Reading Plus Standard 5c (basic)- Genre Lesson 2

The bee said, “The bird was badly hurt. He said he was willing to suffer for the one he loved. He sang to the rose. He sang even though he was in pain. Then he said he would always love the rose. He said he knew the rose was not to blame. He knew the plant with thorns put the sharp points on the stem.” “The bird really loved the rose,” Emma said. “He did,” said the bee. “He sang to the rose all through the night. In the morning a bright red flower bloomed on the rose bush. It was in the very spot where the bird’s bleeding foot had rested. This is how the rose got its thorns. This is how the rose got its red color.”

The excerpt above is an example of a fable. Which two details best explain why?

• It has talking animals in it.

• It gives a reason to explain how something happened.

• It has a puzzle in it that the characters must solve.

• It describes characters who use technology in the future.

• It is based on an actual person from the past.

Mother said, “Could there be a tomato thief? Maybe someone is taking the red tomatoes.” After two days Mark and Lady returned to Mrs. Brown’s house. “Oh no,” said Mark when he got there. “I do not see any red tomatoes in the basket. What is happening to them?” Mrs. Brown came out of her house. “I think we have a tomato thief,” she said. “Mark, can you help me catch the thief?” “Yes,” Mark replied. “I want to help. We can look for clues.” “What kind of clues?” asked Mrs. Brown. “A footprint in the dirt. Or a hole in the fence,” Mark explained. “If we find a clue, we might find the thief.”

Which genre of fiction best describes the paragraph above, and why?

• science fiction, because one of the characters is a robot

• fantasy fiction, because the events could never happen in real life

• mystery or detective fiction, because the characters must solve a puzzle

• myth, because a god decides to help a group of people

“The only man who has been here asking for a place to stay was an old farmer. He was so muddy that you could not see the color of his coat. I sent him to the other hotel. He is staying there.” “Did he have red hair?” asked the well-dressed man. “Did he ride a gray horse?” “Yes,” said the hotel owner. “And he was tall.” “That was the vice president!” said the well-dressed man. “Mr. Jefferson?” cried the hotel owner. “Oh no! I did not give a room to the vice president of the United States!”

Which genre of fiction best describes the paragraph above, and why?

• Fairy tale, because it uses the phrase “once upon a time.”

• Historical fiction, because one of the characters is a real person from the past.

• Science fiction, because it tells about beings from other worlds.

• Fable, because it teaches a lesson about how an event happened.

Pygmalion was a young man who lived on a small island. He spent all of his time making statues out of stone. The women talked to Pygmalion about marrying, but he just laughed at them. “Leave me with my statues,” he said. “They are company for me. If I want to talk, I talk to them.” Some of the women on the island who had daughters made a plan. They decided to ask Aphrodite, the goddess of love, to help them. Aphrodite heard the women’s prayers. The goddess visited Pygmalion in his dreams. She told him she had been asked to marry him off, and asked him which girl he wanted to marry.

The excerpt above is an example of a myth. Which statement best explains why?

• The action in the text includes a goddess visiting a human.

• The main character is based on a real person from history.

• The setting is a strange land that is not on planet Earth.

• The narrator is not one of the characters in the text