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Lemon Makes a Sour Face

Kindergarten nonfiction passage about the sour taste: 52 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

Kindergarten nonfiction the sour taste 52 words

Lemon Makes a Sour Face

A lemon is yellow and bumpy. It smells fresh. I lick a drop of lemon juice.

Oh! It is sour. My lips scrunch up. My eyes squeeze shut. I make a funny face.

Now Dad mixes the juice with water and a little sugar. It is lemonade. It tastes sour and sweet.

Questions

  1. What color is a lemon? in the text

  2. How does the lemon juice taste? in the text

  3. What happens to my lips? in the text

  4. What does Dad mix with the juice? in the text

  5. Why does the lemonade taste sweet too? think about it

Words to know

lemon
a yellow fruit with a very sour taste
sour
a sharp taste that makes your lips scrunch
sweet
a taste like sugar or honey
scrunch
to squeeze up tight
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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 · 42 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.1

A lemon is yellow. It smells fresh. I lick a drop of juice.

Oh! It is sour. My lips scrunch up. I make a funny face.

Dad mixes the juice with water and sugar. It is lemonade. It is sour and sweet.

▲ This passage · 52 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.6

A lemon is yellow and bumpy. It smells fresh. I lick a drop of lemon juice.

Oh! It is sour. My lips scrunch up. My eyes squeeze shut. I make a funny face.

Now Dad mixes the juice with water and a little sugar. It is lemonade. It tastes sour and sweet.

■ Harder · 58 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.1

A lemon is yellow and bumpy, and it smells fresh. I lick a single drop of lemon juice.

Oh! It tastes very sour. My lips scrunch up, my eyes squeeze shut, and I make a funny face.

Then Dad mixes the juice with cold water and a little sugar. That makes lemonade, which tastes both sour and sweet.

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 lemon, sour, sweet and scrunch 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 under a minute 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 "Lemon Makes a Sour Face"?

It was written for Kindergarten. It has 52 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 0.6. 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 five. 4 ask for something the text says directly and 1 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?

Under a minute 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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