1st grade science reading comprehension worksheets

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First grade science reading comprehension worksheets: a short true passage about how the world works, such as shadows, magnets, melting ice, seeds or the Moon. Four questions follow, each answered by a sentence in the passage, with the answer key on the last page.

Free printable PDF worksheet, aligned to Common Core RI.1.1.

Each click picks one of the 13 passages written for this grade. Every sheet comes with its answer key. You don't need to sign up.

The kind of passages you'll get

Read the passage. Then circle the letter of the best answer for each question.

Window or Door

Stand by a window on a sunny day. Sunlight shines right through the glass and into the room. Clear glass lets light pass through it. That is why you can see the trees and sky outside. Things you can see through are called transparent. They…

  1. What does transparent mean? you can see through it · it blocks every bit of light · it makes its own bright light

    Answer: you can see through it

  2. What happens to light that hits a wooden door? it is blocked · it goes right through · it lights up the other side

Each print picks one of the 13 passages written for this grade, and its questions come with it. With 13 to pick from, a second print can land on one you've used, so check the title before you hand it out.

What's on a 1st grade sheet

1st grade sheets draw from 13 passages, 92 to 109 words long. None of these passages are on 2nd grade sheets. On 2nd grade sheets they run 114 to 147 words.

Some of the titles: The Paper Clip Jump, The Ice Cube on the Plate, Waking Up a Bean, Light From the Moon, Why the Sun Seems to Move, Making Things Move.

Every version prints on US Letter or A4, with its answer key on the last page.

How to teach this

Read the title together and ask what your child already knows about it. Then read the passage aloud, or take turns sentence by sentence. After each question, ask them to put a finger on the sentence that proves the answer. Then try it for real: after the shadow passage, go outside at lunch and again before dinner and compare your shadows. Science sticks when a child can check it with their own eyes.

Watch for: Choosing the answer you already believed instead of the one the passage states. Science passages often correct an everyday idea, so check the line before you circle. Skipping a science word as too hard. The passage explains it nearby, and at least one question depends on it.

Common questions about 1st grade science reading comprehension

Can a first grader read these alone?
Some can, and many will want help. The passages use short sentences and everyday words, and each science word is explained right where it appears. Reading aloud together works well, with your child finding the answer sentence for each question.
What science topics are in the first grade passages?
Things a six-year-old can see and test: shadows, magnets, sound, ice melting, seeds and roots, wind, soil, the Sun and the Moon, and day and night. Each passage sticks to one idea, so it is easy to try out at home afterward.

Related worksheets

Ready to print one?

Want a different passage? Print again. Each print picks one of the 13.

Aligned to Common Core RI.1.1. Reviewed by the One more sheet team. Content version 241, updated October 2026.

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