4th grade nonfiction passage about block printing: 198 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
4th gradenonfictionblock printing198 words
Why the Letters in a Block Print Face Backward
Imagine you want to print the word STOP with a block of wood. You might be surprised by the first step. You must carve the word backward!
Here is how block printing works. An artist draws a picture on a flat block. Then she cuts away every part that should stay white. What is left standing is a raised shape, like a stamp. Next she rolls ink over the block with a roller. Only the high parts touch the ink, and the carved-away parts stay clean. Last, she lays a sheet of paper on the block and presses down. When the paper is lifted, the picture appears on it.
Now think about what happens to the picture. The block is pressed face down, so the paper takes a mirror image of it. Left becomes right, and right becomes left. A word carved the normal way would come out reading backward on the paper. That is why careful printmakers carve their letters in reverse on the block, so they read correctly on the page.
The big treat is that one block can be inked again and again. That lets an artist make many copies of the same picture.
Questions
Which parts of the block does the artist cut away? in the text
What does the artist roll over the block? in the text
What happens when the paper is pressed on the block and lifted? in the text
Why must the letters be carved backward on the block? think about it
What is the big advantage of using a block? in the text
What would happen to a word carved the normal way? think about it
Words to know
carve
to cut a shape out of wood or stone
raised
standing up higher than what is around it
mirror image
a picture flipped so left and right are switched
printmaker
an artist who makes pictures by printing
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
Why the Letters in a Block Print Face Backward
4th grade reading passage
Imagine you want to print the word STOP with a block of wood. You might be surprised by the first step. You must carve the word backward!
Here is how block printing works. An artist draws a picture on a flat block. Then she cuts away every part that should stay white. What is left standing is a raised shape, like a stamp. Next she rolls ink over the block with a roller. Only the high parts touch the ink, and the carved-away parts stay clean. Last, she lays a sheet of paper on the block and presses down. When the paper is lifted, the picture appears on it.
Now think about what happens to the picture. The block is pressed face down, so the paper takes a mirror image of it. Left becomes right, and right becomes left. A word carved the normal way would come out reading backward on the paper. That is why careful printmakers carve their letters in reverse on the block, so they read correctly on the page.
The big treat is that one block can be inked again and again. That lets an artist make many copies of the same picture.
Questions
Which parts of the block does the artist cut away?
What does the artist roll over the block?
What happens when the paper is pressed on the block and lifted?
Why must the letters be carved backward on the block?
What is the big advantage of using a block?
What would happen to a word carved the normal way?
Words to know
carve: to cut a shape out of wood or stone
raised: standing up higher than what is around it
mirror image: a picture flipped so left and right are switched
printmaker: an artist who makes pictures by printing
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/4/why-the-letters-in-a-block-print-face-backward
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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 · 137 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1
You want to print the word STOP with a wood block. Here is a surprise. You must carve the word backward!
Here is how it works. An artist draws a picture on a flat block. She cuts away the parts that should stay white. What is left is a raised shape, like a stamp. Next she rolls ink on the block. Only the high parts get ink. Last, she puts paper on the block and presses. When she lifts the paper, the picture is there.
The block is pressed face down. So the paper gets a mirror picture. Left turns to right. A word carved the normal way would print backward. So printmakers carve the letters in reverse. Then they read right on the page.
One block can be inked again and again. It makes many copies.
▲ This passage · 198 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.3
Imagine you want to print the word STOP with a block of wood. You might be surprised by the first step. You must carve the word backward!
Here is how block printing works. An artist draws a picture on a flat block. Then she cuts away every part that should stay white. What is left standing is a raised shape, like a stamp. Next she rolls ink over the block with a roller. Only the high parts touch the ink, and the carved-away parts stay clean. Last, she lays a sheet of paper on the block and presses down. When the paper is lifted, the picture appears on it.
Now think about what happens to the picture. The block is pressed face down, so the paper takes a mirror image of it. Left becomes right, and right becomes left. A word carved the normal way would come out reading backward on the paper. That is why careful printmakers carve their letters in reverse on the block, so they read correctly on the page.
The big treat is that one block can be inked again and again. That lets an artist make many copies of the same picture.
■ Harder · 206 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 6.5
Suppose you wish to print the word STOP using a block of wood. The first step may surprise you, because the word has to be carved backward!
Block printing proceeds like this. An artist sketches a picture on a flat block and then cuts away every part that ought to stay white. What remains standing is a raised shape, much like a rubber stamp. Next she rolls ink across the block with a roller, and only the high parts take up the ink while the carved-away parts stay clean. Finally, she lays a sheet of paper over the block and presses down firmly. When the paper is lifted, the picture has appeared on it.
Consider what happens to the image, however. Because the block is pressed face down, the paper receives a mirror image of it, with left becoming right and right becoming left. A word carved in the ordinary way would therefore read backward on the paper. This is why careful printmakers carve their letters in reverse on the block, so that they read correctly on the page.
The great advantage is that a single block can be inked over and over, which allows an artist to produce many copies of the same picture.
You want to print the word STOP with a wood block. Here is a surprise. You must carve the word backward!
Here is how it works. An artist draws a picture on a flat block. She cuts away the parts that should stay white. What is left is a raised shape, like a stamp. Next she rolls ink on the block. Only the high parts get ink. Last, she puts paper on the block and presses. When she lifts the paper, the picture is there.
The block is pressed face down. So the paper gets a mirror picture. Left turns to right. A word carved the normal way would print backward. So printmakers carve the letters in reverse. Then they read right on the page.
One block can be inked again and again. It makes many copies.
Questions
Which parts of the block are cut away?
What does the artist roll on the block?
What happens when the paper is lifted?
Why are the letters carved backward?
What is good about one block?
What would happen to a word carved the normal way?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
Why the Letters in a Block Print Face Backward
Imagine you want to print the word STOP with a block of wood. You might be surprised by the first step. You must carve the word backward!
Here is how block printing works. An artist draws a picture on a flat block. Then she cuts away every part that should stay white. What is left standing is a raised shape, like a stamp. Next she rolls ink over the block with a roller. Only the high parts touch the ink, and the carved-away parts stay clean. Last, she lays a sheet of paper on the block and presses down. When the paper is lifted, the picture appears on it.
Now think about what happens to the picture. The block is pressed face down, so the paper takes a mirror image of it. Left becomes right, and right becomes left. A word carved the normal way would come out reading backward on the paper. That is why careful printmakers carve their letters in reverse on the block, so they read correctly on the page.
The big treat is that one block can be inked again and again. That lets an artist make many copies of the same picture.
Questions
Which parts of the block does the artist cut away?
What does the artist roll over the block?
What happens when the paper is pressed on the block and lifted?
Why must the letters be carved backward on the block?
What is the big advantage of using a block?
What would happen to a word carved the normal way?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
Why the Letters in a Block Print Face Backward
Suppose you wish to print the word STOP using a block of wood. The first step may surprise you, because the word has to be carved backward!
Block printing proceeds like this. An artist sketches a picture on a flat block and then cuts away every part that ought to stay white. What remains standing is a raised shape, much like a rubber stamp. Next she rolls ink across the block with a roller, and only the high parts take up the ink while the carved-away parts stay clean. Finally, she lays a sheet of paper over the block and presses down firmly. When the paper is lifted, the picture has appeared on it.
Consider what happens to the image, however. Because the block is pressed face down, the paper receives a mirror image of it, with left becoming right and right becoming left. A word carved in the ordinary way would therefore read backward on the paper. This is why careful printmakers carve their letters in reverse on the block, so that they read correctly on the page.
The great advantage is that a single block can be inked over and over, which allows an artist to produce many copies of the same picture.
Questions
Which parts of the block does the artist cut away?
What does the artist spread across the block with a roller?
What happens once the paper is pressed on the block and lifted?
Why do printmakers carve the letters backward on the block?
What is the great advantage of using a block?
What would happen to a word carved in the ordinary way?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: Why the Letters in a Block Print Face Backward
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade 1)
The parts that should stay white.
Ink.
The picture is on the paper.
The paper gets a mirror picture, so they read right on the page.
It can be inked again and again to make many copies.
It would print backward.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.3)
The parts that should stay white.
Ink.
The picture appears on the paper.
The paper takes a mirror image, so backward letters on the block read correctly on the page.
It can be inked again and again to make many copies.
It would print backward on the paper.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 6.5)
The parts that ought to stay white.
Ink.
The picture has appeared on the paper.
The paper receives a mirror image, so reversed letters read correctly on the page.
It can be inked over and over to make many copies.
It would read backward on the paper.
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 carve, raised, mirror image and printmaker 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 4 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 "Why the Letters in a Block Print Face Backward"?
It was written for 4th grade. It has 198 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 3.3. 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?
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