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Why Your Stomach Does Not Digest Itself

5th grade nonfiction passage about the stomach and acid: 211 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

5th grade nonfiction the stomach and acid 211 words

Why Your Stomach Does Not Digest Itself

Inside your stomach is a strong liquid called stomach acid. It helps break down the food you eat, and it also kills many of the germs that sneak in with your meal. The stomach itself is made of living tissue, just like the rest of you. So why doesn't the acid eat right through it?

The answer is that your stomach wears a thick coat. Cells in the stomach wall make a slippery layer of mucus, and the mucus spreads over the whole inner surface. This sticky coat keeps the acid away from the wall. It acts like a raincoat that the stomach never takes off.

There is more. The cells that line the stomach live only a short time, and new ones are always growing to replace them. If a few get scraped or worn out, fresh cells fill in quickly. The stomach also has strong muscles in its walls. They squeeze and churn, mixing the food with the acid until it turns into a thick, soupy mush.

Every part of this teamwork matters. The acid does its job on the food, the mucus protects the wall, and the new cells keep the lining in good shape. Together they let the stomach handle strong chemicals every single day without harm.

Questions

  1. What are two jobs of stomach acid? in the text

  2. What do cells in the stomach wall make to protect it? in the text

  3. Why does the writer compare the mucus to a raincoat? think about it

  4. What happens when some stomach lining cells get worn out? in the text

  5. What do the muscles in the stomach wall do? in the text

  6. What would probably happen if the stomach had no mucus coat? think about it

Words to know

acid
a strong liquid that can break things down
tissue
a soft material that body parts are made of
mucus
a slippery, sticky coating made by the body
churn
to stir and mix again and again
lining
a layer that covers the inside of something
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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 · 185 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.6

Your stomach holds a strong liquid called stomach acid. It helps break down your food. It also kills many germs that come in with a meal. But the stomach is made of living tissue, like the rest of you. So why does the acid not eat through it?

The stomach wears a thick coat. Cells in the stomach wall make a slippery layer of mucus. The mucus covers the whole inside of the stomach. This sticky coat keeps the acid away from the wall. It is like a raincoat that the stomach never takes off.

There is more. The cells in the stomach lining live a short time. New cells are always growing to take their place. If a few get worn out, fresh cells fill in fast. The stomach also has strong muscles. They squeeze and churn. They mix the food with the acid until it is a thick, soupy mush.

Every part helps. The acid works on the food. The mucus guards the wall. The new cells keep the lining in good shape. Together they let the stomach handle strong acid every day.

▲ This passage · 211 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.8

Inside your stomach is a strong liquid called stomach acid. It helps break down the food you eat, and it also kills many of the germs that sneak in with your meal. The stomach itself is made of living tissue, just like the rest of you. So why doesn't the acid eat right through it?

The answer is that your stomach wears a thick coat. Cells in the stomach wall make a slippery layer of mucus, and the mucus spreads over the whole inner surface. This sticky coat keeps the acid away from the wall. It acts like a raincoat that the stomach never takes off.

There is more. The cells that line the stomach live only a short time, and new ones are always growing to replace them. If a few get scraped or worn out, fresh cells fill in quickly. The stomach also has strong muscles in its walls. They squeeze and churn, mixing the food with the acid until it turns into a thick, soupy mush.

Every part of this teamwork matters. The acid does its job on the food, the mucus protects the wall, and the new cells keep the lining in good shape. Together they let the stomach handle strong chemicals every single day without harm.

■ Harder · 225 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 7.5

Deep inside your stomach is a powerful liquid known as stomach acid. It assists in breaking down the food you eat, and it also destroys many of the germs that sneak in alongside your meal. The stomach itself, however, is made of living tissue, just like the rest of your body. So why doesn't the acid simply eat straight through it?

The explanation is that your stomach wears a thick protective coat. Specialized cells in the stomach wall produce a slippery layer of mucus, and that mucus spreads across the entire inner surface. This sticky barrier keeps the acid away from the wall, acting like a raincoat that the stomach never removes.

There is even more to the story. The cells that line the stomach survive for only a short time, and new ones are constantly growing to replace them. If a few become scraped or worn out, fresh cells quickly fill in the gaps. The stomach also contains strong muscles in its walls, which squeeze and churn, blending the food with the acid until it becomes a thick, soupy mush.

Every part of this teamwork matters. The acid does its work on the food, the mucus shields the wall, and the new cells keep the lining in excellent condition. Together they allow the stomach to handle powerful chemicals every single day without being harmed.

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 acid, tissue, mucus, churn and lining 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 "Why Your Stomach Does Not Digest Itself"?

It was written for 5th grade. It has 211 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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