Question

5-minute daily reading review
week 20, friday
the great potato famine
1
in the 1800s, poor irish peasants lived by eating almost exclusively potatoes alone. potatoes were nutritious and dense in calories. in 1845, a plant disease spread through the irish potato crop. the potato crop failed from 1845 through 1851. without food to eat, many became sick and starved to death. about a million people died during this time.
2
because of the potato famine, many people fled ireland to live in other places. they emigrated from ireland to north america, england, scotland, wales, and australia.
3
over a million irish peasants immigrated to the united states from 1846 to 1855 looking for jobs. they settled in large cities such as boston, new york, and chicago. there was much discrimination against these new people. they lived in urban slum areas in very poor conditions.
today, u.s. citizens of irish descent are policeman, teachers, and other trades and professions.
an 1849 depiction of bridget o’donnell and her two children during the famine.

1. the author organized the text in paragraphs 1 and 2 by —

a. persuading the reader that the potato famine killed many people
b. describing irish immigrants
c. telling the cause and effect of people leaving ireland
d. telling how irish peasants were indebted to their landlords

1. the author most likely wrote this article to —

a. explain what caused the potato famine
b. tell about irish people who came to the united states
c. tell why many people died in ireland in the 1840s
d. explain how irish people earned a living in the u.s.

1. the word emigrated means —

a. left their own country
b. came to a new country
c. working irish peasants
d. starved to death

Explanation:

Question 1

Paragraph 1 explains the cause (potato crop failure due to disease) of the Potato Famine, and Paragraph 2 explains the effect (people dying and emigrating). So the author organizes the text by telling the cause and effect of people leaving Ireland. Option A is incorrect as the author isn't persuading. Option B is incorrect as Paragraph 2 isn't just about describing immigrants. Option D is incorrect as the text isn't about Irish peasants' debt to landlords.

The article explains what caused the Potato Famine (plant disease in 1845), its effects (death, emigration), and where the Irish emigrated. Option B is incorrect as it's not just about Irish people in the US. Option C is incorrect as the article isn't focused on how many died in Ireland. Option D is incorrect as the article isn't about Irish peasants' debt.

The context says "many people fled from Ireland to North America...", so "emigrated" means left their own country to go to another. Option B is incorrect as "came to a new country" is immigration, but "emigrated" is from one's own country. Option C is incorrect as it's not about working. Option D is incorrect as it's about movement, not starvation.

Answer:

C. telling the cause and effect of people leaving Ireland

Question 2