In a related theme, we're getting ready for PARCC!
Attached to this post, you'll find some sample passages and questions to be used with a test prep unit in reading and writing. Many of these passages were created by 3rd and 4th Grade teachers in Paramus and by literacy coaches in our coaching cohort.
There are paired-text sets, which are linked by theme. These resemble the types of items kids might see on PARCC.
There are also single-text sets, which are good to practice some of the kinds of questions that will be used on PARCC. The writing samples that are attached to these files are about one single text. Some of these texts are also in the paired sets with different writing prompts. (These start about halfway down the list, starting with The Leaving Morning.)
There are a few other texts I'll be adding in the upcoming days. Keep on the lookout!
Thank you to everyone who helped create these texts! Stay warm and safe both from the snow and from the other storm that is so easy to be caught up in these days.
UPDATE: There has been an overwhelming number of requests for answer keys here. Unfortunately, I'm not able to provide this on my own. I'd like to invite all of you who are using these passages to work out the answer keys for individual passages and post them here. Thank you for adding to the knowledge of this online community, and for helping thousands of kids who you don't even know!

01_parcc_peters_chair_and_i_love_you_the_purplest.pdf |

02_parcc_jonas_and_the_leaving_morning.pdf |

03_parcc_jamaicas_find_and_polliwogs.pdf |

05_parcc_america_by_tricycle_and_magellans_madness.pdf |

06_parcc_owl_moon_and_whistling.pdf |

08_parcc_paper_bag_princess_and_harriet_tubman.pdf |

09_parcc_relatives_came_and_grandmamas_kitdhen_table.pdf |

10_parcc_maybe_a_fight_and_sheila_raes_peppermint_stick.pdf |

11_parcc_other_side_and_sweet_smell_of_roses.pdf |

12_parcc_oliver_button_is_a_sissy_and_velveteen_rabbit.pdf |

13_parcc_city_of_marvels_and_baths_of_caracalla.pdf |

14_parcc_ming_lo_moves_the_mountain_and_madame_rhinoceros.pdf |

18_parcc_koala_lou_and_abby_takes_her_shot.pdf |

02_parcc_leaving_morning.pdf |

03_parcc_jamaicas_find.pdf |

04_parcc_caterpillar_and_the_polliwog.pdf |

05_parcc_america_by_tricycle.pdf |

07_parcc_remya_joses_great_idea.pdf |

08_parcc_harriet_tubman.pdf |

10_parcc_sheila_raes_peppermint_stick.pdf |

12_oliver_button_is_a_sissy.pdf |

15_parcc_paperboy.pdf |

16_parcc_tacky_the_penguin.pdf |

17_parcc_the_ducks_and_the_fox.pdf |

19_parcc_blizzard.pdf |