound will attack the stranger first.
Sir Henry is anxious and needs Watson to solve the crime.
He believes he and Sir Henry could soon be harmed.*
Part B: What phrase from the excerpt best supports the answer in Part A?
“The baronet is in a black reaction” (paragraph 2)
“a feeling of impending danger” (paragraph 2)*
“a strange creature upon the moor” (paragraph 3)
“A stranger then is still dogging us” (paragraph 3)
Item #
6
Aligned evidence statements
RL1: Provides textual evidence that most strongly supports analysis of inferences drawn from the text. (2)
RL6: Provides an analysis of how one or more differences in the points of view of the characters and the audience and/or reader (e.g. through the use of dramatic irony) create such effects as suspense or humor. (1)
Item (Asterisks mark correct answers)
Part A: How does Doyle’s use of Watson’s point of view as narrator create a sense of mystery?
Because Watson is an unreliable narrator, the reader does not trust his version of events.
Because Watson does not understand his situation, the reader must solve the crime.
Because Watson hints that he knows more than the reader does, the reader becomes confused.
Because Watson refuses to believe in superstition, the reader wonders if the hound is real.*
Part B: Which lines from the excerpt support the answer in part A? Select one answer.
“Now, however, I have arrived at a point in my narrative where I am compelled to abandon this method and to trust once more to my recollections, aided by the diary which I kept at the time.” (paragraph 1)
“Consider the long sequence of incidents which have all pointed to some sinister influence which is at work around us.” (paragraph 3)
“Twice I have with my own ears heard the sound which resembled the distant baying of a hound. It is incredible, impossible, that it should really be outside the ordinary laws of nature.” (paragraph 3)*
“Has he remained in London, or has he followed us down here? Could he—could he be the stranger whom I saw upon the tor?” (paragraph 3)
Interim Assessment #1 (Student Version):
Excerpt from Chapter Ten of The Hound of the Baskervilles Instructions: Please read the excerpt from chapter ten of Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Hound of the Baskervilles, a novel published in 1902. In this excerpt, Sherlock Holmes’s assistant Watson describes events he has experienced while investigating a murder. After reading the excerpt, answer the questions that follow.
So far I have been able to quote from the reports which I have forwarded during these early days to Sherlock Holmes. Now, however, I have arrived at a point in my narrative where I am compelled to abandon this method and to trust once more to my recollections, aided by the diary which I kept at the time. A few extracts from the latter will carry me on to those scenes which are indelibly fixed in every detail upon my memory. I proceed, then, from the morning which followed our abortive chase of the convict and our other strange experiences upon the moor.
2
October 16th. A dull and foggy day with a drizzle of rain. The house is banked in with rolling clouds, which rise now and then to show the dreary curves of the moor, with thin, silver veins upon the sides of the hills, and the distant boulders gleaming where the light strikes upon their wet faces. It is melancholy outside and in. The baronet1 is in a black reaction after the excitements of the night. I am conscious myself of a weight at my heart and a feeling of impending danger—ever present danger, which is the more terrible because I am unable to define it.
3
And have I not cause for such a feeling? Consider the long sequence of incidents which have all pointed to some sinister influence which is at work around us. There is the death of the last occupant of the Hall2, fulfilling so exactly the conditions of the family legend, and there are the repeated reports from peasants of the appearance of a strange creature upon the moor3. Twice I have with my own ears heard the sound which resembled the distant baying of a hound. It is incredible, impossible, that it should really be outside the ordinary laws of nature. A spectral hound which leaves material footmarks and fills the air with its howling is surely not to be thought of. Stapleton may fall in with such a superstition, and Mortimer also, but if I have one quality upon earth it is common sense, and nothing will persuade me to believe in such a thing. To do so would be to descend to the level of these poor peasants, who are not content with a mere fiend dog but must needs describe him with hell-fire shooting from his mouth and eyes. Holmes would not listen to such fancies, and I am his agent. But facts are facts, and I have twice heard this crying upon the moor. Suppose that there were really some huge hound loose upon it; that would go far to explain everything. But where could such a hound lie concealed, where did it get its food, where did it come from, how was it that no one saw it by day? It must be confessed that the natural explanation offers almost as many difficulties as the other. And always, apart from the hound, there is the fact of the human agency in London, the man in the cab, and the letter which warned Sir Henry against the moor. This at least was real, but it might have been the work of a protecting friend as easily as of an enemy. Where is that friend or enemy now? Has he remained in London, or has he followed us down here? Could he—could he be the stranger whom I saw upon the tor4?
4
It is true that I have had only the one glance at him, and yet there are some things to which I am ready to swear. He is no one whom I have seen down here, and I have now met all the neighbours. The figure was far taller than that of Stapleton, far thinner than that of Frankland. Barrymore it might possibly have been, but we had left him behind us, and I am certain that he could not have followed us. A stranger then is still dogging us, just as a stranger dogged us in London. We have never shaken him off. If I could lay my hands upon that man, then at last we might find ourselves at the end of all our difficulties. To this one purpose I must now devote all my energies.
1.
Part A: What does Watson mean by the word indelibly in paragraph one of the excerpt from The Hound of the Baskervilles?
His memories of the scenes are frightening.
His memories of the scenes are impossible to forget.
He does not clearly remember the scenes.
He does not trust his memories of the scenes.
Part B: Which two details from paragraph one best help clarify the meaning of indelibly?
“my recollections”
“extracts”
“fixed”
“in every detail”
“upon my memory”
“strange experiences”
2.
Part A: What is one theme expressed in the excerpt from chapter ten?
It takes an evil villain to plan a murder.
Supernatural events can explain unsolved mysteries.
When a mystery is complex, the detective must be skeptical.
Superstitions lead people to act foolishly.
Part B: Which two sentences from paragraph three develop the theme from Part A?
“Twice I have with my own ears heard the sound which resembled the distant baying of a hound.”
“Stapleton may fall in with such a superstition, and Mortimer also, but if I have one quality upon earth it is common sense, and nothing will persuade me to believe in such a thing.”
“It must be confessed that the natural explanation offers almost as many difficulties as the other.”
“And always, apart from the hound, there is the fact of the human agency in London, the man in the cab, and the letter which warned Sir Henry against the moor.”
“This at least was real, but it might have been the work of a protecting friend as easily as of an enemy.”
“Where is that friend or enemy now?”
3.
Part A: What idea does the setting in paragraph two reveal?
The setting shows that the characters are confused.
The setting shows that mysterious events are about to occur.
The setting shows that the weather mirrors the characters’ moods.
The setting shows that the moor is beautiful.
Part B: Which phrase from paragraph two best supports the answer to part A?
“A dull and foggy day with a drizzle of rain”
“the dreary curves of the moor”
“It is melancholy outside and in”
“which is the more terrible because I am unable to define it”
4.
Part A: What central idea is expressed in paragraph four from the excerpt?
Watson wants to learn more about the stranger.
Watson knows the identity of the stranger.
Watson will wait before deciding what to do with the stranger.
Watson wants to kill the stranger.
Part B: What does the central idea from Part A show about Watson’s character?
Watson is a man of swift action and violence.
Watson is a clever detective who always solves the crime.
Watson is not smart enough to understand what is obvious.
Watson is a careful thinker who considers all options.
Part C: What phrase from paragraph three supports the answer to Part B?
“is surely not to be thought of”
“I am his agent”
“Suppose that there were really some huge hound”
“Where is that friend or enemy now?”
5.
Part A: At the end of paragraph four, Watson decides that “To this one purpose I must now devote all my energies.” Why does Watson make this decision?
He suddenly realizes where the stranger is hiding.
He worries that the hound will attack the stranger first.
Sir Henry is anxious and needs Watson to solve the crime.
He believes he and Sir Henry could soon be harmed.
Part B: What phrase from the excerpt best supports the answer in Part A?
“The baronet is in a black reaction” (paragraph 2)
“a feeling of impending danger” (paragraph 2)
“a strange creature upon the moor” (paragraph 3)
“A stranger then is still dogging us” (paragraph 3)
6.
Part A: How does Doyle’s use of Watson’s point of view as narrator create a sense of mystery?
Because Watson is an unreliable narrator, the reader does not trust his version of events.
Because Watson does not understand his situation, the reader must solve the crime.
Because Watson hints that he knows more than the reader does, the reader becomes confused.
Because Watson refuses to believe in superstition, the reader wonders if the hound is real.
Part B: Which lines from the excerpt support the answer in part A? Select one answer.
“Now, however, I have arrived at a point in my narrative where I am compelled to abandon this method and to trust once more to my recollections, aided by the diary which I kept at the time.” (paragraph 1)
“Consider the long sequence of incidents which have all pointed to some sinister influence which is at work around us.” (paragraph 3)
“Twice I have with my own ears heard the sound which resembled the distant baying of a hound. It is incredible, impossible, that it should really be outside the ordinary laws of nature.” (paragraph 3)
“Has he remained in London, or has he followed us down here? Could he—could he be the stranger whom I saw upon the tor?” (paragraph 3)
Interim Assessment #2: The Hound of the Baskervilles
Argument Paragraph Prompt:
What makes Sherlock Holmes a great detective? Consider Holmes’s methods in The Hound of the Baskervilles and how he solves the crime, and then write a paragraph in which you argue for which characteristic or skill makes Holmes a great detective. In your paragraph, be sure to:
Include a claim which states your argument
Support your claim with reasons and multiple pieces of evidence from the novel
Acknowledge and respond to at least one counterclaim
Use “connective tissue” (transitions and elaboration) to show how your ideas relate to each other
Follow the conventions of standard written English
Standards assessed:
Reading:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.1 Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.8.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to the characters, setting, and plot; provide an objective summary of the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.8.3 Analyze how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama propel the action, reveal aspects of a character, or provoke a decision.
