1st grade fiction passage about sharing a pond: 99 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
1st gradefictionsharing a pond99 words
The Heron and the Shared Pond
Hector the heron stood in the pond. He was tall and gray, and he had picked the best spot in the whole pond. He said, "This pond is mine, and no one else may use it!"
A frog came to swim. "Go away," said Hector. A duck came to sip. "Go away," said Hector.
Soon the pond was still and quiet. Hector felt lonely. No one splashed. No one sang.
"Come back," he called. "There is room for all of us." The frog swam. The duck sipped. Hector smiled. A pond is much more fun when you share it.
Questions
What kind of animal was Hector? in the text
What did Hector say about the pond? in the text
Who did Hector tell to go away? in the text
How did Hector feel when the pond was quiet? in the text
What did Hector learn about the pond? think about it
Words to know
heron
a tall bird with long legs that stands in water
lonely
sad because you are all alone
share
to let others use or have some of what you have
splash
to hit water so it flies up
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
The Heron and the Shared Pond
1st grade reading passage
Hector the heron stood in the pond. He was tall and gray, and he had picked the best spot in the whole pond. He said, "This pond is mine, and no one else may use it!"
A frog came to swim. "Go away," said Hector. A duck came to sip. "Go away," said Hector.
Soon the pond was still and quiet. Hector felt lonely. No one splashed. No one sang.
"Come back," he called. "There is room for all of us." The frog swam. The duck sipped. Hector smiled. A pond is much more fun when you share it.
Questions
What kind of animal was Hector?
What did Hector say about the pond?
Who did Hector tell to go away?
How did Hector feel when the pond was quiet?
What did Hector learn about the pond?
Words to know
heron: a tall bird with long legs that stands in water
lonely: sad because you are all alone
share: to let others use or have some of what you have
splash: to hit water so it flies up
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/1/the-heron-and-the-shared-pond
Share
One passage, three levels
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.
● Easier · 61 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.5
Hector the heron was in the pond. He was big. He said, "It is my pond!"
A frog came to swim. "Go," said Hector. A duck came to sip. "Go," said Hector.
Soon it was quiet. Hector felt sad and lonely. No one splashed.
"Come back," he said. "There is room for all." The frog swam. The duck sipped. Hector smiled.
▲ This passage · 99 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.1
Hector the heron stood in the pond. He was tall and gray, and he had picked the best spot in the whole pond. He said, "This pond is mine, and no one else may use it!"
A frog came to swim. "Go away," said Hector. A duck came to sip. "Go away," said Hector.
Soon the pond was still and quiet. Hector felt lonely. No one splashed. No one sang.
"Come back," he called. "There is room for all of us." The frog swam. The duck sipped. Hector smiled. A pond is much more fun when you share it.
■ Harder · 111 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.4
Hector the heron stood proudly in the middle of the pond. He was tall and gray, and he had claimed the best spot of all. "This pond belongs to me!" he announced.
When a frog came to swim, Hector told him to go away. When a duck came to take a sip, Hector sent her off, too.
Before long, the pond was still and silent. Hector began to feel lonely. Nobody splashed, and nobody sang.
"Please come back," he called. "There is plenty of room for all of us." The frog swam in, and the duck sipped happily. Hector smiled, because a pond is far more fun when you share it.
Hector the heron was in the pond. He was big. He said, "It is my pond!"
A frog came to swim. "Go," said Hector. A duck came to sip. "Go," said Hector.
Soon it was quiet. Hector felt sad and lonely. No one splashed.
"Come back," he said. "There is room for all." The frog swam. The duck sipped. Hector smiled.
Questions
What kind of animal was Hector?
What did Hector say about the pond?
Who did Hector tell to go away?
How did Hector feel when it was quiet?
Why did Hector call the animals back?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
The Heron and the Shared Pond
Hector the heron stood in the pond. He was tall and gray, and he had picked the best spot in the whole pond. He said, "This pond is mine, and no one else may use it!"
A frog came to swim. "Go away," said Hector. A duck came to sip. "Go away," said Hector.
Soon the pond was still and quiet. Hector felt lonely. No one splashed. No one sang.
"Come back," he called. "There is room for all of us." The frog swam. The duck sipped. Hector smiled. A pond is much more fun when you share it.
Questions
What kind of animal was Hector?
What did Hector say about the pond?
Who did Hector tell to go away?
How did Hector feel when the pond was quiet?
What did Hector learn about the pond?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
The Heron and the Shared Pond
Hector the heron stood proudly in the middle of the pond. He was tall and gray, and he had claimed the best spot of all. "This pond belongs to me!" he announced.
When a frog came to swim, Hector told him to go away. When a duck came to take a sip, Hector sent her off, too.
Before long, the pond was still and silent. Hector began to feel lonely. Nobody splashed, and nobody sang.
"Please come back," he called. "There is plenty of room for all of us." The frog swam in, and the duck sipped happily. Hector smiled, because a pond is far more fun when you share it.
Questions
What kind of animal was Hector?
What did Hector announce about the pond?
Which animals did Hector send away?
How did Hector feel when the pond became silent?
What lesson did Hector learn about the pond?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: The Heron and the Shared Pond
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.5)
A heron.
He said it was his.
A frog and a duck.
Lonely.
He felt lonely and saw there was room for all.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.1)
A heron.
He said it was his.
A frog and a duck.
Lonely.
A pond is more fun when you share it.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.4)
A tall gray heron.
That it belonged to him.
A frog and a duck.
Lonely.
A pond is more fun when you share it, because friends make it lively.
Free at teach.peabody.kids
How to use it
Press Read it big (or B) to put the text on the projector, or Full screen (F) to fill the whole screen.
Ask the questions one at a time and use Show answer when the class has decided. A shows or hides every answer.
Print student copy for the class, or Print with answers for yourself.
Ideas for class
Before reading, put heron, lonely, share and splash on the board with their meanings from the Words to know section and have students predict what the story will be about.
Read it aloud once while students follow along, then have them reread it alone or with a partner. At a calm 100 words a minute it takes about 1 minute to read aloud.
Use the Read it big button (or B) to put the text on the projector, and Show answer on one question at a time so the class commits to an answer first.
Question 5 asks the reader to infer. Ask students to point to the words in the passage that led them to their answer.
Ask students to retell the story in three sentences: how it began, what the problem was, and how it ended.
Print the student copy for independent work and keep the answer-key copy for yourself.
What reading level is "The Heron and the Shared Pond"?
It was written for 1st grade. It has 99 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.
What do the questions ask?
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.
How long does it take to read?
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.
Can I print it?
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.
Is this passage from a published book?
No. It was written for Peabody Teach, so there is no book to buy and no login to read it.
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