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The Map Written in Mirror Letters

7th grade fiction passage about a backward map in a sketchbook: 266 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

7th grade fiction a backward map in a sketchbook 266 words

The Map Written in Mirror Letters

Leila found the sketchbook at the bottom of a cedar chest in her grandmother's spare room, and most of its pages held delicate drawings of flowers. One page, however, showed a small map of a yard, with squares and arrows and a tidy line of writing along the bottom edge. She could not read a single word of it.

"The letters are facing the wrong way," she told her grandmother. "It looks like some kind of secret code."

Her grandmother laughed and went to find a hand mirror. "Your great-aunt Odile wrote that way on purpose," she explained. "She said it made an ordinary garden plan feel like a treasure hunt." Leila held the mirror beside the page, and the reversed words turned around at once. They read, "Seven steps from the pear tree, then look under the blue bench."

The next morning Leila walked seven careful steps from the old pear tree, which still leaned over the back fence, and she counted a second time to be certain. Then she knelt beside the faded bench and dug into the soft soil with a spoon.

Her spoon struck a tin box that had been wrapped in a plastic bag. Inside were dozens of paper envelopes, each one labeled in mirror writing with the name of a flower. "Seeds," her grandmother whispered. "Odile saved them from every garden she ever loved."

They planted the first envelope that same afternoon. Leila said she could hardly wait for spring, and for the first time she understood why a person might choose to hide something precious in the ground.

Questions

  1. Where did Leila find the sketchbook? in the text

  2. Why could Leila not read the writing at first? in the text

  3. How did Leila read the hidden message? in the text

  4. What did Leila find buried under the bench? in the text

  5. Why did Great-aunt Odile write in mirror letters? think about it

  6. What can you tell about Odile from the box she buried? think about it

Words to know

sketchbook
a book of blank pages used for drawing
cedar
a kind of tree whose wood has a strong, pleasant smell
reversed
turned around so that it faces the other way
labeled
marked with a name or short description
whispered
spoke in a very soft, quiet voice
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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 · 223 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.8

Leila found a sketchbook at the bottom of a cedar chest. It was in her grandmother's spare room. Most pages had drawings of flowers. One page had a small map of a yard. It had squares and arrows. A line of writing ran along the bottom. Leila could not read a word.

"The letters face the wrong way," she told her grandmother. "It looks like a code."

Her grandmother laughed and got a hand mirror. "Your great-aunt Odile wrote that way on purpose. She said it made a garden plan feel like a treasure hunt." Leila held the mirror by the page. The words turned around. They said, "Seven steps from the pear tree, then look under the blue bench."

The next morning, Leila walked seven steps from the old pear tree. It still leaned over the back fence. She counted twice. Then she knelt by the faded bench. She dug in the soft soil with a spoon.

The spoon hit a tin box in a plastic bag. Inside were dozens of paper envelopes. Each one had the name of a flower in mirror writing. "Seeds," her grandmother whispered. "Odile saved them from every garden she loved."

They planted the first envelope that afternoon. Leila could hardly wait for spring. Now she knew why someone might hide something good in the ground.

▲ This passage · 266 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 5.9

Leila found the sketchbook at the bottom of a cedar chest in her grandmother's spare room, and most of its pages held delicate drawings of flowers. One page, however, showed a small map of a yard, with squares and arrows and a tidy line of writing along the bottom edge. She could not read a single word of it.

"The letters are facing the wrong way," she told her grandmother. "It looks like some kind of secret code."

Her grandmother laughed and went to find a hand mirror. "Your great-aunt Odile wrote that way on purpose," she explained. "She said it made an ordinary garden plan feel like a treasure hunt." Leila held the mirror beside the page, and the reversed words turned around at once. They read, "Seven steps from the pear tree, then look under the blue bench."

The next morning Leila walked seven careful steps from the old pear tree, which still leaned over the back fence, and she counted a second time to be certain. Then she knelt beside the faded bench and dug into the soft soil with a spoon.

Her spoon struck a tin box that had been wrapped in a plastic bag. Inside were dozens of paper envelopes, each one labeled in mirror writing with the name of a flower. "Seeds," her grandmother whispered. "Odile saved them from every garden she ever loved."

They planted the first envelope that same afternoon. Leila said she could hardly wait for spring, and for the first time she understood why a person might choose to hide something precious in the ground.

■ Harder · 285 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 7.3

Leila discovered the sketchbook at the very bottom of a cedar chest in her grandmother's spare room, and most of its pages displayed delicate pencil drawings of flowers. One particular page, however, contained a small map of a yard, complete with squares and arrows and a tidy line of writing running along the bottom edge. Although she squinted at it for several minutes, she could not read a single word.

"The letters are facing the wrong way," she told her grandmother. "It looks like some kind of secret code."

Her grandmother laughed and hurried off to find a hand mirror. "Your great-aunt Odile wrote that way on purpose," she explained. "She claimed that it made an ordinary garden plan feel like a genuine treasure hunt." Leila held the mirror beside the page, and the reversed words immediately turned around. They read, "Seven steps from the pear tree, then look under the blue bench."

The following morning Leila walked seven careful steps from the old pear tree, which still leaned over the back fence, and she counted a second time to be absolutely certain. Then she knelt beside the faded bench and dug into the soft soil with a spoon.

Her spoon struck a tin box that had been wrapped in a plastic bag. Inside lay dozens of paper envelopes, and each one was labeled in mirror writing with the name of a flower. "Seeds," her grandmother whispered. "Odile saved them from every garden that she ever loved."

They planted the first envelope that same afternoon. Leila declared that she could hardly wait for spring, and for the first time she truly understood why a person might choose to hide something precious in the ground.

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 sketchbook, cedar, reversed, labeled and whispered on the board with their meanings from the Words to know section and have students predict what the story 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 retell the story in three sentences: how it began, what the problem was, and how it ended.
  • Print the student copy for independent work and keep the answer-key copy for yourself.

Related

Questions

What reading level is "The Map Written in Mirror Letters"?

It was written for 7th grade. It has 266 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 5.9. 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.

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