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Frozen Ground That Never Thaws

4th grade nonfiction passage about permafrost in cold lands: 183 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

4th grade nonfiction permafrost in cold lands 183 words

Frozen Ground That Never Thaws

In very cold parts of the world, the ground itself can stay frozen year after year. Scientists call this frozen ground permafrost. It is made of soil, sand and rock held together by ice.

Even where there is permafrost, the top layer of ground usually thaws in summer. Mud forms, and small plants have a chance to grow. Their roots stay shallow, because they cannot dig down into the ice below.

Permafrost causes a puzzle for builders. A warm house can heat the ground under it. If the frozen soil melts, the ground turns soft and the house may sink or tilt. To prevent this, people often build on posts that lift the floor above the ground. Cold air can move underneath and keep the soil frozen. Pipes may also be raised on stands for the same reason.

Permafrost is also like a freezer. It has kept old plants and animal remains in good shape for a very long time, and scientists study them to learn about the past.

Because permafrost matters to so many things, researchers keep a close watch on it.

Questions

  1. What is permafrost? in the text

  2. What happens to the top layer of ground in summer? in the text

  3. Why do plants there have shallow roots? in the text

  4. How do builders keep a house from warming the frozen ground? in the text

  5. What could happen to a house if the frozen soil under it melts? think about it

  6. Why do scientists study old plants and animal remains in permafrost? think about it

Words to know

permafrost
ground that stays frozen all year long
thaws
melts after being frozen
shallow
not deep
researchers
people who study something to learn new things
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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 · 156 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.6

In very cold parts of the world, the ground can stay frozen year after year. Scientists call it permafrost. It is soil, sand and rock held together by ice.

Where there is permafrost, the top layer of ground usually thaws in summer. Mud forms. Small plants can grow. Their roots stay shallow. They cannot dig into the ice below.

Permafrost is a puzzle for builders. A warm house can heat the ground under it. If the frozen soil melts, the ground turns soft. The house may sink or tilt. So people often build on posts. The floor is high above the ground. Cold air moves under the house and keeps the soil frozen. Pipes may be raised on stands too.

Permafrost is also like a freezer. It has kept old plants and animal remains in good shape for a long time. Scientists study them to learn about the past.

Researchers keep a close watch on permafrost.

▲ This passage · 183 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.6

In very cold parts of the world, the ground itself can stay frozen year after year. Scientists call this frozen ground permafrost. It is made of soil, sand and rock held together by ice.

Even where there is permafrost, the top layer of ground usually thaws in summer. Mud forms, and small plants have a chance to grow. Their roots stay shallow, because they cannot dig down into the ice below.

Permafrost causes a puzzle for builders. A warm house can heat the ground under it. If the frozen soil melts, the ground turns soft and the house may sink or tilt. To prevent this, people often build on posts that lift the floor above the ground. Cold air can move underneath and keep the soil frozen. Pipes may also be raised on stands for the same reason.

Permafrost is also like a freezer. It has kept old plants and animal remains in good shape for a very long time, and scientists study them to learn about the past.

Because permafrost matters to so many things, researchers keep a close watch on it.

■ Harder · 188 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 7.8

In the coldest regions of the world, the ground itself can remain frozen year after year. Scientists refer to this frozen ground as permafrost, and it consists of soil, sand and rock bound together by ice.

Even where permafrost exists, the uppermost layer of ground typically thaws during the summer. Mud forms, and small plants get an opportunity to grow. Their roots remain shallow, because they are unable to dig down into the ice beneath them.

Permafrost presents a genuine puzzle for builders. A heated house can warm the ground underneath it, and if the frozen soil melts, the ground turns soft and the house may sink or tilt. To prevent this, people frequently construct buildings on posts that lift the floor above the ground. Cold air can then circulate underneath and keep the soil frozen. Pipes are sometimes raised on stands for the same reason.

Permafrost also behaves like an enormous freezer. It has preserved ancient plants and animal remains in remarkable condition for a very long time, and scientists study them to learn about the past.

Because permafrost affects so many things, researchers monitor it closely.

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 permafrost, thaws, shallow and researchers 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 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 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.

Related

Questions

What reading level is "Frozen Ground That Never Thaws"?

It was written for 4th grade. It has 183 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 4.6. 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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