Passage-Related Writing Items for Literary Text: "The Beaver Pool in December," Item: 2

Enhanced Assessment

End of Grade 7 Sample NECAP Writing Items

Passage-Related Writing Items for Literary Text: "The Beaver Pool in December," Item: 2

Below is a poem about a beaver pool. Read the poem and then answer the prompt that follows.

The Beaver Pool in December
By Jane Kenyon

The brook is still open
where the water falls,
but over the deeper pools
clear ice forms; over the dark
shapes of stones, a rotting log,
and amber leaves that clattered down
after the first heavy frost.

Though I wait in the cold
until dusk, and though a sudden
bubble of air rises under the ice,
I see not a single animal.

The beavers thrive somewhere
else, eating the bark of hoarded
saplings. How they struggled
to pull the long branches
over the stiffening bank …

but now they pass without
effort, all through the chilly
water; moving like thoughts
in an unconflicted mind.

W-7-2 and W-7-3: Response to Literary Text: "The Beaver Pool in December"

2. Follow along as the poem is read to you. Then read the prompt in the box and follow the directions below.

Based on the poem and what you know, what do you think is the poet's message? How does the poet use imagery to convey this message? Use details from the poem in your response.

Use the box below to organize your writing. You may fill it in before you write to plan your response, or you may fill it in after you write to check your response. What you write in this box will be included as part of your score.

1. What is your focus/controlling idea?

2. What are the supporting details/references to text in your response?

3. What is the conclusion to your response?

Item Type: ER - Response to Literary Texts: "The Beaver Pool in December"

Grade Level: End of Grade 7

Alignment to GLEs

W-7-2.1: In response to literary text, students show understanding of plot by… Selecting and summarizing key ideas to set context

W-7-2.3: In response to literary text, students show understanding of plot by… Connecting what has been read (plot) to prior knowledge, other texts, or the broader world of ideas, by referring to and explaining relevant ideas

W-7-3.1: In response to literary text, students make and support analytical judgments about text by…Stating and maintaining a focus (purpose), a firm judgment, or point of view when responding to a given question

W-7-3.2: In response to literary text, students make and support analytical judgments about text by…Making inferences about the relationship(s) among events, characters, setting, theme or author's craft

W-7-3.3: In response to literary text, students make and support analytical judgments about text by…Using specific details and references to text or relevant citations to support focus or judgment

W-7-3.4: In response to literary text, students make and support analytical judgments about text by…Organizing ideas, using transition words/phrases and writing a conclusion that provides closure

Depth of Knowledge: Level 3 - Developing compositions that include multiple paragraphs; Using appropriate organizational text structures (e.g., description; proposition/support; compare/contrast; cause/effect); Supporting ideas with details, examples, text references, citations

View poem at the top of the page

Return to Grade 7 Writing GLEs