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The Alphorn Calls Across a Mountain Valley

5th grade nonfiction passage about the alphorn: 208 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

5th grade nonfiction the alphorn 208 words

The Alphorn Calls Across a Mountain Valley

In the high mountains of Switzerland, a very long wooden horn has been played for a long time. It is called the alphorn. Some alphorns are taller than a grown-up, and the bell at the end often rests on the ground while the player blows into the other end.

Long ago, herders used the alphorn to send messages across a valley. A deep sound can travel far over open land, and an echo bounces back off the steep slopes. A herder on one slope could call to a neighbor on another without shouting.

The alphorn has no buttons, valves, or finger holes. The player makes different notes only by changing how the lips buzz and how much air goes through the mouthpiece. A tighter buzz makes a higher note, and a looser buzz makes a lower one. Since the tube is so long, the horn can sound many notes, but they are spaced far apart, so the melodies are slow and floating.

Alphorns are usually made from a straight, tall tree. Makers shape the wood, hollow it out, and join the parts. Today, people gather for alphorn festivals, where players fill a green valley with soft, rolling music that sounds as if the mountains themselves were singing.

Questions

  1. In which country is the alphorn played? in the text

  2. How did herders use the alphorn long ago? in the text

  3. How does a player make different notes on the alphorn? in the text

  4. What parts does the alphorn not have? in the text

  5. Why could a herder call to a neighbor without shouting? think about it

  6. How do makers build an alphorn? in the text

Words to know

herders
people who look after groups of animals
valley
low land between mountains or hills
echo
a sound that bounces back to you
mouthpiece
the part of an instrument that touches the lips
hollow
empty on the inside
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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 · 191 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.3

In the high mountains of Switzerland, a very long wooden horn is played. It is called the alphorn. Some alphorns are taller than a grown-up. The bell at the end often rests on the ground while the player blows in the other end.

Long ago, herders used the alphorn to send messages across a valley. A deep sound can travel far over open land. An echo bounces back off the steep slopes. A herder on one slope could call to a neighbor on the other slope without shouting.

The alphorn has no buttons, valves, or finger holes. The player makes different notes by changing how the lips buzz. The player also changes how much air goes in. A tight buzz makes a higher note. A loose buzz makes a lower note. The tube is very long, so the notes are spaced far apart. The tunes are slow and floating.

Alphorns are made from a tall, straight tree. Makers shape the wood, hollow it out, and join the parts. Today, people hold alphorn festivals. Players fill a green valley with soft, rolling music. It sounds as if the mountains were singing.

▲ This passage · 208 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 6.2

In the high mountains of Switzerland, a very long wooden horn has been played for a long time. It is called the alphorn. Some alphorns are taller than a grown-up, and the bell at the end often rests on the ground while the player blows into the other end.

Long ago, herders used the alphorn to send messages across a valley. A deep sound can travel far over open land, and an echo bounces back off the steep slopes. A herder on one slope could call to a neighbor on another without shouting.

The alphorn has no buttons, valves, or finger holes. The player makes different notes only by changing how the lips buzz and how much air goes through the mouthpiece. A tighter buzz makes a higher note, and a looser buzz makes a lower one. Since the tube is so long, the horn can sound many notes, but they are spaced far apart, so the melodies are slow and floating.

Alphorns are usually made from a straight, tall tree. Makers shape the wood, hollow it out, and join the parts. Today, people gather for alphorn festivals, where players fill a green valley with soft, rolling music that sounds as if the mountains themselves were singing.

■ Harder · 218 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 8.5

In the lofty mountains of Switzerland, an exceptionally long wooden horn has been played for centuries. It is known as the alphorn. Some alphorns stand taller than a grown-up, and the bell at the far end frequently rests on the ground while the musician blows into the opposite end.

Long ago, herders relied on the alphorn to send messages across a valley. A deep sound can carry a great distance over open land, and an echo bounces back from the steep slopes, so a herder on one slope could call to a neighbor on another without having to shout.

The alphorn possesses no buttons, valves, or finger holes. The player produces different notes solely by changing the way the lips buzz and the amount of air that passes through the mouthpiece. A tighter buzz creates a higher note, and a looser buzz creates a lower one. Because the tube is so long, the horn can sound many notes, but they are spaced widely apart, which makes the melodies slow and floating.

Alphorns are usually crafted from a tall, straight tree. Makers shape the wood, hollow it out, and join the sections together. Nowadays, people gather for alphorn festivals, where players fill a green valley with soft, rolling music that sounds as though the mountains themselves were singing.

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 herders, valley, echo, mouthpiece and hollow 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 5 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 "The Alphorn Calls Across a Mountain Valley"?

It was written for 5th grade. It has 208 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 6.2. 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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