1st grade fiction passage about a bat who is different: 90 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
Bela the bat sat in a class of birds. The birds sat on a branch. Bela did not. She hung by her feet.
"Sit like us," said the birds. Bela tried. She held the branch and sat up. But she felt wobbly. She nearly fell off.
"I like it better upside down," she said.
Then a strong wind blew. The birds shook and slipped. Bela just hung on, safe and calm. "Hold on like me!" she called. The birds copied her. Now they all knew that being different can help.
How did Bela like to sit? in the text
What did the birds sit on? in the text
How did Bela feel when she sat up like the birds? in the text
What happened when the strong wind blew? in the text
How did Bela's way help the birds? think about it
The same topic and facts written three ways, so a mixed class can read and talk about one text. Each group’s sheet shows only a shape; the key says which is which.
Bela the bat sat with a class of birds. The birds sat on a branch. Bela did not. She hung by her feet.
"Sit like us," said the birds. Bela tried. She felt wobbly. She nearly fell.
"I like it upside down," she said.
Then a strong wind blew. The birds slipped. Bela hung on, safe and calm. "Hold on like me!" she said. The birds did. Being different can help.
Bela the bat sat in a class of birds. The birds sat on a branch. Bela did not. She hung by her feet.
"Sit like us," said the birds. Bela tried. She held the branch and sat up. But she felt wobbly. She nearly fell off.
"I like it better upside down," she said.
Then a strong wind blew. The birds shook and slipped. Bela just hung on, safe and calm. "Hold on like me!" she called. The birds copied her. Now they all knew that being different can help.
Bela the bat sat in a class full of birds. All of the birds perched on a branch, but Bela hung by her feet instead.
"Sit up like the rest of us," said the birds. Bela tried her best. She gripped the branch and sat upright, but she felt wobbly and nearly tumbled off.
"I really do prefer hanging upside down," she explained.
Later, a strong wind began to blow. The birds shook and slipped along the branch, but Bela just clung on, safe and calm. "Hold on the way I do!" she called. The birds copied her, and they all learned that being different can be a help.
It was written for 1st grade. It has 90 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about below 1. That is a formula's estimate from sentence length and syllables, and it is not a Lexile or a guided reading level, so check it against your students.
There are five. 4 ask for something the text says directly and 1 ask the reader to work something out from clues. Each has an answer in the key, and the answers are written as a teacher would accept them, not as the only possible wording.
About 1 minute read aloud at 100 words a minute. For a one-minute fluency check, paste it into the fluency timer and use the word count.
Yes. Print student copy gives the passage, the questions with lines to write on, and the word meanings. Print with answers gives the same page with the answers filled in. Both are made in your browser.
No. It was written for Peabody Teach, so there is no book to buy and no login to read it.
Nothing you do here is sent to us. No sign-in, no ads.