Center for Urban Education: Resources

One-Page Reading/Thinking Passages Aligned with Core Priorities

FICTION Readings to Develop or Assess Comprehensive Reading Skills

These passages are listed at their readability level according to the Fry formula. 

However, you may want to use a reading from an earlier grade level because the

formula does not factor in conceptual difficulty of a text.

For comprehensive development:

Use these Comprehensive Fiction Reading Questions to guide/assess student interpretation of any fiction

This is an expanded set of Fiction Reading Questions to guide/assess any reading

High School Fiction Comprehensive Assessment

Graphic Organizers to Guide/Assess Fiction Reading
A graphic organizer is an open analytic question!

ONE PAGE READINGS

2nd-3rd Grade

Resources to Guide/Assess Fiction Reading Aligned with Common Core Standards

One-Page Readings

These passages are listed at their readability level according to the Fry formula.
However, you may want to use a reading from an earlier grade level because the
formula does not factor in conceptual difficulty of a text.

2nd Grade

The Ants and the Grasshopper*
This passage has been selected for use in PARCC diagnostic assessments. If your school is in a PARCC state, we recommend that you do not use this reading passage in instruction.

A Better Community

The Big Game

The Boy Who Cried "Wolf!"

Changing Our Street (realistic fiction)

Community Meeting

Community Progress

The First Flag

Flying

How the Firefly Got Its Light

Letter to Grandmother

Little Pink Riding Hood English / Spanish 

The Little Red Hen

Making Progress

Mama's Happy Christmas

More Trees

My Community

My First Baseball Game

My Job

My New Brother

My Sister, the Soldier

My Summer

The New Family

Our Lemons

Prairie Farmers

Potawatomi Prairie

See Our Progress

Spring is Coming

The Turtle and the Rabbit

The Turtle and the Ducks

Why Did Mamma Change Her Mind?

3rd Grade

The Ants and the Grasshopper*
This passage has been selected for use in PARCC diagnostic assessments. If your school is in a PARCC state, we recommend that you do not use this reading passage in instruction.

A Better Community

The Big Game

The Boy Who Cried "Wolf!"

Changing Our Street (realistic fiction)

Community Meeting

Community Meeting  (Realistic Fiction about Choices)

Community Progress

The First Flag

Flying

How the Firefly Got Its Light

Letter to Grandmother

Little Pink Riding Hood English / Spanish 

The Little Red Hen

Making Progress

Mama's Happy Christmas

More Trees

My Community

My First Baseball Game

My First Baseball Game with Questions and Answer Key

My Job

My New Brother

My Sister, the Soldier

My Summer

The New Family

Our Lemons

Prairie Farmers      Multiple Choice Questions based on Prairie Farmers

Potawatomi Prairie

See Our Progress

Spring is Coming

The Turtle and the Rabbit

The Turtle and the Ducks

Why Did Mamma Change Her Mind?

Reading Resources
Click Here for graphic organizers to guide and assess reading competence.
Scroll down for additional grade levels

*This passage has been selected for use in PARCC diagnostic assessments. If your school is in a PARCC state, we recommend that you do not use this reading passage in instruction.

4th Grade

Resources to Guide/Assess Fiction Reading Aligned with Common Core Standards

One-Page Readings

These passages are listed at their readability level according to the Fry formula.
However, you may want to use a reading from an earlier grade level because the
formula does not factor in conceptual difficulty of a text.

The Astronaut's Diary

The Challenge

Changing Transportation Routes

The Different Bird

The Election

The Food Change

The Gift

The Hero

The History Mystery

I Like Plants

The Lion and the Spider*
This passage has been selected for use in PARCC diagnostic assessments. If your school is in a PARCC state, we recommend that you do not use this reading passage in instruction.

The Little Red Hen

Letter from Chicago

Lincoln's Choice

Making a Difference

The Missing Money

My Community

My Cousin's Lesson

My Father's Miracle

My First Baseball Game with Questions and Answer Key

My New President

My Painting

The New Student

A New Day  Realistic Fiction about the Election of Barack Obama and Civil Rights

Pigeon Express*
This passage has been selected for use in PARCC diagnostic assessments. If your school is in a PARCC state, we recommend that you do not use this reading passage in instruction.

Potawatomi Prairie

Prairie Farmers     Multiple Choice Questions based on Prairie Farmers

The Prairie Project

A Proud Flight   The story of Icarus

The Quarterback

Summer

The Technology Trip

The Train

Traveling with Lewis and Clark

Why Did Mamma Change Her Mind?

Reading Resources
Click Here for graphic organizers to guide and assess reading competence.
Scroll down for additional grade levels

*This passage has been selected for use in PARCC diagnostic assessments. If your school is in a PARCC state, we recommend that you do not use this reading passage in instruction.

5th Grade

Resources to Guide/Assess Fiction Reading Aligned with Common Core Standards

One-Page Readings

These passages are listed at their readability level according to the Fry formula.
However, you may want to use a reading from an earlier grade level because the
formula does not factor in conceptual difficulty of a text.

The Cloud*
This passage has been selected for use in PARCC diagnostic assessments. If your school is in a PARCC state, we recommend that you do not use this reading passage in instruction.

Columbus and the Egg  historical fiction

The Difficult Journey*
This passage has been selected for use in PARCC diagnostic assessments. If your school is in a PARCC state, we recommend that you do not use this reading passage in instruction.

The Elves and the Shoemaker

Flying

The Gulls of Salt Lake

I Like Plants

The Journey: A New President

Making Progress

Mama's Happy Christmas

More Trees

Mousie

My First Baseball Game with Questions and Answer Key

My Job

My New Brother

Nature's Violet Children

Potawatomi Prairie

Soldier's Letter

The Technology Trip

Training for the Presidency

Reading Resources
Click Here for graphic organizers to guide and assess reading competence.
Scroll down for additional grade levels

*This passage has been selected for use in PARCC diagnostic assessments. If your school is in a PARCC state, we recommend that you do not use this reading passage in instruction.

6th Grade

Resources to Guide/Assess Fiction Reading Aligned with Common Core Standards

One-Page Readings

These passages are listed at their readability level according to the Fry formula.
However, you may want to use a reading from an earlier grade level because the
formula does not factor in conceptual difficulty of a text.

City Mouse--a Fable

Community Progress    realistic fiction about a mural

The Elves and the Shoemaker

The First Flag

A Good Student realistic fiction about starting high school

A Great Digger--A North American Fable

His First Dollar historical fiction about Abraham Lincoln

Letter to Grandmother

The Lost Dog

My First Baseball Game with Questions and Answer Key

Potawatomi Prairie

See Our Progress

Sir Gobble

Reading Resources
Click Here for graphic organizers to guide and assess reading competence.
Scroll down for additional grade levels

7th Grade

Resources to Guide/Assess Fiction Reading Aligned with Common Core Standards

One-Page Readings

These passages are listed at their readability level according to the Fry formula.
However, you may want to use a reading from an earlier grade level because the
formula does not factor in conceptual difficulty of a text.

Columbus and the Egg historical fiction about an event showing Columbus as a smart person

A Good Student  realistic fiction about starting high school

I Like Plants

John's Bright Idea

Making a Difference

My Father's Miracle

My First Baseball Game

My First Baseball Game with Questions and Answer Key

My Painting

My Summer

Potawatomi Prairie

The Red Apples

The Train Ride

Reading Resources
Click Here for graphic organizers to guide and assess reading competence.
Scroll down for additional grade levels

8th-10th Grade

Resources to Guide/Assess Fiction Reading Aligned with Common Core Standards

One-Page Readings

These passages are listed at their readability level according to the Fry formula.
However, you may want to use a reading from an earlier grade level because the
formula does not factor in conceptual difficulty of a text.

The Difficult Journey*
This passage has been selected for use in PARCC diagnostic assessments. If your school is in a PARCC state, we recommend that you do not use this reading passage in instruction.

The Gulls of Salt Lake

Lexington

My First Baseball Game with Questions and Answer Key

My Job

My New President

My Sister, the Soldier

Potawatomi Prairie

See Our Progress

Training for the Presidency

Reading Resources
Click Here for graphic organizers to guide and assess reading competence.
Scroll up for additional grade levels

*This passage has been selected for use in PARCC diagnostic assessments. If your school is in a PARCC state, we recommend that you do not use this reading passage in instruction.