A Cleaner Place, Less Waste
A candy wrapper on a sidewalk may seem small. But wind can push it into a storm drain, and rainwater can carry it toward a stream. When many small pieces of litter collect, they can make a place unpleasant and create problems for wildlife. A community cleanup can remove some of that litter—and careful habits can help keep it from returning.
How litter travels
Litter is waste left where it does not belong. A cup dropped in a park might stay near a bench, or it might roll across a field. Lightweight items, such as wrappers and plastic bags, are especially easy for wind to move. Rain can wash litter along streets and into storm drains. Depending on the local system, water entering those drains may flow into nearby waterways.
Litter can harm animals in several ways. An animal might mistake a small piece of plastic for food or become tangled in a loose cord. Litter can also collect around plants and spoil places where people gather. Picking it up helps remove these hazards, although a cleanup alone cannot solve every cause of waste.
Cleaning up safely
- storm drain:
- An opening that collects rainwater from streets or other surfaces.
- waterways:
- Bodies or routes of water, such as streams.
- tangled:
- Twisted or caught in something so that it is hard to get free.
- hazards:
- Things that can cause harm or danger.
- boundaries:
- Lines or limits that show where an area begins and ends.
- substances:
- Materials of a particular kind.
- disposal:
- The act of getting rid of something.
One passage, many ways to practice
Reading-skill questions, word work and writing prompts — all built from this text.
Main Idea
Identify the central idea and explain how important details develop it.
Context Clues
Use clues in the passage to work out what words mean. A separate printable Vocabulary worksheet is also available.
Summarize
Select, organize, and restate the most important information without adding opinion.
Purpose
Analyze what the author aims to do and how choices serve audience and purpose.
Structure
Analyze how sections and organizational choices build the text's ideas or effects.
Vocabulary
Practice words from the passage with a printable worksheet.
Writing Prompts
Use the passage as a springboard for short written responses, from personal reflection to evidence-based arguments.
Fix the Sentence
Practice editing sentences drawn from this passage with a printable worksheet.
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Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 11. What is the main idea of the article? Give two details that support it.
- 22. How can a wrapper on a sidewalk eventually reach a stream?
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About this explanatory article passage for Upper Elementary
“A Cleaner Place, Less Waste” is a explanatory article reading passage about Litter prevention and community cleanups, written for Upper Elementary. It takes about 3 minutes to read (518 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.