Comprehension reading
Understanding what you read is essential!!!! So that you get full comprehension of what you read, consider the following suggestions:
a) Read the whole text at once.
b) Underline or highlight important ideas.
c) Identify main characters and setting (setting includes time and place when and where the story happens).
d) Identify if there is a conflict to be solved in the reading.
e) Try to find simple answers to the following questions: Who, When, Where, What, How, and Why.
f) Find the theme. The theme is the moral lesson that each person learns from the story. Your theme can be different from mine, and mine can be different from someone else´s. Moral values and principles are usually used in this question.
Read carefully the following story, then answer in your notebook the questions below.
WOLVES
By Seymour Simon
Wolves, like humans, are very adaptable to different climates and surroundings. At one time, wolves roamed across nearly all of North America, Europe, and Asia. Wolves can live in forests, grasslands, mountains and swamps, even in the frozen, treeless tundras of the far north. Wolves can also eat almost anything they catch, from a moose to a mouse.
Wolves may look very different from each other. A wolf might be almost any color, from white to black, through shades and mixtures of cream, gray, brown, and red. Some wolves are heavily furred all over their bodies; others have more fur around their necks and backs. Some are large and powerful; others are smaller and quicker. Wolves even have different personalities; some are leaders, others are very social, and still others are “lone wolves.”
In many ways, wolves are like dogs and lions; yet wolves have a bad reputation, unlike dogs and lions. Dogs are our “best friends”, but all the dogs in the world are descended from wolves that were domesticated more than ten thousand years ago. And most of the things people like about dogs are also true about wolves.
Like dogs, wolves are very loyal to other wolves in their family. Wolves raised by people become loyal to those people as well. Dogs are friendly and intelligent, and these traits too come from wolves. Wolves in a pack are playful with each other. They are among the most intelligent animals in nature.
Like lions, wolves are marvelous hunters that work together on groups to catch their prey. Yet lions are called the “kings of the jungle,” while wolves are described in many nursery tales as “sly and cowardly.” It seems strange that people love dogs and admire lions but dislike wolves.
Questions
1. What profession does Symour Simon most probably have
2. Where can we find wolves?
3. What do wolves eat?
4. Write a brief description of the physical appearance of a wolf.
5. How can a wolf´s personality be?
6. How are dogs similar to wolves?
7. How are lions similar to dogs?
8. What do you like about wolves? Why?
9. What would be another title for this story?
10. What is the theme that you see in this text?
By Seymour Simon
Wolves, like humans, are very adaptable to different climates and surroundings. At one time, wolves roamed across nearly all of North America, Europe, and Asia. Wolves can live in forests, grasslands, mountains and swamps, even in the frozen, treeless tundras of the far north. Wolves can also eat almost anything they catch, from a moose to a mouse.
Wolves may look very different from each other. A wolf might be almost any color, from white to black, through shades and mixtures of cream, gray, brown, and red. Some wolves are heavily furred all over their bodies; others have more fur around their necks and backs. Some are large and powerful; others are smaller and quicker. Wolves even have different personalities; some are leaders, others are very social, and still others are “lone wolves.”
In many ways, wolves are like dogs and lions; yet wolves have a bad reputation, unlike dogs and lions. Dogs are our “best friends”, but all the dogs in the world are descended from wolves that were domesticated more than ten thousand years ago. And most of the things people like about dogs are also true about wolves.
Like dogs, wolves are very loyal to other wolves in their family. Wolves raised by people become loyal to those people as well. Dogs are friendly and intelligent, and these traits too come from wolves. Wolves in a pack are playful with each other. They are among the most intelligent animals in nature.
Like lions, wolves are marvelous hunters that work together on groups to catch their prey. Yet lions are called the “kings of the jungle,” while wolves are described in many nursery tales as “sly and cowardly.” It seems strange that people love dogs and admire lions but dislike wolves.
Questions
1. What profession does Symour Simon most probably have
2. Where can we find wolves?
3. What do wolves eat?
4. Write a brief description of the physical appearance of a wolf.
5. How can a wolf´s personality be?
6. How are dogs similar to wolves?
7. How are lions similar to dogs?
8. What do you like about wolves? Why?
9. What would be another title for this story?
10. What is the theme that you see in this text?
Read the following story using all your concentration, then answer in your notebook the questions below.
LET´S GO FISHING
Dave needed to pack for Saturday’s fishing trip. He went into his hall closet, where he had more than 20 rods and reels. Nowadays he went fishing twice a year at Big Bear, a huge lake in southern California about 7,000 feet up in the mountains.
California tries to boost the fishing industry by sponsoring a Free Fishing Day twice a year, once in June and once in September. That sufficed for Dave. He went mostly because it was a social event with a few friends, not so much to catch fish. Even by itself, the scenic drive up a twisty two-lane road was worth the trip. Not to mention the big, beautiful houses and trees that lined the shore of the lake.
Packing was a project in itself. Dave had even created a computer file named Fishing Trip. It was a checklist of 45 things to take to Big Bear. He took two rods, because on Free Fishing Day you were allowed to fish with two rods instead of the usual one rod. He took a hooded sweatshirt, jeans, two pair of socks, a heavy hooded denim jacket, winter gloves, and a scarf. He also took flip-flops, shorts, a T-shirt, #30 sun block, sunglasses, a big hat, and a lightweight raincoat. If you go to Big Bear in June, you’d better be prepared for hot or cold, rain or shine.
He packed a couple of magazines to read just in case the fish weren’t biting. He and his friends joked that the fish were always biting - in the spot you just left or the spot you were headed to.
After about an hour and a half, Dave had gathered all the items on his list into a neat pile next to his door. He went to bed knowing that tomorrow’s weather and fishing were unpredictable, but the good time with his friends was a given.
Questions
1. Who is the main character?
2. What is Big Bear and where is it located?
3. What did Dave enjoy about going fishing?
4. What does the file "Fishing Trip" contain?
5. Mention 3 things Dave needed to pack. Write a reason why you think he needs those things.
6. How´s the weather in June?
7. Why did he pack some magazines?
8. How do you think Dave´s humor is before going to bed? Why?
9. What´s the story´s theme?
10. Summarize the reading in 4 lines.
Some other ideas to practice your reading comprehension are these ones:
1. Five finger chart
Draw your hand on a sheet of paper, write in each finger one wh-question and answer it according to the story (be careful to write the question gramatically correct), write the plot in the "palm" of the hand.
2. Narrative Elements
Fill out the following chart with the required information.
Draw your hand on a sheet of paper, write in each finger one wh-question and answer it according to the story (be careful to write the question gramatically correct), write the plot in the "palm" of the hand.
2. Narrative Elements
Fill out the following chart with the required information.
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