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Name:_____________________________ Teacher:_____________________ Date:______________________________ Reading informational texts Directions: Today you will be taking a short test using what you have learned about reading nonfiction texts.

1) (RI.3.10) Read the title, “Cow? Mermaid? What is a Manatee?” and the first paragraph of the article. What do you already know about this topic?

Lesson Quick Codes for this set: LZ1614, LZ1615, LZ1616, LZ1617, LZ1618 Common Core State Standards addressed: L.3.4d, RI.3.2, RI.3.5 Lesson Text: “The Boston Tea Party” by Michael A. Signal Assessment Text: “Cow? Mermaid? What is a Manatee?” by Stacey Zeigler adapted from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service http://www.fws.gov/endangered/esa-library/pdf/manatee.pdf

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2) (RI.3.5) Before you begin reading “Cow? Mermaid? What is a Manatee?” read the heading at the

beginning of each section of text. What do you think each section will be about? Complete the notes template below.

Heading Your prediction

What is a Manatee?

Where Do Manatees Live?

Danger For Manatees

3) (RI.3.2) Now read the article, “Cow? Mermaid? What is a Manatee?” As you read, keep your notes

from above in mind. Pick one thought to revise, write down your new thinking below. (Hint: You may want to start with the words, “At first I thought….but now I know…”)

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4) (L3.4d) Use the glossary at the end of the article to define the word “hides.” Restate the meaning

in your own words.

5) (RI.3.2) What is the main idea of the paragraph below?

Manatees face many threats, most of them from humans. Not long ago, people used to kill manatees for their fat. Manatee bones were used for medicine and their hides were used for leather.

Unfortunately, manatees are still in danger. Many manatees are killed in boat accidents. Speedboats cannot see manatees in the water. Sometimes, boats run into manatees waiting near the surface and the injuries kill them. People are trying to prevent such accidents in Florida and other areas by posting speed limits for boats. Slowing down helps the boat drivers see (and avoid) the manatees before they hit them.

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By Stacey Zeigler

Adapted from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

http://www.fws.gov/endangered/esa-library/pdf/manatee.pdf

What is a Manatee?

Manatees, also called sea cows, are animals that live in Florida and the Caribbean.

Christopher Columbus, an Italian explorer, was one of the first people to write about seeing

a manatee. He thought it looked like a mythical creature. Columbus reported to his friends

and family that the manatee’s elegant, curving tail

reminded him of a mermaid.

In fact, manatees look more like walruses than like

mermaids. At 1,200 pounds and nearly 10 feet long,

manatees are very large animals. All manatees have tough

skin that is a brownish-gray color. You might be surprised

to learn that manatees have a little hair on their bodies.

This is one of the characteristics that makes manatees

mammals, like humans. Unlike people, however, manatees

use their whisker-like hair to help them find food and

detect what is around them. Manatees also have flippers

to help them move in the water.

Although manatees are large, they are not frightening.

Rather, manatees are gentle creatures. They like to play

and do barrel rolls. Manatees also enjoy floating near the

top of the water. Most manatees can only stay underwater

One of the largest manatees

ever recorded was 12 feet

long and weighed nearly

3,500 pounds! Although

most adult manatees don’t

get that big, they are still

quite large. Fully-grown

manatees usually weigh

around 1,200 pounds—

that’s about the same size as

a motorcycle!

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for four and a half minutes, so they usually float near the surface of the water, keeping their

noses in the air so they can breath.

Where Do Manatees Live?

Manatees usually like to live in habitats that have warm springs, coves, and bays like those

found around Florida. However, they can live in all types of water as long as they can find

food to eat. Sometimes manatees travel north. People have spotted manatees in states as far

north as Virginia and Maryland.

Manatees are herbivores, or plant-eaters. A manatee eats over 30 pounds of plants a day! It

takes a long time to eat all that food, and manatees can spend up to eight hours a day eating.

Two of a manatee’s favorite foods are water hyacinths and hydrilla. Like all mammal

babies, manatees drink their mother’s milk when they are young.

Danger For Manatees

Manatees face many threats, most of them from humans. Not long ago, people used to kill

manatees for their fat. Manatee bones were used for medicine and their hides were used

for leather. Now, it is illegal to kill manatees in most countries. Manatees are a protected

animal.

Unfortunately, manatees are still in danger. Many manatees are killed in boat accidents.

Speedboats cannot see manatees in the water. Sometimes, boats run into manatees waiting

near the surface and the injuries kill them. People are trying to prevent such accidents in

Florida and other areas by posting speed limits for boats. Slowing down helps the boat

drivers see (and avoid) the manatees before they hit them.

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Barrel roll (n) A way of playing in the water where the animal looks like a barrel

as it rolls over and over on its side

Coves (n) Small places on the shore of the ocean that are protected by land

on three sides.

Detect (v) When you detect, you figure something out by investigating.

Habitat (n) The natural location or place where an animal lives

Hides (n) A tough skin that is often used to make leather, manatee hides are

gray and brown.

Hydrilla (n) A water plant that manatees eat, it can grow to be up to 25 feet

long

Mythical- (adj) Something with that is mythical is not real. Creatures and ideas

from myths and fairy tales are called mythical.