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Nosebleed Plan: Lean, Pinch, Wait

4th grade nonfiction passage about first aid for a nosebleed: 196 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

4th grade nonfiction first aid for a nosebleed 196 words

Nosebleed Plan: Lean, Pinch, Wait

A nosebleed can look scary, but it is usually not serious. The inside of your nose is lined with many tiny blood vessels that sit very close to the surface. Dry air, a cold, or picking at your nose can make one of them break and bleed. Knowing what to do helps you stay calm.

Here is the plan. First, sit down and lean your body a little forward. Do not tip your head back. Tipping back lets blood run down your throat, which can upset your stomach. Second, use your thumb and finger to pinch the soft part of your nose, just below the hard bone. Third, breathe through your mouth and keep pinching for about ten minutes. Try not to peek early, because letting go too soon can start the bleeding again. A clock will help you count the time.

Tell a grown-up right away. If the bleeding does not stop after a second try, or if it began after a hard bump to the head, a grown-up should call a doctor.

To prevent nosebleeds, keep your fingers out of your nose and blow it gently. Those two habits help the most.

Questions

  1. What lines the inside of your nose? in the text

  2. Which way should you lean during a nosebleed? in the text

  3. Why should you not tip your head back? in the text

  4. Which part of the nose do you pinch? in the text

  5. About how long should you keep pinching? in the text

  6. Why is it a bad idea to peek early? think about it

Words to know

vessels
tiny tubes that carry blood around the body
surface
the outside or top layer of something
pinch
to squeeze between a finger and thumb
prevent
to stop something before it happens
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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 · 185 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.1

A nosebleed can look scary, but it is not usually serious. The inside of your nose has many tiny blood vessels. They sit close to the surface. Dry air, a cold, or picking at your nose can make one break and bleed. Knowing what to do helps you stay calm.

Here is the plan. First, sit down and lean a little forward. Do not tip your head back. Then blood can run down your throat and upset your stomach. Second, pinch the soft part of your nose with your thumb and finger. That is just below the hard bone. Third, breathe through your mouth. Keep pinching for about ten minutes. Do not peek early. If you let go too soon, the bleeding can start again. Watch a clock to count the time.

Tell a grown-up right away. If the bleeding does not stop after a second try, or if it began after a hard bump to the head, a grown-up should call a doctor.

To stop nosebleeds, keep your fingers out of your nose. Blow it gently. These two habits help the most.

▲ This passage · 196 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.7

A nosebleed can look scary, but it is usually not serious. The inside of your nose is lined with many tiny blood vessels that sit very close to the surface. Dry air, a cold, or picking at your nose can make one of them break and bleed. Knowing what to do helps you stay calm.

Here is the plan. First, sit down and lean your body a little forward. Do not tip your head back. Tipping back lets blood run down your throat, which can upset your stomach. Second, use your thumb and finger to pinch the soft part of your nose, just below the hard bone. Third, breathe through your mouth and keep pinching for about ten minutes. Try not to peek early, because letting go too soon can start the bleeding again. A clock will help you count the time.

Tell a grown-up right away. If the bleeding does not stop after a second try, or if it began after a hard bump to the head, a grown-up should call a doctor.

To prevent nosebleeds, keep your fingers out of your nose and blow it gently. Those two habits help the most.

■ Harder · 204 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.9

A nosebleed can look alarming, but it is usually not serious. The inside of your nose is lined with many tiny blood vessels that sit very close to the surface. Dry air, a cold, or picking at your nose can cause one of them to break and bleed. Knowing exactly what to do helps you remain calm.

Here is the plan. First, sit down and lean your body slightly forward. Do not tip your head back, because that allows blood to run down your throat, which can upset your stomach. Second, use your thumb and finger to pinch the soft part of your nose, just below the hard bone. Third, breathe through your mouth and continue pinching for about ten minutes. Try not to peek early, since releasing the pressure too soon can start the bleeding all over again. A clock will help you keep track of the time.

Tell a grown-up right away. If the bleeding does not stop after a second attempt, or if it began after a hard bump to the head, a grown-up should call a doctor.

To prevent nosebleeds, keep your fingers out of your nose and blow it gently. Those two habits make the biggest difference.

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 vessels, surface, pinch and prevent 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 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.

Related

Questions

What reading level is "Nosebleed Plan: Lean, Pinch, Wait"?

It was written for 4th grade. It has 196 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 3.7. 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 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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