2nd grade fiction passage about a missing bell: 128 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
2nd gradefictiona missing bell128 words
The Bell That Rang Under the Porch Swing
Nora had a silver bell on her backpack. One morning, it was gone. She looked in her room. She looked in the kitchen. No bell.
Then Nora heard a tiny sound. Ting! It came from the porch. She stood very still. Ting! Ting! The sound came from under the swing.
Nora knelt down and peeked. Two bright eyes looked back. It was Biscuit, her neighbor's kitten. The silver bell was tied to Biscuit's collar with a bit of yarn.
Nora laughed. "So you took my bell!" she said.
Biscuit batted the bell and purred. Nora did not want to take it back. She asked her neighbor to hang a new bell on the kitten's collar. Now Nora hears the ting every day, and she knows Biscuit is near.
Questions
What was missing from Nora's backpack? in the text
Where did the tiny sound come from? in the text
Who had the bell? in the text
How did the kitten wear the bell? in the text
Why did Nora ask for a new bell for the kitten? think about it
Words to know
knelt
got down on your knees
peeked
took a quick, careful look
collar
a band that goes around a pet's neck
neighbor
a person who lives close to you
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
The Bell That Rang Under the Porch Swing
2nd grade reading passage
Nora had a silver bell on her backpack. One morning, it was gone. She looked in her room. She looked in the kitchen. No bell.
Then Nora heard a tiny sound. Ting! It came from the porch. She stood very still. Ting! Ting! The sound came from under the swing.
Nora knelt down and peeked. Two bright eyes looked back. It was Biscuit, her neighbor's kitten. The silver bell was tied to Biscuit's collar with a bit of yarn.
Nora laughed. "So you took my bell!" she said.
Biscuit batted the bell and purred. Nora did not want to take it back. She asked her neighbor to hang a new bell on the kitten's collar. Now Nora hears the ting every day, and she knows Biscuit is near.
Questions
What was missing from Nora's backpack?
Where did the tiny sound come from?
Who had the bell?
How did the kitten wear the bell?
Why did Nora ask for a new bell for the kitten?
Words to know
knelt: got down on your knees
peeked: took a quick, careful look
collar: a band that goes around a pet's neck
neighbor: a person who lives close to you
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/2/the-bell-that-rang-under-the-porch-swing
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 · 100 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.2
Nora had a silver bell on her backpack. One day, it was gone. She looked in her room. She looked in the kitchen. No bell.
Then she heard a sound. Ting! It came from the porch. Ting! Ting! It came from under the swing.
Nora got down and looked. Two eyes looked back. It was Biscuit, the kitten next door. The bell was on Biscuit's collar. It was tied with yarn.
Nora laughed. "You took my bell!"
Biscuit played with the bell and purred. Nora let her keep it. Now Nora hears ting each day. She knows Biscuit is near.
▲ This passage · 128 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1
Nora had a silver bell on her backpack. One morning, it was gone. She looked in her room. She looked in the kitchen. No bell.
Then Nora heard a tiny sound. Ting! It came from the porch. She stood very still. Ting! Ting! The sound came from under the swing.
Nora knelt down and peeked. Two bright eyes looked back. It was Biscuit, her neighbor's kitten. The silver bell was tied to Biscuit's collar with a bit of yarn.
Nora laughed. "So you took my bell!" she said.
Biscuit batted the bell and purred. Nora did not want to take it back. She asked her neighbor to hang a new bell on the kitten's collar. Now Nora hears the ting every day, and she knows Biscuit is near.
■ Harder · 155 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.1
Nora kept a silver bell fastened to her backpack. One morning, she discovered that it had disappeared. She searched her bedroom and then the kitchen, but the bell was nowhere to be found.
Suddenly, Nora heard a tiny sound. Ting! It was coming from the porch. She stood perfectly still and listened. Ting! Ting! The sound seemed to come from beneath the swing.
Nora knelt down and peeked underneath. Two bright eyes stared back at her. It was Biscuit, her neighbor's kitten, and the silver bell was tied to the kitten's collar with a bit of yarn.
Nora burst out laughing. "So you are the one who took my bell!" she said.
Biscuit batted the bell happily and purred. Nora decided not to take it back. Instead, she asked her neighbor to hang a new bell on the kitten's collar. Now she hears that cheerful ting every day, and she always knows Biscuit is near.
Nora had a silver bell on her backpack. One day, it was gone. She looked in her room. She looked in the kitchen. No bell.
Then she heard a sound. Ting! It came from the porch. Ting! Ting! It came from under the swing.
Nora got down and looked. Two eyes looked back. It was Biscuit, the kitten next door. The bell was on Biscuit's collar. It was tied with yarn.
Nora laughed. "You took my bell!"
Biscuit played with the bell and purred. Nora let her keep it. Now Nora hears ting each day. She knows Biscuit is near.
Questions
What was gone from Nora's backpack?
Where did the sound come from?
Who had the bell?
How was the bell on the kitten?
Why did Nora let Biscuit keep the bell?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
The Bell That Rang Under the Porch Swing
Nora had a silver bell on her backpack. One morning, it was gone. She looked in her room. She looked in the kitchen. No bell.
Then Nora heard a tiny sound. Ting! It came from the porch. She stood very still. Ting! Ting! The sound came from under the swing.
Nora knelt down and peeked. Two bright eyes looked back. It was Biscuit, her neighbor's kitten. The silver bell was tied to Biscuit's collar with a bit of yarn.
Nora laughed. "So you took my bell!" she said.
Biscuit batted the bell and purred. Nora did not want to take it back. She asked her neighbor to hang a new bell on the kitten's collar. Now Nora hears the ting every day, and she knows Biscuit is near.
Questions
What was missing from Nora's backpack?
Where did the tiny sound come from?
Who had the bell?
How did the kitten wear the bell?
Why did Nora ask for a new bell for the kitten?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
The Bell That Rang Under the Porch Swing
Nora kept a silver bell fastened to her backpack. One morning, she discovered that it had disappeared. She searched her bedroom and then the kitchen, but the bell was nowhere to be found.
Suddenly, Nora heard a tiny sound. Ting! It was coming from the porch. She stood perfectly still and listened. Ting! Ting! The sound seemed to come from beneath the swing.
Nora knelt down and peeked underneath. Two bright eyes stared back at her. It was Biscuit, her neighbor's kitten, and the silver bell was tied to the kitten's collar with a bit of yarn.
Nora burst out laughing. "So you are the one who took my bell!" she said.
Biscuit batted the bell happily and purred. Nora decided not to take it back. Instead, she asked her neighbor to hang a new bell on the kitten's collar. Now she hears that cheerful ting every day, and she always knows Biscuit is near.
Questions
What had disappeared from Nora's backpack?
Where did the tiny sound seem to come from?
Who had the bell?
How was the bell attached to the kitten?
Why did Nora ask her neighbor to hang a new bell on the kitten?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: The Bell That Rang Under the Porch Swing
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.2)
Her silver bell.
From under the porch swing.
Biscuit, the kitten next door.
It was tied to the collar with yarn.
Biscuit liked it, and the bell helps Nora know the kitten is near.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 1)
Her silver bell.
From under the porch swing.
Biscuit, the neighbor's kitten.
It was tied to the collar with a bit of yarn.
She saw the kitten loved the bell, and a bell lets her know Biscuit is near.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.1)
Her silver bell.
From beneath the porch swing.
Biscuit, her neighbor's kitten.
It was tied to the collar with a bit of yarn.
She saw that the kitten loved the bell, and a bell lets her know Biscuit is near.
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 knelt, peeked, collar and neighbor 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 "The Bell That Rang Under the Porch Swing"?
It was written for 2nd grade. It has 128 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 1.0. 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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