Footprints at Dino Cove

Stories help readers explore unfamiliar places, meet memorable characters, and see problems from different points of view. Read the Dino Cove story below, then answer the questions.

The Footprints at Dino Cove

Early one morning, Luminara discovered a trail of enormous footprints beside the Dino Cove Learning Center.

“They were not here yesterday,” she said.

Groovy studied the first print. It was wider than a picnic basket and deep enough to hold a puddle. The trail crossed the garden, circled the flagpole, and disappeared behind the building.

Raptor Rex wanted to follow it immediately. Luminara suggested they gather evidence first.

The friends measured the footprints, counted the distance between them, and sketched their unusual three-toed shape. As they worked, Groovy noticed that the prints became smaller near the garden.

“That’s strange,” she said. “An animal’s feet don’t usually shrink while it walks.”

Behind the building, they found Thumper holding a cardboard dinosaur foot attached to a long wooden handle!

“I was testing decorations for the Dino Cove parade,” he admitted. “The rain made the prints look real.”

Raptor Rex laughed. “Our mysterious dinosaur was Thumper all along!”

Luminara smiled. “But we still solved the mystery like real investigators.”

Reading Questions

1. Where did Luminara find the first footprints?
2. What evidence did the friends collect?
3. Which clue suggested that the footprints were not made by a real animal?
4. Why had Thumper created them?
5. What does the story show about solving a mystery?

Writing Challenge

Write another paragraph describing what might have happened if the footprints had continued into the woods.

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