The Night the Power Went Out — Reading Comprehension — Answers
Answer sheet with model answers and success criteria for the Year 4 reading comprehension comprehension exercise.
Year 4 · English · Reading Comprehension
The Night the Power Went Out — Reading Comprehension — Answers
The Night the Power Went Out
Read the story carefully. Notice how the characters' feelings change from the beginning to the end.
The storm hit just after dinner. One moment Priya was watching her favourite show; the next, the television went black, the fridge stopped humming and the whole house fell silent.
'Blackout,' said Dad from the kitchen. 'Nobody move.'
Priya heard a drawer open and the rattle of a torch rolling across the bench. Then a thin beam of light swung around the room and landed on her little brother, Arun, who was standing frozen in the hallway with his mouth open.
'I don't like it,' Arun whispered.
'Come on,' said Priya. 'Let's find the candles.'
Together they dug through the cupboard under the stairs. They found three candles, a box of matches, a second torch with flat batteries and, right at the back, an old board game that nobody had played for years. Dad lit the candles and stood them in jam jars on the kitchen table. The flames made the room glow gold, and the shadows of the chairs stretched long and tall up the walls.
Outside, the rain drummed on the tin roof and the wind shook the gum tree in the yard. Inside, the family sat around the table and opened the dusty box.
At first Arun kept glancing at the dark window. But soon he was laughing as Dad landed on Priya's hotel for the third time in a row and had to hand over most of his pretend money. Mum heated milk on the gas stove for hot chocolate, and they drank it by candlelight while the storm grumbled away over the hills.
When the lights snapped back on at nine o'clock, Arun groaned. 'Can we turn them off again?' he asked.
Priya smiled. She had been thinking exactly the same thing.
Part A — Right there in the text
Find each answer in the story.
Answer: Watching her favourite show on television.
- Ain the kitchen drawer
- Bin the cupboard under the stairs
- Cin Arun's bedroom
- Din the garage
Answer: in the cupboard under the stairs
The text says they 'dug through the cupboard under the stairs'.
Answer: Any three of: three candles, a box of matches, a torch with flat batteries, an old board game.
Answer: Jam jars.
- Ain the microwave
- Bon the gas stove
- Cover a candle
- Dshe didn't; it was cold
Answer: on the gas stove
The text says 'Mum heated milk on the gas stove'.
Answer: Nine o'clock.
Part B — Reading between the lines
Use evidence from the story to explain your answers.
Answer: He was scared. He stood frozen with his mouth open, whispered 'I don't like it', and kept glancing at the dark window.
Answer: She wanted to give Arun a job to take his mind off being scared, and to help the family.
Answer: He had started to enjoy the blackout, with the candles, the game and the hot chocolate, and did not want it to end.
Answer: She felt the same as Arun. Even though she is older, she enjoyed the family time by candlelight more than watching television.
Part C — Word meanings
- Afell softly
- Bmade a loud, steady beating sound
- Cstopped suddenly
- Dleaked inside
Answer: made a loud, steady beating sound
To drum is to make a repeated beating sound, like a drum.
- Aa person complaining in a low voice
- Ba dog barking
- Ca car engine
- Da bird singing
Answer: a person complaining in a low voice
To grumble is to complain in a low, muttering voice. The thunder sounds like that as it moves away.
Answer: Batteries that have run out of power.
Part D — Extended response
Model answer: By ten o'clock the candles had burnt down to stubs. Dad spread sleeping bags on the lounge-room floor and they all lay in a row like sardines. Priya could hear the rain softening to a patter and the fridge still silent in the kitchen. Through the window, a single streetlight flickered back to life and went out again. 'Tell us a story,' Arun said, and Dad did, until the only sound left was Arun's slow breathing and the drip, drip of the gutter outside.
Success criteria:
- Continues sensibly from where the story ends
- Includes at least one sound detail and one sight detail
- Characters behave in a way that fits the story
- Uses paragraphs and correctly punctuated dialogue
- Has a satisfying ending
Marking tips
- Give credit for correct method even when the final answer slips — the working shows where the thinking went right.
- For open-ended tasks, use the success criteria as a checklist rather than looking for one "right" answer.
- Celebrate what went well first, then pick one thing to work on next.
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