13 MARY AND THE LARK

MARY: Good morning, pretty Lark.

Have you any birdies in that nest?

LARK: Oh, yes. I have three birdies here.

They are very beautiful, and they are very good, too.

MARY: May I see them, pretty Lark?

LARK: Oh, yes. Come here, little ones.

This is Tiny Beak, this is Light Wing, and this is Bright Eyes.

MARY: How beautiful they are!

There are three children in our home, too, Alice, Ned, and I.

Mother says we are very good.

We know how much she loves us.

BIRGHT EYES: Mother loves us, too.

MARY: I am sure she does.

Pretty Lark, may I take Tiny Beak home to play with me?

LARK: Yes, you may take Tiny Beak home with you,

if you will bring baby Alice to us.

MARY: Oh, no, no! I can not do that.

Baby Alice can not leave Mother. She is so little!

She would not like to live out of doors, and she is too big for your little nest.

LARK: But Tiny Beak can not leave his mother.

He is such a little bird.

He is too little for your big house. He loves his little round nest the best.

TINY BEAK: Chirp, chirp, chirp! So I do!

MARY: Poor little Tiny Beak!

I will not take you.

I see that your little round nest is best for you.

LARK: North and south and east and west,

Each one loves his own home best.

MARY: Good-bye, birdies! Good-bye!

LIGHT WING: Good-bye, Mary!

Come to see us again soon.

(Indian Tale)

Word list

lark: a kind of bird

tiny: very small

You Practice

A) Answer the following questions.

1) How many baby birds are in the lark's nest?

2) What does the mother bird mean when she says that all the birdies are very good?

3) Why does Mary want to take Tiny Beak home?

4) Why does the lark tell Mary that she can take Tiny Beak if Mary brings her Baby Alice?

5) Where do you think Mary will go after her visit with the birds?

B) What's the word? Using the clues, write the correct words from the story.

1) the mouth of a bird: b _ _ _

2) a girl's name: A _ _ _ _

3) not big: l _ _ _ _ _

4) a sound that birds make: c _ _ _ _

5) shaped like a circle: r _ _ _ _

C) Fill in the blanks—Read these sentences carefully and complete them with words from the stories.

1) The smallest bird was Tiny B _ _ _.

2) The smallest child was A _ _ _ _.

3) Baby Alice can not leave M _ _ _ _ _.

4) Ned has t _ _ sisters.

5) Alice is too big for a n _ _ _.