The Last Tail Reading Comprehension Worksheet

Reading comprehension at the fourth grade level means more than remembering what happened; it means understanding why a character acts, following a cause to its effect, and using details from the story to back up an answer. This The Last Tail Reading Comprehension Worksheet gives students a brand-new two-page story about Isaac, a boy who decides to sew a stuffed fox for his little sister’s sixth birthday. With his grandmother’s help he traces a pattern, cuts orange felt, and learns to sew neat seams, but when the fox needs its last and most important piece, the felt is almost gone. To finish the tail, Isaac gives up his own favorite orange scarf. The passage is written and measured at a fourth grade reading level, and every new term is defined in the sentence that introduces it, so students practice context clues while they read.

This 4th grade reading comprehension worksheet is ready to use with no preparation. Students read pages one and two, then move to the question page and answer four multiple-choice questions and one written response. The questions are drawn from across the whole story and cover character motivation, a vocabulary word in context, a cause-and-effect relationship, and an inference about what Isaac’s choice shows about him as a brother. The written response asks students to explain what kept Isaac going and what he gave up to finish the gift, with a detail from the story for each part. A complete answer key finishes the set.

What’s Included

• 1 print-ready PDF worksheet
• Answer key
• 1 original two-page story with a full-color illustration
• 4 multiple-choice questions and 1 written response

There are three reasons this The Last Tail Reading Comprehension Worksheet builds real reading strength. First, the story is long enough to build stamina, which is exactly what a fourth grader needs before a state reading test, and it is broken into short paragraphs so the length never feels heavy. Second, the questions require students to go back into the text and hunt for evidence, because each wrong choice sounds possible until it is checked against the story. Third, the written response asks students to explain a character’s motivation in their own words, which is a skill fourth grade reading standards name directly.

Teachers and parents can build a whole lesson around this reading. Ask students to track every choice Isaac makes and write the reason behind it, which turns the story into a character motivation chart. Have small groups retell the plot in order, from the paper pattern to the birthday party, and mark the moment the problem is solved. Invite students to talk about a gift they made for someone and what it cost them in time or effort. Pair this story with the other Tail stories in the set so students can compare how different characters solve a problem.

Related Resources

• The Seventh Tail Reading Comprehension Worksheet
• The Eighth Tail Reading Comprehension Worksheet
• The Sixth Tail Reading Comprehension Worksheet
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