Right now I like my school very much. It’s a beautiful place
with interesting people. In school now I have a lot of buddies and they are not only students, but teachers too. But it wasn't like
that at one time.
Our teachers teach us to be polite. But some of us don't
remember that lesson every day.
One day my life was terrible and cruel. When I came to
school, all my friends turned their backs on me and giggled when
they saw me.
I asked them: “Why do you do that?”
My best friend, Tatiana said: “You are a know-it-all. You are
different and nothing more. It’s your fault!”
I was so confused by this. I went to my teacher, “Why are
they doing that?”
And she answered: “Dasha, you are a clever and nice girl.
They are very cruel to you, because you are different. Maybe
they are envious of you.”
I said, “I always thought that it’s better if you don’t look like
other people. Are you saying that sometimes it’s not good? That
sometimes we must be similar?”
After this conversation, I went to my “friends” and said to
them, “I’m different but I’m not so strange.” Then I went away.
The next day they came to my house and said: “Dasha, we
are very sorry!” And after that we became real friends again.
Exercises
I. Understanding the Story
Talk with a partner about the main idea.
II. Vocabulary
Complete the sentences with the best word from the list.
buddy polite cruel fault envious similar
1. My sister and I are _________________ in both weight and
height.
2. The mean girl was _________________ in her teasing Dasha.
3. Life is so much more pleasant if we are ______________ to
everyone.
4. It was not Dasha's ___________ that the girls were cruel to
her.
5. Dasha thought that Tatiana was her __________________.
6. The girls were ________________ of Dasha.
III. Now you Talk
1. When and why are people envious of someone?
2. How is Dasha different? Make guesses about this.
3. Would you forgive this behavior as fast as Dasha did? Why or
why not?
IV. Now you Write
1. Describe the narrator. Create details.
2. Write from Tatiana's viewpoint about Dasha.
3. Write about the next incident, when these girls get along.
V. Role Play
1. Tatiana and the writer: They argue about Dasha's differences.
2. The writer and the teacher: Dasha complains about the girls.
3. The writer and her mother: They talk about her “friends”.
4. The teacher and Tatiana: They talk about this cruelty.
5. Two girls and the writer: They go to her house to apologize. |
