Черная курица, или Подземные жители / The Black Hen (Погорельский) - страница 3
"You're so good, nice and kind. Please, don't take my Blacky! You can have this."
Alyosha took an old gold coin out of his pocket. It was a present from his grandmother. The cook looked at the coin. She liked it. Alyosha wanted very much to keep the coin. But he gave it to the cook to save his favourite hen.
The cook went back into the house. Blacky flew down from the roof and came up to Alyosha. All morning she followed the boy around the yard like a dog.
"She wants to tell me something," thought Alyosha. "But she can't do it. She is only a hen."
Helpful Words & Notes
headmaster — директор школы.
by name — по имени.
Exercises
1 Answer the questions.
1) When did this story happen?
2) How old was Alyosha?
3) What did Alyosha do on holidays?
4) Who is Blacky?
5) Why did the cook want to catch a hen?
6) How did Alyosha save Blacky?
2 Choose right.
1) Alyosha studied and lived in a school for____.
a) girls
b) boys
c) knights
2) Alyosha hoped to see ____ in the street one day.
a) his parents
b) the headmaster
c) a good fairy
3) Alyosha kept the best pieces of ____ for Blacky.
a) bread
b) meat
c) fruit
4) The gold coin was a present from Alyosha's ____.
a) mother
b) friends
c) grandmother
3 Correct the statements.
1) There were fifty children in the school.
2) Alyosha liked to read stories about hens and dogs.
3) Alyosha was fond of a white hen called Whitey.
4) The cook was a nice woman with a loud voice.
4 Complete the chart.
5 Answer the questions and speak about Alyosha.
1) How old was he? What do you know about his parents?
2) What books did he like? What did he do in the yard?
3) Why did he save Blacky from the cook? Was he a kind boy?
6 Speak for yourself.
1) How old are you? Do you have brothers or sisters?
2) What books do you read?
3) What presents do you like to get?
4) What do you do on your holidays?
Chapter 2
Two hours or so before the dinner the guests started to come. Alyosha wanted to see the inspector very much.
"He must be a famous knight," he thought. "I think he is young and tall and very brave."
But then Alyosha remembered the black hen. He saw the awful picture again: the cook with a knife, trying to catch his favourite hen.
"What did Blacky want to tell me?" he thought. "I can go to the hen-house. But not now. I must go to the dinner first. It is very important for the headmaster."
Soon the inspector came. The headmaster's wife saw him through the window. She told her husband about the important guest. Everything in the house started moving. The headmaster went out of the house to meet the inspector. The other guests followed him. Even Alyosha forgot about his hen. He came up to the window to see the noble knight. But he didn't see him: the inspector was already in the house.