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How a Broken Bone Builds Itself Back

6th grade nonfiction passage about how bones heal: 255 words, seven questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

6th grade nonfiction how bones heal 255 words

How a Broken Bone Builds Itself Back

When you picture a bone, you might imagine something dry and hard, like the bones in a museum. A bone inside a living body is very different. It is a busy, living part, with blood vessels, nerves, and cells that are always working. That is why a broken bone can repair itself.

Healing happens in stages. Right after a break, blood collects around the damaged spot and forms a clot. Within days, the body fills the area with a soft, rubbery material that begins to hold the broken ends together. Next, special cells lay down new bone across the gap. This new patch is called a callus, and it is thicker and rougher than the bone around it. Over many weeks it hardens, and then other cells slowly reshape it until the bone returns to nearly its original form.

Doctors help in two ways. First, they take pictures called X-rays to see exactly how the bone broke. Second, they make sure the pieces line up and then keep the area from moving. A hard cast or a splint does this job. Healing works best when the broken ends stay still, in the same way that glue sets best when you do not wiggle the parts.

Time is part of the cure. The bones of children often heal faster than those of adults. Even so, it is important to follow the doctor's directions about the cast and about when to return to sports. A bone that feels fine may still be weaker than it looks.

Questions

  1. What is inside a bone in a living body? in the text

  2. What forms right after a break? in the text

  3. What is a callus? in the text

  4. What do doctors use to see how a bone broke? in the text

  5. Why does a cast or splint help a broken bone heal? think about it

  6. Why can a bone that feels fine still be weak? think about it

  7. Why is a living bone able to repair itself while a museum bone cannot? think about it

Words to know

clot
a thick lump formed when blood stops flowing
callus
a patch of new bone that grows over a break
cast
a hard cover that holds a broken bone still
splint
a stiff support that keeps a body part from moving
reshape
to change something into a new form
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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 · 220 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.1

Picture a bone. You may think of something dry and hard, like a bone in a museum. But a bone in a living body is not like that. It is alive. It has blood vessels, nerves, and cells that are always at work. That is why a broken bone can mend itself.

Healing takes stages. After a break, blood gathers around the spot and makes a clot. In a few days, the body fills the area with a soft, rubbery stuff. It starts to hold the broken ends together. Then special cells build new bone across the gap. This new patch is called a callus. It is thicker and rougher than the bone around it. Over many weeks it gets hard. Then other cells slowly reshape it. At the end, the bone looks almost like it did before.

Doctors help in two ways. They take X-rays to see how the bone broke. Then they line up the pieces and keep them still. A hard cast or a splint does this. A bone heals best when the ends do not move. Glue works the same way.

Time is part of the cure. Children's bones often heal faster than adults' bones. Still, follow the doctor's rules about the cast and about sports. A bone that feels fine may still be weak.

▲ This passage · 255 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 5.3

When you picture a bone, you might imagine something dry and hard, like the bones in a museum. A bone inside a living body is very different. It is a busy, living part, with blood vessels, nerves, and cells that are always working. That is why a broken bone can repair itself.

Healing happens in stages. Right after a break, blood collects around the damaged spot and forms a clot. Within days, the body fills the area with a soft, rubbery material that begins to hold the broken ends together. Next, special cells lay down new bone across the gap. This new patch is called a callus, and it is thicker and rougher than the bone around it. Over many weeks it hardens, and then other cells slowly reshape it until the bone returns to nearly its original form.

Doctors help in two ways. First, they take pictures called X-rays to see exactly how the bone broke. Second, they make sure the pieces line up and then keep the area from moving. A hard cast or a splint does this job. Healing works best when the broken ends stay still, in the same way that glue sets best when you do not wiggle the parts.

Time is part of the cure. The bones of children often heal faster than those of adults. Even so, it is important to follow the doctor's directions about the cast and about when to return to sports. A bone that feels fine may still be weaker than it looks.

■ Harder · 264 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 8.4

When you imagine a bone, you may picture something dry and brittle, like the skeletons displayed in a museum. A bone inside a living body is entirely different. It is a vigorous, living structure, equipped with blood vessels, nerves, and cells that are constantly at work, which is precisely why a broken bone is able to repair itself.

Healing proceeds in stages. Immediately after a fracture, blood collects around the damaged spot and forms a clot. Within a few days, the body fills the region with a soft, rubbery material that begins to bind the broken ends together. Next, specialized cells deposit new bone across the gap. This fresh patch, called a callus, is thicker and rougher than the surrounding bone. Over many weeks it hardens, and then other cells gradually reshape it until the bone returns to very nearly its original form.

Doctors assist in two principal ways. First, they take pictures called X-rays to determine exactly how the bone broke. Second, they ensure that the pieces are properly aligned and then prevent the area from moving. A hard cast or a splint accomplishes this task. Healing is most successful when the broken ends remain still, much as glue sets best when you refrain from wiggling the parts.

Time is an essential part of the cure. The bones of children often heal more quickly than those of adults. Even so, it is important to follow the doctor's instructions regarding the cast and regarding when to return to sports, because a bone that feels perfectly fine may still be weaker than it appears.

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 clot, callus, cast, splint and reshape 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 3 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 "How a Broken Bone Builds Itself Back"?

It was written for 6th grade. It has 255 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 5.3. 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 seven. 4 ask for something the text says directly and 3 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 3 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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