The 70 mph Question: teacher key

The Fastest Animals, grade 7 edition, written for 7th grade. Everyone says a cheetah runs 70 mph. Here is how scientists checked, and what they found.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

1. What did the cheetah collars combine?
   • Cameras and speakers
   • GPS and motion sensors (answer)
   • Radar and sonar
2. What was the best field measurement of a wild cheetah?
   • 31 mph
   • 70 mph
   • 58 mph (answer)
3. About how fast did the hunting runs top out, on average?
   • 31 to 33 mph (answer)
   • 100 mph
   • 5 mph
4. What works like a brake on a cheetah's front leg?
   • The tail
   • A patch of bare skin (answer)
   • The claws
5. What does the word brake mean here?
   • A part that slows you (answer)
   • A part that speeds you
   • A kind of food

Words

• GPS: satellite locator
• sensors: measuring devices
• sprinter: short-burst runner
• brake: slowing part