World Literature (Aesop Fables)｜世界文学（イソップ童話）Lesson126: The Bees and Wasps, and the Hornet

PART A_1

Let’s learn vocabulary. Listen and repeat the words and the sentences with your tutor.

PART A_2

1.　hollow	/HOL-oh/
	-having a hole or empty space inside
	The insects hid in a hollow log.
2.　declare	/dih-KLAIR/
	-to announce something clearly, firmly, publicly, or officially
	“I will not do it!” he declared.
3.　belong	/bih-LAWNG/
	-to be in the right place or a suitable place
	This cabinet belongs in the living rooms.
4.　treasure	/TREZH-er/
	-very valuable things, usually in the form of a store of precious metals, precious stones, or money
	When they went underwater they found treasure.
5.　evidence	/EV-i-duhns/
	-one or more reasons for believing that something is or is not true
	She was charged with giving false evidence in court.

PART B_1

Let’s read the story. Please read them aloud, and I will check your pronunciation and intonation.

PART B_2

The Bees and Wasps, and the Hornet

A store of honey had been found in a hollow tree, and the Wasps declared positively that it belonged to them. The Bees were just as sure that the treasure was theirs. The argument grew very pointed, and it looked as if the affair could not be settled without a battle, when at last, with much good sense, they agreed to let a judge decide the matter. So they brought the case before the Hornet, justice of the peace in that part of the woods.

When the Judge called the case, witnesses declared that they had seen certain winged creatures in the neighborhood of the hollow tree, who hummed loudly, and whose bodies were striped, yellow and black, like Bees.

Counsel for the Wasps immediately insisted that this description fitted his clients exactly.

Such evidence did not help Judge Hornet to any decision, so he adjourned court for six weeks to give him time to think it over. When the case came up again, both sides had a large number of witnesses. An Ant was first to take the stand, and was about to be cross-examined when a wise old Bee addressed the Court.

“Your honor,” he said, “the case has now been pending for six weeks. If it is not decided soon, the honey will not be fit for anything. I move that the Bees and the Wasps be both instructed to build a honeycomb. Then we shall soon see to whom the honey really belongs.”

The Wasps protested loudly. Wise Judge Hornet quickly understood why they did so: They knew they could not build a honeycomb and fill it with honey.

“It is clear,” said the Judge, “who made the comb and who could not have made it. The honey belongs to the Bees.”

Ability proves itself by deeds.

PART C_1

Let’s answer comprehension questions. Please answer them based on the story.

PART C_2

1.	What did the insects find in a hollow tree?
2.	Whom did they let decide the matter?
3.	When the Judge called the case, who were the witnesses describing?

PART D_1

Let’s discuss the story. Please answer the questions below and express your opinions.

PART D_2

1.	What can you say about the attitude of the Wasps when they declared that the treasure was theirs? Please tell me more about it.
2.	Do you think that they needed a judge to decide the matter? Why or why not?
3.	Do you think a fight over the treasure would be appropriate? Why or why not?
4.	Could you cite an instance when you were able to prove that you can do something?
5.	Do you think you can know someone’s abilities just by only talking to him/her? Please tell me more about it.

REVIEW AND FEEDBACK

Now, let us review the things that you learned in this lesson.

ではこのレッスンで学んだことを振り返りましょう。

(Please give a short feedback on how your student did on your class.)

	Grammar 文法	Pronunciation 発音	Vocabulary 単語	Comprehension 理解
GOOD	文法の誤りはほとんどなく、完全な文章で話すことができる	ほとんどの単語をはっきりと正しく発音することができる	習った表現を適切に使うことができる	文章を理解し、質問に正しく答えることができる
FAIR	文法の誤りはあるが、完全な文章で話すことができる	発音の練習が必要な言葉がいくつかある	たまにミスはあるが、習った表現を適切に使うことができる	文章を完全に理解するのは難しく、質問に正しく答えられないときもある
POOR	文章で話すのは難しく、単語だけで話すことができる	発音の練習が必要である	習った単語と表現を少しだけ使うことができる	文章を理解するのは難しく、質問に答えるのは難しい

TUTOR FEEDBACK

GRAMMAR
Good:	Was able to speak in complete sentences with minimal grammatical errors.
Fair:	Was able to speak in complete sentences with evident grammatical errors.
Poor:	Was able to speak using words only.
PRONUNCIATION
Good:	Was able to pronounce most of the words clearly and correctly.
Fair:	Mispronounced a few words.
Poor:	Mispronounced most of the words.
VOCABULARY
Good:	Used appropriate expressions learned in class.
Fair:	Used appropriate expressions learned in class and made a few errors in word choice.
Poor:	Used only a few words and expressions.
COMPREHENSION
Good:	Was able to understand the passages and answer the questions correctly.
Fair:	Had a little difficulty in understanding passages and answering questions.
Poor:	Had a hard time understanding passages and answering questions.

Parts of this lesson material are based on:
An eBook from The Project Gutenberg.
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