Sixth Grade
Worksheets
Davy Crockett
Davy Crockett
Reading Comprehension for August 17
Davy Crockett has been called the "king of the wild frontier." Legends about him abound. One story says he killed a bear when he was three. Another touts him as able to "out fight, out shoot, and out jump any man in the country." With all the legends, it's hard to know what's true and what's fiction. What's the real story of Davy Crockett?
He was born in eastern Tennessee on August 17, 1786. He was number five out of nine children born to John and Rebecca Crockett. When Davy was eight years old, his parents opened a tavern on the Knoxville-Abington road. Here, Davy heard tales from travelers coming and going west. At age twelve, his father sent him off to work for a Virginia cattleman. This first employment taught Davy many lessons. He learned to handle a rifle, and he learned to be independent. After returning from the cattle drive, his parents sent him to school. Davy only lasted four days. After getting into a fight with another boy, Davy ran away to avoid a whipping from his father.
For the next two and one-half years, Davy worked wherever he could to get by. He got jobs helping farmers, worked on wagon trains, and was employed by a hat maker. When he came back home, his family didn't recognize him. His sister was the first to realize who he was, and she threw her arms around him to welcome him home.
