2nd grade nonfiction passage about the kneecap: 122 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
2nd gradenonfictionthe kneecap122 words
The Little Shield on Your Knee
Bend your leg and touch the front of your knee. You will feel a round, hard bump. That is your kneecap.
A kneecap is a small bone. It sits in front of the knee joint like a shield. The knee is the place where your leg bends. Inside it, the big leg bones meet. They need protection when you crawl, kneel, or take a tumble.
The kneecap does more than guard the joint. Strong cords called tendons connect to it. When your leg muscles pull, the kneecap helps your leg straighten. That is how you kick a ball or climb a stair.
A baby has a soft kneecap that is not yet all bone. As the child grows, it slowly gets hard.
Questions
Where is your kneecap? in the text
What is a kneecap? in the text
What do tendons do? in the text
What is a baby's kneecap like? in the text
Why might a skater wear knee pads? think about it
Words to know
kneecap
the small round bone at the front of your knee
joint
a place where two bones meet and can bend
shield
something that keeps you safe from harm
tendons
strong cords that join muscles to bones
kneel
rest on your knees
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
The Little Shield on Your Knee
2nd grade reading passage
Bend your leg and touch the front of your knee. You will feel a round, hard bump. That is your kneecap.
A kneecap is a small bone. It sits in front of the knee joint like a shield. The knee is the place where your leg bends. Inside it, the big leg bones meet. They need protection when you crawl, kneel, or take a tumble.
The kneecap does more than guard the joint. Strong cords called tendons connect to it. When your leg muscles pull, the kneecap helps your leg straighten. That is how you kick a ball or climb a stair.
A baby has a soft kneecap that is not yet all bone. As the child grows, it slowly gets hard.
Questions
Where is your kneecap?
What is a kneecap?
What do tendons do?
What is a baby's kneecap like?
Why might a skater wear knee pads?
Words to know
kneecap: the small round bone at the front of your knee
joint: a place where two bones meet and can bend
shield: something that keeps you safe from harm
tendons: strong cords that join muscles to bones
kneel: rest on your knees
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/2/the-little-shield-on-your-knee
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 · 98 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.2
Bend your leg. Touch the front of your knee. You will feel a hard, round bump. It is your kneecap.
A kneecap is a small bone. It sits in front of the knee joint like a shield. Your knee is where your leg bends. Big leg bones meet inside it. They need to be safe when you crawl or fall.
The kneecap has another job. Strong cords called tendons join to it. Your leg muscles pull. Your leg gets straight. You can kick a ball.
A baby has a soft kneecap. It turns hard as the child grows.
▲ This passage · 122 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.2
Bend your leg and touch the front of your knee. You will feel a round, hard bump. That is your kneecap.
A kneecap is a small bone. It sits in front of the knee joint like a shield. The knee is the place where your leg bends. Inside it, the big leg bones meet. They need protection when you crawl, kneel, or take a tumble.
The kneecap does more than guard the joint. Strong cords called tendons connect to it. When your leg muscles pull, the kneecap helps your leg straighten. That is how you kick a ball or climb a stair.
A baby has a soft kneecap that is not yet all bone. As the child grows, it slowly gets hard.
■ Harder · 140 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.6
Bend your leg and gently touch the front of your knee. You will feel a round, hard bump, and that bump is your kneecap.
The kneecap is a small bone that sits in front of the knee joint, much like a shield. The knee is the place where your leg bends, and inside it the large leg bones come together. Those bones need protection whenever you crawl, kneel, or take an unexpected tumble.
However, the kneecap does far more than guard the joint. Strong cords called tendons are connected to it, and when your leg muscles pull, the kneecap helps your leg straighten. That is how you are able to kick a ball or climb a flight of stairs.
A baby has a soft kneecap that is not yet completely bone. As the child grows older, it gradually becomes hard.
Bend your leg. Touch the front of your knee. You will feel a hard, round bump. It is your kneecap.
A kneecap is a small bone. It sits in front of the knee joint like a shield. Your knee is where your leg bends. Big leg bones meet inside it. They need to be safe when you crawl or fall.
The kneecap has another job. Strong cords called tendons join to it. Your leg muscles pull. Your leg gets straight. You can kick a ball.
A baby has a soft kneecap. It turns hard as the child grows.
Questions
Where is your kneecap?
What is a kneecap?
What do tendons do?
What is a baby's kneecap like?
Why might a skater wear knee pads?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
The Little Shield on Your Knee
Bend your leg and touch the front of your knee. You will feel a round, hard bump. That is your kneecap.
A kneecap is a small bone. It sits in front of the knee joint like a shield. The knee is the place where your leg bends. Inside it, the big leg bones meet. They need protection when you crawl, kneel, or take a tumble.
The kneecap does more than guard the joint. Strong cords called tendons connect to it. When your leg muscles pull, the kneecap helps your leg straighten. That is how you kick a ball or climb a stair.
A baby has a soft kneecap that is not yet all bone. As the child grows, it slowly gets hard.
Questions
Where is your kneecap?
What is a kneecap?
What do tendons do?
What is a baby's kneecap like?
Why might a skater wear knee pads?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
The Little Shield on Your Knee
Bend your leg and gently touch the front of your knee. You will feel a round, hard bump, and that bump is your kneecap.
The kneecap is a small bone that sits in front of the knee joint, much like a shield. The knee is the place where your leg bends, and inside it the large leg bones come together. Those bones need protection whenever you crawl, kneel, or take an unexpected tumble.
However, the kneecap does far more than guard the joint. Strong cords called tendons are connected to it, and when your leg muscles pull, the kneecap helps your leg straighten. That is how you are able to kick a ball or climb a flight of stairs.
A baby has a soft kneecap that is not yet completely bone. As the child grows older, it gradually becomes hard.
Questions
Where can you feel your kneecap?
What is a kneecap, and where does it sit?
What happens when your leg muscles pull on the tendons?
How is a baby's kneecap different from an older child's?
Why might a skater wear knee pads?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: The Little Shield on Your Knee
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.2)
At the front of your knee.
A small bone like a shield in front of the knee joint.
They join to the kneecap so your leg muscles can pull and make your leg straight.
It is soft.
Falls can hurt the knee, and pads help keep it safe.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.2)
At the front of your knee.
A small bone that sits in front of the knee joint.
They connect to the kneecap so your leg muscles can pull and straighten your leg.
It is soft and not all bone yet.
Falls can bump the knee, and pads add more protection.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.6)
At the front of your knee.
A small bone that sits in front of the knee joint like a shield.
The kneecap helps your leg straighten.
It is soft and not yet completely bone.
Falls can bump the knee, and pads add extra protection.
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 kneecap, joint, shield, tendons and kneel 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.
What reading level is "The Little Shield on Your Knee"?
It was written for 2nd grade. It has 122 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 1.2. 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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