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Dot and the Noisy Clock worksheet preview

Worksheet

Dot and the Noisy Clock

Read an original story about a museum mouse who cannot sleep, then tell how the beginning starts the story and the ending finishes the action.

Grade 2ELAInteractive · Printable

Aligned toRL.2.5

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What’s included

  • Single worksheet
  • Auto-graded online
  • 1 Common Core standard
  • Printable answer key
  • 9 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 tell how the beginning of a story introduces its character and problem.
  • Students sort story events into the beginning, middle and end.
  • Students explain how the ending concludes the action of a story.

How to use

Read the story aloud, then let students answer on their own. Afterward, ask which paragraph starts the story and which one finishes it, and have students retell the middle in their own words.

Curriculum

Common Core standard covered

RL.2.5

Describe the overall structure of a story, including how the beginning introduces it and how the ending concludes the action.

Preview

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Name Date

Dot and the Noisy Clock

Find the beginning, middle and end of a story.

Read the story

Dot and the Noisy Clock

1Dot was a small gray mouse who lived in a big museum. Her home was a tiny hole behind a tall clock. Every hour, the clock went BONG, BONG, BONG. The noise kept Dot awake, and she was very tired.

2One night, Dot went to look for a quiet place to sleep. First, she curled up in a teapot, but the lid clattered. Next, she hid inside an old drum, but it boomed every time she moved. Then she sat in a stone bowl, but it was cold and hard.

3Dot was ready to give up. Then she spotted a soft quilt hanging in the sewing room. One corner had slipped down to the floor and made a cozy nest.

4Dot climbed in and curled up. At midnight, the clock went BONG, BONG, BONG, but inside the quilt the sound was soft and far away. It felt like a lullaby. Dot smiled and fell fast asleep.

Beginning, middle and end

Read the story again if you need to. Then answer each question.

1.
What does the beginning of the story (paragraph 1) tell the reader?
  • A. How Dot finds a soft place to sleep at last.
  • B. Why the museum hung a tall clock in the hall.
  • C. Who Dot is, where she lives, and her problem.
  • D. What Dot dreams about after she falls asleep.
2.
In paragraph 1, Dot could not fall asleep. Read paragraph 4 again. Underline the sentence that shows she can sleep now.

It felt like a lullaby.Dot climbed in and curled up.Dot smiled and fell fast asleep.At midnight, the clock went BONG, BONG, BONG, but inside the quilt the sound was soft and far away.

3.
Suppose the story stopped after paragraph 2. What would the reader still wonder?
  • A. Whether Dot will ever find a place to sleep.
  • B. Where Dot's home is inside the big museum.
  • C. What kind of animal Dot is and what color.
  • D. Why Dot is out looking for a quiet place.
4.
Match each part of the story to what it does.
  1. The beginning
  2. The middle
  3. The end
  1. A. Dot tries three places to sleep, but none works.
  2. B. Dot's problem is solved and she falls asleep.
  3. C. We meet Dot and learn what her problem is.

Putting the parts together

Think about how each part of the story leads to the next.

5.
Which part of the story is each event from? Sort the events.
Dot sits in a cold, hard stone bowl.Dot smiles and falls fast asleep.Dot lives in a tiny hole behind a tall clock.Dot hides in a drum that booms when she moves.The loud BONG of the clock keeps Dot awake.The clock sounds soft and far away inside the quilt.
BeginningMiddleEnd
6.
Write the missing word from paragraph 2.

Next, Dot hides inside an old  , but it booms every time she moves.

7.
How does the ending connect to the beginning?
  • A. The clock stops working, so the museum is quiet.
  • B. Dot moves out of the museum and leaves the clock.
  • C. Dot finds a new museum that has no clocks at all.
  • D. The noise that bothered Dot now feels like a lullaby.
8.
What happens in paragraph 3 that leads to the ending?
  • A. Dot decides to sleep during the day instead.
  • B. Dot spots a soft quilt with a loose corner.
  • C. Dot learns the clock will be turned off soon.
  • D. Dot asks another mouse to trade homes with her.
9.
How is the end of the story different from the beginning? Use details from the story.

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