Deadly Defense (Grade 7)

Reading Comprehension & Language Level 6

Developed by teachers and reading specialists, Reading Comprehension & Language Level 6 is an
exciting way to develop reading comprehension skills at a Grade 6 to 7 reading level. The program
uses 15 fiction and non-fiction stories supported by colorful illustrations and verbal cues. The difficulty
of the stories and questions gradually increases as students work through the program. Reading
Comprehension & Language Level 6 is a challenging and exciting way to broaden reading,
vocabulary, fluency and comprehension skills.
Targeted Skills
• Comprehension, Word Meanings, True or False, Cause & Effect, Inference, Writing Style, Literary
Devices, Silent Consonants
• Nouns, Verbs, Adjectives, Adverbs
• Punctuation
• Syllables
• Homonyms
• Antonyms
• Phonics
• Synonyms
• Contractions
• Base (Root) Words
• Compound Words
• Suffixes & Prefixes
• Plurals
• Pronouns
Marks Manager
The Marks Manager tracks student progress throughout each program and records the percentage
score for every activity completed. This feature provides an overview of how well a student is
progressing and allows the teacher to identify strengths and weaknesses.
• Records students' results automatically as they work.
• Prints reports quickly and easily for sharing with parents and staff.
• Provides summary reports by subject or detailed reports by activity.
• Allows teachers to print reports for individual students or an entire class.
• Stores student marks in one central location for all programs.
Reading Comprehension & Language Level 6 1

Essential Skills Software 1.800.753.3727 www.essentialskills.net
Deadly Defense
Story Example (15 Stories in Total):
Animals protect themselves in many different ways. Gazelles use long legs to speed
away from predators. Elephants fight with their trunks and tusks. Small animals hide in
burrows, and some lizards rely on their skin color to blend into their surroundings. But some
animals use poison or venom to keep themselves safe.
Animals that use poison are harmful when they are touched. Large parts of their
bodies may be toxic. Almost all frogs have traces of poison in their skin. The most deadly
frogs are the poison dart frogs of Central and South America. These colourful frogs are
smaller than your thumb. Their skin is so toxic it can paralyze predators, or make them unable
to move. Native Central Americans once used the poison from some poison dart frogs on the
tips of their arrows and darts.
Many poisonous animals live in the ocean. Puffer fish, lion fish, and stone fish are just
a few examples of the many poisonous fish swimming in the ocean. Bottom dwellers have
poison too. Sea urchins have poisonous spines. Sea anemones have stinging cells on the
ends of their tentacles. These cells send poison into an enemy that touches them. The box
jellyfish, or sea wasp, lives in the Pacific ocean near Australia. It is one of the most poisonous
creatures in the sea. This cube-shaped jellyfish is about the size of a grapefruit. It has up to
15 long tentacles that trail through the water. Because of its pale blue color, it is hard for
swimmers to see. Every year, some swimmers are killed when they meet up with one of these
jellyfish. When its poison enters a person’s body, it can paralyze the heart in less than a
minute.
Some animals use venom to defend themselves from danger or to stop their prey
from escaping. Venom is different from poison, because the animal injects the venom into its
prey. Many snakes, scorpions, and spiders have venom.
Snakes store their venom in special sacs inside their heads. When a snake bites, its
venom moves into its hollow fangs. The fangs inject the venom into the snake’s prey.
Sometimes a fang breaks off. The snake grows a new fang to replace it.
Have you ever seen a scorpion? Scorpions are found all over the world. They live in
many different places, such as deserts, rainforests, grasslands and forests. Scorpions also
use their venom both to capture prey and for defense. Of the 1,300 different kinds of
scorpions in the world, only about 20 have venom that is strong enough to harm people. The
scorpion stores its venom in its tail. A sharp spine at the end of the tail injects the venom.
Most creatures that use venom are reptiles or insects. Only one mammal makes
venom – the platypus. The platypus is a furry animal with a duck-like bill that lives in Australia.
It is about the size of a cat. The male platypus has a sharp spine or spur near its back feet.
When it feels it is in danger, the platypus kicks and jabs with its spur. The spur injects venom.
Platypus venom can be very painful, but it’s not life threatening.
Although animal venom and poisons can be deadly, some people think they might be
able to help us too. Scientists in Australia think that some snake venoms might help cure
cancer. Other scientists are studying snake venom to see if it can help heart problems. The
poison from some poison dart frogs may one day be used as a pain-killer. Venoms and
poisons are good protection for animals, but someday they might help us too.

Sample Activities
ACTIVITY NAME INSTRUCTIONS (examples)
How may venom from various animals be

used in the future to help people? Pick three.
Comprehension
(Cure cancer, Kill pain, Help heart problems, Grow new teeth,
Paralyze people, Capture Prey)
Match each event (cause) with its effect.

Cause and Effect
(The box jellyfish is a pale blue color --- Swimmers cannot see it easily)
Here is a list of possible headings for the main ideas presented in this
article. Number them in the order in which they appear in this article.
(Different ways animals protect themselves, Who injects venom?,
Sequencing Events
Paralyzing ocean dwellers, Injection by tail spine, Injection by fangs,
Helpful venom, Toxic skins, Injection by foot spur, Poisonous ocean
dwellers)
Comprehension - Click on the T for true and F for false after each statement below.
True or False Scorpions live in the ocean and in the mountains. -- T or F
The author helps you to see the size of certain animals by comparing them
to something with which you are familiar. Type the name of the thing to
Similar Animals
which each of these animals is compared.
(platypus, poison dart frog, box jellyfish)
Using the suffix “ous,” type words that have the following meanings:
Suffix “ous”
(filled with poison, filled with danger, filled with venom, filled with cancer)
Type the correct word in each blank: predator & prey, attack & defend,
Antonyms
harmful & helpful, toxic & harmless, threatened & threatening.
(Opposites)
The hungry ______ caught its unfortunate ________.
Add the suffix “less” to the base word for each

Suffix “ful” given word given in the exercise.
(colourful, painful, useful, harmful)
Identify the part of speech of each underlined word. Type N for noun
(thing), V for verb (action), ADJ for adjective (describing word) and ADV for
Parts of Speech adverb (tells how something was done).
Animals protect themselves in unusual ways.
Frogs depend on the protection of their poisonous skins.
Type each word beside its meaning, tentacles, inject, reptile.

Word Meaning (force a liquid into something, cold-blooded scaly animal, long slender
feelers that move and grasp)


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Reading Comprehension & Language Level 6

Reading Comprehension & Language Level 6

• Nouns, Verbs, Adjectives, Adverbs

• Base (Root) Words

• Suffixes & Prefixes

• Records students' results automatically as they work.

• Provides summary reports by subject or detailed reports by activity.

• Allows teachers to print reports for individual students or an entire class.

• Stores student marks in one central location for all programs.

Reading Comprehension & Language Level 6 1

Reading Comprehension & Language Level 6 2

ACTIVITY NAME INSTRUCTIONS (examples)

How may venom from various animals be

Match each event (cause) with its effect.

Add the suffix “less” to the base word for each

Type each word beside its meaning, tentacles, inject, reptile.

Reading Comprehension & Language Level 6 3

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