1st grade fiction passage about a first somersault: 103 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
1st gradefictiona first somersault103 words
Jax and the Gym Class Somersault
In gym class, Mr. Park put out blue mats. "Today we roll," he said.
Jax felt a little scared. He knelt on the mat. He put his hands down and tucked in his chin. Then he stopped. He did not roll.
"Look at your belly button," said Mr. Park. "Push with your feet. Keep your back round like a ball."
Jax tried again. He tipped over sideways. The class did not laugh. Some of them gave him a thumbs up.
On the third try, Jax pushed, tucked and rolled all the way over. He landed on his feet.
"I did it!" shouted Jax.
Questions
What did Mr. Park put out? in the text
What did Mr. Park tell Jax to look at? in the text
On which try did Jax roll all the way over? in the text
Why did Jax stop the first time? think about it
How did the class help Jax? think about it
Words to know
mat
a soft pad to play on in the gym
knelt
rested on your knees
tucked
pulled in close to your body
landed
came down and stopped on a spot
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
Jax and the Gym Class Somersault
1st grade reading passage
In gym class, Mr. Park put out blue mats. "Today we roll," he said.
Jax felt a little scared. He knelt on the mat. He put his hands down and tucked in his chin. Then he stopped. He did not roll.
"Look at your belly button," said Mr. Park. "Push with your feet. Keep your back round like a ball."
Jax tried again. He tipped over sideways. The class did not laugh. Some of them gave him a thumbs up.
On the third try, Jax pushed, tucked and rolled all the way over. He landed on his feet.
"I did it!" shouted Jax.
Questions
What did Mr. Park put out?
What did Mr. Park tell Jax to look at?
On which try did Jax roll all the way over?
Why did Jax stop the first time?
How did the class help Jax?
Words to know
mat: a soft pad to play on in the gym
knelt: rested on your knees
tucked: pulled in close to your body
landed: came down and stopped on a spot
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/1/jax-and-the-gym-class-somersault
Share
One passage, three levels
The same topic and facts written three ways, so a mixed class can read and talk about one text. Each group’s sheet shows only a shape; the key says which is which.
● Easier · 86 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.9
In gym, Mr. Park put out blue mats. "Today we roll," he said.
Jax felt scared. He knelt on the mat. He put his hands down. He tucked in his chin. Then he stopped.
"Look at your belly button," said Mr. Park. "Push with your feet."
Jax tried again. He tipped over to the side. No one laughed. Some kids gave him a thumbs up.
On the third try, Jax pushed and rolled all the way. He landed on his feet.
"I did it!" he said.
▲ This passage · 103 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.2
In gym class, Mr. Park put out blue mats. "Today we roll," he said.
Jax felt a little scared. He knelt on the mat. He put his hands down and tucked in his chin. Then he stopped. He did not roll.
"Look at your belly button," said Mr. Park. "Push with your feet. Keep your back round like a ball."
Jax tried again. He tipped over sideways. The class did not laugh. Some of them gave him a thumbs up.
On the third try, Jax pushed, tucked and rolled all the way over. He landed on his feet.
"I did it!" shouted Jax.
■ Harder · 120 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.8
In gym class, Mr. Park spread out a row of blue mats across the floor. "Today we are going to roll," he announced.
Jax felt a little nervous. He knelt on the mat, placed his hands down and tucked in his chin. Then he froze and did not roll at all.
"Look at your belly button," said Mr. Park. "Push off with your feet, and keep your back round like a ball."
Jax tried again, but he tipped over sideways. Nobody in the class laughed, and a few of them even gave him a thumbs up.
On the third try, Jax pushed, tucked and rolled all the way over. He landed right on his feet.
In gym, Mr. Park put out blue mats. "Today we roll," he said.
Jax felt scared. He knelt on the mat. He put his hands down. He tucked in his chin. Then he stopped.
"Look at your belly button," said Mr. Park. "Push with your feet."
Jax tried again. He tipped over to the side. No one laughed. Some kids gave him a thumbs up.
On the third try, Jax pushed and rolled all the way. He landed on his feet.
"I did it!" he said.
Questions
What did Mr. Park put out?
What did Mr. Park say to look at?
On which try did Jax roll?
Why did Jax stop at first?
How did the class help Jax?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
Jax and the Gym Class Somersault
In gym class, Mr. Park put out blue mats. "Today we roll," he said.
Jax felt a little scared. He knelt on the mat. He put his hands down and tucked in his chin. Then he stopped. He did not roll.
"Look at your belly button," said Mr. Park. "Push with your feet. Keep your back round like a ball."
Jax tried again. He tipped over sideways. The class did not laugh. Some of them gave him a thumbs up.
On the third try, Jax pushed, tucked and rolled all the way over. He landed on his feet.
"I did it!" shouted Jax.
Questions
What did Mr. Park put out?
What did Mr. Park tell Jax to look at?
On which try did Jax roll all the way over?
Why did Jax stop the first time?
How did the class help Jax?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
Jax and the Gym Class Somersault
In gym class, Mr. Park spread out a row of blue mats across the floor. "Today we are going to roll," he announced.
Jax felt a little nervous. He knelt on the mat, placed his hands down and tucked in his chin. Then he froze and did not roll at all.
"Look at your belly button," said Mr. Park. "Push off with your feet, and keep your back round like a ball."
Jax tried again, but he tipped over sideways. Nobody in the class laughed, and a few of them even gave him a thumbs up.
On the third try, Jax pushed, tucked and rolled all the way over. He landed right on his feet.
"I did it!" he shouted.
Questions
What did Mr. Park spread out across the floor?
What did Mr. Park tell Jax to look at?
On which try did Jax roll all the way over?
Why did Jax freeze the first time?
How did the other children help Jax feel better?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: Jax and the Gym Class Somersault
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.9)
Blue mats.
His belly button.
The third try.
He felt scared.
They did not laugh and gave him thumbs up.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.2)
Blue mats.
His belly button.
The third try.
He felt scared.
They did not laugh and gave him thumbs up.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.8)
A row of blue mats.
His belly button.
The third try.
He felt nervous.
They did not laugh, and some gave him a thumbs up.
Free at teach.peabody.kids
How to use it
Press Read it big (or B) to put the text on the projector, or Full screen (F) to fill the whole screen.
Ask the questions one at a time and use Show answer when the class has decided. A shows or hides every answer.
Print student copy for the class, or Print with answers for yourself.
Ideas for class
Before reading, put mat, knelt, tucked and landed on the board with their meanings from the Words to know section and have students predict what the story will be about.
Read it aloud once while students follow along, then have them reread it alone or with a partner. At a calm 100 words a minute it takes about 1 minute to read aloud.
Use the Read it big button (or B) to put the text on the projector, and Show answer on one question at a time so the class commits to an answer first.
Question 4 asks the reader to infer. Ask students to point to the words in the passage that led them to their answer.
Ask students to retell the story in three sentences: how it began, what the problem was, and how it ended.
Print the student copy for independent work and keep the answer-key copy for yourself.
What reading level is "Jax and the Gym Class Somersault"?
It was written for 1st grade. It has 103 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about below 1. That is a formula's estimate from sentence length and syllables, and it is not a Lexile or a guided reading level, so check it against your students.
What do the questions ask?
There are five. 3 ask for something the text says directly and 2 ask the reader to work something out from clues. Each has an answer in the key, and the answers are written as a teacher would accept them, not as the only possible wording.
How long does it take to read?
About 1 minute read aloud at 100 words a minute. For a one-minute fluency check, paste it into the fluency timer and use the word count.
Can I print it?
Yes. Print student copy gives the passage, the questions with lines to write on, and the word meanings. Print with answers gives the same page with the answers filled in. Both are made in your browser.
Is this passage from a published book?
No. It was written for Peabody Teach, so there is no book to buy and no login to read it.
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