English For Today chapter 8: Facts and Fables

The Ant and the Grasshopper

A. Colour the picture. Now discuss in groups what you see in the picture.

Figure

Description: A black-and-white line drawing for colouring, inside a cloud-shaped outline. On the left a grasshopper stands upright with one arm raised and its other hand near its chest; on the right an ant stands in profile, holding a small leaf or piece of food.

B. Listen to the story, one sentence at a time. Then read it in groups. If necessary, help each other.

An ant and a grasshopper are two good friends. They live in a grassy field.

It is a sunny summer morning. The grasshopper is enjoying the sun. He is dancing and singing happily. He does not usually like to work.

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Now the ant is passing by the grasshopper. She is carrying an ear of corn to her house. She is storing food for the winter. The grasshopper laughs at her and says,

“Hey Ant! Why do you work hard all the time? Come and join me. Let’s enjoy the sun.”

The ant replies, “Oh Grasshopper! Winter is coming. Let’s collect some corns together.”

The grasshopper does not listen to her. So, the ant goes her way and continues her work.

After the summer, the winter begins. The days become very cold. The leaves start to fall everywhere. The grasshopper finds no food to eat. He starves, and he becomes sad.

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On the other hand, the ant has plenty of food. She is passing her time happily at her cozy home.

C. Read the story individually and tick the correct answer.

1. What is the grasshopper doing in the summer morning?

The grasshopper is ___________ .

a) carrying cornsb) enjoying the sunc) making fun with the ant

2. What is the ant doing in the summer?

The ant is ___________ .

a) playing in the sunb) singing in the fieldc) carrying an ear of corn

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3. How does the grasshopper pass the winter?

The grasshopper passess the winter ___________ .

a) without foodb) singing and dancingc) working hard

4. How does the ant pass the winter?

The ant passes the winter ___________ .

a) happily at her cozy homeb) sadlyc) in search of food

D. Ask and answer the following questions in pairs.

1. Where do the ant and the grasshopper live?
2. What does the ant carry to her house?
3. What does the grasshopper say to the ant?
4. What does the ant say in reply?
5. What happens to the grasshopper in the winter?

E. Write the words Summer and Winter in your exercise book in two columns. Now choose the right words/phrases for the columns and write them.

Words/phrases: dry leaves, sunny, enjoying the sun, gloomy, warm day, cold.

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F. Roleplay: In pair, play the roles of the Ant and the Grasshopper in the class.

Grammar focus :

Use of punctuation mark

For a surprise, an exclamation mark (!) is used. For making a question, a question mark (?) is used; and for a short pause in a sentence, a comma (,) is used.

Example:

What a beautiful bird!

Who is he?

I read, write and play.

G. In pairs, read the story in activity B and underline question mark, exclamation mark and comma.

H. Put punctuation marks in the following passage:

What a bright day The grasshopper is dancing singing and playing in the sun What is the ant doing She is carrying an ear of corn

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Let’s practise

1. Match column A with column B. One is done for you.

2. Fill in the gaps with the right words from the box.

passing by, starves, sunny, grassy, falling down

a. The ant and the grasshopper live in a ___________ field.

b. The summer morning is ___________.

c. The ant is ___________ the grasshopper.

d. The leaves are ___________ everywhere.

e. The grasshopper ___________ and becomes sad.

3. Put punctuation marks.

a. I like apple orange and banana

b. Hello How are you

c. It is a beautiful day

d. What time is it now

e. Bravo You did a great job

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Enjoying a hill festival

A. Colour the picture.

Figure

Description: A black-and-white line drawing for colouring. Three young people stand close together: the one on the left with one hand raised to the face, the middle one with hands folded near the chest, and the one on the right leaning forward with a hand on the ground. Flowers lie in the foreground on a bank beside a stream.

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B. Now listen to the story and read each line of the story in groups. Help each other if necessary.

Figure

Description: A girl in a red blouse and red-patterned skirt stands at the doorway of a house, while a woman in a striped shawl and a man in a green shirt stand behind her. A girl in a blue dress faces them and touches hands with the girl in red.

Hello! I am Anika. I live in the plain land. I like to attend the hill festivals. So I am here in the hills to visit my friend.

Figure

Description: Outdoors near a wooden house, a girl in a red top and blue shorts holds a yellow water-spraying gun. A girl in a blue dress dances on the grass beside her with one arm raised.

She is Savana. She welcomes me to her house, spraying water upon me. Her parents greet me. The house is decorated with colours and flowers.

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Figure

Description: Inside a house, a girl in a blue blouse sits at a table set with a plate, a glass, a bowl of rice, fried fish, vegetables and a dish of curry. Another girl in a red top stands beside the table, one hand extended towards the food, with a water jug on the table.

They entertain me with various food items.

Figure

Description: Five girls sit or kneel on the bank of a river under trees, floating flowers on the water. Several flower-decorated leaves float on the water in front of them.

Today is Phool Biju. On this day, hill girls float flowers wishing a happy new year.

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Figure

Description: People stand and kneel on the two sides of a narrow water channel under a canopy decorated with bunting. They hold red buckets and throw water towards each other across the channel.

The next day is Mulbiju. On this occasion, young boys and girls spray water on each other. They believe that spraying water washes away sorrows of life.

Figure

Description: Four women in traditional dress stand in a row, each with one hand raised to her head or forehead, looking upward. Each wears a feathered headband, necklaces and bracelets.

Then comes the new year’s day. It is called Gajjya Pajjya.

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Figure

Description: A girl in a red top and blue skirt and a girl in a blue dress face each other, holding hands high and clasping hands low. Both are dancing on the grass, with coloured dots and stars scattered in the air around them.

Cultural shows and carnivals are arranged to celebrate the day.

Figure

Description: On a grassy hillside, a girl in a red top and blue skirt waves to a girl with a long ponytail, who is seen from behind in the lower right corner. A wooden house, a fence running along the path and a tree are in the background.

I am here almost the whole day with my friend. I enjoy the festival very much.

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B. Look at the pictures. Discuss the questions in small groups.

1. Where is the festival taking place?
2. What are the hill girls doing in the water?
3. What are the boys and the girls doing?
4. How are the two girls dancing?

Grammar focus :

Continuous tenses : actions or events continuing in the present.

Structure: subject + be verb (am/is/are) + verb + ing. Example: He is reading. She is writing.

C. Write True or False for the sentences below. If false write the correct answers.

1. The name of the hill girl is Savana.
2. Savana welcomes a girl from the hill to her house.
3. On the day of Phool Biju hill girls float flowers in the water.
4. Spraying water on Mulbiju brings sorrows in life.
5. The new year’s day is called Mulbiju.

D. Read the story individually and write answer to each of the following questions.

1. Where does Anika live?
2. What is the name of the hill girl?
3. How does the hill girl welcome Anika?
4. Why do the hill people float flowers in the water?
5. What do hill people do on the day of Mulbiju?

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