Improve reading comprehension with this free Ruby Bridges worksheet pack!
Each time I ask my blog readers what they’d like to see next, I get many requests for reading comprehension activities. I’ve done a reading comprehension series with This Reading Mama about helping kids understand what they read. But apart from my close reading freebies, I haven’t provided many printables for improving reading comprehension.
This is the first in a series of reading comprehension passages designed for children in grades 2-4. The content will also be appropriate for older, struggling learners.
In the download you’ll find a reading comprehension passage and two sets of questions. This is the first in a series of passages about famous historical figures.
Before my Nine (a new fourth grader) read the passage, I asked what she knew about Ruby Bridges. She shared a short sentence about what she’d read in a library book, but she knew very little.
I didn’t attempt to build her background knowledge because I knew she’d get the information she needed in the reading passage.
I asked her to read it aloud.
Next, I pulled out one set of questions. (You’ll get two in the download). I chose the second set of questions since I knew she was able to handle the more difficult ones.
As my daughter worked through the questions, I often asked her to highlight where she found her answers before she wrote them on the page.
As she worked, she used nonfiction text features such as bold print and captions to help her find her answers.
The final question was a “why do you think” question. When she answered it without looking at the passage for an answer, I asked, “Why didn’t you need to use the story to answer the question?”
She thought about it for a second and replied, “Because it said why do you think.”
Bingo! Not only will this series help kids learn to find answers that are “right there,” but they will also improve at their ability to think beyond the text.
Get your free Ruby Bridges reading passage!
IF YOU LIKE THIS PASSAGE, YOU’LL LOVE THE FULL SET!
36 Reading Comprehension Passages about Famous People
This bundle includes differentiated reading passages about 12 famous people. For each person, you will receive three different reading passages (low, medium, and high reading level) for students in second and third grade. They’re great for advanced first grade readers as well!