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目 錄

PART FOUR STORIES EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW

第四部分 每個人應該知道的故事................................................... 1

Climbing

攀登........................................................................................................ 2

Everyone Likes A Good Story

每個人都喜歡好故事.................................................................................. 4

THE MIRACULOUS PITCHER

神奇的牛奶罐............................................................................................ 6

RUMPLESTILTSKIN

紡線姑娘.................................................................................................. 48

A DOG OF FLANDERS

弗蘭德斯的狗........................................................................................... 74

A Backward Look

內容回顧.................................................................................................. 92

PART FIVE BUSY WORKERS AND THEIR WORK

第五部分 忙碌的勞動者和他們的工作........................................... 93

We Must Wake and Work

我們必須醒來工作..................................................................................... 94

Hundreds of People Work for You

成百上千的人為你工作............................................................................... 95

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN’S IRON STOVE

本傑明. 富蘭克林的鐵爐子......................................................................... 97

ORANGES, AMERICA’S GOLDEN HARVEST

橙子，美國金色的收獲............................................................................. 113

SHEEP-SHEARING ON NANTUCKET ISLAND

在楠塔基特島剪羊毛................................................................................ 126

EARNING A PLAYGROUND

獲得一個運動場...................................................................................... 143

ROB’S FIRST BLACKFISH DRIVE

羅伯次圍趕黑鯨................................................................................ 153

A Backward Look

內容回顧................................................................................................ 168

PART SIX FAMOUS HEROES OF LONG AGO

第六部分 很久以前的著名英雄.................................................... 171

Long Ago and Far Away

很久以前在很遠的地方............................................................................. 172

Every Land Has Its Heroes

每個國家都有自己的英雄.......................................................................... 174

BEOWULF,THE BRAVE PRINCE

英勇的貝奧武夫王子................................................................................ 176

SIGURD, THE YOUNG WARRIOR

年輕的西格德勇士................................................................................... 204

ROLAND, THE NOBLE KNIGHT

高貴的騎士羅蘭...................................................................................... 240

A Backward Look

內容回顧................................................................................................ 280

PART SEVEN HOLIDAYS AND FESTIVALS

第七部分 節假日.............................................................................. 283

Christmas in The Heart

心中的聖誕節.......................................................................................... 284

Holidays Are Remembering Days

節日是紀念日.......................................................................................... 285

HALLOWEEN

萬聖節................................................................................................... 287

REMEMBERING DAY

紀念日................................................................................................... 289

THE FIRST THANKSGIVING DAY

個感恩節.......................................................................................... 290

A SURPRISE CHRISTMAS

意想不到的聖誕節................................................................................... 319

THE CHRISTMAS FAIRY AND SCROOGE

聖誕仙女和斯克魯奇................................................................................ 333

A NEW YEAR’S LEAF

新年之葉................................................................................................ 365

HEARTS WERE MADE TO GIVE AWAY

心是贈予................................................................................................ 366

WHO SHALL BE MAY QUEEN

誰將成為五月皇後................................................................................... 367

A Backward Look

內容回顧................................................................................................ 375

GLOSSARY

難詞表................................................................................................... 377

前 言

      國內套來自美國的原版基礎英語教材語言的影響力與國力呈正相關。美國英語脫胎於英國英語，但獨立趨勢日益增強，無論是發音、拼寫方式還是用法都逐漸自成一體。美國英語的使用範圍日趨廣泛，接受程度越來越高。

      遺憾的是，現在國內盛行的正式出版且廣為使用的基礎英語教材要麼為國內自編，要麼引自英國，來自美國的原版基礎英語教材幾乎沒有。這種狀況與國人的實際需求是脫節的。鋻於此，我們特地從曾經在美國廣泛使用的教材中精選了一套經典讀本，取名為“美國幼兒英語”（原教材為學前部分）、“美國小學英語”（原教材為小學部分），以示區別。我們之所以選中這套教材，主要是因為它具有以下幾個鮮明的特點：

      一、使用時間長，影響範圍廣。本套教材的編者埃爾松和格萊為20世紀上半葉美國影響力、權威的閱讀教學專家，被譽為“對整個美國教育史都有重大影響的人物”。他們編著的這套讀本影響了美國幾代人，尤其是美國“嬰兒潮”那代人，都是讀著這套教材長大的。如今，那一代人已成為美國社會各個領域的中堅力量，從當今總統、國會議員等政界領袖，到企業巨子和商業大亨，乃至科技、教育、文化、藝術等專業領域的權威名流，應有盡有。教材中塑造的很多人物或動物形像也已經成為美國家喻戶曉的文化標志，頻繁出現在電影、動畫、繪畫和其他文藝作品中。

      二、選材廣泛，內容經典。編者表示，編選這套讀本的首要目的是引導學生成為主動、熱心的讀者，在愉悅的體驗中獲取知識，培養情操。為此，編者詳細考察了整個兒童文學領域，從浩繁的經典中選取符合兒童興趣的內容，然後根據全國各地一線教師的反饋和建議，結合課堂實際需要進行調整、評估和分級，確保終的選材是經典中的經典，同時容易為孩子所接受。

      三、編排嚴謹，體繫科學。教材的編者首次把新的“心理數據分析法”應用於教學之中，成效顯著。在為本套書選材並分類時，他們同樣采用科學分析的方法，充分考慮孩子的心理認知特點和規律，既著眼於趣味性和知識性，又注重教學的實用性和學生的接受能力。每一篇材料都嚴格控制生詞的數量，並確定生詞的重復率，以減少學生閱讀中的障礙，使他們在保持愉悅感的同時自然而然地掌握和鞏固詞彙。各冊之間循序漸進、銜接自然，使孩子的閱讀興趣和閱讀能力同步增長。

      本套讀本顯著的特點是按照兒童認知規律先感性、後理性的特點，采用繪本形式，由圖到文逐漸過渡，即從以圖帶文到圖文並重，後過渡到圖弱文強，讓孩子逐步提高文字閱讀能力。它在美國教材史上是經典，也讓我們看到美國教材的活潑；它呈現給我們的英語完全符合我們心中對“美國英語”這個概念的定位。

      對於這樣一套經典的讀本，我們在編輯過程中，對英文原文未作任何改動，完全忠實於它的原貌。一開始，你可能會發現有些表達和國內的用法不太一樣，但僅僅是表面的不一樣。隨著你的閱讀漸入佳境，你會進一步發現這裡的英語活潑靈動，進而會喜歡上它。

      對於國內的英語愛好者來說，這套英語讀本是好的禮物。它的中英雙語呈現，也是青少年讀者絕佳的語言學習材料和文學讀物。全套書共分為《美國幼兒英語》和《美國小學英語》兩部分。《美國幼兒英語》分為1～3級，每級1冊，共3冊，可作為幼兒園英語教材；《美國小學英語》分為1～6級，每級分A、B兩冊，共12冊，可作為中國7～15歲英語學習者的學習教材。

       願讀者真正感受到“美國英語”的魅力，享受學習“美國英語”的樂趣。

      另外，為使讀者充分利用《美國小學英語》，除了美音朗讀，我們還開發了文本點讀功能和部分階段在線微課程（1～4級）。

PART FOUR  STORIES EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW

第四部分 每個人應該知道的故事

Climbing

High up in the apple tree climbing I go,

With the sky above me, the earth below.

Each branch is the step of a wonderful stair

Which leads to the town I see shining up there.

Climbing, climbing, higher and higher,

The branches blow and I see a spire,

The gleam of a turret, the glint of a dome,

All sparkling and bright, like white seafoam.

攀登 

我爬到蘋果樹的高處，

頭上是天空，腳下是大地。

每個枝杈都是絕妙的階梯，

通向我眼中閃閃發光的城鎮。

越爬越高，越爬越高，

枝條搖曳，我看見一個尖塔，

一個角樓的閃爍，一個圓穹頂的微光，

都在一閃一閃地發著亮光，像海面上白色的泡沫。

Today to the end of the marvelous stair,

Where those glittering pinnacles flash in the air!

Climbing, climbing, higher I go,

With the sky close above me, the earth far below.

—Amy Lowell

今天，在那個奇妙的階梯盡頭，

那些閃閃發光的尖塔在空中閃現！

我越爬越高，越爬越高，

天空在上方離頭頂很近，大地在下方離我很遠很遠。

——阿米.洛威爾

Everyone Likes A Good Story

Even before you could read, you used to ask your father and mother to tell you stories. Everyone likes a good story. All over our land there are thousands of libraries, and every year millions of people are reading stories—in books, in magazines, and in newspapers.

Now, of course, not everyone likes the same kind of story. You like some better than others. But there are stories that everyone seems to enjoy; the years go by, the stories get older, and yet people go on reading them and enjoying them.

每個人都喜歡好故事 

你甚至在能夠閱讀之前，就經常讓你的爸爸和媽媽給你講故事。每個人都喜歡好故事。全世界有成千上萬的圖書館，每年有數百萬人都在書籍、雜志和報紙上閱讀故事。

現在，當然並不是每個人都喜歡同一種故事。你也有自己比較喜歡的一些故事。但是，有些故事似乎每個人都喜歡；時光流逝，那些故事越來越古老，但是人們還會繼續閱讀和喜愛它們。

Now your Book Comrade will tell you three stories that millions of people have enjoyed. Two of them are old, written long before you or your parents were born. But people still read them, and probably will do so for many long years to come. No one knows who first made them up. One of them is given here as it was written down by a great American story-teller, another as it was retold by an English writer of today. You could find thousands of boys and girls in lands across the sea who know these stories. The third story is not so old, but people have loved it for many years, and you will love it, too.

After you have read these stories, perhaps you can find others that you will enjoy very much. Then you will be able to tell other people about these stories.

現在你的書伙伴將給你講述三個數百萬人喜歡的故事。其中的兩個是古老的故事，

在你或你的父母出生以前很久就有了。但是人們仍在閱讀它們，並且可能在未來的

很長時間內還會閱讀。沒有人知道是誰個創作了它們。這裡敘述的其中一個故

事是由一個偉大的美國故事家寫下的，另一個故事是由一個當今的英國作家轉述

的。你可以在大洋兩岸找到成千上萬知道這些故事的男孩和女孩。第三個故事沒有

那麼古老，但是多年來人們都喜歡它，你也會喜歡它。

讀過這些故事後，你或許會找到其他你非常喜歡的故事。然後就可以把這些故事講

給別人聽。

THE MIRACULOUS PITCHER

NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE

Nathaniel Hawthorne was one of America’s greatest story-tellers. In some of his stories he told of famous wonder-working people who were supposed to live long years ago. They were called gods, and they ruled over the people who lived on earth. The father of all the gods was Zeus. The thunder was his voice, and lightning was his weapon.  Quicksilver was the messenger of the gods. In the story you will now read, Hawthorne tells how Zeus and Quicksilver came down to earth, and taught some people a very valuable lesson.

神奇的牛奶罐 

納撒尼爾·霍桑

納撒尼爾.霍桑是美國偉大的故事家之一。在他的許多故事裡，他講述了那些被認為是生活在很久以前的創造奇跡的名人。他們被稱為神靈，他們主宰著生活在大地上的人們。眾神之父是宙斯。雷聲是他的嗓音，閃電是他的武器。水銀是眾神的信使。在你將要讀的故事裡，霍桑講述宙斯和水銀如何來到人間，並教給一些人非常寶貴的經驗教訓。

BAUCIS AND PHILEMON

One evening, in times long ago, old Philemon and his wife, Baucis, sat at their cottage door, enjoying the beautiful sunset. They had already eaten their supper, and intended to spend a quiet hour or two before bedtime.

博西斯和菲利蒙 

很久以前的一個傍晚，老菲利蒙和他的妻子博西斯坐在他們小屋的門口，享受著美麗的日落時光。他們已經喫過了晚飯，打算在睡覺前安安靜靜地度過一兩個小時。

So they talked together about their garden and their cow and their bees. But the rude shouts of children and the fierce barking of dogs in the village near at hand grew louder and louder, until at last it was hardly possible for Baucis and Philemon to hear each other speak.

“Ah, wife,” cried Philemon, “I fear some poor traveler is seeking hospitality among our neighbors and, instead of giving him food and lodging they have set their dogs at him.”

“Well!” answered old Baucis, “I do wish our neighbors felt a little more kindness for their fellow-creatures. Only think of bringing up their children in this naughty way, and patting them on the head when they fling stones at strangers!”

於是他們一起談論著他們的花園、奶牛和蜜蜂。但是，旁邊村子裡的孩子們那粗魯的喊叫聲和兇猛的狗叫聲越來越響。後，博西斯和菲利蒙簡直聽不見彼此的說話聲了。

“哎呀，親愛的。”菲利蒙喊道，“恐怕某個可憐的旅行者正在我們的鄰居那裡謀求款待，但是他們沒有給他提供食宿而是讓他們的狗去攻擊他。”

“啊！”老博西斯回答說，“但願我們的鄰居對他們的同胞好一點兒。想一下對孩子這樣的頑皮該怎樣教養，他們向陌生人扔石頭時還輕拍他們的頭表示贊許！”

 “Those children will never come to any good,” said Philemon, shaking his white head. “To tell you the truth, wife, I should not wonder if some terrible thing were to happen to all the people in the village if they do not learn to behave themselves. But as for you and me, so long as we have a crust of bread, let us be ready to give half to any poor homeless stranger that may come along and need it.”

“That’s right, husband!” said Baucis. “So we will!”

These old folks, you must know, were quite poor, and had to work pretty hard for a living. Their food was usually bread, milk, and vegetables, with sometimes honey from their beehive.

“那些孩子永遠不會學好的，”菲利蒙搖著他花白頭發的頭說，“說實話，親愛的，我不會懷疑他們是否會遭到報應，如果村子裡的人不學著好好做人的話。但是就你和我來說，隻要我們有一塊面包，我們就把一半分給任何一個可能會來而且需要它的可憐的無家可歸的陌生人。”

“是的，親愛的！”博西斯說，“我們會那樣做！”

你肯定知道這些老人們非常貧窮，他們不得不靠辛苦的勞作來謀生。他們的食物通常是面包、牛奶和蔬菜，有時候還有來自他們蜂房裡的蜂蜜。

But they were two of the kindest old people in the world. They would cheerfully have gone without their dinners any day, rather than refuse a slice of their brown loaf, a cup of new milk, and a spoonful of honey to the weary traveler who might stop at their door.

Their cottage stood a short distance from the village, which lay in a valley. This valley, when the world was new, had probably been the bed of a lake. There, fishes had glided to and fro in the depths, and the water-weeds had grown along the shore. But it was now a fertile spot of fields and meadows.

但是，他們是世界上善良的兩個老人。他們可以不喫飯而高高興興地度過任何一天，而不會拒絕把一片黑面包、一杯新鮮的牛奶和一勺蜂蜜給可能會停在他們家門口的疲倦的旅行者。

他們的小屋在一個山谷裡，離那個村莊不遠。起初，這個山谷可能是一個湖床。那裡曾經有在湖水深處來回遊動的魚兒和沿岸生長的水草。但如今卻是一片肥沃的農田和牧場。

Never was there a prettier or more fruitful valley. The very sight of the beautiful fields and orchards with their rich crops should have made the people kind and gentle, and ready to do good to their fellow-men. But, we are sorry to say, the men and women of this lovely valley were very selfish and hardhearted, and had no pity for the poor.

You will hardly believe what I am going to tell you. These naughty people used to clap their hands when they saw the little boys and girls run after some poor stranger, shouting at his heels and pelting him with stones. They kept large and fierce dogs, and whenever a stranger showed himself in the village street, this pack of ugly curs scampered to meet him, barking and snarling.

那裡再沒有一個更漂亮和多產的山谷了。漂亮的田地和果園以及豐富的農作物應該會使那裡的人溫和、善良，並願意幫助他們的同胞。但是，遺憾的是，這個秀麗山谷裡的男人和女人卻非常自私和冷酷，他們並不同情窮人。

你可能不相信我將要講述的事情。當看見小男孩和小女孩追趕某個可憐的陌生人，在陌生人身後大喊並向他扔石頭時，這些沒規矩的人經常會拍手叫好。他們養著又大又兇猛的狗，無論哪一個陌生人任何時候出現在村莊的大街上，這群令人討厭的惡狗就會狂吠著、咆哮著向他飛奔而去。

THE TWO TRAVELERS

So now you can understand why old Philemon spoke so sorrowfully when he heard the shouts of the children and the barking of the dogs.

“I never heard the dogs so loud!” said the good old man.

“Nor the children so rude!” answered his wife.

They sat shaking their heads one to another, while the noise came nearer and nearer, until they saw two travelers approaching on foot. Close behind them came the fierce dogs, snarling at their very heels. A little farther off ran a crowd of children, who flung stones at the two strangers with all their might.

兩個旅行者 

所以，現在你能理解為什麼當老菲利蒙聽見孩子們的喊叫聲和狗的狂吠聲時，說話那麼悲傷了。

“我從來都沒有聽到過如此大的狗叫聲！”那個善良的老人說。

“也沒有聽到過孩子們會如此無禮！”他的妻子回應道。

他們坐在那裡彼此搖著頭，這時噪雜聲越來越近，直到他們看見兩個旅行者走過來。兇猛的狗緊跟在他們的後面，在他們的腳後跟處咆哮著。不遠處跑來了一群孩子，他們竭盡全力地向那兩個陌生人扔石頭。

Both of the travelers were very poorly clad, and looked as if they might not have money enough in their pockets to pay for a night’s lodging.

“Come, wife,” said Philemon to Baucis, “let us go and meet these poor people. No doubt they feel almost too heavy-hearted to climb the hill.”

兩個旅行者都衣著寒酸，看起來他們口袋裡似乎沒有足夠的錢來支付一晚的住宿費用。

“嗨，親愛的，”菲利蒙對博西斯說，“我們去迎接一下這些可憐的人吧。他們很可能感到太悲傷而爬不上小山了。”

 “Go you and meet them,” answered Baucis, “while I make haste within doors and see whether we can get them anything for supper.”

And so she hastened to the cottage. Philemon went forward, saying in the heartiest tone: “Welcome, strangers! Welcome!”

“Thank you!” replied the younger of the two. “This is quite another greeting than the one we have met with in the village. Those children—the little rascals!—have spattered us from head to foot with their mud-balls; and one of the curs has torn my cloak, which was ragged enough already.”

“你去接應一下他們吧。”博西斯回答說，“我趕快回屋看一下是否有什麼東西拿來給他們當晚餐。”

因此她趕快回到屋裡。菲利蒙走上前去，用熱誠的語氣說：“歡迎你們，陌生人！歡迎你們！”

“謝謝您！”兩個陌生人中較為年輕的人回答說，“這與我們在那個村莊裡遇見的問候完全不同。那些孩子——小淘氣鬼們——用他們的泥球把我們渾身上下都弄髒了；其中的一隻惡狗撕破了我的鬥篷，它已經破得不能再破了。”

He was dressed in rather an odd way, with a sort of cap on his head, the brim of which stuck out over both ears. Though it was summer-time, he wore a cloak. Philemon saw, too, that he had on a strange-looking pair of shoes.

THE MARVELOUS STAFF

One thing certainly seemed queer. The traveler was so wonderfully light and active that it appeared as if his feet sometimes rose from the ground of their own accord.

“I used to be light-footed in my youth,” said Philemon to the traveler. “But I always found my feet grow heavier toward night-fall.”

“There is nothing like good staff to help one along,” answered the stranger; “and I happen to have an excellent one, as you see.”

他穿得相當奇怪，頭上戴著一種類似帽子的東西，耳朵上面的帽檐往上翹起。雖然正值夏天，他卻披著鬥篷。菲利蒙還看見他穿著一雙樣子奇怪的鞋。

不同尋常的手杖 

有一件事情看起來確實很奇怪。旅行者很輕快靈活，看起來好像他的腳有時候自動地從地面上升起來一樣。

“我年輕時的腳步也很輕快，”菲利蒙對那個旅行者說，“但是我總感覺到了傍晚以後，我的腳就越來越沉重了。”

“什麼也比不上一根好手杖可以一直幫助你走路，”那個陌生人回答說，“正如你所見，我恰好有一根非常不錯的手杖。”

This staff, in fact, was the oddest-looking staff that Philemon had ever seen. It was made of olive-wood, and had something like a pair of wings near the top. Two snakes carved in the wood were twining themselves about the staff. Old Philemon almost thought them alive, and that he could see them wriggling and twisting.

事實上，這根手杖是菲利蒙見過的樣子奇怪的手杖。它是用橄欖木做的，接近頂部的地方有一雙像翅膀的東西。雕刻在木頭上的兩條蛇纏繞在手杖上。老菲利蒙幾乎認為它們是活的，而且他能看見它們正在蠕動盤繞。

 “A curious piece of work, sure enough!” said he. “A staff with wings! It would be an excellent kind of stick for a little boy to ride astride of!”

By this time Philemon and his two guests had reached the cottage door.

“Friends,” said the old man, “sit down and rest yourselves here on this bench. My good wife, Baucis, has gone to see what you can have for supper. We are poor folks; but you shall be welcome to whatever we have in the cupboard.”

“果真是一件奇怪的藝術品！”他說，“長著翅膀的手杖！讓一個小男孩騎在這根手杖上的話會很好！”

這時，菲利蒙和他的兩個客人已經到了小屋門口。

“朋友們，”老人說，“坐在這個板凳上休息一下吧。我善良的妻子博西斯已經去看你們的晚飯有什麼能喫的。我們是窮人，但是無論我們食櫥裡有什麼，你們都可以隨意喫。”

The younger stranger threw himself carelessly on the bench, letting his staff fall as he did so. And here happened something rather marvelous. The staff seemed to get up from the ground! Spreading its little pair of wings, it half hopped, half flew, and leaned itself against the wall of the cottage. There it stood quite still, except that the snakes continued to wriggle.

Before Philemon could ask any questions, the elder stranger inquired in a deep voice, “Was there not, in very old times, a lake covering the spot where now stands yonder village?”

那個年輕一點兒的陌生人徑直坐到板凳上，同時把他的手杖也隨意一放。這時發生了非常奇妙的事情。那根手杖好像從地上站起來了！它張開那雙小翅膀，半跳半飛地靠在了小屋的牆上。它在那裡非常安靜地站著，除了那兩條蛇在繼續蠕動。

菲利蒙還沒來