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The Tall Lighthouse at Alexandria

3rd grade nonfiction passage about an ancient lighthouse: 157 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

3rd grade nonfiction an ancient lighthouse 157 words

The Tall Lighthouse at Alexandria

More than two thousand years ago, a very tall lighthouse stood in Egypt. It was built on a small island called Pharos, near the city of Alexandria.

Alexandria had a busy harbor. Ships came and went all the time, bringing goods from many lands. But the coast there was low and flat, and there were rocks under the water. At night, a captain could hardly see where to steer.

The lighthouse solved the problem. A fire burned at the top, and sailors could see it from far out at sea. They knew where the harbor was, and they could stay away from the rocks.

The lighthouse was so tall and grand that people called it one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. It stood for many hundreds of years. In the end, earthquakes shook it down. Even so, it is not forgotten. In some languages, the word for lighthouse still comes from the name Pharos.

Questions

  1. Where was the lighthouse built? in the text

  2. What was the problem for ships near Alexandria? in the text

  3. What burned at the top of the lighthouse? in the text

  4. What finally brought the lighthouse down? in the text

  5. Why was it hard to steer a ship near Alexandria at night? think about it

  6. Why do some languages use a word that comes from Pharos? think about it

Words to know

lighthouse
a tall tower with a bright light to guide ships
harbor
a safe place where ships can stop
captain
the person in charge of a ship
sailors
people who work on a ship
earthquakes
times when the ground shakes hard
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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 · 124 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.9

Long ago, a very tall lighthouse stood in Egypt. It was on a small island called Pharos. The island was near the city of Alexandria.

Alexandria had a busy harbor. Many ships came and went. But the coast was low and flat. There were rocks under the water. At night, a captain could not see well.

The lighthouse helped. A fire burned at the top. Sailors could see it from far away. They knew where the harbor was. They stayed away from the rocks.

The lighthouse was so grand that it was called one of the Seven Wonders. It stood for many hundreds of years. Then earthquakes shook it down. People still remember it. In some languages, the word for lighthouse comes from Pharos.

▲ This passage · 157 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4

More than two thousand years ago, a very tall lighthouse stood in Egypt. It was built on a small island called Pharos, near the city of Alexandria.

Alexandria had a busy harbor. Ships came and went all the time, bringing goods from many lands. But the coast there was low and flat, and there were rocks under the water. At night, a captain could hardly see where to steer.

The lighthouse solved the problem. A fire burned at the top, and sailors could see it from far out at sea. They knew where the harbor was, and they could stay away from the rocks.

The lighthouse was so tall and grand that people called it one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. It stood for many hundreds of years. In the end, earthquakes shook it down. Even so, it is not forgotten. In some languages, the word for lighthouse still comes from the name Pharos.

■ Harder · 169 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 7.3

More than two thousand years ago, an extraordinarily tall lighthouse rose above the coast of Egypt. It was built on a small island called Pharos, which lay close to the city of Alexandria.

Alexandria had a bustling harbor, where ships arrived and departed constantly, carrying goods from many distant lands. Unfortunately, the coast there was low and flat, and hidden rocks lay beneath the water. After dark, a captain could hardly make out where to steer.

The lighthouse solved this problem. A great fire burned at the top, and sailors could see its glow from far out at sea. It told them where the harbor was, and it warned them to keep away from the rocks.

The tower was so tall and magnificent that people counted it among the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. It stood for many hundreds of years before earthquakes finally shook it down. It has never been forgotten, though, and in some languages the word for lighthouse is still taken from the name Pharos.

Download as one PDF

How to use it

  1. Press Read it big (or B) to put the text on the projector, or Full screen (F) to fill the whole screen.
  2. Ask the questions one at a time and use Show answer when the class has decided. A shows or hides every answer.
  3. Print student copy for the class, or Print with answers for yourself.

Ideas for class

  • Before reading, put lighthouse, harbor, captain, sailors and earthquakes 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 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 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.

Related

Questions

What reading level is "The Tall Lighthouse at Alexandria"?

It was written for 3rd grade. It has 157 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 4.0. 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 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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