Growth Mindset Reading Comprehension Passages — Grade 5

About this resource

Some of the biggest breakthroughs came from getting it wrong. These growth mindset reading comprehension passages give Grade 5 readers ten texts at F&P levels S–V, from Katherine Johnson to J.K. Rowling. The set builds Self-Awareness, one of the five CASEL competencies, with reading that fifth graders can push back on.

What students practice

• Seeing what growth mindset looks like in fifth-grade life
• Setting goals for tasks that feel too big
• Understanding how the brain strengthens when you keep trying
• Learning from famous discoveries made by mistake
• Seeing why setbacks build mental strength

What’s inside

• 10 passages at F&P levels S–V, in text types such as how-to guides, science pieces and student profiles
• 5 multiple-choice questions per passage
• 2 open-ended questions per passage for written answers or discussion
• Answer key covering all 50 growth mindset multiple-choice questions
• 34 pages, with an overview page of levels, text types and SEL focus

A look inside

• The Many Failures of Thomas Edison: his thousand-plus attempts at a lasting lightbulb.
• Why Bamboo Takes Years to Grow Above Ground: it grows underground for years first.
• Meet Katherine Johnson: her mathematical perseverance at NASA.
• The Apollo 11 Launch Almost Failed: technical problems and human mistakes overcome by planning and calm.
• The Growth Mindset of J.K. Rowling: years of rejection letters before Harry Potter.

How to use these growth mindset reading passages

• Reading groups at levels S–V, with the Edison and Johnson passages as a pair
• Written responses to the open-ended questions as a personal reflection
• SEL reading comprehension: use How to Set Goals—and Keep Going When It’s Tough and talk about setting goals and keeping going
• Independent practice or homework with the 50-question answer key

Grade fit

Written for Grade 5 readers, with levels from S to V. The reading passages with questions draw on NASA history and authors, which suits older readers.

Digital version

With the interactive digital version, you share one link and students read each passage and answer the questions on any device, with no student logins. At the end they download an answer sheet to hand in.

Pairs well with

To carry the growth mindset theme beyond reading, pair it with Growth Mindset Role Play Scenarios for acting it out and Growth Mindset Task Cards for written responses.