Multi Theme Essentials retake Read each question carefully. “George Washington and His Hatchet” by James Baldwin from Fifty Famous People (an American folktale) When George Washington was quite a little boy, his father gave him a hatchet. It was bright and new, and George took great delight in going about and chopping things with it. He ran into the garden, and there he saw a tree which seemed to say to him, "Come and cut me down!" George had often seen his father's men chop down the great trees in the forest, and he thought that it would be fine sport to see this tree fall with a crash to the ground. So he set to work with his little hatchet, and, as the tree was a very small one, it did not take long to lay it low. Soon after that, his father came home. "Who has been cutting my fine young cherry tree?" he cried. "It was the only tree of its kind in this country, and it cost me a great deal of money." He was very angry when he came into the house. "If I only knew who killed that cherry tree," he cried, "I would—yes, I would"— "Father!" cried little George. "I will tell you the truth about it. I chopped the tree down with my hatchet." His father forgot his anger. "George," he said, and he took the little fellow in his arms, "George, I am glad that you told me about it. I would rather lose a dozen cherry trees than that you should tell one falsehood." Baldwin, James. "George Washington and His Hatchet." Fifty Famous Stories Retold. New York: American Book Company, 1896.

“The Whistle” by James Baldwin from Fifty Famous People (excerpted) 1

Multi Theme Essentials retake (An American folktale) Two hundred years ago there lived in Boston a little boy whose name was Benjamin Franklin. On the day that he was seven years old, his mother gave him a few pennies. He looked at the bright, yellow pieces and said, "What shall I do with these coppers, mother?" It was the first money that he had ever had. "You may buy something, if you wish," said his mother. "And then will you give me more?" he asked. His mother shook her head and said: "No, Benjamin. I cannot give you any more. So you must be careful not to spend these foolishly." The little fellow ran into the street. He heard the pennies jingle in his pocket. How rich he was! Boston is now a great city, but at that time it was only a little town. There were not many stores. As Benjamin ran down the street, he wondered what he should buy. Should he buy candy? He hardly knew how it tasted. Should he buy a pretty toy? If he had been the only child in the family, things might have been different. But there were fourteen boys and girls older than he, and two little sisters who were younger. What a big family it was! And the father was a poor man. No wonder the lad had never owned a toy. He had not gone far when he met a larger boy, who was blowing a whistle. "I wish I had that whistle," he said. The big boy looked at him and blew it again. Oh, what a pretty sound it made! "I have some pennies," said Benjamin. He held them in his hand, and showed them to the boy. "You may have them, if you will give me the whistle." "All of them?" "Yes, all of them." "Well, it's a bargain," said the boy; and he gave the whistle to Benjamin, and took the pennies. 2

Multi Theme Essentials retake Little Benjamin Franklin was very happy; for he was only seven years old. He ran home as fast as he could, blowing the whistle as he ran. "See, mother," he said, "I have bought a whistle." "How much did you pay for it?" "All the pennies you gave me." "Oh, Benjamin!" One of his brothers asked to see the whistle. "Well, well!" he said. "You've paid a dear price for this thing. It's only a penny whistle, and a poor one at that." "You might have bought half a dozen such whistles with the money I gave you," said his mother. The little boy saw what a mistake he had made. The whistle did not please him any more. He threw it upon the floor and began to cry. "Never mind, my child," said his mother, very kindly. "You are only a very little boy, and you will learn a great deal as you grow bigger. The lesson you have learned to-day is never to pay too dear for a whistle." Benjamin Franklin lived to be a very old man, but he never forgot that lesson. Baldwin, James. "The Whistle." Fifty Famous Stories Retold. New York: American Book Company, 1896.

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Multi Theme Essentials retake AZ-RL.5.9 Integration of Knowledge and Ideas: Compare and contrast stories in the same genre (e.g., mysteries and adventure stories) on their approaches to similar themes and topics.

1)

from "George Washington and His Hatchet" and "The Whistle" What theme is similar in both stories? A) Being generous brings rewards. B) Children have much to learn. C) Lies can bring you trouble. D) Pennies are not worth much.

"Little Red-Cap" (a folktale from the Grimm Brothers) (excerpted) Many years ago there lived a dear little girl who was beloved by every one who knew her, but her grandmother was so very fond of her that she never felt she could think and do enough to please this dear granddaughter, and she presented the little girl with a red silk cap, which suited her so well that she would never wear anything else, and so was called Little Red-Cap. One day Red-Cap's mother said to her, "Come, Red-Cap, here is a nice piece of meat: take it to your grandmother; she is weak and it will do her good. Be there before she gets up; go quietly and carefully." The grandmother lived far away in the wood, a long walk from the village, and as Little Red-Cap came among the trees she met a Wolf, but she did not know what a wicked animal it was, and so she was not at all frightened. "Good morning, Little Red-Cap," he said. "Thank you, Mr. Wolf," said she. "Where are you going so early, Little Red-Cap?" "To my grandmother's," she answered. "And what are you carrying in that basket?" "Some meat," she replied. 4

Multi Theme Essentials retake "And where does your grandmother live?" asked the Wolf. "Oh, quite twenty minutes walk further in the forest. The cottage stands under three great oak trees." The Wolf was thinking to himself, "She is a nice tender thing, and will taste better than the old woman; I must act cleverly that I may make a meal of both." Presently he came up again to Little Red-Cap and said, "Just look at the beautiful flowers which grow around you; why do you not look about you? I believe you don't hear how sweetly the birds are singing. See how cheerful everything is about you in the forest." Little Red-Cap opened her eyes, and when she saw how the sunbeams glanced and danced through the trees and what bright flowers were blooming in her path, she thought, "If I take my grandmother fresh flowers she will be very much pleased," and running into the forest, she looked about for flowers. When she had once begun she did not know how to leave off and kept going deeper and deeper amongst the trees looking for some still more beautiful flowers. The Wolf, however, ran straight to the house of the old grandmother and knocked at the door. "Who's there?" asked the old lady. "Only Little Red-Cap, bringing you some meat; please open the door," answered the Wolf. "Lift up the latch," cried the grandmother. "I am much too ill to get up myself." So the Wolf lifted the latch and the door flew open, and without a word, he jumped on to the bed and gobbled up the poor old lady. Then he put on her clothes and tied her night-cap over his head, got into the bed and drew the blankets over him. All this time Red-Cap was gathering flowers, and when she had picked as many as she could carry, she thought of her grandmother and hurried to the cottage. She wondered greatly to find the door open, and when she got into the room, she began to feel very ill and exclaimed, "How sad I feel! I wish I had not come today." Then she said, "Good morning," but received no reply, so she went up to the bed and drew back the curtains and there lay her grandmother, as she imagined, with the cap drawn half over her eyes and looking very fierce. "Oh, grandmother, what great ears you have!" she said. "All the better to hear you with," was the reply. "And what great eyes you have!" "All the better to see you with." 5

Multi Theme Essentials retake "And what great hands you have!" "All the better to touch you with." "But, grandmother, what very great teeth you have!" "All the better to eat you with!" Hardly were the words spoken when the Wolf made a jump out of bed and swallowed up poor Little Red-Cap also. As soon as the Wolf had thus satisfied his hunger, he laid himself down again on the bed and went to sleep and snored very loudly.... Grimm, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. Grimm's Fairy Tales. Norwood, MA: Maynard, Merrill, and Co., 1903.

“The Wolf and the Seven Little Kids” (a folktale by the Grimm Bros.) There was once upon a time an old woman who had seven little kids, and loved them with all the love of a mother for her children. One day she wanted to go into the forest and fetch some food. So she called all seven to her and said, dear children, I have to go into the forest, be on your guard against the wolf. If he comes in, he will eat you all— skin, hair, and everything. He often disguises himself, but you will know him at once by his rough voice and his black feet. The kids said, dear mother, we will take good care of ourselves. You may go away without any anxiety. It was not long before some one knocked at the house-door and called, open the door, dear children, your mother is here, and has brought something back with her for each of you. But the little kids knew that it was the wolf, by the rough voice. We will not open the door, cried they, you are not our mother. She has a soft, pleasant voice, but your voice is rough. You are the wolf. Then the wolf went away to a shopkeeper and bought himself a great lump of chalk, ate this, and made his voice soft with it. Then he came back, knocked at the door of the house, and called, open the door, dear children, your mother is here and has brought something back with her for each of you. But the wolf had laid his black paws against the window, and the children saw them and cried, we will not open the door, our mother has not black feet like you, you are the wolf. Then the wolf ran to a baker and said, I have hurt my feet, rub some dough over them for me. And when the baker had rubbed his feet over, he ran to the miller and said, strew some white meal over my feet for me. The miller thought to himself, the wolf wants to deceive someone, and refused. But the wolf said, if you will not do it, I will devour you. Then the miller was afraid, and made his paws white for him. So now the wolf went for the third time to the house, knocked at the door and said, open the door for me, children, your dear little mother has come home, and has brought every one of you something back from the forest with her. The little kids cried, first show us your paws that we may know if you are our dear little mother. Then he put 6

Multi Theme Essentials retake his paws in through the window, and when the kids saw that they were white, they believed that all he said was true, and opened the door. But who should come in but the wolf! They were terrified and wanted to hide themselves. One sprang under the table, the second into the bed, the third into the stove, the fourth into the kitchen, the fifth into the cupboard, the sixth under the washing-bowl, and the seventh into the clock-case. But the wolf found them all, and one after the other he swallowed them down his throat. The youngest, who was in the clock-case, was the only one he did not find. When the wolf had satisfied his appetite he left, laid himself down under a tree in the green meadow outside, and began to sleep. Grimm, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. Grimm's Fairy Tales. Norwood, MA: Maynard, Merrill, and Co., 1903.

AZ-RL.5.9 Integration of Knowledge and Ideas: Compare and contrast stories in the same genre (e.g., mysteries and adventure stories) on their approaches to similar themes and topics.

2)

from "Little Red-Cap" and "The Wolf and the Seven Kids" What action of the wolf is similar in both stories? A) He spends his time in the woods. B) He falls asleep at the end of the story. C) He eats a snack at the beginning of the story. D) He goes to visit the baker and the miller.

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Multi Theme Essentials retake AZ-RL.5.9 Integration of Knowledge and Ideas: Compare and contrast stories in the same genre (e.g., mysteries and adventure stories) on their approaches to similar themes and topics.

3)

from "Little Red-Cap" and "The Wolf and the Seven Little Kids" Which theme can be found in both stories? A) Children are easy to trick. B) Children often trick others. C) Love your enemies. D) Forgive your enemies.

AZ-RL.5.9 Integration of Knowledge and Ideas: Compare and contrast stories in the same genre (e.g., mysteries and adventure stories) on their approaches to similar themes and topics.

4)

from "Little Red-Cap" and "The Wolf and the Seven Little Kids" What plot characteristic is similar in both stories? A) Adults are not around to save children. B) Adults are too busy for their children. C) Children lock their doors to keep the wolf outside. D) Children call their neighbors for help when they are scared.

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Multi Theme Essentials retake AZ-RL.5.9 Integration of Knowledge and Ideas: Compare and contrast stories in the same genre (e.g., mysteries and adventure stories) on their approaches to similar themes and topics.

5)

from "Little Red-Cap" and "The Wolf and the Seven Kids" What action of the wolf is similar in both stories? A) He gives the children a gift. B) He dresses up in a costume. C) He eats the children. D) He eats the grandmother.

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