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The Pronghorn and the Ranch Fence

8th grade fiction passage about a fast runner stopped by a fence: 277 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

8th grade fiction a fast runner stopped by a fence 277 words

The Pronghorn and the Ranch Fence

Across a wide prairie, a young pronghorn named Dash was known throughout the herd for her speed. She could streak over the grass faster than any other animal, and she took every chance to prove it, even though the older pronghorns watched her racing the wind and shook their heads. Dash never listened to advice, because she believed that speed could solve every problem.

One dry summer, the herd needed to reach a distant creek where water still flowed. The route crossed a ranch, and a long wire fence stretched across the open land. Dash charged ahead, and when she reached the fence, she skidded to a stop, because she could run for miles without tiring but she could not leap over the tall wires.

The herd gathered behind her, restless and thirsty, while Dash paced along the fence in frustration and complained that she was the fastest of them all and still could not cross a few strands of wire.

A small prairie dog popped up from a burrow beside the fence and squeaked that Dash was looking in the wrong direction. The bottom wire was smooth, she explained, and it was set higher at the next post, and pronghorns duck beneath fences all the time.

Dash felt her pride sting a little, because she had assumed that someone so small could not teach her anything. Still, she lowered her head and crept under the smooth wire, and one by one the herd followed, until soon they were all drinking at the creek.

Dash thanked the prairie dog sincerely. She had learned that speed carries an animal far, but listening shows it which way to go.

Questions

  1. What was Dash known for? in the text

  2. Why did the herd need to cross the ranch? in the text

  3. What stopped Dash at the fence? in the text

  4. What advice did the prairie dog give? in the text

  5. Why did Dash's pride sting? think about it

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

Words to know

prairie
a large, flat area covered in grass
streak
to move very fast in a straight line
restless
unable to stay still or relax
frustration
an upset feeling when you cannot do something
burrow
a hole or tunnel dug by an animal to live in
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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 2.4

Across a wide prairie, a young pronghorn named Dash was known for her speed. She could race over the grass faster than anyone in the herd. She took every chance to show it. The older pronghorns watched her race the wind and shook their heads. Dash never took advice. She thought speed could fix everything.

One dry summer, the herd needed to reach a far creek where water still ran. The way crossed a ranch, and a long wire fence stretched over the open land. Dash raced ahead. At the fence, she skidded to a stop. She could run for miles, but she could not jump the tall wires.

The herd gathered behind her. They were thirsty and restless. Dash paced along the fence. "I am the fastest of us all," she said, "and I cannot cross a few wires."

A small prairie dog popped up from a hole by the fence. "You are looking the wrong way," she squeaked. "The bottom wire is smooth, and it is higher at the next post. Pronghorns go under fences all the time."

Dash felt her pride sting. She had thought someone so small could not teach her anything. But she lowered her head and crept under the smooth wire. One by one, the herd followed. Soon they were drinking at the creek.

Dash thanked the prairie dog. Speed carries an animal far, she learned, but listening shows it which way to go.

▲ This passage · 277 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 7.9

Across a wide prairie, a young pronghorn named Dash was known throughout the herd for her speed. She could streak over the grass faster than any other animal, and she took every chance to prove it, even though the older pronghorns watched her racing the wind and shook their heads. Dash never listened to advice, because she believed that speed could solve every problem.

One dry summer, the herd needed to reach a distant creek where water still flowed. The route crossed a ranch, and a long wire fence stretched across the open land. Dash charged ahead, and when she reached the fence, she skidded to a stop, because she could run for miles without tiring but she could not leap over the tall wires.

The herd gathered behind her, restless and thirsty, while Dash paced along the fence in frustration and complained that she was the fastest of them all and still could not cross a few strands of wire.

A small prairie dog popped up from a burrow beside the fence and squeaked that Dash was looking in the wrong direction. The bottom wire was smooth, she explained, and it was set higher at the next post, and pronghorns duck beneath fences all the time.

Dash felt her pride sting a little, because she had assumed that someone so small could not teach her anything. Still, she lowered her head and crept under the smooth wire, and one by one the herd followed, until soon they were all drinking at the creek.

Dash thanked the prairie dog sincerely. She had learned that speed carries an animal far, but listening shows it which way to go.

■ Harder · 292 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 9.3

Across a wide, windswept prairie, a young pronghorn named Dash was known throughout the herd for her extraordinary speed. She could streak over the grass faster than any other animal, and she seized every opportunity to prove it, even though the older pronghorns watched her racing the wind and shook their heads in disapproval. Dash never listened to advice, because she firmly believed that speed could solve every possible problem.

One dry summer, the herd needed to reach a distant creek where water still flowed. The route crossed a large ranch, and a long wire fence stretched across the open land. Dash charged ahead, and when she reached the fence, she skidded to an abrupt stop, because she could run for miles without tiring but she could not leap over the tall wires.

The herd gathered behind her, restless and thirsty, while Dash paced along the fence in frustration and complained that she was the fastest of them all and yet could not cross a few strands of wire.

A small prairie dog popped up from a burrow beside the fence and squeaked that Dash was looking in entirely the wrong direction. The bottom wire was smooth, she explained, and it was set higher at the next post, and pronghorns habitually duck beneath fences without any difficulty.

Dash felt her pride sting a little, because she had assumed that someone so small could not possibly teach her anything. Still, she lowered her head and crept under the smooth wire, and one by one the herd followed, until soon they were all drinking at the creek.

Dash thanked the prairie dog sincerely. She had learned that speed can carry an animal a long way, but that listening shows it which way to go.

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 prairie, streak, restless, frustration and burrow 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 Pronghorn and the Ranch Fence"?

It was written for 8th grade. It has 277 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 7.9. 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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