The Juggler
Steven
was a good juggler. Actually, he was
great. One of the
best. But today was about more
than being a "great" juggler.
Today Steven was going to make history.
He
started by juggling six beanbags. An
impressive task, but it was just a day at the beach for Steven.
"Okay,
give me two more." His assistant
slowly tossed two more beanbags in his direction. Steven moved just a little and added the two
new beanbags to his collection. He was a
juggling machine.
"Two
more," said Steven only a few seconds later. The assistant slowly threw two more beanbags.
Steven
moved to catch them. He seemed like he
was going to lose it for just a moment, but quickly recovered. Ten beanbags. It was a sight to see.
"Give
me three more!" Steven said. His assistant hesitated. Did I hear that right, he
wondered.
"Three more beanbags!" Steven said again, this time with passion. His assistant threw three more beanbags, but
he could barely watch as he did.
Steven
caught the beanbags as he juggled. He
moved forwards and backwards trying to keep the others in the air. He shifted right. He shifted left. He couldn't keep his eyes on all of
them. Certainly they were going to
fall! Any moment now...
But
they didn't fall. Steven was still
juggling. All thirteen beanbags!
"That's
it!" shouted his assistant.
"You did it! You have the
record!"
Reading
Comprehension Questions
1) In the above passage, the phrase “just a day at the beach” could be replaced by which of these?
a.
“another
hot day”
b.
“extremely
difficult”
c.
“very
easy”
d.
“busy day by the ocean”
2) Which of the following phrases in the above passage is an
example of a metaphor?
a.
“Did I hear that right…”
b.
“He was a juggling machine.”
c.
“Today he was going to make history.”
d.
“Steven moved to catch them.”
3) Based on the above passage, Steven has the most trouble
when?
a.
he begins juggling six beanbags
b.
he tries to speak
c.
new beanbags are added
d.
he thinks about making history
4) Judging from the above passage, which of the following is
obviously true about Steven?
a.
he is a novice juggler
b.
he tries to limit his practice time
c.
he is a quick learner
d.
he has been juggling for many years
5) At the start of the above passage it says “Today he was going to make history.” What does that mean?
a.
he’s going to document his juggling career
b.
he’s trying to set a world record in juggling
c.
he’s teaching people how to juggle
d.
he’s the first to use a “juggling machine”
Answer Key
1)
In the above
passage, the phrase “just a day at the beach”
could be replaced by which of these?
a.
“another hot day”
b.
“extremely difficult”
c.
“very easy”
d.
“busy day by
the ocean”
2)
Which of the
following phrases in the above passage is an example of a metaphor?
a.
“Did I hear that right…”
b.
“He was a
juggling machine.”
c.
“Today he was going to make history.”
d.
“Steven moved to catch them.”
3)
Based on the
above passage, Steven has the most trouble when?
a.
he begins juggling six beanbags
b.
he tries to speak
c.
new beanbags are
added
d.
he thinks about making history
4)
Judging from
the above passage, which of the following is obviously true about Steven?
a.
he is a novice juggler
b.
he tries to limit his practice time
c.
he is a quick learner
d.
he has been juggling
for many years
5)
At the start
of the above passage it says “Today he
was going to make history.” What
does that mean?
a.
he’s going to document his juggling career
b.
he’s trying to
set a world record in juggling
c.
he’s teaching people how to juggle
d.
he’s the first to use a “juggling machine”