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Why Does the Author Say That? is a free printable Grade 2 English worksheet on explaining how a reason supports a claim, aligned to Common Core standard RI.2.8. It prints 2 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions, 24 of them with 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 16 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

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Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. 24 of these 25 sets ask different questions — this skill does not have 25 questions to give. The rest reorder them, so no two pupils have the same paper in front of them.

Why Does the Author Say That?

RI.2.8

NameDate

Read the text, then answer the questions.

1.Read the text, then answer the questions.

How a Camel Survives

A camel can cross a desert that would kill most animals. Almost every part of it helps. Its hump is not full of water. It is full of fat. The camel uses the fat for energy when there is no food, which is why the hump sags on a hungry camel. A camel has two rows of long eyelashes and can close its nostrils. Both keep sand out during a storm. Its feet are wide and flat. They spread the camel's weight so it does not sink into soft sand. A thirsty camel can drink a hundred litres in ten minutes.

  1. 1. The author says a camel's feet are wide and flat. What reason is given?
  2. 2. How are the hump and going without food connected?
  3. 3. What does the author want to explain?
2.Read the text, then answer the questions.

Launching a Lifeboat

When a boat is in trouble, a call goes out to the lifeboat station. Pagers sound. The crew are volunteers, so they stop whatever they are doing and drive to the station. Most arrive within six minutes. They pull on drysuits and lifejackets and climb aboard. The boat slides down a ramp into the sea and the engines start. At sea, the crew look for a flare, a light, or a shape in the water. Once they find the boat, they take the people off first and the boat second. A lifeboat can right itself if a wave rolls it over.

  1. 1. Why do the crew take the people off first?
  2. 2. What does the author want to explain?
  3. 3. How are the pagers connected to the launch?

LessonPrint · RI.2.8 · Set 16 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Why Does the Author Say That?

Set 16. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.1. So its weight is spread and it does not sink into soft sand. 2. The camel uses the fat in the hump for energy when there is no food. 3. Why a camel can survive where most animals cannot.
  2. 2.1. Because saving people matters more than saving the boat. 2. What happens, step by step, when a lifeboat is called out. 3. The pagers tell the volunteer crew to come, so the boat can be launched.

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to RI.2.8 of the Common Core State Standards for English language arts.