Global Indian International School, Singapore

2022 – 2023
English Literature
Cambridge Lower Secondary Program
Grade 6

1
Index
SEMESTER 1
Title Key Skills Questions

Not coming - recognising an 1. Why did Steven Gerrard hate Sunday

for exam -1. autobiography (contrast nights? 2. Why did Steven say that to his
Gerrard – My between autobiographies Mother a weekend was only a day and a
Autobiograph and biographies – half?
y detecting language and 3. What is the meaning of ‘Mum went up
writing style) - identify a the wall’, and what did Steven do to make
writer’s point of view it happen?
(how Writers use 4. Give the meaning of each of the
vocabulary to get following words as it is used in the
across thoughts and passage:
feelings) - Grimacing
- find information in a - Guaranteed
piece of writing - Undistinguished
- picking out main points - Petty
of a description - Compromised
- responding to 5. Explain using your own words Steven’s
personal writing impression of the schools he attended. 6.
Identify three details from the passage that
show that Steven was fanatical about
football, and explain how the examples you
have chosen show this.

2
2. I am Malala - recognising an 1. Why did people listen to Malala’s
autobiography father?
- identify a writer’s point Ans - People listened to Malala's Father
of view because they knew he would have
- find information in a something interesting to say at
piece of writing workshops and seminars and wasn’t
- picking out main points afraid to criticize the authorities, even
of a description the army, which was now running our
- responding to country.
personal writing 2. How is it expressed that Malala’s father
is a respectable man?
Ans -It is expressed when it is said that
even though He was not a khan or a rich
man people listened to him.
3. Why is the Global Peace Council an
ironic name for the cause?
Ans - The global peace council is an
ironic name because despite its name it
has local concerns.
4. In your own words, explain what is meant
by ‘a woman is not supposed to do these
things alone’.
Ans - This shows that the women in their
country lack the freedom to do anything for
their families.Like - going shopping for
clothes , going to the hospital etc.
5. Based on the extract, identify and
elaborate on Malala’s view of her father.
Ans - Malala's view on her father is that
she is influenced by her father and wants to
be like him.
6. Do you think Malala was highly
influenced by her Father? Explain your
answer using details from the extract.

3. Captain - recognising a journal 1. Identify the genre of the given text.

Scott’s Last - identify a writer’s point 2. Differentiate between journals and
Expedition of view autobiographies.
- find information in a 3. Identify the tone of Scott’s writing in
piece of writing the given extract and relate it to his
- picking out main points emotions at the point of writing.
of a description (how 4. In your own words, explain how Scott
language and precise had expressed his entourage’s optimism.
vocabulary deliver Consider the language and expressions
information) employed. 5. Why did Scott mention that
- responding to the increase of light was appreciable? Fully
personal writing explain your answer.
- linking and
structuring ideas

Not coming for - find information in a 1. What does 'Mr Dick and I soon became
exam - 4. piece of writing firm friends' suggest about David and Mr
David
Dick's relationship?
Copperfield

3
- picking out main points 2. What was David's impression of his
of a description new school? In your own words, compare
- identify descriptive his old school with the school in
tools (adjectives, Canterbury.
similes, 3. How is Heep described, and what
metaphors, does it suggest of his character?
personification) and 4. In your own words, explain the
elaborate on function phrase 'a strange twist of fate'.
5. Why did David leave Agnes 'with a
heavy heart'?
5. Target - common features of 1. What is the article about?
Employees informative writing 2. In what ways are Target
- to find and sum up employees ‘uniquely Target’?
information 3. Identify a detail that tells us many
- identify audience and people were interested in the event.
purpose of text 4. How do you think readers feel after
- responding to reading the article, and why?
informative writing 5. What does it mean to root for someone?

6. Ant - common features of 1. What does the writer mean when he said
Philosophy informative writing ants ‘can teach us how to live a better life’?
- to find and sum up 2. “Jim Rohn is no more - but his messages
information continue to inspire.’ Explain the statement in
- identify audience and your own words.
purpose of text 3. In your own words, state 4 lessons we
- responding to can learn from an ant’s characteristics.
informative writing 4. Which lesson is best suited for a student
who failed a paper the second time?
Elaborate. 5. Discuss the writer’s purpose of
writing ‘Ant Philosophy’.

4
7. Save the - common features of 1. Write down four facts about the orang-
Orang Utan persuasive writing utan. 2. Who are the ‘indigenous people’?
- identify audience and 3. Why did people of previous times not
purpose of text kill orang-utans?
- identify emotive language 4. Explain the meaning of ‘arboreal’.
5. Identify two details that make orang-
utans ‘unique in the ape world’.
6. Using your own words, explain what
has caused the numbers of the orang-utan
to declice. Why, in particular, is the
worldwide demand for palm oil causing
so much of a problem for these creatures?
7. In our own words, explain the
writer’s purpose of stating that ‘grown
sustainably, palm oil can provide vital
livelihoods in an environmentally
friendly way.’

5
SEMESTER 2

Title Key Skills Questions

1. Birds, - identify details 1. From the extract, write down six facts
Beasts and involving the five senses that you learn about hedgehogs.
Relatives - identify descriptive 2. Choose four words or phrases from the
tools (adjectives, similes, passage that refer to the hedgehogs as if
metaphors, they were human children.
personification) and 3. How does the above answered
elaborate on function expressions help you to imagine the
- discuss how appearance and behaviour of the animals?
descriptions affect a 4. Explain in your own words, the way in
reader's experience with which the hedgehogs drank from the bottle
a text of milk.
5. In your own words, explain what would
happen to a hedgehog who had too much
 milk

2. Rules of - identify details 1. What do you think the old man (Lau Po)
the Game involving the five senses means when he says, ‘Little Sister, been a
- identify descriptive long time since I play with dolls’?
tools (adjectives, similes, 2. Explain in your own words the meaning
metaphors, of ‘benevolently’.
personification) and 3. What do you think Meimei’s reason was
elaborate on function for taking the life Savers with her, and why
- discuss how do you think that she lost so many of them?
descriptions affect a 4. Explain in your own words the meaning
reader's experience with of ‘the fine points of chess etiquette’.
a text 5. Why did Meimei think her mother would
not allow her to play in the chess
tournament, and how did Meimei convince
her Mother otherwise? Explain in your own
words.

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6. Describe two characteristics of
Meimei’s mother’s nature.
7. What does ‘As I began to play, the boy
disappeared...’ tell you about Meimei’s state
of mind when she is playing chess?
8. How does Meimei’s account of the
game show that she had learnt from Lau
Po’s teaching?
9. Meimei felt that her mother did not
understand how chess is played. Explain
carefully how Meimei got this impression
based on what her Mother said after
Meimei had won the game.
10. Looking at the passage as a whole,
explain thoroughly Meimei’s mother’s
attitude towards her interest in playing
 chess.
11. How did the author give readers a
glimpse into Meimei’s culture through the
text?

3. Polly - identify the features 1. What is Polly’s mother’s name?

Helps a of narrative writing 2. What do you think Polly’s favourite
Friend (Part - discuss plot, setting, things are that are in the bag her mother is
I) characters, story carrying? 3. Write down five details that you
structure, and direct have learnt about Polly’s appearance and the
speech in a clothes she is wearing.
writing piece 4. What three things does Polly’s mother do
- identify use of specific to pass the time while Polly plays in the
words to convey main park? 5. Using your own words, explain
idea why Polly is glad when her mother meets
some friends. 6. Explain, using your own
words, the following expressions from the
text:

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 a) ‘They would trade stories about
their children’
b) ‘her brisk jaunt’.
7. What do you understand by the phrase
‘a shivery joy’? Why do you think Polly
experiences this feeling?
8. Choose three words or phrases used by
the writer that convey the idea that this was
a special day and give reasons for why you
have chosen them.
9. The writer repeats the word ‘wonderful’
many times in this opening section of the
story. Why do you think she does this? Give
reasons for your answer.
10. Give examples from the story of words
and phrases that show that the writer is
telling this story from Polly’s point of view.
Explain as fully as you can the effects
achieved by this.

4. Polly - identify the features 1. Why do you think that the steps of the
Helps a of narrative writing slide are described as ‘endless’?
Friend (Part - discuss plot, setting, 2. Choose two details from the first
II) characters, story paragraph of this section and explain how
structure, and direct they show that Polly has a good
speech in a imagination.
writing piece 3. What is it in particular that the slide
- identify use of specific says makes his back hurt?
words to convey main 4. Polly does not appear to be frightened
idea when the slide speaks to her. Why do you
think this is? (You should consider the
description of the slide to help with your
answer.)

8
 5. Why do you think Polly feels both
‘sad’ and‘important’?
6. What impression does the writer
achieve bythe statement, ‘she heard her
small voice say’?
7. Why doesn’t Polly tell her mother
about theslide?
8. Choose three words or phrases from
this section that give human qualities to
the slide.Explain your reasons for
choosing them.
9. Polly has a good imagination. How does
this detail help you to understand the way
she reactsto the slide?
10. How does this section of the story
help youto gain more of an
understanding of Polly’s character?

5. . Birds in - identify characteristics 1. What does the poet describe in the

The first two verses?
Classroom by
of a poem (rhyme, poetic
2. Discuss the rhyme scheme of the
Colin devices like alliteration
poem. 3. Explain the poem in your own
and words.
onomatopoeia, etc.) 4. How does Thiele effectively emphasize
- analyse poem (main the contrast between the atmosphere in the
classroom and the world outside?
idea, how words are used
5. Can any of the adjectives of feelings and
reflect the emotions listed below describe the tone
poet/character’s opinion) and voice of the speaker? am a student

Positive Negative

Appreciative Aggressive

Calm Angry

Cheerful Annoyed/irritated

Comforting Anxious/agitated

Content Apprehensive

Devoted Bitter
 Delightful Confused

Enthusiastic Cruel/harsh/hurtful
6.

O
A
B
C
F
Ir

N
R

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6 To The - identify characteristics 1. What is sibilance? Comment on the use
Snake by of sibilance in this poem.
of a poem (rhyme, poetic
Denise 2. Why does the poet address the snake
Levertov devices like alliteration as ‘Green Snake’? She does this twice.
and 3. Contrast the words ‘cold’, ‘pulsing’
and ‘hissed’.
onomatopoeia, etc.)
4. What then would the words "I hung you
- analyse poem (main round my neck", "stroked your cold,
pulsing throat" and "as you hissed to me,
idea, how words are glinting arrowy gold scales" signify?
used reflect

the poet/character’s
opinion)
 7. The Rum - identify characteristics 1. What is the rhyme scheme of the
Tum Tugger
By T.S, Eliot of a poem (rhyme, poetic poem? 2. Comment on the mood of the
devices like alliteration poem.
and 3. List two words showing the use of
onomatopoeia, etc.) sound imagery.
- analyse poem (main 4. What do you think is the poet’s opinion
idea, how words are of the main character is? Explain your
used reflect the answer.
poet/character’s
5. What is the theme of this poem?
opinion)

10
Extract: Gerrard - My Autobiography
Steven Gerrard

Still now I hate Sunday nights. Still! It’s impossible to

blank out the memory of getting ready for school, a
ritual torture that ruined the final moments of a
glorious weekend. According to the calendar most
people use, a weekend lasts two days. Not at No.10
Ironside. Not with Mum. A weekend is a day and a half
with her. She demanded we be home by 6p.m. to be
scrubbed, bathed and ready for school the next
morning. We ran in at six and the uniform was there,
on the ironing board, all pristine and pressed glaring
at us. Just seeing the uniform made me sick. They
resembled prison clothes after the freedom of the
weekend. It was not that I hated school; I just loved
my weekends roaming around Bluebell.

Mum took school more seriously than Paul, my brother, and I ever did. A proud
woman, she made sure our uniforms were absolutely spotless. She polished our shoes
so hard you could see your grimacing face in them. Poor Mum! She had her work cut
out. If I left the house with a clean uniform, it was guaranteed to come home dirty. The
same with shoes. Scuffed and muddy. Every time. Mum went up the wall.

My journey through the Merseyside school system was straightforward and

undistinguished. I look on schools as fantastic playing fields with boring buildings
attached. My first stop was St Michael’s, which became Huyton-with-Roby Church of
England Primary. Though only a short walk from Ironside, Mum still insisted on
driving me to St Mick’s and picking me up. I enjoyed the infants and junior school, just
messing about. When I was naughty, the teachers made me stand by the wall, looking
at the bricks for five minutes as punishment. I never bullied anyone. I never hurt
anyone or swore. I was just cheeky and mischievous. My crimes were petty ones:
answering back or going on muddy grass when we were told to stay on the yard. Usual
kids’ stuff.

11
School held limited appeal. I sat in class, longing for playtime because there was always
a match on in the playground. I loved dinner time because it lasted an hour, which
meant a longer match. I abandoned hot dinners because they wasted precious minutes.
Queuing for my meal, I’d shout, ‘Come on, there’s a big game going on out there.’
Eventually, I asked my mother for packed lunches. ‘You should be on hot dinners,’ she
screamed, ‘or come home if you don’t like school food.’ We compromised on packed
lunches: sandwich, bar of chocolate and drink. And some fruit. The fruit always came
home untouched. Apples, bananas and oranges weren’t me. Butties [sandwiches]
weren’t even me at that age. It would be bread off, meat out, quick bite, on with the
game. ‘Stevie, you haven’t eaten your butty,’ Mum would say, ‘you’ve only eaten your
chocolate.’ Mum didn’t understand. Speed was vital at dinner time. I ate the packed
lunch while playing or wolfed it down running back into class. Same with my tea. If
there was a match going on outside Ironside, a game of chase, or my mates were
waiting for me, I slipped my food in my pocket, sprinted out the door, threw the food to
the neighbour’s dog and raced on to the match. I returned home starving, picking at
biscuits, crisps and chocolate.

Back at St Mick’s, the teachers watched me scribbling away busily in my school book.
Steam almost rose from my pencil I wrote so furiously. The teachers must have thought
I was focusing really hard on the lesson. I’m sorry. I wasn’t. Lessons were spent
working out the teams for dinner time. In the back of my school book, I wrote down the
names. When the bell for break rang, I dashed out to organise all the boys - and get the
girls off the playground. ‘You can watch,’ I’d tell them generously, ‘but that’s the pitch
and you can’t go on it.’ The pitch was marked out with bags and tops for goals. They
were right serious battles at St Mick’s. Wembley Cup finals have been less intense. My
face still bears the trace of a scar collected in the playground after I collided with a
fence, tussling for the ball. Defeat was unthinkable.
 12
Extract: I am Malala
Malala Yousafzai

By then my father was becoming a well

known figure in Swat. Even though he was
not a khan or a rich man, people listened to
him. They knew he would have something
interesting to say at workshops and
seminars and wasn’t afraid to criticize the
authorities, even the army, which was now
running our country. He was becoming
known to the army too, and friends told him
that the local commander had called him
‘lethal’ in public. My father didn’t know
what exactly the brigadier meant, but in our
country, where the army is so powerful, it
did not bode well.

One of his pet hates was the ‘ghost schools’. Influential people in remote areas took
money from the government for schools which never saw a single pupil. Instead they
used the buildings for their hujras or even to keep their animals. There was even a case
of a man drawing a teacher’s pension when he had never taught a day in his life. Aside
from corruption and bad government, my father’s main concern in those days was the
environment. Mingora was expanding quickly – around 175,000 people now called it
home – and our once-fresh air was becoming very polluted from all the vehicles and
cooking fires. The beautiful trees on our hills and mountains were being chopped down
for timber. My father said only around half the town’s population had access to safe
drinking water and most, like us, had no sanitation. So he and his friends set up
something called the Global Peace Council which, despite its name, had very local
concerns. The name was ironic and my father often laughed about it, but the
organisation’s aim was serious: to preserve the environment of Swat and promote
peace and education among local people.

My father also loved to write poetry, sometimes about love, but often on
controversial themes such as honour killings and women’s rights. Once he visited
Afghanistan for a poetry festival at the Kabul Intercontinental Hotel, where he read

13
a poem about peace. It was mentioned as the most inspiring in the closing speech,
and some in the audience asked him to repeat whole stanzas and couplets,
exclaiming ‘Wah wah’ when a particular line pleased them, which is a bit like ‘Bravo’.
Even my grandfather was proud. ‘Son, may you be the star in the sky of knowledge,’
he used to say.

We too were proud, but his higher profile meant we didn’t see him very much. It was
always our mother who shopped for our clothes and took us to hospital if we were ill,
even though in our culture, particularly for those of us from villages, a woman is not
supposed to do these things alone. So one of my father’s nephews would have to go
along. When my father was at home, he and his friends sat on the roof at dusk and
talked politics endlessly. There was really only one subject – 9/11. It might have
changed the whole world but we were living right in the epicenter of everything.
Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda, had been living in Kandahar when the attack
on the World Trade Center happened, and the Americans had sent thousands of
troops to Afghanistan to catch him and overthrow the Taliban regime which had
protected him.

14
Extract: Scott’s Last Expedition [July 1912]
Robert Falcon Scott

On July the 16th we had probably the

most beautiful day of the year. The
whole northern sky was filled with
opalescent clouds, and owing to some
white ice instead of the black water in
 the North Bay, the increase of light
seemed very appreciable. The mules
were now exercised regularly on the ice
in the South Bay, and by this means
their leaders were able to take them
over greater distances. Their condition
began gradually to improve, and the
way they had come through the winter
so far reflected great credit on the care
taken by Lashly.

On the 19th the plans for the Southern journey were laid before the other members.
Debenham, who had been suffering from an old knee injury at football, and Archer
were the two members who would have to remain by the hut.

It was a sad blow to both of them to realise their position, but they accepted it
cheerfully. The plan was to provide enough provisions to enable two parties, each a
unit of four, to ascend the Beardmore Glacier, and two dog teams with a unit of three
men to return from some point not as yet settled. Of the men ascending the glacier, four
were to remain at the Cloudmaker and collect geological specimens, photograph, and
do survey work. They would then proceed to the foot of the glacier and continue doing
this same work until the return of the others, for all this time they were needed as a
support by the advance party. This advance party, the other unit of four, would ascend
to the top of the glacier if it was necessary to go so far. On their return to the foot of the
glacier both units would march home. At this time it was believed by most of us that an
accident had occurred to the Southern Parth, probably at the lower reaches of the
Beardmore, in bad weather, and that sickness had nothing to do with the disaster.

15
As there was no food either for dogs, mules, or men in any of the depots, the initial
starting weights would have to be very large. To help as far as possible some small
depot journeys would be made in the spring. During the whole winter so far the
cheerfulness of the party had been splendid under the most trying conditions, but
there now seemed to be an added sprightliness with the return of light.

Nelson had been occupying his time by a very ingenious method of predicting
occulations. He predicted altogether nearly fifty, but unfortunately was only able to
get one or two observations. These observations were for obtaining the exact
longitude. The whole Sound at this time to the north and west of Inaccessible Island
was open water. We had two enormous drifts of nine to ten feet leading from the door
of the annexe down to the sea. The latter end of July the weather broke up entirely
and we had a repetition of our usual blizzards for the season.
 16
Extract: Charles Dickens’ David Copperfield Chapter 6 - I Go to Canterbury and
Am a New Boy in More Senses than One
Marcia Williams

Mr Dick and I soon became firm friends and

would often fly his great kite together. My
aunt also took to me kindly. She even
encouraged me to believe that I might one
day mean as much to her as if I had been the
girl she had hoped for!

‘Trot,’ said my aunt one evening, ‘should you

like to go to school in Canterbury?’

I replied that I would like it very much, as it

wouldn’t be too far from her and Mr Dick.

And so it was arranged that during the week I would board in Canterbury with Mr
Wickfield, her lawyer, and his daughter, Agnes. Agnes kept house for her father as
Mrs Wickfield had died. Agnes was my age and was very kind and wise. She soon
became as dear to me as a sister.

My new school was not at all like Salem House. There were no canes and no masters
like Mr Creakle. I studied hard and played hard, returning home to my aunt and Mr
Dick for weekends and holidays. The time seemed to pass very quickly and happily.

As I grew, I fell in and out of love and confided each of my passions to Agnes. She
listened with great patience, but never talked of any attachment she might have.
Indeed, I could not think of no one who deserved her. Certainly not Uriah Heep, who
was Mr Wickfield’s fawning assistant and the only person who ever gave me any
unease. Heep was a slimy schemer and one of his schemes was to marry Agnes. “I love
the ground my Agnes walks on,” he wheedled. “And she may come to be nice to me
because I am so useful to her.”

17
Another of Heep’s schemes was to take over the business from Mr Wickfield. His
fawning ways drove Mr Wickfield to drink, and before long he had made Heep a
partner. By a strange twist of fate, Heep then employed my old friend, Mr Micawber, as
his clerk. Micawber thought no more of Heep than I did.

“His appearance is foxy, Mr Davy, very foxy!” he said.

When the time came for me to leave school and go to London to train as a lawyer, I left
Agnes with a heavy heart. The thought that I was leaving my sweet friend in the same
house as the awful Heep was almost unbearable.

18
Target Employee’s Good Deed Goes Viral
From www.cbsnews.com

If you can’t tie a tie, maybe you should find a

Target guy.
 That’s what one young job seeker who walked
into a Raleigh, North Carolina Target store did
this week.

The teen, who was searching for a clip-on tie

before his first job interview, was disappointed
to find out the store didn’t have any.

But instead of sending him on his way, Target

employee Dennis Roberts picked out a tie from a
rack, brought it to the teen and taught him how
to tie it.

A shopper who witnessed the simple act of kindness found the sight so heart
warming, she had to share it.

Audrey Mark posted a photo she took of the pair inside the store, along with the
background story, on Target’s Facebook page to thank the ‘awesome’ employee who
helped the teen out.

The Facebook post was shared by more than 4,000 people, received 50,000 likes
and nearly 1,200 comments.

Aside from helping the boy with a tie and telling him to tuck in his shirt, Roberts and
fellow Target employee Cathy Scott offered some job interview advice.

Target said Roberts and Scott are just two of the countless employees who make
‘Target uniquely Target’.

“Our team members love going above and beyond every day for our guests,” Target
Public Relations spokeswoman Kristen Emmons told CBS News.

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As if the story couldn’t be any more heartwarming, the jobseeker received dozens of
cheers and good luck wishes as he exited the store.

Hundreds of touched Facebook users also wished the boy luck on his interview,
which apparently took place at a Chick-fil-A nearby.

“Fingers crossed for this [kid’s] interview!” Mark wrote. “Hope he got the job,” one
user wrote. “I certainly hope you got the job you sought, but you deserve so much
more,” another wrote.
Whether the teen lands the job or not, at least he’ll be prepared for the future. “We’re
rooting for him in his interviews,” Emoons said. “And by the way, we love his tie.”

20
Ant Philosophy
Jim Rohn, as adapted by Arun Sreenivas

All of us tend to look up to big people for

lessons on how to get better. We are keen
to learn the secrets of their success. But
we forget that sometimes the biggest
lessons in life come from the smallest folks
around us. Now that’s a good lesson to
remember!

Take ants for instance. Would you believe

those small creatures can teach us how to
live a better life?
Jim Rohn – the great motivational guru – developed what he called the ‘Ants
Philosophy’. He identified four key lessons from the behavior of ants that can help us
lead better lives. Jim Rohn is no more – but his messages continue to inspire. Here then,
are the four lessons from Rohn’s ‘Ants Philosophy’.

1. Ants never quit.

Have you noticed how ants always look for a way around an obstacle? Put your finger in
an ant’s path and it will try and go around it, or over it. It will keep looking for a way out. It
won’t just stand there and stare. It won’t give up and go back.

We should all learn to be like that. There will always be obstacles in our lives. The
challenge is to keep trying, keep looking for alternative routes to get to our goals.

Winston Churchill probably paraphrased the ant’s mindset when he offered this
priceless advice:

“NEVER GIVE UP. NEVER, NEVER GIVE UP!”

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2. Ants think winter all summer.
Remember the old story of the ant and the grasshopper? In the middle of summer, the ant
was busy gathering food for the winter ahead – while the grasshopper was out having a
good time. Ants know that summer – the good times – won’t last forever. Winters will
come. That’s a good lesson to remember. When the going is good, don’t be so arrogant as
to believe that a crisis or a setback cannot happen to you. Be good to other people. Save for
a rainy day.

Look Ahead. And remember, GOOD TIMES MAY NOT LAST, BUT GOOD PEOPLE DO.

3. Ants think summer all winter.

As they suffer through the unbearable cold of the winter, ants keep reminding
themselves that it won’t last forever, and that summer will soon be here. And with the
first rays of the summer sun, the ants come out – ready to work, ready to play. When we
are down and seemingly out, when we go through what looks like a never-ending crisis,
it’s good to remind ourselves that this too shall pass. Good times will come. It’s important
to retain a positive attitude, an attitude that says things will get better.

As the old saying goes, TOUGH TIMES DON’T LAST. TOUGH PEOPLE DO.
4. Ants do all they possibly can.
How much food does an ant gather in summer? All that it possibly can! Now that’s a great
work ethic to have. Do all you can! One ant doesn’t worry about how much food another
ant is collecting. It does not sit back and wonder why it should have to work so hard. Nor
does it complain about the poor pay! Ants just do their bit. They gather all the food they
can. Success and happiness are usually the result of giving 100% – doing all you possibly
can. If you look around you, you’ll find that successful people are those who just do all they
possibly can.

Follow the FOUR SIMPLE STEPS OF JIM ROHN’S ‘ANT PHILOSOPHY’ – and you’ll see
the difference. Don’t quit. Look ahead. Stay positive. And do all you can.

22
Save the Orang-utan
From: www.SaveTheOrang-utan.co.uk

About the orang-utan

Orang-utans are a species of great ape

found only in South East Asia on the islands
of Borneo and Sumatra, although evidence
of their existence has been found in Java,
Vietnam and China. The gentle red ape
demonstrates significant intelligence, with
an ability to reason and think and is one of
our closest relatives, sharing 97 per cent of
the same DNA as humans.

Indigenous peoples of Indonesia and Malaysia call this ape ‘Orang Hutan’ literally
translating into English as People of the Forest.

In times past, the-people of the jungle would not kill them because they felt the
orang-utan was simply a person hiding in the trees, trying to avoid having to go to
work or become a slave.

Orang-utans are unique in the ape world. There are four kinds of great apes: gorillas,
chimpanzees, bonobos and orang-utans. Only the orang-utan comes from Asia; the
others all come from Africa. There are two separate species of orang-utan -- the
Sumatran orang-utan and the Bornean orang-utan. Orang-utans are only found on the
islands of Sumatra and Borneo.

The orang-utan is the only strictly arboreal ape and is actually the largest tree living
mammal in the world. The rest of the apes do climb and build sleeping nests in the
trees, but are primarily terrestrial (spending their lives on the ground). Every night
they fashion nests, in which they sleep, from branches and foliage. They are more
solitary than other apes, with males and females generally coming together only to
mate. Even the hair colour of the orang-utan, a bright reddish brown, is unique in the
ape world.

23
The devastating effect of palm oil

Orang-utans are being pushed to the brink. In the past decade alone, their numbers
have fallen by to half.

Probably the biggest threat is the loss of their natural habitat - due to industrial
scale deforestation, forest fires, mining interests and conversion to palm oil
plantations. In the past 20 years, around 80% of suitable orang-utan habitat
has disappeared. And only a tiny 2% of what remains is legally protected.

The world’s insatiable demand for palm oil is one major factor in the orang-utan’s
decline. And it is one major factor in the orang-utan’s decline. And it is estimated that
palm oil is present in more than half of the packaged supermarket products on sale in
the UK today.

Grown sustainably, palm oil can provide vital livelihoods in an environmentally

friendly way. But so far, too many manufacturers seem reluctant to pay the little
extra for sustainably produced oil.

The huge demand for palm oil is placing an unbearable strain on the remaining
rainforests of the world – not least in Borneo. And, as the forests disappear, the
orang-utan inches closer and closer to extinction.

Please help us act now to avoid disaster. The orang-utan can be saved,
 24
Extract: Birds, Beasts and Relatives
Gerald Durrell

They are covered with a thick coating of

spikes but these are white and soft, as thou
made of rubber. They gradually harden and
turn brown when the babies are a few
weeks old. When they are old enough to
leave the nursery the mother leads them
out and shows them how to hunt for food;
they walk in line, the tail of one held in the
mouth of the baby behind.

The baby at the head of the column holds tight to mother’s tail with grim
determination, and they move through the twilit hedgerows like a strange prickly
centipede …

Mine were always ready for food at any hour of the day or night. You had only to
touch the box and a chorus of shrill screams arose from four little pointed faces
poking out of the leaves, each head decorated with a crew-cut of white spikes; and the
little black noses would wave desperately from side to side in an effort to locate the
bottle.

Most baby animals know when they have had enough, but in my experience this does
not apply to baby hedgehogs. Like four survivors from a raft, they flung themselves
on to the bottle and sucked and sucked and sucked as though they had not had a
decent meal in weeks. If I had allowed it they would have drunk twice as much as
was good for them. As it was, I think I tended to overfeed them, for their tiny legs
could not support the weight of their fat bodies, and they would advance across the
carpet with a curious swimming motion, their tummies dragging on the ground.
However, they progressed very well: their legs grew stronger, their eyes opened, and
they would even make daring excursions as much as 15 centimetres away from their
box.

25
Extract: Rules of the Game
Amy Tan
 On a cold spring afternoon, while walking home
from school, I detoured through the playground
at the end of our alley. I saw a group of old men,
two seated across a folding table playing a
game of chess, others smoking pipes, eating
peanuts, and watching. I ran home and grabbed
Vincent’s chess set, which was bound in a
cardboard box with rubber bands. I also
carefully selected two prized rolls of Life
Savers. I came back to the park and approached
a man who was observing the game.

“Want to play?” I asked him. His face widened with surprise and he grinned as he
looked at the box under my arm.

“Little sister, been a long time since I play with dolls,” he said, smiling benevolently. I
quickly put the box down next to him on the bench and displayed my retort.

Lau Po, as he allowed me to call him, turned out to be a much better player than my
brothers. I lost many games and many Life Savers. But over the weeks, with each
diminishing roll of candies, I added new secrets. Lau Po gave me the names. The
Double Attack from the East and West Shores. Throwing Stones on the Drowning Man.
The Sudden Meeting of the Clan. The Surprise from the Sleeping Guard. The Humble
Servant Who Kills the King. Sand in the Eyes of Advancing Forces. A Double Killing
Without Blood.

There were also the fine points of chess etiquette.

Keep captured men in neat rows, as well-tended prisoners. Never announce "Check"
with vanity, lest someone with an unseen sword slit your throat. Never hurl pieces into
the sandbox after you have lost a game, because then you must find them again, by
yourself, after apologizing to all around you. By the end of the summer, Lau Po had
taught me all he knew, and I had become a better chess player.

26
A small weekend crowd of Chinese people and tourists would gather as I played and
defeated my opponents one by one. My mother would join the crowds during these
outdoor exhibition games. She sat proudly on the bench, telling my admirers with
proper Chinese humility, "Is luck."

A man who watched me play in the park suggested that my mother allow me to play in
local chess tournaments. My mother smiled graciously, an answer that meant nothing.
I desperately wanted to go, but I bit back my tongue. I knew she would not let me play
among strangers. So as we walked home I said in a small voice that I didn't want to
play in the local tournament. They would have American rules. If I lost, I would bring
shame on my family.

"Is shame you fall down nobody push you," said my mother. During my first
tournament, my mother sat with me in the front row as I waited for my turn. I
frequently bounced my legs to unstick them from the cold metal seat of the folding
chair. When my name was called, I leapt up. My mother unwrapped something in her
lap. It was her chang, a small tablet of red jade which held the sun's fire.

"Is luck," she whispered, and tucked it into my dress pocket. I turned to my opponent,
a fifteen-year-old boy from Oakland. He looked at me, wrinkling his nose.

As I began to play, the boy disappeared, the color ran out of the room, and I saw only
my white pieces and his black ones waiting on the other side. A light wind began
blowing past my ears. It whispered secrets only I could hear.

"Blow from the South," it murmured. "The wind leaves no trail." I saw a clear path, the
traps to avoid. The crowd rustled. "Shhh! Shhh!" said the corners of the room. The wind
blew stronger. "Throw sand from the East to distract him." The knight came forward
ready for the sacrifice. The wind hissed, louder and louder. "Blow, blow, blow. He
cannot see. He is blind now. Make him lean away from the wind so he is easier to knock
down."

"Check," I said, as the wind roared with laughter. The wind died down to little puffs,
my own breath.

27
My mother placed my first trophy next to a new plastic chess set that the
neighborhood Tao society had given to me. As she wiped each piece with a soft
cloth, she said, "Next time win more, lose less."

"Ma, it's not how many pieces you lose," I said. "Sometimes you need to lose pieces to
get ahead."

"Better to lose less, see if you really need."

At the next tournament, I won again, but it was my mother who wore the
triumphant grin.
"Lost eight piece this time. Last time was eleven. What I tell you? Better off lose
less!" I was annoyed, but I couldn't say anything.

28
Extract - Polly Helps a Friend (Part I)
Susan A. Candela

Polly pedaled her bicycle swiftly as mother

trotted alongside her. Mother had to hurry to
keep up with Polly. They were on their way to
the park for their weekly outing. Polly’s big blue
bag with pink pockets was slung over Mother’s
shoulder. It held many of Polly's favorite things
that she used to create wonderful pictures that
Mother would fasten to the refrigerator door for
everyone to see.

Wonderful things were a part of these trips, wonderful sunshine, wonderful breezes,
wonderful colors and most importantly, the big wonderful silver slide.
Polly was as happy as she could be today. The pink ribbon from her yellow pig-tails
flew in the breeze behind her. Today, Polly felt more special than ever. Mother let her
wear her new shorts outfit with the blue and pink flowers. Polly promised to be careful
not to soil it. Polly loved Mother and always tried to make her proud. She wanted to be
just like her when she grew up. Being outside today was like being in a beautiful
dream of many colors. The windy sunshine was the yellowiest of yellows. It flooded
Polly's smiling blue eyes and pink face as she looked at everything there was to see.

Everything was wonderful today, even the birds sounded cheerier than ever. They
whistled from nearby trees.

Polly's bicycle barely stopped as she jumped off. They had arrived at the special
place in the park where the giant silver slide lived. Polly loved the slide; she got a
shivery joy each time she slipped along its long slender back. She ran over to the
slide.

"Slow down, Polly," shouted her mother, smiling at her young daughter.

Barbara enjoyed these outings as much as Polly. She loved to just relax and visit with
the other women she would meet there. They would trade stories about their

29
children. When she felt like it, Barbara tucked her knitting or an interesting novel
into Polly's bag. She felt a little tired from her brisk jaunt and plopped down at the
nearest picnic table. Soon Carol, one of her friends, wandered over to her.

Polly watched her mother and the other woman. Polly liked it when her mother
chatted or visited with other women. It gave her extra long playtime.
 30
Extract - Polly Helps a Friend (Part II)
Susan A. Candela

The slide was cold today, but this did not stop
Polly from whisking down its bare back. The cold
metal sent shivers of fun through her. Faster and
faster she slid each time she climbed the endless
steps. Up, up, up she went eager to swoosh along
the cold, silver slide. Polly loved to daydream
while she rode on the slide. She would close her
eyes and think of herself as a lovely princess on a
white horse.

Some days, she would pretend that she was either a lost puppy or a lost kitten
looking for its mother. She would crawl around while she meowed or whimpered
sadly. Polly had heard her mother say that she had a good imagination. She wasn't
really sure what this meant. She guessed that it meant that she was really great at
pretending things.

Polly continued her trips up the stairs and down the slide. On what was maybe her
twelfth trip, a strange sound shot into the air. It was a very painful groan. "What's
that?" she asked, jumping off the end of the slide.

"Oh, thank you!" came the answer over her shoulder.

"Who said that?" Polly asked again, looking round and round.

"I did."

Polly bent at the waist, jumped to one foot and spun around. She was staring right at
the slide. Two very, very sad eyes stared back at her. "Thank you for getting off," said a
giant mouth just below the teary eyes.

"My back aches really badly today."

31
Polly rubbed her eyes. Was this really happening? Could she believe her ears?
Quickly, she looked over to where her mother sat with her friend. The two women
were laughing and talking. Everything seemed okay. Polly looked back at the slide.
 "Excuse me", she said, "did you speak to me?"

"Why yes I did," answered the silver slide. "I'm sorry if I startled you, but I can't take it
anymore. Each and every day children jump on me and race down my back. It was fine
when I was young, but I've grown so old and weary. I'm not nearly as strong and in the
great shape I used to be. I love the children, especially you Polly, but I shudder when
they dig their feet into my back. What can I do? Can you help me, Polly?" With
that, the poor old slide began to cry loudly. His steps shook with each large, wet tear. He
pulled a large white handkerchief from his back step and blew his nose sadly. "If this
keeps up, I will have to be turned into a pile of steel and thrown onto the junk heap. I
know all I need is a little rest. In time I will be okay. The park is putting in a new slide
soon. Guess until then, I will have to be brave."

Polly stepped back as she was puzzled. It took her long minutes to understand. This
poor old slide that had given so many children so much fun over the years was asking
her for help. She felt sad and important all at once.

"I'm sooooo sorry you are feeling bad" she heard her small voice say. Her tiny hand
gently patted the aching steel. "There must be something I can do." Polly thought and
thought for some time. She walked to a swing and started to sit down, but stopped.
She then started to go to her mother for help, but again stopped. "Would mother
believe her?" Polly wondered aloud. "A talking slide?" Polly did not know what to do
to help her friend.

32
Bird in the Classroom

The students drowsed and drowned

in the Teacher's ponderous monotone -
limp bodies loping in the wordy heat,
melted and run together, desk and flesh as one.
swooning and swimming in a sea of drone.

Each one asleep, swayed and vaguely drifted with

lidded eyes and lolling weighted heads, were caught
on heavy waves and dimly lifted, sunk slowly, ears
ringing in the syrup of his sound,

or borne from the room on a heaving wilderness of beds.

And then on a sudden, a bird's cool voice
punched out song. Crisp and spare
on the startled air,

beak-beamed
or idly tossed,
each note gleamed
like a bead of frost.

A bird's cool voice from a neighbour's tree

with five clear calls - mere grains of sound
rare and neat
repeated twice
but they sprang from the heat
like drops of ice.

Ears cocked, before the comment ran

fading and chuckling where a wattle stirred, the
students wondered how they could have heard such
dreary monotone from a man, and
such wisdom from a bird.

33
To the Snake (1958)
Denise Levertov

Green Snake, when I hung you round my neck

and stroked your cold, pulsing throat
as you hissed to me, glinting
arrowy gold scales, and I felt
the weight of you on my shoulders,
and the whispering silver of your dryness
sounded close at my ears —
Green Snake — I swore to my companions that certainly
you were harmless! But truly
I had no certainty, and no hope, only desiring
to hold you, for that joy,
which left
a long wake of pleasure, as the leaves moved
and you faded into the pattern
of grass and shadows, and I returned
smiling and haunted, to a dark morning.

34
he Rum Tum Tugger
by T. S. Eliot

The Rum Tum Tugger is a Curious Cat:

If you offer him pheasant he would rather have grouse. If
you put him in a house he would much prefer a flat, If
you put him in a flat then he'd rather have a house. If
you set him on a mouse then he only wants a rat, If you
set him on a rat then he'd rather chase a mouse. Yes the
Rum Tum Tugger is a Curious Cat--
And there isn't any call for me to shout it:
For he will do
As he do do
And there's no doing anything about it!
The Rum Tum Tugger is a terrible bore:
When you let him in, then he wants to be out; He's always
on the wrong side of every door, And as soon as he's at
home, then he'd like to get about. He likes to lie in the
bureau drawer,
But he makes such a fuss if he can't get out.

Yes the Rum Tum Tugger is a Curious Cat--

And there isn't any use for you to doubt it:
For he will do
As he do do
And there's no doing anything about it!

The Rum Tum Tugger is a curious beast:

His disobliging ways are a matter of habit.
If you offer him fish then he always wants a feast;
When there isn't any fish then he won't eat rabbit. If
you offer him cream then he sniffs and sneers, For
he only likes what he finds for himself;

35
So you'll catch him in it right up to the ears,
If you put it away on the larder shelf.
The Rum Tum Tugger is artful and knowing, The Rum
Tum Tugger doesn't care for a cuddle; But he'll leap on
your lap in the middle of your sewing, For there's
nothing he enjoys like a horrible muddle. Yes the Rum
Tum Tugger is a Curious Cat-- And there isn't any need
for me to spout it: For he will do
As he do do
And there’s no doing anything about it!
36