The Little Sun Beetle
Meet the dung beetle. It is a small bug that lives in Egypt.
These beetles do a very strange job. They find animal poop on the ground.
They roll the poop into a big, round ball. They push the ball with their back legs.
They roll it all day long. Why do they roll this ball?
They use the ball for food. They also lay their eggs inside the ball.
Soon, baby beetles hatch out of the ball. It is a safe place for them to grow.
Long ago, the people of Egypt watched these bugs. They saw the round ball moving across the sand.
It looked like the sun moving across the sky. They thought a giant beetle pushed the sun every day.
The Egyptians loved this little bug. They called it a scarab.
They saw new beetles come out of the ground. So, the bug became a sign of new life.
People wore scarab charms for good luck. They wanted to be strong and happy like the sun.
- scarab:
- The special name given to the dung beetle by the people of ancient Egypt.
- hatch:
- To break open or come out of an egg.
- charm:
- A small object worn for good luck.
- Egypt:
- A country with sandy deserts where dung beetles live and where people long ago loved them.
One passage, many ways to practice
Reading-skill questions, word work and writing prompts ā all built from this text.
Main Idea
Identify the central idea and explain how important details develop it.
Summarize
Select, organize, and restate the most important information without adding opinion.
Writing Prompts
Use the passage as a springboard for short written responses, from personal reflection to evidence-based arguments.
Fix the Sentence
Practice editing sentences drawn from this passage with a printable worksheet.
Ready to use this passage in class?
Start free with the Mixed worksheet and 3 PDF downloads each week. Focused skill sets depend on plan.
Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 1Where does the dung beetle live?
- 2What do these beetles find on the ground to do their job?
Where this passage belongs
About this explanatory article passage for Lower Elementary
āThe Little Sun Beetleā is a explanatory article reading passage about Dung Beetles in Ancient Egypt, written for Lower Elementary. It takes about 1 minute to read (170 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.