1.4 Summaries

English home language

Grade 4

Books, for the mind

Module 5

Summaries

Activity 1

To identify the central idea of a story [lo 3.5]

To be able to understand and explain the moral meaning of a story [lo 5.1.3]

Read each of the following Aesop’s Fables and then say in one sentence what the story is about.

Once you have learnt this skill, you will be able to use it to great success in your future studies.

THE GOOSE WITH THE GOLDEN EGGS

A farmer went to the nest of his goose to see whether she had laid an egg. To his surprise he found, instead of an ordinary goose egg, an egg of solid gold. Seizing the golden egg he rushed to the house in great excitement to show it to his wife. Every day thereafter the goose laid an egg of pure gold. But as the farmer grew rich, he grew greedy. And thinking that if he killed the goose he could have all her treasure at once, he cut her open only to find - nothing at all.

MORAL: THE GREEDY THAT WANT MORE LOSE ALL.

THE DOG AND THE SHADOW

One day a dog stole a piece of meat out of a butcher shop, and on his way to a safe place where he could eat it without interruptions, he had to cross a footbridge over a clear stream. Looking down he saw his own reflection in the water.

Thinking that the reflection was another dog with another piece of meat, and being a greedy dog, he made up his mind to have that also. So he snarled and made a grab for the other dog’s meat.

As his greedy mouth opened, out dropped the piece of meat and it fell into the stream and was lost.

MORAL: A BIRD IN THE HAND IS WORTH TWO IN THE BUSH.

Activity 2

To tell a story and explain its moral [lo 2.1.2]

HERE IS A NEW CHALLENGE FOR YOU!

• See if you can find some more Aesop’s Fables to read to the class.
• Complete the following Aesop’s Fables titles:

1. The Hare and the T…………………………….. .

2. The Fox and the G…………………………….. .

3. The Country Mouse and the T………………….. ………………… .

4. The F………………………… and the Crow.

• Once you have found the titles, tell the story of each of the four Fables above and then supply their MORALS.

Activity 3

To read and be able to respond to the information in stories [lo 3.1.1]

Read story A and then story B about THE THIRSTY CROW and then make your mark (  ) in the table on the next page.

THE THIRSTY CROW

Story A

A crow was very thirsty and wanted a drink of water. She could not see a pool of water anywhere. She flew round and round. Then she saw a big jug outside a house.

The crow flew down to the jug. She looked inside. There was a little water at the bottom of the jug.

She could not reach the water with her beak. She climbed onto the jug. She almost fell into it, but she could not put her beak into the water.

She tried to break it with her beak. But the jug was too strong.

She tried to knock it over, so that the water would run out onto the ground. But the jug was too heavy. It did not fall over. Now the crow was very tired. She thought she was going to die of thirst.

Then she had an idea. She saw some stones lying on the ground. She picked up a stone in her beak and dropped it into the jug. Then another, and another. The water rose higher every time a stone fell into the jug.