3rd Grade Theme 4 Reader’s Library
Dear Butterflies…
Selection Summary:
Julia Rodriguez’s new classmates are focused on a glass tank
containing the larvae of monarch butterflies. The class explains the life-cycle
of the butterflies to Julia, using a poster. Julia discovers that, once the larvae
turn to butterflies, the butterflies are in danger of dying, since it is too late in
the year to release them. Julia comes up with a solution: to send the
butterflies to Mexico by airplane with the help of her airline pilot father.
Key Vocabulary:
Show around: guide through a new place
Tank: box, often made of glass that can be closed and filled with water or
air
Funny: odd
Icky: gross
Pilot: person who flies an airplane
Henry and the Fox
Selection Summary:
Henry worries that he will be lonely on the farm without his school
friends during the summer. But soon Henry befriends a tiny, hungry fox at a
raspberry patch. The fox keeps Henry company, and Henry eventually
rescues the fox from a trap. But the fox disappears, and summer ends. Fall
and winter pass with no sign of the fox. Then, the next spring, Henry returns
to the raspberry patch to find the fox with two pups.
Key Vocabulary:
Lonely: sad from being alone
Wheel: using a wheelchair, moving from place to place
Toss: throw
Pups: the young offspring of foxes
The Upside-Down Elephant
Selection Summary:
An Indian boy, Nilu, discovers an elephant is lying upside-down in a
ditch. He runs to get help from a group of neighbors. After a number of tries
to pull the elephant out, Nilu jumps into the ditch to push the elephant. Other
people jump in the ditch to help too, and their combined effort frees the
elephant. The elephant stands right side up and is able to return to its foresthome.
Key Vocabulary:
Favorite: best-liked
Ditch: large hole dug in the ground
Crane: machine used to raise and lower heavy things
Worried: upset
Sigh: let out a deep breath that others can hear