What Happened and Why is a free printable Kindergarten English worksheet on linking two things that happen in a story, aligned to Common Core standard RL.K.1. It prints 2 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions, 23 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 1 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.
23 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.
What Happened and Why
RL.K.1
NameDate
Read the story, then answer the questions.
1.Read the text, then answer the questions.
New Shoes
Ada got new shoes. They were shiny and green. On the first day she walked slowly so they would stay clean. Then she saw a puddle. Ada stopped. She looked at the puddle for a long time. Then she jumped in with both feet.
1. Do you think Ada's shoes stayed clean? How do you know?
2. Why did Ada stop?
2.Read the text, then answer the questions.
Where Is Pepper?
Pepper the cat was gone. Lily looked in the box. No Pepper. She looked under the bed. No Pepper. She looked behind the door. There was Pepper, fast asleep in a sock drawer.
1. Was Pepper hiding on purpose? How do you know?
2. Why did Lily keep looking?
LessonPrint · RL.K.1 · Set 1 · free to copy for classroom use
Answer key — What Happened and Why
Set 1. Prints on its own sheet.
1.1. No — she jumped in the puddle with both feet. 2. Because she saw a puddle and had to decide what to do.
2.1. Probably not — she was fast asleep, not watching for Lily. 2. Because Pepper was not in the first two places she tried.
Questions about What Happened and Why
What does the What Happened and Why worksheet cover?
It practises linking two things that happen in a story — 2 questions for Kindergarten, all on Common Core RL.K.1: Answer questions about what happened in a story you have just heard. The instruction to pupils is “Read the story, then answer the questions”, and the answer key follows on the next sheet.
Which Common Core standard does What Happened and Why practise?
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.1 — RL.K.1, in the Reading: Literature domain for Kindergarten. The published standard reads: “With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.” The worksheet assesses that standard rather than a paraphrase of it.
What age or grade is this worksheet for?
What Happened and Why is written for Kindergarten, typically ages 5-6. It is one of the sheets on RL.K.1, so it suits any pupil working at that standard — including older pupils revisiting it and younger ones working ahead.
Does What Happened and Why come with an answer key?
Yes. All 2 answers are generated from the same problems as the questions, so the key cannot drift out of step with the sheet. It starts on a fresh sheet of paper, after the questions, so it is not handed out with the class by accident.
How many different versions of What Happened and Why can I print?
25 versions, of which 23 ask genuinely different questions — this skill does not have 25 distinct questions to give, so the rest reorder them and no two pupils still share a paper. Set 1 downloads all 25 as one PDF.
Is What Happened and Why free to print and photocopy?
Yes. What Happened and Why, its answer key and its 25 versions are free to print and photocopy for your own class, with no account, no email capture and no subscription at the download step. Please do not resell them or republish them as your own.
More practice for RL.K.1
Answer questions about what happened in a story you have just heard.