Elephant Ride

This passage is about a girl who gets to ride on an elephant.

Lexile Level: 510L

Categories: Animals & Nature

Samantha stood in line at the fair. She was waiting for her chance to ride the elephant. It was a hot day, and the sun was strong. Samantha wore a hat, but she still had to shield her eyes as she looked up at the elephant inside the fence. A girl was being lifted down from the elephant. She was smiling and waving to her parents, who stood next to Samantha on the outside of the fence. The line seemed to be moving very slowly. Samantha was becoming inpatient. Finally it was her turn. She stepped onto the platform. The boy in front of her stepped down from the elephant. A worker helped her up onto the elephant. She was so surprised by how it felt to sit up there! She could feel the elephant's spine beneath her. When she touched its skin, it was warm and slightly hairy. When it started walking, she swayed from side to side. Its ears flapped gently in an attempt to cool off. The fair looked different from up there. Samantha didn't want to come down.