Grade 3 Reading Comprehension Worksheet
Read the short story. Then answer each question.
The Eagle and the Fox
One morning Freddy Fox said to his hungry, crying children,
“I will find us some food for breakfast. Have no fear!” Then
he went into the woods.
Freddy saw a big eagle's nest at the very top of an oak
tree. How could he reach the nest?
Gathering some branches and vines, he built a long ladder.
Freddy climbed up the ladder and peeked into the nest.
There were four big eggs!
“Give me one of your eggs,” he said to t he mother eagle.
She screeched at him. “Never! These are my babies.” She
flapped her wings and showed him her sharp talons. “You
are so rude; I would never
give anything to you!”
Freddy went back down the
ladder as fast as he could go.
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Grade 3 Reading Comprehension Worksheet
“How can I go home without any food for my hungry
children?” Freddy groaned.
He continued through the forest and into a meadow. The
eagle, curious about Freddy, followed him.
In the middle of the field, a
black and white cow stood
munching on green grass.
“Give me some milk for my
hungry children,” Freddy said.
The cow mooed loudly at him and refused to give Freddy
any milk.
The eagle observed all his and silently shook her head.
“What will I do now?” Freddy said to himself. He continued
walking. The sun was high in the sky, and he was getting
hot. He stopped at a farmer’s well for a drink of water.
“Give me some water,” he said to the farmer.
The farmer yelled at Freddy and chased him away. He did
not give Freddy any water. The eagle, still following, shook
her head again.
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Grade 3 Reading Comprehension Worksheet
Freddy groaned and began to walk back towards his den.
He tried not to think of his hungry children. As he passed a
big, red barn, he saw six hens pecking at some grain. “Give
me some eggs,” he said to them.
The hens ran into the barn.
“Don’t eat us!” they clucked.
The barn door slammed shut in
front of the fox.
The eagle came down from the sky and
landed in front of the fox, silently looking at him.
“Nobody will help me,” cried out Freddy.
“That’s because nobody wants to help someone who is rude
and only thinks of themselves,” replied the eagle, before
flying away.
As the fox thought about this, an old hen came out of the
barn.
“Excuse me, Mrs. Hen,” said the Fox. “Could I please speak
with you for a moment?”
The hen did not usually speak with foxes, but this one
seemed very polite, so she stopped to listen.
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Grade 3 Reading Comprehension Worksheet
“I can see that you have mousetraps around your barn,”
stated the fox. Would you like me to chase a ll the mice
away for you?
The old hen was surprised and agreed. All the hens were
tired of the mice stealing their food.
The fox ran into the barn and spent the next hour chasing
all the mice away. He finally came out, tired from his hard
work and laid down in the straw. Everything was very quiet.
Nothing stirred, not even a mouse – because they were all
gone!
The barn door creaked open again, and out came the old
hen, carrying a basket full of brown eggs. “We have more
eggs than the farmer needs,” she said . “I will give you these
eggs, if you promise to say thank you.”
“Thank you very much!” Freddy smiled as he accepted the
gift and walked back to his den.
Along the way, Freddy saw the cow
again and called out,
“Good evening, Mr. Cow. Would
you like an egg?”
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Grade 3 Reading Comprehension Worksheet
The cow said he did not like eggs, but he gave Freddy a
bucket of milk. Freddy politely thanked him.
Next, Freddy saw the farmer, still standing beside his well.
Freddy knew the farmer did not need his eggs or milk. He
knew the farmer did not need F reddy to chase away mice.
Freddy slowly walked up to the farmer and said, “Excuse
me, sir. Could I please have a drink of water from the well ?”
The farmer immediately agreed and let Freddie drink from
the well.
Back at his den, Freddy found his hungry pups crying.
Leaving the eggs and the milk outside, he said, “I found
some breakfast for us.”
“Give us the food,” the smallest pup said.
Freddy held up his hand. “First, you must say please.”
“Please, Papa, may we have some food,” the
pups asked.
After all the pups said thank you,
the fox family enjoyed a very
tasty breakfast together.
Reading and Math for K-5 © www.k5learning.com
Grade 3 Reading Comprehension Worksheet
Questions:
1. Why did the eagle follow Freddy?
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
2. Why did the hens give Freddy the eggs?
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
3. Why did the farmer give Freddy water?
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
4. What lessons did Freddy learn ?
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_____________________________________________________________
Reading and Math for K-5 © www.k5learning.com
Grade 3 Reading Comprehension Worksheet
Answers:
1. Why did the eagle follow Freddy?
The eagle followed Freddy because she was curious
about the fox.
2. Why did the hens give Freddy the eggs?
The hens gave Freddy the eggs because he helped
them by chasing the mice away .
3. Why did the farmer give Freddy water?
The farmer gave Freddy water because he asked so
politely.
4. What lessons did Freddy learn?
Freddy learned to be polite and think about how he
could help others.
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