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2nd Grade Author's Purpose worksheets

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Author's Purpose

Grade 2 Reading Worksheet - Challenge Me

NameDate

Read the text. Circle the best answer.

Read this first
Wings Over the Playground
Our school has a bare patch of dirt beside the playground. Nothing grows there except a few weeds. The second grade thinks we should turn it into a butterfly garden, and we need your help.
Butterflies need flowers to live. They drink nectar, a sweet juice found inside many blooms. Monarch butterflies also lay their eggs only on milkweed plants. Their caterpillars munch the milkweed leaves as they grow. In many towns, milkweed is harder to find than it used to be.
A garden would help our school too. We could watch caterpillars change into butterflies right outside our window. Classes could draw the flowers, count the visitors, and write about what they see. We believe a garden would make recess calmer and more fun.
Here is how you can help. Please bring a packet of flower seeds to the front office by Friday. Milkweed, zinnia, and coneflower seeds are all welcome. Then come to our planting day next Saturday at ten o'clock. Bring gloves if you have them.
One small patch of dirt can become a home for many butterflies. Let's grow it together!
By the Second Grade News Team
1.
Why did the news team write this piece?
- to get readers to help plant a butterfly garden
- to get readers to pull the weeds by the playground
- to tell a funny made-up story about a monarch
2.
Which sentence shows the author wants readers to do something?
- Monarch butterflies also lay their eggs only on milkweed plants in the summer.
- Please bring a packet of flower seeds to the front office by Friday.
- In many towns, milkweed is harder to find than it used to be long ago.
3.
Which sentence tells an opinion the writers hold?
- We believe a garden would make recess calmer and more fun.
- They drink nectar, a sweet juice found inside many blooms.
- Their caterpillars munch the milkweed leaves as they grow.
4.
Why did the author include paragraph 2?
- to give a reason butterflies need a garden
- to explain how to plant milkweed seeds
- to describe the bare patch by the playground

2nd Grade Author's Purpose worksheet 1 – printable PDF — Download PDF: 1 2 3 4 5 6

About this worksheet

Author's purpose asks why a writer wrote a text. In second grade, students usually work with three broad purposes: to inform, to entertain, and to persuade or give an opinion. The challenge is that a text can be interesting and still mainly inform, or it can include facts while still trying to convince the reader. This worksheet uses one text, printed once above the four questions that use it, so children practice matching the text to the writer's goal.

Students choose the purpose, identify clues, separate fact-filled explanations from opinions, and reject a purpose that does not fit. Encourage your child to ask what the author wants the reader to learn, feel, or do after reading. Watch for a child who assumes any text with true facts must only be informing, even when it also slips in a persuasive opinion.

What your child will learn

Identify why an author wrote a text
Tell informative purpose from entertainment
Use clues to support a purpose answer
Recognize opinion or persuasive purpose

Common Core standard: RI.2.6

Worked example

A text explaining how a rain gauge is used is mostly written to inform, even if the topic is interesting.

Common mistake

Choosing entertain for every text that is enjoyable to read.

Helpful hint

Ask what the author wants the reader to learn, feel, or do.

Next skill: Fact and Opinion Earlier: Characters, Setting, and Events

Questions parents ask

What is the most common mistake with author's purpose?

Choosing entertain for every text that is enjoyable to read.

How can I help my child with author's purpose?

Ask what the author wants the reader to learn, feel, or do.

Are these 2nd grade reading worksheets free to print?

Yes. All 6 printable versions on this page are free to download and print, with no account needed.

More 2nd grade literature

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