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Ks3 Reading comprehension worksheets

Reading to interpret

Reading comprehension: finding evidence in a text

Understanding text: purpose and target audience

Finding clues in text

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KS2 KS3 literacy English reading comprehension close reading worksheet horror gothic inference

Subject: English

Age range: 11-14

Resource type: Worksheet/Activity

Last updated

5 July 2021

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These worksheets are designed to practice close reading skills. Each sheet has a very short (2-5 sentences) extract from a gothic horror story, followed by some simple comprehension (mainly recall and inference) questions that require close reading of the short extract. Ideal for Year 5, year 6, year 7, year 8.

The extracts use high-quality vocabulary and language, and would also be useful for demonstrating the use of similes, personification, withholding information from the reader, dramatic writing techniques etc.

The extracts come from a short young adult gothic horror(ish) story. They are NOT scary, but they hint at a darkness that the children in my very high-attaining year 5 class relished.

There are 4 sheets in all, but they could be condensed. I recommend doing all sheets together, as the children really enjoyed the building tension, the gradual revealing of the plot and the new mysteries that arose in each extract. You could also copy the extracts and questions onto a slideshow/smartboard, to read and answer the questions together as a whole class.

With my year 5 class, we read each extract together. We worked through the first set of questions as a class, to model how to approach the task. The children absolutely adored the extracts, and to this day they still beg me to tell them what happens at the end!

As a follow-up, the students BEGGED to write a continuation/prequel to the story. We spent a subsequent lesson considering ways of building tension and foreshadowing, and then wrote our own stories. They loved it! :)

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shaimaaabdallah35

Really useful.

Empty reply does not make any sense for the end user

Really useful. So little text to read and such pertinent questions. I would love more like these!

classicscen

Perfect for short sharp sessions on inference. Thank you.

Thank you for a well thought out resource!

Great text and questions to support retrieval and inference

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Here are a bunch of free reading comprehension worksheets. These will help students master reading skills. You can print, edit, or complete these worksheets online . Try the nonfiction or short story reading worksheets to cover general reading skills. Or focus on specific reading skills like making predictions .

Nonfiction Passages with Questions

• Story Structure Worksheets
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Making Predictions Worksheets

All Nonfiction Passages

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324 Comments

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Since comprehension questions in our part of the world are not mcqs – they are usuallyquestions which require short answers – I usually dowload the passages and prepare my own questions, with maybe one or two mcqs from your question bank thrown in. Thus, my students cannot find answers and it makes them do the hard work of comprehending the passages.

I also underline some of the words and phrases and ask them to find words or phrases which mean the same and can replace them in the passage – that’s another important component of questions asked on reading comprehension passages in my part of the world, Ghana. Maybe those complaining about cheaters can use some of these strategies. They can also tweak the questions on this site to do away with cheating.

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Keshia Cabriole

Good Morning may we use the Redwoods and Arm Races Story for our study? I would like to say that the story and questionnaire will be a big help if you allow us to use your story to our study.

Of course. Best wishes!

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Malik Radwan

These comprehensions were really helpful in studying It would be great if you would add poetry comprehensions too (the ones that ask for literary elements) Really thank you.

Do you mean poems with questions like these ?

Jornalyn N. Agapito

Thank you so much for this reading material. It was great help to my students to develop love in reading.

You’re such an amazing person! Thank you for sharing these materials. They helped me a lot as an ELA middle school teacher. May God bless you!

Excellent passages

I am looking for material for a 10-12 reading comprehension class. Your materials are great, but a lower interest level from HS students. Any suggestions for upper levels?

Thanks so much for sharing these wonderful worksheets!

JHANNET VELÁSQUEZ

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Delores J. Mayes

My students has searched and found the answer keys to these readings. I wish there was a way the teacher’s could sign in for the content and keep the cheaters from having the honest kids miss out on these readings. What has our world gone to. This is so sad that my students would copy answers word for word and expect to get a 100% as well as their parents. We are growing a nation of untruth and cheaters.

Yeah, that is pretty frustrating.

It’s tough to keep the content free and open while preventing students from finding the answers.

One thing that might help is downloading the .RTF file and editing the titles of the assignments. A persistent student will still be able to find the answers, but that may make it a little harder.

Also, remember, cheaters are only cheating themselves! And the system and everyone else too, but mainly themselves! Best wishes!

Hi Ma’am Dolores. That happened to me years ago during the MDL (modular distance learning) in our country, Philippines. You know what I did, I shorten my URLs and add number 1 at the end of it. This way, they can no longer trace my resources.

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Thank you very much Mr.Morton for providing such good reading texts . You have a big heart to share the resources without expecting nothing in return. I’m a teacher and it has been a great help to me in preparing reading materials for my students. Thank you!

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Do more worksheets for Grades 1-5.

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