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Three Parts Inside a Grain of Wheat

6th grade nonfiction passage about whole wheat and white flour: 222 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

6th grade nonfiction whole wheat and white flour 222 words

Three Parts Inside a Grain of Wheat

A grain of wheat is a seed, and like many seeds it has more than one part. If you could slice a single kernel open, you would find three main layers, and each one matters when flour is made.

The outside is the bran, a tough coat that protects the seed. Bran is rich in fiber and gives whole wheat bread its darker color and its slightly nutty taste. Tucked at one end is the germ, a tiny bundle that could grow into a new wheat plant. It holds natural oils, along with vitamins. Filling most of the kernel is the endosperm, a starchy white middle that would feed the baby plant if the seed were sown.

When a miller grinds wheat, the parts can be kept together or sorted apart. Whole wheat flour includes the bran, the germ and the endosperm. White flour is made mostly from the endosperm alone, after the bran and germ have been sifted out. That is why white flour is softer, paler and smoother.

There is one useful difference for the kitchen. The oils in the germ can slowly go stale. Whole wheat flour usually spoils sooner than white flour, so cooks often store it in a cool place and use it within a few months. White flour, with the germ removed, stays fresh far longer.

Questions

  1. What are the three main parts of a wheat kernel? in the text

  2. Which part could grow into a new wheat plant? in the text

  3. What would the endosperm do if the seed were sown? in the text

  4. How is white flour different from whole wheat flour? in the text

  5. Why does whole wheat flour spoil sooner than white flour? think about it

  6. Why does whole wheat bread look darker? think about it

Words to know

kernel
a whole seed of a grain plant
bran
the tough outer coat of a grain
endosperm
the starchy middle part of a seed
miller
a person who grinds grain into flour
sifted
shaken through a screen to separate parts
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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 · 208 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2

A grain of wheat is a seed. Like many seeds, it has more than one part. If you cut one kernel open, you would find three main layers. Each one matters when flour is made.

The outside is the bran. It is a tough coat that protects the seed. Bran has a lot of fiber. It gives whole wheat bread its dark color. At one end is the germ. It is a tiny bundle that could grow into a new wheat plant. It has oils and vitamins. Most of the kernel is the endosperm. It is a white, starchy middle. It would feed the baby plant if the seed were sown.

When a miller grinds wheat, the parts can be kept together or sorted apart. Whole wheat flour has the bran, the germ and the endosperm. White flour is made mostly from the endosperm. The bran and germ are sifted out. That is why white flour is softer, paler and smoother.

There is one more difference. The oils in the germ can go stale. So whole wheat flour spoils sooner than white flour. Cooks store it in a cool place and use it within a few months. White flour has no germ, so it stays fresh much longer.

▲ This passage · 222 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 5.3

A grain of wheat is a seed, and like many seeds it has more than one part. If you could slice a single kernel open, you would find three main layers, and each one matters when flour is made.

The outside is the bran, a tough coat that protects the seed. Bran is rich in fiber and gives whole wheat bread its darker color and its slightly nutty taste. Tucked at one end is the germ, a tiny bundle that could grow into a new wheat plant. It holds natural oils, along with vitamins. Filling most of the kernel is the endosperm, a starchy white middle that would feed the baby plant if the seed were sown.

When a miller grinds wheat, the parts can be kept together or sorted apart. Whole wheat flour includes the bran, the germ and the endosperm. White flour is made mostly from the endosperm alone, after the bran and germ have been sifted out. That is why white flour is softer, paler and smoother.

There is one useful difference for the kitchen. The oils in the germ can slowly go stale. Whole wheat flour usually spoils sooner than white flour, so cooks often store it in a cool place and use it within a few months. White flour, with the germ removed, stays fresh far longer.

■ Harder · 243 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 7.3

A grain of wheat is a seed, and like many seeds it is composed of more than one part. If you were able to slice a single kernel open, you would discover three main layers, each of which plays a part in the making of flour.

The outermost layer is the bran, a tough coat that shelters the seed. Bran is abundant in fiber and gives whole wheat bread its darker color as well as a slightly nutty taste. Tucked away at one end is the germ, a tiny bundle that could develop into a new wheat plant. It contains natural oils and a number of vitamins. Filling most of the kernel is the endosperm, a starchy white center that would nourish the young plant if the seed were sown.

When a miller grinds wheat, the parts can either be kept together or sorted apart. Whole wheat flour contains the bran, the germ and the endosperm alike. White flour, on the other hand, is made chiefly from the endosperm after the bran and germ have been sifted out, which explains why it is softer, paler and smoother.

There is one practical difference for the kitchen. The oils in the germ can slowly turn stale, so whole wheat flour generally spoils sooner than white flour. Cooks therefore store it in a cool place and tend to use it within a few months, whereas white flour, having lost its germ, remains fresh for far longer.

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 kernel, bran, endosperm, miller and sifted 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 "Three Parts Inside a Grain of Wheat"?

It was written for 6th grade. It has 222 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 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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