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First-hand or second-hand account?
4th grade (Year 5 in England) · 16 questions · Common Core: RI.4.6 · England: Y4 Reading (recounts and reports), Y5/6 Reading (viewpoint)
Name
Date
Score/ 16
Question 1
Is this a first-hand or a second-hand account? Thousands of homes lost power during the storm, the news reported this morning.
- A. first-hand: written by someone who was there
- B. second-hand: written by someone who was not there
Pepper's First Week: A Diary
Saturday. Today we collected Pepper from the rescue centre. She is a skinny brown dog with one floppy ear and one ear that stands straight up. In the car, she shook the whole way home, and I held her blanket so she could smell it. I felt nervous too.
Sunday. Pepper hid behind the sofa all day. Mum says rescue dogs sometimes need time to trust people because they do not know what is going to happen next. I lay on the floor and read my comic out loud so she could get used to my voice.
Tuesday. A breakthrough! When I got back from school, Pepper crept out and sniffed my shoes. Then she licked my hand. I stayed completely still, although I wanted to cheer.
Thursday. We went to the park on her lead. A bicycle rang its bell, and Pepper jumped behind my legs. I knelt down and talked to her calmly until her tail started wagging again.
Friday. Tonight Pepper fell asleep with her head on my foot. I didn't move for an hour, even though my foot went numb. I think she has decided she lives here now.
Question 2
Read "Pepper's First Week: A Diary". Is this diary a first-hand or a second-hand account?
- A. first-hand: the writer was there and shares their own feelings
- B. second-hand: the writer only heard about it
- C. neither: it is a poem
- D. second-hand: it was copied from a book
A Helicopter on Mars
In February 2021, NASA's Perseverance rover landed on Mars. Tucked underneath it was a passenger: a tiny helicopter called Ingenuity. It weighed only about 1.8 kilograms, a little less than a big bag of flour.
Flying on Mars is much harder than flying on Earth. The air on Mars is extremely thin, about one hundredth as thick as the air we breathe. Helicopter blades push against the air to lift off, so with so little air, Ingenuity's blades had to spin very fast: about 2,400 times a minute.
On 19 April 2021, Ingenuity rose about three metres into the Martian sky, hovered for about forty seconds and landed again. It was the first powered, controlled flight on another planet. Engineers on Earth cheered, even though the radio signals took several minutes to reach them.
Ingenuity was only meant to make five test flights. Instead, it made 72. It scouted ahead for the rover, taking photos of rocks and slopes so that drivers on Earth could choose safe routes.
In January 2024, one of Ingenuity's blades was damaged during a landing, and the mission ended. The little helicopter still sits on Mars today, and engineers are already using what they learned to design bigger flying machines for future missions.
Question 3
Read "A Helicopter on Mars". Is this a first-hand or a second-hand account?
- A. second-hand: the writer reports facts but was not there
- B. first-hand: the writer lives on Mars
- C. first-hand: it is the helicopter's diary
- D. first-hand: the writer flew the helicopter
Question 4
Read the question. Which source is a FIRST-HAND account of life on the International Space Station?
- A. an encyclopedia article about the station
- B. a newspaper report written on Earth
- C. a diary written by an astronaut on board
- D. a school project about space
Question 5
Is this a first-hand or a second-hand account? The rocket launched at 9 a.m. Witnesses said the ground shook and the noise could be heard for miles.
- A. first-hand: written by someone who was there
- B. second-hand: written by someone who was not there
Pepper's First Week: A Diary
Saturday. Today we collected Pepper from the rescue centre. She is a skinny brown dog with one floppy ear and one ear that stands straight up. In the car, she shook the whole way home, and I held her blanket so she could smell it. I felt nervous too.
Sunday. Pepper hid behind the sofa all day. Mum says rescue dogs sometimes need time to trust people because they do not know what is going to happen next. I lay on the floor and read my comic out loud so she could get used to my voice.
Tuesday. A breakthrough! When I got back from school, Pepper crept out and sniffed my shoes. Then she licked my hand. I stayed completely still, although I wanted to cheer.
Thursday. We went to the park on her lead. A bicycle rang its bell, and Pepper jumped behind my legs. I knelt down and talked to her calmly until her tail started wagging again.
Friday. Tonight Pepper fell asleep with her head on my foot. I didn't move for an hour, even though my foot went numb. I think she has decided she lives here now.
Question 6
Read "Pepper's First Week: A Diary". Is this diary a first-hand or a second-hand account?
- A. neither: it is a poem
- B. second-hand: it was copied from a book
- C. first-hand: the writer was there and shares their own feelings
- D. second-hand: the writer only heard about it
A Helicopter on Mars
In February 2021, NASA's Perseverance rover landed on Mars. Tucked underneath it was a passenger: a tiny helicopter called Ingenuity. It weighed only about 1.8 kilograms, a little less than a big bag of flour.
Flying on Mars is much harder than flying on Earth. The air on Mars is extremely thin, about one hundredth as thick as the air we breathe. Helicopter blades push against the air to lift off, so with so little air, Ingenuity's blades had to spin very fast: about 2,400 times a minute.
On 19 April 2021, Ingenuity rose about three metres into the Martian sky, hovered for about forty seconds and landed again. It was the first powered, controlled flight on another planet. Engineers on Earth cheered, even though the radio signals took several minutes to reach them.
Ingenuity was only meant to make five test flights. Instead, it made 72. It scouted ahead for the rover, taking photos of rocks and slopes so that drivers on Earth could choose safe routes.
In January 2024, one of Ingenuity's blades was damaged during a landing, and the mission ended. The little helicopter still sits on Mars today, and engineers are already using what they learned to design bigger flying machines for future missions.
Question 7
Read "A Helicopter on Mars". Is this a first-hand or a second-hand account?
- A. first-hand: the writer flew the helicopter
- B. second-hand: the writer reports facts but was not there
- C. first-hand: the writer lives on Mars
- D. first-hand: it is the helicopter's diary
Question 8
Read the question. What is a strength of a second-hand account?
- A. It can bring together facts from many sources.
- B. The writer was always there.
- C. It is always more exciting.
- D. It tells you exactly how one person felt.
Question 9
Is this a first-hand or a second-hand account? The climbers reached the summit just after noon, according to the expedition's website.
- A. first-hand: written by someone who was there
- B. second-hand: written by someone who was not there
Pepper's First Week: A Diary
Saturday. Today we collected Pepper from the rescue centre. She is a skinny brown dog with one floppy ear and one ear that stands straight up. In the car, she shook the whole way home, and I held her blanket so she could smell it. I felt nervous too.
Sunday. Pepper hid behind the sofa all day. Mum says rescue dogs sometimes need time to trust people because they do not know what is going to happen next. I lay on the floor and read my comic out loud so she could get used to my voice.
Tuesday. A breakthrough! When I got back from school, Pepper crept out and sniffed my shoes. Then she licked my hand. I stayed completely still, although I wanted to cheer.
Thursday. We went to the park on her lead. A bicycle rang its bell, and Pepper jumped behind my legs. I knelt down and talked to her calmly until her tail started wagging again.
Friday. Tonight Pepper fell asleep with her head on my foot. I didn't move for an hour, even though my foot went numb. I think she has decided she lives here now.
Question 10
Read "Pepper's First Week: A Diary". Is this diary a first-hand or a second-hand account?
- A. neither: it is a poem
- B. second-hand: the writer only heard about it
- C. first-hand: the writer was there and shares their own feelings
- D. second-hand: it was copied from a book
A Helicopter on Mars
In February 2021, NASA's Perseverance rover landed on Mars. Tucked underneath it was a passenger: a tiny helicopter called Ingenuity. It weighed only about 1.8 kilograms, a little less than a big bag of flour.
Flying on Mars is much harder than flying on Earth. The air on Mars is extremely thin, about one hundredth as thick as the air we breathe. Helicopter blades push against the air to lift off, so with so little air, Ingenuity's blades had to spin very fast: about 2,400 times a minute.
On 19 April 2021, Ingenuity rose about three metres into the Martian sky, hovered for about forty seconds and landed again. It was the first powered, controlled flight on another planet. Engineers on Earth cheered, even though the radio signals took several minutes to reach them.
Ingenuity was only meant to make five test flights. Instead, it made 72. It scouted ahead for the rover, taking photos of rocks and slopes so that drivers on Earth could choose safe routes.
In January 2024, one of Ingenuity's blades was damaged during a landing, and the mission ended. The little helicopter still sits on Mars today, and engineers are already using what they learned to design bigger flying machines for future missions.
Question 11
Read "A Helicopter on Mars". Is this a first-hand or a second-hand account?
- A. first-hand: it is the helicopter's diary
- B. second-hand: the writer reports facts but was not there
- C. first-hand: the writer flew the helicopter
- D. first-hand: the writer lives on Mars
Question 12
Read the question. Which source is a FIRST-HAND account of a volcano erupting?
- A. a scientist's notes written while watching the eruption
- B. a poster about famous volcanoes
- C. a TV quiz about volcanoes
- D. a textbook chapter about volcanoes
Question 13
Is this a first-hand or a second-hand account? Farmers say baby chicks are very light and need to be kept warm for their first weeks.
- A. first-hand: written by someone who was there
- B. second-hand: written by someone who was not there
Pepper's First Week: A Diary
Saturday. Today we collected Pepper from the rescue centre. She is a skinny brown dog with one floppy ear and one ear that stands straight up. In the car, she shook the whole way home, and I held her blanket so she could smell it. I felt nervous too.
Sunday. Pepper hid behind the sofa all day. Mum says rescue dogs sometimes need time to trust people because they do not know what is going to happen next. I lay on the floor and read my comic out loud so she could get used to my voice.
Tuesday. A breakthrough! When I got back from school, Pepper crept out and sniffed my shoes. Then she licked my hand. I stayed completely still, although I wanted to cheer.
Thursday. We went to the park on her lead. A bicycle rang its bell, and Pepper jumped behind my legs. I knelt down and talked to her calmly until her tail started wagging again.
Friday. Tonight Pepper fell asleep with her head on my foot. I didn't move for an hour, even though my foot went numb. I think she has decided she lives here now.
Question 14
Read "Pepper's First Week: A Diary". Is this diary a first-hand or a second-hand account?
- A. second-hand: it was copied from a book
- B. second-hand: the writer only heard about it
- C. first-hand: the writer was there and shares their own feelings
- D. neither: it is a poem
A Helicopter on Mars
In February 2021, NASA's Perseverance rover landed on Mars. Tucked underneath it was a passenger: a tiny helicopter called Ingenuity. It weighed only about 1.8 kilograms, a little less than a big bag of flour.
Flying on Mars is much harder than flying on Earth. The air on Mars is extremely thin, about one hundredth as thick as the air we breathe. Helicopter blades push against the air to lift off, so with so little air, Ingenuity's blades had to spin very fast: about 2,400 times a minute.
On 19 April 2021, Ingenuity rose about three metres into the Martian sky, hovered for about forty seconds and landed again. It was the first powered, controlled flight on another planet. Engineers on Earth cheered, even though the radio signals took several minutes to reach them.
Ingenuity was only meant to make five test flights. Instead, it made 72. It scouted ahead for the rover, taking photos of rocks and slopes so that drivers on Earth could choose safe routes.
In January 2024, one of Ingenuity's blades was damaged during a landing, and the mission ended. The little helicopter still sits on Mars today, and engineers are already using what they learned to design bigger flying machines for future missions.
Question 15
Read "A Helicopter on Mars". Is this a first-hand or a second-hand account?
- A. first-hand: the writer flew the helicopter
- B. first-hand: it is the helicopter's diary
- C. second-hand: the writer reports facts but was not there
- D. first-hand: the writer lives on Mars
Question 16
Read the question. Which source is a FIRST-HAND account of life on the International Space Station?
- A. an encyclopedia article about the station
- B. a diary written by an astronaut on board
- C. a school project about space
- D. a newspaper report written on Earth
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