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The Okapi Calf and the Striped Legs

8th grade fiction passage about a calf lost in dim forest: 280 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

8th grade fiction a calf lost in dim forest 280 words

The Okapi Calf and the Striped Legs

Deep in a rainforest where the leaves hung so thickly that noon looked like evening, a young okapi named Nyala was unhappy with her legs. Her body was a smooth, dark brown, which she liked, but her legs were banded in bold white stripes, as if some careless painter had added them as an afterthought, and every other forest animal wore a plain coat. Nyala wished desperately that she could blend in with them.

One morning she asked her mother why she was marked in such an unusual way, and her mother replied only that Nyala should walk behind her and find out. Nyala grumbled, but she followed her mother along the narrow trail. Whenever the forest grew dim, the pale stripes on her mother's hind legs flickered ahead of her like small lanterns, and Nyala kept her eyes on them and never lost her way.

A few weeks later, a heavy rain drove the herd toward higher ground, and Nyala was separated from her mother among the tangled trunks. Mist drifted between the trees, and the drumming rain swallowed her voice whenever she called out. She stood trembling, certain that she was lost.

Then she noticed a flicker of white between two ferns, followed by another. Her mother was moving carefully through the gloom, hoping that her stripes would be seen, and Nyala bounded toward them until the two were together again.

That evening, Nyala examined her own legs with new respect. She could not call them an embarrassment any longer, because they were a signal that a calf could follow, and she realized that the very feature she had been ashamed of might guide another lost calf someday.

Questions

  1. Why was Nyala unhappy with her legs? in the text

  2. What did the stripes look like in the dim forest? in the text

  3. What drove the herd toward higher ground? in the text

  4. How did Nyala find her mother again? in the text

  5. Why did Nyala's mother tell her to walk behind her? think about it

  6. How did Nyala's feelings about her legs change? think about it

Words to know

rainforest
a thick, wet forest where tall trees block the sun
banded
marked with wide stripes of color
afterthought
something added last without much planning
separated
pulled apart from someone you were with
gloom
a dim, dark, shadowy place
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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 · 240 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.2

Deep in a rainforest, the leaves hung so thick that noon looked like evening. A young okapi named Nyala did not like her legs. Her body was smooth and dark brown, and she liked that. But her legs had bold white stripes, as if someone had painted them last. The other animals had plain coats. Nyala wished she could blend in.

"Why am I marked like this?" she asked her mother one morning.

"Walk behind me and you will see," her mother said.

Nyala grumbled, but she followed her mother down the narrow trail. When the forest grew dim, the pale stripes on her mother's back legs flickered ahead like small lanterns. Nyala kept her eyes on them and did not get lost.

A few weeks later, a heavy rain sent the herd to higher ground. Nyala lost her mother among the tangled trunks. Mist drifted through the trees. She called out, but the loud rain covered her voice. She stood and shook. She was sure she was lost.

Then she saw a flicker of white between two ferns, and then another. Her mother was walking slowly through the gloom, hoping her stripes would be seen. Nyala bounded toward them, and they were together again.

That evening, Nyala looked at her legs in a new way. They were not an embarrassment. They were a signal that a calf could follow. She thought they might help another lost calf one day.

▲ This passage · 280 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 9.3

Deep in a rainforest where the leaves hung so thickly that noon looked like evening, a young okapi named Nyala was unhappy with her legs. Her body was a smooth, dark brown, which she liked, but her legs were banded in bold white stripes, as if some careless painter had added them as an afterthought, and every other forest animal wore a plain coat. Nyala wished desperately that she could blend in with them.

One morning she asked her mother why she was marked in such an unusual way, and her mother replied only that Nyala should walk behind her and find out. Nyala grumbled, but she followed her mother along the narrow trail. Whenever the forest grew dim, the pale stripes on her mother's hind legs flickered ahead of her like small lanterns, and Nyala kept her eyes on them and never lost her way.

A few weeks later, a heavy rain drove the herd toward higher ground, and Nyala was separated from her mother among the tangled trunks. Mist drifted between the trees, and the drumming rain swallowed her voice whenever she called out. She stood trembling, certain that she was lost.

Then she noticed a flicker of white between two ferns, followed by another. Her mother was moving carefully through the gloom, hoping that her stripes would be seen, and Nyala bounded toward them until the two were together again.

That evening, Nyala examined her own legs with new respect. She could not call them an embarrassment any longer, because they were a signal that a calf could follow, and she realized that the very feature she had been ashamed of might guide another lost calf someday.

■ Harder · 311 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 12.2

Deep in an ancient rainforest where the leaves hung so thickly overhead that noon resembled evening, a young okapi named Nyala was thoroughly unhappy with her legs. Her body was a smooth, dark brown, which she rather admired, but her legs were banded in bold white stripes, as if some careless painter had added them as an afterthought, and every other creature in the forest wore a perfectly plain coat. Nyala wished desperately that she could somehow blend in with all of them.

One morning she asked her mother why she had been marked in such an unusual fashion, and her mother replied gently that Nyala should walk behind her and discover the reason for herself. Nyala grumbled about the suggestion, but she followed her mother along the narrow trail, and whenever the forest grew dim, the pale stripes on her mother's hind legs flickered ahead of her like small lanterns, so that Nyala kept her eyes fixed upon them and never once lost her way.

A few weeks later, a heavy rain drove the entire herd toward higher ground, and Nyala was separated from her mother somewhere among the tangled trunks. Mist drifted between the trees, and the drumming rain swallowed her voice completely whenever she called out. She stood trembling, convinced that she was lost for good.

Then she noticed a flicker of white between two ferns, followed almost immediately by another. Her mother was moving carefully through the gloom, hoping desperately that her stripes would be seen, and Nyala bounded toward them until the two were together again.

That evening, Nyala examined her own legs with newfound respect. She could no longer describe them as an embarrassment, because they were a signal that a frightened calf could follow, and she realized that the very feature she had been ashamed of might someday guide another lost calf safely home.

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 rainforest, banded, afterthought, separated and gloom 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 3 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 Okapi Calf and the Striped Legs"?

It was written for 8th grade. It has 280 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 9.3. 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 3 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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