Riya spent the first week of high school trying to keep her head above water. She was overwhelmed by the huge building. She decided that she would memorize where her classes were and then pretend that the rest of the place didn't exist. All the different hallways and wings were too much to think about, let alone commit to memory.In P.E., Coach Wallace sent her reeling when he announced that everyone had to run one mile around the track outside.Riya searched the faces of her classmates for signs of panic. There was nothing she dreaded more than having to run a whole mile. To Riya, a mile was used to describe long distances. It was ten miles to her grandfather's house, and that always seemed like a long way, even in a car!When Coach Wallace blew his whistle, Riya figured she would be left in the dust. However, while some of her classmates edged ahead, others actually lagged behind. It's just the beginning, she thought. I'll come in last for sure.Riya started using a mind trick on herself. She stopped thinking about the word mile. Instead, she focused on reaching the shadow cast on the track by an oak tree up ahead. Then she concentrated on jogging to the spot where the track curved. After that, she tried to see if she could complete her first lap. One lap turned into two, then three, then four. When Coach Wallace gave her a high five and said, "Nice work," Riya was shocked. She never would have guessed that she had just run a whole mile.As Riya walked back to the school building after P.E., she noticed that she felt less overwhelmed by its size. Maybe she would come to know the place, one lap at a time.Which of the following best describes the main theme or lesson of the story?Try not to measure yourself against other people.Goals are easier to achieve in small steps.Confidence can take you farther than your ability can.Submit

Select the quotation from the story that most strongly suggests that the theme is Goals are easier to achieve in small steps.There was nothing she dreaded more than having to run a whole mile. To Riya, a mile was used to describe long distances.As Riya walked back to the school building after P.E., she noticed that she felt less overwhelmed by its size.She stopped thinking about the word mile. Instead, she focused on reaching the shadow cast on the track by an oak tree up ahead.Submit

Read the story summary and then answer the question:On her first day of college, Ria decided to specialize in two subjects: philosophy and mathematics. Students in both fields were intimidating; they acted like they were already mathematicians and philosophers, even though they were just freshmen. However, most of the students dropped out over the years while Ria studied hard, graduated with honors, and become a well-known scholar in the philosophy of mathematics.Which statement is most clearly a theme in this story?A.People should be true to their dreams.B.An identity must be earned, not chosen.C.Mathematics is a universal language.D.Philosophy is the best career path.SUBMITarrow_backPREVIOUS

Read the story summary and then answer the question:On her first day of college, Ria decided to specialize in two subjects: philosophy and mathematics. Students in both fields were intimidating; they acted like they were already mathematicians and philosophers, even though they were just freshmen. However, most of the students dropped out over the years while Ria studied hard, graduated with honors, and become a well-known scholar in the philosophy of mathematics.Which statement is most clearly a theme in this story?A.An identity must be earned, not chosen.B.People should be true to their dreams.C.Mathematics is a universal language.D.Philosophy is the best career path.SUBMITarrow_backPREVIOUS

Read the story summary and then answer the question:On her first day of college, Ria decided to specialize in two subjects: philosophy and mathematics. Students in both fields were intimidating; they acted like they were already mathematicians and philosophers, even though they were just freshmen. However, most of the students dropped out over the years while Ria studied hard, graduated with honors, and become a well-known scholar in the philosophy of mathematics.Which statement is most clearly a theme in this story?A.An identity must be earned, not chosen.B.Mathematics is a universal language.C.Philosophy is the best career path.D.People should be true to their dreams.

Jessica's SummerJessica's mother looked up from her computer and gazed aimlessly at the water. A movement over to the left finally attracted her attention. What was that? Somebody swimming out in the middle of the lake. Right out in the middle. No, two people. Except one was a dog. Yes, she could make out the head of a large, black dog. And that other head, well that was Jessica, her daughter. What was going on? And what was Jessica doing in the middle of the river? She had to be in trouble.Gillian jumped immediately to her feet, anxious but feeling quite helpless. What should she do? She looked at the two dots in the distance again and could see that they were moving - even if really slowly. And they appeared to be pulling something behind them. She knew Jessica was a strong swimmer, but this situation didn't look normal. She had no boat or neighbours nearby, so she didn't know what to do. When she had rented the cabin for a break at the beginning of the summer, she hadn't considered it necessary to think about such things. Now she was starting to wonder if she was wrong.The water police. Yes. She would ring the water police, and insist that they came immediately. It was obvious her daughter was in danger, wasn't it? However, when the police arrived and powered the boat out into the middle of the lake, she had to admit that Jessica and the dog appeared to be quite calm and were definitely moving in unison, swimming side by side and at one another's pace, as they moved towards the centre of the water. Gillian started to have doubts about what was she was witnessing. What was Jessica doing in the lake anyway? And where had she found this dog? And what exactly were they pulling behind them?As the boat got nearer to the location of Jessica and the dog, the police switched off the engine. Gillian asked why. Surely, they should be speeding up, not slowing down? The police patiently explained that speeding ahead would cause ripples and waves in the water, and this rocking could become dangerous to Jessica and the dog. As a result, they explained, it would be best to allow the waters to calm before switching the engine back on and moving slowly ahead. It was probably only a matter of seconds or minutes, but to Jessica's mother, it felt like an eternity.As she waited for the time to pass, Gillian focused on her daughter and the dog. Again, they seemed to be swimming calmly and patiently, and she had to admit that she was quite impressed with their endurance. They were still quite a long way off, but at one point Gillian was confident that Jessica had raised her hand and waved. She asked the police if she could take a look through the binoculars that they had been using to establish the exact location of the two lake swimmers, and was able to see her daughter clearly through the binocular lenses. She could tell that she was concentrating hard on her swimming, but she could also tell that, although tired, she was swimming easily and with no indication of panic.It was at that point, that the police switched the boat engine on again and started to cruise slowly towards Jessica's location. It was then that Gillian saw the man. Attached by rope to both the dog and her daughter, he was lying on top of some sort of floating device. He was conscious and breathing, but obviously unwell. As the police reached out to help Jessica and the dog onto the boat, Jessica breathlessly explained what had happened. The dog had found her sunbathing at the side of the lake and had led her to its owner. However, because the man was injured and couldn't walk, she had needed to use what she could find in the woods to build a temporary floating device. She had then attached this to herself and the dog and jumped into the lake to pull the man back to safety.The JournalQuestions1) What was the writer's purpose in the first paragraph?A) To show the reader how surprised and worried Jessica's mother is.B) To describe Jessica and what was happening to her.C) To explain why a dog was swimming with Jessica.D) To invite the reader to think of some solutions to the situation.2) How does Jessica's mum react to the situation?A) She feels confident her daughter will be ok.B) She questions her choice of holiday location.C) She remains calm and thinks about what to do.D) She starts panicking and calls a neighbour.3) As the police take the boat into the middle of the lake, GillianA) is confused by what she sees and what is happening.B) remains convinced that her daughter is in danger.C) worries about the way Jessica and the dog are swimming.D) demands to know the identity of the man in the water.4) Why did the water police turn off the boat engines?A) To allow Jessica's mum time to calm down.B) To be able to see what was happening more clearly.C) To allow them to approach Jessica and the dog safely.D) Because they had problems with the boat's engine.5) When Gillian looks at her daughter through the binocularsA) she notices how in control her daughter appears.B) she sees her daughter raise her hand and starts to panic.C) she is worried about the presence of the dog.D) she is concerned that Jessica will be too tired to reach the boat.6) What do we learn about Jessica in the last paragraph?A) She had seen the dog swimming in the water and followed him.B) She was swimming in the lake when she came across the dog and his owner.C) She had discovered the injured man by following the dog around the lake.D) She had seen the injured man when sunbathing and went to help.