Read the passage.
No Filter
Jordyn
I started hanging out with Mariah the summer before our senior year. We both worked as counselors at the same camp, though that seemed to be all we had in common in the beginning. I was into softball, roller derby, and basketball. She read more than my mother—which is saying a lot—and wrote short stories about a sarcastic dragon, which seemed a little crazy to me if I’m being honest. Our friend groups rarely intersected, and most of our friends were not the least bit interested in changing that situation. It was just how things were, and who we were. But Mariah and I were assigned to the same cabin, and we were tasked with working together to create a magical summer experience for the children whose parents paid our wages, so we had to find some common ground. I thought I could approach it like I approached sports; I didn’t have to befriend my teammates to work toward a common goal with them. “Going to make this work if it kills me,” I blasted online to my crew that week.
Mariah
Jordyn the jock was not as bad as I thought she would be when I first learned we’d been paired to lead the cabin of eight-year-olds. My biggest fear was that she would sign us up for a 10-mile hike and spend the whole time scoffing at our inferior endurance. That kind of attitude was about as far from her actual personality as it gets, I soon discovered. The first day, Jordyn split the cabin into teams and told them they would compete for points—like the house cup in Harry Potter—although when I pointed out the connection to the story, she didn’t really know what I meant. “If nothing else, this will all be great material for a story someday,” I informed followers of my blog.
Jordyn
By the second week of camp, I realized I actually liked Mariah a lot more than I’d expected to. She knew a story for every situation, and the kids flipped when she read a few of her age-appropriate tales to them at bedtime. I didn’t tell her, but I actually went onto her website and read some of the less juvenile stuff. I laughed out loud and couldn’t believe I was getting into a story narrated by a dragon. Mariah told me she’d always wanted to try sports, but then she enumerated the many times she had attempted and failed, dating back to the time she broke her foot in pre-school gymnastics. I promised to take her to a skating practice sometime, though I couldn’t really imagine my teammates “getting” her personality the way I did. “Can’t wait to be home with my besties so we can roll again,” I posted.
Mariah
I assumed Jordyn’s offer to introduce me to her world of sports was about as legitimate as her promise to finally read Harry Potter. So I was surprised when on our weekend off, she texted me to ask if I wanted to come roller-skating. I blew off book club to go, partly because I’d been so busy talking to Jordyn that I hadn’t actually finished the book. Skating was a pleasant surprise in that I didn’t break any bones. Less pleasant was the part where some of Jordyn’s “crew,” as she called them, showed up and seemed standoffish with me, like they wished I weren’t there. She made it less awkward by talking about camp and the cool things we’d done with the kids, but I’m still not sure her friends particularly enjoyed my presence. “Sad I had to miss book club—can’t wait until the next meeting,” I blogged.
Jordyn
It turns out that some books are actually a great way to pass the four hours between the kids’ lights-out and the time I can actually fall asleep, which is usually closer to midnight. My poor reading history didn’t actually mean that I didn’t like reading; it was just that I never had time to pursue reading for pleasure with all of the other activities on my plate. Each book I finished at camp gave Mariah and me more to talk about, and soon we were slaphappy and over-tired from our late-night discussions. The kids thought our sleep-deprived silliness was entertaining, so we didn’t see much reason to change our ways. We even wrote a comic together about our camp counseling adventures. My friends messaged me a lot, asking me to come out again on the weekend. When I told them I planned to bring Mariah, I didn’t hear back from them. “Had a blast skating, and Mariah fell only twice,” I captioned our selfie.
Mariah
The end-of-summer party was awkward, no doubt about it. Jordyn’s crew and my friends in one place together never got quite as comfortable as I would have liked, but I do think her friends had fun, and I know mine did. It’s interesting to change things up once in a while. In the end, people are people—even if their interests are different. I don’t know if I’ll actually try roller derby, but I have been skating every weekend, and Jordyn even talked me into buying a custom pair of skates with my camp money. I thought we might drift apart a little when school work replaced camp counseling, but we’ve been even more inseparable since the summer ended. “No Filter,” I captioned the summer album that showed the beginning of our friendship frame by frame.
Question 1
Part A
Reread paragraph 1.
Which statement best explains how Jordyn reacts to Mariah?
Responses
Jordyn does not expect to enjoy Mariah’s company but plans to make the best of the summer anyway.
Jordyn does not expect to enjoy Mariah’s company but plans to make the best of the summer anyway.
Jordyn wants to influence Mariah to become more involved in sports but isn’t sure she will be able to.
Jordyn wants to influence Mariah to become more involved in sports but isn’t sure she will be able to.
Jordyn regrets accepting a job as a camp counselor because she and Mariah are not compatible.
Jordyn regrets accepting a job as a camp counselor because she and Mariah are not compatible.
Jordyn is disappointed that she has to interact with Mariah and expects the summer to be awful.
Jordyn is disappointed that she has to interact with Mariah and expects the summer to be awful.,
Question 2
Part B
Which detail from the narrative best supports the analysis in Part A?
Responses
Jordyn points out that she and Mariah have nothing in common besides their summer job.
Jordyn points out that she and Mariah have nothing in common besides their summer job.,
Jordyn posts online that she will do her all to cooperate with Mariah and enjoy the summer.
Jordyn posts online that she will do her all to cooperate with Mariah and enjoy the summer.
Jordyn states that she and Mariah were placed together by the camp staff.
Jordyn states that she and Mariah were placed together by the camp staff.,
Jordyn points out that her crew and Mariah’s friends rarely interact.
Jordyn points out that her crew and Mariah’s friends rarely interact.
Question 1:
Part A
The correct answer is: Jordyn does not expect to enjoy Mariah’s company but plans to make the best of the summer anyway.
Explanation: In the passage, Jordyn mentions that she and Mariah initially have little in common and that their friend groups rarely intersect. However, they are assigned to the same cabin and have to work together, so Jordyn decides to make the best of the situation and try to find common ground with Mariah.
Question 2:
Part B
The detail from the narrative that best supports the analysis in Part A is: Jordyn posts online that she will do her all to cooperate with Mariah and enjoy the summer.
Explanation: In the passage, Jordyn declares online that she will make the partnership with Mariah work, indicating that she plans to put in effort to get along with her and have a good summer together. This detail supports the idea that Jordyn does not expect to enjoy Mariah's company but is determined to make the best of the situation.