The Brothers and the Bread

Two brothers wanted to go outside and play. However, because the only bread in the house was stale, their mother told them they needed to bake fresh bread.

“I have to have the car repaired,” she said. “When I return, if the bread is ready, you can play.”

The brothers hurried to prepare the bread, but not carefully. They didn’t sift the flour. They were careless and sprinkled too much salt into the mixture. The dough needed to be soft and flexible, but the salt made it into a lump that was as hard as a brick.

The younger brother uttered a sigh. “Now we have to start again,” he said.

“No, we don’t,” the older brother replied. “I’ll fix it. I just need to make the dough flat again and add water to it.”

He decided to hit the ball of dough with his fist to make it flat. But he hit it so hard that it flew right off of the table and knocked over a glass, which shattered. The dough then crashed into the kitchen window’s shutters and crumbled. Luckily, the brothers were not injured, but they did make a huge mess.

A slight mistake now became a major problem. The brothers had ruined the kitchen. Just then their mother returned. She saw the mess and became flushed with anger.

“Now you can’t play,” she said. “Instead, you have to clean the kitchen. I want this kitchen to be so clean that it may sparkle!”

The brothers cleaned the floor and expressed their sorrow to their mother. Soon, they were reconciled. But there was no bread, and it was too late to play. They realized that trying to do something quickly often makes more work.

Part A: Mark each statement T for true or F for false. Rewrite the false statements to make them true.

1. _____ Because the bread was stale, the mother wanted them to bake fresh bread.
   • _____________________________________________________
2. _____ The dough became a lump that was as hard as a brick.
   • _____________________________________________________
3. _____ The bread needed to be hard and sturdy.
   • _____________________________________________________
4. _____ The older brother uttered a sigh.
   • _____________________________________________________
5. _____ The brothers had to clean the kitchen, so it may sparkle
   • _____________________________________________________
6. _____ A major mistake only caused a slight problem.
   • _____________________________________________________

Part B: Answer the questions.

1. What made the dough into a hard lump?
   • a. Not putting in enough water
   • b. Using too much salt
   • c. Expressing sadness
   • d. Not sifting the flour
2. What happened when the older brother hit the dough with his fist?
   • a. The dough hit the shutters
   • b. A glass shattered.
   • c. The brothers were injured.
   • d. The dough crumbled.
3. Why was the mother flushed with anger?
   • a. The dough was hard
   • b. The kitchen was ruined.
   • c. The brothers sighed.
   • d. The repair shop was closed.
4. When were the brothers reconciled with their mother?
   • a. As she made fresh bread
   • b. When she returned from the store
   • c. Before she left the house
   • d. After they cleaned the kitchen