Raven and the First People Raven was bored. He was walking along the beach in Haida Gwai, looking for some new way to amuse himself. As he walked along the beach, the blue ocean in front of him and the green forest behind him didn’t seem interesting. Raven wanted to play, but there was no one to play with.

Then he heard a strange sound, unlike any sound he knew. He looked up and down the beach. Where was it coming from? As he walked he noticed a large white clamshell lying in the sand. Inside the clamshell were tiny creatures, unlike any he had seen before.

Raven bent down to get a closer look. The creatures seemed afraid of him, so he began to coax them in a gentle voice, “Come out. Come out. Don’t be afraid. I won’t hurt you.”

A few of the creatures came out of the clamshell. They were very different from Raven. They had no feathers, no wings, and no beaks. Like him, they walked on two legs, but they had arms, faces with mouths, and black hair. They spoke to each other in a language that Raven didn’t understand. These tiny creatures were the first humans.

Raven enjoyed watching these humans play and explore the world. After a while, when he was beginning to feel bored again, he noticed that these humans were only men. There were no women. Raven had an idea. He wondered if he could find some women. He searched for a long time. Then he saw some *chitons. He opened one of the chitons and found some lovely, tiny women. He brought the women to the men.

Raven enjoyed watching the behaviour of the men and women. He saw them begin to pair off and have children. The human families moved to other parts of the island. Since that day, many generations of humans have grown and flourished, and Raven has never been bored.

COMPREHENSION:

1. Where was Raven walking?

a) Through the forest
b) Along the beach
c) In the water

2. Why did Raven want to play?

a) He was bored
b) He was excited
c) He was hungry

3. What was Raven's problem?

a) His friends were all working
b) Raven had nothing to play with
c) His friends were too busy to play

4. What did Raven hear?

a) A baby crying
b) A bird singing
c) A strange sound

5. Where was the sound coming from?

a) The birds
b) The sea
c) A clamshell

6. What did the Raven see in the clamshell?

a) Baby clams
b) Tiny creatures
c) Sand

7. How did Raven get the creatures to come out of the clamshell?

a) He coaxed them in a gentle voice
b) He sang to them
c) He grabbed them and pulled them out

8. What idea did Raven have?

a) He wanted to find some women for the male creatures
b) He wanted the men and women to get married
c) He wanted to get married

9. Where did Raven find the female creatures?

a) In the sand
b) In the seaweed
c) In a chiton

10. Why isn't Raven bored now?

a) He has children of his own
b) He can amuse himself by watching the behaviour of men and women
c) He can create humans

Raven Steals the Light

In the beginning there was no light in the world, because an old magician kept it hidden in a box inside his house. Raven, who was always hungry, didn’t like the darkness because it was difficult to find food. One day he was looking for food near the old magician’s house. He heard a voice saying, “I have a box, and inside this box is another box, and inside this there is another box, and inside the smallest box is all the light in the world.” Raven decided to steal the light.

Raven waited until the old man’s daughter went down to the river to collect water. Just as she was dipping her basket into the river, he changed himself into a *hemlock needle. The needle floated into her basket. When the girl drank some water, she swallowed Raven too.

Inside the girl’s belly Raven took the form of a human baby. He grew and grew, and in time she gave birth to a funny looking child with black eyes and a big nose. The old man loved his grandson so much that he gave in to the child’s every wish. Raven became spoilt and greedy. He was bored with all his toys, and wanted to play with the box that held the light. Finally the grandfather opened the box and tossed the glowing ball of light to Raven.

As soon as Raven caught the light, he immediately changed into his bird form. Holding the light in his beak, he flew up the chimney hole into the dark world. The magician was angry. He wanted to get the light back into his box. He flew after Raven.

The light was heavy in Raven's beak, and he was getting tired. The magician was coming closer. Raven broke off some pieces of the light and threw them into the sky. They became the stars. The magician was still coming closer, so Raven broke off another piece of the light and threw it into the sky. It became the moon. Finally Raven became so tired that he tossed the last and biggest piece of the light into the sky. It became the sun; and that is how daylight came to the world.

COMPREHENSION:

1. Why was the world dark in the beginning?

a) It was midnight
b) There was no sun and moon
c) An old magician kept the light

2. Where did the magician kept the light?

a) In a hole in the ground
b) In a box in his house
c) In a basket in a tree

3. Why didn't raven like the darkness?

a) He couldn't see where he was going
b) It was difficult to find food
c) He couldn't see colours

4. What did Raven decide to to?

a) Steal the light
b) Marry the magician's daughter
c) Hide inside the magician's box

5. What did Raven change himself into ?

a) A baby human
b) A hemlock tree
c) A hemlock needle

6. The magician's daughter gave birth to a...

a) A strange-looking human baby
b) A raven
c) A hemlock needle

7. How did the old magician treat this grandson?

a) He gave into the child's every wish
b) He was kind but strict
c) He taught the baby how to be a good person

8. What kind of child did Raven become ?

a) Kind and genearous
b) Spoilt and greedy
c) Polite and shy

9. How did Raven get the light?

a) The box broke and the llight fell out
b) He took it when the grandfather wasn't looking
c) The grandfather opened the box and gave it to him

10. How did the stars, moon and sun get into the sky?

a) Raven said, "Let there be light"
b) The light was too heavy so Raven broke off some pieces and threw them into the sky
c) The light fell out of Raven's beak and broke into pieces

	Created by anai.persa almost 11 years ago

Note on COMPRENSIÓN TEXTOS, created by anai.persa on 04/06/2013.

COMPRENSIÓN TEXTOS