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The Heron and the Shared Shallows

3rd grade fiction passage about a heron learns to share a pond: 154 words, seven questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

3rd grade fiction a heron learns to share a pond 154 words

The Heron and the Shared Shallows

Gracie the heron stood in the shallow end of the pond every day. She was a patient fisher, and she wanted the whole shallow end for herself.

"This is my spot," she told a young duck. "Go away."

The duck paddled off. A turtle came next, and Gracie told him to leave too. Soon the shallows were quiet and empty. Gracie stood very still. But the fish seemed to know she was there. They stayed deep in the water, far from her beak.

A whole week passed, and Gracie caught nothing. Her stomach growled.

Then the duck came back with her ducklings. They splashed and dived. The fish got scared and darted into the shallows to hide. Gracie struck, and she caught a silver one.

The turtle laughed. "Your spot works better with neighbors," he said.

Gracie nodded. After that, she shared the shallows with everyone. There were always fish for all of them.

Questions

  1. Where did Gracie stand every day? in the text

  2. Who did Gracie tell to leave? in the text

  3. Why did the fish stay in the deep water? in the text

  4. How long did Gracie go without catching anything? in the text

  5. What made the fish dart into the shallows? in the text

  6. Why did the turtle say the spot works better with neighbors? think about it

  7. What did Gracie change after that? think about it

Words to know

heron
a tall bird with long legs that catches fish
shallows
the part of a pond where the water is not deep
patient
able to wait calmly for a long time
darted
moved quickly and suddenly
ducklings
baby ducks
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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 · 141 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 1.3

Gracie the heron stood in the shallow end of the pond each day. She was a patient fisher. She wanted the whole shallow end for herself.

"This is my spot," she told a young duck. "Go away."

The duck swam off. A turtle came next. Gracie told him to go too. The shallows got quiet and empty. Gracie stood still. But the fish knew she was there. They stayed deep, far from her beak.

A week went by. Gracie caught nothing. Her stomach growled.

Then the duck came back with her ducklings. They splashed and dived. The fish got scared. They darted into the shallows to hide. Gracie struck, and she caught a silver fish.

The turtle laughed. "Your spot is better with neighbors," he said.

Gracie nodded. After that, she shared the shallows with all. There were fish for everyone.

▲ This passage · 154 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 2.1

Gracie the heron stood in the shallow end of the pond every day. She was a patient fisher, and she wanted the whole shallow end for herself.

"This is my spot," she told a young duck. "Go away."

The duck paddled off. A turtle came next, and Gracie told him to leave too. Soon the shallows were quiet and empty. Gracie stood very still. But the fish seemed to know she was there. They stayed deep in the water, far from her beak.

A whole week passed, and Gracie caught nothing. Her stomach growled.

Then the duck came back with her ducklings. They splashed and dived. The fish got scared and darted into the shallows to hide. Gracie struck, and she caught a silver one.

The turtle laughed. "Your spot works better with neighbors," he said.

Gracie nodded. After that, she shared the shallows with everyone. There were always fish for all of them.

■ Harder · 166 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.7

Gracie the heron stood in the shallow end of the pond every single day. She was a patient fisher, and she wanted the entire shallow end to herself.

"This is my spot," she informed a young duck. "Go away at once."

The duck paddled off. A turtle arrived next, and Gracie ordered him to leave as well. Soon the shallows were quiet and empty. Gracie stood perfectly still, but the fish seemed to sense her presence. They remained deep in the water, far from her sharp beak.

A whole week passed, and Gracie caught nothing at all. Her stomach growled loudly.

Then the duck returned with her ducklings. They splashed and dived about, and the frightened fish darted into the shallows to hide. Gracie struck quickly and caught a silver one.

The turtle chuckled. "Your spot works much better with neighbors," he said.

Gracie nodded thoughtfully. From then on, she shared the shallows with everyone, and there were always plenty of fish for all of them.

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 heron, shallows, patient, darted and ducklings 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 Heron and the Shared Shallows"?

It was written for 3rd grade. It has 154 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 2.1. 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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