Section I- Topic Development/Conventions of Punctuation (7 Minutes) [1]

During a sixth period bathroom break last year, I found an ugly black swastika scrawled on the bathroom wall. I need a couple of seconds to regain my composure, to try 1 to understand why someone would put a symbol of mass murder and a reminder of the Holocaust on our school walls.

[2] (1) I don’t want to believe that someone would draw a swastika as a prank. (2) I still think of that graffiti. (3) When I read about nooses being hung around the nation by attention-seeking copycats, I was shocked that 3 newspapers reported these acts as a joke.

[3] They see this as a joke. I see it as terror. 4

[4] (1) The noose, the South’s enduring symbol of racial hatred, has returned and is hanging right in front of our eyes. (2) The recent racially hued controversy and wave of hate crimes may have originated in Jena, Louisiana. As racial tension grew at that school, six black students beat up a white student. (3) The victim went to the hospital but still attended a social gathering that evening. (4) But the six attackers, known now as the Jena Six, were charged with attempted murder.

[5] The case grew into a cause as people across the nation questioned the stiff charges and what they believed was uneven justice delivered in the South. And the hate is still 6 spreading.

[6] Nooses were looped over a tree at the University of Maryland, tied around the neck of Tupac Shakur’s statue in Stone Mountain, Georgia, and draped on the office doorknob of a black Columbia University professor.

7

[7] In a typical year, about half a dozen noose cases are reported, according to Mark Potok, director of the Intelligence Project for the Southern Poverty Law Center, which monitors hate crimes. This year, there have been more than 50 noose cases reported.

[8]

1. A. NO CHANGE B. will need C. needs D. needed

2. The author is thinking of moving sentence two (2) in paragraph two [2]. Where is the most logical place to move sentence two (2)?

F. NO CHANGE G. Before sentence one (1) H. After sentence three (3) J. DELETE sentence two (2) from the paragraph

3.

A. NO CHANGE B. When I read about nooses being hung around the

nation, by attention-seeking copycats, C. When I read, about nooses being hung around the

nation, by attention-seeking copycats, D. DELETE the underlined portion

4. The subject and verb of the underlined sentence is respectively:

F. joke; see G. they; joke H. they; see J. as; joke

5. Where should the author add the following sentence into paragraph four [4]? A day after a black student sat under the “white tree” at the local high school, three nooses hung from the giant oak.

A. After sentence one (1) B. After sentence two (2) C. After sentence three (3) D. After sentence four (4)

6.

F. NO CHANGE G. For instance, H. Because J. DELETE the underlined portion

7.

A. NO CHANGE B. Nooses were looped over a tree at the University of

Maryland, tied around the neck, of Tupac Shakur’s statue, in Stone Mountain, Georgia, and draped on the office doorknob of a black Columbia University professor.

C. Nooses were looped over a tree at the University of Maryland, tied around the neck of Tupac Shakur’s statue in Stone Mountain, Georgia and draped on the office doorknob of a black Columbia University professor.

D. DELETE paragraph six [6]

This leads me to question the validity of “justice for all” Americans. These noose cases are obviously hate crimes, but the law doesn’t include noose-related incidents in hate-crime statues or they have minimal penalties. When people who suffer, see a noose hanging in front of their home, justice is not being served. 8

[9] You might say the country has changed since the time of legally sanctioned racism, and it has. The problem is, it’s changing again. We can no longer call ourselves an equal country if hanging nooses passes as a prank.

[10] This is a hate crime, and it needs to be recognized. It’s not funny. It’s not a joke. The sight of a noose sends shivers through the black community, just as a swastika still terrorizes Jews.

[11] (1) We say we’ve changed. (2) So, America, prove it. (3)Call these hate crimes what they are: terror

8.

F. NO CHANGE G. When people who suffer see a noose hanging in front

of their home, H. When people who suffer see a noose hanging in front

of their home J. DELETE the underlined portion.

9. Where is the most logical place to put sentence three (3) in paragraph eleven [11]?

A. NO CHANGE B. Before sentence one (1) C. Before sentence two (2) D. DELETE sentence three (3)

Section II – Main Idea/Supporting Details/Meanings of Words (6 Minutes) 1 5 10 15 20 25

In January of 1692, the daughter and niece of Reverend Samuel Parris of Salem Village became ill. When they failed to improve, the village doctor, William Griggs, was called in. His diagnosis of bewitchment put into motion the forces that would ultimately result in the death by hanging of nineteen men and women. In addition, one man was crushed to death; seven others died in prison, and the lives of many were irrevocably changed. To understand the events of the Salem witch trials, it is necessary to examine the times in which accusations of witchcraft occurred. There were the ordinary stresses of 17th-century life in Massachusetts Bay Colony. A strong belief in the devil, factions among Salem Village fanatics and rivalry with nearby Salem Town, a recent small pox epidemic and the threat of attack by warring tribes created a fertile ground for fear and suspicion. Soon prisons were filled with more than 150 men and women from towns surrounding Salem. Their names had been "cried out" by tormented young girls as the cause of their pain. All would await trial for a crime punishable by death in 17th-century New England, the practice of witchcraft.

30 35 40 45 50

In June of 1692, the special Court of Oyer (to hear) and Terminer (to decide) sat in Salem to hear the cases of witchcraft. Presided over by Chief Justice William Stoughton, the court was made up of magistrates and jurors. The first to be tried was Bridget Bishop of Salem who was found guilty and was hanged on June 10. Thirteen women and five men from all stations of life followed her to the gallows on three successive hanging days before the court was disbanded by Governor William Phipps in October of that year. The Superior Court of Judicature, formed to replace the "witchcraft" court, did not allow spectral evidence. This belief in the power of the accused to use their invisible shapes or spectres to torture their victims had sealed the fates of those tried by the Court of Oyer and Terminer. The new court released those awaiting trial and pardoned those awaiting execution. In effect, the Salem witch trials were over. As years passed, apologies were offered, and restitution was made to the victims' families. Historians and sociologists have examined this most complex episode in our history so that we may understand the issues of that time and apply our understanding to our own society. The parallels between the Salem witch trials and more modern examples of "witch hunting" like the McCarthy hearings of the 1950's, are remarkable.

10. As used in line 9, the word “irrevocably” most nearly means.  

A. forever B. needs more information C. can be forgotten about easily D. made easier  11. In lines 7-9, the author gives details about a man being crushed and people dieing in prison to:

F. Prove that Salem was a terrible place to live. G. Give information about Reverend Samuel Parris. H. Show that people died in different ways during the

witch trials. J. Prove that bewitchment was a serious problem in

Salem. 12. According to the second paragraph (lines 11-25) which of the following is NOT mentioned:

A. Young girls would accuse others as the cause of their pain.

B. Residents of Salem had a strong belief in the devil. C. Massachusetts Bay Colony had more stresses than

the rest of New England. D. Small pox was a serious illness at the time of the

witch trials. 13. As used in line 22, the word “tormented” most nearly means:

F. guilty G. severe mental or physical suffering H. forced to speak J. innocent

14. Based on the third paragraph (lines 26-45), what ended the Salem witch trials?

A. The special court of Oyer and Terminer heard cases of witchcraft.

B. Chief Justice William Stoughton chose magistrates and jurors.

C. The new court released those awaiting trial. D. The Superior Court of Judicature did not allow

spectral evidence. 15. As used in line 44, the “pardoned” most nearly means:  

F. the act of speeding up. G. the act of forgiving for a wrongdoing. H. to give up on. J. to make a complaint.

16. According to the passage, historians examine the Salem witch trials in order to:

A. understand how the issues connect to our own society.

B. prove that our society is much better. C. show the progression of the court system in America. D. find out how to catch witches.

17. As used in line 48, the word “restitution” most nearly means:

F. to hold a grudge. G. to act like something never happened. H. to be a part of history. J. to compensate for a loss.

Section IV Writing Prompt NAME: ___________________ The plot of The Crucible consists of many battles between many opposites. In as essay, identify one such opposite and explain why Arthur Miller included it. (Remember to use paragraphs, thesis, MELT, and all the other writing strategies we have covered in this class, and you have learned in previous years)