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The Echo That Answered Late

2nd grade fiction passage about a slow echo in a canyon: 126 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

2nd grade fiction a slow echo in a canyon 126 words

The Echo That Answered Late

Wren stood at the edge of a deep canyon. She cupped her hands around her mouth. "Hello!" she shouted.

Nothing came back. Wren waited and waited. She picked up a stone and tossed it into the grass.

At last, a tiny voice floated up from the canyon. "Hello!" it said. It was Wren's own voice, but it was very slow.

Wren laughed. "You are a late echo!"

"I am sorry," said the echo. "I am old, and my legs are long. I have to run all the way around the rocks."

Wren had an idea. Each day, she said her hello early in the morning. Then she went to school. When she came home, the echo was always ready.

"Hello, Wren," it said, right on time.

Questions

  1. Where did Wren stand? in the text

  2. Why was the echo late? in the text

  3. What did Wren do while she waited? in the text

  4. When did Wren say her hello each day? in the text

  5. Why was the echo ready when Wren came home? think about it

Words to know

canyon
a deep valley with steep rocky sides
echo
a sound that comes back to you
cupped
held your hands in the shape of a bowl
floated
moved along softly in the air
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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 · 108 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.1

Wren stood by a deep canyon. She put her hands by her mouth. "Hello!" she called.

Nothing came back. Wren waited. She tossed a stone in the grass.

At last, a tiny voice came up from the canyon. "Hello!" it said. It was Wren's voice, but it was slow.

Wren laughed. "You are a late echo!"

"I am sorry," said the echo. "I am old. My legs are long. I run around the rocks."

Wren had an idea. Each day, she said hello in the morning. Then she went to school. When she got home, the echo was ready.

"Hello, Wren," it said. It was right on time.

▲ This passage · 126 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.1

Wren stood at the edge of a deep canyon. She cupped her hands around her mouth. "Hello!" she shouted.

Nothing came back. Wren waited and waited. She picked up a stone and tossed it into the grass.

At last, a tiny voice floated up from the canyon. "Hello!" it said. It was Wren's own voice, but it was very slow.

Wren laughed. "You are a late echo!"

"I am sorry," said the echo. "I am old, and my legs are long. I have to run all the way around the rocks."

Wren had an idea. Each day, she said her hello early in the morning. Then she went to school. When she came home, the echo was always ready.

"Hello, Wren," it said, right on time.

■ Harder · 147 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.5

Wren stood at the edge of a very deep canyon. She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, "Hello!"

Nothing came back. Wren waited and waited. She picked up a pebble and tossed it into the grass, wondering whether the canyon had heard her.

At last, a tiny voice floated up from far below. "Hello!" it said. It was Wren's own voice, but it sounded slow and sleepy.

Wren laughed. "You must be a late echo!"

"I am terribly sorry," said the echo. "I am quite old, and my legs are long. I have to run all the way around the rocks before I can answer."

Wren had a clever idea. Every day, she called out her hello early in the morning. Then she went off to school. By the time she came home, the echo was always waiting.

"Hello, Wren," it said, right on time.

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 canyon, echo, cupped and floated 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 Echo That Answered Late"?

It was written for 2nd grade. It has 126 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 1.1. 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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