1st grade nonfiction passage about how news spread in a town: 96 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
Long ago, a town had no TV. It had no phones. How did people hear the news?
A town crier told them. He walked down the road with a big bell. Ring, ring, ring! People came out to listen.
Then he called out the news in a loud voice. He might say that a market would open. He might say that a new baby was born. People nodded and went back to work.
Today, we read the news or watch it on a screen. But in some towns, a crier still rings a bell for fun.
Who told the news in a town long ago? in the text
What did the crier carry? in the text
How did he call out the news? in the text
What does a town have today that it did not have long ago? in the text
Why did the crier ring a bell first? think about it
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.
Long ago, a town had no TV. It had no phones. How did people hear the news?
A town crier told them. He walked down the road with a bell. Ring, ring, ring! People came out to listen.
Then he called out the news in a loud voice. People nodded and went back to work.
Now we read the news or watch it on a screen.
Long ago, a town had no TV. It had no phones. How did people hear the news?
A town crier told them. He walked down the road with a big bell. Ring, ring, ring! People came out to listen.
Then he called out the news in a loud voice. He might say that a market would open. He might say that a new baby was born. People nodded and went back to work.
Today, we read the news or watch it on a screen. But in some towns, a crier still rings a bell for fun.
Long ago, a town had no television and no telephones, so how did the people find out the news?
They listened to a town crier. He strolled down the road carrying a large bell, and he rang it again and again. Soon the neighbors came out of their houses to listen.
Then the crier called out the news in a loud, clear voice. He might announce that a market would open, or that a new baby had been born. The people nodded and went back to their work.
Today, we read the news or watch it on a screen, although in a few towns a crier still rings a bell just for fun.
It was written for 1st grade. It has 96 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 0.6. 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.
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.
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.
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.
No. It was written for Peabody Teach, so there is no book to buy and no login to read it.
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