Teeth That Keep Coming Back: teacher key

Red-Bellied Piranhas, grade 4 edition, written for 4th grade. A red-bellied piranha replaces its teeth through life. Find out what it eats, why it gathers in shoals and where it lives.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

1. How does a piranha keep feeding as its teeth change?
   • It stops eating
   • It replaces its teeth through life (answer)
   • It swallows rocks
2. Why do red-bellied piranhas gather in shoals?
   • For protection (answer)
   • To build a boat
   • To fly
3. What else do they eat besides meat?
   • Glass
   • Sand only
   • Plants and fruit (answer)
4. What are scavengers?
   • Baby fish
   • Animals that eat leftovers (answer)
   • Kinds of nest
5. What kind of water do they like?
   • Warm water (answer)
   • Icy water
   • Salty ocean water
6. Who builds the nests?
   • The females
   • The young
   • The males (answer)

Words

• shoals: fish groups
• scavengers: leftover eaters
• basin: river land
• jaw: mouth bone