3rd grade nonfiction passage about where chocolate comes from: 146 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
3rd gradenonfictionwhere chocolate comes from146 words
Chocolate Begins in a Pod on a Trunk
Chocolate does not start on a store shelf. It starts on a tree. The cacao tree grows in warm, rainy places near the equator. The equator is an invisible line around the middle of Earth. The pods of the cacao tree grow right out of the trunk and thick branches. A ripe pod looks a bit like a small football. It can be yellow, orange, or red.
Workers use a tool to cut the pods down. They open each pod. Inside are seeds, called cacao beans, wrapped in white, sweet pulp. The beans are not sweet or chocolatey yet. They taste bitter.
The beans are piled up and left to sit for a few days. Then they are dried in the sun. Factories roast them and grind them into a thick paste. Sugar and milk are mixed in to make the sweet chocolate that we know.
Questions
Where do the pods grow on a cacao tree? in the text
What are the seeds inside a pod called? in the text
Do the beans taste sweet when they come out of the pod? in the text
What happens to the beans after they sit for a few days? in the text
What do factories do with the beans? in the text
Why do makers mix sugar and milk into the paste? think about it
Words to know
cacao
the tree whose seeds are used to make chocolate
pod
a case that holds seeds
equator
an invisible line around the middle of Earth
pulp
the soft, wet part inside a fruit
roast
to cook with dry heat until brown
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
Chocolate Begins in a Pod on a Trunk
3rd grade reading passage
Chocolate does not start on a store shelf. It starts on a tree. The cacao tree grows in warm, rainy places near the equator. The equator is an invisible line around the middle of Earth. The pods of the cacao tree grow right out of the trunk and thick branches. A ripe pod looks a bit like a small football. It can be yellow, orange, or red.
Workers use a tool to cut the pods down. They open each pod. Inside are seeds, called cacao beans, wrapped in white, sweet pulp. The beans are not sweet or chocolatey yet. They taste bitter.
The beans are piled up and left to sit for a few days. Then they are dried in the sun. Factories roast them and grind them into a thick paste. Sugar and milk are mixed in to make the sweet chocolate that we know.
Questions
Where do the pods grow on a cacao tree?
What are the seeds inside a pod called?
Do the beans taste sweet when they come out of the pod?
What happens to the beans after they sit for a few days?
What do factories do with the beans?
Why do makers mix sugar and milk into the paste?
Words to know
cacao: the tree whose seeds are used to make chocolate
pod: a case that holds seeds
equator: an invisible line around the middle of Earth
pulp: the soft, wet part inside a fruit
roast: to cook with dry heat until brown
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/3/chocolate-begins-in-a-pod-on-a-trunk
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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 · 118 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.9
Chocolate starts on a tree. The cacao tree grows in warm, rainy places near the equator. The equator is a line around the middle of Earth. You cannot see it. The pods grow right out of the trunk and branches. A ripe pod looks like a small football. It can be yellow, orange, or red.
Workers cut the pods down and open them. Inside are seeds called cacao beans. They are in white, sweet pulp. The beans are not sweet yet. They taste bitter.
The beans sit for a few days. Then they dry in the sun. A factory roasts the beans and grinds them into a paste. Sugar and milk are added. Now it is sweet chocolate.
▲ This passage · 146 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.6
Chocolate does not start on a store shelf. It starts on a tree. The cacao tree grows in warm, rainy places near the equator. The equator is an invisible line around the middle of Earth. The pods of the cacao tree grow right out of the trunk and thick branches. A ripe pod looks a bit like a small football. It can be yellow, orange, or red.
Workers use a tool to cut the pods down. They open each pod. Inside are seeds, called cacao beans, wrapped in white, sweet pulp. The beans are not sweet or chocolatey yet. They taste bitter.
The beans are piled up and left to sit for a few days. Then they are dried in the sun. Factories roast them and grind them into a thick paste. Sugar and milk are mixed in to make the sweet chocolate that we know.
■ Harder · 148 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 6.1
Chocolate does not begin on a store shelf but on a tree. The cacao tree flourishes in warm, rainy regions near the equator, an invisible line that circles the middle of Earth. Its pods grow directly out of the trunk and the thick branches, and a ripe pod, which resembles a small football, may be yellow, orange, or red.
Workers use a tool to cut the pods down and then open each one. Inside are seeds, known as cacao beans, wrapped in white, sweet pulp. At this stage the beans are neither sweet nor chocolatey, and they taste quite bitter.
The beans are piled up and left to sit for a few days, and afterward they are dried in the sun. Factories then roast the beans and grind them into a thick paste. Finally, sugar and milk are mixed in to create the sweet chocolate that we know.
Chocolate starts on a tree. The cacao tree grows in warm, rainy places near the equator. The equator is a line around the middle of Earth. You cannot see it. The pods grow right out of the trunk and branches. A ripe pod looks like a small football. It can be yellow, orange, or red.
Workers cut the pods down and open them. Inside are seeds called cacao beans. They are in white, sweet pulp. The beans are not sweet yet. They taste bitter.
The beans sit for a few days. Then they dry in the sun. A factory roasts the beans and grinds them into a paste. Sugar and milk are added. Now it is sweet chocolate.
Questions
Where do the pods grow on a cacao tree?
What are the seeds inside the pod called?
Are the beans sweet when they come out of the pod?
What happens to the beans after they sit?
What does a factory do with the beans?
Why are sugar and milk added to the paste?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
Chocolate Begins in a Pod on a Trunk
Chocolate does not start on a store shelf. It starts on a tree. The cacao tree grows in warm, rainy places near the equator. The equator is an invisible line around the middle of Earth. The pods of the cacao tree grow right out of the trunk and thick branches. A ripe pod looks a bit like a small football. It can be yellow, orange, or red.
Workers use a tool to cut the pods down. They open each pod. Inside are seeds, called cacao beans, wrapped in white, sweet pulp. The beans are not sweet or chocolatey yet. They taste bitter.
The beans are piled up and left to sit for a few days. Then they are dried in the sun. Factories roast them and grind them into a thick paste. Sugar and milk are mixed in to make the sweet chocolate that we know.
Questions
Where do the pods grow on a cacao tree?
What are the seeds inside a pod called?
Do the beans taste sweet when they come out of the pod?
What happens to the beans after they sit for a few days?
What do factories do with the beans?
Why do makers mix sugar and milk into the paste?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
Chocolate Begins in a Pod on a Trunk
Chocolate does not begin on a store shelf but on a tree. The cacao tree flourishes in warm, rainy regions near the equator, an invisible line that circles the middle of Earth. Its pods grow directly out of the trunk and the thick branches, and a ripe pod, which resembles a small football, may be yellow, orange, or red.
Workers use a tool to cut the pods down and then open each one. Inside are seeds, known as cacao beans, wrapped in white, sweet pulp. At this stage the beans are neither sweet nor chocolatey, and they taste quite bitter.
The beans are piled up and left to sit for a few days, and afterward they are dried in the sun. Factories then roast the beans and grind them into a thick paste. Finally, sugar and milk are mixed in to create the sweet chocolate that we know.
Questions
Where on the cacao tree do the pods grow?
What are the seeds inside a pod called?
How do the beans taste when they are first taken out of the pod?
What is done to the beans after they have sat for a few days?
What do factories do to the beans before adding other ingredients?
Why do chocolate makers add sugar and milk to the paste?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: Chocolate Begins in a Pod on a Trunk
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.9)
Right out of the trunk and branches.
Cacao beans.
No, they taste bitter.
They dry in the sun.
It roasts them and grinds them into a paste.
The beans are bitter, so they make the chocolate sweet.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.6)
Right out of the trunk and thick branches.
Cacao beans.
No, they taste bitter.
They are dried in the sun.
They roast them and grind them into a thick paste.
The beans are bitter, so sugar and milk make the chocolate sweet.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 6.1)
Directly out of the trunk and the thick branches.
Cacao beans.
They taste quite bitter, not sweet.
They are dried in the sun.
They roast them and grind them into a thick paste.
The beans are bitter, so the sugar and milk make the chocolate sweet.
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 cacao, pod, equator, pulp and roast 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 6 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 "Chocolate Begins in a Pod on a Trunk"?
It was written for 3rd grade. It has 146 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 six. 5 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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