Analyze informational text structure. Identify tectonic causes and surface effects in an engaging passage on geological fault lines.
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Grade 5 · ela · Matching answer key included · US Letter and A4
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Recognize an event and describe what happens before or after it.
An event occurring afterward is not automatically caused by the earlier event.
Draw a cause-to-effect chain supported by the earthquake passage.
This is an original practice passage, not a reproduction of a primary source. Read the answer explanations as interpretations of the provided text.
Earth's outer shell is divided into massive slabs of rock called tectonic plates that move over hotter, mostly solid mantle that can deform slowly. Because these plates move continuously in different directions, friction causes them to lock together at their jagged boundaries, called fault lines.
Over decades or centuries, tremendous mechanical stress builds up along locked faults. Consequently, when the stress exceeds the strength of the rock, the plates abruptly slip. This sudden violent fracture releases immense kinetic energy in the form of seismic waves that ripple through the planet's crust, producing the shaking we experience as an earthquake.
According to the passage, what is the initial CAUSE of stress building up along fault lines?
Answer: A. Paragraph 1 explicitly explains: 'Because these plates move continuously in different directions, friction causes them to lock together at their jagged boundaries... stress builds up.'
Intended curriculum references: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.5. These references describe learning goals; they are not endorsements.
Published 2026-10-02; updated 2026-10-02. Original MakeWorksheet practice. Automated consistency checks support publication; independent subject-specialist review is not recorded. Read our editorial policy.
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