Lesson The Lion and the Mouse By Aesop. Reading Questions

Transcription

1 Lesson The Lion and the Mouse By Aesop A Lion was awakened from sleep by a Mouse running over his face. He rose up in anger, caught him and was about to kill him, when the Mouse piteously begged, If you spare my life, I promise to repay your kindness. The Lion laughed and let him go. Not too long afterwards, the Lion was caught by some hunters, who bound him by strong ropes to the ground. The Mouse recognized his roar and came up. He gnawed the rope with his teeth, and after he set him free, he exclaimed, You laughed at the idea of my ever being able to help you, and didn t expect to be repaid for your favor. But now you know that even a Mouse can help a Lion. Reading Questions 1. Why are a lion and mouse fitting animals to use for this story? a) They are opposite in strength. b) They are both clever animals. c) They are both kind animals. 2. What does the word spare mean (printed in bold) as it is used in the passage? a) extra b) save c) kill

2 3. Why was the lion ready to kill the mouse? a) The mouse seemed helpless. b) The mouse was so small, he did not notice him. c) The mouse has disturbed him in his sleep. 4. What does the word bound (printed in bold) mean as it is used in the passage? a) lash b) tied c) freed 5. Which of the following best tells the meaning or theme of the story? a) Do not laugh at others, as they will soon laugh at you. b) Some animals are weak and some are strong. c) Do good to others even if you think they cannot return the favor. 2. Androcles and the Lion By James Baldwin In Rome there was once a poor slave whose name was Androcles. His master was a cruel man, and so unkind to him that at last Androcles ran away. He hid himself in a wild wood for many days. There was no food to be found there, and he grew so weak and sick that he thought he would die. So one day he crept into a cave and lay down and soon he was fast asleep.

3 After a while a great noise woke him up. A lion had come into the cave and was roaring loudly. Androcles was very much afraid. He felt sure that the beast would kill him. Soon, however, he saw that the lion was not angry, but that he limped as though his foot hurt him. Then Androcles grew so bold that he took hold of the lion s lame paw to see what was the matter. The lion stood quite still, and rubbed his head against the man s shoulder. He seemed to say, I know that you will help me. Androcles lifted the paw from the ground, and saw that it was a long, sharp thorn which hurt the lion so much. He took the end of the thorn in his fingers. Then he gave a strong, quick pull, and out it came. The lion was full of joy. He jumped about like a dog, and licked the hands and feet of his new friend. Androcles was not at all afraid after this, and when night came, he and the lion lay down and slept side by side. For a long time the lion brought food to Androcles every day. The two became such good friends, that Androcles found his new life a very happy one. One day some soldiers who were passing through the wood found Androcles in the cave. They knew who he was and so took him back to Rome. It was the law at that time that every slave who ran away from his master should be made to fight a hungry lion. So a fierce lion was shut up for a while without food and a time was set for the fight.

4 When the day came, thousands of people crowded to see the sport. They went to such places at that time very much as people now-a-days go to see a circus show or a game of baseball. The door opened and poor Androcles was brought in. He was almost dead with fear, as the roars of the lion could already be heard. He looked up and saw that there was no pity in the thousands of faces around him. Then the hungry lion rushed in. With a single bound he reached the poor slave. Androcles gave a great cry, not of fear, but of gladness. It was his old friend, the lion of the cave. The people, who had expected to see the man killed by the lion, were filled with wonder. They saw Androcles put his arms around the lion s neck. They saw the lion lie down at his feet, and lick them lovingly. They saw the great beast rub his head against the slave s face as though he wanted to be petted. They could not understand what it all meant. After a while they asked Androcles to tell them about it. So he stood up before them and with his arm around the lion s neck, told how he and the beast had lived together in the cave. I am a man, he said. But no man has ever befriended me. This poor lion alone has been kind to me, and we love each other as brothers. The people were not so bad that they could be cruel to the poor slave now. Live and be free! they cried. Live and be free!

5 Others cried, Let the lion go free too! Give both of them their liberty! And so Androcles was set free, and the lion was given to him for his own. And they lived together in Rome for many years. Oral Questions 1. Who was Androcles and why did he go to hide in a cave? 2. Why did the lion not do Androcles any harm? 3. Is this story realistic? 4. What was Androcles punishment for having run away from his master? 5. Why did the spectators demand that both Androcles and the lion be granted their liberty? 2. Literary Words: Anecdote Any interesting or amusing little story used to make a point is called an anecdote. The story of Androcles and the lion is an interesting one and can be told in a variety of situations to show the ties of friendship. How unlikely it is for a lion to show so much affection for a man, yet the anecdote of Androcles and the lion can be used to show that when we do something for another person, a strong friendship can develop that lasts a lifetime.

6 3. Writing Exercise: Expository Paragraph (II) You have just read a story about the friendship between Androcles and a lion. Among other things, the passage shows what good can come from having a friend. Think about how both Androcles and the lion benefited from being friends. Think also about what good things have come about from your own friendships. Then, on a separate piece of paper or in a composition book, write a detailed paragraph on the following topic: There are many good things that can come from friendship. Again, you can use this sentence as your topic sentence. To develop your topic sentence, you should think of reasons suggested by the story and from your own experience. The paragraph should have at least four sentences. Be sure to separate your ideas with transition words. 4. Phonics and Vocabulary: Silent t Circle the silent t in each of the words; color the inside of the circle a lime green. listen hasten fasten whistle rustle wrestle chestnut nestle thistle castle

7 Challenge Words apostle mistletoe Phonics Exercise 1 Circle the meaning of the spelling word printed in bold. 1. On cool autumn nights I like to listen to the leaves rustle in the wind. a) make a soft sound b) make a loud, booming noise, as of thunder c) get stuck in something 2. Make sure that you fasten your seat belts before we go on our trip. a) attach b) unbuckle c) play with 3. Many thistles grew in the meadow. a) soil b) animals c) a kind of plant 4. Often in the winter season, mistletoe and pine wreaths decorate homes. a) furniture b) a kind of evergreen plant c) light bulb 5. The little puppies nestled next to their mother. a) dry up

8 b) snuggled c) fought Phonics Exercise 2 Circle the word that fits the sentence, then write it below. 1. You can hear well, but sometimes you do not. listen fasten hasten 2. Micah was late, and had to to catch the 9:06 train for Haverford. rustle hasten wrestle 3. When the coach blew his, Paul and Kellen stood at attention? castle thistle whistle 4. The brothers liked to to prove their strength. listen wrestle hasten 5. The king placed guards outside the doors. castle thistle chestnut

9 5. Grammar and Punctuation: Verbs (I) A verb can be either of two things. It can be a word that shows action or it can be a word that links two other words together. If it shows action, the word is called an action verb. Examples of Action Verbs jump, swim, think, bake, ride, love Verbs show time, which is often called tense. There are six tenses in English. They are present, past, future, present perfect, past perfect and future perfect. In this lesson, only the present and past will be looked at closely. Present verbs (e.g. scratch, push) often are made past by adding an -ed suffix (e.g. scratched, pushed). A suffix is the ending part of a word. When verbs are made past by adding an -ed suffix, they are called regular verbs. If a regular verb ends with an e, it is dropped first before adding the suffix. Sometimes, however, verbs change their form, or spelling, in the past tense. They are called irregular verbs. Examples of Regular Verbs Present Past clean cleaned itch itched play played

10 crush cook crushed cooked Examples of Irregular Verbs Present Past fall fell write wrote bring brought eat ate see saw Grammar Exercise 1 Put an R next to a regular verb and put an I next to an irregular verb. The first has been completed for you. 1. R wipe (The past tense of wipe is wiped. If a verb adds an -ed suffix in the past tense, it is R or regular) 2. get 3. notice 4. is 5. drive 6. pull 7. send 8. call 9. check 10. rise

11 Grammar Exercise 2 Write out the past tense of the following verbs. 1. pass 2. sing 3. bite 4. like 5. bring 6. dress

12 7. find 8. ask 9. pray 10. fake