These are original Marlbridge practice questions, not past exam questions. The extract was written by Marlbridge for this practice. Mark points are a suggested Marlbridge rubric, not an official scoring guideline. Multiple-choice questions have four options.
Extract 3M (written by Marlbridge), from an invented novel.
Dolores had not been in the greenhouse since the spring her husband died, and when she opened the door the heat met her like an old acquaintance. The tomato plants had grown wild, leaning on their canes like drunks; the water butt was green; and on the shelf by the door, exactly where he had left it, lay his notebook, open at a page of figures that stopped in the middle of a column. She did not pick it up. Instead she found the secateurs, clean and sharp, which she had oiled the week he died, and cut back the nearest plant until the air smelled of tomato leaf and she could stand there and breathe.
Claim for Questions 1 to 4. Dolores copes with her grief through physical tasks and not through words.
Question 1 (multiple choice · core)
Which detail from Extract 3M is the most relevant evidence for the claim?
- (A) “the water butt was green”
- (B) “She did not pick it up. Instead she found the secateurs”
- (C) “the heat met her like an old acquaintance”
- (D) “leaning on their canes like drunks”
Answer and explanation
Answer: (B). She turns from the notebook to a task, which directly supports a claim about action in place of words.
- (A) describes the greenhouse and has no bearing on how she copes.
- (C) is relevant to her relationship with the place but not to tasks against words.
- (D) describes the plants’ condition.
Question 2 (multiple choice · core)
Which detail is the least relevant to the claim?
- (A) “cut back the nearest plant”
- (B) “the water butt was green”
- (C) “she could stand there and breathe”
- (D) “She did not pick it up”
Answer and explanation
Answer: (B). It describes the neglected greenhouse but does not show how Dolores deals with grief.
- (A), (C) and (D) each show an action or its effect on her.
Question 3 (multiple choice · stretch)
A student uses “open at a page of figures that stopped in the middle of a column” to support the sentence “The notebook shows that her husband’s work was interrupted.” The most accurate description of the purpose of this evidence is that it
- (A) illustrates the idea that his work was left unfinished
- (B) qualifies the claim about Dolores
- (C) clarifies the meaning of “grief”
- (D) associates the notebook with the tomato plants
Answer and explanation
Answer: (A). The unfinished column is a direct instance of work stopped in the middle.
- (B) is wrong because the evidence supports the sentence about the husband rather than limiting a claim.
- (C) is wrong because it does not define a term.
- (D) is wrong because it does not link the notebook to the plants.
Question 4 (multiple choice · stretch)
Which detail could be used to qualify the claim that Dolores copes only through physical tasks and avoids reminders of the past?
- (A) She “found the secateurs, clean and sharp, which she had oiled the week he died”
- (B) She “did not pick it up”
- (C) “the tomato plants had grown wild”
- (D) “she could stand there and breathe”
Answer and explanation
Answer: (A). She oiled the tool the week he died, so she had already prepared for this return, which complicates the claim that she avoids the past completely.
- (B) supports the claim.
- (C) describes the plants.
- (D) supports the claim by showing the effect of the task.
Question 5 (multiple choice · core)
Which sentence integrates a quotation from Extract 3M most smoothly and correctly?
- (A) Dolores “found the secateurs, clean and sharp”, which suggests that she had prepared for this day.
- (B) Dolores. “found the secateurs, clean and sharp.” Which suggests that she had prepared.
- (C) Dolores, found the secateurs “clean and sharp which she had oiled, suggests she had prepared”.
- (D) Dolores “finds the secateurs, clean and sharp”, which suggests she prepared.
Answer and explanation
Answer: (A). The quotation is exact, fits the grammar of the sentence and is followed by a link.
- (B) leaves fragments and an unattached quotation.
- (C) misquotes and breaks the grammar.
- (D) changes the quoted verb “found” to “finds” inside the quotation marks, so it is not exact.
Question 6 (multiple choice · core)
Which sentence contains no comma splice?
- (A) Dolores opens the door, the heat meets her.
- (B) Dolores opens the door, and the heat meets her.
- (C) Dolores opens the door, she is met by the heat.
- (D) Dolores opens the door, the plants have grown wild.
Answer and explanation
Answer: (B). The comma is followed by “and”, which joins two independent clauses correctly.
- (A), (C) and (D) join two independent clauses with only a comma.
Question 7 (constructed response · stretch)
Choose two details from Extract 3M that you would use to support the claim for Questions 1 to 4. For each, name its purpose (for example, illustrate, amplify or qualify) and write one sentence of commentary.
Answer and explanation
Sample response.
- Detail: “She did not pick it up. Instead she found the secateurs.” Purpose: illustrates the claim. Commentary: The choice of the secateurs over the notebook shows that she prefers an action to a reminder in words and figures.
- Detail: “cut back the nearest plant until the air smelled of tomato leaf and she could stand there and breathe.” Purpose: amplifies the claim. Commentary: The task has a physical result that lets her “breathe”, which shows that action, not words, brings her relief.
Suggested Marlbridge rubric (4 points).
| Point | Awarded for |
|---|---|
| 1 | Two relevant, accurate details |
| 2 | A named purpose for each that fits how it is used |
| 3 | Commentary that explains the link between each detail and the claim |
| 4 | Details of different kinds (for example, one avoided action and one task) |
Question 8 (constructed response · stretch)
Edit the following paragraph so that it is clear and correct. Keep the ideas, and fix at least four errors of grammar, mechanics or wording.
In the greenhouse Dolores don’t touch the notebook. She leaves it, where he left it, the page stop in the middle of a column which show his work was interrupted. Its a small detail but it matter.
Answer and explanation
Sample response. In the greenhouse Dolores does not touch the notebook. She leaves it where he left it. The page stops in the middle of a column, which shows that his work was interrupted. It is a small detail, but it matters.
Suggested Marlbridge rubric (4 points, one for each correction of a different kind).
| Point | Awarded for |
|---|---|
| 1 | Subject-verb agreement corrected (“does not touch”) |
| 2 | Comma splice or misplaced commas corrected (“leaves it where he left it. The page stops…”) |
| 3 | Agreement in the relative clause corrected (“which shows”) |
| 4 | “Its” corrected to “It is”, and “matter” to “matters” with a comma before “but” |
Any four correct edits earn full marks if the meaning is unchanged.
How did you do? If you missed Questions 1 to 4, reread “Choosing evidence is part of the argument” and “Six purposes for evidence” in the study guide. If you missed Questions 5 and 6, reread “Composition: control of the sentence”. For the written questions, compare with the rubrics, then check the checklist.