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The Sundial That Ran an Hour Slow

5th grade fiction passage about a sundial and summer clocks: 230 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

5th grade fiction a sundial and summer clocks 230 words

The Sundial That Ran an Hour Slow

In Fenwick Park stood a stone sundial with a brass pointer, and a sign beside it said that it had kept good time for a hundred years. So when Odette's watch said ten o'clock and the sundial said nine, she was sure that something had broken.

Her brother Cal checked his own watch, and it agreed with hers. "Maybe the pointer is bent," he said, but when they looked closely, it was perfectly straight. "Maybe the stone has sunk," said Odette. A pencil laid across the top showed that the stone was level.

They came back at noon and again at three, and each time the sundial was behind by about the same amount.

"If something were bent or tilted, the mistake would change during the day," Odette said. "This one stays the same, because it is always an hour behind."

Cal frowned, and then his face lit up. "Last spring, the whole town moved its clocks ahead one hour so that we would get more light in the evening. Our watches changed, but the sun did not."

Mr. Ames, the gardener, had been listening while he raked. "That is the answer," he said. "A sundial follows the sun and not the clock, so in the autumn, when the clocks go back, the two will agree again."

Odette wrote the answer on a card and tucked it under the sign.

Questions

  1. What did the sign beside the sundial say? in the text

  2. What did Odette and Cal first think might be wrong with the sundial? in the text

  3. How did they check that the stone was level? in the text

  4. Why did Odette think the sundial was not bent or tilted? think about it

  5. What did Cal remember that explained the difference? in the text

  6. Why will the sundial and the clocks agree again in autumn? think about it

Words to know

sundial
a clock that uses the sun's shadow to show the time
pointer
the part that points to show something
level
flat and even, not tilted
tilted
leaning to one side
gardener
a person who takes care of plants
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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 · 201 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.6

In Fenwick Park stood a stone sundial with a brass pointer. A sign next to it said it had kept good time for a hundred years. So when Odette's watch said ten o'clock and the sundial said nine, she was sure it was broken.

Her brother Cal checked his watch. It said the same as hers. "Maybe the pointer is bent," he said. They looked close. It was straight. "Maybe the stone sank," said Odette. A pencil on top showed the stone was level.

They came back at noon, then at three. Each time, the sundial was behind by the same amount.

"If it was bent or tilted, the mistake would change," Odette said. "This one stays the same. It is always an hour behind."

Cal frowned, and then he smiled. "Last spring, the town moved all the clocks ahead one hour. That gave us more light in the evening. Our watches changed. The sun did not."

Mr. Ames, the gardener, was raking nearby. "That is it," he said. "A sundial follows the sun, not the clock. In autumn, when the clocks go back, they will match again."

Odette wrote the answer on a card and tucked it under the sign.

▲ This passage · 230 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.8

In Fenwick Park stood a stone sundial with a brass pointer, and a sign beside it said that it had kept good time for a hundred years. So when Odette's watch said ten o'clock and the sundial said nine, she was sure that something had broken.

Her brother Cal checked his own watch, and it agreed with hers. "Maybe the pointer is bent," he said, but when they looked closely, it was perfectly straight. "Maybe the stone has sunk," said Odette. A pencil laid across the top showed that the stone was level.

They came back at noon and again at three, and each time the sundial was behind by about the same amount.

"If something were bent or tilted, the mistake would change during the day," Odette said. "This one stays the same, because it is always an hour behind."

Cal frowned, and then his face lit up. "Last spring, the whole town moved its clocks ahead one hour so that we would get more light in the evening. Our watches changed, but the sun did not."

Mr. Ames, the gardener, had been listening while he raked. "That is the answer," he said. "A sundial follows the sun and not the clock, so in the autumn, when the clocks go back, the two will agree again."

Odette wrote the answer on a card and tucked it under the sign.

■ Harder · 241 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 6.8

In Fenwick Park stood a stone sundial with a brass pointer, and a sign beside it proudly declared that it had kept accurate time for a hundred years. So when Odette's watch read ten o'clock and the sundial insisted that it was only nine, she was convinced that something had broken.

Her brother Cal checked his own watch, which agreed with hers. "Maybe the pointer is bent," he said, but when they examined it closely, it proved to be perfectly straight. "Maybe the stone has sunk," said Odette, yet a pencil laid across the top demonstrated that the stone was level.

They returned at noon and again at three, and each time the sundial lagged behind by roughly the same amount.

"If something were bent or tilted, the mistake would change during the day," Odette reasoned. "This one never changes, because it is always exactly an hour behind."

Cal frowned, and then his face brightened. "Last spring, the entire town moved its clocks ahead one hour so that everyone would enjoy more daylight in the evening. Our watches changed, but the sun certainly did not."

Mr. Ames, the gardener, had been listening while he raked the path. "That is precisely the answer," he said. "A sundial follows the sun rather than the clock, so in the autumn, when the clocks are set back, the two will agree again."

Odette wrote the answer on a card and tucked it under the sign.

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 sundial, pointer, level, tilted and gardener 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 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 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 Sundial That Ran an Hour Slow"?

It was written for 5th grade. It has 230 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 4.8. 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?

No. It was written for Peabody Teach, so there is no book to buy and no login to read it.

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