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A Hook for Jo's Scarf

2nd grade fiction passage about a new stepsister moving in: 155 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

2nd grade fiction a new stepsister moving in 155 words

A Hook for Jo's Scarf

Maya had a new stepsister named Jo. Jo was coming to live with them. Maya had to share her room.

She cleaned half of the closet. But Maya's things were everywhere. Her coats took up all the hooks.

When Jo came in, she held a long red scarf with fuzzy tassels. She looked at the closet. All the hooks were full.

"It's okay," said Jo quietly. She dropped the scarf on the bed.

Maya felt a knot in her tummy. This was not very welcoming. She looked at her favorite purple coat. Then she took it off its hook. She put it on the bottom of the bed instead.

"This hook is for your scarf," Maya said.

Jo's face lit up. She hung the scarf. The tassels swung back and forth.

"It looks nice next to my coat," said Maya. "Maybe we can pick a hook for my hat."

Jo smiled. "That's a good plan."

Questions

  1. What did Jo bring with her? in the text

  2. Why did Jo say, "It's okay" and drop the scarf? in the text

  3. What did Maya do with her purple coat? in the text

  4. What did Maya say the free hook was for? in the text

  5. Why did Maya feel a knot in her tummy? think about it

Words to know

stepsister
a girl whose parent marries your parent
tassels
little bunches of thread that hang from something
welcoming
kind and friendly to someone who is new
closet
a small room or space for clothes
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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 · 115 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.3

Maya had a new stepsister named Jo. Jo was coming to live with them. Maya had to share her room.

She cleaned half of the closet. But the hooks were full of her coats.

Jo came in with a long red scarf. She looked at the closet. All the hooks were full.

"It's okay," said Jo quietly. She put the scarf on the bed.

Maya felt a knot in her tummy. She took her purple coat off a hook. She put it on the bed.

"This hook is for your scarf," said Maya.

Jo smiled. She hung the scarf. The tassels swung.

"Let's pick a hook for my hat," said Maya.

"Good plan," said Jo.

▲ This passage · 155 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.5

Maya had a new stepsister named Jo. Jo was coming to live with them. Maya had to share her room.

She cleaned half of the closet. But Maya's things were everywhere. Her coats took up all the hooks.

When Jo came in, she held a long red scarf with fuzzy tassels. She looked at the closet. All the hooks were full.

"It's okay," said Jo quietly. She dropped the scarf on the bed.

Maya felt a knot in her tummy. This was not very welcoming. She looked at her favorite purple coat. Then she took it off its hook. She put it on the bottom of the bed instead.

"This hook is for your scarf," Maya said.

Jo's face lit up. She hung the scarf. The tassels swung back and forth.

"It looks nice next to my coat," said Maya. "Maybe we can pick a hook for my hat."

Jo smiled. "That's a good plan."

■ Harder · 178 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.4

Maya had a brand new stepsister named Jo, who was coming to live with the family. That meant Maya had to share her bedroom for the very first time.

She cleaned out half of the closet, but her belongings were still scattered everywhere. Her many coats took up every single hook.

When Jo arrived, she was holding a long red scarf with fuzzy tassels. She glanced at the closet and noticed that all of the hooks were occupied.

"It's okay," Jo said quietly, and she dropped the scarf onto the bed.

Maya felt a knot form in her tummy, because this was not a very welcoming start. She looked at her favorite purple coat. Then she lifted it off its hook and laid it on the bed instead.

"This hook is for your scarf," Maya announced.

Jo's face lit up. She hung the scarf carefully, and the tassels swung back and forth.

"It looks nice next to my coat," said Maya. "Maybe we can choose a hook for my hat, too."

Jo smiled. "That is a wonderful plan."

Download as one PDF

How to use it

  1. Press Read it big (or B) to put the text on the projector, or Full screen (F) to fill the whole screen.
  2. Ask the questions one at a time and use Show answer when the class has decided. A shows or hides every answer.
  3. Print student copy for the class, or Print with answers for yourself.

Ideas for class

  • Before reading, put stepsister, tassels, welcoming and closet 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 2 minutes 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.

Related

Questions

What reading level is "A Hook for Jo's Scarf"?

It was written for 2nd grade. It has 155 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 0.5. 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 2 minutes 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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