1st grade fiction passage about a note in a book: 102 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
1st gradefictiona note in a book102 words
A Note Tucked in the Whale Book
Pia picked a book about whales. She opened it at home. A note fell out.
The note said, "Look in the book with a red cover. It is on the low shelf." Pia went back to the library.
She found the red book. It was about trains. Inside was a second note. "Look by the big green chair."
By the green chair sat Mr. Cole, the librarian. He gave a wink. In his hand was a bookmark with a whale on it.
"I hide notes for new readers," he said. "You found them all." Pia put the bookmark in her whale book.
Questions
What was Pia's book about? in the text
What fell out of the book? in the text
What was the red book about? in the text
What was on the bookmark? in the text
Why did Mr. Cole hide the notes? think about it
Words to know
librarian
a person who works in a library
shelf
a flat board that holds books
bookmark
a thin strip that saves your place in a book
wink
to close one eye for a moment
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
A Note Tucked in the Whale Book
1st grade reading passage
Pia picked a book about whales. She opened it at home. A note fell out.
The note said, "Look in the book with a red cover. It is on the low shelf." Pia went back to the library.
She found the red book. It was about trains. Inside was a second note. "Look by the big green chair."
By the green chair sat Mr. Cole, the librarian. He gave a wink. In his hand was a bookmark with a whale on it.
"I hide notes for new readers," he said. "You found them all." Pia put the bookmark in her whale book.
Questions
What was Pia's book about?
What fell out of the book?
What was the red book about?
What was on the bookmark?
Why did Mr. Cole hide the notes?
Words to know
librarian: a person who works in a library
shelf: a flat board that holds books
bookmark: a thin strip that saves your place in a book
wink: to close one eye for a moment
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/1/note-tucked-in-whale-book
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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 · 88 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.5
Pia picked a book about whales. At home, a note fell out.
The note said, "Look in the red book. It is on the low shelf." Pia went back to the library.
She found the red book. It was about trains. Inside was a second note. "Look by the big green chair."
By the green chair sat Mr. Cole, the librarian. He gave a wink. In his hand was a bookmark with a whale on it.
"I hide notes for new readers," he said. "You found them all."
▲ This passage · 102 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.8
Pia picked a book about whales. She opened it at home. A note fell out.
The note said, "Look in the book with a red cover. It is on the low shelf." Pia went back to the library.
She found the red book. It was about trains. Inside was a second note. "Look by the big green chair."
By the green chair sat Mr. Cole, the librarian. He gave a wink. In his hand was a bookmark with a whale on it.
"I hide notes for new readers," he said. "You found them all." Pia put the bookmark in her whale book.
■ Harder · 113 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.6
Pia borrowed a book about whales from the library. When she opened it at home, a folded note slipped out.
The note read, "Look in the book with the red cover. It is on the low shelf." Pia hurried back to the library.
She found the red book, which turned out to be about trains. Tucked inside was a second note. "Now look beside the big green chair."
Mr. Cole, the librarian, was sitting in the green chair. He gave her a wink and held up a bookmark with a whale on it.
"I hide notes for new readers," he said. "You followed every clue." Pia slid the bookmark into her whale book.
Pia picked a book about whales. At home, a note fell out.
The note said, "Look in the red book. It is on the low shelf." Pia went back to the library.
She found the red book. It was about trains. Inside was a second note. "Look by the big green chair."
By the green chair sat Mr. Cole, the librarian. He gave a wink. In his hand was a bookmark with a whale on it.
"I hide notes for new readers," he said. "You found them all."
Questions
What was Pia's book about?
What fell out of the book?
What was the red book about?
What was on the bookmark?
Why did Mr. Cole hide the notes?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
A Note Tucked in the Whale Book
Pia picked a book about whales. She opened it at home. A note fell out.
The note said, "Look in the book with a red cover. It is on the low shelf." Pia went back to the library.
She found the red book. It was about trains. Inside was a second note. "Look by the big green chair."
By the green chair sat Mr. Cole, the librarian. He gave a wink. In his hand was a bookmark with a whale on it.
"I hide notes for new readers," he said. "You found them all." Pia put the bookmark in her whale book.
Questions
What was Pia's book about?
What fell out of the book?
What was the red book about?
What was on the bookmark?
Why did Mr. Cole hide the notes?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
A Note Tucked in the Whale Book
Pia borrowed a book about whales from the library. When she opened it at home, a folded note slipped out.
The note read, "Look in the book with the red cover. It is on the low shelf." Pia hurried back to the library.
She found the red book, which turned out to be about trains. Tucked inside was a second note. "Now look beside the big green chair."
Mr. Cole, the librarian, was sitting in the green chair. He gave her a wink and held up a bookmark with a whale on it.
"I hide notes for new readers," he said. "You followed every clue." Pia slid the bookmark into her whale book.
Questions
What was the book that Pia borrowed about?
What slipped out of the book at home?
What was the red book about?
What picture was on the bookmark?
Why do you think Mr. Cole hid notes for new readers?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: A Note Tucked in the Whale Book
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.5)
Whales.
A note.
Trains.
A whale.
To make a fun game and give a prize.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.8)
Whales.
A note.
Trains.
A whale.
He wanted to give new readers a fun game and a prize.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.6)
Whales.
A folded note.
Trains.
A whale.
He wanted to make reading fun and reward them with a prize.
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 librarian, shelf, bookmark and wink 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 "A Note Tucked in the Whale Book"?
It was written for 1st grade. It has 102 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 0.8. 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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