2nd grade nonfiction passage about saliva and eating: 112 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
2nd gradenonfictionsaliva and eating112 words
Spit Starts Your Lunch
Think about warm, cheesy pizza. Does your mouth water? That wet feeling is saliva. Saliva is the plain word spit. Your mouth makes it all day long.
Small parts called glands under your tongue and inside your cheeks make saliva. When you smell food or see it, they get busy and make more.
Saliva has jobs. It wets food, so the food slides down your throat when you swallow. It also starts to break food into tiny bits that your body can use. And it rinses your mouth as you eat and helps keep your teeth clean.
Your lunch has already begun before your tummy gets a single bite. Thank your spit!
Questions
What is another word for saliva? in the text
What makes saliva? in the text
What happens when you smell or see food? in the text
Name one job that saliva does? in the text
Why might a dry cracker be hard to swallow? think about it
Words to know
saliva
the watery liquid in your mouth
glands
small parts of the body that make useful liquids
swallow
move food from your mouth down your throat
rinses
washes with water or another liquid
cheeks
the soft sides of your face
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
Spit Starts Your Lunch
2nd grade reading passage
Think about warm, cheesy pizza. Does your mouth water? That wet feeling is saliva. Saliva is the plain word spit. Your mouth makes it all day long.
Small parts called glands under your tongue and inside your cheeks make saliva. When you smell food or see it, they get busy and make more.
Saliva has jobs. It wets food, so the food slides down your throat when you swallow. It also starts to break food into tiny bits that your body can use. And it rinses your mouth as you eat and helps keep your teeth clean.
Your lunch has already begun before your tummy gets a single bite. Thank your spit!
Questions
What is another word for saliva?
What makes saliva?
What happens when you smell or see food?
Name one job that saliva does?
Why might a dry cracker be hard to swallow?
Words to know
saliva: the watery liquid in your mouth
glands: small parts of the body that make useful liquids
swallow: move food from your mouth down your throat
rinses: washes with water or another liquid
cheeks: the soft sides of your face
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/2/spit-starts-your-lunch
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 · 92 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.6
Think of hot, cheesy pizza. Does your mouth get wet? That wet is saliva. Saliva is spit. Your mouth makes it all day.
Small parts called glands make saliva. They are under your tongue and in your cheeks. You smell food or see food. The glands make more.
Saliva has jobs. It wets food. Then food slides down when you swallow. It starts to break food into tiny bits. It rinses your mouth. It helps keep teeth clean.
Your lunch starts before the first bite gets to your tummy. Thank your spit!
▲ This passage · 112 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.6
Think about warm, cheesy pizza. Does your mouth water? That wet feeling is saliva. Saliva is the plain word spit. Your mouth makes it all day long.
Small parts called glands under your tongue and inside your cheeks make saliva. When you smell food or see it, they get busy and make more.
Saliva has jobs. It wets food, so the food slides down your throat when you swallow. It also starts to break food into tiny bits that your body can use. And it rinses your mouth as you eat and helps keep your teeth clean.
Your lunch has already begun before your tummy gets a single bite. Thank your spit!
■ Harder · 137 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 5.8
Imagine a slice of warm, cheesy pizza sitting in front of you. Does your mouth begin to water? That wet feeling comes from saliva, which is simply the scientific word for spit. Your mouth produces it throughout the entire day.
Small organs called glands, located under your tongue and inside your cheeks, make saliva. Whenever you smell food or even see it, those glands become busy and make extra.
Saliva has several important jobs. It moistens food so that the food slides easily down your throat when you swallow. It also begins to break food into tiny pieces that your body can use. In addition, it rinses your mouth as you eat and helps keep your teeth clean.
Your lunch has already started working long before your tummy receives a single bite. Be grateful for your spit!
Think of hot, cheesy pizza. Does your mouth get wet? That wet is saliva. Saliva is spit. Your mouth makes it all day.
Small parts called glands make saliva. They are under your tongue and in your cheeks. You smell food or see food. The glands make more.
Saliva has jobs. It wets food. Then food slides down when you swallow. It starts to break food into tiny bits. It rinses your mouth. It helps keep teeth clean.
Your lunch starts before the first bite gets to your tummy. Thank your spit!
Questions
What is another word for saliva?
What makes saliva?
What happens when you smell or see food?
Name one job saliva does?
Why is a dry cracker hard to swallow?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
Spit Starts Your Lunch
Think about warm, cheesy pizza. Does your mouth water? That wet feeling is saliva. Saliva is the plain word spit. Your mouth makes it all day long.
Small parts called glands under your tongue and inside your cheeks make saliva. When you smell food or see it, they get busy and make more.
Saliva has jobs. It wets food, so the food slides down your throat when you swallow. It also starts to break food into tiny bits that your body can use. And it rinses your mouth as you eat and helps keep your teeth clean.
Your lunch has already begun before your tummy gets a single bite. Thank your spit!
Questions
What is another word for saliva?
What makes saliva?
What happens when you smell or see food?
Name one job that saliva does?
Why might a dry cracker be hard to swallow?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
Spit Starts Your Lunch
Imagine a slice of warm, cheesy pizza sitting in front of you. Does your mouth begin to water? That wet feeling comes from saliva, which is simply the scientific word for spit. Your mouth produces it throughout the entire day.
Small organs called glands, located under your tongue and inside your cheeks, make saliva. Whenever you smell food or even see it, those glands become busy and make extra.
Saliva has several important jobs. It moistens food so that the food slides easily down your throat when you swallow. It also begins to break food into tiny pieces that your body can use. In addition, it rinses your mouth as you eat and helps keep your teeth clean.
Your lunch has already started working long before your tummy receives a single bite. Be grateful for your spit!
Questions
What is another word for saliva?
Which small organs make saliva, and where are they?
What happens when you smell or see food?
Name one important job that saliva does?
Why might a dry cracker be hard to swallow?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: Spit Starts Your Lunch
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.6)
Spit.
Small glands under your tongue and in your cheeks.
The glands make more saliva.
It wets food, breaks it into bits, or rinses your mouth.
It needs saliva to wet it so it can slide down.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.6)
Spit.
Small glands under your tongue and inside your cheeks.
The glands make more saliva.
It wets food, starts breaking it down, or rinses your mouth.
It needs saliva to wet it so it can slide down.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 5.8)
Spit.
Glands under your tongue and inside your cheeks.
The glands become busy and make extra saliva.
It moistens food, breaks food into tiny pieces, or rinses your mouth.
It needs saliva to moisten it so it can slide down your throat.
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 saliva, glands, swallow, rinses and cheeks 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.
It was written for 2nd grade. It has 112 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 2.6. 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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