Three British Columbia Festivals: Reading Comprehension

Read the story and answer the questions.

Vancouver Island’s Pacific Rim Whale Festival

In British Columbia, people have festivals that celebrate the things that make their
hometown special. Every year, about 20,000 grey whales swim past the west coast of
Vancouver Island. The whales travel from Mexico to the Arctic and back again. The
whole trip is about 16,000 kilometres. Every March, the people who live around the
Pacific Rim National Park have a festival to celebrate the whales’ journey. The festival is
the Pacific Rim Whale Festival. The whales travel very close to the shore as they swim
north. This allows people to gather together to watch the whales from land and from
boats.

Nanaimo’s Bathtub Race

On the east coast of Vancouver Island, you can see people moving through the
water in a strange type of boat. During the Nanaimo Bathtub Race, people have a big
race in boats made from bathtubs! The city of Nanaimo is home to the oldest and most
famous bathtub boat race in the world. The race started as a silly event in 1967.
Today, Nanaimo’s World Championship Bathtub Race is a serious sport that brings
racers and visitors from around the world.

Vancouver’s Dragon Boat Festival

Vancouver is home to another famous festival on the water. This is the Dragon
Boat Festival. Dragon boat racing started in China more than 2,000 years ago. It was
brought to Vancouver during the World’s Fair called Expo 86. The Dragon Boat Festival
came back to Vancouver in 1989 to celebrate the many cultures living together in the
city. The festival begins with a ceremony. The ceremony wakes up the dragon and
gives the people and boats the dragon’s strength. Each boat has a dragon’s head on
the front and a tail on the back. The boat holds a team of about 20 people. The people
in the boats paddle to the beat of a drummer. The drummer sits at the front of the
dragon boat.
1. How many grey whales swim near Vancouver Island every year?
A.   ?    15,000

B.   ?    30,000

C.   ?    20,000

D.   ?    No one knows.

2. Where do the grey whales start their annual trip?

A.   ?    Vancouver Island.

B.   ?    The Arctic.

C.   ?    They start somewhere in the open ocean.

D.   ?    Mexico.

3. According to the reading, why is it easy for people to see the whales?
A.   ?    The people use binoculars.

B.   ?    The whales swim close to land.

C.   ?    The people are also swimming in the water.

D.   ?    They fly over the whales in helicopters.

4. Where does the Nanaimo Bathtub Race happen?

A.   ?    Far off the north coast of Vancouver Island.

B.   ?    On the South Shore of Vancouver Island.

C.   ?    On the west side of Vancouver Island.

D.   ?    On the east side of Vancouver Island.

5. What is special about every boat in the race?

A.   ?    Each boat can carry three people.

B.   ?    Every boat is made from a bathtub.

C.   ?    Every boat gets a safety inspection.

D.   ?    All the boats have sails.

6. How did the Nanaimo Bathtub race change over the last 50 years?
A.   ?    The race became less popular.

B.   ?    There were not bathtub boats in the beginning.

 C.   ?    The race started as a funny event, but it became a serious race.

D.   ?    In the beginning, all the boats were sailboats.

7. Where did dragon boat racing begin?

A.   ?    China.

B.   ?    British Columbia.

C.   ?    The east coast of Canada.

D.   ?    Japan.

8. How does the dragon boat festival begin?

A.   ?    It starts with races with only the fastest boats.

B.   ?    It begins with a ceremony so that the rowers can be strong.

C.   ?    The festival begins with music.

D.   ?    The festival begins with a movie about Expo 86.

9. How do the people in the boat know to paddle together.

A.   ?    They all paddle to the beat of the drummer at the front of their
boat.

B.   ?    They watch the person in front of them.

C.   ?    They stay together because of experience.

D.   ?    All the paddlers count the number of paddle strokes per minute.
 The Story of Viola Desmond

1 Viola Desmond was an African Canadian woman from Nova Scotia. She lived in a time when black women
were expected to be servants in houses, and black men were expected to be servants on trains. From a young age,
Viola dreamed of having her own business. By 1946, she was making her dreams come true. Viola was only 32,
yet she had her own beauty salon. She had set up a school to train other black women to work in the beauty
business. She also had her own line of beauty products.

2 One day, she was driving across Nova Scotia to make a delivery. But then her car broke down in New Glasgow.
She decided to go see a movie while she waited for her car to be fixed. She went to the Roseland Theatre. It was a
brick building with a big sign that lit up at night. She paid for a ticket and went inside. The theatre had a main
floor and a balcony. Viola sat on the main floor because her eyesight was poor and she needed to be close to the
screen.

3 Just as the movie started to play, she felt a tap on her shoulder. A staff person told her she could not sit there.
Her ticket was for the balcony. Viola went back to the ticket booth. She asked for a ticket for the main floor. The
ticket seller said, “We don’t sell tickets on the main floor to you people.” That’s when she realized that the
balcony was for black people. The main floor was for white people. Viola said that she could not see from the
balcony. She put the extra money for a main floor ticket on the counter. The ticket seller would not take it, but she
went back to her seat anyway.

4 That’s when the manager came in. He told her to move to the balcony, or he would call the police. Viola told
him to go ahead. She wasn’t moving. She was doing nothing wrong. Sure enough, the police came. They asked
her one more time to move. Viola said no. So the police grabbed her by the arms and took her from the theatre.
They had to drag her. “I just sort of went limp,” Viola said. “I wasn’t going to make it easy for them.”

5 The police took Viola to prison. She sat up awake the whole night. The next day, she was taken to court.
Nobody had told her she could call a lawyer, so she had to argue for herself. She didn’t know how courtrooms
worked, and she was found guilty. 

6 Her husband begged her to forget about what had happened and move on. But Viola bravely took the case back
to court. Sadly, she lost once more. But Viola’s case brought many people together to fight for equal rights in
Nova Scotia. They kept up the battle and in 1954, the province finally got rid of the laws that made it legal to treat
black people differently from white people.

7 People of colour are now equal under the laws of Canada. However, racism is alive in many Canadians’ hearts
and minds. Viola’s story invites us to ask: What can we do to make sure that history does not repeat itself?
1. Choose the best completion for this sentence. Viola spoke on her own behalf
in court because ____________
A.   ?    she didn't have enough money to pay a lawyer to defend her.

B.   ?    she didn't know that she could call a lawyer to defend her.

C.   ?    her husband said she didn't need a lawyer.

D.   ?    no lawyer would take her case.

2. Which event happened first?

A.   ?    The theatre manager talked to Viola.

B.   ?    Viola understood that black people were allowed to sit in the

balcony.

C.   ?    Someone tapped Viola on the shoulder.

D.   ?    Viola paid extra money for a theatre ticket.

3. Which event happened last?

A.   ?    Viola's husband asked her to forget about her arrest.

B.   ?    Viola went back to court.

C.   ?    Many people started fighting for equal rights in Nova Scotia.

D.   ?    Viola was found guilty a second time.

4. Choose the best completion for this sentence. Viola was taken to prison
because ____________
A.   ?    she fought with the police when they tried to remove her from
the theatre.

B.   ?    she refused to leave an area where black people were allowed to

sit.

C.   ?    she refused to pay extra money for a seat on the main floor of
the theatre.

D.   ?    she refused to leave an area where only white people were

allowed to sit.

5. Choose the best completion for this sentence. Viola wanted to sit on the
main floor of the theatre because ____________
A.   ?    tickets for the balcony were too expensive,

B.   ?    she couldn't see properly from the balcony.

 C.   ?    tickets for the balcony were all sold out.

D.   ?    she wanted to sit with other black women.

6. Which event happened first?

A.   ?    Viola became 32 years old.

B.   ?    Nova Scotia made new laws treating black and white people
equally.

C.   ?    Viola started selling her own beauty products.

D.   ?    Viola was arrested by the police.

7. Which statement is not true?

A.   ?    The Roseland Theatre was a brick building.

B.   ?    While her car was being repaired, Viola went to the Roseland
Theatre to see a movie.

C.   ?    The Roseland Theatre had a large lighted sign at night.

D.   ?    New Glasgow is near Nova Scotia.

8. Choose the best completion for this sentence. Viola Desmond ____________
A.   ?    worked as a servant in Nova Scotia.

B.   ?    was born in Nova Scotia, but emigrated to Africa.

C.   ?    was born in Africa, but immigrated to Canada.

D.   ?    was born in Canada.

9. Which event happened last?

A.   ?    Viola went to court.

B.   ?    The judge said Viola was guilty.

C.   ?    Viola went to prison.

D.   ?    Viola spoke for herself in court.

10. Which statement is true?

A.   ?    Viola Desmond was a student at a beauty school for black
women.

B.   ?    Viola Desmond was born in 1946.

 C.   ?    Viola Desmond's car needed repairs when she was making a
delivery in Nova Scotia.

D.   ?    Viola Desmond's car needed repairs when she was making a

delivery in Glasgow, Scotland.

1. After the first court case, Viola ____________.

A.   ?    forgot about what happened and moved on

B.   ?    won a second court case

C.   ?    was unable to win a second court case

D.   ?    took the advice of her husband and asked for another trial

2. Which of the following words does not have the same meaning as "guilty"
(paragraph 5)?
A.   ?    responsible

B.   ?    innocent

C.   ?    at fault

D.   ?    in the wrong

3. The manager of the theatre ____________.

A.   ?    took her from the theatre

B.   ?    called the police

C.   ?    refused to allow her to sit in the balcony

D.   ?    made Viola pay extra money for a new ticket

4. Viola Desmond was born in ____________.

A.   ?    1914

B.   ?    1932

C.   ?    1946

D.   ?    1954

5. In 1946, Viola was an unusual black woman because ____________.

A.   ?    she was able to drive a car

B.   ?    she was training for a career in the beauty industry

 C.   ?    she dreamed of starting her own business

D.   ?    she had a beauty salon

6. Which of the following words does not have the same meaning as "lawyer"
(paragraph 5)?
A.   ?    judge

B.   ?    attorney

C.   ?    advocate

D.   ?    counsel

7. Viola Desmond was a black woman from ____________.

A.   ?    Africa

B.   ?    Nova Scotia

C.   ?    Glasgow, Scotland

8. Viola ____________.
A.   ?    spent two days in jail before going to court

B.   ?    was not found guilty in court

C.   ?    was not allowed to call a lawyer to defend her in court

D.   ?    didn't know she could call a lawyer to defend her in court

9. Viola sat on the main floor because ____________.

A.   ?    the balcony was full

B.   ?    black women were not allowed to sit in the balcony

C.   ?    her ticket was for the main floor

D.   ?    she could not see things well from a distance

10. As used in paragraph 6, "treat" is closest in meaning to which of the

following definitions?
A.   ?    behave in a certain way towards people

B.   ?    give care or medical attention to someone

C.   ?    pay the cost of someone else

D.   ?    discuss a subject

11. VIola went to a movie theatre because ____________.

 A.   ?    she promised a friend in New Glasgow she would go

B.   ?    she enjoyed watching movies

C.   ?    she had car trouble

12. Which of the following words does not have the same meaning as "grab"
(paragraph 4)?
A.   ?    seize

B.   ?    lay hands on

C.   ?    take hold of

D.   ?    release