Yahaaa · Reading
Stories for the classroom
Short narratives that put vocabulary into a scene a learner can follow. 7,459 on the shelf, each with a discussion question.
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Story Common Nouns in English: construction 6
The Strongest House in the Village
A storm hits a village and only one house with strong footing, frame, fuse, and gable roof survives, inspiring the villagers to build similarly strong houses.
Talk about it 1. What made the house in the story different from the other houses in the village? 2. Why did the villagers admire the owner of the strong house? 3. How did the owner make sure his house was strong and protected from the storm? 4. Do you think having a strong house is important? Why or why not?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 6
Filler the Brave Dragon
A little dragon named Filler saves a castle from burning down and is rewarded for his bravery.
Talk about it 1. What did Filler do to put out the fire in the castle? 2. Why was Filler worried when he saw the castle on fire? 3. What did the king give Filler as a reward? 4. How did Filler become known as the bravest dragon in all the land?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 7
Groove and the Gusset's Grout Adventure
A creature named Groove and a gusset form an unlikely friendship, overcoming obstacles through teamwork and determination to dance and groove together.
Talk about it 1. What was the main challenge that Groove faced in the story? 2. How did Groove and the gusset overcome this challenge? 3. Why do you think Groove and the gusset became friends? 4. What is the moral of the story? 5. What would you do if you were in Groove's situation?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 9
Lenny's Decorating Adventure
A little bird named Lenny learns about measuring and decorates his nest with laminate with the help of a kind builder.
Talk about it 1. Why did Lenny want to decorate his nest? 2. Who helped Lenny with decorating his nest? 3. What did Lenny learn about measuring and laying out the lath? 4. How did Lenny feel after decorating his nest?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 10
Max the Master Mason: A Tale of Marble and Mortar.
A mason named Max creates a beautiful fireplace mantel using marble, mortar, mastic, molding and a miter saw, and becomes famous for his work.
Talk about it 1. What is Max's job? 2. What did the nobleman ask Max to build? 3. What materials did Max use to build the mantel? 4. How did Max make the mantel look elegant? 5. Why was the nobleman happy with Max's work? 6. How did Max become famous?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 14
Max the Hero: A Tale of a Router and Runoff
Max, a village boy, uses his dad's router to save the village from an overflowing river and becomes known as the hero.
Talk about it 1. What was the problem in the village? 2. Who had an idea to solve the problem? 3. What was the solution to the problem? 4. How did the villagers react to the solution? 5. Who became known as the hero of the village?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 14
Rose and the Magic Rosin
A little girl discovers a magical rosin that brings her musical talent to life and makes her famous in the forest.
Talk about it 1. What did Rose discover on the roof of her house? 2. What happened when Rose rubbed the golden rosin on her violin bow? 3. Who gathered around to listen to Rose's music? 4. Why did Rose become famous in the forest? 5. What did Rose use as her lucky charm after discovering the magical rosin?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 15
Sealer and The Deep Sea Monster
A brave little seal named Sealer discovers a friendly octopus is behind the scary messages in the ocean and becomes fast friends with it.
Talk about it 1. Why was Sealer afraid of the screed on the shore? 2. How did Sealer feel about the octopus after he met it? 3. Why did the octopus write the scary messages? 4. What did Sealer do to help others not be scared anymore?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 15
Saddle's Sandstone Adventure
Saddle goes on a sandstone adventure, discovers sap and a scab, and learns to be careful while always carrying a sash.
Talk about it 1. Why did Saddle go to the sandstone desert? 2. What did Saddle find that was sweet and delicious? 3. How did Saddle get a scab on his leg? 4. Why was the sash important to Saddle? 5. What did Saddle learn on his adventure?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 16
The Brave Soldier and the Poisoned Soil
A brave soldier named Sam saves his land and its soil from contamination by a dangerous solvent, becoming a hero in the process.
Talk about it 1. Why was the soil contaminated? 2. How did Sam feel when he saw the contamination? 3. How did Sam solve the problem of the contaminated soil? 4. What did the people of the land think of Sam after he solved the problem? 5. Would you have done what Sam did in this story? Why or why not?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 16
The Little House That Got a Makeover
A wise old carpenter helps fix a little house encountering a setback, using shim, sleepers and other building materials to make it safe and sturdy.
Talk about it 1. What was the problem with the house in the story? 2. What did the carpenter bring to help fix the house? 3. What material did the carpenter use to level the floor? 4. How did the owner of the house feel at the end of the story?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 17
Title: "Timmy and the Sump Adventure
A handyman and his son fix the overflowing sump in their basement, learning the importance of home maintenance.
Talk about it 1. What is the problem in Timmy's basement? 2. How did Timmy's dad fix the problem? 3. Why was the sump important to Timmy's home? 4. What did Timmy learn from this experience? 5. What would you do if you noticed water coming through the floor in your basement?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 17
The Stain-Busting Square
Squishy, a little square, uses a spline to remove stains from an old stool and becomes known as the "Stain-Buster" in the world of shapes and colors.
Talk about it 1. Why was Squishy sad when he found the old stool? 2. How did the strata help Squishy? 3. What did Squishy do with the spline after he used it to remove the stains from the stool? 4. Why did Squishy become known as the "Stain-Buster"? 5. Can you think of a different solution Squishy could have used to clean the stains off the stool?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 18
Whiskers the Brave: A Tale of Friendship and Adventure
Whiskers the curious cat embarks on a wild adventure with a talking tongue to learn the importance of friendship and working together.
Talk about it 1. What was Whiskers the cat's adventure about? 2. Who did Whiskers meet on his adventure? 3. Why was the tongue trapped in the trap door? 4. What did Whiskers and the talking tongue learn by the end of the story? 5. How did Whiskers show bravery in the story?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: construction 18
The Owl and the Thriving Forest
A wise old owl helps revive a thinning forest by taping and tinting the trees, resulting in a flourishing and beautiful forest.
Talk about it 1. What did the old owl notice about the trees in the forest? 2. What did the old owl do to help the trees grow taller and stronger? 3. How did the forest change after the old owl helped? 4. Why did the old owl feel proud of himself? 5. Can you think of a time when you helped make a positive change in your community?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: music theory 2
Max's Magical Fugue in the Forest
Max, a music composer, writes a beautiful piece of music inspired by a dream where he is lost in a musical fugue, discovering a magical piano that can play in any key and major or minor interval.
Talk about it 1. What was the name of the music composer in the story? 2. What did Max discover in his dream? 3. What inspired Max to write "The Fugue in the Forest"? 4. What happened when Max played his music for others? 5. What is a fugue in music?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: music theory 2
The Harmony Concert
A magical music world's harmony is restored by fortissimo notes overpowering flat notes who played out of tune during a concert.
Talk about it 1. Why did the flat notes play out of tune in the story? 2. How did the fortissimo notes help bring back harmony to the music? 3. What did the audience do at the end of the concert? 4. Why was the fermata held longer than usual? 5. What can we learn from the story about playing music together?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: music theory 3
Melody's Musical Journey
A little bird named Melody goes on a journey to learn about music and returns home to sing the most beautiful song ever heard.
Talk about it 1. What did Melody learn on her journey? 2. What are some of the musical elements Melody learned about? 3. How does Melody make her songs better after her journey? 4. Why was everyone amazed by Melody's singing when she returned home?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: music theory 4
The Sonata Queen
A young girl learns to play music beautifully with the help of an old man and becomes known as the "Sonata Queen".
Talk about it 1. What was the problem Lily faced while playing the sonata? 2. Who helped Lily play the sonata beautifully? 3. What did Lily learn about reading music? 4. How did Lily feel after she played the sonata perfectly? 5. What was Lily's new nickname after the school concert?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: music theory 4
Melody's Musical Adventure
Melody, a curious little bird, learns to follow the rhythm and hit the sharp notes perfectly to become the best singer in a magical land of music.
Talk about it 1. What did Melody do when she heard a beautiful tune being played on a scale? 2. How did the musical creatures help Melody remember the sequence of notes in the song? 3. What did the audience shout every time Melody performed? 4. Why did Melody become known as the best singer in the magical land of music? 5. What did Melody do to spread joy and music wherever she went?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: music theory 5
The Trill, Triplet, and Tritone's Vivacious Adventure
Three birds named Trill, Triplet, and Tritone perform a vivace tune at the Royal Palace, impressing the King and Queen and securing their place as court musicians.
Talk about it -What do Trill, Triplet, and Tritone love to do? -What kind of music did they perform at the Royal Palace? -How did Trill's voice sound compared to Triplet's and Tritone's? -What happened after their performance at the Royal Palace?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: music theory 5
Lily's Musical Journey: From Stem to Symphony
A young girl named Lily discovers the magic of stem, learns about different themes and notes in music, becomes a great musician and performs in a symphony.
Talk about it 1. What is stem in music? 2. What is a symphony and why did Lily want to play in one? 3. What was the most challenging part of Lily's musical journey? 4. How did Lily's timber improve? 5. What did Lily learn about treble and triads? 6. Why was Lily nervous before her performance in the symphony?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: corporate job 1
The Fantastic Finance Four: A Story of Cooperation and Success.
A team of a comptroller, consultant, controller, and coordinator work together to save money and make everyone in the kingdom happy.
Talk about it 1. What was Chuck's job in the story? 2. Who did Chuck hire to help him manage the kingdom's finances? 3. What was Cindy's role in the finance team? 4. How do you think the finance team helped the kingdom? 5. Can you name all four members of the finance team?
Open reading -
Story Common Nouns in English: corporate job 2
Max and Olivia: The Planning Dream Team
Max and his team of officers successfully plan a company event with the help of orchestrator Olivia, who becomes known as the best planner in the company.
Talk about it 1. Who was Max and what was his job at the company? 2. Who did Max appoint to plan the company event? 3. How did Olivia plan the event? 4. What happened on the day of the event? 5. How was Olivia recognized after the event?
Open reading