Sixth Grade
Worksheets
Simon the Pizza Freak
National Cheese Pizza Day
Reading Comprehension for September 5
Simon Levin could happily eat pizza three times a day and still squeeze in another slice or two as a midnight snack. Whether it was fresh-baked or from the frozen food section of the supermarket, Simon savored every bite. It didn't matter whether it was a garbage pizza (a pie with every topping included) or a plain cheese pizza. He was a pizza freak! His dream job would be to perform taste-tests on pizzas all day long!
One day Simon applied for and got a job at the pizza place down the street. His family had been getting pizzas from the Barefoot Roman Pizzeria for years. After all the money the Levins had spent there, it was about time Simon started earning some of it back!
Chris Davies showed Simon what to do on his first day as a pizza maker. "Here's where we keep our pie dough," he said, opening the walk-in refrigerator and pointing out the carts loaded down with covered pans. "We prepare 300 - 400 pans each night," he said, explaining the way they oiled the pans and placed lumps of frozen dough in them, so they would be thawed out and ready for use the next day. "When you begin to make pizza, you can simply pat the dough out till it fills the pan, but if you have an interest, you might learn how to toss the dough. Customers love to see it spin in the air!"
Next came the refrigerated prep station. Chris explained how to prepare the pie, first by applying sauce, then by adding cheese and various toppings. Simon was practically drooling, imagining all the different pizza combinations he could make. Luckily, the crew was allowed to share a pizza during break time every day. Simon wondered how many breaks he could have.
