Worksheet

Salt from Sea to Table: Three Short Texts

Read three short texts about salt: where it comes from, how people used it long ago, and how we use it at home today. Combine facts from all three.

Grade 5ELAInteractive · Printable

Aligned toRI.5.9

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Single worksheet
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1 Common Core standard
Printable answer key
9 questions
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Details

Format: Interactive · Printable
Grade: Grade 5
Subject: ELA
Question types: Fill in the blank, Multiple choice, Circle the answer, Sorting, Short answer

About this worksheet

What students practice

Students locate which text gives a piece of information about a shared topic.
Students combine facts from three texts to write or speak about salt knowledgeably.

How to use

Have students read all three texts and jot one big idea next to each title. Then let them answer the questions, and use the last one as a short written report or a partner talk.

Curriculum

Common Core standard covered

RI.5.9

Combine information from several texts on the same topic to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably.

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Salt from Sea to Table: Three Short Texts

Put information from three texts together to explain one topic.

Read the three texts

Text 1: Where Salt Comes From

1Salt is a mineral, and people get it from two main places. The first is the ocean. Seawater is salty, so in some sunny, windy places, people let seawater flow into wide, shallow ponds. The sun and wind slowly evaporate the water. When the water is gone, a crust of salt crystals is left behind, and workers rake it into piles.

2The second source is under the ground. Long ago, some seas dried up, and their salt was buried under layers of rock and soil. Today, miners dig into these thick salt beds. In some mines, the tunnels are so wide that big trucks can drive through them. Salt can also be taken from the ground by pumping in water to dissolve it, then drying out the salty water.

Text 2: Salt Long Ago

1For thousands of years, salt helped people keep food from spoiling. Before there were refrigerators, families packed meat and fish in salt or soaked them in very salty water. Salt pulls water out of food, and the tiny living things that make food rot need water to grow. Salted fish could last for months, even on long trips at sea.

2Because salt was so useful, it was also valuable. Traders carried it across deserts and over mountains to trade for other goods. Towns often grew up near places where salt was found. In some places, people even used blocks of salt as money.

Text 3: Salt in Your Kitchen

1Today, salt is cheap and easy to find, and most kitchens have a shaker of it. Cooks add a pinch to soups, breads, and even cookies, because salt brings out the flavors of many foods. Without it, bread can taste flat.

2Our bodies need a small amount of salt to stay healthy. Salt helps muscles move and helps nerves send messages. But doctors say that eating too much salt is not good for us and can raise blood pressure. Many packaged foods, such as chips and canned soups, already contain lots of salt, so it is smart to read food labels.

Find it in the texts

Use the three texts to answer each question.

Which text gives each fact? Sort the facts.

Salt helps nerves send messages.Miners dig into thick salt beds.Salted fish could last for months.Salt brings out the flavors of foods.Traders carried salt across deserts.The sun and wind evaporate seawater.

Text 1	Text 2	Text 3

Text 2 says that salt pulls water out of food. Read paragraph 1 of Text 1 again. Underline the sentence that tells how water is removed from seawater so that salt is left.

Salt is a mineral, and people get it from two main places.The first is the ocean.Seawater is salty, so in some sunny, windy places, people let seawater flow into wide, shallow ponds.The sun and wind slowly evaporate the water.When the water is gone, a crust of salt crystals is left behind, and workers rake it into piles.

Text 2 says that towns often grew up near places where salt was found. Which detail from Text 1 tells about one of those places?

A. rivers that flow down from melting snow
B. thick salt beds where old seas dried up
C. deep forests where the weather is rainy
D. kitchens that keep a shaker on the table

Using Text 2 and Text 3, which statement is true?

A. Salt was once cheap, but today it is rare and costly.
B. Long ago, people mostly used salt to make cookies sweet.
C. Salt was once valuable, but today it is cheap and easy to find.
D. People began using salt after refrigerators were invented.

A student wants to explain how salt gets from the ocean or a mine into a family's soup pot. Which texts should the student use?

A. Text 1 only
B. Text 2 only
C. Text 2 and Text 3
D. Text 1 and Text 3

Put it all together

Use what you learned from all three texts.

Complete this summary of the three texts. Use words from the word bank. You will not use every word.

Word bank: pressure · clouds · small · cooling · beds · large · spoiling

Salt comes from the ocean and from thick salt buried under rock (Text 1). Long ago, people used salt to keep food from (Text 2). Today, our bodies need a amount of salt, but too much can raise blood (Text 3).

Which sentence would make the best opening for a report that uses all three texts?