(1) the only marsupial native to north america is the virginia opossum. (2) like all opossums, it crawls into its mother’s pouch shortly after birth. (3) there, it is nourished until it is about 10 weeks old. (4) a newborn opossum is extremely . (5) it is very small. (6) it is furless. (7) it is sightless. (8) though youngsters leave the pouch after about 10 weeks, they continue to follow their mother on feeding expeditions for some time. which is the most effective way to vary the length of the sentences in the passage? rewrite sentence (4) to make it into a subordinate clause. divide sentence (1) into two shorter sentences. insert more detail into sentence (8) to lengthen it. combine sentences (5), (6), and (7) to create a series.