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Contributor: Suzanne Riordan. Lesson ID: 13973
They are many people's favorite animals. Some run wild over the open plains. Some pull heavy wagons. Some run races or play sports. Others give rides to kids. Gallop into the world of horses!
Watch the video below to learn some interesting facts about horses.
Horses are amazing creatures!
Though you may know a lot about them, you can always learn more.
Before learning more about horses, remember that when you read, you may encounter some words you haven't seen before.
Step One
You can look at the word and see if there are any parts of it that you already know.
For example, if you see the word captivity, you may recognize the word captive. Then you would know it has something to do with being taken prisoner.
Step Two
You can use context clues. Check the words around the unknown word and see if they help you to understand it. Look at the sentence below.
My horse likes to canter, but I prefer to have her gallop because I love going fast!
If you didn't know what the words canter and gallop mean, you could figure out from the context that galloping involves going faster than cantering. The clue I love going fast makes that clear.
Step Three
If steps one and two don't help, ask someone or look the word up in a glossary or dictionary.
Now it's time to learn how horses sleep and learn some new words!
Read the passage below. Pay special attention to the words in bold and try to figure out their meanings.
How Horses Sleep
| (1) |
Horses can sleep standing up. That may sound strange, but other animals do this as well. Cows, elephants, zebras, bison, and giraffes can all sleep while standing. You'll notice that every animal on that list is a large one. These large animals have straight backs and long legs, and getting up from the ground takes time. This puts them in great danger. They cannot run away quickly and may become prey to other animals. |
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| (2) |
You might not have considered horses prey, but they can be. Some of their predators include mountain lions, coyotes, wolves, and bears. |
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| (3) |
Horses can stay on their feet while sleeping because they have a special mechanism in their legs. They can lock their knees. So, locking one hind leg and leaning on that leg lets them stay steady. They don't need to hold their leg muscles tight to keep themselves up. |
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| (4) |
Unlike humans, horses only need 3 hours of sleep daily and only 30-60 minutes of deep sleep. They lie prone when they need to get some deep sleep. Then they can relax all their muscles and get a good snooze! But they only do this when they feel safe from predators. |
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| (5) |
If they're in a group, one horse will stand guard while the others lie down to sleep. So, if you see some horses lying down in a sunny field, don't worry! Many times, people see a sight like this and report that horses are lying dead on the ground. But they're really just getting some shut-eye. People are not used to seeing this novel sight! |
Now, get a piece of paper and try to figure out the meaning of some of the bolded words in this article. Write down what you think each word means, then read the explanation.
Now that you know how horses sleep, move on to the Got It? section to find out how strong horses are!
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