What is the main idea of the passage?

Trying to produce an answer can strengthen memory when clues and feedback guide the effort. (The passage explains the benefit of generating an answer while requiring useful clues, suitable examples, and accurate correction.)

Why can a wrong attempt sometimes help a learner?

It reveals a gap that accurate feedback can then correct. (The passage says an error can expose what is missing, but only quick, accurate feedback turns that discovery toward learning.)

What does “prompt” mean in the final paragraph?

A clue or question that invites the learner to produce an answer (The prompt guides a search while hiding enough information to require an answer, so it is the clue or question that starts retrieval.)

What may come first when material is new?

An example (The final paragraph directly states that an example may come first when a learner is meeting new material.)

An Answer Before Looking: Level 1 Reading Comprehension Questions

An answer can feel familiar without being easy to recall. A learner may see a leaf beside the word “oak” and know the pair at once. If the word is covered, naming the leaf takes more work.

That effort can help memory. The learner must search for the answer instead of only seeing it. Psychologists call this benefit the generation effect. A wrong attempt may also reveal what is missing, but it needs quick and accurate feedback.

Useful practice is neither copying nor blind guessing. For new material, an example may come first. A good prompt gives enough of a clue to guide the search. It hides enough to make the learner produce the answer. The effort should aim at knowledge that will be needed later.

Comprehension questions