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The Compass That Pointed to Lost Things

2nd grade fiction passage about a magic compass finds missing items: 132 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

2nd grade fiction a magic compass finds missing items 132 words

The Compass That Pointed to Lost Things

Hana got a brass compass from her aunt. The needle did not point north. It wobbled and spun and pointed somewhere else.

"It is broken," said Hana's brother, Leo.

Then Leo cried, "I cannot find my left mitten!"

Hana looked at the compass. The needle swung toward the kitchen. She followed it to the bread box, and there was the mitten, tucked in the corner.

"It points to lost things!" Hana said.

All week, the compass helped. It found a library book under a bed. It found a spoon in the garden. One evening, it pointed at the old oak tree.

Hana climbed up and found a small bird's nest with a shiny button inside. The button was hers! She gently left the nest alone, and she took only her button home.

Questions

  1. Who gave Hana the compass? in the text

  2. Where was Leo's mitten? in the text

  3. What did the compass find in the garden? in the text

  4. What did Hana find in the bird's nest? in the text

  5. Why did Hana leave the nest alone? think about it

Words to know

compass
a tool with a needle that points the way
wobbled
shook from side to side
mitten
a warm cover for the hand with one place for the thumb
tucked
pushed into a small, snug spot
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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 · 116 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.3

Hana got a brass compass from her aunt. The needle did not point north. It wobbled. It pointed somewhere else.

"It is broken," said her brother, Leo.

Then Leo cried, "I lost my left mitten!"

Hana looked at the compass. The needle swung to the kitchen. She followed it to the bread box. The mitten was there, in the corner.

"It points to lost things!" said Hana.

All week, the compass helped. It found a book under a bed. It found a spoon in the garden. One night, it pointed to the old oak tree.

Hana climbed up. A bird's nest had her shiny button! She left the nest alone. She took only her button home.

▲ This passage · 132 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.6

Hana got a brass compass from her aunt. The needle did not point north. It wobbled and spun and pointed somewhere else.

"It is broken," said Hana's brother, Leo.

Then Leo cried, "I cannot find my left mitten!"

Hana looked at the compass. The needle swung toward the kitchen. She followed it to the bread box, and there was the mitten, tucked in the corner.

"It points to lost things!" Hana said.

All week, the compass helped. It found a library book under a bed. It found a spoon in the garden. One evening, it pointed at the old oak tree.

Hana climbed up and found a small bird's nest with a shiny button inside. The button was hers! She gently left the nest alone, and she took only her button home.

■ Harder · 145 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4

Hana received a brass compass from her aunt. The needle did not point north the way a compass should. Instead, it wobbled and spun and aimed itself somewhere else entirely.

"It must be broken," said Hana's brother, Leo.

Just then, Leo cried, "I cannot find my left mitten anywhere!"

Hana studied the compass. The needle swung straight toward the kitchen. She followed it to the bread box, and there was the mitten, tucked away in the corner.

"It points to lost things!" Hana exclaimed.

All week long, the compass kept helping. It found a library book under a bed and a spoon in the garden. One evening, it pointed at the old oak tree.

Hana climbed up and discovered a small bird's nest with a shiny button inside. The button was hers! She gently left the nest alone and carried only her own button home.

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 compass, wobbled, mitten and tucked 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.

Related

Questions

What reading level is "The Compass That Pointed to Lost Things"?

It was written for 2nd grade. It has 132 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 2.5. 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 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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