Printable Scholar
Home/Reading/Decodable Readers/Level 5/Tess and the Bathtub

Tess and the Bathtub

Compound Words 2nd Phase 5
Tess and the Bathtub
Tess and the Bathtub, page 1
1It had not rained for weeks and weeks. The sun was hot every day, and the little pond got smaller and smaller. Now it was just a muddy puddle, no bigger than a sandbox. Fran the frog hopped up to her friend Tess, the elephant calf. "Come quick, Tess!" said Fran.
Tess and the Bathtub, page 2
2"I need your help." She showed Tess the puddle. A yellow sunfish and a fat gray catfish lay on their sides in the mud. They could not swim at all. "They need deep water," said Tess. "The big lake is just over the hill. I will find a way to get them there."
Tess and the Bathtub, page 3
3Tess ran to the farm, past the mailbox and around the pigpen. Behind the barn she found an old bathtub in the weeds. It was full of dust, with a cobweb in one corner. Tess wiped it clean, pushed the plug into the drain, and dragged it back to the puddle.
Tess and the Bathtub, page 4
4She sucked up water with her trunk and sprayed it into the bathtub, again and again. Then she gently lifted each fish and set it inside. The sunfish and the catfish wiggled their tails. Tess tied a rope to the bathtub and began to pull it uphill. The bathtub was very heavy.
Tess and the Bathtub, page 5
5In the middle of the hill, the rope slipped out of her trunk. The bathtub slid back down the hill, and water splashed over the sides. "Oh no!" cried Fran. Tess ran down after it. The fish were still inside, but a lot of the water was gone. "Pulling will not work," said Tess.
Tess and the Bathtub, page 6
6"I will push instead." She filled the bathtub again with the last of the puddle water. Then she got behind it and pushed with her head. Each time Tess stopped to rest, Fran put a rock under the bathtub so it could not slide back. Step by step, they went up the hill.
Tess and the Bathtub, page 7
7At last they reached the hilltop. Below them, the lake glowed pink and orange in the sunset. Tess pushed the bathtub down to the edge of the lake and tipped it over. Splash! The sunfish and the catfish dove into the deep, cool water and swam around and around.
Tess and the Bathtub, page 8
8Fran unzipped her backpack and took out a cupcake. "This is for the strongest friend I know," she said. Tess grinned and broke the cupcake in half so they could share it. Then they sat by the lake and watched the fish swim until the sun went down.
Circle or highlight all the compound words in the story above. How many did you find?

Comprehension Questions

After reading, ask these questions to check understanding:

  1. What did Tess find behind the barn?
  2. What happened when the rope slipped out of Tess’s trunk?
  3. What did Tess and Fran share at the end?
Keep practicing
Practice Compound Words with 10 more free worksheets

Word work sheets for this skill to build, split, sort and write, plus this story's word sort, phrasing cards and word search.

Get the Compound Words worksheets →
Tess and the Bathtub printed mini-book cover Download Mini-Book
Full-color picture book • Print, cut & staple • No signup required
Read-aloud version (one page per sheet, for projecting)
Want the whole level?
Level 5 pack · $14Every illustrated mini-book in the level, print-ready Or all 6 levels for $34 (best value)
Every book stays free to print one at a time.

Reader Details

Phonics Skill Compound Words
Grade Level 2nd
Phase Phase 5
Worksheets Compound Words Worksheets

Target Words

sunset backpack cupcake bathtub cobweb sandbox hilltop laptop hotdog pigpen sunfish catfish

Sight Words

the a and to was is it she he they said have with you are of for her there one

More Compound Words Readers

Jane's Sunset Hike illustration
Jane's Sunset Hike
 Pip's Birthday Pancakes illustration
Pip's Birthday Pancakes
 Bret's Fishing Trip illustration
Bret's Fishing Trip
 Shelly's Sandbox Jump illustration
Shelly's Sandbox Jump
← Shelly's Sandbox Jump Gus and the Bubbles →

About This Decodable Reader

“Tess and the Bathtub” is a free printable decodable reader designed for 2nd students practicing compound words phonics patterns. This mini-book uses phonetically controlled vocabulary so beginning readers can successfully sound out nearly every word in the story, building confidence and reinforcing the specific phonics skills they're learning.

The free PDF is a full-color illustrated mini-book: a cover, eight picture pages with one or two lines of story text each, and a back page listing the compound words words, high-frequency words, and discussion questions. Print the five sheets, cut each one in half along the dashed line, and staple — your child has a real little book to hold. A read-aloud version with one large page per sheet is also included for projecting to the whole class.

This reader is part of our collection of free decodable readers organized by phonics skill and aligned with the Science of Reading. For additional practice with compound words patterns, try our compound words phonics worksheets which include word sorts, phrasing practice cards, and rapid naming charts.