Question

not the same old same old
by b. mcswain
nday, brock walked down his street to the corner
met up with brandon and gave him their
y tired fist bump to say hello. with their backpacks
er one shoulder, they continued to the bus stop\bed with other students for the bus to carry them to
aboard the bus, passengers looked dreamily out
dows as they jostled along, planning for the day in
a future when a learner’s permit might free them
e boring bus ride. after school, brock and brandon
back to their neighborhood on bus #47. the routine
change on tuesday. on wednesday, an unexpected
greeted them on their walk home; on thursday, it

ing ever happens in this boring neighborhood,\
lamented on friday morning. little did he know that
would change forever on their walk home that day.
ling the bus, brandon began telling brock about his
experiment fail when he tried to demonstrate gravity
class presentation and knocked over his whole
entation apparatus along with most of the stuff on mr.
ll’s desk.
well, you definitely demonstrated gravity,\ brock
cked.
ng, did you hear about that new tv show? this
ning my dad said they were going to be filming it right
in pleasant valley,\ brandon said.
5
which sentence best describes the main conflict in the story?
a. brock laughs when brandon knocks over his presentation in class.
b. students want their learners permits so they do not have to ride the bus.
c. brock and brandon feel that pleasant valley lacks excitement.
d. dad does not want the crew filming the new show inside their home.

Explanation:

To determine the main conflict, we analyze each option:

• Option A: Brock laughing at Brandon's presentation incident is a minor event, not the main conflict.
• Option B: Students wanting learner's permits to avoid the bus is not indicated as a central conflict in the story's context.
• Option C: The story shows Brock and Brandon lamenting that nothing exciting happens in Pleasant Valley (e.g., "Nothing ever happens in this boring neighborhood"), so their feeling that Pleasant Valley lacks excitement is the main conflict as it drives their perspective and the story's setup for potential change.
• Option D: Dad not wanting filming inside the home is a new development later, not the main conflict established initially.

Answer:

C. Brock and Brandon feel that Pleasant Valley lacks excitement