Fable · Level 1 · 121 words

The Shade That Moved

Original passage © Studio AM, written for Fluency.

On the hottest day of summer, one tree stood in the field. Its shade was cool and dark. A young ram got there first. "This shade is mine," he said. He butted away the old ewe and the lambs. They went to the stone wall and lay in its thin shadow.

The ram slept. But the sun does not stand still. All afternoon it slid across the sky, and the shadow slid with it. The ram woke on hot, bare grass. The tree's shade now lay by the wall, where the others rested. The old ewe looked up. "There is room," she said. He came, and the shade held them all.

What you grab can move. What is shared makes room.

Comprehension questions

Choose an answer, then check your work. Nothing is saved or sent.

4 questions
1. What lesson does this fable teach?

Show answer for question 1

C. Grabbing a good thing for yourself can leave you with nothing, while sharing makes room for all.
The ram grabs the shade and loses it when the sun moves, while the ewe shares her spot even after being pushed away. The last two lines state the moral directly: what you grab can move, and what is shared makes room.

2. Why does the old ewe say "There is room"?

Show answer for question 2

A. She chooses to be kind to the ram even though he pushed her away.
The story never says the ewe forgives the ram, but her actions show it. He butted her away in the morning, yet when the shade comes to her side, she invites him in. Her three words are kindness he did not earn.

3. In this fable, "butted" means the ram:

Show answer for question 3

B. pushed the others away with his head
Rams push with their heads. The sentence says he "butted away the old ewe and the lambs," and the next sentence shows the result: they had to leave and go to the wall. So the word means a forceful push, not a call or a walk.

4. Where did the ewe and the lambs go after the ram took the shade?

Show answer for question 4

D. To the stone wall and its thin shadow
The text states it directly: "They went to the stone wall and lay in its thin shadow." There is no second tree or stream in this story.

Source: Written for Fluency. Original passage © Studio AM, written for Fluency.