Frog and Toad / Квак и Жаб. 3-4 классы

“Tomorrow,” said Toad from under the blanket.

“Your kitchen sink is full of dirty dishes,” said Frog.

“Tomorrow,” said Toad.

“There is dust on your chairs.”

“Tomorrow,” said Toad.

“Your windows need cleaning,” said Frog. “Your plants need water.”

“Tomorrow!” cried Toad. “I will do it all tomorrow!”

Toad sat in his bed.

“Oh,” said Toad. “I feel so sad.”

“Why?” asked Frog.

“I am thinking about tomorrow,” said Toad. “I am thinking about all the things that I will have to do tomorrow.”

“Yes,” said Frog, “tomorrow will be a very hard day for you.”

“But Frog,” said Toad, “if I pick up my pants and jacket right now, then I will not have to pick them up tomorrow, will I?”

“No,” said Frog. “You will not have to.”

Toad picked up his clothes. He put them in the closet.

“Frog,” said Toad, “if I wash my dishes right now, then I will not have to wash them tomorrow, will I?”

“No,” said Frog. “You will not have to.”

Toad washed his dishes. He put them in the cupboard.

“Frog,” said Toad, “if I dust my chairs and clean my windows and water my plants right now, then I will not have to do it tomorrow, will I?”

“No,” said Frog. “You will not have to do any of it.”

Toad dusted his chairs. He cleaned his windows. He watered his plants.

“OK,” said Toad. “Now I feel good. I am not sad anymore.”

“Why?” asked Frog.

“Because I have done all that work,” said Toad. “Now I can save tomorrow for something that I really want to do.”

“What is that?” asked Frog.

“Tomorrow,” said Toad, “I can just relax.”

And Toad went back to bed. He pulled the blanket over his head and fell asleep.

The Kite

Frog and Toad went to fly a kite.

They went to a big meadow where the wind was strong.

“Our kite will fly up and up,” said Frog. “It will fly to the top of the sky.”

“Toad,” said Frog, “I will hold the string. You will hold the kite and run.”

Toad ran across the meadow. He ran very fast on his short legs.

The kite went up in the air and then fell down on the ground.

Toad heard laughter. Three robins were sitting in a bush.

“That kite will not fly,” said the robins. “You should give up.”

Toad ran back to Frog.

“Frog,” said Toad, “this kite will not fly. I give up.”

“We must make a second try,” said Frog. “Wave the kite over your head. Maybe then it will fly.”

Toad ran across the meadow again. He waved the kite over his head.

The kite went up in the air and then fell down on the ground.

“What a joke!” said the robins. “That kite will never fly.”

Toad ran back to Frog.

“This kite is a joke,” he said. “It will never fly.”

“We must make a third try,” said Frog. “Wave the kite over your head and jump up and down. Maybe then it will fly.”

Toad ran across the meadow again. He waved the kite over his head. He jumped up and down.

The kite went up in the air and then fell down on the ground.

“That kite is junk,” said the robins. “It will never fly. Go home.”

Toad ran back to Frog.

“This kite is junk,” he said. “I think we should go home.”

“Toad,” said Frog, “we need one more try. Wave the kite over your head. Jump up and down and shout ‘UP, KITE, UP!’”

Toad ran across the meadow. He waved the kite over his head. He jumped up and down. He shouted, “UP, KITE, UP!”

The kite flew into the air. It went up and up.

“We did it!” cried Toad.

“Yes,” said Frog. “If the first try did not work, and the second try did not work, and the third try did not work, I knew that we needed to make one more try!”

The robins flew out of the bush. But they could not fly as high as the kite.

Frog and Toad sat and watched their kite. It flew to the top of the sky.

Shivers

The night was cold and dark.

“Listen to the wind in the trees,” said Frog. “What a fine time for a ghost story.”

Toad sat deeper into his chair.

“Toad,” asked Frog, “do you like to be scared? Do you like to feel the shivers?”

“I am not too sure,” said Toad.

Frog made some tea. He sat down and began a story.

“When I was little,” said Frog, “my mother and father and I went out for a picnic.

On the way home we lost our way. My mother was worried.

‘We must get home,’ she said. ‘We do not want to meet the Old Dark Frog.’

‘Who is that?’ I asked.

‘A terrible ghost,’ said my father. ‘He comes at night and eats little frog children for supper.’”

Toad drank his tea.

“Frog,” he asked, “did this really happen?”

“Maybe yes and maybe no,” said Frog.

“My mother and father went to look for a path,” said Frog. “They told me to wait until they came back. I sat under a tree and waited. The woods became dark. I was afraid. Then I saw two big eyes. It was the Old Dark Frog. He stood near me.”

“Frog,” asked Toad, “did this really happen?”

“Maybe it did and maybe it did not,” said Frog.

Frog went on with his story. “The Dark Frog pulled a jump rope out of his pocket.

‘I am not hungry now,’ said the Dark Frog. ‘I ate too many tasty frog children. But after I jump rope one hundred times, I will be hungry again. Then I will eat YOU!’

The Dark Frog tied one end of the rope to a tree.

‘Turn for me!’ he shouted.