The Ugly Duckling: read-aloud with discussion questions
Read The Ugly Duckling aloud on the projector: 15 pages of big type with each word lit as it is said, 894 words (about 7 minutes), level 8, grade 3, and 5 questions to talk about.
Page 1 of 15
It was summer in the country, and the fields were golden. Beside an old farmhouse, under some giant leaves, a mother duck sat on her nest. She had been sitting there for a long time, and she was getting bored. At last the eggs began to crack. Peep! Peep! One by one, the yellow ducklings popped out their heads.
Keys: ← → or Page Up and Page Down turn the page, Space starts and pauses the voice, Home and End jump, F fills the screen. Tapping the right side of a page goes on; the left side goes back.
How to use it
- Press Full screen (F) to put the book on the projector.
- Press Read to me (Space), or read it yourself and turn pages with the arrow keys or a tap. Pick the Pace that suits the class.
- After the last page the questions come up on the screen. The same questions are below, with what to listen for.
About this book
- Level 8, Grade 3
- 15 pages, 894 words, about 7 minutes aloud
- A classic tale, gentle
Related
About The Ugly Duckling
An 894-word retelling of the story of a gray duckling who is turned away by everyone and grows into a swan. It is long enough to read in two sittings, and each stop on his journey, the marsh, the cottage, the ice and the lake, is a scene students can describe.
A big gray duckling hatches last, and everyone in the farmyard says he is too ugly to keep. He runs away through a long, hard winter, and in the spring he finds out who he really is.
Before you read
Ask the class what it feels like to be left out because of how you look or sound. Tell them to listen for how the duckling is treated and how he answers.
Words to preview
- marsh
- wet, grassy land
- miserable (MIZ-er-uh-bul)
- very unhappy
- dazzling (DAZ-ling)
- brightly shining
- graceful (GRAYSS-ful)
- smooth and lovely
- reflection (rih-FLEK-shun)
- picture in water
- clumsy (KLUM-zee)
- awkward
Questions to talk about
- Why do the other animals in the farmyard treat the duckling badly?Listen for: He is large and gray with big feet and a long neck, and they think he is ugly. The ducks bit him, the hens pecked him and the turkey was rude.
- Where does the duckling go after he runs away, and what happens at each place?Listen for: A marsh, where the wild ducks let him stay until the hunters come; a tumbledown cottage, where the hen and cat say he is no use; then the wide world and a cold winter, where he is stuck in the ice until a farmer rescues him.
- What does the duckling love that the hen and the cat do not understand?Listen for: Swimming and diving. The hen laughs and says nobody wants to get their head wet.
- How does the duckling find out who he really is?Listen for: He sees his reflection in the clear water of the lake beside three white swans, and he is a swan himself.
- What does the story want us to understand, and which line shows it?Listen for: How you are treated does not decide who you are, and he kept going. At the end he says he never dreamed of such happiness back when he was the ugly duckling.
Questions
How long does The Ugly Duckling take to read aloud?
It has 15 pages and 894 words, so about 7 minutes at the Steady pace and a little less at Quick. If you stop to talk on the way, plan for more.
What reading level is The Ugly Duckling?
Level 8, Grade 3. The library numbers its levels from 0 to 18 and puts the level of a book on its cover; level 8 sits at grade 3. A level is a guide for choosing, so look at the pages yourself.
Whose voice is it?
Your browser's own. Read to me uses a speaking voice already on the computer, so it sounds like that computer and works without a sign-in. Voices differ: some light each word as it is spoken, and some do not, in which case the highlight follows a steady pace instead. Some browsers use an online voice; if yours does, the browser, not us, sends the words of the page to its speech service. If no voice is installed, turn the pages and read it aloud yourself.
Do students need an account?
No. Nothing is asked of anyone and nothing is sent to us. Project the page, or share the link and let students open it on their own screens.
Is this the original text?
No. It is a retelling in Peabody's own words at this reading level, so it may differ from the edition you know.
Nothing you do here is sent to us. The voice is your browser's own. No sign-in, no ads.