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The Substitute and the Silent Bell

7th grade fiction passage about school and kindness: 290 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

7th grade fiction school and kindness 290 words

The Substitute and the Silent Bell

On the morning the school bell broke, nobody remembered to inform Mr. Lindqvist, the new substitute teacher. He sat at the front of room 14 with his lesson plan, patiently waiting for the bell to ring, while the hallway outside gradually filled with noise. Students drifted into the room, some early and some late, and no two clocks seemed to agree on the time.

Jada watched him glance nervously at his watch. She remembered her own first day at a new school, when she had wandered into the wrong classroom and nobody had offered a single word of help.

She walked to the front of the room and explained quietly that the bell was broken and that the office had asked everyone to follow the clock on the wall. Mr. Lindqvist looked relieved and thanked her, admitting that nobody had mentioned it. Jada added that class began at 8:15, that attendance came first, and that the supply closet behind the door held extra markers if he needed them.

She returned to her seat expecting to feel proud, but a classmate named Carter smirked and whispered, "Teacher's pet." Her face grew hot, and she almost wished that she had stayed silent. Yet when she looked up, she saw Mr. Lindqvist calmly explaining the lesson, and the whole room felt orderly and settled. Without a few helpful words, the class might have dissolved into chaos.

At the end of the period, he stopped her at the door and confessed that he had been dreading the day, and that her help had made everything easier. He asked for her name, and she told him. Then she walked into the noisy hallway with her head held high, deciding that being kind was worth a little teasing.

Questions

  1. What was different about the school day in the story? in the text

  2. What did Jada tell Mr. Lindqvist to follow instead of the bell? in the text

  3. What did Carter say to Jada? in the text

  4. Why did Jada decide to help the substitute? think about it

  5. How did Mr. Lindqvist feel about the day before Jada helped him? think about it

  6. What choice did Jada make at the end of the story, and why? think about it

Words to know

substitute
a person who takes another person's place for a time
attendance
the act of checking who is present
nervously
in a worried or uneasy way
orderly
neat and well organized
chaos
complete confusion and disorder
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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 · 271 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.4

On the morning the school bell broke, nobody told Mr. Lindqvist. He was the new substitute teacher. He sat at the front of room 14 with his lesson plan and waited for the bell to ring. Out in the hall, the noise grew louder. Students came into the room, some early and some late. No two clocks said the same time.

Jada watched him look at his watch. He seemed nervous. She remembered her own first day at a new school. She had gone into the wrong classroom, and nobody had said a word to help.

She walked to the front and spoke softly. She told him the bell was broken. The office had said to follow the clock on the wall. Mr. Lindqvist looked relieved. He thanked her and said nobody had told him. Jada added that class began at 8:15. She said attendance came first. She told him the supply closet behind the door had extra markers.

She went back to her seat. She expected to feel proud. But a classmate named Carter smirked and whispered, "Teacher's pet." Her face grew hot. She almost wished she had stayed quiet. Then she looked up. Mr. Lindqvist was calmly teaching, and the room felt orderly. Without a few helpful words, the class might have been a mess.

At the end of the period, he stopped her at the door. He said he had been dreading the day, and her help made it easier. He asked her name, and she told him. Then she walked into the noisy hall with her head held high. She decided that being kind was worth a little teasing.

▲ This passage · 290 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 7.8

On the morning the school bell broke, nobody remembered to inform Mr. Lindqvist, the new substitute teacher. He sat at the front of room 14 with his lesson plan, patiently waiting for the bell to ring, while the hallway outside gradually filled with noise. Students drifted into the room, some early and some late, and no two clocks seemed to agree on the time.

Jada watched him glance nervously at his watch. She remembered her own first day at a new school, when she had wandered into the wrong classroom and nobody had offered a single word of help.

She walked to the front of the room and explained quietly that the bell was broken and that the office had asked everyone to follow the clock on the wall. Mr. Lindqvist looked relieved and thanked her, admitting that nobody had mentioned it. Jada added that class began at 8:15, that attendance came first, and that the supply closet behind the door held extra markers if he needed them.

She returned to her seat expecting to feel proud, but a classmate named Carter smirked and whispered, "Teacher's pet." Her face grew hot, and she almost wished that she had stayed silent. Yet when she looked up, she saw Mr. Lindqvist calmly explaining the lesson, and the whole room felt orderly and settled. Without a few helpful words, the class might have dissolved into chaos.

At the end of the period, he stopped her at the door and confessed that he had been dreading the day, and that her help had made everything easier. He asked for her name, and she told him. Then she walked into the noisy hallway with her head held high, deciding that being kind was worth a little teasing.

■ Harder · 294 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 9.2

On the morning the school bell malfunctioned, nobody remembered to inform Mr. Lindqvist, the newly arrived substitute teacher. He sat at the front of room 14 clutching his lesson plan, patiently awaiting a ring that would never come, while the corridor outside gradually swelled with chatter. Students trickled into the room, some early and some late, and no two clocks seemed capable of agreeing on the time.

Jada observed him glancing apprehensively at his watch. She recalled her own first day at a new school, when she had wandered into the wrong classroom and nobody had offered a single syllable of guidance.

She crossed to the front of the room and explained quietly that the bell was broken and that the office had instructed everyone to follow the clock on the wall. Mr. Lindqvist looked immensely relieved and thanked her, admitting that nobody had mentioned it. Jada added that class began at 8:15, that attendance came first, and that the supply closet behind the door contained extra markers if he required them.

She returned to her seat anticipating a glow of pride, but a classmate named Carter smirked and whispered, "Teacher's pet." Her face burned, and she nearly wished that she had remained silent. Yet when she looked up, she saw Mr. Lindqvist serenely explaining the lesson, and the entire room felt orderly and settled. Without a few helpful words, the class might easily have dissolved into chaos.

At the end of the period, he stopped her at the door and confessed that he had been dreading the day, and that her assistance had made everything easier. He asked for her name, and she told him. Then she strode into the noisy hallway with her head held high, resolving that kindness was worth a little teasing.

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 substitute, attendance, nervously, orderly and chaos 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 4 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 Substitute and the Silent Bell"?

It was written for 7th grade. It has 290 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 7.8. 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. 3 ask for something the text says directly and 3 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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