READING

EXERCISES FOR
SPEED AND
COMPREHENSION
 The Horse and the Snail

One morning, the horse and the snail met. The horse made fun of how the snail
walked. This made the snail very angry. He decided to run a race with the horse.

The snail walked slowly. But walked and walked. He did not look back.

The horse laughed. He could easily beat the snail, the horse thought. He ran for a
while. He saw the snail far behind him. He rested under a mango tree. Soon he fell asleep.

The snail walked past the horse. He did not rest. When the horse woke up, he ran as
fast as he could. But the snail was the first at the finish line.

1. When did the horse and the snail meet?

2. How did the horse make fun of the snail?

3. What did the snail feel after the horse made fun of him?

4. What did they decide to have?

5. How did the snail walk?

6. What did the horse think with their race?

7. Where did the horse rest?

8. What did the snail do when he saw the horse rested under a mango tree?

9. What did the horse do when he woke up?

10. Who won the race?

 A Dream that Became a Reality

For many, many years, people had always dreamed of going to the moon. This
seemed impossible because the moon is very far from Earth.

Not even the biggest, fastest and most powerful airplane could ever reach the moon.

Then, very powerful rocketships were made. These rocketships could travel fast
enough to escape the Earth’s gravity, withstand the sun’s heat and land on the moon.

On July 23, 1969, an almost impossible dream came true. Neil Armstrong, together
with two other American astronauts, made a trip to the moon aboard Apollo 11, a spacecraft.

Neil Armstrong became the very first man to land the moon.

1. Who dreamed of going to the moon?

2. Why does it seem impossible to go to the moon?

3. How can rocketships travel?

4. What is an Apollo 11?

5. When did the almost impossible dream come true?

6. Who made a trip to the moon?

7. Who is Neil Armstrong?

8. What can you say about the trip to the moon?

 The Kingfisher and the Cat

One fine morning, a kingfisher sat on a branch of a tree. She was busy eating a fresh
fish which she caught in the river.

A hungry cat ran under the tree and asked a piece of it. The kingfisher did not want
to share the fish.

The cat was very hungry so she thought of a way to get the fish from the kingfisher.
She asked the kingfisher to sing.

The silly kingfisher could not sing at all. But she was so flattered that she opened her
mouth and tried. Of course she dropped the fish.

The cat gulped it down hurriedly. Then she ran away laughing.

1. Who sat on a branch of a tree one fine morning?

2. What was the kingfisher doing while sitting on a branch of a tree?

3. Who asked for a piece of what the kingfisher was eating?

4. Did the kingfisher want to share the fish?

5. What did the cat ask the kingfisher to get the fish?

6. Can the kingfisher sing?

7. What did the kingfisher do when she was asked to sing?

8. What happened to the fish when the kingfisher sang?

9. What did the cat do when the fish dropped?

10. What can you say about the cat?

 The Better Choice

Carol and Linda are very good friends. They are both pretty and intelligent. They are
very active in class, too. But Linda has more friends than Carol. She is well-liked not only by
their classmates but by their teachers too.

One morning, Mrs. Reyes told the class to select somebody who could represent
them to the pupil government.

Carol and Linda were both nominated. It was a fair match.

When the voting was over, Linda won. She got more votes because she has more
friends than Carol. Do you know why? Linda is not only pretty but she is sweet, humble and
kind. She knows how to share her things with other people. Carol is pretty, too but she thinks
so much of herself only. She is proud, selfish and arrogant.

1. Who are Carol and Linda?

__________________________________________________________________________________________

2. What are the similarities of both?

__________________________________________________________________________________________

3. How do they behave in class?

__________________________________________________________________________________________

4. Who has more friends?

__________________________________________________________________________________________

5. Who liked them both?

__________________________________________________________________________________________

6. Who was their teacher?

__________________________________________________________________________________________

7. What did Mrs. Reyes tell the class one morning?

__________________________________________________________________________________________

8. Who won when the voting was over?

__________________________________________________________________________________________

9. Why did Linda get more votes than Carol?

__________________________________________________________________________________________

10. What can you say about Carol?

_________________________________________________________________________________________
 The Ant and the Grasshopper

The ant and the grasshopper were good friends. The ant was industrious but
the grasshopper was lazy. While the ant was busy storing food for the rainy days, the
grasshopper did nothing all day but sing and play.

When the rain came, the lazy grasshopper shivered with the cold and hunger.
He went to the ant’s house and begged for some food. The ant gave him food but he
kept on coming back for more.

The ant lost her patience and said, “You did nothing but sing and play in the
sunny days. Now you can sing ang play in the rain. I have nothing more to give you.”

1. Who are ant and the grasshopper?

__________________________________________________________________________________
2. What can you say about ant?
__________________________________________________________________________________
3. What can you say about grasshopper?
__________________________________________________________________________________
4. What did the grasshopper do all day?
__________________________________________________________________________________
5. Why was the ant busy storing food?
__________________________________________________________________________________
6. What happened to the grasshopper when the rain came?
__________________________________________________________________________________
7. Where did he go during this time?
__________________________________________________________________________________
8. Did the ant give grasshopper some food?
__________________________________________________________________________________
9. How did the ant finally feel about grasshopper?
__________________________________________________________________________________
10. What lesson did you learn from the story?
__________________________________________________________________________________
 Maria Makiling

Maria Makiling was a goddess who lived in Mount Makiling in Laguna. She
was loved by the people because she was kind and friendly to them. She was good
to the farmers. She gave food and money to the people.

Maria always wore diamonds and pearls on her gowns and on her long black
hair. She was the most beautiful of all the goddesses of the mountains.

One day, robbers stole pearls and diamonds from one of her gowns. Maria
Makiling felt very sad not because of the loss of her pearls and diamonds but
because she had lost her faith in the people.

From that time on, Maria Makiling never came down from the mountains. She
never showed herself again to the people.

1. Who was Maria Makiling?

_________________________________________________________________________________
2. Why was she loved by the people?
_________________________________________________________________________________
3. What does she gave to the people?
_________________________________________________________________________________
4. What does Maria always wear on her gowns and long black hair?
_________________________________________________________________________________
5. What can you say about Maria compared to all of the goddesses of the
mountains?
_________________________________________________________________________________
6. What happened to the pearls and diamonds from one of her gowns?
_________________________________________________________________________________
7. What did Maria feel about what happened?
_________________________________________________________________________________
8. Why did Maria feel sad?
_________________________________________________________________________________
9. After what happened, did Maria Makiling come down from the mountains?
_________________________________________________________________________________
10. Did she show herself again to the people?
_________________________________________________________________________________
 The Lost Fisherman

One day, twelve fishermen went fishing. Some waded into the waters while
the others stayed on their bancas. On their way home, a fisherman said, “We have
gone in the water and some bathe in it. I hope nobody is drowned.”

“Let us count,” said another. There were twelve of us in the morning.”

They all counted but each man forgot to count himself. So each counted
eleven.

“Someone has surely drowned,” they said. “Who among us is the one?” Then
they asked a stranger coming by to help them in their trouble.

He laughed and said, I’ll count you.” He struck the nearest man on the
shoulder with his cane and said, “One!” Then he struck the next man and said, “Two!”
Then he went on striking them till he had counted twelve.

“God bless you!” the fishermen said together. “Thank you! You have found out
that we are all safe!”