Each word is used only once. You may need to change the word (lexically and/or grammatically) in order for it to fit the context. There are 2 extra words in the box. Transfer your answers into the answer sheet (21–30).
I Wish I Had a Pair of Scissors, So I Could Cut Out Your Tongue
By ALINA SIMONE, DEC. 17, 2016 The New York Times
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BRING
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CONTACT
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FOCUS
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ACQUAINT
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ROUND
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COME
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RISE
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FLY
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LUCK
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CHILD
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BREAK
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EMPLOY
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One evening after school, about three weeks ago, my husband and daughter were on the curb in the too-early dark with the usual group of kids and parents, when my 5-year-old informed another mom that an older boy 21 up to her son on the bus and said, “I wish I had a pair of scissors, so I could cut out your tongue.”
To underscore his intention, the boy asked 22 to see if anyone had any scissors.
The mom was dumbfounded. Her son nodded; it was true.
At a time of intense parenting and wearable GPS trackers for kids, the school bus remains one of the black boxes of 23 . In what other situation would parents allow dozens of kids, ranging from 4 to 13, to look after themselves, with the only adult in earshot 24 on navigating a six-wheeler through rush hour traffic?
Most parents assume that bus drivers are responsible for maintaining discipline and preventing abuse. But in places like New York City, that’s just not true. Drivers aren’t school 25 ; they work for private companies. According to New York City’s Office of Pupil Transportation, “the management of discipline on the bus is the school’s responsibility.” Drivers are supposed to “caution” children only if a problem 26 , and then report any incidents of bullying. Can they say, “Stop hitting him,” for instance, I asked an official? No, I was told: The driver is supposed to write up a report.
And if a fight 27 out? Drivers should pull over and call 911.
I was worried about the bus before my daughter even started elementary school. Ours is a “choice” district (the only one in Manhattan), which means that, rather than send her to a local school, we were able to rank schools in order of preference. We managed to get a spot at our first choice; then the problem was getting there.
The commute required two subway trains and a mile-long walk: a round trip that would take us, her parental escorts, about two and a half hours a day. 28 , we qualified for the school bus.
When I mentioned this to an 29 whose children attend my daughter’s school, she blanched. Last year, she said, her 5-year-old son started getting bullied on the bus.
She alerted the school, and was told that the bully’s parents already 30 . Still, the bullying continued. She then asked if she could ride on the bus with her son. She then offered to hire a bus monitor with her own money, only to be told: “That’s not how it usually works.”
In March, she gave up and pulled her son off the bus.
