2nd grade nonfiction passage about where cinnamon comes from: 97 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
2nd gradenonfictionwhere cinnamon comes from97 words
Cinnamon Curls as It Dries
Cinnamon is a spice that makes cookies and toast smell warm. It comes from a tree. It is the bark of the tree, which is its skin.
Workers cut thin branches from a cinnamon tree. They peel off the bark in long strips. Then they set the strips out to dry.
Something neat happens as the bark dries. It curls up into a roll. Each roll looks like a tiny scroll. People call these rolls quills.
When the quills are dry, they are brown and hard. Some are sold whole. Others are ground into a fine powder.
Questions
What part of the tree is cinnamon? in the text
How do workers peel the bark? in the text
What happens to the bark as it dries? in the text
What are the dry rolls called? in the text
Why do workers set the strips out to dry? think about it
Words to know
spice
a food from a plant that gives meals a strong taste or smell
bark
the outer skin of a tree
strips
long, thin pieces
quills
dry rolls of cinnamon bark
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
Cinnamon Curls as It Dries
2nd grade reading passage
Cinnamon is a spice that makes cookies and toast smell warm. It comes from a tree. It is the bark of the tree, which is its skin.
Workers cut thin branches from a cinnamon tree. They peel off the bark in long strips. Then they set the strips out to dry.
Something neat happens as the bark dries. It curls up into a roll. Each roll looks like a tiny scroll. People call these rolls quills.
When the quills are dry, they are brown and hard. Some are sold whole. Others are ground into a fine powder.
Questions
What part of the tree is cinnamon?
How do workers peel the bark?
What happens to the bark as it dries?
What are the dry rolls called?
Why do workers set the strips out to dry?
Words to know
spice: a food from a plant that gives meals a strong taste or smell
bark: the outer skin of a tree
strips: long, thin pieces
quills: dry rolls of cinnamon bark
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/2/cinnamon-curls-as-it-dries
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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 · 71 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.2
Cinnamon is a spice. It makes cookies smell warm. It comes from a tree. It is the bark of the tree.
Workers cut thin branches. They peel the bark in long strips. They set the strips out to dry.
The bark curls up as it dries. It becomes a roll. The rolls are called quills.
The dry quills are brown and hard. Some are sold whole. Some are ground into powder.
▲ This passage · 97 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.3
Cinnamon is a spice that makes cookies and toast smell warm. It comes from a tree. It is the bark of the tree, which is its skin.
Workers cut thin branches from a cinnamon tree. They peel off the bark in long strips. Then they set the strips out to dry.
Something neat happens as the bark dries. It curls up into a roll. Each roll looks like a tiny scroll. People call these rolls quills.
When the quills are dry, they are brown and hard. Some are sold whole. Others are ground into a fine powder.
■ Harder · 105 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.7
Cinnamon is a spice that makes cookies and warm toast smell wonderful. It comes from a tree, and the part we use is the bark, which is the skin of the tree.
Workers cut thin branches from a cinnamon tree and peel the bark away in long strips. Then they lay the strips out so that they can dry.
Something interesting happens while the bark dries. It curls up into a roll that looks like a tiny scroll. People call these rolls quills.
Once the quills have dried, they are brown and hard. Some are sold whole, while others are ground into a fine powder.
Cinnamon is a spice. It makes cookies smell warm. It comes from a tree. It is the bark of the tree.
Workers cut thin branches. They peel the bark in long strips. They set the strips out to dry.
The bark curls up as it dries. It becomes a roll. The rolls are called quills.
The dry quills are brown and hard. Some are sold whole. Some are ground into powder.
Questions
What part of the tree is cinnamon?
How do workers peel the bark?
What does the bark do as it dries?
What are the rolls called?
Why do workers dry the strips?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
Cinnamon Curls as It Dries
Cinnamon is a spice that makes cookies and toast smell warm. It comes from a tree. It is the bark of the tree, which is its skin.
Workers cut thin branches from a cinnamon tree. They peel off the bark in long strips. Then they set the strips out to dry.
Something neat happens as the bark dries. It curls up into a roll. Each roll looks like a tiny scroll. People call these rolls quills.
When the quills are dry, they are brown and hard. Some are sold whole. Others are ground into a fine powder.
Questions
What part of the tree is cinnamon?
How do workers peel the bark?
What happens to the bark as it dries?
What are the dry rolls called?
Why do workers set the strips out to dry?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
Cinnamon Curls as It Dries
Cinnamon is a spice that makes cookies and warm toast smell wonderful. It comes from a tree, and the part we use is the bark, which is the skin of the tree.
Workers cut thin branches from a cinnamon tree and peel the bark away in long strips. Then they lay the strips out so that they can dry.
Something interesting happens while the bark dries. It curls up into a roll that looks like a tiny scroll. People call these rolls quills.
Once the quills have dried, they are brown and hard. Some are sold whole, while others are ground into a fine powder.
Questions
Which part of the cinnamon tree do we use?
How do workers remove the bark?
What happens to the bark while it dries?
What do people call the dry rolls?
Why do workers lay the strips out to dry?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: Cinnamon Curls as It Dries
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.2)
The bark.
In long strips.
It curls up into a roll.
Quills.
They turn into hard quills that can be sold or ground.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.3)
The bark.
In long strips.
It curls up into a roll.
Quills.
Drying turns them into hard, brown quills that can be sold or ground into powder.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.7)
The bark, which is the skin of the tree.
They peel it away in long strips.
It curls up into a roll.
Quills.
Drying turns them into hard, brown quills that can be sold whole or ground into powder.
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 spice, bark, strips and quills 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 "Cinnamon Curls as It Dries"?
It was written for 2nd grade. It has 97 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 1.3. 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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