RI.6.1 Informational Text Worksheet for 11-Year-Olds — English, History & Critical Thinking

Instructions

1. Read the short passage below about the famous aviator Amelia Earhart.
2. Complete Part 1 by finding specific facts directly stated in the text.
3. Move on to Part 2 to practice making inferences, which are like educated guesses based on clues in the text.
4. Answer the critical thinking question in Part 3, using evidence to support your ideas.
5. If you're up for it, tackle the Challenge Question at the end!

The Final Flight of Amelia Earhart

Amelia Earhart was a pioneering American aviator who captivated the world in the 1930s with her courage and skill. She was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, a feat that made her an international hero. In 1937, Earhart set out for her most ambitious challenge yet: to become the first woman to fly around the world.

She and her navigator, Fred Noonan, successfully completed over 22,000 miles of the journey. Their final, most difficult section was a long flight over the vast, empty Pacific Ocean to a tiny speck of land called Howland Island. On July 2, 1937, during this leg of the journey, Earhart radioed the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Itasca, which was waiting near the island to guide her in. Her radio messages were patchy, but she reported that she was low on fuel and could not see the island. Soon after, radio contact was lost completely.

The United States government immediately launched the largest and most expensive sea search in its history. For weeks, ships and planes scoured over 250,000 square miles of ocean, but they found no trace of Earhart, Noonan, or their twin-engine plane, the Electra. What happened to them remains one of the greatest unsolved mysteries of the 20th century. While the official U.S. government position is that the plane ran out of fuel and crashed into the ocean, other theories persist. Some researchers believe Earhart and Noonan may have crash-landed on a different, uninhabited island and survived for a time as castaways.

Part 1: Explicit Evidence Finder

Explicit evidence is information stated directly in the text. Find the specific sentence or phrase in the passage that answers each question below and write it down as your proof.

Part 2: Detective's Notebook - Making Inferences

An inference is a conclusion you draw based on clues in the text, even if the text doesn't state it directly. For each inference below, find the text evidence that best supports it.

Part 3: Critical Thinking - Forming a Conclusion

Based on the passage, which theory about Amelia Earhart's disappearance do you think is most likely to be true: that she crashed in the ocean OR that she landed on an uninhabited island?

Explain your choice in 2-3 sentences, using at least one piece of evidence from the text to support your argument.

My Conclusion:

Evidence from the text to support my conclusion:

Challenge Question (Optional)

Imagine you are a historian investigating the Amelia Earhart mystery. Besides the text provided, what is one other type of evidence or artifact you would want to find to help solve the case? Why would this piece of evidence be so important?

Answer Key

Part 1: Explicit Evidence Finder

1. Who was Earhart's navigator? "her navigator, Fred Noonan"
2. What was the name of the ship? "the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Itasca"
3. What problem did Earhart report? "she reported that she was low on fuel and could not see the island."
4. What is the official U.S. government theory? "the official U.S. government position is that the plane ran out of fuel and crashed into the ocean"

Part 2: Detective's Notebook - Making Inferences (Note: Student answers may vary slightly but should be similar to these.)

1. The last part of the flight was extremely dangerous. Evidence: It was a "long flight over the vast, empty Pacific Ocean to a tiny speck of land."
2. Finding a tiny island in a huge ocean was very difficult in the 1930s. Evidence: She "could not see the island" and the ship was there "to guide her in."
3. The U.S. government considered finding Amelia Earhart a high priority. Evidence: They "launched the largest and most expensive sea search in its history."
4. Not everyone agrees on what happened to Amelia Earhart. Evidence: "While the official...position is that the plane...crashed into the ocean, other theories persist."
5. Earhart was likely very worried during her last radio calls. Evidence: She reported she was "low on fuel" and her "radio messages were patchy."

Part 3: Critical Thinking - Forming a Conclusion (Answers will vary. The most important thing is that the student supports their choice with text evidence. Here are two possible answers.)

• Example for 'crashed in the ocean': "I think it's most likely she crashed in the ocean. The text says she was 'low on fuel' and that the search party 'found no trace' of her plane, which makes sense if it sank in the 'vast, empty Pacific Ocean.'"
• Example for 'landed on an island': "I think she might have landed on another island. The text mentions that this is one of the 'other theories' that 'persist,' which suggests some people believe it's possible. Since the search was so big and found nothing, maybe they were searching in the wrong place."

Challenge Question (Answers will vary but should be logical. Examples could include:)

• Finding the wreckage of the Electra plane. This would be important because it could show if they crashed due to fuel loss or another reason, and its location would end the mystery.
• Finding a personal item, like a diary or logbook. This would be important because it might contain their last written thoughts or coordinates.
• Finding human remains on an island. This would be important because they could be tested to see if they belonged to Earhart or Noonan, proving the 'castaway' theory.