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Serving Size Math on the Cereal Box

6th grade nonfiction passage about reading nutrition label serving size: 218 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

6th grade nonfiction reading nutrition label serving size 218 words

Serving Size Math on the Cereal Box

On the side of a cereal box is a panel of numbers called the nutrition facts label. Most people glance at the calories, but one line near the top matters even more. It is the serving size, because every other number on the label is figured for that amount.

Suppose a label says one serving is three quarters of a cup and has 120 calories. If you pour exactly three quarters of a cup into your bowl, you eat 120 calories. If you pour one and a half cups, you have eaten two servings, so you must multiply. Two servings is 240 calories, and the sugar, fiber and everything else on the label doubles as well.

A serving size is not a rule about how much you should eat. It is a measuring stick that lets a shopper compare foods fairly. Two boxes of cereal may show different calories only because their servings are different sizes. Checking the serving size first makes the comparison honest.

The label also says how many servings are in the package. This number can be a surprise. A bottle of juice may look like a single drink, yet the label might list two servings inside. Taking a few seconds to read that line, and doing a little multiplication, shows what you are really eating or drinking.

Questions

  1. What line on a nutrition label is every other number figured for? in the text

  2. In the example, how many calories are in one and a half cups of cereal? in the text

  3. Why do the sugar and fiber numbers double when you pour two servings? think about it

  4. What is a serving size meant to be? in the text

  5. Why might two cereals show different calories even if they are alike? think about it

  6. What might surprise a shopper about a bottle of juice? in the text

Words to know

nutrition
the food a body needs to grow and stay healthy
calories
units that measure the energy in food
serving size
the amount of food that the label's numbers are based on
multiply
to add the same number again and again, as in 2 times 120
compare
to look at things side by side to see how they differ
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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 · 204 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.9

On the side of a cereal box is a panel of numbers. It is called the nutrition facts label. Most people look at the calories. But one line near the top matters even more. It is the serving size. Every other number on the label is for that amount.

Say a label shows one serving is three quarters of a cup. It has 120 calories. If you pour three quarters of a cup into your bowl, you eat 120 calories. If you pour one and a half cups, you eat two servings. So you multiply. Two servings is 240 calories. The sugar and fiber double too.

A serving size is not a rule about how much to eat. It is a measuring stick. It helps a shopper compare foods fairly. Two boxes of cereal can show different calories just because the servings are different sizes. Check the serving size first. Then the comparison is fair.

The label also tells how many servings are in the package. This can be a surprise. A bottle of juice may look like one drink. The label might say there are two servings inside. Read that line and do a little multiplying. Then you know what you are really eating or drinking.

▲ This passage · 218 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 7.1

On the side of a cereal box is a panel of numbers called the nutrition facts label. Most people glance at the calories, but one line near the top matters even more. It is the serving size, because every other number on the label is figured for that amount.

Suppose a label says one serving is three quarters of a cup and has 120 calories. If you pour exactly three quarters of a cup into your bowl, you eat 120 calories. If you pour one and a half cups, you have eaten two servings, so you must multiply. Two servings is 240 calories, and the sugar, fiber and everything else on the label doubles as well.

A serving size is not a rule about how much you should eat. It is a measuring stick that lets a shopper compare foods fairly. Two boxes of cereal may show different calories only because their servings are different sizes. Checking the serving size first makes the comparison honest.

The label also says how many servings are in the package. This number can be a surprise. A bottle of juice may look like a single drink, yet the label might list two servings inside. Taking a few seconds to read that line, and doing a little multiplication, shows what you are really eating or drinking.

■ Harder · 239 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 9.6

Printed on the side of a cereal box is a panel of figures known as the nutrition facts label. Most people glance only at the calories, but one line near the top deserves more attention than any other. That line is the serving size, because every remaining number on the label has been calculated for precisely that amount.

Suppose a label states that a single serving is three quarters of a cup and contains 120 calories. If you pour exactly three quarters of a cup into your bowl, you consume 120 calories. If you pour a cup and a half, however, you have eaten two servings, and you must therefore multiply. Two servings amounts to 240 calories, and the sugar, fiber and every other entry on the label doubles as well.

A serving size is not a rule about how much a person ought to eat. It is a measuring stick that allows shoppers to compare different foods fairly. Two boxes of cereal may display different calorie counts simply because their servings are different sizes, so checking the serving size first keeps the comparison honest.

The label also reports how many servings the entire package contains, and that figure can come as a surprise. A bottle of juice may look like a single drink, yet its label might list two servings inside. Spending a few seconds reading that line and doing a little multiplication reveals what you are really eating or drinking.

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 nutrition, calories, serving size, multiply and compare 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 "Serving Size Math on the Cereal Box"?

It was written for 6th grade. It has 218 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 7.1. 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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