3rd Grade Reading Comprehension (2 passages, free)

On a rocky island stood a tall white lighthouse. Inside lived Mr. Okafor and his gray cat, Pepper.

Every night, Mr. Okafor climbed the spiral stairs to light the great lamp so ships would not crash on the rocks. Pepper always followed, her tail held high like a flag.

One stormy night, the power went out. The lamp went dark, and a fishing boat was heading straight for the island. Mr. Okafor searched for his flashlight, but he could not find it in the darkness.

Then he heard a soft meow. Pepper was sitting on the shelf, right beside the old oil lantern. Mr. Okafor lit it, held it high in the window, and the boat turned safely away. From then on, Pepper had her own cushion at the top of the tower.

A honeybee hive is like a busy city. Up to 60,000 bees can live in one hive, and each bee has a job.

The queen bee lays the eggs. Worker bees are all female. They clean the hive, feed the young bees, build wax combs and fly out to collect nectar and pollen from flowers.

Back at the hive, the workers turn nectar into honey and store it in the wax combs to eat in winter.

Bees also help people. As they fly from flower to flower, they carry pollen, which helps plants make fruit and seeds. Many of the foods we eat, like apples and almonds, depend on bees.