What does Anya say the sound in the shell really is?
Read a Literary Passage · ELPAC Grade 2 reading. The correct answer, and the reasoning behind it.
A short story or scene, with questions about characters, events and what words mean in context.
Read the story. Then answer the questions.
The Quiet Shell
Dev found a shell at the beach. It was gray outside and pink inside. He held it to his ear. He heard a soft sound, like wind in a tunnel.
His sister Anya laughed. "That is not the ocean," she said. "It is only the air moving inside."
Dev put the shell in his pocket anyway. At home he set it on the shelf by his bed.
That night the house was loud. A truck rumbled past. A door banged. Dev picked up the shell and held it to his ear. The soft sound came back, and he fell asleep.
The question
Choose the best answer.
What does Anya say the sound in the shell really is?
- The ocean
- A truck on the street
- Air moving inside the shellCorrect answer
- Wind in a tunnel
Why “Air moving inside the shell” is correct
The question asks what one character claims, which means the child has to find her words rather than the narrator's. Anya makes two statements in a row, one ruling an idea out and one giving the real explanation, so the answer is in the second. Have the child put a finger on the quotation marks and read only what is inside them.
Why the other answers are wrong
- The ocean — The ocean is what Anya says the sound is not. It is named only to be ruled out.
- A truck on the street — The truck comes later in the story and is one of the loud noises, not the sound inside the shell.
- Wind in a tunnel — 'Wind in a tunnel' is the comparison the narrator uses to describe how the sound seems, not what causes it.
Practice more of this
More reading practice for Grade 2, or see the ELPAC practice test for grade 2. For other grades, see free ELPAC practice tests by grade.
This is an independent study resource. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the California Department of Education or the official ELPAC program. All questions here are original practice material written to match the published task formats.