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The Cereal Box Showdown

4th grade nonfiction passage about unit price and better buys: 203 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

4th grade nonfiction unit price and better buys 203 words

The Cereal Box Showdown

Two cereal boxes, both the same brand, stand on a grocery shelf. The small box holds 12 ounces and costs 3 dollars. The big box holds 20 ounces and costs 4 dollars. Which one is the better buy?

The big box costs more money, so it can look like the worse choice. But a shopper should not compare prices alone. The boxes hold different amounts. A better way is to find the unit price, meaning the price of a single ounce.

The way to get it is to divide the price by the number of ounces. The small box costs 300 cents. Divided by 12 ounces, that is 25 cents for each ounce. The big box costs 400 cents. Divided by 20 ounces, that is 20 cents for each ounce.

Now the comparison is fair. The big box costs 5 cents less for every ounce. Many stores print the unit price on the shelf tag, so you do not even have to divide.

There is one more thing to think about. A bargain only helps if you use what you buy. If the cereal would go stale before your family could finish the big box, the small box might be the smarter choice. Math gives you facts, and you add your own good sense.

Questions

  1. How many ounces does the small box hold, and what does it cost? in the text

  2. What is a unit price? in the text

  3. How do you find the unit price? in the text

  4. Which box costs less for each ounce? in the text

  5. Where might you find the unit price in a store? in the text

  6. Why might the small box still be the smarter choice for some families? think about it

Words to know

ounces
small units used to measure how much something weighs
unit price
the cost of one single unit of something
divide
to split a number into equal parts
stale
no longer fresh or crisp
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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 · 145 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.2

Two cereal boxes, both the same brand, stand on a shelf. The small box has 12 ounces and costs 3 dollars. The big box has 20 ounces and costs 4 dollars. Which is the better buy?

The big box costs more, so it may look worse. But the boxes hold different amounts. So find the unit price. That is the cost of one unit, like one ounce.

You get it by dividing the price by the ounces. The small box is 300 cents. Divide by 12 ounces. That is 25 cents for each ounce. The big box is 400 cents. Divide by 20 ounces. That is 20 cents for each ounce.

Now it is fair. The big box costs 5 cents less for each ounce. Many stores put the unit price on the shelf tag.

A bargain helps only if you use it. If the cereal would go stale first, the small box may be smarter.

▲ This passage · 203 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.1

Two cereal boxes, both the same brand, stand on a grocery shelf. The small box holds 12 ounces and costs 3 dollars. The big box holds 20 ounces and costs 4 dollars. Which one is the better buy?

The big box costs more money, so it can look like the worse choice. But a shopper should not compare prices alone. The boxes hold different amounts. A better way is to find the unit price, meaning the price of a single ounce.

The way to get it is to divide the price by the number of ounces. The small box costs 300 cents. Divided by 12 ounces, that is 25 cents for each ounce. The big box costs 400 cents. Divided by 20 ounces, that is 20 cents for each ounce.

Now the comparison is fair. The big box costs 5 cents less for every ounce. Many stores print the unit price on the shelf tag, so you do not even have to divide.

There is one more thing to think about. A bargain only helps if you use what you buy. If the cereal would go stale before your family could finish the big box, the small box might be the smarter choice. Math gives you facts, and you add your own good sense.

■ Harder · 218 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 6.2

A grocery shelf holds a pair of cereal boxes from one brand, placed close together. The small box holds 12 ounces and costs 3 dollars, while the big box holds 20 ounces and costs 4 dollars. Which of the two is the better buy?

Because the big box costs more money, it can seem like the worse choice. A careful shopper, however, does not compare prices alone, since the boxes contain different amounts of cereal. A much fairer method is to calculate the unit price, meaning the price you pay for a single ounce.

To do this, divide the price by the number of ounces. The small box costs 300 cents, and dividing by 12 ounces gives 25 cents for every ounce. The big box costs 400 cents, and dividing by 20 ounces gives 20 cents for every ounce.

Now the comparison is truly fair, and it shows that the big box costs 5 cents less for each ounce. Many stores print the unit price directly on the shelf tag, which saves shoppers from doing the division themselves.

Still, there is another thing worth considering. A bargain only helps when you actually use what you buy. If the cereal would turn stale before your family could finish the big box, the small box might be the wiser choice. Math supplies the facts, and you supply your own good judgment.

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 ounces, unit price, divide and stale 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 "The Cereal Box Showdown"?

It was written for 4th grade. It has 203 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 3.1. 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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