Grade 3 English Language Arts Grade 3 English Language Arts

Directions: Read the selection.

Passage 1: from The History of the Camera

by Elizabeth Raum

1 Many of the first cameras were very big and hard to carry. These
cameras used heavy plates instead of film. Inventors around the
world tried to make cameras that were smaller and easier to use.

4 In 1900 Kodak invented a camera called the Brownie. Kodak’s

Brownie camera was easy to use. Millions of children and adults
bought Brownie cameras. Kodak sold Brownies for 70 years.

5 Cameras got better over time. Oskar Barnack, from Germany,

invented a new kind of camera. He called it a Leica. It was the first
35 millimeter camera. In 1924 people started buying Leica cameras.
2 People taking photos needed a big camera, a stand to hold the
camera, and heavy plates. George Eastman, of the United States, 6 In 1930 the flash camera was invented. The flash of light let
wanted to find an easier way to take photos. In 1884 he invented photographers take photos in dark places. By 1936 a new kind of
film on a roll. film made color photos possible. More people bought color film than
black and white.
Cameras for Everyone
Instant Pictures
3 George Eastman began a company called Kodak. In 1888 the
first Kodak camera was sold. It was smaller than earlier cameras. 7 In 1944 Edwin Land, of the United States, took a photo of his
Many people bought the first Kodak camera even though it cost three-year-old daughter. She asked to see the photo right away.
a lot of money. That gave him an idea.

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 Grade 3 English Language Arts Grade 3 English Language Arts

8 In 1947 Land invented an instant camera. It was called a Polaroid. Passage 2: from The Camera
Minutes after the picture was snapped, a photo came out of the
by Larry Hills
camera.
11 Pictures have been around for thousands of years. Early people drew
Digital Cameras
pictures of animals and hunters on cave walls. People later painted
9 In the 1970s, astronauts wanted to take photos in space and send and sculpted what they thought was important.
them back to Earth quickly. Inventors made the digital camera.
Camera Obscura
Digital cameras do not need film. The photos are stored on a tiny
computer disk inside the camera. 12 Early artists searched for ways to make their art look real. The ancient
Greeks found a way to make an image with light. They used a tool
10 It took time to make the digital camera smaller and easier to use.
called the camera obscura. This term means darkened room in Latin.
In 1991 Kodak began selling digital cameras to the public. In 2000
a company in Japan put a camera in a cell phone. Now many 13 A camera obscura let light enter a dark room through a tiny hole. . . .
companies make camera phones. The light formed an image of the outside scene on the wall. The image
appeared upside down and backward.
Glossary
14 Some artists used the camera obscura to trace images of their
plates: sheets of glass
subjects. Tracing helped artists paint pictures that looked more like
their subjects.
Excerpt from The History of the Camera by Elizabeth Raum. Copyright © 2008 by Heinemann
Library. Reprinted by permission of Heinemann Library via Copyright Clearance Center. Images
are in the public domain.

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15 Over time, the camera obscura box was made small enough for Directions: Use the selection to answer questions 8 – 14.
people to carry. In 1558, Giambattista della Porta put a lens in a
camera obscura. The lens made images sharper and brighter. Artists 8. Read the sentences from Passage 1.
also added mirrors to show images right side up.
“Inventors around the world tried to make cameras that were smaller
and easier to use.” (paragraph 1)
Fact!
“Inventors made the digital camera.” (paragraph 9)
In the 1800s, some parks and resorts
had large camera obscura rooms. What is the meaning of the word inventors?
Visitors could stand inside the camera
obscura to watch live color images of A people who travel
the surrounding area.
B people who study pictures
Photochemicals C people who take photographs

16 Scientists also took steps toward the invention of the camera. In 1727, D people who create new things
German scientist Johann Heinrich Schultz discovered photochemicals. 31212
He found that a solution of silver and salt turned dark in sunlight. Other
scientists soon tested photochemicals.

Inventors

17 The camera was not invented by just one person. Many people
invented ways to capture images. The early cameras changed
the way people saw the world.
Excerpt from The Camera by Larry Hills. Copyright © 2005 by Capstone Press. Reprinted by
permission of Capstone Press via Copyright Clearance Center.

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 Grade 3 English Language Arts Grade 3 English Language Arts

9. Read the paragraph from Passage 1. 11. Read the sentences from Passage 2.

8 In 1947 Land invented an instant camera. It was called a “A camera obscura let light enter a dark room through a tiny hole. . . .
Polaroid. Minutes after the picture was snapped, a photo came The light formed an image of the outside scene on the wall.”
out of the camera. (paragraph 13)

What does the word instant tell the reader about the Polaroid What is the meaning of the word image?
camera?
A frame
A It was small.
B mirror
B It was easy to use.
C picture
C It took good pictures.
D window
D It made pictures quickly. 31220

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10. According to Passage 1, why was the Brownie camera popular?

A It lasted for many years.

B It was sold for a low price.

C It could be used to photograph families.

D It was easy for many different people to use.

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 Grade 3 English Language Arts Grade 3 English Language Arts

12. This question has two parts. First, answer Part A. Then, answer Part B. Part B

Part A Fill in the bubble before one detail from Passage 1 and one detail
from Passage 2 that support the answer in Part A.
Which sentence describes an important idea in both passages?

A “Many people bought the first Kodak camera even though it cost
A Cameras were made to make taking pictures exciting. a lot of money.” (Passage 1, paragraph 3)
B Cameras were made to make sharing information easier. B “Cameras got better over time. Oskar Barnack, from Germany,
C Cameras were developed by building on the ideas of invented a new kind of camera.” (Passage 1, paragraph 5)
many people. C “It was called a Polaroid. Minutes after the picture was snapped,
D Cameras were developed because many people liked to a photo came out of the camera.” (Passage 1, paragraph 8)
create inventions. D “Early artists searched for ways to make their art look real.”
(Passage 2, paragraph 12)

E “Some artists used the camera obscura to trace images of their

subjects.” (Passage 2, paragraph 14)

F “The camera was not invented by just one person.” (Passage 2,

paragraph 17)
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 Grade 3 English Language Arts Grade 3 English Language Arts

13. Both passages are about the history of the camera. Fill in the bubbles Writing Prompt
to show whether the details are described in Passage 1, in Passage 2,
14. Write a multi-paragraph response that explains how cameras were
or in both passages.
invented to meet people’s needs. Include information about how
the inventors helped develop the camera. Use information from both
Passage 1 Both Passage 2 passages to support your response.
Cameras today are A B C
smaller and more useful. As you write your response, be sure to:
Artists wanted to know
• Review the passages
how they could make D E F
their work look more • Create clear, organized paragraphs
realistic.
• Draw information from both passages
Cameras were used to
amuse people and help • Use evidence from the passages to support your points
G H I
them see the world • Pay attention to the grammar, structure and mechanics
differently.
of your sentences
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Be sure to include

• An introduction
• Information from the passages to support your explanation
• A conclusion

Write your multi-paragraph response on the lines provided on the

following pages.

31664

Do not write your answer here.

Go to the next page to write your answer.

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Grade 3 English Language Arts

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