4th grade nonfiction passage about ballpoint pens: 196 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
4th gradenonfictionballpoint pens196 words
The Tiny Ball Inside a Pen
Long ago, people wrote with feather quills. They dipped the tip into a bottle of ink and wrote a few words. Then they had to dip again. If they were not careful, the ink dripped and made a blot on the page.
Inventors wanted a pen that could carry its own ink and not make a mess. The ballpoint pen was a clever answer. Look at the tip of one and you will see a tiny metal ball held in a small socket. Behind the ball is a tube of thick ink.
When you write, the ball touches the paper and rolls. As it turns, it picks up a little ink from the tube and rolls it onto the page. The ball works like a very small paint roller. It is also a plug. When you are not writing, the ball sits snugly in the socket and keeps the ink from leaking out.
The ink has to be just right. It must be thick enough not to run out by itself, yet thin enough to flow when the ball rolls. It also dries fast, so your writing does not smear when your hand moves across it.
Questions
What did people write with long ago? in the text
What is found at the tip of a ballpoint pen? in the text
What does the ball do when you write? in the text
What keeps ink from leaking when you are not writing? in the text
Why does the ink need to dry fast? in the text
Why is the ink in a ballpoint pen thick instead of watery? think about it
Words to know
quills
pens made from the long feathers of large birds
blot
a spot or stain made by a drop of ink
socket
a small hollow place that holds a part in place
roller
a tool shaped like a tube that spreads paint as it turns
smear
to spread wet ink or paint by accident
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
The Tiny Ball Inside a Pen
4th grade reading passage
Long ago, people wrote with feather quills. They dipped the tip into a bottle of ink and wrote a few words. Then they had to dip again. If they were not careful, the ink dripped and made a blot on the page.
Inventors wanted a pen that could carry its own ink and not make a mess. The ballpoint pen was a clever answer. Look at the tip of one and you will see a tiny metal ball held in a small socket. Behind the ball is a tube of thick ink.
When you write, the ball touches the paper and rolls. As it turns, it picks up a little ink from the tube and rolls it onto the page. The ball works like a very small paint roller. It is also a plug. When you are not writing, the ball sits snugly in the socket and keeps the ink from leaking out.
The ink has to be just right. It must be thick enough not to run out by itself, yet thin enough to flow when the ball rolls. It also dries fast, so your writing does not smear when your hand moves across it.
Questions
What did people write with long ago?
What is found at the tip of a ballpoint pen?
What does the ball do when you write?
What keeps ink from leaking when you are not writing?
Why does the ink need to dry fast?
Why is the ink in a ballpoint pen thick instead of watery?
Words to know
quills: pens made from the long feathers of large birds
blot: a spot or stain made by a drop of ink
socket: a small hollow place that holds a part in place
roller: a tool shaped like a tube that spreads paint as it turns
smear: to spread wet ink or paint by accident
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/4/tiny-ball-inside-a-pen
Share
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 · 143 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.1
Long ago, people wrote with feather quills. They dipped the quill in a bottle of ink. They wrote a few words. Then they dipped again. Sometimes the ink dripped and made a blot.
People wanted a pen that held its own ink. The ballpoint pen was a smart answer. At the tip is a tiny metal ball in a small socket. Behind the ball is a tube of thick ink.
When you write, the ball rolls on the paper. It picks up a little ink and puts it on the page. It works like a tiny paint roller. When you stop, the ball sits in the socket. It works like a plug. The ink stays in.
The ink must be thick so it does not run out. It must also flow when the ball rolls. It dries fast, so it does not smear.
▲ This passage · 196 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.2
Long ago, people wrote with feather quills. They dipped the tip into a bottle of ink and wrote a few words. Then they had to dip again. If they were not careful, the ink dripped and made a blot on the page.
Inventors wanted a pen that could carry its own ink and not make a mess. The ballpoint pen was a clever answer. Look at the tip of one and you will see a tiny metal ball held in a small socket. Behind the ball is a tube of thick ink.
When you write, the ball touches the paper and rolls. As it turns, it picks up a little ink from the tube and rolls it onto the page. The ball works like a very small paint roller. It is also a plug. When you are not writing, the ball sits snugly in the socket and keeps the ink from leaking out.
The ink has to be just right. It must be thick enough not to run out by itself, yet thin enough to flow when the ball rolls. It also dries fast, so your writing does not smear when your hand moves across it.
■ Harder · 209 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 5.9
Long ago, people wrote with feather quills. They dipped the tip into a bottle of ink and managed to write a few words before having to dip again. If they were careless, the ink dripped from the quill and left an ugly blot on the page.
Inventors longed for a pen that could carry its own supply of ink without making a mess, and the ballpoint pen turned out to be a clever answer. Look closely at the tip of one and you will notice a tiny metal ball held in a small socket, with a tube of thick ink sitting just behind it.
As you write, the ball presses against the paper and rolls. While it turns, it picks up a little ink from the tube and spreads it onto the page, much like a very small paint roller. The ball is also a plug. When you are not writing, it rests snugly in the socket and prevents the ink from leaking out.
The ink has to be formulated just right. It must be thick enough not to run out on its own, yet thin enough to flow when the ball rolls. It also dries quickly, so your writing does not smear when your hand moves across it.
Long ago, people wrote with feather quills. They dipped the quill in a bottle of ink. They wrote a few words. Then they dipped again. Sometimes the ink dripped and made a blot.
People wanted a pen that held its own ink. The ballpoint pen was a smart answer. At the tip is a tiny metal ball in a small socket. Behind the ball is a tube of thick ink.
When you write, the ball rolls on the paper. It picks up a little ink and puts it on the page. It works like a tiny paint roller. When you stop, the ball sits in the socket. It works like a plug. The ink stays in.
The ink must be thick so it does not run out. It must also flow when the ball rolls. It dries fast, so it does not smear.
Questions
What did people write with long ago?
What is at the tip of a ballpoint pen?
What does the ball do when you write?
What keeps ink from leaking when you stop?
Why does the ink dry fast?
Why is the ink in the pen thick, not watery?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
The Tiny Ball Inside a Pen
Long ago, people wrote with feather quills. They dipped the tip into a bottle of ink and wrote a few words. Then they had to dip again. If they were not careful, the ink dripped and made a blot on the page.
Inventors wanted a pen that could carry its own ink and not make a mess. The ballpoint pen was a clever answer. Look at the tip of one and you will see a tiny metal ball held in a small socket. Behind the ball is a tube of thick ink.
When you write, the ball touches the paper and rolls. As it turns, it picks up a little ink from the tube and rolls it onto the page. The ball works like a very small paint roller. It is also a plug. When you are not writing, the ball sits snugly in the socket and keeps the ink from leaking out.
The ink has to be just right. It must be thick enough not to run out by itself, yet thin enough to flow when the ball rolls. It also dries fast, so your writing does not smear when your hand moves across it.
Questions
What did people write with long ago?
What is found at the tip of a ballpoint pen?
What does the ball do when you write?
What keeps ink from leaking when you are not writing?
Why does the ink need to dry fast?
Why is the ink in a ballpoint pen thick instead of watery?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
The Tiny Ball Inside a Pen
Long ago, people wrote with feather quills. They dipped the tip into a bottle of ink and managed to write a few words before having to dip again. If they were careless, the ink dripped from the quill and left an ugly blot on the page.
Inventors longed for a pen that could carry its own supply of ink without making a mess, and the ballpoint pen turned out to be a clever answer. Look closely at the tip of one and you will notice a tiny metal ball held in a small socket, with a tube of thick ink sitting just behind it.
As you write, the ball presses against the paper and rolls. While it turns, it picks up a little ink from the tube and spreads it onto the page, much like a very small paint roller. The ball is also a plug. When you are not writing, it rests snugly in the socket and prevents the ink from leaking out.
The ink has to be formulated just right. It must be thick enough not to run out on its own, yet thin enough to flow when the ball rolls. It also dries quickly, so your writing does not smear when your hand moves across it.
Questions
What did people write with long ago?
What can be found at the tip of a ballpoint pen?
What does the ball do while you write?
What prevents ink from leaking when you are not writing?
Why is it important that the ink dries quickly?
Why is the ink in a ballpoint pen thick rather than watery?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: The Tiny Ball Inside a Pen
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.1)
Feather quills dipped in ink.
A tiny metal ball in a small socket.
It rolls and puts ink on the paper.
The ball sits in the socket like a plug.
So it does not smear.
Watery ink would run out and leak. Thick ink stays until the ball rolls.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.2)
Feather quills dipped in ink.
A tiny metal ball in a small socket.
It rolls, picks up ink and puts it on the paper.
The ball sits snugly in its socket like a plug.
So your writing does not smear when your hand moves across it.
Watery ink would run out of the tip by itself and leak, but thick ink stays put until the ball rolls.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 5.9)
Feather quills dipped in bottles of ink.
A tiny metal ball held in a small socket.
It rolls, picks up ink from the tube and spreads it onto the paper.
The ball rests snugly in its socket like a plug.
So that your writing does not smear when your hand moves across it.
Watery ink would run out of the tip on its own and leak, while thick ink stays put until the ball rolls.
Free at teach.peabody.kids
How to use it
Press Read it big (or B) to put the text on the projector, or Full screen (F) to fill the whole screen.
Ask the questions one at a time and use Show answer when the class has decided. A shows or hides every answer.
Print student copy for the class, or Print with answers for yourself.
Ideas for class
Before reading, put quills, blot, socket, roller and smear 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.
What reading level is "The Tiny Ball Inside a Pen"?
It was written for 4th grade. It has 196 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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