The Broken Friendship Bracelet
The Broken Friendship Bracelet
Lily and Maya were the best of friends. They did everything together. They built forts in Lily's backyard, read books aloud in Maya's treehouse, and even wore matching friendship bracelets. One bracelet was pink, the other was purple. They promised never to take them off.
One sunny afternoon, Lily and Maya were playing tag in the park. Lily tripped over a tree root and scraped her knee. "Ouch!" she cried. Maya, eager to win, didn't stop running. "I win!" she shouted, giggling. Lily felt a pang of hurt, not from her knee, but from Maya's reaction.
"You didn't even ask if I was okay," Lily said, her voice trembling slightly. Maya shrugged. "You just tripped. It wasn't a big deal." Lily's eyes welled up with tears. She ripped off her pink friendship bracelet and threw it on the ground. "Maybe we shouldn't be friends anymore!" she exclaimed, before running home.
The next day at school, Lily and Maya avoided each other. The classroom felt cold and empty without their usual chatter. During recess, Lily sat alone on a bench, picking at the grass. She noticed a small, colorful object glinting in the sun nearby. It was the pink friendship bracelet, dirty but still intact.
- Trembling:
- Shaking slightly, often because of emotion.
- Overreacted:
- Reacted more strongly than necessary.
- Intact:
- Not damaged; whole.
- pang:
- A sudden, sharp feeling of emotional or physical pain.
- glinting:
- Shining or sparkling brightly with small flashes of light.
- guilty:
- Feeling bad or sorry for doing something wrong.
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
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Writing Prompts
Use the passage as a springboard for short written responses, from personal reflection to evidence-based arguments.
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Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 1Why were Lily and Maya best friends?
- 2What happened to Lily when they were playing tag?
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About this fiction passage for Upper Elementary
“The Broken Friendship Bracelet” is a fiction reading passage about Friendship, written for Upper Elementary. It takes about 2 minutes to read (360 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.