Lesson 10The True Story of Pocahontas (1)
kelly Reinhart
1、Pocahontas was the favorite daughter of Chief Powhatan. She was an Indian princess. Chief Powhatan was a powerful chief of the Algonquin tribe.
2、Pocahontas was eleven years old. She was a lovely young girl with black hair and dark eyes. She wore a buckskin dress and moccasins. She had a feather in her hair. Pocahontas was always happy. She ran in the forest and danced in the fields. She sat on the hill and looked at the blue sea.
3、On May 6, 1607, Pocahontas sat on the hill and she saw something strange in the bay. It was a big sailing ship! She was very surprised. The sailing ship was something new. It had big white sails and flags. She looked at it for a long time. Where did it come from? Why was it there? She was very excited.
4、Pocahontas ran to her village to tell her father and brother the news.
5、“Father, father!” she said. “There’s a big sailing ship in the bay! It has white sails and colored flags!”
6、Her father, Chief Powhatan, was outside his longhouse. He was a tall man, with long black hair. He wore the feathers of an Indian chief on his head. He listened to the news, but he was not happy.
7、“The white men are here,” Powhatan said sadly. “This is bad news for our people. There is no peace with the white men here.”
8、Nantaquas was Pocahontas’ brother. He was eighteen years old. He was a strong Indian warrior. He looked at his sister and said, “In the past the white people killed the Indians. They want to take our land.”
9、“Oh, Nantaquas, let’s go to see the white people. Let’s go to see their big ship!” said Pocahontas.
10、“You can go to see them, but don’t go near the ship. Stay far away! Be careful!” said Powhatan. “Remember, Pocahontas, white men are dangerous.”
11、Nantaquas and Pocahontas went to the river. There were many canoes near the river. They got into a small canoe. Then Nantaquas paddled down the river to the bay. In the bay they saw the big sailing ship. There was a tall, white man on the ship. He smiled at them. There were other white men too. They all looked at the small canoe and at the two Indians.
12、Pocahontas smiled at the white man. “Let’s go to the ship,” she said.
13、“No,” said Nantaquas. “It’s dangerous. We don’t know who these white men are. We can look and then go home. We must obey our father.”
14、The white man on the ship smiled again.
15、“Look, Nantaquas,” said Pocahontas, “that man has red hair and white skin! He’s smiling at us. Look at his clothes! They are strange.”
16、Nantaquas turned the canoe and paddled up the river. When they arrived home, Nantaquas said, “I saw a big sailing ship. There were many white men on the ship.” Powhatan talked to his medicine men and tribe advisers. They all sat inside the longhouse for a long time.
17、He said, “White men bring us problems. They have a strange magic. They carry thunder sticks to kill our people. They want to take our land, our lakes, our rivers and our forests. They can stay for a short time but they cannot stay here forever. Let’s watch them and see what they do!”
18、Captain John Smith and his men were happy to be in Chesapeake Bay. They wanted to establish a small settlement there.
19、Captain Smith called the big river the James River, after King James I of Britain. On May 13, 1607, he established the small settlement called Jamestown. Jamestown was on the James River. In Jamestown the settlers built some huts, a storehouse and a church.
20、There were about 100 men in Jamestown in 1607. Most of them were English gentlemen. They came to the New World to find gold and riches. They did not want to be farmers. John Smith was angry with them. He said, “You must all plant crops, hunt and fish. You must not be lazy!”
21、In Jamestown there was little food. One day Captain Smith and his men went into the forest to look for food. They walked for a long time. Then they met a big group of Indians. The Indians attacked them with their bows and arrows. They killed one of Smith’s men. John Smith and his men killed two Indians. Then the Indians captured John Smith and took him away.
22、After a long walk, John Smith stood in front of Chief Powhatan and his tribe. Everyone was silent. Pocahontas stood next to her father. She looked at John Smith. He was very tall. She looked at his red hair, his blue eyes and his white skin. He was very different from the Indian men.
(864 words)
Exercises
Ⅰ. How well did you read?
1. [Check the details] What did Pocahontas find when she sat on the hill?
A. She saw a big sailing ship in the bay.
B. She found some Indians in the bay.
C. She saw a feather flying in the forest.
2. [Give the reason] Why did Powhatan say there was no peace with the white men around?
A. Because the white stole their food and meat.
B. Because the white men killed the Indians.
C. Because the white men wanted to take his favorite daughter away.
3. [Check the details] What did Captain Smith name the big river?
A. He called it the New World.
B. He named it King James I of Britain.
C. He called it the James River.
Ⅱ. Read for words.
1. Choose one best paraphrase or Chinese meaning for the underlined words.
(1) He was a strong Indian warrior. (Para. 8, Line 2)
A. soldier B. chief C. leader
(2) They wanted to establish a small settlement there. (Para. 18, Line 2)
A. buy B. build C. borrow
(3) Then the Indians captured John Smith and took him away. (Para. 21, Line 4)
A. 与……交朋友 B. 当船长 C. 捕获
2. Choose one best paraphrase or Chinese meaning for the underlined expressions.
(1) You can go to see them, but don’t go near the ship. Stay far away! Be careful! (Para. 10, Line 1)
A. Leave them alone
B. Don’t get closer to them
C. Stay at home far away
(2) John Smith was angry with them. (Para. 20, Line 3)
A. was mad at
B. was interested in
C. was pleased with
Ⅲ. Writing practice.
1. What do you think of the princess Pocahontas?
2. The white settlers killed lots of Indians in order to get what they wanted—gold and riches. What’s your opinion about it? Give some reasons.