Lesson 4 A Good Example

A poor boy once went to a ragged^① school, where his face was well washed. When he returned home, the neighbours looked at him with astonishment.

They said, “That looks like Tom Rogers, and yet it can’t be, for he is so clean.”

Presently^② his mother looked at him, and seeing that his face was so clean, she fancied that her own face was dirty and at once she washed it.

The father soon came home from his work, and, seeing his wife and his son so clean, he thought that his face was dirty and so he followed their example.

Father, mother, and son being clean, the mother began to think that the room looked dirty; so she went down on her knees and scrubbed^③ the fl oor clean.

A woman lived next door. Seeing so great a change in her neighbours, she thought that her face and her room were very dirty; so she, too, speedily set about cleaning them.

This story shows how two houses and their occupants were made tidy and comfortable, simply by the example of the clean face of one ragged school boy.

Children, as well as grown-up people, should always set a good example. We never know how much good may be done in that way; nor can we tell how much harm results from a bad example.

Notes

① ragged ['r?ɡ?d] adj. 衣著破爛的，衣衫襤褸的; 參差不齊的

② presently ['prezntl?] adv. 目前；不久；馬上

③ scrub [skr?b] vt.& vi. 用力擦洗，刷洗；取消（原有的安排）

Exercises

Ⅰ. How well did you read?

1. [Give the reason] Why did the neighbours look at the boy with astonishment when he returned home?

A. Because his face was clean.

B. Because his face was as dirty as before.

C. Because they didn’t know him.

2. [Evaluate the information] What did the father do after he saw the faces of his son

and wife clean?

A. He thought his face was clean too.

B. He was very glad to see that.

C. He washed his face as well.

3. [Check the details] How many people were infl uenced (影響) by the boy’s action?

A. 3.                   B. 4.                     C. 5.

4. [Draw a conclusion] From the passage we learn that__________ .

A. we should follow good examples

B. the power of good examples is great

C. everyone can set a good example to others

Ⅱ. Read for words.

Choose the best paraphrase or Chinese meaning for the underlined words or expressions.

1. When he returned home, the neighbours looked at him with astonishment. (Para. 1,Line 2)

A. amazement                     B. praise                            C. joy

2. She fancied that her own face was dirty and at once she washed it. (Para. 3, Line 2)

A. thought                 B. imagined                       C. was told

3. This story shows how two houses and their occupants were made tidy and comfortable. (Para. 7, Line 1)

A. neighbours                   B. people living there                       C. friends

4 So she, too, speedily set about cleaning them. (Para. 6, Line 2)

A. stopped                   B. decided                         C. started

Ⅲ. Writing practice.

Do you have a good example in your life? Please write about him or her and how he or she affected you.

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