HomeMy WebLinkAboutRead Aloud Book Gr. 2-Lesson 23A long time ago, a young married couple lived by a river. They were very
poor, but fi shing together on the peaceful river made them happy.
One day, the woman caught a very large fi sh. As she picked it up, its head
turned. The fi sh looked straight at her and spoke. “I am not a fi sh, but a
prince,” the fi sh said. “Please let me go.”
The woman threw the fi sh back into the river at once. She looked at her
husband, but he had not heard the fi sh speak.
Later, the husband and wife returned to their tiny hut on the bank of the river.
They had few possessions in their home, but it was warm nonetheless. They
were happy there. That night, the wife told her husband about the talking fi sh.
The husband became very excited. “That fi sh is magical! You had great
fortune to catch that fi sh. He will give you anything you ask for. Go back to him
and ask him to give us a palace and endless riches.”
The woman did as her husband asked. She knew that this was their only
chance to gain money and security.
She went down to the river and called out to the fi sh. “Oh, fi sh prince. I am the
one who freed you today. Please come and reward me for my good deed. My
husband and I want to be wealthy.”
The fi sh appeared at once and said, “Go back to your home. It has now
become a palace fi lled with valuable things.”
Sure enough, the woman returned and found a great palace where the small
hut once stood. The palace was fi lled with expensive furniture and trinkets.
After the couple had lived in the palace for a few weeks, they found that
they were less happy than they had been in the small hut. They no longer spent
time together as they had when they were fi shing. They had lots of empty
space and nothing to do all day. After some time, the man said to his wife, “Go
back to the fi sh, and ask him to make us happy again.”
When the woman asked the fi sh for happiness, it said, “Go back home. You now
have what you need to be happy.” When the woman returned home, her husband
was sitting in their tiny hut again. For the fi rst time in weeks, he was smiling.
COMPREHENSION How does the couple’s life change after they catch
the fi sh? What words tell you about money?
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Baby Rattlesnake lived with his family in the hot, dry desert. He couldn’t wait to grow
up to be a big rattler like his dad. His brothers and sisters already had their rattles.
Every day, Baby Rattlesnake asked, “When can I have my rattle?”
Every day, Mama Rattlesnake answered, “Not yet, Baby Rattlesnake.”
But Baby Rattlesnake did not give up. He asked in the morning and the evening. He
even asked in the middle of the night, just to disturb his parents. His whining became
a huge annoyance to his family. Finally, he made himself such a nuisance that his
parents gave in.
“You may have your rattle if you promise to use it wisely. Stay away from people!”
they warned.
Baby Rattlesnake agreed to his parents’ rules. But he was a mischievous snake. He
couldn’t wait to scare someone with his new rattle! So he slithered close to an eagle and
sat quietly until it was almost asleep. Just as the eagle closed its eyes, Baby Rattlesnake
shook his rattle hard and fast.
“Yikes! A snake!” the eagle screeched as it fl apped into the air. Baby Rattlesnake
laughed.
He was still chuckling to himself when he saw the village. He remembered that his
parents told him not to interfere with people. “But why not scare just one?” he thought.
“It would be funny.”
He slithered into the village. It was hard to stop himself from laughing. “I bet they will
scream and run, just like the eagle,” he thought.
He slithered into a house that belonged to the chief. The chief’s daughter was inside
sleeping. He crept close to her and shook his rattle. She screamed, grabbed a stick, and
chased Baby Rattlesnake. Baby Rattlesnake was lucky to get away, but he lost his rattle
during the chase.
When he got home, his parents were terribly worried. Baby Rattlesnake began to cry.
“I disobeyed you and lost my rattle. I’m sorry. I’ll never do it again,” he said. And he
did not.
COMPREHENSION Which words help you understand how Baby Rattlesnake gets
into trouble? Do you think Baby Rattlesnake learned his lesson? Why or why not?
BABY RATTLESNAKE
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