Once upon a time, there lived a crocodile in a big, muddy swamp. He swam around all day, looking for something to eat. All the other animals in the swamp were terrified of the crocodile, because he had sharp teeth and a mean growl.

But the crocodile wasn’t mean. He was actually quite friendly and often wished the other animals would come and talk to him. He even tried to smile at them, but his big, toothy grin scared them away.

One day, a little bird flew by and saw the crocodile. The bird perched on a nearby branch and said, “Hello! I’m a bird. What’s your name?”

The crocodile was so excited to finally make a friend. He smiled and said, “My name is Croc. What’s yours?”

But before the bird could answer, the other animals in the swamp started to scream and run away. They were scared of the crocodile, and they thought he was trying to eat the bird.

The bird looked sadly at the crocodile and said, “I’m sorry, Croc. Everyone is scared of you. I wish they could see how kind you really are.”

The crocodile was so sad that the other animals didn’t understand him. He knew that he would never have any friends.

But then one day, an old tortoise waddled up to the crocodile and said, “Hello! I’m Tortise. Can I be your friend?”

The crocodile was so happy. At last, he had found a friend who wasn’t scared of him. From then on, Croc and Tortise were the best of friends.

The animals in the swamp were amazed at how kind the crocodile was. They soon realized that the crocodile wasn’t mean at all, he was just misunderstood.

And so, Croc and Tortise lived happily ever after in the muddy swamp. The other animals learned to accept the crocodile and everyone lived in peace.

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Vocabulary

1. Crocodile (noun): A large reptile with sharp teeth and a large tail, usually found in tropical regions.
2. Swam (verb): To move through water using your arms and legs.
3. Terrified (adjective): Extremely frightened or scared.
4. Toothy (adjective): Having a lot of teeth.
5. Perched (verb): Sat or rested on something in a high or elevated position.
6. Waddled (verb): To walk with a side-to-side motion, like a duck.
7. Misunderstood (adjective): Not understood or interpreted correctly.
8. Accept (verb): To agree to something or someone.
9. Peace (noun): A state of freedom from war or violence.
10. Happily (adverb): In a joyous or contented way.

Comprehension Questions

1. What type of animal was the crocodile in the story?
2. What did the other animals in the swamp think of the crocodile?
3. Who was the first animal to be friends with the crocodile?
4. What did the little bird say to the crocodile when they first met?
5. What did the other animals think the crocodile was trying to do when they saw him with the bird?
6. Why were the other animals scared of the crocodile?
7. What did the old tortoise say when he first met the crocodile?
8. What did the animals in the swamp learn about the crocodile?
9. How did the crocodile and the tortoise become friends?
10. How did the story end?

Gap Fill Questions

1. The crocodile had a ____ growl.
2. The other animals were scared of the ____.
3. The bird said, “Hello! I’m a ____.”
4. The bird said, “I’m sorry, ____.”
5. The old tortoise said, “Hello! I’m ____.”
6. The crocodile was ____ to finally make a friend.
7. The animals in the swamp were ____ of the crocodile.
8. The crocodile and the tortoise were the ____ of friends.
9. The animals in the swamp ____ the crocodile was mean.
10. Croc and Tortise ____ happily ever after.

Conversation Questions

1. What do you think of when you hear the word crocodile?
2. How do you think the crocodile in the story was feeling?
3. Do you think people should give animals a chance before judging them?
4. In what ways do animals and humans have similarities?
5. Why do you think the crocodile reacted the way it did?
6. What do you think would have happened if the crocodile was given a chance?
7. What do you think is the moral of the story?
8. If you were in the same situation as the crocodile, how do you think you would react?
9. What are some other ways animals are misunderstood?
10. What do you think can be done to help people better understand animals?

Answers

Comprehension Question Answers:

1. The crocodile in the story was a crocodile.
2. The other animals in the swamp were scared of the crocodile.
3. The first animal to be friends with the crocodile was the old tortoise.
4. The little bird said “Hello! I’m a bird. What’s your name?” to the crocodile when they first met.
5. The other animals thought the crocodile was trying to eat the bird when they saw him with the bird.
6. The other animals were scared of the crocodile because he had sharp teeth and a mean growl.
7. The old tortoise said “Hello! I’m Tortise. Can I be your friend?” when he first met the crocodile.
8. The animals in the swamp learned that the crocodile wasn’t mean at all, he was just misunderstood.
9. The crocodile and the tortoise became friends when the old tortoise said “Hello! I’m Tortise. Can I be your friend?”.
10. The story ended with the crocodile and the tortoise living happily ever after in the muddy swamp and the other animals learning to accept the crocodile and everyone living in peace.

Gap Fill Question Answers:

1. The crocodile had a mean growl.
2. The other animals were scared of the crocodile.
3. The bird said, “Hello! I’m a bird.”
4. The bird said, “I’m sorry, Croc.”
5. The old tortoise said, “Hello! I’m Tortise.”
6. The crocodile was so excited to finally make a friend.
7. The animals in the swamp were scared of the crocodile.
8. The crocodile and the tortoise were the best of friends.
9. The animals in the swamp thought the crocodile was mean.
10. Croc and Tortise lived happily ever after.