Holding the Ropes: Grade 4 Reading Passage

About this worksheet

At the town's Thanksgiving parade, Ethan helps steer a giant turkey balloon and learns why the handlers must watch their captain. A free printable 4th grade short story (202 words) with multiple-choice why/vocabulary/what questions, events to number in order and a short written answer. Answer key on page 2. It is written for fourth grade readers, around ages 9 to 10.

On this sheet

Ethan had watched the Thanksgiving parade in his town every year, but this year he was going to be in it. His mom's bakery was sponsoring a giant balloon shaped like a turkey, and Ethan was one of twelve handlers chosen to hold its ropes. At practice, the balloon captain, Mr. Alvarez, explained the rules. "Watch me, not the crowd," he said. "If I raise my arm, you pull down together. Wind is the balloon's biggest enemy.

Tips for using it

• Before reading, look at the picture and the title together and guess what the passage will be about.
• Ask your child to underline the sentence in the passage that proves each answer.
• Talk about the story afterwards: what was the problem, how was it solved, and what would your child have done?

Printing tips

Download the PDF and print at 100% (or “fit to page” on A4). Page 1 is the worksheet and page 2 is the answer key with the answers in red; print just page 1 if you want to keep the answers for checking. Free for personal, family and classroom use.