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2018 MCAS
Grade 7 English Language Arts
Question 15

Idea Development - Score Point 3

The essay presents the central idea of both passages in a general manner and with moderate organization. Details are well chosen to support the idea that "working in the mills is hard and miserable work," but they are paired with only some explanation: "These prove that working in the mills was hard and miserable because breathing in dust and debri[s] all day can't be good for your health." Overall, the central idea is adequately developed through a description of working conditions in the mill as "hard and miserable," the breathing conditions as challenging, and the pay as inadequate. The essay shows awareness of the task.

Standard English Conventions - Score Point 3

The essay shows consistent control of punctuation and sentence structure and contains only minor errors in grammar and spelling relative to the length.
Answer for Idea Development Score Point 3, and Standard English Conventions Score Point 3 A central idea of "Lucy Larcom and Harriet Hanson" and Lyddie is that working in the mills is hard and miserable work. First, it wasn't very fun to work in the mills. In paragraph 5 of "Lucy Larcom and Harriet Hanson" it says "But after a while the fun wore off. Each day started at five in the morning with a bone-rattling blast from the factory whistle." This shows that working in the mills was hard and miserable because waking up early is pretty hard for some people and when you work for so long a day and you're not having at least a little fun it can be pretty miserable. Next, there is so much dust, moisture, and debri in the room that your breathing isn't very good and your eyes water and/or start to cry. In paragraph 9 of Lyddie it states, "Now that she thought of it, she could hardly breathe, the air was so laden with moisture and debris. She snatched a moment to run to the window. She had to get air, but the window as nailed shut against the April morning. She leaned her forehead against it; even the glass seemed hot. Her apron brushed the pots of red geraniums crowding the wide sill. They were flourishing in this hot house. She coughed, trying to free her throat and lungs for breath." And in paragraph 8 it says, "She nearly burst into tears. Or perhaps the tears were caused by the swirling dust and lint." These prove that working in the mills was hard and miserable because breathing in dust and debri all day can't be good for your health and crying, coughing and other effects must not be easy to handle at a long day of work. Last, the companie doesn't pay women and girls enough money for what they do and the girls are basically being forced to do something unfairly. In paragraph 10 of "Lucy Lacrom and Harriet Hanson" it says, "Harriet was disgusted. after all their talk about oppression, how could they even think about staying inside? For long minutes they stood indecisivlely at their looms, whispering among themselves. Finally Harriet faced them. "I dont care what you do," she said firmly. "I am going to turn out whether anyone else does or not." Also in paragraph 4 it says, "Her wage was one dollar a week." These prove that it is hard and miserable to work in the mills because if you go on strike when you work it means you don't like your job or you're not paid enough and that must be pretty hard. Also earning one dollar a week is miserable for you and your family because you can't do very much with one dollar a week, most families depended on it. In conclusion, a good central idea for "Lucy Larcom and Harriet Hanson" and Lyddie is that it is hard and miserable to work in the mills.



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