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Reading Strategies | Level C
Decoding Word Meanings
When you are asked about a word you don’t know, you need to decode it—figure it
out using what you do know. One good way to do this is to look for word parts—
prefixes, suffixes, and roots—that you already know. So, if you know that the prefix
uni- means one, then you can guess that a unicycle is a “cycle” with one wheel. You
can make sure that it works by using your definition in place of the word.
Words in Context
To understand a word in context means to know its meaning as it is used in the
sentence. Looking at how an unfamiliar word is used and what else is said about it
may give you clues that will help you decode its meaning. Context is also important
because words may have more than one meaning. To understand which meaning the
author meant to use, ask yourself what topic the author is writing about. Then use
your judgment to decide which definition makes the most sense. Don’t forget to
check your definition to see if it makes sense in the sentence.
Finding Details
All writing includes main ideas and details. Details are less important facts or ideas
that support the main (most important) idea. They explain how, where, when, why,
and what. Details might support an argument or explain the steps in a process. They
also might describe something, or tell more about what happened. To answer
questions about details, first ask yourself what idea the detail supports. Then jump to
that part of the passage to find the exact details you need.
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Text Structure
Some questions ask you to think about how a text is organized. You may need to
locate the main idea or identify text features such as titles or sections. You might be
asked about cause-and-effect (how one thing makes something else happen) or about
the order in which things happen. They may also ask you about what kind of writing
the passage uses. The four main kinds of writing are persuasive (argues a point);
informational (gives facts or explains); descriptive (describes a person, place, or
thing); and entertaining (such as fiction or humorous writing).
Author’s Viewpoint
It is important to understand why the author wrote the passage and what he or she
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Reading Strategies | Level C (continued)
thinks and feels about the topic. In a persuasive article, the author’s viewpoint is
usually expressed with direct statements and arguments. When you read a descriptive
or informational passage you might ask yourself,“What kind of information did the
author include or leave out? Why?” When you read a passage for entertainment, ask
yourself what message or moral the story tells.
Main Theme or Topic
The main theme of a story is its main message or most important idea. The main
topic of a nonfiction piece is what the passage is about. Questions about the main
theme or topic will often ask you to summarize or restate the main ideas briefly.
(They may also ask you for a good title for the passage; the title often contains the
main theme or topic.)
Tone and Mood
Questions about tone and mood ask how the passage makes you feel. Sometimes tone
and mood are treated as if they are the same, but they may be different. For example,
the tone is often the author’s attitude towards the subject, while the mood is the
feeling that the story’s characters (or the reader) might feel during the story. A story
about trick-or-treating at a “haunted” house may have a scary mood but a humorous
tone. Tone is set by the kinds of words and phrases the author uses. The tone may be
serious, funny, friendly, informative, or even pushy. The mood of a passage can come
from things like setting (like a scary forest), and from what happens to the characters
and how they react (like going on a roller coaster).
To answer questions about characterization you need to understand what the
character’s personality is like, and possibly how it changes in the story. Sometimes the
author is direct, coming out and saying “Joe is a great guy.” More often, the author
gives indirect clues by showing how the character thinks, feels, and acts. The reader
can think about the evidence and draw conclusions on his or her own, which is often
more convincing than a direct statement.
Figurative Language
Figurative language describes something in a fanciful way in order to wake up your
imagination, set the tone and hint at a lot without saying it all outright. A metaphor
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Characterization
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directly compares two things by describing one as if it were the other. A simile
compares things less directly, by using the words as or like to describe one relative to
the other. This line is from Carl Sandburg’s poem,“The Fog”:
The fog comes on little cat feet.
This metaphor does not mean the fog really has feet or that it is a cat. The fog creeps
in quietly and carefully, like a cat. To answer questions about figurative language,
think about the things being compared and what they might have in common.
Drawing Conclusions
If you are asked to draw a conclusion, you must examine the evidence in the passage
to figure out on your own something that the author doesn’t come out and say directly.
The author may give you clues about what is happening, such as “Sarah’s teeth were
chattering and her lips were turning blue.” If you think about your own experience and
use your common sense, then you will draw the conclusion that Sarah is cold.
Making Inferences
Sometimes conclusions and inferences are treated as if they are the same thing. Both
ask you to understand something the author does not tell you directly. However, an
inference may be based more on your experience than on direct evidence —it may
even go against some of the evidence. An inference may also be less detailed than a
conclusion. For example, a boy may say he does not care about winning a baseball
game although he has trained hard all season. Using your own experience, you might
infer that this is not the truth. As you read more, you may be able to make more
inferences and eventually draw a conclusion about why the boy is lying.
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Making Predictions
Questions about predictions may ask you “What might happen next?” or “What
might have happened if…?” To make a logical prediction, think carefully about what
has happened in the story. How the characters have acted so far is a strong clue to
what they might do next. Understanding the author’s viewpoint and the tone of the
passage also help you understand what future events would make the most sense. You
will also need to think about your own experiences to understand what could
actually happen.
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Reading Strategies | Level C
Reading Strategies | Level C (continued)
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PASSAGE 3
Practice With Hints | Nonfiction
Tornado!
The winds in a tornado spin from less than 100 miles per hour to 250 miles per hour.
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3. Tornado!
Word
Count
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Word
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You have probably seen pictures of
tornadoes on television. You may
have seen tornadoes in movies. You
know that tornadoes are wild, scary
winds. They can do a lot of damage.
Where do these twisting winds come
from? What do they do?
Tornado Stories
57
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Most tornadoes are pretty small.
They are usually about 400 to 500
feet wide. They last only a few
minutes. Some are much larger,
though. These are called monster
tornadoes. They can be more than a
mile wide and can last over an hour.
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The winds in a tornado spin from
less than 100 miles per hour to 250
miles per hour. The tornadoes
themselves move along the ground
from 20 to 70 miles per hour.
Tornadoes can happen at any time
of year. In the South, they happen
most often from March to May. In
the North, they are most common in
the summer.
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A tornado in Massachusetts in
1953 carried pieces of mattresses
high into the air. The air was so cold
that the pieces were coated with ice.
Then the tornado dropped them
miles away in Boston Harbor. In
1944, a tornado in West Virginia was
said to suck a river dry. In this same
storm, a woman hid in a closet under
a staircase. When the storm was over,
she came out. The closet and
staircase were the only things left of
her home.
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In 1915, a tornado carried a piece
of paper 305 miles. That is the
farthest any object has been moved
by a tornado. The same tornado
rained paper, clothing, money, and
books onto a small town in Kansas.
This storm also reportedly carried
five horses a quarter mile and set
them down unhurt.
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Nonfiction Passage
A tornado most often begins when
a thunderstorm is starting. The wind
changes direction and picks up
speed. This makes the air near the
storm spin around. Air inside the
thunderstorm rises upward. This tilts
the spinning air. It turns the air into a
funnel cloud. If the funnel cloud
touches the ground, it is a tornado.
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Practice With Hints
What Is a Tornado?
As a tornado moves along the
ground, the strong winds can pick
up objects. Rocks, cars, roofs, and
even farm animals can be picked up
and then dropped. A 1990 tornado
lifted a trailer from a huge truck. It
bounced the trailer five times. The
trailer weighed 20 tons! Another
tornado, in Oklahoma, picked up a
motel sign and dropped it 30 miles
away in Arkansas.
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Word
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turn very dark, even greenish; a wall
of clouds might form; large hailstones
might fall. A tornado makes a loud
roaring sound, like a train. If you see
and hear these signs of a tornado
coming, what should you do?
One popular tornado story is about
a chicken. In the story, a chicken was
picked up by a tornado. It was set
down later, still alive. It didn’t have a
single feather left on it. Most experts
don’t think this story is true. They
have tried to figure out if such a
thing could really happen. All their
tests show that it could not happen.
Another story is about a train
engine. The storm picked up the
engine and set it down on the track.
It was facing the other way. This
story might actually have happened.
8
Move to a safe place, such as a
basement. Try to get underground.
If you can’t, go to an inside room
without windows. Stay on a low floor.
Get under a strong piece of furniture.
35
Stay out of cars and trailers.
Tornado Safety
57
Listen to the radio or television for
warnings.
Stay in your safe place until you are
sure the danger is over.
Tornadoes can happen just about
anywhere. Here are some signs a
tornado is coming: The sky might
6
13
Total Passage Word Count: 622
Tornadoes can happen just about anywhere.
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Word
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3. Tornado!
1. Tornadoes can do a lot of
damage. What is damage?
4. What is the tone of this
passage?
A. Excited
B. Noise
B. Humorous
C. Harm
C. Sad
D. Broken glass
D. Bored
Hint! Words in Context
Hint! Tone and Mood
5. What is the main idea of the
third paragraph?
A. A thunderstorm
A. The largest tornadoes are
called monster tornadoes.
B. A snowstorm
B. Most tornadoes are
pretty small.
C. A gentle rain
D. A dust storm
C. Tornado sizes range from
about 400 feet wide to over a
mile wide.
Hint! Finding Details
D. Tornadoes can last only a
few minutes.
3. Why is there a break in the text
after paragraph four?
Hint! Text Structure
A. The time changes from past
to present.
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B. The focus of the article
changes.
6. Which of these best describes
the main topic of this article?
C. A different author is writing.
A. How tornadoes are formed
and what they do
D. There is no break in the text.
B. How to stay safe in a tornado
Hint! Text Structure
C. Different tornado stories
D. The winds in a tornado
Hint! Main Theme or Topic
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Nonfiction Passage
2. What kind of storm usually
produces a tornado?
Practice With Hints
A. Fright
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7. Monster tornadoes can be more
than a mile wide and last over an
hour. Why are these tornadoes
called monster tornadoes?
9. Why is it safer to be under
strong furniture in a tornado?
A. The furniture can protect a
person from falling objects.
A. Because monsters make them
B. The furniture cannot be
harmed by wind.
B. Because like monsters, they
are big, scary, and damaging
C. The tornado cannot find you
if you hide.
C. Because as they spin, they
make monsters
D. The furniture will keep a
person from getting wet.
D. Because they are made by
the same conditions that
make monsters
Hint! Drawing Conclusions
Hint! Figurative Language
10. If you think a tornado is
coming, listen for warnings
on the TV or radio. What
are warnings?
8. What is the most important
reason why it is a bad idea to
hide in a car during a tornado?
A. News stories about local
problems
A. Cars can be picked up and
dropped by tornado winds.
B. Ads from companies that
make storm gear
B. The car might roll away.
C. There isn’t much to do in
your car while you wait.
C. Shouts or cries
D. You shouldn’t be in a car
without an adult.
Hint! Decoding Word Meanings
Hint! Making Inferences
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D. Statements about danger that
is coming
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3. Tornado!
11. What does the author think
about tornadoes?
14. Which of the following
items was carried by a tornado
in 1990?
A. That they can be fun to watch
C. That they cannot harm
people
Practice With Hints
B. That they are interesting, but
also scary and dangerous
A.
D. That they are very rare
B.
Hint! Author’s Viewpoint
Nonfiction Passage
12. What is the farthest an object
has been carried by a tornado?
C.
A. 305 miles
B. 20 miles
D.
C. Less than a mile
D. 70 miles
Hint! Finding Details
Hint! Finding Details
15. If you move from the United
States to a place that has very
few thunderstorms, what would
you predict?
13. A tornado carried five horses
and set them down unhurt.
How were the horses?
Photocopying any part of this book is forbidden by law.
A. There would be more
tornadoes.
A. Badly harmed
B. Not harmed
B. There would be about as
many tornadoes.
C. A little harmed
D. Dead
C. There would be fewer
tornadoes.
Hint! Decoding Word Meanings
D. You cannot make a prediction
based on those details.
Hint! Making Predictions
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16. What would you and your family do if there were a tornado warning in
your area? Write your plan.
Hint! Making Predictions
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