The Little Red Hen · chapter 1 of 3
One Small Grain
一粒小麦
A little hen finds one grain of wheat and asks her friends to help plant it. Everyone says no. Will she do it alone?
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Read what you hear
- Narrator 早上天气很好。小红母鸡在院子里找吃的。
Zǎoshang tiānqì hěn hǎo. Xiǎo hóng mǔjī zài yuànzi lǐ zhǎo chīde.
It was a fine morning. The little red hen was looking for food in the yard.
- Little Red Hen 咦？这是什么？是一粒小麦！
Yí? Zhè shì shénme? Shì yí lì xiǎomài!
Huh? What's this? It's a grain of wheat!
- Little Red Hen 太好了！我要种小麦，然后做很多面包！
Tài hǎo le! Wǒ yào zhòng xiǎomài, ránhòu zuò hěn duō miànbāo!
Wonderful! I'll plant the wheat, and then make lots of bread!
- Little Red Hen 鸭子！谁来帮我种小麦？
Yāzi! Shéi lái bāng wǒ zhòng xiǎomài?
Duck! Who will help me plant the wheat?
- Duck 不，不，不！我要去游泳，水里很凉快。
Bù, bù, bù! Wǒ yào qù yóuyǒng, shuǐ lǐ hěn liángkuai.
No, no, no! I'm going swimming, the water is nice and cool.
- Little Red Hen 好吧。小猫，你来吗？
Hǎo ba. Xiǎo māo, nǐ lái ma?
All right. Kitty, will you come?
- Cat 不，不，不！我今天很累，我要去睡觉了。
Bù, bù, bù! Wǒ jīntiān hěn lèi, wǒ yào qù shuìjiào le.
No, no, no! I'm very tired today, I'm going to sleep.
- Little Red Hen 你不是刚起床吗？
Nǐ bú shì gāng qǐchuáng ma?
Didn't you just get up?
- Cat 是啊。可是我还想睡。晚安！
Shì a. Kěshì wǒ hái xiǎng shuì. Wǎn'ān!
Yes. But I still want to sleep. Good night!
- Little Red Hen 小狗，你呢？
Xiǎo gǒu, nǐ ne?
Puppy, what about you?
- Dog 不，不，不！我要和朋友玩球。你看，我的球多大！
Bù, bù, bù! Wǒ yào hé péngyou wán qiú. Nǐ kàn, wǒ de qiú duō dà!
No, no, no! I'm playing ball with my friends. Look how big my ball is!
- Little Red Hen 大家都不帮我。好吧，那我自己种小麦！
Dàjiā dōu bù bāng wǒ. Hǎo ba, nà wǒ zìjǐ zhòng xiǎomài!
Nobody will help me. Fine, then I'll plant the wheat myself!
- Chick 妈妈！我来帮你！
Māma! Wǒ lái bāng nǐ!
Mama! I'll help you!
- Little Red Hen 好孩子。来，我们一起在地上种小麦。
Hǎo háizi. Lái, wǒmen yìqǐ zài dì shàng zhòng xiǎomài.
Good child. Come, let's plant the wheat in the ground together.
- Chick 妈妈，小麦放在哪儿？
Māma, xiǎomài fàng zài nǎr?
Mama, where do I put the wheat?
- Little Red Hen 放在这儿，要放得深一点。一粒，两粒，三粒。
Fàng zài zhèr, yào fàng de shēn yìdiǎn. Yí lì, liǎng lì, sān lì.
Put it here, and a little deeper. One grain, two grains, three grains.
- Chick 一粒，两粒，三粒……我数对了吗？
Yí lì, liǎng lì, sān lì… Wǒ shǔ duì le ma?
One, two, three... Did I count right?
- Little Red Hen 对了！你数得很好。
Duì le! Nǐ shǔ de hěn hǎo.
Yes! You counted very well.
- Chick 妈妈，小麦什么时候长大？
Māma, xiǎomài shénme shíhou zhǎngdà?
Mama, when will the wheat grow up?
- Little Red Hen 不要急。太阳和雨会帮我们。
Búyào jí. Tàiyáng hé yǔ huì bāng wǒmen.
Do not rush. The sun and the rain will help us.
- Little Red Hen 睡吧，小麦。快点长大！
Shuì ba, xiǎomài. Kuài diǎn zhǎngdà!
Sleep well, little wheat. Grow up fast!
- Chick 妈妈，下雨了！你看，小麦在喝水！
Māma, xià yǔ le! Nǐ kàn, xiǎomài zài hē shuǐ!
Mama, it's raining! Look, the wheat is drinking!
- Chick 妈妈，你看！地上有绿绿的小草！
Māma, nǐ kàn! Dì shàng yǒu lǜlǜ de xiǎo cǎo!
Mama, look! There's little green grass on the ground!
- Little Red Hen 那不是草，是我们的小麦！
Nà bú shì cǎo, shì wǒmen de xiǎomài!
That's not grass, that's our wheat!
- Duck 母鸡！面包做好了，叫我啊！
Mǔjī! Miànbāo zuò hǎo le, jiào wǒ a!
Hen! When the bread's ready, call me!
- Cat 还有我！我最爱吃面包！
Hái yǒu wǒ! Wǒ zuì ài chī miànbāo!
And me! I love bread most!
- Little Red Hen 小麦才刚长出来呢。
Xiǎomài cái gāng zhǎng chūlái ne.
The wheat has only just come up.
- Chick 妈妈，长大以后，谁来帮我们呢？
Māma, zhǎngdà yǐhòu, shéi lái bāng wǒmen ne?
Mama, once it's grown, who will help us?
- Little Red Hen 那时候你就知道了，小鸡。你还小，慢慢看。
Nà shíhou nǐ jiù zhīdào le, xiǎojī. Nǐ hái xiǎo, mànmàn kàn.
You'll find out then, little chick. You're still small, just watch.
What changed in the story?
- What does the hen find in the yard?
“是一粒小麦！”
- Why does the cat say no?
“我今天很累，我要去睡觉了。”
- Who finally helps the hen plant?
“我来帮你！”
- What does the chick think the green shoots are?
“有绿绿的小草！”
- What do the duck and cat want when the bread is done?
“面包做好了，叫我啊！……我最爱吃面包！”