GED Reading: Strange Words
Hola everyone. I’ve been thinking about something that causes me trouble, not just on the GED, but all the time! You know, sometimes people here in the states talk so strangely. Even though I think I’m pretty good at understanding English, I can barely understand a word some people are saying! Sometimes Dwayne is like that. He talks some sort of elite speech or something, and I just don’t get it. It doesn’t make any sense.
What’s more frustrating is when I have to read English in a book with strange accents I’ve never heard before. A lot of books have different kinds of writing for the dialogue… you know, when people talk. Like different dialects. They can be so confusing. Here’s a GED practice question that shows what I mean. The passage is from “Pollyanna,” by Eleanor Hodgeman Porter.
“For the land’s sake, Miss Pollyanna, what a scare you did give me,” panted Nancy, hurrying up to the big rock, down which Pollyanna had just regretfully slid.
“Scare? Oh, I’m so sorry; but you mustn’t, really, ever get scared about me, Nancy. Father and the Ladies’ Aid used to do it, too, till they found I always came back all right.”
“But I didn’t even know you’d went,” cried Nancy, tucking the little girl’s hand under her arm and hurrying her down the hill. “I didn’t see you go, and nobody didn’t. I guess you flew right up through the roof; I do, I do.”
Pollyanna skipped gleefully.
“I did, ‘most—only I flew down instead of up. I came down the tree.”
Nancy stopped short.
“You did—what?”
“Came down the tree, outside my window.”
“My stars and stockings!” gasped Nancy, hurrying on again. “I’d like ter know what yer aunt would say ter that!”
What does this passage reveal about Pollyanna’s personality?
1) She is gloomy and pessimistic.
2) She is adventurous and carefree.
3) She is easily scared.
4) She is a mischievous troublemaker.
5) She is studious and strict.
When I first look at this passage, I immediately feel so confused. What does “For the land’s sake” mean? And what does she mean by, “Ladies’ Aid?” There are so many things they say here that I just don’t get. But I’ve figured out that you can’t get discouraged if you don’t understand everything in a passage. There are still a lot of things that I can understand, especially after I read the question.
It asks about Pollyanna’s personality. So, I look for things that answer the question, and don’t worry too much about what I don’t understand! Let’s see. In the second sentence, Pollyanna tells Nancy that “you mustn’t, really, ever get scared about me.” And later on she is skipping gleefully. Does that sound gloomy? I don’t think so. Gloomy is the opposite of gleefull!Even if I’m not sure what “gleeful” means, she’s skipping, and just doesn’t seem gloomy at all. Later it says that she just “came down the tree.” This scares Nancy! But it doesn’t scare Pollyanna, so I know #3 isn’t right. I don’t think studious and strict people would climb trees or run off without telling anyone, so #5 doesn’t sound right.
I think that #4 could be the answer. Troublemakers don’t always follow the rules (just look, it has the word “trouble” in it), and it doesn’t sound like Pollyanna is following them either. This is the one you might guess. But what does “mischievous” mean? Have you heard the word “mischief?” It’s more trouble. It’s kind of being mean and making problems. I think that Pollyanna might be causing trouble for Nancy, but she isn’t doing it to be harmful or mean. She even apologizes to Nancy when she realizes that she had scared her!
So, I think the best answer is #2. That one says “adventurous and carefree.” Pollyanna sure seems to like adventure… doing new things… and she doesn’t seem to worry, that makes her “carefree.” It’s a better answer, because Pollyanna doesn’t seem to want to cause trouble, particularly. She just seems to want to go out and have fun.
See, you can figure out the main idea of a reading, even if you can’t understand every word. Sometimes it’s important to look words up. But you don’t want to get bogged down with looking up every word! Especially if it seems likeit’s not part of the main point . Or like with the “Ladies’ Aid.” I don’t know exactly what that is, but I can guess that it is someone who most likely looked after Pollyanna, and that’s good enough for the time being. Unless, of course, the question asks specifically, “Who is the Ladies’ Aid?” Then we have some more thinking to do!
Good luck studying for the GED.
For more information about the GED test and GED test preparation, visit the GED Academy at http://www.passGED.com