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The Well on Tala Hill

Read an original folktale about a village that forgets to care for its only well, retell the events and explain how key details show the message.

Grade 3ELAInteractive · Printable

Aligned toRL.3.2

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What’s included

Single worksheet
Auto-graded online
1 Common Core standard
Printable answer key
10 questions
Classroom-ready

Details

Format: Interactive · Printable
Grade: Grade 3
Subject: ELA
Question types: Fill in the blank, Multiple choice, Matching, Circle the answer, Sorting, Short answer

About this worksheet

What students practice

Students retell the beginning, middle and end of a folktale in order.
Students identify the central message of a folktale.
Students explain how key details in a folktale show its central message.

How to use

Read the folktale together, then have students answer the retelling questions before they look for the central message. Invite a few students to read their retellings aloud.

Curriculum

Common Core standard covered

RL.3.2

Retell stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures, and explain how key details show the central message or moral.

Preview

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Name Date

The Well on Tala Hill

Retell a folktale and find its central message.

Read the folktale

The Well on Tala Hill

1Long ago, a village called Tala sat on top of a dry, rocky hill. Rain did not fall there often, so the people got their water from one deep well in the village. Every morning, families lined up with clay jars.

2Everyone used the well, but no one took care of it. When the rope began to fray, the blacksmith shrugged. "Someone else will fix it," he said. When dust and dry leaves blew into the water, the goat herder looked away. "That is not my job," she said.

3One morning, the bucket came up full of muddy water. Then the old rope snapped. The bucket splashed down to the bottom of the well. "This is your fault!" the blacksmith shouted at the goat herder. "No, it is the tailor's fault!" she shouted back. Soon the whole village was yelling and pointing.

4Then a girl named Zahra climbed onto the low stone wall around the well. "Stop!" she called, and everyone turned to look at her. "We all drink from this well, so we all must care for it," she said. The villagers grew quiet. They knew she was right.

5That afternoon, everyone went to work. The blacksmith made a strong new chain. The goat herder tied a hook to the chain and pulled up the lost bucket. The tailor sewed a thick cloth cover. Zahra and the other children swept the leaves away from the wall. By the next morning, the mud had settled, and the water came up clear and cool.

6From that day on, the families of Tala took turns caring for the well. Each family had one week to check the chain and the cover. The water stayed clean, and no one in Tala ever said "That is not my job" again.

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