Read the following article from a website.
Shop owners in the Nova Scotia town of Elsworth are asking council to build a shared online marketplace for the stores on Water Street. Customers would be able to browse every downtown shop on one website, pay once at a single checkout and have their orders delivered the same day. The town would cover the costs for the first two years. Council will vote on the proposal in April.
Philomena Duchesne has run a yarn shop on Water Street for eleven years, and last winter her sales fell for the first time. “People still come in to squeeze the wool and ask my advice,” Duchesne said. “Then they look up the price on their phones and buy the same wool from a huge online seller with free shipping. I cannot match that on my own.” Rafferty Castonguay, the town’s economic development officer, says one shared site could change that. “Forty small stores together can reach buyers that no single store could ever pay to reach,” Castonguay explained. “After two years, each shop would pay a modest monthly fee, and the town would step back.”
Councillor Ingeborg Dahl, who was elected last fall, says she believes the town should not use tax money to compete with private businesses. “People here already have the big websites saved on their phones, and I doubt they will switch,” Dahl said. “I would support a trial only if at least thirty shops sign up before we spend a cent. If the owners will not commit, why should taxpayers?”
Ifeanyi Chukwu, who runs a two-person courier co-op, says the delivery part of the plan could work, but only with enough business. “We would carry orders around town by cargo bike, which is cheap and fast on narrow streets,” he said. “With about sixty orders a day, we would be able to pay our riders a fair wage,” Chukwu added. “With fifteen orders a day, we would lose money on every trip.”
Using the drop-down menu (▾), choose the best option according to the information given on the website.
Paragraph four mainly explains 2..
At present, Philomena Duchesne is 3..
Ingeborg Dahl would likely say that shop owners 4..
The reporter’s tone can best be described as 5..
The following is a comment by a visitor to the website page. Complete the comment by choosing the best option to fill in each blank.
AI explanationShows the answer. Tap to open.
Correct Answer: a town-funded website for downtown stores
Why this is correct: Shop owners want the town to build and pay for a shared online marketplace. Every speaker gives a view on this plan.
Passage Reference: Shop owners in the Nova Scotia town of Elsworth are asking council to build a shared online marketplace for the stores on Water Street.
Tips: For each option, ask which of Duchesne, Castonguay, Dahl and Chukwu talk about it. Keep the option most of the article is about, not one person’s detail.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a new courier company opening on the coast: Chukwu already runs a courier co-op. Nobody is opening a new company.
- a yarn shop that is moving to a bigger space: Duchesne’s yarn shop is not moving. Her sales are falling.
- a plan to widen the narrow streets downtown: Chukwu mentions narrow streets, but nobody wants to widen them.
Correct Answer: what the delivery side of the plan would need
Passage Reference: Ifeanyi Chukwu, who runs a two-person courier co-op, says the delivery part of the plan could work, but only with enough business.
Why this is correct: Paragraph four belongs to Chukwu, who runs a courier co-op. He says delivery could work, but only with enough orders each day.
Tips: Reread “Paragraph four” and say in a short phrase what it explains. Then find the choice that agrees, not a point from elsewhere.
Why the other options are wrong:
- why a new councillor doubts the plan: Dahl’s doubts fill paragraph three. Chukwu does not question the plan itself.
- why one shop owner’s sales have fallen: Duchesne’s falling sales are described in paragraph two. Paragraph four does not mention her shop.
- how long the town would pay for the site: The town’s two years of support are explained in paragraphs one and two. Paragraph four is about deliveries and orders.
Correct Answer: still giving advice to shoppers in her store
Passage Reference: People still come in to squeeze the wool and ask my advice
Why this is correct: Duchesne says people still come in to squeeze the wool and ask her advice. So she still helps shoppers in person today.
Tips: Read each of Duchesne’s quoted sentences and the line that introduces her. Keep the option those words show is true for her today.
Why the other options are wrong:
- planning to close her shop next spring: Duchesne talks about falling sales, but she never says she will close. Nothing in the article mentions next spring.
- running the town’s new shopping website: The shared website is only a proposal. Council has not voted on it yet.
- selling her wool at a weekend market: Duchesne talks only about her shop on Water Street. No weekend market is mentioned in the article.
Correct Answer: should prove their interest before the town pays
Passage Reference: I would support a trial only if at least thirty shops sign up before we spend a cent.
Why this is correct: Dahl will support a trial only if at least thirty shops sign up before any money is spent. She asks why taxpayers should commit if owners will not.
Tips: Read all of Dahl’s quoted sentences. Choose the option they lead to, and cross out any that her words go against.
Why the other options are wrong:
- cannot survive without delivery on the same day: Same-day delivery is part of the plan, but Dahl does not discuss it. Chukwu is the one who talks about deliveries.
- should be paid by the town to join the site: Dahl does not want tax money spent first. Paying shops to join is the opposite of her view.
- will never need help from the town: Dahl does not say shops are doing fine. She only wants proof that they will commit.
Correct Answer: calm and focused on the facts
Passage Reference: Customers would be able to browse every downtown shop on one website, pay once at a single checkout and have their orders delivered the same day.
Why this is correct: Outside the quotation marks, the reporter simply explains how the website would work and when council will vote. No feelings are added.
Tips: Ignore every sentence inside quotation marks. Ask whether the remaining words show any feeling or judgment of the reporter’s own.
Why the other options are wrong:
- openly critical of the council: Dahl criticizes the plan, but those are her words. The reporter never judges the council.
- full of sympathy for one shop owner: Duchesne describes her own problem in her own words. The reporter just reports her falling sales.
- excited about the idea of online shopping: The reporter describes the website plainly. Words that show excitement appear nowhere outside the quotes.
Correct Answer: eleven
Passage Reference: Philomena Duchesne has run a yarn shop on Water Street for eleven years, and last winter her sales fell for the first time.
Why this is correct: Duchesne has run her yarn shop for eleven years, and last winter her sales fell for the first time.
Tips: The commenter talks about how long the yarn shop did well. Find how long the owner has been in business.
Why the other options are wrong:
- seven: Seven is not in the article.
- nine: Nine is not in the article.
- fifteen: Fifteen is not in the article. Duchesne’s shop is younger than that.
Correct Answer: forty
Passage Reference: Forty small stores together can reach buyers that no single store could ever pay to reach
Why this is correct: Castonguay says forty small stores together can reach buyers that no single store could pay to reach.
Tips: The article gives more than one number. Check which one the development officer gives for stores working together.
Why the other options are wrong:
- thirty: Thirty is the number of shops Dahl wants to sign up first.
- fifty: Fifty is not in the article.
- sixty: Sixty is the number of daily orders Chukwu needs.
Correct Answer: a modest monthly fee
Passage Reference: After two years, each shop would pay a modest monthly fee, and the town would step back.
Why this is correct: Castonguay says that after two years, each shop would pay a modest monthly fee and the town would step back.
Tips: The commenter talks about what happens when the town stops paying. Find what the development officer says each shop would do then.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a small yearly fee: Castonguay says the fee would be paid every month.
- a share of each sale: Castonguay does not say shops would give up part of each sale.
- a fee for each order: Castonguay does not link the cost to orders.
Correct Answer: cargo bike
Passage Reference: We would carry orders around town by cargo bike, which is cheap and fast on narrow streets
Why this is correct: Chukwu says his co-op would carry orders around town by cargo bike.
Tips: The commenter imagines a delivery job. Find how the courier co-op would move the parcels.
Why the other options are wrong:
- motor scooter: Scooters are not mentioned in the article.
- small van: Vans are not mentioned in the article.
- electric bike: Chukwu names a different kind of bike.
Correct Answer: April
Passage Reference: Council will vote on the proposal in April.
Why this is correct: The article says council will vote on the proposal in April.
Tips: The commenter plans to attend the vote. Find the month the article gives for it.
Why the other options are wrong:
- February: February is not mentioned in the article.
- March: March is not mentioned in the article.
- May: May is not mentioned in the article.
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