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The Chalky Pot That Shines After the Kiln

4th grade nonfiction passage about pottery glaze: 205 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

4th grade nonfiction pottery glaze 205 words

The Chalky Pot That Shines After the Kiln

A potter paints a bowl with glaze, and the bowl looks dull and chalky. The color is pale, and it does not shine at all. Many beginners worry that the colors are wrong. Then the potter puts the bowl in a kiln, which is a very hot oven made for clay. When it comes out again, the bowl looks like a different thing. It is glossy, smooth, and bright.

What happened? Glaze is a mix of tiny bits of minerals and water. When it is painted on, the minerals sit on the clay like a thin layer of dust. In the kiln, the heat becomes so strong that those bits melt together. The mix turns into a thin coat of glass. When it cools, the glass stays on the clay.

The coat does two jobs. First, it gives the pot color and shine. Second, it seals the clay. Plain baked clay has tiny holes and can soak up water. A glassy skin keeps drinks from seeping through the sides of a mug.

Potters learn to guess how a glaze will turn out. They also keep small test tiles, because the colors in the bucket rarely look like the colors that come out of the fire.

Questions

  1. How does a glazed bowl look before it goes into the kiln? in the text

  2. What is a kiln? in the text

  3. What happens to the bits of mineral in the heat? in the text

  4. What are the two jobs of the glaze coat? in the text

  5. Why would a mug without glaze be a poor choice for a drink? think about it

  6. Why do potters keep small test tiles? think about it

Words to know

glaze
a glassy coating put on pottery
kiln
an oven that gets hot enough to bake clay
minerals
natural materials found in rocks and earth
seals
closes up so nothing can get through
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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 · 138 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.8

A potter paints a bowl with glaze. The bowl looks dull and chalky. The color is pale. It does not shine. Then the potter puts the bowl in a kiln. A kiln is a very hot oven for clay. When the bowl comes out, it is shiny and bright.

What happened? Glaze is tiny bits of minerals and water. On the clay, the bits sit like dust. In the kiln, the heat melts them. They turn into a thin coat of glass. It stays on the clay when it cools.

The coat does two jobs. It gives color and shine. It also seals the clay. Plain clay has tiny holes. It can soak up water. Glass keeps a mug from leaking.

Potters make small test tiles. Glaze in the bucket does not look like glaze after the fire.

▲ This passage · 205 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3

A potter paints a bowl with glaze, and the bowl looks dull and chalky. The color is pale, and it does not shine at all. Many beginners worry that the colors are wrong. Then the potter puts the bowl in a kiln, which is a very hot oven made for clay. When it comes out again, the bowl looks like a different thing. It is glossy, smooth, and bright.

What happened? Glaze is a mix of tiny bits of minerals and water. When it is painted on, the minerals sit on the clay like a thin layer of dust. In the kiln, the heat becomes so strong that those bits melt together. The mix turns into a thin coat of glass. When it cools, the glass stays on the clay.

The coat does two jobs. First, it gives the pot color and shine. Second, it seals the clay. Plain baked clay has tiny holes and can soak up water. A glassy skin keeps drinks from seeping through the sides of a mug.

Potters learn to guess how a glaze will turn out. They also keep small test tiles, because the colors in the bucket rarely look like the colors that come out of the fire.

■ Harder · 210 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 5.2

A potter brushes glaze onto a bowl, and the bowl looks dull and chalky. The color is pale, and there is no shine whatsoever. Many beginners worry that they have chosen the wrong colors. Then the potter loads the bowl into a kiln, a very hot oven built especially for clay. When the bowl is finally taken out, it appears to be an entirely different object, glossy, smooth, and bright.

What has happened? Glaze is a mixture of tiny bits of minerals and water. While it is being painted on, the minerals rest on the clay like a thin layer of dust. Inside the kiln, the heat grows so intense that those bits melt together and become a thin coat of glass. When the pot cools, the glass stays fixed to the clay.

The coat performs two jobs. First, it gives the pot its color and shine. Second, it seals the clay. Plain baked clay is full of tiny holes and can soak up water, but a glassy skin prevents drinks from seeping through the sides of a mug.

Potters learn to predict how a glaze will turn out. They also save small test tiles, because the colors in the bucket seldom resemble the colors that emerge from the fire.

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 glaze, kiln, minerals and seals 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 "The Chalky Pot That Shines After the Kiln"?

It was written for 4th grade. It has 205 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 3.0. 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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