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Twist and Shout: A Tornado is Coming!



Twist and Shout: A Tornado is Coming!

A Short Reader

Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 4 to 6
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   4.1

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    twister, lowest, easily, likely, alley, powerful, level, cause, dangerous, during, pass, occur, anytime, common, picking, damage
     content words:    Northern Texas


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Twist and Shout: A Tornado is Coming!
By Erin Horner
  

1     One spring day my friend and I were playing outside. All of a sudden, the sky grew dark. Then, strong winds began to whip through the tree branches. Finally, the town siren began to wail. Oh, no! A tornado was coming!
 
2     Tornadoes are spinning columns of wind. They are very dangerous. These powerful winds can cause a lot of damage. They can suck up cars and trees. They can even pick up parts of houses! The powerful winds spin the objects around and then toss them back down to the ground. These twisters can occur anywhere at anytime. They are most common, though, during spring and summer, and between 3:00 pm and 9:00 pm. They are also most likely to strike in "tornado alley." Northern Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska are all part of tornado alley. These states have more tornadoes every year than any other parts of the country.
 
3     If you are inside when a tornado is approaching, move to a safe place. Closets or bathrooms on the lowest level of your home are great options. They are the safest places to be during a tornado. When picking a safe place, make sure that you stay away from any windows. The winds from a tornado could easily break the glass and hurt you.

Paragraphs 4 to 5:
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