SUMMARY AND MORAL VALUES OF "THE UGLY DUCKLING"

The story of The Ugly Duckling is quite short, so the summary is shorter lol. Here it is:

Once upon a time, a mother duck sat on her eggs. Several days later, the eggs cracked and some ducklings appeared. But one of those ducklings was different. He was so big and very gray. He was like a turkey. The mother duck was very proud of him. But, the other ducklings didn't agree with her, they made fun of him day by day. The ugly duckling was very sad. And one day, he ran away and hid in the bushes. While he was swimming in the pond, he saw three large white swans came towards him. He thought that the swans would attack him, but they didn't. The swans stroked him with their bills. When the ugly ducklings bent his neck to speak to them, he saw his reflection on the water. He couldn't believe his eyes. He exclaimed that he wasn't an ugly duckling anymore, but a beautiful swan. And finally, he with the other swans lived happily ever after together.

And here are the moral values of The Ugly Duckling:

- Never judge others by their appearances

- Don't be let down easily

- It's good to care about others

ANNOUNCEMENT

This is one example of announcement.

ANNOUNCEMENT

For all students of SMAN 30 Bandung

The English Speech Contest will be held

on February 8th - 9th 2014

at Hall of SMAN 30 Bandung

from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.

Each class should register at least one student with one of these following topics:

- The Advantage of Learning English

- The Difficulties of Learning English

- The Effective Ways of Learning English

The registration will be opened on February 3rd - 7th 2014

The 1st, 2nd and 3rd winner will get a trophy and a prize

For further information contact Asep (088811112222)

MY HOLIDAY

My holiday started from Monday, December 23rd, 2013 until Sunday, January 5th, 2014. My holiday was quite boring. Before the holiday came, I planned to go to my grandmother's house on Monday. But, I had to go to school to pay the SKS, so I couldn't go to my grandmother's house on Monday. Finally, I went to my grandmother's house on Wednesday. My grandmother's house is in Garut. I went there with my brother and my mother.

When I arrived, my mother and I bought meatball where it is beside my grandmother's house. The meatball is very delicious. In my grandmother's house, there were also my aunt and my cousin. Now, my cousin is eight months old. He is very cute. When I was at my grandmother's house, I often played with him.

The next day, my mother and I bought meatball again! Yeay! That wasn't the meatball beside my grandmother's house, but the most famous meatball in Garut I think hahaha. It is Baso M. Imu. Every time when I go to Garut, I always buy that meatball. After bought meatball, we went to Alun-Alun to buy es goyobod. This es goyobod is also famous in Garut hahaha.

By the way, those pictures weren't taken by me, but from google hahaha. In Garut, I read the book that was brought from my house. The title is The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith a.k.a J. K. Rowling. It is a crime fiction novel. But, I haven't finished that book until now. Beside read a book, I also played games. I loved play Line Pokopang and Line PongPongPong, those games were very entertaining.

On Saturday, December 28, 2013, I went back to Bandung with my mother, my brother, my aunts, my uncle and my cousins. When we arrived at my house, my aunt and my cousin directly went to their house because my aunt felt unwell. After took a rest for a moment, my mother, my brother, my uncle, my other aunt, my other cousins and I went to BIP. My brother, my cousins and I played some games at Time Zone. I wanted to play Boxing there, but I was too shy because the last time I played Boxing, many people stared at me. After played at Time Zone, we watched a 4D mini film beside Time Zone. But I was flat when I watched the film. And then, we went home. Several minutes later, my uncle, my aunt and my cousins went back to Garut.

I thought that I won't have many times when the holiday is over. So, I spent the rest of my holiday to watch movies, read books and sometimes went to the mall with my mother. I watched so many movies that I can't remember all the movies I have watched. I just remember that I watched White House Down, The Smurfs 2, Despicable Me and Despicable Me 2. Beside that, I also watched some episodes of animes. The animes that I watched were Mirai Nikki, Kimi Ni Todoke, Nichijou and Shingeki no Kyojin. Those animes were from my friend Naila hahaha.

The Smurfs

Despicable Me

Shingeki no Kyojin

Talking about books, I read The Serpent's Shadow by Rick Riordan, Negeri Para Bedebah, Negeri di Ujung Tanduk and Rembulan Tenggelam di Wajahmu by Tere-Liye. Those novels are amazing! I think Tere-Liye is my favorite author from Indonesia. And I'm waiting for the sequel of The Serpent's Shadow.

Maybe that's all about my last holiday. There was nothing special with my holiday but I really enjoyed it. And now I'm missing my holiday because there was no school, homework and test lol.

The Ugly Duckling

Last week, my teacher told us that on the next Saturday, we have to tell the short story we had published without see the text. But we can show the pictures that related to the story. The short story that I have published isn't short at all for me LOL. So, I wanted to change the story. This story is very short. This story was made by Hans Christian Andersen. I found it from here. Hope you enjoy it! 

Once upon a time, a mother duck sat on her eggs. She felt tired of sitting on them. She just wished the eggs would break out.

Several days later, she got her wish. The eggs cracked and some cute little ducklings appeared. "Peep, peep" the little ducklings cried. "Quack, quack" their mother greeted in return.

However the largest egg had not cracked. The mother duck sat on it for several days. Finally, it cracked and a huge ugly duckling waddled out. The mother duck looked at him in surprise. He was so big and very gray. He didn't look like the others at all. He was like a turkey.

When the mother duck brought the children to the pond for their first swimming lesson. The huge grey duckling splashed and paddled about just as nicely as the other ducklings did. "That is not a turkey chick. He is my very own son and quite handsome" the mother said proudly.

However, the other animals didn't agree. They hissed and made fun of him day by day. Even his own sisters and brothers were very unkind. "You are very ugly" they quacked.

The little poor duckling was very unhappy. "I wish I looked like them" he thought to himself.

One day, the ugly duckling run away and hid in the bushes. The sad duckling lived alone through the cold and snow winter. Finally the spring flowers began to bloom. While he was swimming in the pond, he saw three large white swans swimming toward him. "Oh, dear. these beautiful birds will laugh and peck me too" he said to himself. But the swans did not attack him. Instead, they swam around him and stroked him with their bills. As the ugly duckling bent his neck to speak to them, he saw his reflection in the water. He could not believe his eyes. "I am not an ugly duckling but a beautiful swan" he exclaimed.

He was very happy. From that day on, he swam and played with his new friends and was happier than he had never been.

The Dragon Rock

Yesterday, I attended the English class after I had exercise at Lapbal. And then, my teacher give us a task to find a short story and post it in our blog. I decided to find a short stories after I had dinner. But when I wanted to find it, I fell asleep. Fortunately, today I found a children short story from here that has been made by Ellena Hasley. By the way, this story isn't short at all. Hope you enjoy this story! XD

     This story begins with Once Upon A Time, because the best stories do, of course.

     So, Once Upon A Time, and imagine if you can, a steep sided valley cluttered with giant, spiky green pine trees and thick, green grass that reaches to the top of your socks so that when you run, you have to bring your knees up high, like running through water. Wildflowers spread their sweet heady perfume along the gentle breezes and bees hum musically to themselves as they cheerily collect flower pollen.

     People are very happy here and they work hard, keeping their houses spick and span and their children's faces clean.

     This particular summer had been very hot and dry, making the lean farm dogs sleepy and still. Farmers whistled lazily to themselves and would stand and stare into the distance, trying to remember what it was that they were supposed to be doing. By two o'clock in the afternoon, the town would be in a haze of slumber, with grandmas nodding off over their knitting and farmers snoozing in the haystacks. It was very, very hot.

     No matter how hot the day, however, the children would always play in the gentle, rolling meadows. With wide brimmed hats and skin slippery with sun block, they chittered and chattered like sparrows, as they frolicked in their favourite spot.

     Now, their favourite spot is very important to this story because in this particular spot is a large, long, scaly rock that looks amazingly similar to a sleeping dragon.

     The children knew it was a dragon.

     The grown ups knew it was a dragon.

     The dogs and cats and birds knew it was a dragon.

     But nobody was scared because it never, ever moved.

     The boys and girls would clamber all over it, poking sticks at it and hanging wet gumboots on its ears but it didn't mind in the least. The men folk would sometimes chop firewood on its zigzagged tail because it was just the right height and the Ladies Weaving Group often spun sheep fleece on its spikes.

     Often on a cool night, when the stars were twinkling brightly in a velvet sky and the children peacefully asleep, the grown ups would settle for the evening with a mug of steaming cocoa in a soft cushioned armchair. Then the stories about How The Dragon Got There began. Nobody knew for sure, there were many different versions depending on which family told the tale, but one thing that everybody agreed on, was this:

     In Times of Trouble

     The Dragon will Wake

     And Free the Village

     By making a Lake

     This little poem was etched into everybody's minds and sometimes appeared on tea towels and grandma's embroidery.

     The days went by slowly, quietly and most importantly, without any rain. There had been no rain in the valley for as long as the children could remember. The wells were starting to bring up muddy brown water and clothes had to be washed in yesterday's dishwater. The lawns had faded to a crisp biscuit colour and the flowers drooped their beautiful heads. Even the trees seemed to hang their branches like weary arms. The valley turned browner and drier and thirstier, every hot, baking day.

     The townsfolk grew worried and would murmur to each other when passing with much shaking of heads and tut tuts. They would look upwards searching for rain clouds in the blue, clear sky, but none ever came.

     "The tale of the Dragon cannot be true," said old Mrs Greywhistle, the shopkeeper.

     "It hasn't moved an inch, I swear," replied her customer, tapping an angry foot.

     It was now too hot for the children to play out in the direct sun and they would gather under the shade of the trees, digging holes in the dust and snapping brittle twigs.

     "The Dragon will help us soon," said one child.

     "He must do Something," agreed another.

     "I'm sure he will."

     They all nodded in agreement.

     A week went by with no change, the people struggling along as best they could. Some were getting cross at the Dragon and would cast angry, sideways looks at it when passing. The villagers were becoming skinny eyed and sullen.

     Meanwhile, the children had a plan.

     Quickly and quietly, they moved invisibly around town, picking and plucking at the fading flowers. With outstretched arms and bouquets up to their chins, they rustled over to where the giant rock lay, as still as ever.

     The boys and girls placed bunches of flowers around the Dragon in a big circle. They scattered petals around its head and over its nose, then danced around and around it, skipping and chanting the rhyme that they all knew so well.

     In Times of Trouble 

     The Dragon Will Wake 

     And Save the Village 

     By making a Lake

     The searing heat made them dizzy and fuzzy and finally they all fell in a sprawling heap at the bottom of the mound. They looked up at the rock.

     Nothing happened.

     A dry wind lazily picked up some flower heads and swirled them around. The air was thick with pollen and perfume. A stony grey nostril twitched.

     "I saw something," cried the youngest boy.

     They stared intently.

     An ear swiveled like a periscope.

     The ground began to rumble.

     "Look out! Run!Run!"

     The children scampered in all directions, shrieking and squealing, arms pumping with excitement.

     The rumbling grew and grew.

     The Dragon raised its sleepy head. It got onto its front feet and sat like a dog. It stood up and stretched, arching its long scaly back like a sleek tabby cat. It blinked and looked around with big kind, long lashed eyes.

     And then its nostrils twitched and quivered again.

     The older folk were alerted by the screams and shrieks. The ladies held up their long skirts to run and the men rolled their sleeves up and soon the whole town stood together in a tight huddle at the foot of the hill, staring up at the large beast with mouths held open.

     "AHHHHH AAHHHHHHHHH!!"

     The noise erupted from the Dragon.

     "AHHHHH AAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"

     The families gripped each other tighter and shut their eyes.

     "AHHHHH CHOOOOOOOOO!!"

     The sneeze blasted from the Dragon like a rocket, throwing it back fifty paces, causing a whirlwind of dust and dirt.

     "AHHHHH CHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!"

     The second blast split open the dry earth, sending explosions of soil and tree roots high into the sky like missiles, and something else too ...

     The people heard the sound but couldn't recognize it at first for it had been such a long time since their ears had heard such tinkling melody. As their eyes widened in wonder, their smiles turned into grins and then yahoos and hoorahs.

     Water, cold, clear spring water, oozed, then trickled, then roared out of the hole, down the hillside and along the valley floor.

     The torrent knocked over a farmer's haystack, but he didn't care.

     The river carried away the schoolteacher's bike shed but she cared not a jot. It even demolished the Ladies Bowling Club changing rooms but they howled with laughter and slapped their thighs. When the flood sent pools of water out towards the golf course, filling up sixteen of the nineteen holes, the men just hooted and whistled and threw their caps up in the air.

     What used to be a dirty, brown dust bowl, now gleamed and glistened in the sunlight, sending playful waves and ripples across the lake and inviting all to share.

     "HMMMMM," sighed the Dragon sleepily, and showing his perfect movie star teeth. "Seeing as I'm awake ..."

     And he lumbered forward with surprising grace and style and disappeared into the cool dark water with a small wave of a claw and flick of his tail.

     They never saw him again.

     After the families had restored and rebuilt the village, and set up sailing clubs for the children, and scuba diving for the grandparents, they erected a bandstand and monument in the spot where the Dragon used to lay. Every year to mark the occasion, they would bring garlands of flowers and herbs and arrange them in a big circle. The children would have the day off school, for it was known as 'Water Dragon Day' and wearing the dragon masks that they had been working on all week, would skip and clap and sing.

     The Dragon helped Us
     As We said He would Do
     Hooray for The Dragon
     Achoo, Achoo, ACHOOOO!

     And that is the end of the story.