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What the Author Wanted is a free printable Grade 2 English worksheet on identifying the main purpose of an information text, aligned to Common Core standard RI.2.6. It prints 8 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two pupils in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

Set 6 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

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Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

What the Author Wanted

RI.2.6

NameDate

Tick the right answer.

1.An author writes "Glass is unusual." What are they about to do?
  • A.Describe a glass factory worker
  • B.Explain what makes glass different
  • C.Give an opinion about bottles
2.A text says a polar bear can overheat if it runs too far. Why include that?
  • A.To make the text longer
  • B.To show just how well insulated it is
  • C.To warn you not to run
3.A text explains the five stages of recycling paper. What is the author's main purpose?
  • A.To sell you paper
  • B.To explain a process
  • C.To make you laugh
4.A text is titled "How a Camel Survives". What question does it answer?
  • A.How does a camel survive in a desert?
  • B.Where can I buy a camel?
  • C.Who owns the camel?
5.Why would an author give a number like "eighteen hundred litres"?
  • A.Because numbers look important
  • B.To fill up space
  • C.To make the fact exact rather than vague
6.Which title tells you the author will explain a cause?
  • A.The Tall Building Song
  • B.My Day at the Tower
  • C.Why Tall Buildings Do Not Fall Over
7.A text ends "which is why new buildings are made to sway". What is the author doing?
  • A.Describing a building's colour
  • B.Explaining why something is done
  • C.Telling a joke
8.How can you tell an information text from a story quickly?
  • A.It gives facts you could check, and has no made-up characters
  • B.It always has pictures
  • C.It is always shorter

LessonPrint · RI.2.6 · Set 6 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — What the Author Wanted

Set 6. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.Explain what makes glass different
  2. 2.To show just how well insulated it is
  3. 3.To explain a process
  4. 4.How does a camel survive in a desert?
  5. 5.To make the fact exact rather than vague
  6. 6.Why Tall Buildings Do Not Fall Over
  7. 7.Explaining why something is done
  8. 8.It gives facts you could check, and has no made-up characters

More practice for RI.2.6

Say why the author wrote it and what they wanted to explain.

Teaching this next? What the Author Wanted to Do is the 40-minute plan for it, with the misconceptions to expect.

All Grade 2 worksheets

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to RI.2.6 of the Common Core State Standards for English language arts.