Reading passage Grade 3 Social Studies & Civics
Windmill Hill: How a Town Pumped Water Then and Now
A grade 3 informational passage about how the fictional town of Windmill Hill once pumped water with a windmill and now uses an electric pump and an operator.
Objectives
- Students will explain how the windmill on Windmill Hill lifted water long ago.
- Students will describe how the town changed when an electric pump arrived.
- Students will name the job of a pump operator in the town today.
Vocabulary
Key words: windmill, pump operator
Teacher overview
This passage tells the story of one fictional hill town and how it lifted water in two very different times, which lets grade 3 readers see a place change over time. It also introduces a real water-sector job, the pump operator, in a way young students can picture. Written in short sentences, it works as a read-alone, partner read, or class read, followed by comprehension questions that move from stated facts to how the place changed.
Passage
Windmill Hill is named for a real windmill. Long ago, the town put a tall wooden windmill on top of the hill. It was not built to grind grain. It was built to pump water.
Under the hill was a good well. But the water sat deep down. People could not carry it up by the bucket fast enough for the whole town. So they used the wind. When the wind blew, the windmill's blades turned. The turning blades ran a pump. The pump lifted well water up into a big wooden tank. From the tank, the water flowed down to homes.
The windmill worked well on windy days. But it had one problem. When the wind stopped, the pump stopped too. On calm days, the tank could run low. Then people had to carry water by hand again. In a long calm spell, the town had to be careful with every drop.
Years passed, and the town changed. Electric power came to Windmill Hill. The town put in an electric pump next to the old well. The new pump did not need the wind. It could run day and night, in any weather. It filled a larger tank made of steel.
The new pump also needed care. So the town gave that job to a worker called a pump operator. The operator checks the pump each day. She makes sure it runs at the right speed. She fixes small problems before they grow. Because of her work, the town almost never runs low on water now.
The old wooden windmill still stands on the hill. It no longer pumps water. The town keeps it as a marker of the past. When people look up at it, they remember how their town once caught the wind to lift water, and how much the place has changed.
Questions
Why was the windmill on Windmill Hill built?
How did the windmill lift water from the well up to the tank?
What problem did the windmill have on calm days with no wind?
What did the town put in later to do the windmill's old job?
Why does the town need a pump operator now? Use the passage.
The passage says the place changed over time. Name two ways Windmill Hill is different now than long ago.
From Water for Schools (waterforschools.org). This material is in the public domain (CC0) and may be copied, edited, and shared freely.
Answer Key
Answer: It was built to pump water. The passage says the windmill was not for grinding grain but for pumping water up from the well.
Answer: The wind turned the windmill's blades, the turning blades ran a pump, and the pump lifted well water up into a big wooden tank. The passage lists these steps in order.
Answer: When the wind stopped, the pump stopped, so the tank could run low and people had to carry water by hand. The passage names this as the windmill's one problem.
Answer: An electric pump. The passage says the town put in an electric pump that did not need the wind.
Answer: The electric pump needs care, so the operator checks it each day, keeps it at the right speed, and fixes small problems early. Answers should link the operator's job to keeping the pump running, as the passage states.
Answer: Any two real changes, such as the town now uses an electric pump instead of a windmill, the tank is larger and made of steel, water runs day and night in any weather, or a pump operator now cares for the system. The passage supports each of these.
Differentiation
Support
Give students a two-column chart labeled Long Ago and Now, and have them add one detail to each side as they read. Allow questions 5 and 6 to be answered aloud before writing.
Extension
Ask students to write two or three sentences telling what a visitor would see and hear on Windmill Hill long ago versus today, using only details from the passage.
ELL supports
Pre-teach windmill, pump, and operator with simple pictures showing wind turning blades and a worker checking a machine. Let students answer the fact questions by pointing to the matching sentence in the passage and reading it with support.