Reading Standards for Literature > Theme and Central Idea (CCSS.RL.6.2) Practice Test

The robotics club's practice ran long again, and Jamal's notebook was smudged with grease and pencil marks. Their robot kept stalling on the ramp, and the arm they designed to lift blocks shook like a nervous hand. Mr. Ortega, their mentor, didn't fix it for them. He stood nearby and said, "Every error is data. What did you learn?" So the team listed each problem, tested one change at a time, and wrote down the results. By Thursday, the arm lifted smoothly, but the wheels still slipped. They tried different treads and added a small weight to the front. On competition day, the first match went badly—the robot slid off the bridge and timed out. No one yelled. Jamal flipped back through his notes and saw the adjustment they had skipped in their rush. Between rounds, they made the change. In the next match, the robot climbed the ramp and placed two blocks. They didn't win the whole tournament, but the judge stopped by their table to ask about their log. Jamal realized the pages showed something more than mistakes; they showed how the team kept going, learned, and improved together.

Maya and Luis ran their family's food truck after school, following a neat chart taped to the fridge: Monday, Maya worked the grill while Luis handled the register; Tuesday, they switched. It felt fair—one turn each. Then the soccer finals ended early, and a river of hungry fans overflowed the sidewalk. Orders piled up. When a burst of steam startled Luis, he dropped a basket and nicked his palm on the fryer handle. He wasn't badly hurt, but his hands shook. Without arguing about whose turn it was, Maya slid to the grill, moving like she did at home when cooking with their dad. Luis took the register, greeting customers and making change with his uninjured hand. Later, when the rush ended, Maya breathed hard and reached for a water bottle. Luis quietly wiped down the counters so she could rest. At closing time, they adjusted the chart: on days with crowds, the person who felt strongest on the grill would take it, and the other would balance things by cleaning and prepping after. Their mom smiled. "Fair doesn't always mean equal," she said. "It means we help where we're needed, and we make it up to each other."