3rd grade nonfiction passage about what mushrooms are: 159 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.
3rd gradenonfictionwhat mushrooms are159 words
A Mushroom Is Not a Plant
Walk through a shady forest and you may spot a mushroom. It seems to stand in the dirt like a tiny plant. But a mushroom is a fungus, and fungi are a kingdom of their own. Green plants use sunlight to make food. A mushroom has no green in it, so sunlight cannot feed it. That is why mushrooms pop up in dark, damp spots, like old logs and shady soil.
The part you see is only a small piece. Hidden underneath, thin white threads creep through the soil or a log. The threads take in food from rotting leaves and wood. When the time is right, the mushroom rises up and drops spores. Spores are very small specks. Breezes carry them off, and a few may start new mushrooms.
Farmers can grow tasty mushrooms in cool, dark rooms. Some wild mushrooms are poisonous, though. Never pick or eat a wild one. Ask a grown-up who really knows.
Questions
What group do mushrooms belong to? in the text
Why can mushrooms grow in dark places? in the text
What do the thin threads of a mushroom do? in the text
What are spores? in the text
Where do farmers grow mushrooms to eat? in the text
Why is it a good rule to never eat a wild mushroom? think about it
Words to know
fungi
a group of living things that includes mushrooms
damp
a little bit wet
spores
tiny specks that can grow into new fungi
poisonous
able to make a person very sick
Name ____________________________ Date ______________
A Mushroom Is Not a Plant
3rd grade reading passage
Walk through a shady forest and you may spot a mushroom. It seems to stand in the dirt like a tiny plant. But a mushroom is a fungus, and fungi are a kingdom of their own. Green plants use sunlight to make food. A mushroom has no green in it, so sunlight cannot feed it. That is why mushrooms pop up in dark, damp spots, like old logs and shady soil.
The part you see is only a small piece. Hidden underneath, thin white threads creep through the soil or a log. The threads take in food from rotting leaves and wood. When the time is right, the mushroom rises up and drops spores. Spores are very small specks. Breezes carry them off, and a few may start new mushrooms.
Farmers can grow tasty mushrooms in cool, dark rooms. Some wild mushrooms are poisonous, though. Never pick or eat a wild one. Ask a grown-up who really knows.
Questions
What group do mushrooms belong to?
Why can mushrooms grow in dark places?
What do the thin threads of a mushroom do?
What are spores?
Where do farmers grow mushrooms to eat?
Why is it a good rule to never eat a wild mushroom?
Words to know
fungi: a group of living things that includes mushrooms
damp: a little bit wet
spores: tiny specks that can grow into new fungi
poisonous: able to make a person very sick
Free at teach.peabody.kids/passages/3/a-mushroom-is-not-a-plant
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 · 123 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.2
A mushroom looks like a little plant, but it is not one. It is a fungus. Plants are green, and they make food from sunlight. Mushrooms are not green. They cannot make food from light. So they grow in dark, damp places, like logs and shady soil.
Most of a mushroom is hidden. Thin threads spread out under the ground or inside a log. The threads soak up food from dead leaves and wood. The part we see makes spores. Spores are tiny specks. They float away and can grow into new mushrooms.
Some mushrooms are safe to eat. Farmers grow them in cool, dark rooms. But some wild mushrooms are poisonous. Never eat a wild mushroom. Ask a grown-up who knows.
▲ This passage · 159 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.5
Walk through a shady forest and you may spot a mushroom. It seems to stand in the dirt like a tiny plant. But a mushroom is a fungus, and fungi are a kingdom of their own. Green plants use sunlight to make food. A mushroom has no green in it, so sunlight cannot feed it. That is why mushrooms pop up in dark, damp spots, like old logs and shady soil.
The part you see is only a small piece. Hidden underneath, thin white threads creep through the soil or a log. The threads take in food from rotting leaves and wood. When the time is right, the mushroom rises up and drops spores. Spores are very small specks. Breezes carry them off, and a few may start new mushrooms.
Farmers can grow tasty mushrooms in cool, dark rooms. Some wild mushrooms are poisonous, though. Never pick or eat a wild one. Ask a grown-up who really knows.
■ Harder · 151 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 5.8
A mushroom may resemble a small plant, yet it is not a plant at all. It belongs to a separate group of living things called fungi. Plants are green and manufacture their food from sunlight, but mushrooms have no green color and cannot make food from light. Consequently, they grow in dark, damp places such as rotting logs and shady soil.
Most of a mushroom remains hidden. Beneath the ground, or inside a log, thin threads spread out like a web and soak up nourishment from dead leaves and wood. The part that we notice above the ground exists mainly to release spores, which are tiny specks that drift away and may grow into new mushrooms.
Certain mushrooms are safe to eat, and farmers raise them in cool, dark rooms. However, some wild mushrooms are poisonous, so you should never pick or eat one. Ask a grown-up who truly knows.
A mushroom looks like a little plant, but it is not one. It is a fungus. Plants are green, and they make food from sunlight. Mushrooms are not green. They cannot make food from light. So they grow in dark, damp places, like logs and shady soil.
Most of a mushroom is hidden. Thin threads spread out under the ground or inside a log. The threads soak up food from dead leaves and wood. The part we see makes spores. Spores are tiny specks. They float away and can grow into new mushrooms.
Some mushrooms are safe to eat. Farmers grow them in cool, dark rooms. But some wild mushrooms are poisonous. Never eat a wild mushroom. Ask a grown-up who knows.
Questions
What group do mushrooms belong to?
Why can mushrooms grow in the dark?
What do the thin threads do?
What are spores?
Where do farmers grow mushrooms to eat?
Why should you never eat a wild mushroom?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________▲
A Mushroom Is Not a Plant
Walk through a shady forest and you may spot a mushroom. It seems to stand in the dirt like a tiny plant. But a mushroom is a fungus, and fungi are a kingdom of their own. Green plants use sunlight to make food. A mushroom has no green in it, so sunlight cannot feed it. That is why mushrooms pop up in dark, damp spots, like old logs and shady soil.
The part you see is only a small piece. Hidden underneath, thin white threads creep through the soil or a log. The threads take in food from rotting leaves and wood. When the time is right, the mushroom rises up and drops spores. Spores are very small specks. Breezes carry them off, and a few may start new mushrooms.
Farmers can grow tasty mushrooms in cool, dark rooms. Some wild mushrooms are poisonous, though. Never pick or eat a wild one. Ask a grown-up who really knows.
Questions
What group do mushrooms belong to?
Why can mushrooms grow in dark places?
What do the thin threads of a mushroom do?
What are spores?
Where do farmers grow mushrooms to eat?
Why is it a good rule to never eat a wild mushroom?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Name ____________________■
A Mushroom Is Not a Plant
A mushroom may resemble a small plant, yet it is not a plant at all. It belongs to a separate group of living things called fungi. Plants are green and manufacture their food from sunlight, but mushrooms have no green color and cannot make food from light. Consequently, they grow in dark, damp places such as rotting logs and shady soil.
Most of a mushroom remains hidden. Beneath the ground, or inside a log, thin threads spread out like a web and soak up nourishment from dead leaves and wood. The part that we notice above the ground exists mainly to release spores, which are tiny specks that drift away and may grow into new mushrooms.
Certain mushrooms are safe to eat, and farmers raise them in cool, dark rooms. However, some wild mushrooms are poisonous, so you should never pick or eat one. Ask a grown-up who truly knows.
Questions
Which group of living things do mushrooms belong to?
Why are mushrooms able to grow in dark places?
What do the thin threads of a mushroom do beneath the ground?
What are spores?
Where do farmers raise mushrooms that are safe to eat?
Why is it wise never to eat a wild mushroom without help from an expert?
Free at teach.peabody.kids
Answer key: A Mushroom Is Not a Plant
● Easier (Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.2)
The fungi.
They do not need sunlight to make food.
They soak up food from dead leaves and wood.
Tiny specks that float away and can grow into new mushrooms.
In cool, dark rooms.
Some are poisonous, and it is hard to tell which ones.
▲ This passage (Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.5)
The fungi.
They do not need sunlight to make food.
They take in food from rotting leaves and wood.
Very small specks that breezes carry off, and a few may start new mushrooms.
In cool, dark rooms.
Some wild mushrooms are poisonous, and it is hard to tell which ones.
■ Harder (Flesch-Kincaid grade 5.8)
The fungi.
They cannot make food from light, so they do not need sunlight.
They soak up nourishment from dead leaves and wood.
Tiny specks that drift away and may grow into new mushrooms.
In cool, dark rooms.
Some wild mushrooms are poisonous, and it is hard to tell which ones.
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 fungi, damp, spores and poisonous on the board with their meanings from the Words to know section and have students predict what the text 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 2 minutes 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 6 asks the reader to infer. Ask students to point to the words in the passage that led them to their answer.
Ask students to write one question the passage did not answer, then look for the answer in a book or on a classroom screen.
Print the student copy for independent work and keep the answer-key copy for yourself.
What reading level is "A Mushroom Is Not a Plant"?
It was written for 3rd grade. It has 159 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 2.5. 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. 5 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 2 minutes 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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