Worksheets and No Prep Teaching Resources Reading Comprehension Worksheets Ancient China The 1970's

An Army for the Dead Ancient China

---

An Army for the Dead
Print An Army for the Dead Reading Comprehension with Fifth Grade Work

Print An Army for the Dead Reading Comprehension with Sixth Grade Work

Print An Army for the Dead Reading Comprehension

Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grades 5 to 7
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	6.55

Vocabulary

	challenging words:		burning, dated, infantry, lavish, element, cotta, lacquer, life-sized, pharaohs, Archeologists, excavation, kiln, cavalry, universe, mass, tomb
	content words:		Qin Dynasty, Qin Shi Huang, Emperor Qin

---

An Army for the Dead By Jane Runyon

---

¹     Many rulers have wanted to be remembered after their deaths. Egyptian pharaohs had pyramids built. These pyramids were tombs for their bodies and warehouses for their treasures. The first emperor of the Qin Dynasty in China chose a different kind of memorial for himself.
 
²     Workers began construction on the tomb of Qin Shi Huang in 246 B.C. Historians have concluded that this tomb was to be big enough for the emperor and a large store of the treasure he had collected. The inside of the tomb was to look like the universe. The ceiling was set with pearls and other jewels to represent the stars and planets. The bodies of water on the Earth were made of mercury. You may have seen this flowing, liquid silver element in a thermometer. The actual tomb has not yet been entered. Scientists have, however, discovered evidence of high levels of mercury in the soil. This has led them to believe that stories of the lavish tomb are true.
 
³     The Qin emperor chose a very unusual way to protect his tomb. He wanted his army to surround him, even in death. Craftsmen created life-sized soldiers, horses, and chariots that were buried around the tomb. These figures were made of terra cotta. Terra cotta means "baked earth." Red clay is formed into an object and then put into an oven, or kiln, to bake slowly. Once the object has been baked, a lacquer is applied to give it a shiny, hard finish. Perhaps you have seen a terra cotta flower pot or terra cotta tiles on the roof of a house. Terra cotta is fragile. It can chip easily when kept in the sun for too long.

Paragraphs 4 to 8:
For the complete story with questions: click here for printable

---

Weekly Reading Books

Create Weekly Reading Books Prepare for an entire week at once!

---

Feedback on An Army for the Dead

Leave your feedback on An Army for the Dead   (use this link if you found an error in the story)

---

Ancient China

Ancient China

---

The 1970's

The 1970's

---

Social Studies

Social Studies

United States History and Theme Units         American Government         Ancient America         Ancient China         Ancient Egypt         Ancient Greece         Ancient India         Ancient Mesopotamia         Ancient Rome         Biographies         Canadian Theme Unit         Country Theme Units         Crime and Terrorism         Economics         European History: 1600s-1800s

Explorers         Famous Educators         Geography         Grades 2-3 Social Studies Wendy's World Series         History of Books and Writing         History of Mathematics         How Can I Help?         Inventors and Inventions         Middle Ages         Renaissance         World Religion         World War I         World War II         World Wonders

---

United States

United States

American Government         Black History and Blacks in U.S. History         Children in History         Government Careers         Hispanic Heritage         How Can I Help?

Immigration         National Parks and Monuments         Native Americans         Presidents of the United States         Women's History

---

United States History

A Nation Divided (1840-1861)         A New Nation (1776-1830)         After the Civil War (1865-1870)         American Revolution         Cold War (1947-1991)         Colonial America (1492-1776)         Lewis and Clark (1804-1806)         Pearl Harbor         Spanish American War (1898)         The 1890's         The 1900's         The 1910's         The 1920's         The 1930's

The 1940's         The 1950's         The 1960's         The 1970's         The 1980's         The 1990's         The 2000's         The Civil War (1861-1865)         The Great Depression (1929-1945)         The United States Grows (1865-1900)         The War of 1812         Wild, Wild West         World War I (1914-1918)         World War II

---

50 States

Fifty States Theme Unit

---

Document Based Activities

Document Based Activities

Copyright © 2025 edHelper