THE BOY WHO CRIED

WOLF

retold by Carole Bartell

ACHED

ached ( ached ) verb

Had a dull and steady pain.

Her tooth ached all day, so her mother made her an appointment at the Dentist’s office.

ADMIRE

admire ( ad – mire ) verb

To respect or think well of someone or something.

The coach had to admire the players for never giving up.

BOTHERING

bothering ( both – er – ing ) verb

1. Giving people trouble or annoying them. Her little brother kept bothering her while she did her chores.

2. Taking the time to do something. My dad said no without even bothering to hear all the facts.

CONCENTRATE

concentrate ( con – cen – trate ) verb

To pay attention or think very carefully about something being done

He found it hard to concentrate with all the noise.

DANGEROUS

dangerous ( dan – ger – ous ) adjective

Likely to cause harm; unsafe

Playing in the street is dangerous.

PASSION

passion ( pas – sion ) noun

A very strong feeling or liking for something.

Love is a passion, and so is anger.

SPLENDID

splendid ( splen – did ) adjective

Very good or beautiful.

Many birds have splendid feathers of vibrant colors.

MULTIPLE – MEANING WORDSMultiple – Meaning words have more than one meaning. Dictionary meanings for:

CONCENTRATE ( con·cen·trate )

1. think intensely about something: to focus all of your thoughts or mental activity on one subject or activity, usually in silence2. devote efforts to one thing: to direct attention, time, and resources to one particular area or activity, usually over a period of time3. cluster together: to bring things together in the same place or area, or to come together in the same place

THE BOY WHO CRIED WOLF

There was once a young shepherd who lived in a village. This boy loved looking after his sheep. He did his job with passion. The villagers always told him what a good job he was doing. His work was easy to admire. One day the boy was bored. His mind wandered. He couldn’t concentrate on watching the sheep. Then he thought of something wonderful to do.

He though it was a splendid idea. He yelled, “Help! Wolf! A wolf is chasing the sheep!” The villagers came running. “Where is it?” one man asked. “There’s no wolf,” the boy laughed. “I was just having fun.”

“We are all busy working. You shouldn’t be bothering us when there’s no wolf!” he said. Far away, a wolf looked at his watch and waited. He chuckled at his plot to fool the boy and the villagers. The next day the boy was bored again. “Wolf!” he cried.

Once again the villagers ran up the hill but saw no wolf. “Wolves are dangerous! They can harm you and the sheep!” they shouted angrily. The next day the boy saw the wolf. He cried out, “Wolf! Wolf!” “Time to run,” said the wolf as he chased the sheep.

The villagers didn’t come. When they saw the boy next, he was crying. His throat ached from crying out for help. “Why didn’t you come when I called?” he asked. “A wolf chased all the sheep away.” “No one believes a liar, even if he is telling the truth,” they said.