Common lit question GROWING UP: KEY MOMENTS by Jessie McBirney What is the central idea of the text? 1 A Unlike our childhood experiences, becoming an adult is difficult and becomes more intense as we get older. B Growing up doesn’t happen overnight; instead, we grow up gradually and experience significant moments in our lives. C Making the wrong choices and decisions during important growing-up moments can have a negative impact on our adult lives. D In order to learn from our growing-up moments, we need to recognize them as they are happening rather than after the fact. 2. Which piece of evidence best supports the author’s idea that challenging moments help people learn as they grow up? A “You might remember a big news story as one of the first times you paid attention to local or world events.” ( Paragraph 3) B “Realizing that not all friends are for life is a huge growing-up moment.” ( Paragraph 6) C “Either outcome is valuable, as we learn how we work under pressure and how to better care for the people who rely on us.” ( Paragraph 8) D “Confronting hard situations teaches us more about the world and about ourselves, and we come out stronger for it.” ( Paragraph 10) 3. Which statement best captures the author’s point of view and purpose of this article? A The author wrote this article to warn young people about the decisions they will face. B The author wrote this article to warn young people about the dangers they will face. C The author wrote this article to share experiences that most young people will face. D The author wrote this article to share experiences that few people will face. 4. What connection does the author make between a person’s actions and growing-up moments? A We have control over when and where growing-up moments happen. B Both the negative and positive decisions we make can result in growing-up moments. C Even though we experience growing-up moments, we need to act upon the lessons we learn in order to grow up. D Making a poor choice or decision in a certain situation can take the value away from an important growing-up moment.