Reading comprehension means reading a passage and showing that you understood it by answering questions. In Class 3, 4 and 5 it is usually called an unseen passage or a comprehension passage: a short story, poem or piece of information you have never read before, followed by questions.

The good news is that every answer is already in the passage. You do not need to remember anything; you only need to read carefully and find the right line. This lesson shows children (and the parents and teachers helping them) how to read a passage, the six kinds of questions they will meet, a fully solved example and the habits that bring full marks.

How to Read an Unseen Passage: 5 Steps

The 5 Steps

1. Read the title. It tells you what the passage is about.
2. Read the whole passage once, slowly, like a story. Do not stop at hard words.
3. Read the questions. Now you know what to look for.
4. Read the passage again and underline the lines that answer each question.
5. Write the answers in full sentences, then check spelling, capital letters and full stops.

Children often start with the questions and hunt for words. That works for easy questions but not for “why” questions, which need the whole story. Reading the passage first takes one extra minute and saves many mistakes.

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The 6 Types of Comprehension Questions

Question types in a Class 3 to 5 unseen passage
TypeWhat it asksHow to answer
Multiple choicePick the right option: (a), (b) or (c).Find the line in the passage; write the letter and the option.
True or falseIs the sentence right or wrong?Write True or False. For False, add the correct fact.
Short answerWho, what, where, when, why or how?Answer in a full sentence, using words from the question.
Fill in the blankComplete a sentence from the passage.Copy the missing word exactly as it is spelt in the passage.
Word meaningFind a word that means …, or the opposite of ….Look in the paragraph named in the question.
Thinking questionWhy do you think …? What does this show?Use clues from the passage, then give your own reason.
Tip

Turn the question into the start of your answer. Where did Riya fly her kite? → Riya flew her kite on the terrace. This one habit makes every short answer a complete sentence.

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A Solved Example

Passage: The Clever Sparrow

A sparrow built her nest on a low branch of a mango tree. One afternoon a snake slid up the trunk. The sparrow was small, but she was clever. She flew to a nearby farm, picked up a shiny red ribbon and dropped it near the snake. A farmer’s son saw the ribbon move, ran to pick it up and saw the snake. He shouted for help, and the snake quickly slid away into the bushes. That evening the sparrow sang happily in her nest.

  1. Where did the sparrow build her nest?
    The sparrow built her nest on a low branch of a mango tree.
  2. Who came up the trunk? (a) a cat (b) a snake (c) a squirrel
    (b) a snake
  3. True or false: The sparrow was big and strong.
    False. The sparrow was small, but she was clever.
  4. Fill in the blank: She picked up a shiny red ____.
    ribbon
  5. Find a word that means “moved smoothly along the ground”.
    slid
  6. Why do you think the sparrow dropped the ribbon near the snake?
    She wanted someone to come and see the snake, so that the snake would be chased away.

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Tips for Full Marks

  • Answer only what is asked. If the question asks “where”, give the place, not the whole story.
  • Use the passage’s words for facts and your own words for thinking questions.
  • Copy spellings carefully. Names and new words are printed in the passage, so there is no reason to misspell them.
  • Write full sentences that start with a capital letter and end with a full stop, unless the question asks for one word.
  • Do the easy questions first, then come back to the thinking questions.
  • Read every day. Ten minutes of a storybook a day is the best practice for comprehension. Our short moral stories each end with questions.

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Practice Passages by Class

Each worksheet has two passages (a story and a passage of facts), questions of all six types and a full answer key, and prints as a PDF:

✍️ Quick Practice — Answer in Full Sentences

Read: Aman’s grandmother lives in a village near Nashik. Every summer Aman visits her. He helps her water the plants and feed the cows, and in the evening she tells him stories.

  1. Where does Aman’s grandmother live?
  2. When does Aman visit her?
  3. Name two things Aman does to help her.
  4. What does his grandmother do in the evening?
Show answers

Answers: 1. Aman’s grandmother lives in a village near Nashik.  |  2. He visits her every summer.  |  3. He waters the plants and feeds the cows.  |  4. In the evening she tells him stories.

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