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The Note That Only Read in a Mirror

3rd grade fiction passage about mirror writing: 175 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

3rd grade fiction mirror writing 175 words

The Note That Only Read in a Mirror

In the school lost and found box, Kenji found a folded note. The words on it looked all wrong. Some letters faced the wrong way, and the sentence seemed to run backward.

"It's a secret code," whispered his friend Bea.

Kenji turned the paper upside down. Then he held it up to the window. The words still made no sense. "Maybe it's in another language," he said.

Bea had a better idea. She pulled a small mirror from her backpack and held it next to the note. In the mirror, the letters turned around, and the whole message popped into view. "Meet me by the big slide at recess. I have lost my red scarf."

"Somebody is writing to a friend, not to us," said Kenji. "But the scarf is right here in the box!"

They tied the red scarf to the slide's rail and waited. At recess, a girl named Uma ran up. She had been writing backward for fun, and she thanked them both with a smile that nearly lit up the playground.

Questions

  1. Where did Kenji find the note? in the text

  2. What did Bea take out of her backpack? in the text

  3. What did the message say the writer had lost? in the text

  4. Where did they tie the scarf? in the text

  5. Why did the words look wrong at first? think about it

  6. Why do you think Kenji and Bea tied the scarf to the slide? think about it

Words to know

mirror
a smooth glass that shows your reflection
backward
turned toward the back, or in the wrong order
recess
a break from lessons for play at school
scarf
a long piece of cloth worn around the neck
code
a secret way of writing a message
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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 · 142 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.3

In the school lost and found box, Kenji found a note. The words looked wrong. Some letters faced the wrong way. The words ran backward.

"It is a secret code," whispered his friend Bea.

Kenji turned the paper upside down. Then he held it to the window. It still made no sense. "Maybe it is in another language," he said.

Bea had a better idea. She took a small mirror from her backpack and held it by the note. In the mirror, the letters turned around. The message popped out. "Meet me by the big slide at recess. I lost my red scarf."

"The scarf is in this box!" said Kenji.

They tied the red scarf to the slide and waited. At recess, a girl named Uma ran up. She had written backward for fun. She thanked them with a big smile.

▲ This passage · 175 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.6

In the school lost and found box, Kenji found a folded note. The words on it looked all wrong. Some letters faced the wrong way, and the sentence seemed to run backward.

"It's a secret code," whispered his friend Bea.

Kenji turned the paper upside down. Then he held it up to the window. The words still made no sense. "Maybe it's in another language," he said.

Bea had a better idea. She pulled a small mirror from her backpack and held it next to the note. In the mirror, the letters turned around, and the whole message popped into view. "Meet me by the big slide at recess. I have lost my red scarf."

"Somebody is writing to a friend, not to us," said Kenji. "But the scarf is right here in the box!"

They tied the red scarf to the slide's rail and waited. At recess, a girl named Uma ran up. She had been writing backward for fun, and she thanked them both with a smile that nearly lit up the playground.

■ Harder · 183 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 5

In the school's lost and found box, Kenji discovered a folded note whose words looked entirely wrong. Several letters faced the wrong direction, and the whole sentence seemed to run backward across the page.

"It's a secret code," whispered his friend Bea.

Kenji turned the paper upside down and then held it up to the window, but the words still made no sense. "Maybe it's written in another language," he suggested.

Bea had a better idea. She pulled a small mirror from her backpack and held it beside the note. In the mirror, the letters flipped around, and the entire message popped into view: "Meet me by the big slide at recess. I have lost my red scarf."

"Somebody is writing to a friend, not to us," Kenji observed. "But the scarf is sitting right here in this box!"

They tied the red scarf to the rail of the slide and waited. At recess, a girl named Uma came running over. She had been writing backward just for fun, and she thanked them both with a smile that nearly lit up the playground.

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 mirror, backward, recess, scarf and code 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 2 minutes 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 Note That Only Read in a Mirror"?

It was written for 3rd grade. It has 175 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. 4 ask for something the text says directly and 2 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 2 minutes 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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