1st grade fiction passage about silly hiccups: 93 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
1st gradefictionsilly hiccups93 words
Nell and the Hiccup That Moved In
Nell had the hiccups. Hic! Hic! They would not go away.
Hic! Her cup of milk jumped. Hic! Her toy frog jumped. Hic! Her little brother jumped, too.
"Boo!" said Dad. Nell did not stop. She held her breath. She drank a glass of water. Hic! Hic!
Then Nell saw a funny clown face in a book. She laughed and laughed. She laughed so much that her hiccups got scared and ran out the door.
"Good-bye, hiccups!" said Nell, and she gave a happy sigh. Her house was calm and quiet again.
Questions
What did Nell have? in the text
What did Nell's toy frog do? in the text
What did Dad say to Nell? in the text
What did Nell see in the book? in the text
What do you think made the hiccups stop? think about it
Words to know
hiccups
little jumps in your chest that make a noise
breath
the air you take in and let out
clown
a funny person with a painted face
sigh
a long, soft breath that shows you feel relief
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
Nell and the Hiccup That Moved In
1st grade reading passage
Nell had the hiccups. Hic! Hic! They would not go away.
Hic! Her cup of milk jumped. Hic! Her toy frog jumped. Hic! Her little brother jumped, too.
"Boo!" said Dad. Nell did not stop. She held her breath. She drank a glass of water. Hic! Hic!
Then Nell saw a funny clown face in a book. She laughed and laughed. She laughed so much that her hiccups got scared and ran out the door.
"Good-bye, hiccups!" said Nell, and she gave a happy sigh. Her house was calm and quiet again.
Questions
What did Nell have?
What did Nell's toy frog do?
What did Dad say to Nell?
What did Nell see in the book?
What do you think made the hiccups stop?
Words to know
hiccups: little jumps in your chest that make a noise
breath: the air you take in and let out
clown: a funny person with a painted face
sigh: a long, soft breath that shows you feel relief
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/1/nell-and-the-hiccup-that-moved-in
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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 · 61 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade -1.2
Nell had the hiccups. Hic! Hic! They would not go away.
Hic! Her milk jumped. Hic! Her toy frog jumped. Hic! Her brother jumped, too.
"Boo!" said Dad. Nell did not stop. She drank water. Hic! Hic!
Then Nell saw a funny clown in a book. She laughed and laughed. Her hiccups ran out the door.
"Good-bye, hiccups!" said Nell.
▲ This passage · 93 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.7
Nell had the hiccups. Hic! Hic! They would not go away.
Hic! Her cup of milk jumped. Hic! Her toy frog jumped. Hic! Her little brother jumped, too.
"Boo!" said Dad. Nell did not stop. She held her breath. She drank a glass of water. Hic! Hic!
Then Nell saw a funny clown face in a book. She laughed and laughed. She laughed so much that her hiccups got scared and ran out the door.
"Good-bye, hiccups!" said Nell, and she gave a happy sigh. Her house was calm and quiet again.
■ Harder · 98 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.1
Nell had the hiccups, and they simply would not go away. Hic! Hic!
Hic! Her cup of milk jumped on the table. Hic! Her toy frog bounced across the floor. Hic! Her little brother jumped, too.
"Boo!" shouted Dad, hoping to surprise her. Nell kept right on hiccuping. She held her breath and gulped down a glass of water. Hic! Hic!
Then Nell spotted a ridiculous clown face in a picture book. She laughed so hard that her hiccups got scared and hurried out the door.
"Good-bye, hiccups!" cheered Nell, and she let out a happy sigh.
Nell had the hiccups. Hic! Hic! They would not go away.
Hic! Her milk jumped. Hic! Her toy frog jumped. Hic! Her brother jumped, too.
"Boo!" said Dad. Nell did not stop. She drank water. Hic! Hic!
Then Nell saw a funny clown in a book. She laughed and laughed. Her hiccups ran out the door.
"Good-bye, hiccups!" said Nell.
Questions
What did Nell have?
What did the toy frog do?
What did Dad say?
What did Nell see in the book?
What made the hiccups stop?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
Nell and the Hiccup That Moved In
Nell had the hiccups. Hic! Hic! They would not go away.
Hic! Her cup of milk jumped. Hic! Her toy frog jumped. Hic! Her little brother jumped, too.
"Boo!" said Dad. Nell did not stop. She held her breath. She drank a glass of water. Hic! Hic!
Then Nell saw a funny clown face in a book. She laughed and laughed. She laughed so much that her hiccups got scared and ran out the door.
"Good-bye, hiccups!" said Nell, and she gave a happy sigh. Her house was calm and quiet again.
Questions
What did Nell have?
What did Nell's toy frog do?
What did Dad say to Nell?
What did Nell see in the book?
What do you think made the hiccups stop?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
Nell and the Hiccup That Moved In
Nell had the hiccups, and they simply would not go away. Hic! Hic!
Hic! Her cup of milk jumped on the table. Hic! Her toy frog bounced across the floor. Hic! Her little brother jumped, too.
"Boo!" shouted Dad, hoping to surprise her. Nell kept right on hiccuping. She held her breath and gulped down a glass of water. Hic! Hic!
Then Nell spotted a ridiculous clown face in a picture book. She laughed so hard that her hiccups got scared and hurried out the door.
"Good-bye, hiccups!" cheered Nell, and she let out a happy sigh.
Questions
What problem did Nell have that would not go away?
What did Nell's toy frog do?
What did Dad shout to try to surprise Nell?
What did Nell spot in the picture book?
What do you think finally made the hiccups stop?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: Nell and the Hiccup That Moved In
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade -1.2)
She had the hiccups.
It jumped.
He said, "Boo!"
A funny clown.
Nell laughed so much that they went away.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.7)
She had the hiccups.
It jumped.
He said, "Boo!"
A funny clown face.
Nell laughed so much that they went away.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.1)
She had the hiccups.
It bounced across the floor.
He shouted, "Boo!"
A ridiculous clown face.
Nell laughed so hard that they went away.
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 hiccups, breath, clown and sigh 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 5 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 "Nell and the Hiccup That Moved In"?
It was written for 1st grade. It has 93 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. 4 ask for something the text says directly and 1 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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