Grade 5 Reading Comprehension Worksheets

About This Worksheet Collection

The Grade 5 Reading Comprehension collection challenges students to think critically about fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and informational texts. Each worksheet includes thoughtfully leveled passages and text-based questions that encourage close reading, evidence-based responses, and analysis of structure and theme. Students explore a wide range of subjects-from science and history to character growth and moral lessons-while practicing essential literacy skills such as summarizing, inferring, comparing, and citing evidence.

Throughout the collection, learners develop advanced comprehension strategies and written expression through activities that integrate reading and writing. They learn to identify figurative language, distinguish fact from opinion, interpret themes, and evaluate how perspective shapes meaning. These worksheets prepare upper-elementary students for middle school literacy by building confidence in analyzing complex texts, synthesizing information, and expressing understanding clearly and precisely.

Detailed Descriptions Of These Worksheets

Community Garden
Students read about a school's community garden project and identify the passage's main idea with three supporting details. This worksheet builds analytical reading skills and teaches how to distinguish key ideas from evidence. Learners practice writing clear, evidence-based responses that demonstrate deep comprehension.

Treehouse Summary
After reading a short story about friends building a treehouse, students summarize it in 3-4 sentences. The activity reinforces sequencing and main-event identification while promoting concise writing. It helps learners condense narratives without losing meaning or focus.

Sea Turtle Cycle
Students read an informational passage about the sea turtle's life cycle and arrange the stages in the correct order. This task supports understanding of biological processes and informational sequencing. It strengthens comprehension of scientific texts and reinforces knowledge of animal life cycles.

Explorers Compared
Learners compare Marco Polo and Neil Armstrong using a chart to identify similarities and differences. The worksheet connects past and modern exploration, encouraging analytical reading and cross-disciplinary thinking. It develops compare-and-contrast reasoning and comprehension of biographical text.

Fable's Message
Students read a fable about a fox learning the value of honesty and determine its theme. They support their response with two textual examples, practicing theme identification and moral interpretation. This task builds literary comprehension and evidence-based analysis.

Wagon Trail POV
In this historical fiction reading, students analyze a diary entry from a pioneer child. They identify the narrative point of view and explain how it shapes the story. The exercise enhances perspective awareness, empathy, and comprehension of historical context.

Climbing for Meaning
Students use context clues to define challenging vocabulary words like precipice and altitude in a passage about mountain climbing. They classify the type of clue used-definition, synonym, antonym, or inference. This task improves vocabulary strategies and inferential comprehension.

Poetic Storm
Learners explore a vivid poem about a thunderstorm and identify examples of simile, metaphor, and personification. They categorize each in a chart to strengthen literary analysis. The activity deepens appreciation for figurative language and descriptive imagery.

Invention Vocabulary
Students read an informational passage about influential inventions and match bolded STEM-related words-like prototype and innovation-to definitions. This worksheet builds vocabulary in context, strengthens nonfiction comprehension, and connects language to real-world technology.

Quote the Proof
In a story about teamwork, students answer comprehension questions using direct quotes as textual evidence. This activity teaches how to integrate quotations effectively in written responses. It reinforces close reading, inference, and analytical writing.

Zoo Facts & Opinions
Students read about zoos and animal care, highlighting factual statements and opinions in different colors. The task helps learners evaluate sources and author intent. It builds critical thinking and comprehension of persuasive and informational writing.

New City Feelings
Students read about Maya adjusting to a new city and write a paragraph explaining her emotions using text evidence. The activity combines inference with paragraph writing and supports empathy through literary analysis. It strengthens comprehension, writing organization, and emotional reasoning.