Structural terminology · seed 1 · A4, ink-friendly. The answer key prints on its own page for grown-ups.

Chapters, scenes, and stanzas

English · Reading Comprehension · ages 8-9
Name ______________________   Date ____________

  1. Ben opens a book and finds the words set out in short groups of lines. He is told each group is called a stanza. What kind of writing is Ben reading?

    • a play
    • a letter
    • a poem

  2. A book is divided into numbered parts, each telling the next bit of the story. What is each part called?

    • scene
    • chapter
    • stanza

  3. A play is divided into parts called scenes.

    Circle one:   True   False

  4. A poem is divided into small groups of lines. What is each group called?

    • chapter
    • paragraph
    • stanza

  5. A play's page says: "Scene 1. The bakery, early morning." Further down it says: "Scene 2. The park, after lunch." What does the new scene mostly show?

    • That the actors are taking a break
    • That the play has gone back to the beginning
    • That the story has moved to a new place and time

  6. A writer types: "Bees make honey. Bees dance to talk." Then she leaves a space and starts again with: "Ants live in nests." Why did she start a new paragraph?

    • Because the page was full
    • Because her sentences were getting long
    • Because she moved on to a new idea

  7. The first stanza of a poem describes a calm, quiet lake. The second stanza describes a sudden storm on that same lake. What is the second stanza doing?

    • Building on the first stanza by changing its mood
    • Copying the first stanza's mood exactly
    • Describing a completely different poem

  8. Nina is reading a story. She turns from page 20 to page 21, and the story carries on about the same rainy walk. Has a new chapter started?

    • Yes, because every new page is a new chapter
    • No, because a chapter ends when that part of the story is done
    • Yes, because the page number changed

  9. Amira says, "My book has 200 chapters, and each one is only three or four sentences long." What has Amira mixed up?

    • She means paragraphs, because a small group of sentences is a paragraph
    • She means stanzas, because a small group of sentences is a stanza
    • Nothing, because a chapter is always three sentences long

  10. Tom writes about a play he watched: "In stanza 2, the pirate finds the map." One word is wrong. Which word should Tom have used?

    • chapter
    • scene
    • paragraph
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Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

Chapters, scenes, and stanzas W1-mt_ujwtRoYJ34-s1

  1. a poem · Stanzas are the parts of a poem. A play is split into scenes, and a letter is not split into stanzas at all.
  2. chapter · Story parts are called chapters. Scene and stanza name parts of other kinds of texts.
  3. True · Plays are split into scenes, often marking a change in place or time.
  4. stanza · A group of lines in a poem is a stanza, not a paragraph or a chapter.
  5. That the story has moved to a new place and time · A new scene usually means the place or the time has changed. Here the play moves from the bakery in the morning to the park after lunch.
  6. Because she moved on to a new idea · A new paragraph starts when the writer moves on to a new idea. The sentences before the space are about bees, and the one after it is about ants.
  7. Building on the first stanza by changing its mood · The storm shifts the calm mood the first stanza set, so the second stanza builds on it by changing the feeling.
  8. No, because a chapter ends when that part of the story is done · A page ends when the paper runs out. A chapter ends when that part of the story is finished, and Nina's rainy walk is still going.
  9. She means paragraphs, because a small group of sentences is a paragraph · A part that is only three or four sentences long is a paragraph. A chapter is much bigger and holds many paragraphs.
  10. scene · Tom is writing about a play, and the parts of a play are scenes. Stanza names a part of a poem.
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