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The Jar of Buttons and the Color Code

2nd grade fiction passage about solving a color code: 147 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

2nd grade fiction solving a color code 147 words

The Jar of Buttons and the Color Code

Aunt Bea gave Leo a jar of buttons. On top was a folded note. It said: "To find the treasure, line up the buttons. Red, blue, green, yellow. Then look where they are all the same."

Leo laid the four buttons in a row on the table. They looked nice, but nothing happened.

"Where are the colors all together?" he asked.

He went to the window. A red flowerpot sat there, and a blue one, and a green one, and a yellow one. They stood in the same order as his buttons!

Leo lifted the yellow pot. Under it lay a small key. He ran to the old wooden box on the shelf. The key turned with a click.

Inside the box was a note that said, "Good job, detective!" Under it sat a bag of seeds. Aunt Bea had meant for him to plant a garden.

Questions

  1. What was in the jar Aunt Bea gave Leo? in the text

  2. What order of colors did the note say? in the text

  3. Where did Leo find the same colors in the same order? in the text

  4. What was under the yellow pot? in the text

  5. Why do you think Aunt Bea hid seeds as the treasure? think about it

Words to know

buttons
small round things that hold clothes closed
treasure
a special prize that is hidden
order
the way things follow one after another
flowerpots
pots that hold a plant
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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 · 133 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.1

Aunt Bea gave Leo a jar of buttons. A note sat on top. It said: "To find the treasure, line up the buttons. Red, blue, green, yellow. Then find where they are the same."

Leo put the four buttons in a row. They looked nice, but nothing happened.

"Where are the colors all together?" he asked.

He went to the window. A red flowerpot sat there, and a blue one, and a green one, and a yellow one. They were in the same order!

Leo lifted the yellow pot. Under it was a small key. He ran to the old wood box on the shelf. The key turned with a click.

Inside was a note. "Good job, detective!" Under it was a bag of seeds. Aunt Bea wanted him to plant a garden.

▲ This passage · 147 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.6

Aunt Bea gave Leo a jar of buttons. On top was a folded note. It said: "To find the treasure, line up the buttons. Red, blue, green, yellow. Then look where they are all the same."

Leo laid the four buttons in a row on the table. They looked nice, but nothing happened.

"Where are the colors all together?" he asked.

He went to the window. A red flowerpot sat there, and a blue one, and a green one, and a yellow one. They stood in the same order as his buttons!

Leo lifted the yellow pot. Under it lay a small key. He ran to the old wooden box on the shelf. The key turned with a click.

Inside the box was a note that said, "Good job, detective!" Under it sat a bag of seeds. Aunt Bea had meant for him to plant a garden.

■ Harder · 159 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3

Aunt Bea gave Leo a jar full of buttons, and on top lay a folded note. It read: "To find the treasure, line up the buttons. Red, blue, green, yellow. Then look for the place where they are all the same."

Leo arranged the four buttons in a neat row on the table. They looked lovely, but nothing happened.

"Where would the colors all be together?" he wondered aloud.

He wandered over to the window. There sat a red flowerpot, then a blue one, then a green one, and finally a yellow one. They stood in exactly the same order as his buttons!

Leo lifted the yellow pot, and underneath it lay a small key. He raced to the old wooden box on the shelf. The key turned with a click.

Inside the box was a note that read, "Good job, detective!" Beneath it sat a bag of seeds. Aunt Bea had meant for him to plant a garden.

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 buttons, treasure, order and flowerpots 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 Jar of Buttons and the Color Code"?

It was written for 2nd grade. It has 147 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 1.6. 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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