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Questions About an Information Text

A 40-minute Grade 1 lesson on answering questions about an information text and finding the sentence that proves it.

Questions About an Information Text is a free 40-minute Grade 1 English lesson plan for Common Core standard RI.1.1 — ask and answer questions about the facts in an information text. It is timed across 5 sections, gives the exact wording to use where the wording carries the meaning, names 3 misconceptions with the teaching move that addresses each, and ends with an exit ticket and a printable worksheet with its answer key.

Grade:
Grade 1
Length:
40 minutes
Standard:
RI.1.1

Grade 1 · Reading: Informational Text

RI.1.1

Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.

Objective

Students will be able to answer a question about an information text, underline the sentence that answers it, and say when the text does not answer a question.

Students are successful when they can

  • Answers "What do penguins eat?" with "fish" and underlines "Penguins eat fish."
  • Underlines one sentence, not the whole paragraph.
  • Says "The text does not tell us" for "How long do penguins live?" instead of guessing.

What you need

  • The "Penguins" text (in the Teach section), one copy per pair
  • Pencils for underlining
  • The printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan

The lesson

Warm-up — three questions before we read

5 min
  1. Show only the title: "Penguins." Ask: "What do you want to find out about penguins?"
  2. Write three questions on the board. Steer toward ones the text answers and one it does not: "Can penguins fly?", "What do penguins eat?", "How long do penguins live?"
  3. Do not answer any. Say: "Let us see what the text tells us."

Teach — the sentence that proves it

13 min
  1. Read the text aloud: "Penguins are birds, but they cannot fly. They use their wings like flippers to swim. Penguins eat fish. Emperor penguins live in Antarctica, where it is very cold. A father emperor penguin keeps the egg warm on his feet."
  2. Take the first question: "Can penguins fly?" Fish for "No." Ask: "Which sentence tells us?" Underline "Penguins are birds, but they cannot fly."
  3. Second question: "What do penguins eat?" Underline "Penguins eat fish."
  4. Third question: "How long do penguins live?" Read the text again together, sentence by sentence. Say: "The text does not tell us. That is a good thing to know — we would need another book."
  5. Ask a question that needs a little thinking: "Why are penguins good swimmers?" Fish for "They use their wings like flippers." Underline it.
  6. Ask: "Who keeps the egg warm?" Some will say the mother. Point to the sentence: "A father emperor penguin..." Say: "The text tells us — so we go with the text."
“Your answer is only as good as the sentence that proves it. Find it, read it, underline it.”

Guided practice — underline four

12 min
  1. Pairs answer four questions with their own copy: "Where do emperor penguins live?", "What is it like there?", "What do penguins use their wings for?", "How does the father keep the egg warm?"
  2. For each, one partner says the answer and the other underlines the sentence that proves it.
  3. Then each pair writes one question the text answers and one it does not, and swaps with another pair.
  4. Circulate and ask "Read me the sentence." If the sentence does not answer the question, ask them to try the next one.
  5. Share a "does not answer" question and let the class check the text together.
“If you cannot find the sentence, the answer might not be in this text. Saying so is a good answer.”

Independent practice

8 min
  1. Students complete the fact-text questions page: reading the text and answering the questions.
  2. Remind them to find the sentence before writing each answer.
  3. Children who finish underline the proof sentence on the sheet for every answer.

Close

2 min
  1. Ask: "Do penguins live where it is hot?" Thumbs up or down.
  2. Ask one child to read the sentence that proves it: "Emperor penguins live in Antarctica, where it is very cold."

What goes wrong, and why

Each of these is a reasoning error rather than carelessness. The fix addresses the reasoning.

Answers from what they already know: "Penguins live at the zoo."

Why: They have real knowledge about the topic, and it feels just as true as the text. In an information text, prior knowledge is easy to mix up with what is written.

Fix: Ask "Does the text say that?" Praise what they know, then ask them to find what this text says. Use the phrase "The text says..." to start answers.

Underlines the whole paragraph when asked for the sentence.

Why: They know the answer is in there somewhere, and underlining everything feels safe.

Fix: Ask them to read each sentence aloud, one at a time, and stop when they hear the answer. Only that sentence gets underlined.

Makes up an answer when the text does not say: "Penguins live for 100 years."

Why: They think every question must have an answer, and "I do not know" feels like failing.

Fix: Model and praise "The text does not tell us." Put it on the board as a correct answer. Ask "Where would we look to find out?"

If they are not there yet

  • Number the sentences and let the child answer "Sentence 3."
  • Ask questions whose answers are one word inside one sentence: "What do penguins eat?"
  • Read each sentence with the child and stop after each to ask "Does this answer it?"

If they finish early

  • Answer a question that needs two sentences put together: "Why does the father keep the egg on his feet?" (It is very cold.)
  • Write three questions this text does not answer and suggest where to find the answers.
  • Write one new fact about penguins from a library book with the page it came from.

Exit ticket

What do penguins use their wings for? Write the answer and underline the sentence that proves it.

What to look for: "To swim, like flippers" with "They use their wings like flippers to swim" underlined. "To fly" means they answered from what they expected, not from the text. The right answer with no sentence means they still need to show the proof.

Printable practice for RI.1.1

Free to print and copy, answer key included. Each sheet can generate a fresh set of problems for a retake.

Questions about Questions About an Information Text

How long does the Questions About an Information Text lesson take?

40 minutes, split across 5 timed sections: warm-up 5 min, teach 13 min, guided practice 12 min, independent practice 8 min, close 2 min. The minutes are stated per section and add up to the stated length, so the plan can be cut or extended at a section boundary rather than abandoned halfway.

Which standard does Questions About an Information Text teach?

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.1.1 — RI.1.1, Reading: Informational Text for Grade 1: “Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.” In plain terms, ask and answer questions about the facts in an information text.

What do I need to teach this lesson?

The "Penguins" text (in the Teach section), one copy per pair, pencils for underlining and the printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan. Everything listed is either ordinary classroom equipment or a free printable from this site — there is nothing to buy and nothing to prepare beyond photocopying.

What mistakes should I expect in this lesson?

Three, each a reasoning error rather than carelessness: answers from what they already know: "Penguins live at the zoo."; underlines the whole paragraph when asked for the sentence and makes up an answer when the text does not say: "Penguins live for 100 years.". The plan gives the thinking behind each one and the teaching move that addresses the thinking rather than the symptom.

How do I know whether the lesson worked?

The exit ticket asks: “What do penguins use their wings for? Write the answer and underline the sentence that proves it.” "To swim, like flippers" with "They use their wings like flippers to swim" underlined. "To fly" means they answered from what they expected, not from the text. The right answer with no sentence means they still need to show the proof. That tells you whether the class needs a reteach or a thirty-second conversation before you plan tomorrow.

Is there a worksheet to go with Questions About an Information Text?

Yes — 1 printable RI.1.1 worksheet, linked at the end of the plan and free like the rest of the site. Each one comes with an answer key and 25 versions, so the practice after the lesson can be a different paper on every desk.

Is Questions About an Information Text free to use?

Yes. The plan, its printables and their answer keys are free to read, print and photocopy for your own class, with no account and no email capture. It was last reviewed on October 8, 2026. Please do not resell it or republish it as your own.

Last reviewed 2026-10-08. Aligned to RI.1.1 of the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.