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The Scarf That Kept Growing

4th grade fiction passage about learning to knit: 221 words, seven questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

4th grade fiction learning to knit 221 words

The Scarf That Kept Growing

Ingrid decided to knit a scarf for her father. Her neighbor Mrs. Pell showed her how to cast on twenty stitches and how to wrap the yarn around the needle.

Ingrid worked on the scarf every evening. The rows built up slowly, like a green hill. But after a week, she noticed a problem. The scarf was not straight. It was wide at the bottom and thin in the middle, and it bulged out like a bowling pin.

"I think I am adding stitches by accident," she told Mrs. Pell.

Mrs. Pell counted. The scarf now had twenty-six stitches in some rows and twenty-three in others. "You are splitting the yarn and making little extras," she said. "Try counting at the end of every row."

Ingrid wanted to pull out the whole scarf and start again. But Mrs. Pell said, "Look at it as a map of everything you have learned." So Ingrid left the lumpy part where it was and began counting each row.

The rest of the scarf came out neat and even. It was a little wobbly at one end, but her father did not mind. He wore it to the bus stop on the first cold morning.

"It is the only scarf in town with a belly," he joked, and he wore it all winter.

Questions

  1. Who helped Ingrid learn to knit? in the text

  2. Who was the scarf for? in the text

  3. What was wrong with the scarf after a week? in the text

  4. Why did the number of stitches change from row to row? in the text

  5. What did Mrs. Pell tell Ingrid to do to fix the problem? in the text

  6. What did Mrs. Pell mean by calling the scarf a map of what Ingrid learned? think about it

  7. How can you tell her father liked the scarf? think about it

Words to know

stitches
the loops of yarn that make up knitting
bulged
stuck out in a round shape
accident
something that happens without meaning to
wobbly
uneven and shaky
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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 · 191 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.9

Ingrid wanted to knit a scarf for her father. Her neighbor, Mrs. Pell, showed her how to cast on twenty stitches. She showed her how to wrap the yarn around the needle.

Ingrid knitted every evening. The rows grew like a green hill. After a week, she saw a problem. The scarf was not straight. It was wide at the bottom and thin in the middle. It bulged like a bowling pin.

"I think I add stitches by accident," she told Mrs. Pell.

Mrs. Pell counted. Some rows had twenty-six stitches. Some had twenty-three. "You are splitting the yarn," she said. "That makes extra stitches. Count at the end of every row."

Ingrid wanted to pull it all out. But Mrs. Pell said, "See it as a map of what you learned." So Ingrid left the lumpy part and counted each row.

The rest came out neat and even. One end was a little wobbly. Her father did not mind. He wore it to the bus stop on the first cold day.

"It is the only scarf in town with a belly," he joked. He wore it all winter.

▲ This passage · 221 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.7

Ingrid decided to knit a scarf for her father. Her neighbor Mrs. Pell showed her how to cast on twenty stitches and how to wrap the yarn around the needle.

Ingrid worked on the scarf every evening. The rows built up slowly, like a green hill. But after a week, she noticed a problem. The scarf was not straight. It was wide at the bottom and thin in the middle, and it bulged out like a bowling pin.

"I think I am adding stitches by accident," she told Mrs. Pell.

Mrs. Pell counted. The scarf now had twenty-six stitches in some rows and twenty-three in others. "You are splitting the yarn and making little extras," she said. "Try counting at the end of every row."

Ingrid wanted to pull out the whole scarf and start again. But Mrs. Pell said, "Look at it as a map of everything you have learned." So Ingrid left the lumpy part where it was and began counting each row.

The rest of the scarf came out neat and even. It was a little wobbly at one end, but her father did not mind. He wore it to the bus stop on the first cold morning.

"It is the only scarf in town with a belly," he joked, and he wore it all winter.

■ Harder · 237 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 6

Ingrid resolved to knit a scarf for her father. Her neighbor, Mrs. Pell, demonstrated how to cast on twenty stitches and how to loop the yarn around the needle in the proper way.

Ingrid worked on the scarf every evening, and the rows accumulated slowly, like a green hill rising from the needles. After a week, however, she noticed a serious problem. The scarf was not straight. It was broad at the bottom and narrow in the middle, and it bulged outward like a bowling pin.

"I suspect that I am adding stitches by accident," she confessed to Mrs. Pell.

Mrs. Pell counted carefully. Some rows now contained twenty-six stitches, while others contained only twenty-three. "You are splitting the yarn and creating little extras," she explained. "Try counting at the end of every single row."

Ingrid was tempted to unravel the entire scarf and begin again. But Mrs. Pell suggested, "Think of it as a map of everything you have learned so far." So Ingrid left the lumpy section exactly where it was and began counting each row.

The remainder of the scarf turned out neat and even. It was slightly wobbly at one end, but her father did not mind in the least. He wore it to the bus stop on the first chilly morning.

"It is the only scarf in town with a belly," he joked, and he wore it faithfully all winter.

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 stitches, bulged, accident and wobbly 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 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 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 Scarf That Kept Growing"?

It was written for 4th grade. It has 221 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 seven. 5 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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