Read the story and answer the questions that follow.
1 There was a kingdom long, long ago. It was ruled by a king who loved riddles. Once every year the king made a new riddle. He gave a prize to the person who could solve the riddle.
2 There was a baker who also lived in this kingdom. Everyone agreed that he baked the finest breads. The baker had almost everything he needed except for a horse. If the baker had a horse, he could sell his fine breads from one end of the kingdom to the other.
3 One year the king made a new riddle that puzzled everyone. “I will give a prize to the person who can solve my riddle,” the king said. “Whoever wins will have the pick of one of my strongest horses.”
4 He then drew a line down the middle of the courtyard. “Make this line shorter without erasing any part of it,” the king challenged.
5 People came from far and wide. They looked at the line and squinted at it. They even put their noses to the ground and scratched their heads.
6 “How can you make a line shorter without erasing any part of it?” the people in the crowd asked each other.
7 Some of the villagers tried, however. The dressmaker kicked dirt over the line to hide it. The farmer poured water over the line to make it disappear. None of these attempts worked, and the people went home disappointed.
8 Everyone was puzzled about how to solve this new riddle.
9 A week passed, and nobody had any new ideas. Then one day the baker came into the courtyard with a bag of flour.
10 “Your Majesty,” the baker said to the king, “I can make your line shorter without erasing any part of it.”
11 The baker opened his sack of flour. He poured out a line of flour right next to the king’s line. The line the baker made was longer than the king’s line.
12 “Now, good king,” the baker smiled, “your line is shorter.”
13 The people were amazed. The king laughed and clapped his hands. “You have won the prize. I will give you a horse of your choice.”
14 The baker was thrilled. Now he could sell his breads from one end of the kingdom to the other.
Which question can be answered by reading the title of the story?
What lesson is learned in the story?
Where does the story take place?
Who is a person in the story?
How does the story end?
Read this sentence from paragraph 7.
The word attempts means —
tries
wishes
puzzles
mistakes
Why does the baker smile in paragraph 12?
He is happy to see the king.
He feels sure that he has won the contest.
He wants to please the villagers.
He likes to show off in front of a crowd.
What does thrilled mean in paragraph 14?
worried
satisfied
delighted
startled
The events in this story show that the king enjoys —
being rich
making fun of others
training horses
having a good time
The dressmaker and the farmer are alike because they both —
ask for help
care for animals
try to erase the line
think the riddle is easy
The baker is able to solve the riddle because he is —
clever
polite
careful
serious
What is the baker’s problem in this story?
He needs money to open more stores.
He does not sell enough bread in his village.
He does not have enough flour to make more bread.
He has trouble traveling from one end of the kingdom to the other.