HomeMy WebLinkAboutRead Aloud Book Gr. 2-Lesson 29Once, in the middle of the coldest winter anyone could remember, an old man
walked into a village. The snow was piled along the road like mounds of mashed
potatoes. But there was hardly any food to eat. In fact, the old man was reaching the
point of starvation. Hunger made him feel weak and sad.
He decided to go from house to house to ask for some food.
“Pardon me,” he said to the villagers at the fi rst home. “Could you spare a few
crumbs of bread for a hungry old man?”
“We don’t have any food here,” the villagers told him. But from their doorstep, the
old man could smell the aroma of fresh cabbage.
The old man was turned away from every home he went to. He could smell food
from each doorstep. He was hungry, but he was also very wise. So the old man
thought of a plan. He walked to the center of town, built a fi re, and hung his old iron
pot over it. Then he heaped snow into the pot until it melted into water and began to
boil. Finally, he placed a stone into the pot.
Just then, a villager walked by. “What are you making?” he asked the old man.
“I am making stone soup,” he replied. “Doesn’t it smell wonderful?”
The villager thought he truly could smell wonderful soup. “It does smell delicious,
but I have something that will make it better,” he said.
“Then please bring it here,” said the old man.
The villager ran to his house and brought back some sweet red beets. Soon,
another villager came along. “That soup smells tasty, but I have something that will
make it better,” she said.
“Then please bring it here,” said the old man, smiling.
The second villager ran to her house and brought back fresh green cabbage.
Another villager brought onions. Another brought potatoes. Soon the entire village
had added food to the pot of stone soup. Now it truly did smell wonderful.
They all sat together and ate the nourishing soup. It was a feast for the whole
village. Everyone had plenty, and there was even soup left over. As they allowed the
meal to digest and warm their bodies, the villagers thanked the old man for showing
them the great thing that can happen when everyone shares what little they have.
COMPREHENSION Which words help you understand what the soup is like?
Why do the villagers change their minds about giving away their food?
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Many hundreds of years ago, a boy named Taro lived in the country of
Japan. Laziness was the theme of Taro’s life. Taro was so lazy that he thought
lifting his head off a pillow was hard work. He would daydream all through the
school day, and he never helped his mother with the tea ceremony, even when
she had guests.
“I think you would sleep for three years if I let you,” his mother teased.
Aside from his laziness, Taro was very smart. He did well in all his classes,
except math. Taro disliked math because it was a lot of hard work, and he would
rather spend time sleeping. One day Taro came home from school with a plan.
A girl named Akiko lived next door to Taro. She had a friendly spirit and was
kind to everyone. She was also good at math. Taro thought that if he made up
a good story, Akiko would agree to do his homework.
Taro waited until it was nighttime and then dressed in a dark robe. He went
to Akiko’s house and knocked on her window.
“Who’s there? Taro, is that you?” asked Akiko, opening the window.
“I am a creature from the forest,” Taro answered in his best scary voice. “I
have brought you something important.”
He handed her a delicate piece of wood that looked very old. The wood had
strange inscriptions carved into it. They looked like made-up words.
“I can’t read the inscriptions,” said Akiko, smiling slyly. “I can’t understand
this writing.”
Taro pointed to the shapes. “These shapes are symbols. They mean
something very important.” Then he pointed to the inscription. “It says you
must dedicate your spare time to doing Taro’s math homework.”
“Oh, then I suppose I should do it,” said Akiko, smiling strangely.
So Akiko did Taro’s homework, and Taro went home and slept all night.
Akiko handed Taro his homework just before school. He was so happy his
idea worked! Finally, it was time for math class. Taro had his homework ready.
“Instead of turning in your homework, I want you all to get ready for a
surprise quiz,” his teacher announced.
Taro felt a lump in his throat. Akiko smiled.
COMPREHENSION Do you think the surprise quiz will make Taro work
harder? Why? Which words help you understand Taro’s trick?
Lazy Bones
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