What is this passage mostly about? (Why Owls Hunt at Night)
Read an Informational Passage · ELPAC Grade 2 reading. The correct answer, and the reasoning behind it.
A longer factual text, with questions about the main idea, supporting details and vocabulary.
Read the passage. Then answer the questions.
Why Owls Hunt at Night
Most birds sleep at night. Owls do the opposite. They rest in the day and hunt after dark.
An owl has very large eyes. Big eyes let in more light, so an owl can see a mouse on a dark night.
An owl hears well too. Its ears are not the same height on its head. One ear is a little higher than the other. The sound of a mouse reaches one ear first. That small difference tells the owl where to look.
Owl feathers have soft edges. The soft edges make the wings quiet. A mouse does not hear the owl until it is too late.
The question
Choose the best answer.
What is this passage mostly about?
- How owls build their nests
- How an owl's body helps it hunt at nightCorrect answer
- Why mice come out after dark
- How owls sleep during the day
Why “How an owl's body helps it hunt at night” is correct
Main-idea questions ask what holds the paragraphs together, and the test is whether an answer covers all of them rather than just one. Eyes, ears and feathers are three separate paragraphs, and each is explained in terms of hunting in the dark. Ask the child to say in a few words what each paragraph is about, and then find the choice that fits every one.
Why the other answers are wrong
- How owls build their nests — Nests are never mentioned anywhere in the passage.
- Why mice come out after dark — Mice appear in two paragraphs, but only as what the owl is hunting, never as the subject.
- How owls sleep during the day — The first paragraph says owls rest in the day, but that is one sentence, not what the passage is about.
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.