Comprehension resources

Students read a poem to answer questions that focus on the language used. Text provided.

This comprehension task involves progressively disclosing a poem. It assesses a student's ability to use evidence to predict what it could be describing. SJ-2-4-1994. Text provided.

This comprehension task involves progressively disclosing a poem to students. It assesses their ability to infer. SJ-1-1-1998. Text provided.

This comprehension task involves progressively disclosing a poem to students. It assesses their ability to visualise and infer. SJ-3-3-1989. Text not provided.

Students are assessed on their ability to retrieve details that support the main idea of an article about an endangered species.

An extract about Sāmoan life provides the context for this assessment with its focus on retrieving information and making inferences. Text available.

Students read a narrative and make inferences about the characters' feelings based on evidence in the text. Text is provided with this resource. SJ-2-2-1999. Text provided.

Students are required to identify whether a series of statements about the School Journal story 'Personal Mail' are true or false, and to support their opinion with evidence from the text. This task assesses students' retrieval and inferential comprehension skills. SJ-3-1-1991. Text provided.

Students read an article about the Moa then answer retrieval and inferential questions. SJ-2-3-1982. Text not provided.

This resource has students comparing four advertisements on holiday camps and identifying the meaning of a slogan.

Students read a one-page article on DNA testing and answer four selected response questions about the aim and purpose of the article.

This comprehension task assesses student ability to find the main idea of a transactional text about a Māori naturalist/scientist. Students are asked to read a text, identify the main idea from three choices provided, and then justify why they think their choice is right.

Students read an article about the development of safety glass to answer retrieval and inferential questions.

Students read a narrative about a family's encounter with a stray cat. They then use evidence from the text and their background knowledge to evaluate the characters. SJ-1-3-2008. Text provided.

Students read a narrative about how a girl deals with her anxiety over Sports Day. They then use evidence from the text and their background knowledge to complete the task. Assessment focus: evaluating. SJ-2-3-2009. Text provided.

The use of metaphors and similes is explored in this poem about umbrellas in a storm. Text provided.

Students read three texts and select the statement that identifies the main idea of each text.

Students read a short extract from a legend to answer retrieval and inferential questions.

Students unpack a picture, making inferences from its visual cues. SJ-1-2-1998. Text provided.

Students read a cartoon to answer retrieval and inferential questions about the story and the visual techniques used. SJ-1-1-1994.

Students interpret a series of road safety drawings with questions on visual cues, titles, emphasis and providing appropriate text.

Students study a poster about being safe in an earthquake and then answer retrieval and inferential questions.

Students read a text containing instructions then answer retrieval and inferential questions. SJ-2-2-1984. Text provided.

From visual stimuli and a series of simple statements that describe physical attributes, students identify which animal is being described.

Assessment focus: finding important information and the main idea of an informational text. The text used is about an introduced species of fish which has become a pest. SJ-2-4-2005. Text provided.