Reading & writing · Grades 3–5

The watering list

An original passage with comprehension questions and a teacher key.

The watering list

The seedlings beside Room Four drooped on Monday. Each pupil thought someone else had watered them over the weekend. The class made a roster with a named person for each day and a box to tick after checking the soil. The teacher warned them not to water merely because a box was empty; the soil might still be wet. The following week, the roster showed who had checked the plants, and the notes explained whether water had been added.

Try it yourself

Why had the weekend task been missed?
1. Each pupil expected someone else to do it.
2. The room had no door.
3. The seedlings were plastic.
4. The roster was too detailed.
What did the new roster assign?
1. a named person for each day
2. one plant colour
3. a new classroom number
4. a price for each leaf
Why should an empty tick box not automatically lead to watering?
What was checked before deciding whether to add water?
How did notes add information beyond a tick?

Which is the main lesson of the passage?
1. A clear responsibility system should still allow sensible observation.
2. Ticking a box replaces thinking.
3. Every plant needs identical daily water.
4. No one should keep records.

Answers and marking notes

Each pupil expected someone else to do it.
Responsibility was unclear.
a named person for each day
The roster made responsibility explicit.
The soil might already be wet, so the plants' condition still needs checking.
Credit checking conditions rather than blindly following a mark.
the soil
The box recorded a check of the soil.
They explained whether water was added, not merely whether someone checked.
Credit the difference between inspection and action.
A clear responsibility system should still allow sensible observation.
The roster and condition checks work together.

Preview material · independent educational review required. Grade bands are approximate, not official curriculum alignment.