Unit 13 Fables
Listen up! 1
Listen to the fable.
2 Discuss the questions. • Why is the fox speaking to the crow? • What do we learn about the crow? What are his characteristics? • How does the fox succeed in tricking the crow? • What lesson does the crow learn? 3 Retell the fable in your own words.
Reading Look at the pictures. Predict what will happen in the fable. The Otters and the Fox One day a fox said to her mate, “A great longing has come upon me to have some fish.” “I will try to get some for you,” he said, and away he went down to the river.
There he saw two otters standing at the edge of the river, looking for fish. Soon one of them saw a large fish and leapt into the water. He caught hold of the fish with his sharp teeth, but the fish was strong and swam away, dragging the otter after him. The otter had to let it go. “The fish has got away,” the otter shouted. “Come and help me. If we catch it there will be enough fish for both of us.” The second otter jumped into the water, and soon the pair of them were able to bring the fish to land. After they had landed the fish successfully they began to argue. “Let’s divide it into two parts,” said the first otter. “I will have the part with the head on it.”
“You cannot have that half,” said the second otter. “That half is mine. You can take the half with the tail.”
otter: small, brown, furry animal which swims very well
• Before starting work on this unit, explain that a fable is an old story, often about animals, which teaches us a lesson. Give examples, e.g. ‘The Tortoise and the Hare’. Read aloud from Listening Texts page 184. • ‘The Otters and the Fox’ comes form the Jataka Tales which originated in India more than 3,000 years ago.
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