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The Moon Changes Shape worksheet preview

Worksheet

The Moon Changes Shape

Read a grade 2 science article about why the moon seems to change shape, then answer questions about the main idea, details and words.

Grade 2ELAInteractive · Printable

Aligned toRI.2.10

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What’s included

  • Single worksheet
  • Auto-graded online
  • 1 Common Core standard
  • Printable answer key
  • 10 questions
  • Classroom-ready

Details

Format
Interactive · Printable
Grade
Grade 2
Subject
ELA
Question types
Fill in the blank, Multiple choice, Matching, Circle the answer, Sorting, Short answer

About this worksheet

What students practice

  • Students read and understand a grade 2 science text about the moon.
  • Students find the main idea and key details in an informational text.
  • Students use context to work out the meaning of words in a science text.

How to use

Have students read the article on their own or with a partner, then answer the questions. Support readers who need it by reading one paragraph at a time together.

Curriculum

Common Core standard covered

RI.2.10

By the end of the year, read and understand grade 2-3 informational texts in history, science, and technical subjects, with support at the high end.

Preview

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Name Date

The Moon Changes Shape

Read an article about the moon and answer questions about it.

Read the article

Read the article. The paragraphs are numbered.

The Changing Moon

1Look up at the night sky, and you may see the moon. The moon is a big ball of rock. It is much smaller than Earth. The moon travels around Earth in a path called an orbit.

2The moon does not make its own light. It shines because it reflects light from the sun. That means the sun's light bounces off the moon, a little like light bouncing off a mirror. The half of the moon that faces the sun is bright. The other half is dark.

3From Earth, the moon seems to change shape. One night it may look like a thin curve. A few nights later it may look like a half circle, and later still like a big, round ball. The moon is not really changing. We just see a different amount of its bright half as it moves around Earth.

4It takes about one month for the moon to go through all of its shapes. Then the shapes start all over again.

Main idea and details

Answer the questions about the article.

1.
What is this article mostly about?
  • A. How the moon makes its own light
  • B. How big the moon is compared to Earth
  • C. Why the moon seems to change shape
  • D. What the ground on the moon is like
2.
Which sentence tells what the moon is, based on the article?
  • A. It is a ball of ice that circles the sun.
  • B. It is a ball of rock that circles Earth.
  • C. It is a ball of fire that lights the night.
  • D. It is a ball of gas that floats near Earth.
3.
Does the article say each idea is true or not true? Sort the ideas.
The moon makes its own light.The moon is a ball of rock.The moon moves around Earth.The moon is bigger than Earth.The sun shines on half of the moon.The moon really changes shape each night.
The article says this is trueThe article says this is not true
4.
Read paragraph 3 again. Underline the sentence that tells why the moon seems to change shape.

From Earth, the moon seems to change shape.One night it may look like a thin curve.A few nights later it may look like a half circle, and later still like a big, round ball.The moon is not really changing.We just see a different amount of its bright half as it moves around Earth.

5.
Look at paragraph 4. Write the missing word.

It takes about one   for the moon to go through all of its shapes.

6.
Match each paragraph to what it tells about.
  1. Paragraph 1
  2. Paragraph 2
  3. Paragraph 3
  4. Paragraph 4
  1. A. Why the moon seems to change shape
  2. B. How long the shapes take to repeat
  3. C. What the moon is and how it travels
  4. D. Where the moon's light comes from

Words and thinking

Use the article to figure out the answers.

7.
In paragraph 1, what does the word orbit mean?
  • A. a path that goes around something
  • B. a spot on the face of the moon
  • C. a time when the sky is dark
  • D. a bright light high in the sky
8.
Read paragraph 2 again. Underline the sentence that helps explain what the word reflects means.

The moon does not make its own light.It shines because it reflects light from the sun.That means the sun's light bounces off the moon, a little like light bouncing off a mirror.The half of the moon that faces the sun is bright.The other half is dark.

9.
Why does the moon look like a thin curve some nights?
  • A. The moon has really become a lot smaller.
  • B. The sun has stopped shining on the moon.
  • C. The moon has moved far away from Earth.
  • D. We see only a bit of its bright half.
10.
How does the sun help us see the moon? Use details from the article.

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