Year 3 Halloween VIPERS Reading Comprehension

A funny, original Halloween story with a full SATs-style VIPERS reading paper for Year 3, plus a ready-to-teach PowerPoint for modelling answers as a class.

Grizelda Grimshaw is nearly a proper witch, but she has one big problem: she can’t cackle. Every time she tries, she hiccups… and her magic goes wrong. Pumpkins turn to jelly, hats turn into pineapples and her grumpy cat Sprout ends up in a pink tutu! Can she survive the Halloween Cackle Contest and make the judge, who hasn’t smiled for 300 years, laugh?

WHAT’S INCLUDED
✔ Illustrated reading booklet (original story, 4 pages)
✔ SATs-style answer booklet: 19 questions, 22 marks
✔ Full mark scheme set out like the KS2 one, with acceptable answers, answers not to accept and the content domain for each question
✔ Teacher notes, a VIPERS and content domain coverage grid, vocabulary to pre-teach and talk prompts
✔ 35-slide teaching PowerPoint: VIPERS key, vocabulary slide, story slides and one slide per question with space to model answers on the board (answers in the speaker notes)

COVERS EVERY KS2 CONTENT DOMAIN (2a–2h)
Vocabulary, Infer, Predict, Explain, Retrieve and Sequence/Summarise. Question types match the KS2 reading test: tick one, find and copy, draw lines to match, sequencing, and 2-mark explain questions that need evidence from the text.

PERFECT FOR
• Whole-class guided reading in the week of Halloween
• Shared reading and modelling VIPERS skills
• A fun reading assessment or test practice
• Homework or reading intervention groups

Written by a primary English Lead. Print and go – no prep needed.

Years 4, 5 and 6 versions are coming soon. Follow The Primary English Lead to hear when they’re released.

If you enjoy this resource, I’d be very grateful for a review!