John F. Kennedy — Biography Reading Comprehension Lesson

Reading Passage

John F. Kennedy

John Fitzgerald Kennedy was born on May 29, 1917, in Brookline, Massachusetts. He came from a wealthy, politically connected Irish-American family. As a child, Kennedy was frequently ill but remained intellectually curious and competitive. He graduated from Harvard University in 1940, where his senior thesis on Britain’s failure to prepare for World War II was later published as a book. During World War II, he commanded a Navy patrol torpedo boat in the Pacific. When his vessel was rammed and sunk by a Japanese destroyer, he led the surviving crew members to safety through hours of swimming in shark-filled waters, earning the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for heroism.

Kennedy entered politics after the war, serving in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1947 to 1953 and then in the U.S. Senate from 1953 to 1960. He ran for president in 1960, facing Republican Vice President Richard Nixon. Kennedy was the first Catholic to run for president as a major party nominee, which some thought would hurt him. However, his performance in the first-ever televised presidential debates helped him appear calm, confident, and presidential to a national television audience. He won by one of the narrowest margins in presidential history — just over 100,000 popular votes.

Kennedy’s presidency was defined by the tensions of the Cold War — the global competition between the democratic United States and the communist Soviet Union. The most dangerous moment came in October 1962, during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The Soviet Union had placed nuclear missiles in Cuba, just 90 miles from Florida. For 13 days, the world teetered on the edge of nuclear war. Kennedy chose a naval blockade and secret diplomacy over a military strike. The Soviets agreed to remove the missiles, and the crisis was resolved without war. It remains one of the most tense episodes in world history.

Kennedy also launched the Peace Corps, which sent American volunteers to help developing nations, and he pushed for a major expansion of the space program. After the Soviet Union sent the first human into space in 1961, Kennedy challenged the nation to land a man on the moon before the end of the decade. That goal was achieved in 1969. At home, Kennedy began pushing for landmark civil rights legislation to end segregation and racial discrimination in the United States, responding to the growing civil rights movement led by figures like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

On November 22, 1963, President Kennedy was assassinated while riding in a motorcade in Dallas, Texas. He was shot and killed — the fourth U.S. president to be assassinated. He was 46 years old. The nation and world mourned deeply. Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as president aboard Air Force One. Kennedy’s brief presidency — just over 1,000 days — left a lasting mark. He is remembered for his eloquence, his vision, his handling of the Cuban Missile Crisis, and his call to public service: ‘Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.’

Printable Worksheet

More Reading Worksheets

Explore our full library of biography and reading comprehension worksheets.