The Black Cat
A cat sits on a mat.
"Is the cat sad?" said Meg.
Meg gets a red ball.
Not the red ball. It naps.
Meg gets a fish snack.
Sniff, sniff! No, no snack.
Sad Meg sits on the mat.
Up, up! The cat hops up!
It hops on Meg. Pat, pat!
The black cat is not sad.
Meg is not sad!
Meg naps. The black cat naps.
Questions
- A red ball
- A hat
- A bed
- It runs
- It sniffs and naps
- It hops
- It wants the ball
- It sees that Meg is sad
- It is time to eat
- Yes, very sad
- We can not tell
- No, it was just sleepy
Words to know
- black: dark color
- snack: a little food
- sniff: smell quickly
- pat: touch softly
Answer key: The Black Cat
- A. A red ball
- B. It sniffs and naps
- B. It sees that Meg is sad
- C. No, it was just sleepy
For the teacher: how this passage is levelled
“The Black Cat” is a reading level 2 story. Every Peabody story at this level is written and checked to keep sentences to 6 words or fewer, to aim at an average of 4 words a sentence, and to show 1 to 6 words on a screen. At most 6% of its words may be off the familiar-word list. Readers reach this level by climbing, not by grade.
| This passage | 67 words, 12 screens, 4 multiple-choice questions with an answer key, and 4 vocabulary words with kid-sized meanings |
|---|---|
| Longest sentence at this level | 6 words |
| Words on a screen | 1 to 6 |
| Skills practised at this level | first sounds, rhymes |
Reading level 2: the limits, a real sample and the free games. Peabody is a learning app, not an assessment: use the questions to talk about the story, not to grade a child.