2nd grade nonfiction passage about the sky as seen from the moon: 121 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
2nd gradenonfictionthe sky as seen from the moon121 words
A Black Sky Above the Moon
On Earth, the daytime sky is blue. The blue comes from our air. Air spreads the sun's light around, and the blue light is spread the most. So we see blue all over the sky.
The Moon has no air to speak of. There is nothing to spread the light. So the sky above the Moon is black, even in the daytime.
The sun is still very bright there. The ground gleams in the sunlight. But when an astronaut looks up, the sky is as dark as night.
Imagine standing on the Moon at noon. You could see the bright sun and a black sky at the same time. You could also see our blue Earth hanging up in the dark.
Questions
What color is the daytime sky on Earth? in the text
What spreads the sun's light around on Earth? in the text
What color is the sky above the Moon in the daytime? in the text
What could you see hanging in the dark sky from the Moon? in the text
Why does the Moon have a black sky when the sun is up? think about it
Words to know
spread
to send out in every direction
gleams
shines with a bright light
daytime
the part of the day when it is light
imagine
to make a picture in your mind
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
A Black Sky Above the Moon
2nd grade reading passage
On Earth, the daytime sky is blue. The blue comes from our air. Air spreads the sun's light around, and the blue light is spread the most. So we see blue all over the sky.
The Moon has no air to speak of. There is nothing to spread the light. So the sky above the Moon is black, even in the daytime.
The sun is still very bright there. The ground gleams in the sunlight. But when an astronaut looks up, the sky is as dark as night.
Imagine standing on the Moon at noon. You could see the bright sun and a black sky at the same time. You could also see our blue Earth hanging up in the dark.
Questions
What color is the daytime sky on Earth?
What spreads the sun's light around on Earth?
What color is the sky above the Moon in the daytime?
What could you see hanging in the dark sky from the Moon?
Why does the Moon have a black sky when the sun is up?
Words to know
spread: to send out in every direction
gleams: shines with a bright light
daytime: the part of the day when it is light
imagine: to make a picture in your mind
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/2/a-black-sky-above-the-moon
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 · 96 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.2
On Earth, the daytime sky is blue. The blue comes from our air. Air spreads the sun's light around. We see blue all over the sky.
The Moon has no air to speak of. Nothing spreads the light. So the sky above the Moon is black, even in the day.
The sun is still bright there. The ground shines in the sunlight. But the sky looks as dark as night.
Imagine you stand on the Moon at noon. You see a bright sun and a black sky. You see our blue Earth in the dark, too.
▲ This passage · 121 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.4
On Earth, the daytime sky is blue. The blue comes from our air. Air spreads the sun's light around, and the blue light is spread the most. So we see blue all over the sky.
The Moon has no air to speak of. There is nothing to spread the light. So the sky above the Moon is black, even in the daytime.
The sun is still very bright there. The ground gleams in the sunlight. But when an astronaut looks up, the sky is as dark as night.
Imagine standing on the Moon at noon. You could see the bright sun and a black sky at the same time. You could also see our blue Earth hanging up in the dark.
■ Harder · 128 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.3
On Earth, the daytime sky looks blue. That color comes from our air. The air scatters the sun's light in every direction, and blue light is scattered the most, so we see blue stretched across the whole sky.
The Moon has no air to speak of, so nothing scatters the light there. As a result, the sky above the Moon is black, even in the middle of the day.
The sun is still dazzlingly bright, and the ground gleams in its glare. Yet when an astronaut looks up, the sky is as dark as it is at night.
Imagine standing on the Moon at noon. You could see the bright sun and a black sky together, and you could also see our blue Earth hanging in the darkness.
On Earth, the daytime sky is blue. The blue comes from our air. Air spreads the sun's light around. We see blue all over the sky.
The Moon has no air to speak of. Nothing spreads the light. So the sky above the Moon is black, even in the day.
The sun is still bright there. The ground shines in the sunlight. But the sky looks as dark as night.
Imagine you stand on the Moon at noon. You see a bright sun and a black sky. You see our blue Earth in the dark, too.
Questions
What color is the daytime sky on Earth?
What spreads the sun's light around on Earth?
What color is the sky above the Moon in the day?
What can you see in the dark sky from the Moon?
Why is the Moon's sky black when the sun is up?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
A Black Sky Above the Moon
On Earth, the daytime sky is blue. The blue comes from our air. Air spreads the sun's light around, and the blue light is spread the most. So we see blue all over the sky.
The Moon has no air to speak of. There is nothing to spread the light. So the sky above the Moon is black, even in the daytime.
The sun is still very bright there. The ground gleams in the sunlight. But when an astronaut looks up, the sky is as dark as night.
Imagine standing on the Moon at noon. You could see the bright sun and a black sky at the same time. You could also see our blue Earth hanging up in the dark.
Questions
What color is the daytime sky on Earth?
What spreads the sun's light around on Earth?
What color is the sky above the Moon in the daytime?
What could you see hanging in the dark sky from the Moon?
Why does the Moon have a black sky when the sun is up?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
A Black Sky Above the Moon
On Earth, the daytime sky looks blue. That color comes from our air. The air scatters the sun's light in every direction, and blue light is scattered the most, so we see blue stretched across the whole sky.
The Moon has no air to speak of, so nothing scatters the light there. As a result, the sky above the Moon is black, even in the middle of the day.
The sun is still dazzlingly bright, and the ground gleams in its glare. Yet when an astronaut looks up, the sky is as dark as it is at night.
Imagine standing on the Moon at noon. You could see the bright sun and a black sky together, and you could also see our blue Earth hanging in the darkness.
Questions
What color is the daytime sky on Earth?
What scatters the sun's light in every direction on Earth?
What color is the sky above the Moon during the day?
What could you see hanging in the darkness from the Moon?
Why does the Moon have a black sky even when the sun is up?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: A Black Sky Above the Moon
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.2)
Blue.
The air.
Black.
Our blue Earth.
The Moon has no air to spread the light.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.4)
Blue.
The air.
Black.
Our blue Earth.
The Moon has no air to spread the light around.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.3)
Blue.
The air.
Black.
Our blue Earth.
The Moon has no air to scatter the light.
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 spread, gleams, daytime and imagine on the board with their meanings from the Words to know section and have students predict what the text 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 write one question the passage did not answer, then look for the answer in a book or on a classroom screen.
Print the student copy for independent work and keep the answer-key copy for yourself.
What reading level is "A Black Sky Above the Moon"?
It was written for 2nd grade. It has 121 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 1.4. 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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