2nd grade fiction passage about a pelican who takes too much: 134 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
2nd gradefictiona pelican who takes too much134 words
The Pelican and the Giant Fish
Pedro the pelican lived on a dock by the sea. One windy morning he caught the biggest fish he had ever seen. It was as long as his wing.
"I will eat it all by myself," he said. He opened his beak wide and tried to swallow it. The fish would not go down. It stuck halfway, and Pedro could only wiggle and squeak.
A small crab watched from the rocks. "Why not share it?" the crab asked. "Drop it and take a bite at a time."
Pedro was shy, but he dropped the fish on the dock. He ate a bite, then another. The crab and two gulls ate a few bites, too.
Soon it was gone, and everyone was full. Pedro laughed. "I wanted it all, but a little piece was plenty."
Questions
Where did Pedro live? in the text
What happened when Pedro tried to swallow the fish whole? in the text
Who gave Pedro good advice? in the text
Who else ate some of the fish? in the text
Why was Pedro better off after he dropped the fish? think about it
What lesson does the story teach? think about it
Words to know
dock
a flat platform built out over the water
swallow
to move food down your throat
wiggle
to move with small, quick twists
share
to give some of what you have to others
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
The Pelican and the Giant Fish
2nd grade reading passage
Pedro the pelican lived on a dock by the sea. One windy morning he caught the biggest fish he had ever seen. It was as long as his wing.
"I will eat it all by myself," he said. He opened his beak wide and tried to swallow it. The fish would not go down. It stuck halfway, and Pedro could only wiggle and squeak.
A small crab watched from the rocks. "Why not share it?" the crab asked. "Drop it and take a bite at a time."
Pedro was shy, but he dropped the fish on the dock. He ate a bite, then another. The crab and two gulls ate a few bites, too.
Soon it was gone, and everyone was full. Pedro laughed. "I wanted it all, but a little piece was plenty."
Questions
Where did Pedro live?
What happened when Pedro tried to swallow the fish whole?
Who gave Pedro good advice?
Who else ate some of the fish?
Why was Pedro better off after he dropped the fish?
What lesson does the story teach?
Words to know
dock: a flat platform built out over the water
swallow: to move food down your throat
wiggle: to move with small, quick twists
share: to give some of what you have to others
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/2/the-pelican-and-the-giant-fish
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 · 113 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.4
Pedro the pelican lived on a dock by the sea. One day he caught a huge fish. It was as long as his wing.
"I will eat it all," he said. He opened his beak wide and tried to gulp it down. The fish would not go. It stuck halfway. Pedro could only wiggle and squeak.
A small crab sat on the rocks. "Why not share?" he asked. "Drop it and eat bit by bit."
Pedro dropped the fish on the dock. He ate a bite, then another. The crab and two gulls ate, too.
Soon it was gone. Everyone was full. Pedro laughed. "I wanted it all, but a little was plenty."
▲ This passage · 134 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.5
Pedro the pelican lived on a dock by the sea. One windy morning he caught the biggest fish he had ever seen. It was as long as his wing.
"I will eat it all by myself," he said. He opened his beak wide and tried to swallow it. The fish would not go down. It stuck halfway, and Pedro could only wiggle and squeak.
A small crab watched from the rocks. "Why not share it?" the crab asked. "Drop it and take a bite at a time."
Pedro was shy, but he dropped the fish on the dock. He ate a bite, then another. The crab and two gulls ate a few bites, too.
Soon it was gone, and everyone was full. Pedro laughed. "I wanted it all, but a little piece was plenty."
■ Harder · 156 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.7
Pedro the pelican lived on a weathered dock beside the sea. One blustery morning he caught the largest fish he had ever seen, which was nearly as long as his own wing.
"I intend to eat every bit of it myself," he boasted. He opened his enormous beak and attempted to swallow the fish whole. It would not budge. It lodged halfway down, and Pedro could only wiggle and squeak helplessly.
A small crab observed him from the rocks. "Why not share it?" the crab suggested. "Drop it and take one bite at a time."
Pedro felt a little embarrassed, but he set the fish down on the dock. He ate a bite, and then another. The crab and two gulls joined in and ate a few bites as well.
Before long the fish was gone and everyone was full. Pedro chuckled. "I wanted the entire thing, but a small piece turned out to be plenty."
Pedro the pelican lived on a dock by the sea. One day he caught a huge fish. It was as long as his wing.
"I will eat it all," he said. He opened his beak wide and tried to gulp it down. The fish would not go. It stuck halfway. Pedro could only wiggle and squeak.
A small crab sat on the rocks. "Why not share?" he asked. "Drop it and eat bit by bit."
Pedro dropped the fish on the dock. He ate a bite, then another. The crab and two gulls ate, too.
Soon it was gone. Everyone was full. Pedro laughed. "I wanted it all, but a little was plenty."
Questions
Where did Pedro live?
What happened when Pedro tried to gulp the fish?
Who gave Pedro good advice?
Who ate some of the fish?
Why was Pedro better off after he dropped the fish?
What is the lesson of the story?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
The Pelican and the Giant Fish
Pedro the pelican lived on a dock by the sea. One windy morning he caught the biggest fish he had ever seen. It was as long as his wing.
"I will eat it all by myself," he said. He opened his beak wide and tried to swallow it. The fish would not go down. It stuck halfway, and Pedro could only wiggle and squeak.
A small crab watched from the rocks. "Why not share it?" the crab asked. "Drop it and take a bite at a time."
Pedro was shy, but he dropped the fish on the dock. He ate a bite, then another. The crab and two gulls ate a few bites, too.
Soon it was gone, and everyone was full. Pedro laughed. "I wanted it all, but a little piece was plenty."
Questions
Where did Pedro live?
What happened when Pedro tried to swallow the fish whole?
Who gave Pedro good advice?
Who else ate some of the fish?
Why was Pedro better off after he dropped the fish?
What lesson does the story teach?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
The Pelican and the Giant Fish
Pedro the pelican lived on a weathered dock beside the sea. One blustery morning he caught the largest fish he had ever seen, which was nearly as long as his own wing.
"I intend to eat every bit of it myself," he boasted. He opened his enormous beak and attempted to swallow the fish whole. It would not budge. It lodged halfway down, and Pedro could only wiggle and squeak helplessly.
A small crab observed him from the rocks. "Why not share it?" the crab suggested. "Drop it and take one bite at a time."
Pedro felt a little embarrassed, but he set the fish down on the dock. He ate a bite, and then another. The crab and two gulls joined in and ate a few bites as well.
Before long the fish was gone and everyone was full. Pedro chuckled. "I wanted the entire thing, but a small piece turned out to be plenty."
Questions
Where did Pedro live?
What happened when Pedro tried to swallow the fish whole?
Who offered Pedro sensible advice?
Besides Pedro, who ate some of the fish?
Why was Pedro better off once he set the fish down?
What lesson does the story teach?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: The Pelican and the Giant Fish
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.4)
On a dock by the sea.
It got stuck halfway.
A small crab.
The crab and two gulls.
He could eat it in bites and did not get stuck.
Do not be greedy, because taking too much brings trouble.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.5)
On a dock by the sea.
It got stuck halfway.
A small crab.
The crab and two gulls.
He could eat it bite by bite and did not get stuck.
Do not be greedy, because taking too much can cause trouble.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.7)
On a weathered dock beside the sea.
It lodged halfway down his throat.
A small crab.
The crab and two gulls.
He could eat it one bite at a time without choking or getting stuck.
Greed causes trouble, and a small share is often enough.
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 dock, swallow, wiggle and share 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 Pelican and the Giant Fish"?
It was written for 2nd grade. It has 134 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 1.5. 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 six. 4 ask for something the text says directly and 2 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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