Honey Bees — Reading Comprehension — Answers
Answer sheet with model answers and success criteria for the 4th Grade reading comprehension comprehension exercise.
Success TutoringWorksheetsAnswer sheet4th Grade · English · Reading ComprehensionHoney Bees — Reading Comprehension — Answers
Part A: Right there in the text
Use the subheadings to help you find each answer.
Answer: A colony.
- Aa worker
- Ba drone
- Cthe queen
- Dall of them
Answer: the queen
The text says the queen "is the only bee that lays eggs".
Answer: Any three of: cleaning, feeding the young, guarding the entrance, collecting food (nectar).
Answer: Nectar.
- Awhere the queen is
- Bwhich way to fly and how far to go
- Cwhen winter is coming
- Dhow to make wax
Answer: which way to fly and how far to go
The dance tells the bees "which way to fly and how far to go".
Answer: Any two of: apples, almonds, pumpkins.
Part B: Reading between the lines
Use evidence from the report to explain your answers.
Answer: To dry out most of the water so the nectar thickens into honey.
Answer: So they have food in winter, when there are few flowers to collect nectar from.
Answer: Bees pollinate many crops by carrying pollen between flowers. Without pollination, fruits and vegetables like apples and almonds would not grow properly.
Answer: Native bees mostly live alone rather than in big colonies with a queen and workers.
Part C: Word meanings
- Abees make wax
- Bpollen is carried from one flower to another
- Cbees sting an enemy
- Dhoney is stored for winter
Answer: pollen is carried from one flower to another
The text says pollen rubs off on the next flower and "This is called pollination".
- Aa single bee
- Ba type of flower
- Ca large group living together
- Da kind of honey
Answer: a large group living together
The first sentence says bees "live together in large groups called colonies".
Answer: Bees that come from North America originally, rather than being brought here from another country.
Part D: Explain it
Model answer: First, worker bees fly to flowers and sip nectar. Next, they carry the nectar back to the hive in their honey stomach and pass it to other workers. Then those bees fan the nectar with their wings so the water dries out and it becomes thick. Finally, the honey is stored in wax cells so the bees can eat it in winter.
Success criteria:
- Steps are in the correct order
- Uses sequencing words (first, next, then, finally)
- Includes the key ideas: nectar, carrying, fanning, storing
- Written in the student's own words, not copied
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.