Class 3 :: English Literature :: The Royal Gift (Mulberry)
The Royal Gift
(Mulberry)
People in ancient China invented lots of things that we use today. Look at the picture closely and name at least eight things that the Chinese invented.
= Eight things in the picture, invented by the Chinese, are -
i) Paper, ii) Gunpowder, iii) Abacus, iv) Silk, v) Umbrella, vi) Ice-Cream, vii) Kite, and viii) Jump-Rope.
MAKING CONNECTIONS
Quick answer
1. Choose the right answer.
a. The emperor first saw the elephant
i. in his court. [ ]
ii. just outside his court. [✓]
iii. in a boat on the river. [ ]
b. The people were excited because
i. the elephant was the favourite animal of the people of China. [ ]
ii. they had never seen an elephant before. [✓]
iii. the elephant looked like a hill. [ ]
c. When the young princess first told the emperor that she knew how to weigh the elephant
i. the emperor was angry because he thought the princess was lying. [ ]
ii. the emperor was happy that his daughter knew the answer. [ ]
iii. the emperor thought that the princess could not know more than the mandarins. [✓]
d. This story tells us
i. how much an elephant weighs. [ ]
ii. that we must make bigger weighing scales. [ ]
iii. that young people can also solve puzzles that grown-ups might find difficult. [✓]
Reference to context
2. "What is that? I've never seen anything so big in all my life! It looks like a hill that has come to life and walked here!"
a. Who said these lines?
= The emperor said these lines.
b. What was the person talking about?
= The person was talking about the elephant sent by the king in India.
c. What did everyone want to know when they saw it?
= Everyone wanted to know the weight of the elephant when they saw it.
Read, reflect and write
3. Why were the people in the story not able to use the scales to weigh the elephant?
= The people in the story were not able to use the scales to weigh the elephant. Because they had no scales in that land large enough to weigh him.
4. How can you tell from the story that the people had never seen an elephant before?
= As the emperor himself did not see an elephant before, so, how can the people of the land could see an elephant before. Their attitude and excitement reached its peak after knowing about the elephant.
5. Why do you think the boat went deeper into the water when the elephant was in it?
= I think the boat went deeper into the water due to the weight of the elephant when it was in the boat.
6. Have you ever found the answer to a problem or a puzzle faster than other people have? Draw and write about it.
= Yes, I have solved a drawing puzzle of Dorothy to reach her to the Castle of the Wizard of Oz. I had to show the path by drawing line in the puzzle. I did it quickly than my friends.
