How Rabbit Brought Fire
The cold winter wind blew hard. The animals were very cold in the deep forest.
They shivered and shook in the snow. They needed a way to stay warm.
"There is fire on top of the big mountain," said Owl. "But the fire spirits guard it well."
Rabbit was small, but he was very clever. "I will go get the fire," Rabbit said.
Rabbit ran up the tall, snowy mountain. His feet made soft taps in the white snow.
At the top, he saw the bright, warm fire. The fire spirits were fast asleep.
Rabbit had a great plan. He put sticky pine tar on his long ears.
He stood close to the hot fire. He leaned his head down low.
A spark touched his ears. The pine tar caught the fire!
Rabbit ran down the mountain fast. His ears burned bright like two torches.
The spirits woke up and chased him. But Rabbit was too quick for them.
He hopped into the cold forest. He touched a dry log with his ears.
The log began to burn. A warm fire grew and grew.
All the animals gathered around the heat. They cheered for the clever rabbit.
Rabbit's ears stayed black from the soot. But he was happy to keep his friends warm.
- shivered:
- Shook or trembled slightly from being very cold.
- clever:
- Smart and good at planning or solving problems.
- pine tar:
- A sticky, thick dark liquid that comes from wood and pine trees.
- torches:
- Carried lights made of burning wood or material on the end of a stick.
- soot:
- A black powder that is made when something burns.
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Main Idea
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Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 1Why were the animals shivered and cold at the start of the story?
- 2Where did Owl say the fire could be found?
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About this short story passage for Lower Elementary
“How Rabbit Brought Fire” is a short story reading passage about Cherokee Legend of Rabbit and Fire, written for Lower Elementary. It takes about 1 minute to read (213 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.