Labor Day
Reading Mystery Worksheets · Grades 3–6 · American History
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Inside the case file
Discover the story behind a day off. This printable Labor Day Reading Mystery turns a nonfiction passage about the history of Labor Day into a reading-detective investigation for Grades 3–6 classroom teachers, homeschoolers, and tutors. It drops straight into a US history, holidays, or social studies lesson and makes close reading the whole point.
As students work the questions, the suspect list shrinks — reading carefully is the only way to reach the answer. Just print and hand it out.
Quick Details
Grade Levels: Grades 3–6
Format: Printable PDF
Resource Type: Reading Mystery worksheets
Reading Skills: Nonfiction comprehension, text evidence, main idea, sequencing, and inference
Tech Needed: None — no apps, locks, passwords, or student logins required
The Case
A piece of Labor Day history has gone missing, and a line-up of suspects is waiting. The only way to crack the case is to read closely about Labor Day — why it began, the workers and unions behind it, and how it is celebrated today — using every comprehension answer as a clue to rule a suspect out, until just one remains.
How the Reading Mystery Works
Students take on the Reading Detective role, reading about Labor Day and using every text-based answer to eliminate a suspect until one remains.
What's Included
- A "You are a detective" case-file page that sets the scene and the mission
- An engaging nonfiction passage on Labor Day (its origins, workers and unions, and how it is celebrated)
- Multiple-choice comprehension questions (all answers found in the text)
- Open-ended comprehension questions
- A suspect line-up page for eliminating suspects one clue at a time
- Vocabulary support and extension activities for early finishers
- A full answer key
- Color and black-and-white versions
- Print-and-go PDF format
Skills Covered
- Reading and understanding nonfiction informational text
- Finding and using text evidence
- Identifying main idea and supporting details
- Sequencing key events and drawing inferences
- Vocabulary in context
- Logic, reasoning, and critical thinking
Best Used For
- US history, holidays, and social studies lessons
- Nonfiction reading comprehension practice
- Reading centers, early finishers, sub plans, and small groups
- Back-to-school and September lessons
- Homeschool reading and social studies
