CAASPP Success - Grade 3 Reading Comprehension - Narrative #1

Read the passage and answer the questions.

The Patient Cat

[1] WHEN the spotted cat first found the nest, there was nothing in it, for it was only just finished. So she said, “I will wait!” for she was a patient cat, and the summer was before her. She waited a week, and then she climbed up again to the top of the tree, and peeped into the nest. There lay two lovely blue eggs, smooth and shining.

[2] The spotted cat said, “Eggs may be good, but young birds are better. I will wait.” So she waited; and while she was waiting, she caught mice and rats, and washed herself and slept, and did all that a spotted cat should do to pass the time away.

[3] When another week had passed, she climbed the tree again and peeped into the nest. This time there were five eggs. But the spotted cat said again, “Eggs may be good, but young birds are better. I will wait a little longer!”

[4] So she waited a little longer and then went up again to look. Ah! there were five tiny birds, with big eyes and long necks, and yellow beaks wide open. Then the spotted cat sat down on the branch, and licked her nose and purred, for she was very happy. “It is worth while to be patient!” she said.

[5] But when she looked again at the young birds, to see which one she should take first, she saw that they were very thin, —oh, very, very thin they were! The spotted cat had never seen anything so thin in her life.

[6] “Now,” she said to herself, “if I were to wait only a few days longer, they would grow fat. Thin birds may be good, but fat birds are much better. I will wait!”

[7] So she waited; and she watched the father-bird bringing worms all day long to the nest, and said, “Aha! they must be fattening fast! they will soon be as fat as I wish them to be. Aha! what a good thing it is to be patient.”

[8] At last, one day she thought, “Surely, now they must be fat enough! I will not wait another day. Aha! how good they will be!”

[9] So she climbed up the tree, licking her chops all the way and thinking of the fat young birds. And when she reached the top and looked into the nest, it was empty!!

[10] Then the spotted cat sat down on the branch and spoke thus, “Well, of all the horrid, mean, ungrateful creatures I ever saw, those birds are the horridest, and the meanest, and the most ungrateful! Mi-a-u-ow!”

Laura E. Richards

Question 1

Multiple choice

What does the spotted cat find when she first discovers the nest?

  • Five tiny birds

  • An empty nest

  • Two blue eggs

  • A family of birds

Question 2

Multiple choice

Why does the spotted cat decide to wait before taking the young birds?

  • She does not want to eat the babies straight away.

  • She wants to wait until the birds are fatter.

  • She is afraid of the mother bird.

  • She is too tired to climb the tree again.

Question 3

Multiple choice

What is the spotted cat's plan when she sees five eggs in the nest?

  • To take all the eggs immediately.

  • To wait for them to hatch into young birds.

  • To find another nest with bigger eggs.

  • To share the eggs with other cats.

Question 4

Multiple choice

What does the phrase 'licked her nose and purred' suggest about the spotted cat's feelings?

  • She is afraid.

  • She is bored.

  • She is happy.

  • She is angry.

Question 5

Multiple choice

What surprises the spotted cat when she looks at the young birds for the first time?

  • They are very thin.

  • They are very noisy.

  • They have left the nest.

  • They are all sleeping.

Question 6

Multiple choice

Why does the spotted cat become angry at the end of the story?

  • The birds are too thin.

  • The nest is taken over by other animals.

  • The birds have flown away.

  • The father-bird attacks her.

Question 7

Multiple choice

What lesson might readers learn from the spotted cat's experience?

  • It is important to be patient.

  • Opportunities may be missed if you wait too long.

  • Cats always catch their prey.

  • Birds and cats can be friends.

Question 8

Short answer

What sentence from the excerpt shows the cat's excitement to eat the young birds? Write the sentence from the excerpt in the box.

At last, one day she thought, “Surely, now they must be fat enough! I will not wait another day. Aha! how good they will be!”

So she climbed up the tree, licking her chops all the way and thinking of the fat young birds. And when she reached the top and looked into the nest, it was empty!

Then the spotted cat sat down on the branch and spoke thus, “Well, of all the horrid, mean, ungrateful creatures I ever saw, those birds are the horridest, and the meanest, and the most ungrateful! Mi-a-u-ow!”

Question 9

Short answer

What sentence from the excerpt shows the cat's feelings towards the birds?

At last, one day she thought, “Surely, now they must be fat enough! I will not wait another day. Aha! how good they will be!”

So she climbed up the tree, licking her chops all the way and thinking of the fat young birds. And when she reached the top and looked into the nest, it was empty!!

Then the spotted cat sat down on the branch and spoke thus, “Well, of all the horrid, mean, ungrateful creatures I ever saw, those birds are the horridest, and the meanest, and the most ungrateful! Mi-a-u-ow!”

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