Read the following article from a website.
The parks committee in Lethbridge is debating how fast to turn unused city land into community garden plots. More than four hundred households are on the waiting list for the city’s one hundred and sixty plots, and some have waited four seasons. One proposal would turn grass strips along two avenues into about eighty new plots by next summer. Parks staff prefer a slower plan of twenty plots a year. The committee expects to make its choice before the end of the month.
Kalinda Hiebert, who has gardened at the city’s oldest plots for nine years, says she wants the faster plan. “My plot gave us enough beans and squash to skip the vegetable aisle from July to October,” Hiebert said. “For a family on a tight budget, that is real money. Every year we wait, another four hundred families keep paying full price.”
Leofric Jablonski, who manages parks operations, says speed would cause problems. “Some of those strips sit on soil brought from an old factory site, and nobody has tested the soil yet,” Jablonski said. “I will not hand anyone a plot until I know what is in the ground. The water lines on those strips are also shut off all winter.” He also doubts that everyone on the list would really garden. “A plot that nobody looks after turns into a weed patch by August, right beside a playground,” he added.
Ottavia Iredale, a Grade 4 teacher, takes her class to the existing gardens every spring. “Some of my students have never seen a carrot come out of the ground,” Iredale said. “More plots near schools would give teachers an outdoor classroom,” she added. Benoit Jardine, who chairs a neighbourhood association, is less worried about speed than fairness. “The draw for plots happens on a weekday morning, when working people cannot come,” Jardine said. “The same few retired gardeners win year after year. Let people sign up online, and give the first chance to households with no yard at all.”
Using the drop-down menu (▾), choose the best option according to the information given on the website.
According to Jardine, the draw for plots 2..
Leofric Jablonski’s concerns would likely be supported by 3..
This article shows that 4..
The readers this article is most likely written for are 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: how quickly the city should create more garden space
Why this is correct: The committee is debating how fast to turn unused land into garden plots. The speakers argue about speed, safety and fairness.
Passage Reference: is debating how fast to turn unused city land into community garden plots
Tips: Check each option against what Hiebert, Jablonski, Iredale and Jardine say. Drop any option that nobody discusses or that only one person raises.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a plan to sell unused city land: The land would be used for gardens. Nobody wants to sell it.
- a new park next to an elementary school: Iredale wants plots near schools, but no new park is planned.
- a farmers’ market for local growers: No market is mentioned in the article.
Correct Answer: shuts out people who work during the day
Passage Reference: The draw for plots happens on a weekday morning, when working people cannot come
Why this is correct: Jardine says the draw happens on a weekday morning, when working people cannot come. So it shuts out anyone with a daytime job.
Tips: Read every sentence Jardine says. Keep the option Jardine’s words show, and remove any that comes from another speaker or that Jardine never says.
Why the other options are wrong:
- has been moved online without any warning: Jardine wants people to sign up online, but does not say this has already happened.
- favours families who have young children: Jardine wants the first chance to go to households with no yard. Young children are not mentioned.
- should reward people who have gardened longest: Jardine complains that the same retired gardeners win every year. Jardine does not ask for long service to be rewarded.
Correct Answer: lab tests that find unsafe soil on the strips
Passage Reference: Some of those strips sit on soil brought from an old factory site, and nobody has tested the soil yet
Why this is correct: Jablonski says some strips sit on soil from an old factory site, and nobody has tested it. Tests that find unsafe soil would prove his point.
Tips: Go through every line Jablonski speaks. Decide whether each option would make his concerns more convincing, or whether it backs another speaker.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a study showing plots cut grocery bills: Grocery savings back Hiebert’s case for the faster plan. They do not help Jablonski.
- teachers asking for outdoor classrooms: Outdoor classrooms are Iredale’s idea. They do not touch Jablonski’s concerns.
- a count of households with no yard: Households with no yard matter to Jardine’s idea for the draw, not to Jablonski’s concerns.
Correct Answer: the goal is popular, but people argue about the details
Passage Reference: Kalinda Hiebert, who has gardened at the city’s oldest plots for nine years, says she wants the faster plan. ... is less worried about speed than fairness
Why this is correct: Hiebert wants plots fast, Jablonski wants the soil tested, and Iredale wants plots near schools. Jardine cares less about speed than about a fair draw.
Tips: Take Hiebert, Jablonski, Iredale and Jardine one by one, and read what each of them says. Keep only the statement that is still true when you finish.
Why the other options are wrong:
- the city has no land left for gardens: The article is about turning unused city land into plots. Land is not the problem.
- most people on the list would not garden: Only Jablonski doubts that everyone on the list would garden. The article does not show this as a fact.
- the slower plan has already been chosen: The committee expects to choose before the end of the month. Nothing is decided yet.
Correct Answer: people who live in that city
Passage Reference: The parks committee in Lethbridge is debating
Why this is correct: The article reports a debate in Lethbridge’s own parks committee. Local gardeners, staff, a teacher and a neighbourhood leader are quoted.
Tips: Look at the reporter’s plain facts again. For each set of readers, ask whether this news was clearly meant for them.
Why the other options are wrong:
- farmers who sell to grocery stores: No farmer is quoted, and the article is about home gardens, not selling food.
- teachers planning lessons on soil science: Iredale is a teacher, but the article gives no lessons. It reports a city debate.
- scientists who test polluted land: Jablonski wants the ground checked, but the article reports no lab work or findings.
Correct Answer: four hundred
Passage Reference: More than four hundred households are on the waiting list
Why this is correct: More than four hundred households are on the waiting list.
Tips: Two large numbers describe the gardens. Pick the one that counts people waiting, not plots.
Why the other options are wrong:
- five hundred: Five hundred is not in the article. The figure given is four hundred.
- six hundred: Six hundred does not appear in the article.
- seven hundred: The article gives a smaller number than seven hundred.
Correct Answer: eighty
Passage Reference: about eighty new plots by next summer
Why this is correct: The faster proposal would create about eighty new plots by next summer.
Tips: Find the proposal for the grass strips along two avenues. Note how many plots it would add.
Why the other options are wrong:
- sixty: Sixty is part of the current total of one hundred and sixty plots.
- forty: Forty is not in the article.
- one hundred: One hundred is part of the current total, not the new plots.
Correct Answer: October
Passage Reference: skip the vegetable aisle from July to October
Why this is correct: Hiebert says her plot let her family skip the vegetable aisle from July to October.
Tips: The comment already gives the first month. Find the gardener’s words about her harvest.
Why the other options are wrong:
- August: August is when Jablonski says an untended plot turns to weeds.
- September: September is not in Hiebert’s words.
- November: November is not in the article.
Correct Answer: a carrot
Passage Reference: Some of my students have never seen a carrot come out of the ground
Why this is correct: Iredale says some of her students have never seen a carrot come out of the ground.
Tips: The commenter is repeating the Grade 4 teacher. Find the vegetable she names.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a potato: Potatoes are not mentioned in the article.
- an onion: Onions are not mentioned in the article.
- a radish: Radishes are not mentioned in the article.
Correct Answer: twenty
Passage Reference: Parks staff prefer a slower plan of twenty plots a year.
Why this is correct: Parks staff prefer a slower plan of twenty plots a year.
Tips: The article describes two plans. Find the yearly number in the slower one.
Why the other options are wrong:
- ten: Ten is not in the article.
- forty: Forty is not in the article.
- fifty: Fifty is not in the article.
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