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The Seventh Plank on the Ferry Dock

3rd grade fiction passage about a clue hidden on a dock: 170 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

3rd grade fiction a clue hidden on a dock 170 words

The Seventh Plank on the Ferry Dock

Every summer, the old ferry dock had a game. The dockmaster, Ms. Alba, left a clue on a card by the ticket booth. This year, the card read, "Count from the red lantern. The seventh plank is not what it seems."

Pia and her brother Leo walked to the red lantern at the end of the dock. They counted the planks aloud, one by one, all the way up to seven.

The seventh plank looked just like the others. Pia knelt down and pressed on it. Nothing. Leo pushed on one end, and the other end tipped up like a seesaw.

Under the plank was a dry tin box. Inside it sat a small pair of binoculars and a note. The note said, "For the first sharp eyes to find me. Use them to count the boats."

Pia and Leo took turns looking across the water. They counted nine sailboats and one slow green barge. Then they wrote their names in the little notebook at the bottom of the tin.

Questions

  1. Who left the clue by the ticket booth? in the text

  2. Where did Pia and Leo start counting planks? in the text

  3. What was inside the tin box? in the text

  4. How many sailboats did the children count? in the text

  5. How did Leo find out the plank was special? think about it

  6. Why do you think the note asked for sharp eyes? think about it

Words to know

dockmaster
the person in charge of a dock
plank
a long, flat piece of wood
lantern
a light you can carry or hang up
binoculars
tubes with lenses that make far things look close
barge
a flat boat that carries heavy loads
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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 · 127 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.5

Every summer, the old ferry dock had a game. Ms. Alba, the dockmaster, left a clue on a card. This year it said, "Count from the red lantern. The seventh plank is not what it seems."

Pia and her brother Leo went to the red lantern. They counted the planks one by one, up to seven.

The seventh plank looked like the rest. Pia pressed on it. Nothing. Leo pushed one end. The other end tipped up!

Under it was a dry tin box. Inside were binoculars and a note. It said, "For the first sharp eyes to find me. Count the boats."

The children took turns looking. They counted nine sailboats and one green barge. Then they wrote their names in the notebook in the tin.

▲ This passage · 170 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.5

Every summer, the old ferry dock had a game. The dockmaster, Ms. Alba, left a clue on a card by the ticket booth. This year, the card read, "Count from the red lantern. The seventh plank is not what it seems."

Pia and her brother Leo walked to the red lantern at the end of the dock. They counted the planks aloud, one by one, all the way up to seven.

The seventh plank looked just like the others. Pia knelt down and pressed on it. Nothing. Leo pushed on one end, and the other end tipped up like a seesaw.

Under the plank was a dry tin box. Inside it sat a small pair of binoculars and a note. The note said, "For the first sharp eyes to find me. Use them to count the boats."

Pia and Leo took turns looking across the water. They counted nine sailboats and one slow green barge. Then they wrote their names in the little notebook at the bottom of the tin.

■ Harder · 178 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.4

Every summer, the old ferry dock hosted a game of its own. The dockmaster, Ms. Alba, would leave a clue on a card beside the ticket booth. This year, the card read, "Count from the red lantern. The seventh plank is not what it seems."

Pia and her younger brother Leo strolled to the red lantern at the far end of the dock and counted the planks aloud, one by one, all the way up to seven.

The seventh plank appeared identical to all the others. Pia knelt and pressed down on it, but nothing happened. Then Leo pushed on one end, and the opposite end tipped upward like a seesaw.

Beneath the plank was a dry tin box. Inside it were a small pair of binoculars and a note: "For the first sharp eyes to find me. Use them to count the boats."

The children took turns peering across the shimmering water. They counted nine sailboats and one slow green barge. Afterward, they signed their names in the little notebook tucked at the bottom of the tin.

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 dockmaster, plank, lantern, binoculars and barge 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 Seventh Plank on the Ferry Dock"?

It was written for 3rd grade. It has 170 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 2.5. 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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