1st grade nonfiction passage about tears from onions: 91 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
Sam helps in the kitchen. Today he cuts an onion, and his eyes begin to sting. Tears roll down his face. Sam is not sad at all!
Here is why. When a cook cuts an onion, a tiny puff of gas floats up. The gas drifts to the eyes. It stings a little, so the eyes make tears to wash it away.
The tears do not hurt Sam. They help his eyes. A grown-up can show him a trick. Chill the onion first, and the sting is not so strong.
What does Sam cut in the kitchen? in the text
What floats up when the onion is cut? in the text
What do the eyes make to wash the gas away? in the text
What trick makes the sting less strong? in the text
Is Sam crying because he is sad? 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.
Sam helps in the kitchen. He cuts an onion. His eyes sting. Tears roll down. Sam is not sad!
Here is why. When you cut an onion, a puff of gas floats up. It goes to the eyes. It stings. So the eyes make tears to wash it away.
The tears help Sam. A grown-up has a trick. Chill the onion first. Then the sting is less.
Sam helps in the kitchen. Today he cuts an onion, and his eyes begin to sting. Tears roll down his face. Sam is not sad at all!
Here is why. When a cook cuts an onion, a tiny puff of gas floats up. The gas drifts to the eyes. It stings a little, so the eyes make tears to wash it away.
The tears do not hurt Sam. They help his eyes. A grown-up can show him a trick. Chill the onion first, and the sting is not so strong.
Sam is helping out in the kitchen. Today he is slicing an onion, and soon his eyes begin to sting. Tears roll down his cheeks, but Sam is not sad at all!
Here is the reason. When a cook cuts into an onion, a tiny puff of gas floats up into the air. The gas drifts toward the eyes and stings them a little, so the eyes make tears to wash it away.
The tears do not harm Sam. They actually protect his eyes. A grown-up can show him a helpful trick: if he chills the onion first, the sting will not be as strong.
It was written for 1st grade. It has 91 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 0.7. 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.
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