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Crop Rotation Saves the Soil

8th grade nonfiction passage about farming and soil: 294 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

8th grade nonfiction farming and soil 294 words

Crop Rotation Saves the Soil

A farmer who plants the same crop in the same field year after year soon runs into trouble. Each crop takes certain nutrients from the soil, and the insects and diseases that feed on that crop build up in the field. The harvests grow smaller. For thousands of years, farmers have solved this problem with crop rotation, which means growing different crops in the same field in a planned order.

A common rotation includes a legume, such as beans, peas, or clover. Legume roots form partnerships with bacteria that live in small lumps called nodules. These bacteria can take nitrogen from the air and change it into a form that plants can use. When the legume dies back and its roots decay, some of that nitrogen stays in the soil for the next crop.

A farmer might follow a legume with corn, which needs a great deal of nitrogen, then with wheat, then leave the field in grass for a season. Because the insects and diseases that favor one crop do not thrive on another, changing the crop also breaks their cycle.

Rotation is not the only way to look after a field. Some farmers also plant a cover crop, such as clover or rye, between the main harvests so that the soil is never left bare. When the cover crop is turned into the ground, it adds plant material that feeds the tiny living things in the soil and improves its texture. Together, these habits help a farm stay productive for many years.

Rotation protects the soil itself, too. Different plants have roots of different depths, and fields with plants growing through more of the year lose less soil to wind and rain. Modern farms still use this old idea alongside other tools.

Questions

  1. What problem comes from planting the same crop in a field year after year? in the text

  2. What is crop rotation? in the text

  3. What do the bacteria in legume nodules do? in the text

  4. Why might a farmer plant corn after a legume? think about it

  5. How does changing the crop help against insects and diseases? in the text

  6. Why do fields with plants growing through more of the year lose less soil? think about it

Words to know

rotation
a planned order in which things take turns
legume
a plant such as a bean or pea that grows seeds in pods
nodules
small lumps on roots where helpful bacteria live
nitrogen
a nutrient that plants need in order to grow
decay
to break down slowly into smaller parts
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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 · 256 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.2

A farmer who grows the same crop in a field year after year gets into trouble. Each crop uses up certain things in the soil. Insects and sicknesses that feed on that crop also build up. The harvests get smaller.

For a very long time, farmers have fixed this with crop rotation. They grow different crops in the same field in a set order.

A good rotation has a legume, such as beans, peas, or clover. Legume roots live with bacteria in small lumps called nodules. The bacteria take nitrogen from the air and change it into a form plants can use. When the legume dies, some of that nitrogen stays in the soil for the next crop.

A farmer may plant corn after a legume, because corn needs a lot of nitrogen. Then comes wheat. Then the field rests in grass. The bugs and sicknesses that like one crop do not grow well on another, so changing crops stops them.

Rotation is not the only way to care for a field. Some farmers also plant a cover crop, such as clover or rye, between the main harvests. Then the soil is never left bare. When the cover crop is turned into the ground, it feeds the tiny living things in the soil and makes the soil better. Together, these habits help a farm stay good for many years.

Rotation also guards the soil. Plants have roots of different depths. Fields with plants growing for more of the year lose less soil to wind and rain.

▲ This passage · 294 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 7

A farmer who plants the same crop in the same field year after year soon runs into trouble. Each crop takes certain nutrients from the soil, and the insects and diseases that feed on that crop build up in the field. The harvests grow smaller. For thousands of years, farmers have solved this problem with crop rotation, which means growing different crops in the same field in a planned order.

A common rotation includes a legume, such as beans, peas, or clover. Legume roots form partnerships with bacteria that live in small lumps called nodules. These bacteria can take nitrogen from the air and change it into a form that plants can use. When the legume dies back and its roots decay, some of that nitrogen stays in the soil for the next crop.

A farmer might follow a legume with corn, which needs a great deal of nitrogen, then with wheat, then leave the field in grass for a season. Because the insects and diseases that favor one crop do not thrive on another, changing the crop also breaks their cycle.

Rotation is not the only way to look after a field. Some farmers also plant a cover crop, such as clover or rye, between the main harvests so that the soil is never left bare. When the cover crop is turned into the ground, it adds plant material that feeds the tiny living things in the soil and improves its texture. Together, these habits help a farm stay productive for many years.

Rotation protects the soil itself, too. Different plants have roots of different depths, and fields with plants growing through more of the year lose less soil to wind and rain. Modern farms still use this old idea alongside other tools.

■ Harder · 308 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 8.2

A farmer who plants the very same crop in the same field year after year soon runs into serious trouble. Every crop removes particular nutrients from the soil, and the insects and diseases that feed on that crop gradually build up in the field. As a result, the harvests grow steadily smaller. For thousands of years, farmers have addressed this problem through crop rotation, which means growing different crops in the same field in a carefully planned order.

A typical rotation includes a legume, such as beans, peas, or clover. Legume roots form partnerships with bacteria that live in small lumps called nodules. These bacteria are able to take nitrogen from the air and convert it into a form that plants can use. When the legume dies back and its roots decay, some of that nitrogen remains in the soil for the next crop.

A farmer might follow a legume with corn, which requires a great deal of nitrogen, then with wheat, and then leave the field in grass for a season. Because the insects and diseases that favor one crop do not thrive on another, changing the crop also interrupts their cycle.

Rotation is not the only way to look after a field. Some farmers also plant a cover crop, such as clover or rye, between the main harvests so that the soil is never left bare. When the cover crop is turned into the ground, it contributes plant material that feeds the tiny living things in the soil and improves its texture. Together, these habits help a farm remain productive for many years.

Rotation protects the soil itself as well. Different plants have roots of different depths, and fields where plants grow through more of the year lose less soil to wind and rain. Modern farms still rely on this ancient idea alongside many newer tools.

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 rotation, legume, nodules, nitrogen and decay 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 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 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 "Crop Rotation Saves the Soil"?

It was written for 8th grade. It has 294 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 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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