2nd grade fiction passage about a first chess game: 125 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
2nd gradefictiona first chess game125 words
Beni's First Chess Club Match
Beni went to chess club on Tuesday. He had learned the moves from a book. Now he sat across from a girl named Pia.
The pieces stood in two neat rows. Beni moved a pawn. Pia moved one too. Soon Beni's knight was gone. Then his bishop was gone. His hands began to sweat.
"You can take a minute," said Pia. "No one is in a hurry."
Beni looked at the board for a long time. He saw that Pia's queen had come out too far. He slid his rook across the board and took it.
Pia laughed. "Nice move!" she said. Beni did not win that day. But he knew how to take a queen now, and he could not wait for next Tuesday.
Questions
How did Beni learn the moves? in the text
Who did Beni play against? in the text
Which piece did Beni take at the end? in the text
What did Pia tell Beni when his hands began to sweat? in the text
Why was Beni happy even though he did not win? think about it
Words to know
chess
a board game with pieces that move in special ways
pawn
the smallest chess piece
knight
a chess piece that looks like a horse
hurry
to rush because you need to go fast
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
Beni's First Chess Club Match
2nd grade reading passage
Beni went to chess club on Tuesday. He had learned the moves from a book. Now he sat across from a girl named Pia.
The pieces stood in two neat rows. Beni moved a pawn. Pia moved one too. Soon Beni's knight was gone. Then his bishop was gone. His hands began to sweat.
"You can take a minute," said Pia. "No one is in a hurry."
Beni looked at the board for a long time. He saw that Pia's queen had come out too far. He slid his rook across the board and took it.
Pia laughed. "Nice move!" she said. Beni did not win that day. But he knew how to take a queen now, and he could not wait for next Tuesday.
Questions
How did Beni learn the moves?
Who did Beni play against?
Which piece did Beni take at the end?
What did Pia tell Beni when his hands began to sweat?
Why was Beni happy even though he did not win?
Words to know
chess: a board game with pieces that move in special ways
pawn: the smallest chess piece
knight: a chess piece that looks like a horse
hurry: to rush because you need to go fast
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/2/benis-first-chess-club-match
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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 · 97 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.1
Beni went to chess club on Tuesday. He had learned the moves from a book. Now he sat by a girl named Pia.
The pieces stood in rows. Beni moved a pawn. Pia moved one too. Soon Beni lost his knight. Then he lost his bishop. His hands began to sweat.
"Take a minute," said Pia. "No one is in a hurry."
Beni looked at the board. Pia's queen was out too far. He slid his rook across and took it.
"Nice move!" said Pia. Beni did not win. But he could not wait for next Tuesday.
▲ This passage · 125 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.3
Beni went to chess club on Tuesday. He had learned the moves from a book. Now he sat across from a girl named Pia.
The pieces stood in two neat rows. Beni moved a pawn. Pia moved one too. Soon Beni's knight was gone. Then his bishop was gone. His hands began to sweat.
"You can take a minute," said Pia. "No one is in a hurry."
Beni looked at the board for a long time. He saw that Pia's queen had come out too far. He slid his rook across the board and took it.
Pia laughed. "Nice move!" she said. Beni did not win that day. But he knew how to take a queen now, and he could not wait for next Tuesday.
■ Harder · 146 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.9
On Tuesday afternoon, Beni went to chess club for the very first time. He had studied the moves in a library book, and now he sat across the table from a girl named Pia.
The pieces stood in two neat rows. Beni moved a pawn, and Pia moved one of hers. Before long, Beni's knight was gone, and then his bishop disappeared as well. His hands began to sweat.
"You can take a minute," said Pia kindly. "Nobody here is in a hurry."
Beni stared at the board for a long time. At last he noticed that Pia's queen had wandered out too far. He slid his rook across the board and captured it.
Pia laughed in surprise. "Nice move!" she said. Beni did not win that day, but he now knew how to take a queen, and he could hardly wait for the next Tuesday.
Beni went to chess club on Tuesday. He had learned the moves from a book. Now he sat by a girl named Pia.
The pieces stood in rows. Beni moved a pawn. Pia moved one too. Soon Beni lost his knight. Then he lost his bishop. His hands began to sweat.
"Take a minute," said Pia. "No one is in a hurry."
Beni looked at the board. Pia's queen was out too far. He slid his rook across and took it.
"Nice move!" said Pia. Beni did not win. But he could not wait for next Tuesday.
Questions
How did Beni learn the moves?
Who did Beni play?
Which piece did Beni take?
What did Pia say when his hands began to sweat?
Why was Beni happy when he did not win?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
Beni's First Chess Club Match
Beni went to chess club on Tuesday. He had learned the moves from a book. Now he sat across from a girl named Pia.
The pieces stood in two neat rows. Beni moved a pawn. Pia moved one too. Soon Beni's knight was gone. Then his bishop was gone. His hands began to sweat.
"You can take a minute," said Pia. "No one is in a hurry."
Beni looked at the board for a long time. He saw that Pia's queen had come out too far. He slid his rook across the board and took it.
Pia laughed. "Nice move!" she said. Beni did not win that day. But he knew how to take a queen now, and he could not wait for next Tuesday.
Questions
How did Beni learn the moves?
Who did Beni play against?
Which piece did Beni take at the end?
What did Pia tell Beni when his hands began to sweat?
Why was Beni happy even though he did not win?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
Beni's First Chess Club Match
On Tuesday afternoon, Beni went to chess club for the very first time. He had studied the moves in a library book, and now he sat across the table from a girl named Pia.
The pieces stood in two neat rows. Beni moved a pawn, and Pia moved one of hers. Before long, Beni's knight was gone, and then his bishop disappeared as well. His hands began to sweat.
"You can take a minute," said Pia kindly. "Nobody here is in a hurry."
Beni stared at the board for a long time. At last he noticed that Pia's queen had wandered out too far. He slid his rook across the board and captured it.
Pia laughed in surprise. "Nice move!" she said. Beni did not win that day, but he now knew how to take a queen, and he could hardly wait for the next Tuesday.
Questions
How did Beni learn the moves before he came to chess club?
Who did Beni play against?
Which of Pia's pieces did Beni capture?
What did Pia say when Beni's hands began to sweat?
Why was Beni still happy even though he did not win?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: Beni's First Chess Club Match
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.1)
From a book.
A girl named Pia.
Pia's queen.
To take a minute, because no one was in a hurry.
He learned something and wanted to play again.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.3)
From a book.
A girl named Pia.
Pia's queen.
That he could take a minute, because no one was in a hurry.
He learned something new and wanted to play again.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.9)
He studied them in a library book.
A girl named Pia.
Her queen.
That he could take a minute because nobody was in a hurry.
He learned a new skill and was eager to play again.
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 chess, pawn, knight and hurry 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 "Beni's First Chess Club Match"?
It was written for 2nd grade. It has 125 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 0.3. 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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