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Quipu: The Inca Records Tied in Knots

7th grade nonfiction passage about inca knotted cord records: 257 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

7th grade nonfiction inca knotted cord records 257 words

Quipu: The Inca Records Tied in Knots

The Inca ruled a huge mountain empire in South America during the 1400s and early 1500s, yet they had no written alphabet that scholars have found. Instead, their officials kept records with quipus, which were bundles of colored cords tied with knots. A quipu had one long main cord, and many thinner cords hung down from it like a fringe.

The knots were the key to the system. Their type, their position along a cord, and the color of the cord could all carry meaning. Experts believe that many quipus recorded numbers, because the knots were arranged to show ones, tens, and hundreds in a decimal system much like the one we use today. A cord with a few knots near the bottom and more knots higher up could stand for a precise count of llamas, bags of corn, or workers.

Specially trained record keepers made and read these cords. They traveled along the empire's mountain roads and reported on the goods stored in warehouses and on how many people lived in each district. Because a quipu was light, a runner could carry one across a high pass much faster than he could carry a heavy load of anything else.

Some scholars think a few quipus may also have held names or stories, not only numbers, but nobody has fully decoded them. Most were made of cotton or the wool of llamas and alpacas, and only a fraction survive in museums today. How to read the rest remains a puzzle that researchers are still working to solve.

Questions

  1. What did Inca officials use to keep their records? in the text

  2. Which three features of a cord could carry meaning? in the text

  3. What did many quipus record? in the text

  4. Who made and read the cords? in the text

  5. Why was a quipu a good way to send information across the mountains? think about it

  6. Why do researchers still not fully understand quipus? think about it

Words to know

empire
a large area with many peoples ruled by one government
scholars
people who study a subject very carefully
decimal
based on groups of ten
district
a part of a country or region
decoded
figured out the meaning of a secret or unknown system
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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 · 180 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.6

The Inca ruled a big empire in the mountains of South America. They did not have a written alphabet that scholars have found. So their officials kept records with quipus. A quipu was a bundle of colored cords with knots.

A quipu had one long main cord. Many thin cords hung down from it. The knots were the key. The type of knot, where it sat on a cord, and the color of the cord could all have meaning.

Experts think many quipus showed numbers. The knots showed ones, tens, and hundreds, like the numbers we use now. A cord could stand for a count of llamas, bags of corn, or workers.

Trained record keepers made and read the cords. They traveled the mountain roads. They told what was in the warehouses and how many people lived in each district. A quipu was light, so a runner could carry it fast.

Some scholars think a few quipus held names or stories. Nobody has fully decoded them. Only a few survive today. How to read the rest is still a puzzle.

▲ This passage · 257 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 8.6

The Inca ruled a huge mountain empire in South America during the 1400s and early 1500s, yet they had no written alphabet that scholars have found. Instead, their officials kept records with quipus, which were bundles of colored cords tied with knots. A quipu had one long main cord, and many thinner cords hung down from it like a fringe.

The knots were the key to the system. Their type, their position along a cord, and the color of the cord could all carry meaning. Experts believe that many quipus recorded numbers, because the knots were arranged to show ones, tens, and hundreds in a decimal system much like the one we use today. A cord with a few knots near the bottom and more knots higher up could stand for a precise count of llamas, bags of corn, or workers.

Specially trained record keepers made and read these cords. They traveled along the empire's mountain roads and reported on the goods stored in warehouses and on how many people lived in each district. Because a quipu was light, a runner could carry one across a high pass much faster than he could carry a heavy load of anything else.

Some scholars think a few quipus may also have held names or stories, not only numbers, but nobody has fully decoded them. Most were made of cotton or the wool of llamas and alpacas, and only a fraction survive in museums today. How to read the rest remains a puzzle that researchers are still working to solve.

■ Harder · 277 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 10.1

At the height of its power in the 1400s and early 1500s, the Inca empire stretched along the mountain spine of South America, yet scholars have found no evidence that its people used a written alphabet. In place of letters, the empire's officials relied on quipus, which were elaborate bundles of colored cords fastened with knots. Each quipu had one long main cord, and many thinner cords hung down from it like a fringe.

The knots were the heart of the system. Their type, their position along a cord, and the color of the cord could each carry a separate meaning. Experts believe that many quipus recorded numbers, because the knots were arranged to show ones, tens, and hundreds in a decimal system remarkably similar to our own. A cord with a few knots near the bottom and more knots higher up could stand for a precise count of llamas, bags of corn, or laborers.

Specially trained record keepers made and interpreted these cords. They traveled along the empire's mountain roads and reported on the goods stored in warehouses, as well as on how many people lived in each district. Since a quipu weighed very little, a runner could carry one across a high pass far faster than he could haul any heavy load.

Some scholars suspect that a few quipus may also have preserved names or stories, not only numbers, although nobody has managed to decode them completely. Most were woven from cotton or from the wool of llamas and alpacas, and only a small fraction survive in museums today. Learning to read the remainder is a puzzle that researchers are still working patiently to solve.

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 empire, scholars, decimal, district and decoded 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 "Quipu: The Inca Records Tied in Knots"?

It was written for 7th grade. It has 257 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 8.6. 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.

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