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Three Minutes at the Council Microphone

4th grade nonfiction passage about speaking at public meetings: 189 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

4th grade nonfiction speaking at public meetings 189 words

Three Minutes at the Council Microphone

Many town councils set aside time at each meeting for public comment. Any resident who wants to may walk up to a microphone and speak. The topic might be a broken streetlight, a plan for a new park, or a worry about traffic near a school.

Each speaker is usually given a short limit, often about three minutes. A clerk or a timer keeps track. The limit is fair because many people may want a turn, and the meeting cannot go on all night.

Speakers often begin by saying their name and the street where they live. Then they get right to the point. A good speaker picks one main idea, gives a reason, and says what they hope the council will do.

The council members listen, but they usually do not answer right away. They may thank the speaker and look into the problem later. People who cannot come to the meeting can sometimes send a letter instead.

Public comment does not promise that anyone will get what they ask for. What it does give is a chance to be heard by the people who make the decisions.

Questions

  1. How long is each speaker usually given? in the text

  2. Why is the time limit fair? in the text

  3. What do speakers often say first? in the text

  4. What does a good speaker do? in the text

  5. Do council members usually answer right away? in the text

  6. Does public comment promise that people will get what they ask for? think about it

Words to know

resident
a person who lives in a certain town or place
comment
something you say to share your thoughts
clerk
a person who keeps records and does office work
limit
the most that is allowed
council
a group of people chosen to make decisions for a town
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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 · 179 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.3

Many town councils save time at each meeting for public comment. Any resident can walk up to a microphone and speak. The topic might be a broken streetlight. It might be a plan for a new park. It might be a worry about cars near a school.

Each speaker usually gets a short limit. It is often about three minutes. A clerk or a timer keeps track. The limit is fair. Many people may want a turn. The meeting cannot go on all night.

Speakers often start with their name and street. Then they get to the point. A good speaker picks one main idea. They give a reason. They say what they hope the council will do.

The council members listen. They usually do not answer right away. They may say thanks and look into the problem later. Some people cannot come to the meeting. They can sometimes send a letter.

Public comment does not promise anything. People may not get what they ask for. But they get a chance to be heard by the people who decide.

▲ This passage · 189 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 5.7

Many town councils set aside time at each meeting for public comment. Any resident who wants to may walk up to a microphone and speak. The topic might be a broken streetlight, a plan for a new park, or a worry about traffic near a school.

Each speaker is usually given a short limit, often about three minutes. A clerk or a timer keeps track. The limit is fair because many people may want a turn, and the meeting cannot go on all night.

Speakers often begin by saying their name and the street where they live. Then they get right to the point. A good speaker picks one main idea, gives a reason, and says what they hope the council will do.

The council members listen, but they usually do not answer right away. They may thank the speaker and look into the problem later. People who cannot come to the meeting can sometimes send a letter instead.

Public comment does not promise that anyone will get what they ask for. What it does give is a chance to be heard by the people who make the decisions.

■ Harder · 205 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 10.1

Many town councils reserve a portion of every meeting for public comment, during which any resident who wishes to may walk up to a microphone and speak. The subject might be a broken streetlight, a proposal for a new park, or a concern about heavy traffic near a school.

Each speaker is generally allowed a brief limit, frequently about three minutes, and a clerk or a timer keeps track of the time. This limit is fair because numerous people may want a turn, and the meeting cannot continue throughout the entire night.

Speakers commonly begin by stating their name and the street where they live, and then they move directly to the point. An effective speaker chooses one main idea, supplies a reason for it, and explains what they hope the council will do about it.

The council members listen attentively, although they usually do not respond immediately. They may thank the speaker and investigate the problem at a later time. Residents who are unable to attend the meeting can sometimes send a letter instead.

Public comment does not guarantee that anyone will receive what they request. What it does provide is an opportunity to be heard by the very people who make the decisions.

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 resident, comment, clerk, limit and council 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 "Three Minutes at the Council Microphone"?

It was written for 4th grade. It has 189 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 5.7. 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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