Skip to the content
Peabody TeachFor teachers and grown-ups

Mending a Cracked Bowl with Powdered Gold

7th grade nonfiction passage about japanese pottery repair: 269 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

7th grade nonfiction japanese pottery repair 269 words

Mending a Cracked Bowl with Powdered Gold

Most people who break a favorite bowl sweep up the pieces and throw them away. In Japan, craftspeople developed another idea long ago. Called kintsugi, which means "golden joinery," it is a way of repairing broken pottery so that the cracks become a feature of the bowl rather than a flaw.

The work is slow. First the repairer collects every piece and cleans the broken edges. A natural lacquer, made from the sap of a certain tree, is used as the glue. The pieces are fitted together, and the lacquer is left to cure in a damp, protected space, a step that can take days. Extra bumps are smoothed down, and a thin line of fresh lacquer is painted along each crack. While it is still tacky, fine gold powder is dusted onto it. When the surface is polished, the seam shines like a bright river across the clay.

Why would anyone want to highlight damage? One answer is respect for the object. A bowl that has been used and cared for over many years has a history, and a repair shows that someone valued it enough to save it. Another reason is practical. Mending an old piece can be less wasteful than replacing it, especially when the original was handmade.

The idea has spread to workshops around the world, where people use it to repair mugs, plates and vases. Many learners find it surprisingly calming. Matching each shard takes patience, and one rushed move can spoil the work. The result is a piece that is not exactly like the original, but is often more interesting to look at.

Questions

  1. What does the word kintsugi mean? in the text

  2. What is used as the glue in traditional kintsugi? in the text

  3. What is dusted onto the lacquer line while it is still tacky? in the text

  4. Why is the lacquer left in a damp, protected space? in the text

  5. According to the passage, what does a gold repair say about a bowl? think about it

  6. Why might learners find kintsugi calming? think about it

Words to know

kintsugi
a Japanese way of mending pottery with gold
lacquer
a hard, shiny coating made from natural sap
cure
to harden or dry until strong
tacky
slightly sticky to the touch
shard
a broken piece of pottery or glass
Share

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 · 212 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4

Most people who break a favorite bowl throw the pieces away. In Japan, craftspeople had another idea long ago. It is called kintsugi, which means "golden joinery." It is a way to mend broken pottery so the cracks become a feature instead of a flaw.

The work is slow. First the repairer collects every piece and cleans the edges. A natural lacquer, made from tree sap, is the glue. The pieces are fitted together. The lacquer is left to cure in a damp, safe place. This can take days. Then a thin line of fresh lacquer is painted along each crack. While it is still sticky, fine gold powder is dusted on. When it is polished, the seam shines like a bright river.

Why show the damage? One answer is respect. A bowl that has been used for years has a history. A repair shows that someone cared enough to save it. Another reason is that mending an old piece wastes less than buying a new one.

The idea has spread around the world. People use it to mend mugs, plates and vases. Many find it calming. Each shard takes patience, and one rushed move can spoil the work. The bowl is not like the original, but it is often more interesting.

▲ This passage · 269 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 6.9

Most people who break a favorite bowl sweep up the pieces and throw them away. In Japan, craftspeople developed another idea long ago. Called kintsugi, which means "golden joinery," it is a way of repairing broken pottery so that the cracks become a feature of the bowl rather than a flaw.

The work is slow. First the repairer collects every piece and cleans the broken edges. A natural lacquer, made from the sap of a certain tree, is used as the glue. The pieces are fitted together, and the lacquer is left to cure in a damp, protected space, a step that can take days. Extra bumps are smoothed down, and a thin line of fresh lacquer is painted along each crack. While it is still tacky, fine gold powder is dusted onto it. When the surface is polished, the seam shines like a bright river across the clay.

Why would anyone want to highlight damage? One answer is respect for the object. A bowl that has been used and cared for over many years has a history, and a repair shows that someone valued it enough to save it. Another reason is practical. Mending an old piece can be less wasteful than replacing it, especially when the original was handmade.

The idea has spread to workshops around the world, where people use it to repair mugs, plates and vases. Many learners find it surprisingly calming. Matching each shard takes patience, and one rushed move can spoil the work. The result is a piece that is not exactly like the original, but is often more interesting to look at.

■ Harder · 285 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 8.5

Most people who break a favorite bowl simply sweep up the fragments and discard them. In Japan, however, craftspeople developed a very different philosophy long ago. Known as kintsugi, which means "golden joinery," it is a method of repairing broken pottery so that the cracks become a distinctive feature of the bowl rather than a flaw to be hidden.

The work is painstakingly slow. First the repairer gathers every piece and cleans the broken edges. A natural lacquer, made from the sap of a certain tree, serves as the adhesive. The pieces are fitted together, and the lacquer is left to cure in a damp, protected space, a stage that can last for several days. Surplus bumps are smoothed away, and a thin line of fresh lacquer is painted along each crack. While it is still tacky, fine gold powder is dusted over it. Once the surface has been polished, the seam glows like a bright river running across the clay.

Why would anyone choose to highlight damage? One answer is respect for the object itself. A bowl that has been used and cherished for many years carries a history, and a repair demonstrates that someone valued it enough to rescue it. A second reason is more practical: mending an old piece can be far less wasteful than replacing it, particularly when the original was made by hand.

The idea has since spread to workshops across the world, where people use it to restore mugs, plates and vases. Many learners find the work surprisingly calming. Matching each shard demands patience, and a single rushed movement can spoil everything. The result is not identical to the original, but it is frequently more interesting to look at.

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 kintsugi, lacquer, cure, tacky and shard 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 "Mending a Cracked Bowl with Powdered Gold"?

It was written for 7th grade. It has 269 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 6.9. 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 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.

Nothing you do here is sent to us. No sign-in, no ads.