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The Hermit Crab Who Swapped Shells

3rd grade fiction passage about a crab and a too-small shell: 176 words, seven questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

3rd grade fiction a crab and a too-small shell 176 words

The Hermit Crab Who Swapped Shells

Pip was a hermit crab who lived in a tide pool. His shell was round and shiny, and he loved it very much. But Pip kept growing, and one morning his legs would not fit inside.

"I cannot give up my shell," Pip told a snail. "It is the best one on the beach."

The snail looked at him carefully. "A shell that pinches is not a good home," she said.

Pip walked along the sand with his shell stuck on like a hat. Then he saw a bigger shell with a spiral top, and it was empty. Pip felt sad about leaving his old one, so he stood still for a long time.

At last he took a deep breath. He slid out of the shiny shell and into the big one, which was roomy and warm. He could stretch every leg.

A tiny crab came by. She was very small, and the shiny shell fit her just right. "Thank you!" she said.

Pip smiled. Letting go of the old shell had helped two crabs.

Questions

  1. Where did Pip live? in the text

  2. Why did Pip's legs not fit in his shell? in the text

  3. What did the snail say about a shell that pinches? in the text

  4. What did Pip find on the sand? in the text

  5. Who got Pip's old shell? in the text

  6. Why was Pip sad at first about leaving his old shell? think about it

  7. What lesson does the story teach? think about it

Words to know

hermit crab
a small sea animal that lives inside an empty shell
tide pool
a small pool of seawater left on the rocks by the sea
spiral
a shape that winds around and around
roomy
having plenty of space inside
pinches
squeezes tightly in a way that hurts a little
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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 · 155 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade -0.5

Pip was a hermit crab. He lived in a tide pool. His shell was round and shiny. He loved it.

But Pip got big. One day his legs did not fit in the shell.

"I will not give up my shell," Pip said to a snail. "It is the best one."

"A shell that pinches is not a good home," said the snail.

Pip walked on the sand. He saw a big shell with a spiral top. It was empty. Pip felt sad to leave his old shell. He stood still for a long time.

Then he took a deep breath. He slid out of the shiny shell. He slid into the big one. It was roomy and warm. He could stretch all his legs.

A tiny crab came by. The shiny shell fit her just right. "Thank you!" she said.

Pip smiled. He let go of his old shell, and two crabs were glad.

▲ This passage · 176 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.8

Pip was a hermit crab who lived in a tide pool. His shell was round and shiny, and he loved it very much. But Pip kept growing, and one morning his legs would not fit inside.

"I cannot give up my shell," Pip told a snail. "It is the best one on the beach."

The snail looked at him carefully. "A shell that pinches is not a good home," she said.

Pip walked along the sand with his shell stuck on like a hat. Then he saw a bigger shell with a spiral top, and it was empty. Pip felt sad about leaving his old one, so he stood still for a long time.

At last he took a deep breath. He slid out of the shiny shell and into the big one, which was roomy and warm. He could stretch every leg.

A tiny crab came by. She was very small, and the shiny shell fit her just right. "Thank you!" she said.

Pip smiled. Letting go of the old shell had helped two crabs.

■ Harder · 194 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.4

Pip was a hermit crab who made his home in a rocky tide pool. His shell was round and shiny, and he treasured it more than anything. But Pip kept growing, and one morning his legs would no longer fit inside.

"I cannot possibly give up my shell," Pip told a passing snail. "It is the finest one on the entire beach."

The snail studied him carefully. "A shell that pinches you is not really a good home," she said gently.

Pip wandered along the sand with his shell perched on him like a tiny hat. Then he noticed a much bigger shell with a spiral top, lying empty. Pip felt sorrowful about leaving his old one behind, and he stood very still for a long while.

At last he took a deep breath. He slid out of the shiny shell and into the large one. It was roomy and warm, and he could finally stretch every leg.

A tiny crab scuttled by. She was so small that the shiny shell fit her perfectly. "Thank you so much!" she said.

Pip smiled. Letting go of his old shell had helped two crabs at once.

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 hermit crab, tide pool, spiral, roomy and pinches 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 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 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 Hermit Crab Who Swapped Shells"?

It was written for 3rd grade. It has 176 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 seven. 5 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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