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The story: The Shoe Test at Zumiez

Evan and Max walked into Zumiez at Irvine Spectrum Center. The two friends stopped beside a wall of skate shoes.

“Look at all those colors!” Evan said.

Max pointed to a black-and-white shoe. “I want to look at DC Shoes.”

“And I want to see Etnies shoes,” Evan said. “But how do we choose?”

A store worker named Kim came over. “Let’s start with the fit,” she said. “What feels good on your feet?”

Kim checked their sizes and brought out some shoes. The friends sat on a low bench. Each boy tried on a pair.

Max liked the bold look of the DC Shoes. Evan liked the shape of the Etnies shoes. Both brands made skate shoes, but the friends still needed to find a pair that fit.

Max stood up. “These look cool!”

He took a few steps. His toes felt squeezed.

“They look good, but they feel too tight,” he said.

Kim nodded. “That is a useful thing to notice. Let’s try another size.”

Evan looked at the bottom of his shoe. He ran a finger across the rubber sole.

“What is this part for?” he asked.

“The sole touches the ground,” Kim said. “On skate shoes, it also touches the board.”

Max tried a different pair. This time, he could walk without squashing his toes.

“Much better,” he said.

Evan smiled. “We did more than look at colors.”

“We looked closely and asked questions,” Max said.

Before leaving, the friends thanked Kim. They had learned a new way to choose shoes: look, ask, and try.

“Will new shoes do all my skateboard tricks?” Max joked.

“Nope,” Evan laughed. “We still have to practice!”

Words to know

Fit means the right size and shape for your body.

A sole is the bottom part of a shoe.

Notice means to see or learn something by paying attention.

Compare means to look at things and see how they are alike or different.

Find it in the story

1. What store did Evan and Max visit?

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2. What two shoe brands did the friends want to look at?

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3. Why did Max try a different pair of shoes?

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Think about the story

4. What did the friends do besides look at colors? Give a detail from the story.

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5. What does the word “sole” mean in this story?

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Your turn to write

Write 3–5 sentences about choosing a pair of shoes. What would you look at? What would you ask? How would you check the fit?

Use a voice recording

You can start with: “When I choose shoes, I…”

About this story

This is a made-up story about fictional friends at a real store. The characters, conversation, shoe colors, and visit were created for reading practice. Zumiez carries DC and Etnies, but each store’s styles and sizes can change. This story does not promise what is in stock.

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AssignmentsGrade 3ReadingWritingSkateboarding