READING SHORT STORIES WITH COMPREHENSION

What is the meaning of reading comprehension? Reading comprehension is the ability to read text, process it, and understand its meaning. It relies on two, interconnected abilities: word reading (being able to decode the symbols on the page) and language comprehension (being able to understand the meaning of the words and sentences) Comprehension refers to the ability to understand written words. It is different from the ability to recognize words. Recognizing words on a page but not knowing what they mean does not fulfill the purpose or goal of reading, which is comprehension. Comprehension adds meaning to what is read. Reading comprehension occurs when words on a page are not just mere words but thoughts and ideas. Comprehension makes reading enjoyable, fun, and informative. It is needed to succeed in school, work, and life in general.

A doctor, a lawyer, a little boy and a priest were out for a Sunday afternoon flight on a small private plane. Suddenly, the plane developed engine trouble. In spite of the best efforts of the pilot, the plane started to go down. Finally, the pilot grabbed a parachute and yelled to the passengers that they better jump, and he himself bailed out. Unfortunately, there were only three parachutes remaining. The doctor grabbed one and said “I’m a doctor, I save lives, so I must live,” and jumped out. The lawyer then said, “I’m a lawyer and lawyers are the smartest people in the world. I deserve to live.” He also grabbed a parachute and jumped. The priest looked at the little boy and said, “My son, I’ve lived a long and full life. You are young and have your whole life ahead of you. Take the last parachute and live in peace.” The little boy handed the parachute back to the priest and said, “Not to worry Father. The smartest man in the world just took off with my back pack.”

Knowledge test: What is the summary of the story? what is the moral lesson of the story? How do you define yourself? What defines you as a person?

From the short stories series: The Struggles of Our Life This short story is about a father who wants to teach his daughter a lesson. The short story is about dealing with failure and disappointments. Read on for the Struggles of Our Life.

Once upon a time a daughter complained to her father that her life was miserable and that she didn’t know how she was going to make it. She was tired of fighting and struggling all the time. It seemed just as one problem was solved, another one soon followed. Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire.

Once the three pots began to boil, he placed potatoes in one pot, eggs in the second pot and ground coffee beans in the third pot. He then let them sit and boil, without saying a word to his daughter. The daughter, moaned and impatiently waited, wondering what he was doing. After twenty minutes he turned off the burners.

He took the potatoes out of the pot and placed them in a bowl. He pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. He then ladled the coffee out and placed it in a cup. Turning to her, he asked. “Daughter, what do you see?” “Potatoes, eggs and coffee,” she hastily replied. “Look closer” he said, “and touch the potatoes.” She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg.

Finally, he asked her to sip the coffee. Its rich aroma brought a smile to her face. “Father, what does this mean?” she asked. He then explained that the potatoes, the eggs and coffee beans had each faced the same adversity-the boiling water. However, each one reacted differently. The potato went in strong, hard and unrelenting, but in boiling water, it became soft and weak.

The egg was fragile, with the thin outer shell protecting its liquid interior until it was put in the boiling water. Then the inside of the egg became hard. However, the ground coffee beans were unique. After they were exposed to the boiling water, they changed the water and created something new. “Which one are you?” he asked his daughter.

An old man lived in the village. He was one of the most unfortunate people in the world. The whole village was tired of him; he was always gloomy, he constantly complained and was always in a bad mood.

The longer he lived, the more bile he was becoming and the more poisonous were his words. People avoided him, because his misfortune became contagious. It was even unnatural and insulting to be happy next to him.

He created the feeling of unhappiness in others. But one day, when he turned eighty years old, an incredible thing happened. Instantly everyone started hearing the rumour:

“An Old Man is happy today, he doesn’t complain about anything, smiles, and even his face is freshened up.” The whole village gathered together. The old man was asked: Villager: What happened to you?

“Nothing special. Eighty years I’ve been chasing happiness, and it was useless. And then I decided to live without happiness and just enjoy life. That’s why I’m happy now.” – An Old Man

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS 1.where did the old man lived? 2.What was the old man’s like? 3.What happened to his nature with time? 4. Can you give any other conclusion for the same? 5. Give another title to the story. 6.what is the moral of the story?

Origin And History Of The Ant And The Grasshopper Story ‘The Ant And The Grasshopper’ is one among the many invaluable moral-based stories from the famed Aesop’s Fables. Aesop’s fables are a collection of tales by Aesop, who was a storyteller in ancient Greece. Interestingly, these fables were originally addressed to adults, but they became popular among children because of their simplistic moral approach. Like all the other tales in Aesop’s Fables, this one, too, carries an important lesson that should be implemented in our everyday lives.

Aesop’s Fables are interesting for children that teaches them life lessons through familiar characters and situations. The stories were written by Aesop, a storyteller, and slave, who lived in ancient Greece. His fables were first published in 1484 by William Caxton and they are still widely read and told. It is believed that Aesop wrote the fables for adult readers because it was mostly political satire but they later got popularised as children’s stories as they are so simple and easy to comprehend. All these stories have animal characters who act like humans and at some point of the story, these characters find themselves in a challenging situation or a problem. At the end of the story, the problem is solved and there is an important life lesson or a moral for the readers to learn. We will take a look at one of Aesop’s most popular fables today – the ant and the grasshopper.