BIG AND LITTLE WORKERS
大大小小的劳动者
The Red Wagon
Once there was a beautiful big red wagon in the window of a toy store.
Billy and George often came to the store window and looked at the toys. Among them were tops and sleds, books and balls, and other fine things. But the boys liked the red wagon best of all.
红色的玩具马车
从前，一家玩具店的橱窗里摆放着一辆漂亮的红色玩具马车。
比利和乔治经常去那家玩具店的橱窗前看里面的玩具。那里有陀螺、雪橇、书、球以及其他很多好玩的东西。但是他们最中意的就数那辆红色的玩具马车了。
 
 “I wish I had that wagon,” said Billy. “I could use it for so many things.”
“I wish it were mine,” said George. “I would play with it all day.”
The man who kept the store heard the boys talking about the big red wagon.
“Both of those boys want that wagon,” he said to himself. “I wonder which boy will get it.”
One day George’s mother wanted to bake a cake. She called George.
“I am going to bake a cake,” she said. “I need some flour and butter. Will you go to the store for me?”
“Wait a minute, Mother,” said George. “I want to spin my top for a while.”
“我真想拥有那辆马车，”比利说，“我可以用它来干很多事情。”
“我希望它是我的，”乔治说，“我可以整天都和它玩儿。”
商店老板听到他们在讨论那辆红色的玩具马车。
“两个小家伙都想要那辆马车，”他自言自语道，“我倒要看看究竟谁会得到它。”
一天，乔治的妈妈想要烤蛋糕。她喊来乔治。
“我要烤蛋糕，”她说，“我需要一些面粉和黄油。你能帮我去商店买些回来吗？”
“等一会儿，妈妈，”乔治说，“我想再玩一会儿陀螺。”
 
But he had such a good time spinning his top that he forgot all about going to the store.
The very same day Billy’s mother said, “Billy, I need some things from the store. Will you get them for me, please?”
“Yes, Mother,” answered Billy. “I’ll go right now.”
但是他玩陀螺玩得太入迷了，忘记了要去商店。
就在同一天，比利的妈妈说：“比利，我需要从商店买些东西回来，你能替我去吗？”
“好的，妈妈，”比利回答道，“我这就过去。”
 
When Billy went past George’s house, he saw George spinning his top on the walk.
“Come here, Billy,” George called. “Let’s spin our tops.”
“I can’t stop just now,” answered Billy. “Mother sent me on an errand. I’ll play with you after I come back.”
Billy went on. Soon he came past again with his arms full of packages.
当比利经过乔治家的时候，他看到乔治正在路上玩他的陀螺。
“快来，比利，”乔治喊道，“我们一起来玩陀螺吧。”
“我现在不能耽搁，”比利说，“妈妈交给我一个差事。等我回来之后，再和你一起玩吧。”
比利走了。不一会儿，他又从这里经过，双手抱着袋子。
 
That evening Billy helped his father rake the leaves. They raked them into a big pile. Then they carried them to the garden and burned them.
“I could do more work,” said Billy, “if I had a big red wagon.”
那天晚上，比利帮助他的爸爸用耙子搂叶子。他们把树叶搂在一起，然后弄到花园里，烧成了灰。
“如果我有一辆红色的马车的话，”比利说，“我还可以做更多的活儿。”
 
George’s father was raking leaves, too. He needed a helper, but George was in the park, playing ball.
The two boys would often meet at the toy store. One day when they saw the big red wagon, it had a green card on it.
“Oh, look!” said George. “The card says SOLD. Some boy is going to get the red wagon.”
The boys walked home slowly. They felt sad because the red wagon was sold. They wondered if any of their playmates would get it.
乔治的爸爸也在耙树叶。他需要一个帮手。但乔治却在花园里玩球。
两个男孩经常在玩具店碰面。一天，他们看到那辆红色的马车上面有一张绿色的卡片。
“噢，快看啊！”乔治说，“卡片上写着：已售出。有个男孩就要得到这辆红色马车了。”
两个男孩慢慢往家走。他们很难过，因为红色马车已经卖出去了。他们想知道是哪一个小伙伴得到了它。
 
Next morning Billy’s mother called, “Billy! Wake up! Wake up!”
Billy opened one eye. Then he opened the other eye. He saw something in his room that made him very wide awake.
There was the big red wagon! It had a card on it, but this card did not say SOLD. It said, “Happy Birthday to a good helper who needs a red wagon.”
第二天早上，比利的妈妈喊道：“比利，快醒醒，快醒醒！”
比利睁开一只眼，接着又睁开另一只眼。他看见房间里多了一样东西，那东西让他一下子就清醒过来了。
那辆红色的玩具马车！上面有一张卡片，卡片上写的并不是“已售出”，而是—— “需要红色马车的好帮手，祝你生日快乐。”
 
 
Grandmother’s Churn
John, Tom, and Sal ly were visiting Grandmother and Grandfather at the farm. One day when the postman came down theroad, he brought the children a letter fromtheir mother.
Sally read the letter. “Oh, listen,” she cried. “Mother is coming! She will be here Saturday afternoon.”
“Let’s do something to surprise her,” said Grandmother. “Can you think of something she would like?”
奶奶的搅拌器
约翰、汤姆和莎莉正在他们爷爷奶奶的农场做客。一天，邮递员经过这里的时候给孩子们带来了一封他们的妈妈写的信。
莎莉读了信。“噢！听着，”她叫道，“妈妈要来了！她星期六下午就到。”
“那我们做点什么让她惊喜一下吧！”奶奶说，“你们知道她喜欢什么吗？”
 
“I know something Mother likes,” said Tom. “She likes gingerbread with good, fresh butter on it. We all like it, too.”
“Yes,” cried Sally. “Let’s make some gingerbread when Mother comes.”
Grandmother said, “I’ll show you how to make gingerbread, and Grandfather will get the butter in town Friday.”
“我知道妈妈喜欢什么，”汤姆说，“她喜欢姜饼，尤其是涂了新鲜美味的黄油的那种。我们也都很喜欢。”
“是的，”莎莉说，“那我们就做些姜饼等妈妈来吧。”
奶奶说：“我来教你们怎么做姜饼。星期五的时候，爷爷会从小镇上买些黄油回来。”
 
 “Oh, Grandmother,” said Tom, “let us children make the butter in your old churn that is down in the cellar.”
Grandmother thought for a minute.
“You can try,” she said. “We must have sour cream to make butter. We will save the cream from the milk that the cows give tonight. It will be sour enough to churn by Saturday morning.”
“Won’t that be fun!” cried Sally.
“It will be hard work,” said Tom, “but each of us can do part of it.”
“噢，奶奶，”汤姆说，“就让我们用您放在地下室的旧搅拌器做黄油吧。”
奶奶想了一会儿。
“你们可以试试，”她说，“我们需要一些酸奶油来做黄油。我们可以从今天挤的奶里收集些奶油。到了星期六的早上，奶油就足够酸了。”
“难道不是很有趣吗？”莎莉叫道。
“这可是个艰巨的工作，”汤姆说，“但是我们可以分工合作。”
 
When Grandfather milked the cows that evening, the children helped him carry the milk from the barn to the house. Then Grandmother put the milk into big pans.
Saturday morning every pan had thick, sour cream on top. The children took off the cream and put it into the churn.
“Now who will churn first?” asked Grandmother.
当天晚上，爷爷挤牛奶的时候，孩子们帮他把牛奶从谷仓提到屋子里。然后奶奶将牛奶倒进了几个很大的平底锅里。
星期六早上，每一个平底锅上面都有了一层厚厚的酸奶油。孩子们把奶油取下来，放进搅拌器里。
“现在，谁第一个来搅拌？”奶奶问。
 
 “Let Sally try it,” said Tom. So Sally began to churn.
At first it was easy. Up and down went her arms. In a short time Sally became tired, but she kept on working. She made up this little song,
“Oh, the cream to butter turns,
As it churns, churns, churns.”
“Let me churn now,” said John.
John was too short to reach the churn. So Tom got a box for him to stand on.
“让莎莉试一下吧。”汤姆说。于是莎莉开始搅拌起来。
刚开始挺容易的。只见她的胳膊上下挥舞。不一会儿，莎莉就累了，但是她还在坚持。她编了一首歌：
“搅啊搅，拌啊拌，
“奶油正在变黄油。”
“现在让我来吧。”约翰说。
约翰太矮了，根本够不到搅拌器。于是汤姆找来一个箱子，让他站在上面。
 
When John began to churn, he made up a song, too. He sang,
“It will turn, turn, turn,
As I churn, churn, churn.”
Soon Grandmother said, “John, your arms must be tired. Who is next?”
Tom took his place at the churn and worked with all his might. He made up a song like this,
“Hurry, hurry, little churn,
And the cream to butter turn.”
By and by Grandmother opened the churn and showed the children little pieces of butter. “The butter is coming,” she said. “Now churn very slowly.”
约翰开始搅拌的时候，也编了一首歌，他唱道：
“我拌拌拌，
“它变变变。”
过了一会儿，奶奶说：“约翰，你的胳膊肯定很累了。谁是下一个？”
汤姆接替了约翰，然后用尽全力搅拌起来。他编的歌是这样的：
“搅拌器快加油，
“快把奶油变黄油。”
又过了一会儿，奶奶打开搅拌器，让孩子们看了看小块的黄油。“黄油就要做好了，”她说，“现在得慢慢搅拌了。”
 
Soon all the butter was in a few big pieces. Grandmother took it out of the churn and put it into a big bowl.
Then she poured cold water over the butter and showed the children how to wash the buttermilk out of it.
不一会儿，所有的黄油结成了几大块。奶奶把黄油从搅拌器取出来，放进了一个大碗里。
然后，她向黄油上倒了些冷水，之后教孩子们如何除去上面的酪乳。
 
 “When Mother comes,” said Tom, “we will ask her to guess what we made for her supper.”
Next, the children helped Grandmother make the gingerbread. They had just taken it from the oven when Grandfather called, “It’s time to meet Mother.”
At supper time Sally brought in the gingerbread. Then John carried in a dish with a cover on it. “Now, Mother,” he said, “you must guess what else we made to surprise you. It is in this dish.”
“It is yellow as gold,” said Sally.
“It is good on gingerbread,” said Tom.
“The cows helped make it,” said John.
“妈妈来的时候，”汤姆说，“我们就让她猜我们给她做了什么当晚餐。”
接下来，孩子们帮奶奶做姜饼。他们刚把姜饼从烤箱中拿出来，爷爷便喊道：“该去迎接你们的妈妈了。”
晚餐的时候，莎莉拿来了姜饼。约翰把姜饼放进盘子里，用东西盖上。“妈妈，”
约翰说，“现在你猜猜，为了给你个惊喜，我们做了什么？它就在这个盘子里。”
“像金子一样黄黄的。”莎莉说。
“配上姜饼很好吃的。”汤姆说。
“是奶牛帮忙做成的。”约翰说。
 
Mother laughed. “That’s easy enough,” she said. “It’s butter. But how did you children make butter?”
Then they told her how they had made the butter in Grandmother’s old churn.
Mother said with a smile, “I learned to make butter in that old churn when I was a little girl.”
妈妈笑了。“这太简单了，”她说道，“这是黄油，不过你们这些孩子是怎么做出黄油的？”
接着孩子们告诉她怎样用奶奶的旧搅拌器做出了黄油。
妈妈微笑着说：“当我还是一个小女孩的时候，就学会用那个旧搅拌器做黄油了。”
 
 
The Postman
You must, I think, be very strong
To be a postman all day long;
For though it snows, or rains, or sleets,
You still go walking through the streets.
邮递员
我想，你一定非常强壮，
才能当上整日里奔波的邮递员。
无论雨雪，无论冰雹，
你总是穿梭在街道上。

引入本套教材的初衷，是让国内的英语学习者，尤其是初学者，从一开始就接触正宗的美式英语，透过美国原版教材，近距离接触美国原味文化。
这是一套完整系统的原版美国小学教材读本，全套教材提供了一系列生动有趣的故事，故事的情节和长度，以及句子的长短表述方式，随着阅读者年龄的增长呈现出一定的梯度。孩子们循序渐进地阅读学习下去，会在不知不觉中大大提高英语水平，同时通过故事增长很多知识，获得许多乐趣，并在潜移默化中滋养了情感。
这是一套美国成功教材的典范，曾经在上世纪被长时间广泛使用，影响了几代美国人。作为语言教材，它具有非常严谨的规范性、科学性和系统性，而里面的故事又非常活泼有趣，因此它非常适合孩子们阅读和学习，也很受他们们欢迎。

随着年龄的增长和知识的增加，小学二年级的孩子探索的脚步更加坚定，活动场所更加开阔，他们有了更强的参与能力，户外活动更丰富。为此，本级的故事中有了孩子的身影，比如关于户外的故事、关于勇敢行为的故事等；而像《三只小猪》等经典的动物故事，以及《北风与少年》等古老的传说仍有一定的比例。此外，在故事之间还穿插了6首短小的儿歌和诗歌。
本级分为A、B两册，仍然延续故事情节简短有趣的风格，在表述上更着重英语语言的鲜活性。本级共出现471个新词，其中A册300个，B册171个。

埃尔松，美国教育界权威性人物，教育理论家,教育实践家,小学语文教材的主要编写者。
格莱，美国教育理论与实践研究工作者，有丰富的教材编写和出版经验。

CONTENTS
目 录
BIG AND LITTLE WORKERS
大大小小的劳动者..................................................................................... 1
The Red Wagon
红色的玩具马车......................................................................................... 2
Grandmother’s Churn
奶奶的搅拌器............................................................................................ 9
The Postman
邮递员..................................................................................................... 18
How the First Dishes Were Made
餐具的由来............................................................................................... 19
Little Pig and His Garden
小猪和他的花园........................................................................................ 29
OLD TALES
古老的传说................................................................................................. 39
The Old Woman and the Cakes
老婆婆和蛋糕........................................................................................... 40
The Star Dipper
星之勺..................................................................................................... 46
Jack and the Beanstalk
杰克和豆茎............................................................................................... 54
The Animals That Found a Home
动物有了一个家........................................................................................ 70
The Lad and the North Wind
少年与北风............................................................................................... 83
BRAVE AND TRUE STORIES
勇敢而真实的故事.................................................................................... 95
The Little Cook
小厨师..................................................................................................... 96
Abraham Lincoln and His Dog
亚伯拉罕. 林肯和他的爱犬....................................................................... 103
What the Flag Says
国旗在说................................................................................................ 110
How Nan Saved Sally
南是如何解救莎莉的................................................................................ 111
The Young Fireman
年轻的消防员.......................................................................................... 120
HAPPY DAY STORIES
节日的故事............................................................................................... 127
The Halloween Cat
万圣节猫咪............................................................................................. 128
The Dolls’ Thanksgiving Dinner
玩具娃娃的感恩节晚餐............................................................................. 137
The Golden Spider Webs
金色蜘蛛网............................................................................................. 144
The Story of the Easter Rabbit
复活节兔子的故事................................................................................... 153
 
WORD LIST
词汇表................................................................................................... 162