Verses and Tales

Alla Rusinckevich, an English teacher

Part Ι

CHILDREN’S RHYMES

ADVICE

‘I am here.’

‘We are too.’

‘Please, sit down.’

‘After you.’

‘Can I offer a good wish?’

‘You are welcome. Do it please.’

‘Be attentive, active, shrewd.

Do remember to be good.’

‘Can we offer a wish too?’

‘I will gladly listen to you.’

‘Always be in pleasant mood,

Kind and patient to your group.

Take good care of your health.

Be hard-working after rest!’

MY YARD

I live in a long street.

I live in a big yard.

It has a lot of trees

And looks like a large park.

The flowers there are bright,

And neighbours talk to each other.

When they sit on the bench on one side

They see their kids on the other.

COLOURS

What can be blue?

The sea, the sky.

The clouds white

In heavens fly.

What can be red?

My blood, the rose

That in my garden

Proudly grows.

What can be yellow?

The chicken, the sun.

Brownish sheep

In the meadow run.

What can be green?

The trees and the grass.

Nature can give

All colours to us.

MY PET

I love my pet.

My pet loves me.

We play together

Under a tree.

We go for a walk,

We even talk,

We sit on the sofa

Under the clock.

A LEARNING CHILD

 I will be a learning child,

I will train to read and write,

I will count numbers well,

I will listen to school bell.

It will call me,”Come in time!

Bring your toys. It’s not a crime.

You will learn and you will play,

You will grow day by day.”

WHERE?

A fish swims in a pond,

A fox lives in a wood,

A bird flies in the sky,

The day is bright and good.

A star is seen above,

A tree stands in a park,

A rose blooms in a bush,

 A child plays in a yard.

MY CITY

Some places are towns

Because they are small.

I live in the city,

I like best of all.

 Its streets are too noisy,

It has many shops.

Its people are busy.

Its life never stops.

There are a lot of children.

They play and go to school.

There are a lot of clubs.

At night all clubs are full.

And grown-ups do something:

By day they go to work.

When work is over, they go home

To rest or take a walk.

CURIOUS CHILDREN

Small children are curious creatures.

They want to know about all features

In people, in nature that nourishes them.

They ask day and night, “Will you tell who I am?”

They cry,”What is it?” and point to the Moon.

“I want you to give it to me pretty soon.

And why does the Sun send on Earth its hot beam?

And why does the cow give milk, not ice cream?”

They want to learn more about the world.

That’s why many books with pictures are sold.

The parents must gather all patience and wits

To be able to answer their questioning kids.

WINTER

Winter has come.

Snow is here.

Frost is severe.

It’s really great fun.

The ground is white.

There is ice and snow.

Cold icicles glow.

The Christmas tree is bright.

* * *

When winter comes

It brings us snow,

And cold winds

 Begin to blow.

And on the ponds

There is thick ice.

The Christmas tree

Is tall and nice.

There is a star

On its green top.

Bright toys and sweets

In every shop.

In snow kids

Can ski and sleigh.

White snowballs

They always play.

RIDDLES

Listen and guess

 I

I am round,

Never flat.

I’m juicy,

I’m fat.

You can pour me

In a glass.

You can cut me,

Chop and slice.

Take me from the kitchen bed.

I’m very, very red.

(A tomato)

II

I’m round like the sun.

I can neither jump nor run.

I’m eaten with some jam,

With some butter or some ham.

You can put them on one slice.

You can take it even twice.

I’m tasty, I’m good,

I’m your delicious food.

You will guess me

If you try.

 Think and answer,

“Who am I?”

(Bread)

III

I’m made of pure snow.

Look at me and you will know

My black eyes and long red nose.

- In the field this carrot grows -

An old bucket is my hat,

A broom stick in my left hand.

Children put me in the yard:

I’m their winter guard.

(A snowman)

IV

Children like to play in snow.

They can ski and skate and sleigh.

Rivers stop, they do not flow

If it’s frosty night and day.

(Winter)

Snow melts, the sun is bright.

Grass and flowers appear,

Happy birds are in the flight

To sweet home – it is near.

(Spring)

Days are long and nights are short.

Berries ripen in the bushes.

People swim because it’s hot.

They need water, ices, juices.

(Autumn)

                                                Father year has four kids.                  

They come to us in turn.

They bring all things the nature needs

And teach us all we learn.

(Seasons)

Part ΙΙ

TALES FOR CHILDREN

SUMMER AND A LITTLE FISH

  It was summer. The weather was fine. It was hot and sunny. The water in the river was very warm. A little fish lived in the river. It didn’t know winter and it was very displeased with summer. It said to its friends,

 ‘Summer is so bad. It’s hot. The water is warm. I hate it.’

Once an old fish heard the little fish’s words and replied,

‘When winter comes you won’t like this season either.’

 ‘Why?’ the little fish asked.

 ‘Because it will be very cold.’

 ‘What do you mean? What is winter like?’

 ’I can’t explain it to you. You will see winter yourself.’

When winter came, it became very cold and the ice on the river was very thick. The little fish found it difficult to breathe. In spring with the first warm days the ice began to melt. The banks of the river became green. The little fish said to its friends,

’Now I understand that warm days aren’t bad. They are very pleasant.’

a) Answer the questions:

1.     What season was it?

2.     What was the weather like?

3.     Why did the little fish not like the summer days?

4.     Who told the little fish about winter?

5.     Could the old fish explain what winter was?

6.     How did everything change in winter?

7.     Did the little fish like winter?

8.     What was it difficult to do?

9.     What kind of weather was it in spring?

10.  Why was the little fish happy?

                                 b) True or false

1.     The little fish lived in the sea.

2.     It didn’t like summer.

3.     The summer was hot.

4.     The old fish told the little fish about spring.

5.     The old fish could explain everything.

6.     It became very could in winter.

7.     The there was thick ice on the river.

8.     The little fish liked winter.

9.     Spring changed the weather for better.

10. “The warm days aren’t nice” said the little fish.

Key:      1.x;  2.v;  3.v;  4.x;  5.x;  6.v;  7.v;  8.x;  9.v;  10.x;

THE LITTLE LION

   Mother Lioness had a little cub. He was weak and silly because he didn’t know life. He was inexperienced. When he did something stupid the animals said to him,

 ‘You should learn to be cleverer.’

   Mother always comforted him,

‘My dear, my baby, you are the strongest, the cleverest and the most handsome kid for me.’

   The little lion answered,

‘But I am the most stupid, the weakest and the ugliest one for the others.’

   In the evening Father Lion came home. He was tired and hungry after a long working day. He sat down in his favourite armchair and called his wife and his son. When they came in, he asked,  

‘Why is my son so sad?’                       

 The Little Lion replied,

‘All animals say that I’m the weakest, the most stupid and the ugliest lion in Africa.’

   Father Lion thought for a little time and said,

 ‘I know what you must do.’

  ‘Oh, dad, really? What must I do?’

 ‘You  have to learn to do something good to others.’

   With those words Father Lion went to bed because, as you remember, he was very tired.

    Mother Lioness and her little son looked at each other.

‘I can’t do anything useful. I’m too little.’ cried the  little lion.

 ‘There is one thing you can always do.’

 ‘Really? What is it?’

 ‘Look in the mirror and   imagine that you are very, very happy. What do you see now?’

‘I’m smiling’

 ‘Yes, and you can make others smile too, because you are a funny little cub.’

The little lion grew very quickly. He learned a lot of tricks and began to work in the circus. Everybody enjoyed his show “Boniface will make you laugh” very much.

a)          Answer the questions

1.     What was the little lion like?

2.     What did other animals advise him to be?

3.     Who always comforted the lion cub?

4.     Why was the father lion tired?

5.     Was he worried with his son’s problem?

6.     What did the little lion have to imagine?

7.     What did the little lion see in the mirror?

8.     The little lion could always make others angry, couldn’t he?

9.     Where did the little lion give the show?

10. What was his name?

                              b) Complete the sentences

1. Boniface was a …

2. He lived in …

3. Other animals advised ...

4. His mother always ...

5. She  said, “You are the …

6. Father lion was tired after …

7. You can make ...

8. Boniface learned …

9. He began to work in …

10. Everybody enjoyed ...

THE TAILOR AND HIS GIRLFRIEND  

    Once upon a time there lived a young man. He had a good profession. He was a tailor. A lot of people used to come to his house every day. He made fine clothes for them. His workshop was full of beautiful pieces of cloth. He had a girlfriend. Mary wasn’t a clever girl.  She always asked the tailor to make a new dress for her. But he answered that he could make clothes for men only.

    One day the tailor left home early in the morning. He went to the market to buy some thread. He came back a few hours later. When he opened the door of his workshop, he was surprised.    Mary was sitting on the carpet on the floor in the middle of the room. There were a lot of articles of clothes around her. Those things were his clients’ clothes. They all lacked some parts: a sleeve, a collar, a pocket. The tailor cried.

 “What are you doing?” She smiled and answered,

 “I’m making a new dress for myself.”

   The tailor got very angry. He said to Mary,

“You are a foolish girl. You can’t understand even simple things. You have spoilt my best work. I don’t want to see you now, go away and you may come back only when you become clever.”                               The poor girl began to cry and ran out. When she came home she talked with her mother.

“I can’t understand why he is so angry with me. I love him so much. I was sure he was in love with me too.”

 Her mother explained to her.

“You are silly enough if you don’t understand it, you must learn.”

   For a week Mary stayed at home. She was very unhappy. At last she decided what to do. She found another workshop and asked its owner to teach her to make women’s clothes. It took her half a year to become a dressmaker. She was very hard-working and soon became popular with young women and girls of the town. They all knew her name and said good words about her.

a)     True – false

1.     The young man was a turner.

2.     He made clothes for men only.

3.     His clothes were very nice.

4.     His girlfriend didn’t like his job.

5.     Mary wanted a new beautiful dress.

6.     One day she spoilt the tailor’s best work.

7.     The tailor wasn’t angry with Mary.

8.     He didn’t want to see her again.

9.     Mary became clever.

10. She learnt to be a bad dressmaker.

Key: 1.x;  2.v;  3.v;  4.x;  5.v;  6.v;  7.x;  8.v;  9.v;  10.x.

                                        Answer the questions

1.     Why did many people come to the tailor’s house?

2.     What was his workshop full of?

3.     Was Mary a clever girl?

4.     Where did the tailor go one day?

5.     What did he buy there?

6.     Why was he angry with Mary?

7.     What did he tell Mary to do?

8.     How did the girl feel?

9.     How did she change her life?

10. Will the tailor and Mary be together again?