UST Elementary Reading Challenge
Week 3 — Young Inventors
Grades 3–5 • Focus: Cause & Effect
This Week’s Reading
Week 3 • Cause & Effect
Reading 1: The Kid Who Improved Earmuffs
Reading 2: A Simple Idea That Saved Water
Each reading includes 5 comprehension questions.
Read → Find Evidence → Think → Explain
Reading 1 — The Kid Who Improved Earmuffs
Part 1 of 2
In the 1800s, a teenager named Chester Greenwood enjoyed ice skating in the cold Maine winter. He had one problem: his ears became painfully cold. Wool scarves made his skin uncomfortable, so he began thinking of another solution.��Chester bent wire into loops that fit over his ears. He asked his grandmother to sew soft pieces of fabric onto the loops. The design kept his ears warm without wrapping his whole head in a scarf. Chester continued improving the idea and later received a patent for his ear protectors.
Reading 1 — The Kid Who Improved Earmuffs
Part 2 of 2
His invention became useful to many people who worked or played outdoors in cold weather. A factory in his hometown eventually produced large numbers of earmuffs.��Chester’s story shows that inventions do not always begin in laboratories. Sometimes they begin with an ordinary problem and a person who keeps testing possible solutions.
Questions — The Kid Who Improved Earmuffs
Cause & Effect
1. What is the main idea of “The Kid Who Improved Earmuffs”?
2. Which detail from the passage best supports the main idea?
3. Choose one important word or phrase from the passage. What does it mean as used here?
4. What can you infer from the passage that the author does not state directly?
5. Write a 1–2 sentence summary using evidence from the passage.
Answer Guide — The Kid Who Improved Earmuffs
How to Solve • Part 1
1. Suggested answer: Answers will vary; identify the central idea.
How to solve: Ask: What idea connects most paragraphs? Do not choose a detail that appears only once.
2. Suggested answer: Answers will vary; cite a specific fact.
How to solve: Return to the passage and choose a sentence that directly supports the central idea.
3. Suggested answer: Answers will vary.
How to solve: Use the words around the unfamiliar term, plus the topic of the paragraph, to infer its meaning.
Answer Guide — The Kid Who Improved Earmuffs
How to Solve • Part 2
4. Suggested answer: Answers will vary but must be supported by evidence.
How to solve: Combine a clue from the text with what you already know. The inference should not contradict the passage.
5. Suggested answer: Answers will vary.
How to solve: Include only the most important idea and key supporting information; leave out minor details.
Reading 2 — A Simple Idea That Saved Water
Part 1 of 2
At Maple School, students noticed that the garden hose often ran while no one was using it. Water spilled onto the sidewalk as students moved from one garden bed to another. The gardening club wanted to waste less water.��One student suggested placing a shut-off nozzle on the end of the hose. With the nozzle, students could stop the water immediately without walking back to the faucet. The club tested the idea for a week.
Reading 2 — A Simple Idea That Saved Water
Part 2 of 2
The change seemed small, but the results were clear. The garden used less water, and fewer puddles formed on the sidewalk. Students also became more careful about watering only the soil around each plant.��The club learned that solving a problem does not always require an expensive machine. First, people need to notice what is causing the problem. Then they can test a solution and observe whether it works.
Questions — A Simple Idea That Saved Water
Cause & Effect
1. What is the main idea of “A Simple Idea That Saved Water”?
2. Which detail from the passage best supports the main idea?
3. Choose one important word or phrase from the passage. What does it mean as used here?
4. What can you infer from the passage that the author does not state directly?
5. Write a 1–2 sentence summary using evidence from the passage.
Answer Guide — A Simple Idea That Saved Water
How to Solve • Part 1
1. Suggested answer: Answers will vary; identify the central idea.
How to solve: Ask: What idea connects most paragraphs? Do not choose a detail that appears only once.
2. Suggested answer: Answers will vary; cite a specific fact.
How to solve: Return to the passage and choose a sentence that directly supports the central idea.
3. Suggested answer: Answers will vary.
How to solve: Use the words around the unfamiliar term, plus the topic of the paragraph, to infer its meaning.
Answer Guide — A Simple Idea That Saved Water
How to Solve • Part 2
4. Suggested answer: Answers will vary but must be supported by evidence.
How to solve: Combine a clue from the text with what you already know. The inference should not contradict the passage.
5. Suggested answer: Answers will vary.
How to solve: Include only the most important idea and key supporting information; leave out minor details.