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Why Cranberries Float at Harvest Time

4th grade nonfiction passage about cranberry harvest: 168 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

4th grade nonfiction cranberry harvest 168 words

Why Cranberries Float at Harvest Time

Cranberries grow on low vines in flat, sunken fields called bogs. Many people think the berries grow underwater, but they do not. The vines grow in damp ground, and the fields are dry for much of the year.

At harvest time, many growers flood the bog with water. This works because each cranberry has small pockets of air inside it. Air makes the berries light, so they float.

Next, a machine called a beater rolls through the water. Its spinning parts shake the berries loose from the vines. The berries bob up to the top, and soon the water is covered with a bright red carpet.

Workers then gather the floating berries. They use long booms, which are like floating fences, to push the berries into one corner of the bog. A pump or a conveyor belt lifts them into a truck.

Water helps in another way. Some growers flood a bog in winter, because a blanket of water or ice can protect the vines from bitter cold.

Questions

  1. Where do cranberries grow? in the text

  2. Why do cranberries float? in the text

  3. What does a beater do? in the text

  4. How do workers gather the floating berries? in the text

  5. Why might a grower flood a bog in winter? in the text

  6. Why is flooding a bog a clever way to harvest? think about it

Words to know

bog
a flat, damp field where cranberries grow
harvest
to gather a crop when it is ready
beater
a machine that shakes berries off their vines
booms
long floating bars that push things together on water
conveyor
a moving belt that carries things from place to place
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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 · 124 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.6

Cranberries grow on low vines in fields called bogs. Some people think the berries grow underwater. They do not. The bog is damp, but it is dry for much of the year.

At harvest time, many growers flood the bog. Cranberries float. Each berry has small pockets of air inside it.

A machine called a beater rolls through the water. It shakes the berries off the vines. The berries bob up to the top. The water looks like a red carpet.

Workers use long booms to push the berries into a corner. A pump or a belt lifts them into a truck.

Some growers flood a bog in winter, too. A blanket of water or ice can keep the vines safe from the cold.

▲ This passage · 168 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.5

Cranberries grow on low vines in flat, sunken fields called bogs. Many people think the berries grow underwater, but they do not. The vines grow in damp ground, and the fields are dry for much of the year.

At harvest time, many growers flood the bog with water. This works because each cranberry has small pockets of air inside it. Air makes the berries light, so they float.

Next, a machine called a beater rolls through the water. Its spinning parts shake the berries loose from the vines. The berries bob up to the top, and soon the water is covered with a bright red carpet.

Workers then gather the floating berries. They use long booms, which are like floating fences, to push the berries into one corner of the bog. A pump or a conveyor belt lifts them into a truck.

Water helps in another way. Some growers flood a bog in winter, because a blanket of water or ice can protect the vines from bitter cold.

■ Harder · 178 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 6.6

Cranberries grow on low, trailing vines in flat, sunken fields known as bogs. Although many people imagine the berries growing underwater, they do not. The vines thrive in damp ground, and for much of the year the fields are actually dry.

When harvest time arrives, many growers flood the bog with water. This method works because every cranberry contains small pockets of air, which make the berries light enough to float.

Next, a machine called a beater rolls slowly through the flooded field. Its spinning parts shake the berries loose from the vines, and the freed berries bob up to the surface. Before long, the water is covered with a bright red carpet.

Workers then gather the floating fruit. They use long booms, which resemble floating fences, to herd the berries into one corner of the bog, where a pump or a conveyor belt lifts them into a waiting truck.

Water is useful in yet another way. Some growers flood a bog in winter, because a blanket of water or ice can shield the vines from bitter cold.

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 bog, harvest, beater, booms and conveyor 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 "Why Cranberries Float at Harvest Time"?

It was written for 4th grade. It has 168 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 4.5. 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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