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Thousands of Potatoes From the Andes

5th grade nonfiction passage about potatoes of the Andes: 218 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

5th grade nonfiction potatoes of the Andes 218 words

Thousands of Potatoes From the Andes

The potato is a food that most of us know in only a few shapes, such as fries or chips. In the Andes Mountains of South America, the place where potatoes first came from, there are thousands of kinds. They come in colors that include purple, red, yellow, and even speckled pink. Some are as small as a marble, and some are as big as a fist.

Farmers in Peru and nearby lands grow many different kinds in the same area. Some do better in the warm valleys, while others can stand the cold on high slopes. Growing many kinds is a way of staying safe. If one sort gets sick or a frost comes, the others may still survive.

The Andes people also have a clever way to store potatoes. In the high mountains, nights are freezing and days are sunny and dry. Farmers spread small potatoes on the ground to freeze at night. During the day, people press the water out by stepping on them. After several days, the potatoes become light, hard, and dry. This food is called chuño, and it can be kept for a very long time.

Potatoes spread from the Andes to the rest of the world and now feed millions of people. Their home mountains still hold the greatest variety.

Questions

  1. Where did potatoes first come from? in the text

  2. Can you name three colors of Andean potatoes? in the text

  3. Why do farmers grow many different kinds of potatoes? think about it

  4. How is chuño made? in the text

  5. Why does chuño work well in the high mountains? think about it

  6. Where do potatoes still have the greatest variety? in the text

Words to know

variety
a different kind of the same thing
speckled
covered with small spots
slope
the side of a hill or mountain
frost
a thin layer of ice that forms when it is very cold
store
to keep something safe to use later
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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 · 169 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.4

Most of us know potatoes in only a few shapes, like fries or chips. In the Andes Mountains of South America, there are thousands of kinds. Potatoes first came from there. They come in purple, red, yellow, and speckled pink. Some are as small as a marble. Some are as big as a fist.

Farmers in Peru grow many kinds in one area. Some grow best in warm valleys. Others can stand the cold on high slopes. This keeps farmers safe. If one kind gets sick or a frost comes, the others may live.

The Andes people also store potatoes in a clever way. In the high mountains, nights freeze and days are sunny and dry. Farmers spread small potatoes on the ground to freeze at night. In the day, people press the water out with their feet. Soon the potatoes are light, hard, and dry. This food is called chuno. It keeps a very long time.

Potatoes spread around the world. The Andes still have the most kinds.

▲ This passage · 218 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 5.2

The potato is a food that most of us know in only a few shapes, such as fries or chips. In the Andes Mountains of South America, the place where potatoes first came from, there are thousands of kinds. They come in colors that include purple, red, yellow, and even speckled pink. Some are as small as a marble, and some are as big as a fist.

Farmers in Peru and nearby lands grow many different kinds in the same area. Some do better in the warm valleys, while others can stand the cold on high slopes. Growing many kinds is a way of staying safe. If one sort gets sick or a frost comes, the others may still survive.

The Andes people also have a clever way to store potatoes. In the high mountains, nights are freezing and days are sunny and dry. Farmers spread small potatoes on the ground to freeze at night. During the day, people press the water out by stepping on them. After several days, the potatoes become light, hard, and dry. This food is called chuño, and it can be kept for a very long time.

Potatoes spread from the Andes to the rest of the world and now feed millions of people. Their home mountains still hold the greatest variety.

■ Harder · 217 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 6.9

The potato is a food that most of us know in only a few forms, such as fries or chips. In the Andes Mountains of South America, the region where potatoes originated, there are thousands of different kinds. They come in colors that include purple, red, yellow, and even speckled pink. Some are as tiny as a marble, while others are as large as a fist.

Farmers in Peru and neighboring lands grow many varieties in the same area. Some thrive in the warm valleys, whereas others can withstand the cold on high slopes. Growing many kinds is a way of staying safe, because if one variety falls sick or a frost arrives, the others may still survive.

The Andean people also have an ingenious way to store potatoes. In the high mountains, the nights are freezing and the days are sunny and dry. Farmers spread small potatoes on the ground to freeze overnight. During the day, people press the water out by stepping on them. After several days, the potatoes become light, hard, and dry. This food is called chuno, and it can be kept for a very long time.

Potatoes eventually spread from the Andes to the rest of the world and now feed millions of people. Their home mountains still hold the greatest variety.

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 variety, speckled, slope, frost and store 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 3 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 "Thousands of Potatoes From the Andes"?

It was written for 5th grade. It has 218 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 5.2. 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. 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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