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Two Ways to Build a Mosaic Floor

6th grade nonfiction passage about mosaic artist methods: 229 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

6th grade nonfiction mosaic artist methods 229 words

Two Ways to Build a Mosaic Floor

A mosaic is a picture made from hundreds or thousands of tiny pieces. The pieces, often called tesserae, may be cut from stone, glass, or ceramic. Some mosaics made by Roman workers long ago are still on floors today, which shows how well the craft can last.

A mosaic artist usually chooses between two methods. In the direct method, the artist presses each piece straight into a soft bed of cement or glue on the surface where the mosaic will stay. This lets the artist see the picture as it grows and change a piece if it looks wrong. It works well on walls and on shapes that curve, because the artist is already working in the right place.

The indirect method is different. The artist glues the pieces face down onto a sheet of paper that holds the design in reverse. Later, workers carry the paper to the final site and press it into the cement, then wash away the paper to reveal the pieces. This makes it easier to build large mosaics in a workshop and to keep the surface flat. The artist, however, cannot see the front of the picture until the end.

Whichever method is used, the artist cuts each piece with nippers and leaves narrow gaps between them. Those gaps are filled with grout, which locks everything together and gives the picture clear edges.

Questions

  1. What are tesserae? in the text

  2. In the direct method, where does the artist press the pieces? in the text

  3. In the indirect method, how are the pieces first placed on the paper? in the text

  4. What is one good thing about the direct method? in the text

  5. Why might an artist choose the indirect method for a very large floor? think about it

  6. What is the main drawback of the indirect method? think about it

Words to know

mosaic
a picture made of many small pieces fitted together
tesserae
the tiny pieces used to make a mosaic
nippers
a tool with sharp jaws used to snip small pieces
grout
a paste that fills the gaps between tiles
reverse
turned the opposite way, like a mirror image
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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 · 218 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.1

A mosaic is a picture made of many tiny pieces. The pieces are called tesserae. They may be cut from stone, glass, or clay. Some mosaics made by Roman workers long ago are still on floors today. That shows how long the craft can last.

An artist can pick one of two ways to build a mosaic. In the direct way, the artist presses each piece into a soft bed of cement or glue. The bed is right where the mosaic will stay. The artist can see the picture grow. If a piece looks wrong, the artist can change it. This way works well on walls and on curved shapes.

The indirect way is not the same. The artist glues the pieces face down on paper. The design on the paper is in reverse. Later, workers carry the paper to the final place and press it into the cement. Then they wash off the paper to show the pieces. This way makes it easy to build big mosaics in a workshop. It also keeps the surface flat. But the artist cannot see the front of the picture until the end.

With either way, the artist cuts each piece with nippers. The artist leaves small gaps between the pieces. Grout fills the gaps and locks the picture in place.

▲ This passage · 229 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 7

A mosaic is a picture made from hundreds or thousands of tiny pieces. The pieces, often called tesserae, may be cut from stone, glass, or ceramic. Some mosaics made by Roman workers long ago are still on floors today, which shows how well the craft can last.

A mosaic artist usually chooses between two methods. In the direct method, the artist presses each piece straight into a soft bed of cement or glue on the surface where the mosaic will stay. This lets the artist see the picture as it grows and change a piece if it looks wrong. It works well on walls and on shapes that curve, because the artist is already working in the right place.

The indirect method is different. The artist glues the pieces face down onto a sheet of paper that holds the design in reverse. Later, workers carry the paper to the final site and press it into the cement, then wash away the paper to reveal the pieces. This makes it easier to build large mosaics in a workshop and to keep the surface flat. The artist, however, cannot see the front of the picture until the end.

Whichever method is used, the artist cuts each piece with nippers and leaves narrow gaps between them. Those gaps are filled with grout, which locks everything together and gives the picture clear edges.

■ Harder · 242 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 8.7

A mosaic is a picture assembled from hundreds or even thousands of tiny pieces. These pieces, frequently called tesserae, may be cut from stone, glass, or ceramic. Certain mosaics created by Roman workers long ago are still visible on floors today, which demonstrates how remarkably durable the craft can be.

A mosaic artist usually chooses between two methods. In the direct method, the artist presses each piece straight into a soft bed of cement or glue on the very surface where the mosaic will remain. This approach allows the artist to watch the picture take shape and to replace any piece that looks wrong. It works especially well on walls and on curved shapes, because the artist is already working in exactly the right place.

The indirect method is quite different. The artist glues the pieces face down onto a sheet of paper that carries the design in reverse. Later, workers transport the paper to the final site, press it into the cement, and wash the paper away to reveal the pieces. This makes it far easier to construct large mosaics in a workshop and to keep the surface perfectly flat. The disadvantage is that the artist cannot see the front of the picture until the very end.

Whichever method is chosen, the artist cuts each piece with nippers and leaves narrow gaps between them. Those gaps are filled with grout, which binds everything together and gives the picture crisp, clear edges.

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 mosaic, tesserae, nippers, grout and reverse 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 "Two Ways to Build a Mosaic Floor"?

It was written for 6th grade. It has 229 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 7.0. 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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