UST Middle School Reading Challenge

Week 4 — Cause & Effect

Grades 6–8 • Focus: Cause-and-Effect Relationships

This Week’s Reading

Cause-and-Effect Relationships

Reading 1 — When Wolves Returned

Reading 2 — The Accidental Invention of the Microwave

Each passage includes 5 comprehension and analysis questions.

Read → Cite Evidence → Infer → Explain

Reading 1 — When Wolves Returned

Part 1 of 2

For much of the twentieth century, wolves were absent from Yellowstone National Park. Without this major predator, elk populations grew large in some areas and fed heavily on young willow and aspen trees.��In the 1990s, wolves were reintroduced to the park. Wolves hunted elk, but their return may also have changed where and how long elk fed in certain places. In some areas, young trees began growing more successfully. These plants provided habitat and building material for animals such as beavers.

Reading 1 — When Wolves Returned

Part 2 of 2

Scientists caution that the story is complicated. Weather, hunting outside the park, changes in water, and other predators also influence the ecosystem. It would be inaccurate to claim that wolves alone caused every change.��Still, the Yellowstone example shows how one species can be connected to many others. When the number or behavior of an important predator changes, effects can spread through a food web in ways that are not immediately obvious.

Questions — When Wolves Returned

Cause-and-Effect Relationships

1. What is the central idea of the passage?

2. Which detail best supports the central idea?

3. What does an important word or phrase mean in context?

4. What can the reader infer?

5. How is the passage organized, or what is the author’s purpose?

Answer Guide — When Wolves Returned

How to Solve

1. Suggested approach: Identify the idea developed across most or all paragraphs, not one isolated fact.

2. Suggested approach: Choose a concrete fact or event that directly strengthens the central idea.

3. Suggested approach: Use nearby words, examples, contrasts, and the paragraph topic.

4. Suggested approach: Combine a text clue with logical reasoning; the inference must be supported by the passage.

5. Suggested approach: Look for structure such as cause/effect, compare/contrast, sequence, problem/solution, or argument.

Reading 2 — The Accidental Invention of the Microwave

Part 1 of 2

During the 1940s, engineer Percy Spencer was working near equipment that produced microwaves for radar systems. One day, he noticed that a candy bar in his pocket had melted.��Instead of ignoring the strange event, Spencer became curious. He tested other foods near the equipment. Popcorn kernels popped, and an egg heated so quickly that it burst. These experiments suggested that microwave energy could heat food.

Reading 2 — The Accidental Invention of the Microwave

Part 2 of 2

Engineers then developed an early microwave oven. The first models were enormous and expensive, so they were not practical for most homes. Over time, designers made the machines smaller, safer, and less costly.��The microwave oven was therefore not created in a single moment. An unexpected observation started the process, but careful testing and years of engineering turned that observation into a useful household appliance.

Questions — The Accidental Invention of the Microwave

Cause-and-Effect Relationships

1. What is the central idea of the passage?

2. Which detail best supports the central idea?

3. What does an important word or phrase mean in context?

4. What can the reader infer?

5. How is the passage organized, or what is the author’s purpose?

Answer Guide — The Accidental Invention of the Microwave

How to Solve

1. Suggested approach: Identify the idea developed across most or all paragraphs, not one isolated fact.

2. Suggested approach: Choose a concrete fact or event that directly strengthens the central idea.

3. Suggested approach: Use nearby words, examples, contrasts, and the paragraph topic.

4. Suggested approach: Combine a text clue with logical reasoning; the inference must be supported by the passage.

5. Suggested approach: Look for structure such as cause/effect, compare/contrast, sequence, problem/solution, or argument.

Think Deeper

Optional written response

Choose one passage. Write 4–6 sentences explaining one important idea from the text. Use at least two details as evidence.

Goal: Make a clear claim, cite evidence, and explain how the evidence supports your thinking.