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Nonfiction Article of the Week5-25: The Fall of the Greatest Show on Earth

Table of Contents

Terms of Use 2

Table of Contents 3

Digital Components/Google Classroom Guide 4

About This Midterm: Teacher’s Instructions 5-6

Article: The Fall of the Greatest Show on Earth 7-8

MODIFIED Article: The Fall of the Greatest Show on Earth 9-10

Paired Text: Excerpt 1 11

Paired Text: Excerpt 2 12

Pre-Assessment (Regular) 13-19

Pre-Assessment (Regular) Answer Key W/Standards 20-26

Pre-Assessment (Modified) 27-32

Pre-Assessment (Modified) Answer Key W/Standards 33-38



Teacher’s Guide

Instructions for Google Classroom Digital Components

All student activities are available in digital format compatible with Google Classroom. They are available in two formats: Google Slides and Google Forms.

Google SlidesFirst, I have made all student pages available in Google Slides format. Students can simply add text boxes to any area they wish to type on. To access the Google Slides for this article, copy and paste the link below into your browser. *Note that you’ll need to make a copy of the folder or slide before you can use it.*

link omitted in preview file

Google FormsI have made the assessments available in Google Forms. Here, they are self-grading, and I have set them all up with answer keys so they are ready to go for you. You’ll need to find these two files in your download folder to use Google Forms. The first file contains the links to the Forms, and the second file is explicit instructions for use. Look inside the Google Forms folder.



Teacher’s Guide

About This Assessment

36 Total Questions:4 Questions for RI.5.1 4 Questions for RI.5.64 Questions for RI.5.2 4 Questions for RI.5.74 Questions for RI.5.3 4 Questions for RI.5.84 Questions for RI.5.4 4 Questions for RI.5.94 Questions for RI.5.5

Modified ArticleArticle

Regular ExamModified Exam(Only 2 choices instead of 4)

Paired Excerpts



Teacher’s Guide

About This Assessment

Self-grading Google Forms assessment included for Pre-Assessment and Modified Pre-Assessment

Because ALL questions are multiple-choice, forms are 100% self-grading!

Answer key includes specific standard tested for each question (in green).

ALL questions are multiple-choice for easy grading.


On January 17, 2017, headlines across the country read “Ringling Bros. Circus Closing After 146 years.” Many Americans were sentimental as they recalled memories of attending the Greatest Show on Earth.

On April 10, 1871, P.T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan, and Hippodrome appeared as a new circus in Brooklyn, New York. The circus traveled from city to city on railroad flatcars. The Greatest Show on Earth featured odd acts. One such act was Tom Thumb, a singer, dancer, and performer who stood only three feet tall. Also in the show were conjoined twins Chang and Eng and a bearded lady. The most exciting of the animals in the circus was Jumbo the Elephant. Barnum had bought the giant African elephant for just this purpose. The unique scene drew crowds from near and far.

In 1881, after the death of Phineas Barnum, the show was combined with a rival circus owned by James Bailey. The name “Barnum & Bailey Circus” was adopted. After Bailey’s death, the Ringling Brothers purchased it in 1919 and eventually combined it with their circus. The new name became “Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.” They dazzled crowds with daring trapeze artists, human cannonballs, contortionists, and high wire performers. Animal trainers commanded tigers and elephants with much charm. The Greatest

Barnum, Bailey, and Ringling

Show on Earth toured the country for many years under the big-top circus tent.

Although the circus dazzled its audiences, ticket sales began to dip. The circus was no longer the only show in town. Other forms of entertainment were becoming more widely available. These included motion pictures, radio, live sports events, and television. This competition and the high cost of paying workers made the show more difficult to put on. The circus also had a hard time finding usable space to stage their shows. On July 16, 1956, Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey circus performed what it thought would be its last show under the big-top.

Breaking Down the Big-Top

Greatest Show on EarthThe Fall of the

by Adrienne Zembower

This poster was used to advertise the big-top circus. It showed the twelve massive, waterproof tents. Circa 1899.



Informational TextSkills Test

V.1

7. What is the main idea of the subsection Breaking Down the Big-Top?a. The circus was nearly shut down in 1956 due to competition from motion pictures.b. The circus would have shut down in 1956, but the Feld family saved it by slashing costs to

keep the circus alive.c. The Feld Family worried they would have to close the circus in 1956, but Ringling

Brothers helped them to keep the circus open.d. Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus closed for good after 146 years.

8. Which statement below provides the best summary of the subsection Breaking Down the Big-Top?

a. The most expensive part of putting on the circus was paying so many workers to put up and take down the tents.

b. The Feld family bought the circus from the Ringling Brothers.c. Ticket sales began to dip as other forms of entertainment became more widely available.

Irvin Feld took over, making changes, cutting costs, and saving the circus.d. P.T. Barnum’s circus would undergo several name and ownership changes during its

early years.

9. According to the article, what caused the Feld Family to get rid of the big-top tent? a. The Feld family had a larger tent to replace the aging structure.b. The big-top tent was a large risk to too many of the circus animals.c. It was too expensive to hire employees to put it up and take it down each time.d. The Ringling Bros. did not allow them to use the big top tent once they took over.

10. What is one effect Jumbo the Elephant had on P.T. Barnum’s traveling circus? a. More people came to the circus to see Jumbo the Elephant.b. PETA began to protest outside of Jumbo’s circus tent. c. It became difficult to travel by train with such an enormous animal.d. P.T. Barnum’s circus became too expensive to manage after he purchased Jumbo.

11. Which statement from the article best supports the idea that Americans never expected the legendary circus to end?

a. On April 10, 1871, P.T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan, and Hippodrome appeared as a new circus in Brooklyn, New York.

b. The most intriguing of the animals in the circus was Jumbo the Elephant.c. On January 17, 2017, news media across the country boasted the headline “Ringling Bros.

Circus Closing After 146 years.d. The country was shocked as they recalled memories of attending the Greatest Show on

Earth.




V.1

7. What is the main idea of the subsection Breaking Down the Big-Top?a. The circus was nearly shut down in 1956 due to competition from motion pictures.b. The circus would have shut down in 1956, but the Feld family saved it by slashing costs to

keep the circus alive.c. The Feld Family worried they would have to close the circus in 1956, but Ringling

Brothers helped them to keep the circus open.d. Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus closed for good after 146 years.



b. The Feld family bought the circus from the Ringling Brothers.c. Ticket sales began to dip as other forms of entertainment became more widely available.

Irvin Feld took over, making changes, cutting costs, and saving the circus.d. P.T. Barnum’s circus would undergo several name and ownership changes during its

early years.

9. According to the article, what caused the Feld Family to get rid of the big-top tent? a. The Feld family had a larger tent to replace the aging structure.b. The big-top tent was a large risk to too many of the circus animals.c. It was too expensive to hire employees to put it up and take it down each time.d. The Ringling Bros. did not allow them to use the big top tent once they took over.

10. What is one effect Jumbo the Elephant had on P.T. Barnum’s traveling circus? a. More people came to the circus to see Jumbo the Elephant.b. PETA began to protest outside of Jumbo’s circus tent. c. It became difficult to travel by train with such an enormous animal.d. P.T. Barnum’s circus became too expensive to manage after he purchased Jumbo.


a. On April 10, 1871, P.T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan, and Hippodrome appeared as a new circus in Brooklyn, New York.

b. The most intriguing of the animals in the circus was Jumbo the Elephant.c. On January 17, 2017, news media across the country boasted the headline “Ringling Bros.

Circus Closing After 146 years.d. The country was shocked as they recalled memories of attending the Greatest Show on

Earth.

RI.5.2

RI.5.2

RI.5.3

RI.5.3

RI.5.3




V.2



b. Ticket sales began to dip as other forms of entertainment became more widely available. Irvin Feld took over, making changes, cutting costs, and saving the circus.

9. According to the article, what caused the Feld Family to get rid of the big-top tent? a. It was too expensive to hire employees to put it up and take it down each time.b. The Ringling Bros. did not allow them to use the big-top tent once they took over.

10. What is one effect Jumbo the Elephant had on P.T. Barnum’s traveling circus? a. More people came to the circus to see Jumbo the Elephant.b. PETA began to protest outside of Jumbo’s circus tent.


a. On January 17, 2017, news media across the country boasted the headline “Ringling Bros. Circus Closing After 146 years.

b. The country was shocked as they recalled memories of attending the Greatest Show on Earth.

12. According to what you read in the article, how is the popularity of live sports events related to the popularity of the circus?

a. The circus would travel to towns where they knew there would be live sports events.b. Live sports events became more popular, and ticket sales for the circus declined.

13. Read this sentence from the article: “He slashed costs by performing indoors and getting rid of the big-top for good.”In which sentence below does the word slashed have the same meaning as in the above

sentence from the article?a. The prices of the cars were slashed greatly for the Veterans Day sale.b. The chef accidentally slashed her thumb with a sharp blade.

nonfiction article of the week - amazon web services...death, the ringling brothers purchased it in...

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