2nd grade fiction passage about a number puzzle in a hallway: 135 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
2nd gradefictiona number puzzle in a hallway135 words
The Missing Number on Door Twelve
Ravi's new building had a long hallway with many doors. Each door had a brass number. There was door ten and door eleven. Then came a door with no number at all.
"That is strange," said Ravi. "It should be door twelve."
Ravi looked at the empty spot. He saw four tiny screw holes and a pale mark on the paint. Someone had taken the number off.
Next, he looked at the next door. It said thirteen. So the plain door really was twelve.
Ravi knocked. A woman named Mrs. Okafor opened it. She held a shiny brass number in her hand.
"I was cleaning it," she said. "It was so dull!"
Ravi helped her screw the number back on. Now the hall counted all the way up, and Ravi felt like a real detective.
Questions
What was missing from the door? in the text
What did Ravi see on the empty spot? in the text
How did Ravi know the plain door was number twelve? think about it
Who had the number? in the text
Why did Mrs. Okafor take the number off? in the text
Words to know
hallway
a long space with doors along the sides
brass
a shiny yellow metal
detective
a person who finds clues to solve a mystery
dull
not shiny
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
The Missing Number on Door Twelve
2nd grade reading passage
Ravi's new building had a long hallway with many doors. Each door had a brass number. There was door ten and door eleven. Then came a door with no number at all.
"That is strange," said Ravi. "It should be door twelve."
Ravi looked at the empty spot. He saw four tiny screw holes and a pale mark on the paint. Someone had taken the number off.
Next, he looked at the next door. It said thirteen. So the plain door really was twelve.
Ravi knocked. A woman named Mrs. Okafor opened it. She held a shiny brass number in her hand.
"I was cleaning it," she said. "It was so dull!"
Ravi helped her screw the number back on. Now the hall counted all the way up, and Ravi felt like a real detective.
Questions
What was missing from the door?
What did Ravi see on the empty spot?
How did Ravi know the plain door was number twelve?
Who had the number?
Why did Mrs. Okafor take the number off?
Words to know
hallway: a long space with doors along the sides
brass: a shiny yellow metal
detective: a person who finds clues to solve a mystery
dull: not shiny
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/2/the-missing-number-on-door-twelve
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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 · 119 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.3
Ravi's new building had a long hall with many doors. Each door had a brass number. There was door ten and door eleven. Then came a door with no number.
"That is odd," said Ravi. "It should be door twelve."
He looked at the bare spot. He saw four tiny screw holes and a pale mark. Someone had taken the number off.
He looked at the next door. It said thirteen. So the plain door was twelve.
Ravi knocked. Mrs. Okafor opened it. She had a shiny brass number in her hand.
"I was cleaning it," she said. "It was so dull!"
Ravi helped her put it back. Now the hall counted up. Ravi felt like a real detective.
▲ This passage · 135 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2
Ravi's new building had a long hallway with many doors. Each door had a brass number. There was door ten and door eleven. Then came a door with no number at all.
"That is strange," said Ravi. "It should be door twelve."
Ravi looked at the empty spot. He saw four tiny screw holes and a pale mark on the paint. Someone had taken the number off.
Next, he looked at the next door. It said thirteen. So the plain door really was twelve.
Ravi knocked. A woman named Mrs. Okafor opened it. She held a shiny brass number in her hand.
"I was cleaning it," she said. "It was so dull!"
Ravi helped her screw the number back on. Now the hall counted all the way up, and Ravi felt like a real detective.
■ Harder · 143 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.8
Ravi's new apartment building had a long hallway lined with many doors, and each door displayed a brass number. There was door ten and then door eleven. After that came a door with no number at all.
"That is peculiar," said Ravi. "It ought to be door twelve."
He studied the empty spot carefully. He noticed four tiny screw holes and a pale mark on the paint. Someone had removed the number.
Next, he checked the following door. It said thirteen. That meant the plain door really was twelve.
Ravi knocked, and a woman named Mrs. Okafor opened it. She was holding a shiny brass number in her hand.
"I was cleaning it," she explained. "It had become so dull!"
Ravi helped her screw the number back on. Now the hallway counted all the way up, and Ravi felt like a genuine detective.
Ravi's new building had a long hall with many doors. Each door had a brass number. There was door ten and door eleven. Then came a door with no number.
"That is odd," said Ravi. "It should be door twelve."
He looked at the bare spot. He saw four tiny screw holes and a pale mark. Someone had taken the number off.
He looked at the next door. It said thirteen. So the plain door was twelve.
Ravi knocked. Mrs. Okafor opened it. She had a shiny brass number in her hand.
"I was cleaning it," she said. "It was so dull!"
Ravi helped her put it back. Now the hall counted up. Ravi felt like a real detective.
Questions
What was missing from the door?
What did Ravi see on the bare spot?
How did Ravi know the plain door was twelve?
Who had the number?
Why did Mrs. Okafor take the number off?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
The Missing Number on Door Twelve
Ravi's new building had a long hallway with many doors. Each door had a brass number. There was door ten and door eleven. Then came a door with no number at all.
"That is strange," said Ravi. "It should be door twelve."
Ravi looked at the empty spot. He saw four tiny screw holes and a pale mark on the paint. Someone had taken the number off.
Next, he looked at the next door. It said thirteen. So the plain door really was twelve.
Ravi knocked. A woman named Mrs. Okafor opened it. She held a shiny brass number in her hand.
"I was cleaning it," she said. "It was so dull!"
Ravi helped her screw the number back on. Now the hall counted all the way up, and Ravi felt like a real detective.
Questions
What was missing from the door?
What did Ravi see on the empty spot?
How did Ravi know the plain door was number twelve?
Who had the number?
Why did Mrs. Okafor take the number off?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
The Missing Number on Door Twelve
Ravi's new apartment building had a long hallway lined with many doors, and each door displayed a brass number. There was door ten and then door eleven. After that came a door with no number at all.
"That is peculiar," said Ravi. "It ought to be door twelve."
He studied the empty spot carefully. He noticed four tiny screw holes and a pale mark on the paint. Someone had removed the number.
Next, he checked the following door. It said thirteen. That meant the plain door really was twelve.
Ravi knocked, and a woman named Mrs. Okafor opened it. She was holding a shiny brass number in her hand.
"I was cleaning it," she explained. "It had become so dull!"
Ravi helped her screw the number back on. Now the hallway counted all the way up, and Ravi felt like a genuine detective.
Questions
What was missing from the door?
What did Ravi notice on the empty spot?
How did Ravi work out that the plain door was number twelve?
Who was holding the number?
Why had Mrs. Okafor taken the number off the door?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: The Missing Number on Door Twelve
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.3)
The brass number.
Four tiny screw holes and a pale mark.
The next door said thirteen, and the one before it said eleven.
Mrs. Okafor.
She wanted to clean it because it was dull.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 2)
The brass number.
Four tiny screw holes and a pale mark on the paint.
The next door said thirteen, and the one before it said eleven.
Mrs. Okafor.
She wanted to clean it because it was dull.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.8)
The brass number.
Four tiny screw holes and a pale mark on the paint.
The next door said thirteen, and the one before it said eleven.
Mrs. Okafor.
She wanted to clean it because it had become dull.
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 hallway, brass, detective and dull 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 3 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 Missing Number on Door Twelve"?
It was written for 2nd grade. It has 135 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 1.9. 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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