How it works: the slashes mark meaningful phrases. Students read chunk by chunk — a breath at each /, a full stop at each // — then reread for smoothness and expression. When it sounds like talking, hand them the unmarked article in the linked unit.

Phrase-Cued Reading · 1 of 495 words

The Mountain Lets Go

Breathe at each / · stop at each // · read it three times, smoother each time.

Name

Date

The slope looks solid. //
It is not. //
Under the smooth white surface / the snow is stacked in layers — / some strong, / some weak. //
A slab avalanche begins / when a firm layer breaks loose / and starts to slide / over a weaker layer underneath it. //
Here is the part / most people get wrong. //
Avalanches are usually not random accidents / that land on unlucky people. //
About nine out of ten avalanche accidents / are started by the victim, / or by someone in the victim's own group. //
The weight of one person / crossing the slope / is enough to break the bond. //

Opening adapted from the Read & Think unit “The Mountain Lets Go” — the full article and its questions live at surestepeducation.com/free/read-think/avalanche/.

Phrase-Cued Reading · 2 of 473 words

The Number That Follows You

Breathe at each / · stop at each // · read it three times, smoother each time.

Name

Date

Somewhere, / without anyone asking you, / a number is being kept about you. //
Not your grades. //
Not your height. //
A credit score — / a three-digit estimate / of how likely you are / to pay back money you borrow. //
The number usually runs / from 300 to 850, / and higher is better. //
It is worked out / from your credit report, / which is simply a record / of money you have borrowed / and how you handled / paying it back. //

Opening adapted from the Read & Think unit “The Number That Follows You” — the full article and its questions live at surestepeducation.com/free/read-think/credit-score/.

Phrase-Cued Reading · 3 of 480 words

The Ocean Makes Its Own Light

Breathe at each / · stop at each // · read it three times, smoother each time.

Name

Date

Go down into the ocean / and the light starts to vanish. //
The top 200 meters / is called the sunlight zone — / bright, warm, / and home to most of the sea animals / you already know. //
But that bright layer / is thinner than you'd think. //
Between 200 and 1,000 meters / is the twilight zone. //
Here the light fades fast, / until almost none is left. //
And below 1,000 meters? //
That's the midnight zone. //
Sunlight never reaches it. //
It is always, / completely dark. //

Opening adapted from the Read & Think unit “The Ocean Makes Its Own Light” — the full article and its questions live at surestepeducation.com/free/read-think/ocean-light/.

Phrase-Cued Reading · 4 of 492 words

Built for Ninety Days

Breathe at each / · stop at each // · read it three times, smoother each time.

Name

Date

In January 2004, / a robot the size of a golf cart / bounced down onto Mars, / wrapped in airbags. //
When the bouncing stopped, / it sat inside a small crater — / a hole in one, / the team joked. //
Its name was Opportunity. //
Its makers hoped / it might last ninety days. //
Opportunity was a rover, / a robot car / built to drive across another world. //
It had a twin named Spirit, / which had landed / on the other side of Mars / three weeks earlier. //
Together they had one big question to answer: / was Mars ever a wet world? //

Opening adapted from the Read & Think unit “Built for Ninety Days” — the full article and its questions live at surestepeducation.com/free/read-think/opportunity-rover/.