Name ____________________________________________________ Date ______________________

TWO FABLES

THE PENNY-WISE MONKEY

1 Once upon a time, the king of a large, rich country gathered together his armyto attack a small, faraway country. The king and his soldiers marched allmorning long and then made camp in the forest.

2 When the soldiers fed the horses, they gave them some peas to eat. One of themonkeys living in the forest saw the peas and jumped down to get some ofthem. He filled his mouth and hands with them. Then, he went up into thetree again and sat down to eat the peas.

3 As he sat there eating the peas, one pea fell from his hand to the ground. Atonce, the greedy monkey dropped all the peas he had in his hands and randown to hunt for the lost pea. But he could not find it. He climbed up into histree again and sat still, looking very glum. “To get more, I threw away what Ihad,” he said to himself.

4 The king watched the monkey. Afterwards, he said to himself: “I will not belike that foolish monkey, who lost much to gain so little. I will go back to myown country and enjoy what I already have.”

5 Then he and his men marched back home.

THE DOG AND HIS REFLECTION

1 A dog, to whom a butcher had thrown a bone, was hurrying home with hisprize as fast as he could go. As he crossed a narrow footbridge, he happenedto look down and see himself reflected in the quiet water as if in a mirror. Butthe greedy dog thought he was looking at a real dog carrying a bone muchbigger than his own.

2 If he had stopped to think, he would have known better.

3 But instead of thinking, he dropped his bone and sprang at the dog in theriver, only to find himself swimming for dear life to reach the shore. At last,he managed to scramble out, and as he stood sadly thinking about the goodbone he had lost, he realized what a stupid dog he had been.

Name ____________________________________________________ Date ______________________

1 In the first fable, why is the army on the march?

A To go huntingB To take over another countryC To harvest peas to feed its horses D To protect the king from his enemies

2 In the second fable, what does the dog see in the water?

A Another dog carrying a boneB Himself carrying his own boneC A dog swimming toward him to take his boneD A bone that is much bigger than his own floating by

3 In the first fable, why does the king decide not to attack the small country?

A He does not want to risk losing what he already has.B The country is so small that it is not worth fighting for.C He feels sorry for the monkey who has lost all his peas.D There are no more peas to feed his army’s horses.

4 How are the monkey and the dog alike?

A Neither has anything to eat.B Both steal food from other animals.C Both throw away what they have to get more.D Each thinks his reflection is another animal with food.

5 Both fables warn the reader against

A greedB hungerC stealingD thinking

Name ____________________________________________________ Date ______________________

TWO FABLES

THE PENNY-WISE MONKEY

1 Once upon a time, the king of a large, rich country gathered together his armyto attack a small, faraway country. The king and his soldiers marched allmorning long and then made camp in the forest.

2 When the soldiers fed the horses, they gave them some peas to eat. One of themonkeys living in the forest saw the peas and jumped down to get some ofthem. He filled his mouth and hands with them. Then, he went up into thetree again and sat down to eat the peas.

3 As he sat there eating the peas, one pea fell from his hand to the ground. Atonce, the greedy monkey dropped all the peas he had in his hands and randown to hunt for the lost pea. But he could not find it. He climbed up into histree again and sat still, looking very glum. “To get more, I threw away what Ihad,” he said to himself.

4 The king watched the monkey. Afterwards, he said to himself: “I will not belike that foolish monkey, who lost much to gain so little. I will go back to myown country and enjoy what I already have.”

5 Then he and his men marched back home.

THE DOG AND HIS REFLECTION

1 A dog, to whom a butcher had thrown a bone, was hurrying home with hisprize as fast as he could go. As he crossed a narrow footbridge, he happenedto look down and see himself reflected in the quiet water as if in a mirror. Butthe greedy dog thought he was looking at a real dog carrying a bone muchbigger than his own.

2 If he had stopped to think, he would have known better.

3 But instead of thinking, he dropped his bone and sprang at the dog in theriver, only to find himself swimming for dear life to reach the shore. At last,he managed to scramble out, and as he stood sadly thinking about the goodbone he had lost, he realized what a stupid dog he had been.

Name ____________________________________________________ Date ______________________

1 In the first fable, why is the army on the march?

A To go huntingB To take over another countryC To harvest peas to feed its horses D To protect the king from his enemies

[DOK – 1; RL 4.3]

2 In the second fable, what does the dog see in the water?

A Another dog carrying a boneB Himself carrying his own boneC A dog swimming toward him to take his boneD A bone that is much bigger than his own floating by

[DOK – 1; RL 4.3]

3 In the first fable, why does the king decide not to attack the small country?

A He does not want to risk losing what he already has.B The country is so small that it is not worth fighting for.C He feels sorry for the monkey who has lost all his peas.D There are no more peas to feed his army’s horses.

[DOK – 2; RL 4.2]

4 How are the monkey and the dog alike?

A Neither has anything to eat.B Both steal food from other animals.C Both throw away what they have to get more.D Each thinks his reflection is another animal with food.

[DOK – 2; RL 4.9]

5 Both fables warn the reader against

A greedB hungerC stealingD thinking

[DOK – 3; RL 4.9]