2nd grade nonfiction passage about a giant salt flat in bolivia: 124 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
2nd gradenonfictiona giant salt flat in bolivia124 words
The Salt Flat That Turns Into a Mirror
In the country of Bolivia, there is a huge, flat place covered with salt. It is called Salar de Uyuni. The salt is white and hard, and it spreads out as far as you can see.
Most of the year, this place is dry. You can walk on the white crust. People even gather some of the salt to use in food.
Then the rainy season comes. A thin sheet of water settles on top of the salt. The water is only a little deep, and it is very still. Now the ground works like a mirror!
The clouds and the blue sky show up in the water. A visitor can stand in the middle and feel like she is walking in the sky.
Questions
In which country is Salar de Uyuni? in the text
What covers the ground in this flat place? in the text
What do people gather from the dry crust? in the text
What does the water show when it is still? in the text
Why does a visitor feel like she is walking in the sky? think about it
Words to know
salt
a white seasoning that comes from the ground or the sea
crust
a hard layer on top of something
still
not moving at all
mirror
a smooth glass that shows what is in front of it
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
The Salt Flat That Turns Into a Mirror
2nd grade reading passage
In the country of Bolivia, there is a huge, flat place covered with salt. It is called Salar de Uyuni. The salt is white and hard, and it spreads out as far as you can see.
Most of the year, this place is dry. You can walk on the white crust. People even gather some of the salt to use in food.
Then the rainy season comes. A thin sheet of water settles on top of the salt. The water is only a little deep, and it is very still. Now the ground works like a mirror!
The clouds and the blue sky show up in the water. A visitor can stand in the middle and feel like she is walking in the sky.
Questions
In which country is Salar de Uyuni?
What covers the ground in this flat place?
What do people gather from the dry crust?
What does the water show when it is still?
Why does a visitor feel like she is walking in the sky?
Words to know
salt: a white seasoning that comes from the ground or the sea
crust: a hard layer on top of something
still: not moving at all
mirror: a smooth glass that shows what is in front of it
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/2/the-salt-flat-that-turns-into-a-mirror
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 · 90 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1
In Bolivia, there is a big, flat place. It is covered with salt. The salt is white and hard. It goes on and on.
Most of the year, it is dry. People can walk on it. They gather some salt to put in food.
Then the rainy season comes. A thin sheet of water sits on the salt. The water is still. Now the ground is like a mirror!
You can see clouds and the blue sky in the water. A visitor feels like she is walking in the sky.
▲ This passage · 124 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.6
In the country of Bolivia, there is a huge, flat place covered with salt. It is called Salar de Uyuni. The salt is white and hard, and it spreads out as far as you can see.
Most of the year, this place is dry. You can walk on the white crust. People even gather some of the salt to use in food.
Then the rainy season comes. A thin sheet of water settles on top of the salt. The water is only a little deep, and it is very still. Now the ground works like a mirror!
The clouds and the blue sky show up in the water. A visitor can stand in the middle and feel like she is walking in the sky.
■ Harder · 136 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 6.8
In the South American country of Bolivia, there is an enormous, flat expanse covered with salt. It is named Salar de Uyuni. The salt is white and hard, and it stretches out in every direction as far as the eye can see.
During most of the year, this region is dry, and people can walk across the white crust. Workers even gather some of the salt so that it can be used in food.
When the rainy season arrives, a thin sheet of water settles on top of the salt. Because the water is only a little deep and perfectly still, the ground begins to act like a mirror.
The clouds and the blue sky appear in the water, and a visitor standing in the middle can feel as though she is walking in the sky.
In Bolivia, there is a big, flat place. It is covered with salt. The salt is white and hard. It goes on and on.
Most of the year, it is dry. People can walk on it. They gather some salt to put in food.
Then the rainy season comes. A thin sheet of water sits on the salt. The water is still. Now the ground is like a mirror!
You can see clouds and the blue sky in the water. A visitor feels like she is walking in the sky.
Questions
In which country is this salt place?
What covers the ground?
What do people gather and put in food?
What do you see in the still water?
Why does a visitor feel like she is walking in the sky?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
The Salt Flat That Turns Into a Mirror
In the country of Bolivia, there is a huge, flat place covered with salt. It is called Salar de Uyuni. The salt is white and hard, and it spreads out as far as you can see.
Most of the year, this place is dry. You can walk on the white crust. People even gather some of the salt to use in food.
Then the rainy season comes. A thin sheet of water settles on top of the salt. The water is only a little deep, and it is very still. Now the ground works like a mirror!
The clouds and the blue sky show up in the water. A visitor can stand in the middle and feel like she is walking in the sky.
Questions
In which country is Salar de Uyuni?
What covers the ground in this flat place?
What do people gather from the dry crust?
What does the water show when it is still?
Why does a visitor feel like she is walking in the sky?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
The Salt Flat That Turns Into a Mirror
In the South American country of Bolivia, there is an enormous, flat expanse covered with salt. It is named Salar de Uyuni. The salt is white and hard, and it stretches out in every direction as far as the eye can see.
During most of the year, this region is dry, and people can walk across the white crust. Workers even gather some of the salt so that it can be used in food.
When the rainy season arrives, a thin sheet of water settles on top of the salt. Because the water is only a little deep and perfectly still, the ground begins to act like a mirror.
The clouds and the blue sky appear in the water, and a visitor standing in the middle can feel as though she is walking in the sky.
Questions
In which country is Salar de Uyuni found?
What covers the enormous, flat expanse?
What do workers gather from the dry crust?
What appears in the water when it is perfectly still?
Why might a visitor feel as though she is walking in the sky?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: The Salt Flat That Turns Into a Mirror
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade 1)
Bolivia.
Salt.
Some of the salt.
The clouds and the blue sky.
The water shows the sky, so the sky seems to be on the ground.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.6)
Bolivia.
Salt.
Some of the salt, to use in food.
The clouds and the blue sky.
The still water reflects the sky, so the sky seems to be on the ground too.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 6.8)
Bolivia.
Salt.
Some of the salt, so it can be used in food.
The clouds and the blue sky.
The still water reflects the sky, so the sky seems to appear on the ground as well.
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 salt, crust, still and mirror 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 Salt Flat That Turns Into a Mirror"?
It was written for 2nd grade. It has 124 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 2.6. 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.
Nothing you do here is sent to us. No sign-in, no ads.