Fifth Grade
Worksheets
Washington Irving
Washington Irving
Reading Comprehension for April 3
His mind was full of characters. Perhaps you have heard of some of them. There was a man named Rip Van Winkle. He went into the mountains near his home to get away from his nagging wife. He played ninepins, a bowling game, with dwarves. After drinking too much alcohol, he fell asleep. He woke up twenty years later, a very old man with a long white beard. When he returned to his village, no one knew who he was. His wife had died. His children had grown up.
Then there was Ichabod Crane. He was a school teacher. He heard the village people tell stories about a headless horseman. He didn't believe the stories until he came across the scary ghost himself.
Stories like this are just two examples of the kinds of things Washington Irving liked to write about. He loved to learn and write about history. He liked the history of countries all over the world, not just his own. He wrote a five volume biography of George Washington. He was named after General Washington. He had even had the chance to meet the famous man.
Washington Irving came into the world in 1783. He was the youngest of eleven children born to a wealthy merchant and his wife. Irving was born in New York City. He developed a deep love for books at a very early age. As a small boy, he read stories about Robinson Crusoe and Sinbad the Sailor. These tales made him want to travel.
