Read Grade-Level Text With Understanding Practice Test
•8 QuestionsRead the article to learn information about how beavers change their environment.
Beavers: Nature’s Builders
Beavers are large rodents that live near rivers, streams, and ponds. They are famous for building dams, which are walls made from sticks, mud, and stones. A beaver dam slows down moving water and can create a pond. This pond becomes the beaver’s safer home.
First, beavers choose a spot where water flows steadily. Then they chew down small trees with sharp front teeth. They drag branches into the water and pile them across the stream. Next, they pack mud and leaves into the gaps. This helps the dam hold back water.
When the water rises behind the dam, it spreads out and forms a pond. In the pond, beavers build a lodge, or a shelter, from sticks and mud. The lodge often has an underwater entrance. That entrance makes it harder for predators, like wolves or coyotes, to reach the beavers.
Beaver ponds can help other animals, too. Ducks may rest on the calm water. Frogs can lay eggs in the shallow edges. Even fish sometimes use the slower water to save energy. However, a dam can also flood nearby land. If a pond spreads into a field or road, people may need to remove part of the dam.
Even when beavers leave, their ponds can still matter. The wet soil may grow new plants, and the area can become a meadow over time. In this way, beavers help shape the land for many years.
Which statement best describes the main idea of the text?
Read the article to learn information about how beavers change their environment.
Beavers: Nature’s Builders
Beavers are large rodents that live near rivers, streams, and ponds. They are famous for building dams, which are walls made from sticks, mud, and stones. A beaver dam slows down moving water and can create a pond. This pond becomes the beaver’s safer home.
First, beavers choose a spot where water flows steadily. Then they chew down small trees with sharp front teeth. They drag branches into the water and pile them across the stream. Next, they pack mud and leaves into the gaps. This helps the dam hold back water.
When the water rises behind the dam, it spreads out and forms a pond. In the pond, beavers build a lodge, or a shelter, from sticks and mud. The lodge often has an underwater entrance. That entrance makes it harder for predators, like wolves or coyotes, to reach the beavers.
Beaver ponds can help other animals, too. Ducks may rest on the calm water. Frogs can lay eggs in the shallow edges. Even fish sometimes use the slower water to save energy. However, a dam can also flood nearby land. If a pond spreads into a field or road, people may need to remove part of the dam.
Even when beavers leave, their ponds can still matter. The wet soil may grow new plants, and the area can become a meadow over time. In this way, beavers help shape the land for many years.
Which statement best describes the main idea of the text?