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Reading Worksheets for 5th Graders

6 strands6 ready to print221 worksheetsUS Letter PDFs

Leveled reading comprehension passages and two-page longer reads, science and history reading passages, poetry, haiku and limericks, summarizing, theme, point of view, text structure, compare and contrast, figurative language and word searches.

The reading year, in order

From leveled passages to the big ideas in a text, text structure, poetry and figurative language, in an order many fifth grade classes follow. Each strand links to its worksheets.

  1. Reading comprehension

    34 sheets ready

    Read leveled stories, plays, poems and nonfiction, including two-page longer reads, and answer questions by quoting the text.

    Reading comprehension passages

    Original stories, poems, a play, and nonfiction at three levels, plus two-page reads, with evidence questions and answer keys.

    21 worksheets

    Reading passages

    Science and US history passages, paired texts, and two accounts of the same event, each with questions and an answer key.

    13 worksheets

  2. Big ideas in a text

    60 sheets ready

    Summarize a text, find a theme from how characters respond to challenges, and see how a narrator's point of view shapes a story.

    Summarizing

    Learn what a summary is, pick the best one, and write short summaries of stories and nonfiction.

    18 worksheets

    Theme

    A theme chart plus original fables and stories, topic or theme practice, organizers, matching, and comparing themes, with answer keys.

    21 worksheets

    Point of view

    A point of view chart plus first or third person practice, who is telling the story, retelling from another character, and the author's point of view.

    21 worksheets

  3. How texts work

    38 sheets ready

    Compare the structures of two texts, and compare and contrast characters, settings, events and stories.

    Text structure

    An anchor chart, name the structure practice, a signal word sort, a graphic organizer for each structure, and writing pages.

    21 worksheets

    Compare and contrast

    Venn diagrams with short texts, two texts on the same topic, comparing characters, alike-and-different charts and compare and contrast words.

    17 worksheets

  4. Poetry

    30 sheets ready

    Learn poetic devices and free verse, count syllables in haiku, and hear the rhyme and rhythm of limericks.

    Poetry

    Poetic devices, original poems with questions, free verse, and planning pages for writing poems.

    30 worksheets

    Haiku

    Learn the 5-7-5 haiku form, count syllables, read original haiku, and write your own.

    9 worksheets

    Limericks

    Learn the funny five-line limerick: AABBA rhyme, a bouncy beat, original examples, and write your own.

    8 worksheets

  5. Figurative language

    47 sheets ready

    Interpret similes, metaphors, idioms, adages and proverbs in context.

    Figurative language

    Learn and practice seven kinds of figurative language with a chart, sorts, an original poem and story, and writing pages.

    47 worksheets

  6. Word play

    12 sheets ready

    Find fifth grade vocabulary in puzzles.

    Word searches

    Twelve 14-by-14 word searches built from 5th grade vocabulary in reading, writing, science, social studies and math, each with an answer key.

    12 worksheets

About reading worksheets for 5th graders

Fifth grade readers take on the longest and richest texts of elementary school: chapter stories in which characters face real challenges, plays told in scenes, poems with a speaker who reflects on a topic, and nonfiction about history and science with several main ideas. They quote accurately from a text to explain what it says and what it suggests, compare characters and texts, and analyze how a text is built and whose point of view shapes it.

These reading worksheets for 5th graders follow that path. Original reading comprehension passages come in three levels of fiction, nonfiction, poetry and drama, plus two-page longer reads, and reading passages about matter, ecosystems, space, the colonies, the Revolution and the Constitution include paired texts and two accounts of the same event. Skill pages teach summarizing, theme, point of view, text structure, compare and contrast, and figurative language, and the poetry pages explain poetic devices, free verse, haiku and limericks with original examples.

Every passage, story and poem was written for this site. Pages print in black and white on US Letter or A4, and every page with right answers has an answer key.

Questions

What should a 5th grader be able to read?

By the end of fifth grade, most children read chapter books, plays, poems and nonfiction of several pages on their own. They quote the text to support their answers, summarize, find themes and main ideas, compare characters and texts, and explain how a narrator's point of view shapes a story.

How do I choose a reading level?

Start with a Level 1 passage. If your child reads it smoothly and answers most questions correctly, move up a level, then try a longer read.

Are these passages original?

Yes. Every passage, story, play and poem was written for this site, and all of them are free to print.

Do the worksheets have answer keys?

Yes. Every page with right answers has an answer key. Written answers show an example.