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The Rowboat Named Pancake

3rd grade fiction passage about a rowboat that lost an oar: 170 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

3rd grade fiction a rowboat that lost an oar 170 words

The Rowboat Named Pancake

The rowboat was round and flat, and everyone called it Pancake. One breezy morning, Lila and her little brother Sam rowed it out on Willow Pond.

Splash! One oar slipped out of its lock and floated away. Pancake began to turn in slow circles. The shore was far.

"Don't panic," said Lila, though her voice shook. She looked around. Under the seat lay a long fishing net with a pole as tall as Sam.

"Sam, hold on to the sides," she said. "I have a plan."

Lila stretched the net as far as her arm could go. The oar bobbed just out of reach. She tried again, and the pole's tip nudged the oar closer. On the third try, the net scooped it up. Sam clapped.

Lila slid the oar back into its lock and rowed with both arms. Pancake went straight as an arrow. When they bumped the dock, Lila tied a bright orange ribbon to the oar. "Now it will float and stay easy to see," she said.

Questions

  1. Why was the boat called Pancake? in the text

  2. What floated away from the boat? in the text

  3. What tool did Lila find under the seat? in the text

  4. What did Lila tie to the oar at the end? in the text

  5. Why did the boat turn in slow circles? think about it

  6. Why was the orange ribbon a good idea? think about it

Words to know

oar
a long pole with a flat end used to row a boat
breezy
with a light wind blowing
nudged
gave a gentle push
bobbed
moved up and down on the water
scooped
lifted up something with a curved tool
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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 · 140 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.1

The rowboat was round and flat. Everyone called it Pancake. One windy morning, Lila and her little brother Sam rowed it on Willow Pond.

Splash! An oar slipped out and floated away. Pancake began to spin in slow circles. The shore was far.

"Don't panic," said Lila, but her voice shook. Under the seat lay a long fishing net. Its pole was as tall as Sam.

"Sam, hold the sides," she said. "I have a plan."

Lila stretched the net out. The oar bobbed just out of reach. She tried again. The pole nudged the oar closer. On the third try, the net scooped it up. Sam clapped.

Lila put the oar back and rowed with both arms. Pancake went straight. At the dock, she tied an orange ribbon to the oar. "Now it is easy to see," she said.

▲ This passage · 170 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.8

The rowboat was round and flat, and everyone called it Pancake. One breezy morning, Lila and her little brother Sam rowed it out on Willow Pond.

Splash! One oar slipped out of its lock and floated away. Pancake began to turn in slow circles. The shore was far.

"Don't panic," said Lila, though her voice shook. She looked around. Under the seat lay a long fishing net with a pole as tall as Sam.

"Sam, hold on to the sides," she said. "I have a plan."

Lila stretched the net as far as her arm could go. The oar bobbed just out of reach. She tried again, and the pole's tip nudged the oar closer. On the third try, the net scooped it up. Sam clapped.

Lila slid the oar back into its lock and rowed with both arms. Pancake went straight as an arrow. When they bumped the dock, Lila tied a bright orange ribbon to the oar. "Now it will float and stay easy to see," she said.

■ Harder · 195 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.8

The little rowboat was round and flat, and everyone in town affectionately called it Pancake. One breezy morning, Lila and her younger brother Sam rowed it out onto Willow Pond.

Without warning, one oar slipped from its lock and drifted away across the water. Pancake began to rotate in slow, lazy circles, and the shore seemed very far away.

"Don't panic," said Lila, although her voice trembled. She glanced around the boat. Beneath the seat lay a long fishing net attached to a pole nearly as tall as Sam.

"Sam, hold tightly to the sides," she instructed. "I have a plan."

Lila reached out with the net as far as her arm could stretch, but the oar bobbed just beyond it. She tried again, and the tip of the pole nudged the oar a little closer. On the third attempt, the net scooped it right up, and Sam cheered.

Lila slid the oar back into its lock and rowed with both arms, and Pancake traveled straight as an arrow. After they bumped against the dock, she tied a bright orange ribbon to the oar. "Now it will float and be easy to spot," she said.

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 oar, breezy, nudged, bobbed and scooped 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 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 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.

Related

Questions

What reading level is "The Rowboat Named Pancake"?

It was written for 3rd grade. It has 170 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 1.8. 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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