1. Lesson Plan for 'The Clever Little Boy' - Version 4
I. Reading Comprehension
Lesson 1, page 74, 6th grade Vietnamese Literature Textbook, Volume 1
Is the use of riddles to test a character's abilities common in folk tales? What is the purpose of this technique?
Answer: Using riddles to test a character’s abilities is quite common in folk tales. The process of asking and solving riddles, along with the events and characters surrounding the riddle system, serves several purposes. Mainly, it creates situations to advance the plot, adds excitement, and keeps the audience engaged. Additionally, the characters' talents and intellectual qualities are revealed in solving riddles that ordinary people cannot answer.
Lesson 2, page 74, 6th grade Vietnamese Literature Textbook, Volume 1
How many times is the boy's cleverness and intelligence tested? Does each test become more difficult than the previous one? Why?
Answer: The boy's cleverness and intelligence are tested four times, and each test is more difficult than the last:
- The first time: Answering the nonsensical question from the official (nobody plows and counts the furrows in a single day).
- The second time: Representing the villagers, he solves the king's riddle (getting a bull to give birth to a calf).
- The third time: Answering a riddle posed by the king himself (the king already knows who the talented person is, so no need to test the entire village).
- The fourth time: This isn’t just a simple riddle-solving situation, but one with national consequences (if no one can solve the riddle, it means the country lacks talent and will have trouble fighting off the invading enemy).
Lesson 3, page 74, 6th grade Vietnamese Literature Textbook, Volume 1
What methods did the boy use to solve the tricky riddles? What do you find interesting about these methods?
Answer:
- First Test: The official asks: 'How many furrows can an ox plow in a day?'
The boy responds by asking in return: 'How many steps can a horse take in a day?'
The quick-witted exchange is surprising and confounds the official.
- Second Test: The king gives three baskets of glutinous rice and three male buffaloes and orders them to give birth to nine calves.
The boy counters the riddle cleverly, making the king see the absurdity of his own command, using the king's own logic that male buffaloes cannot give birth. Additionally, the boy knows that buffaloes eat grass, not rice.
- Third Test: The king orders a sparrow to be killed and made into three meals.
The boy answers by asking the king to forge a needle into a knife to prepare the sparrow, putting the king in a bind. If the king cannot do this, neither can anyone else.
- Fourth Test: An envoy from a neighboring country challenges the boy to thread a needle through a snail shell.
In the fourth challenge, the boy uses simple, practical knowledge, impressing everyone with his ingenious yet simple solution.
Lesson 4, page 74, 6th grade Vietnamese Literature Textbook, Volume 1
What is the moral of the folk tale 'The Clever Boy'?
Answer: The folk tale 'The Clever Boy' highlights the intellectual qualities of humans, particularly poor farmers. This intelligence is derived from the rich experiences of life rather than formal schooling. Although these farmers may not have received a formal education, their knowledge comes from the 'school of life.'
The story, with its surprising situations, brings laughter and joy to both the readers and listeners.
Practice
Lesson 1, page 74, 6th grade Vietnamese Literature Textbook, Volume 1
Recite the story with emotion.
Suggestion: The story mainly revolves around a system of riddles, creating suspenseful, thrilling, and fascinating situations. Therefore, when telling the story, emphasize the clever resolution of the problems, as well as the flexible, simple, yet surprisingly effective methods used.
The dialogues are unique, with each type revealing a different character trait:
- The official speaks arrogantly: 'Hey, old man, how many furrows can your ox plow in a day?'
- The boy's voice is mischievous, playful, innocent, witty, and he always responds with questions that put the questioner in a bind.
- The father speaks with a resigned tone, slightly fearful: 'You shouldn’t make a fool of yourself, or you’ll lose your head, son!'
Refer to sample essays for reciting 'The Clever Boy' story.
Lesson 2*, page 74, 6th grade Vietnamese Literature Textbook, Volume 1
Tell a story about a 'Clever Boy' that you know.
Answer: Suggestion: Tell a story or describe an intelligent behavior of a child that you’ve witnessed or heard about on TV, in the newspapers, or from books. You can also refer to books like 'The Genius of Our Past' by Quoc Chan, 'The Treasure of Vietnamese Folk Tales' by Nguyen Dong Chi (Volume 2), 'The Stories of Trạng Quỳnh,' 'Trạng Lợn Tales,' etc.
Here is a sample story:
An old farmer was leading his donkey to buy some goods. Along the way, he became so tired that he chose a large tree with wide branches to take a nap. While he was sleeping, someone stole his donkey. Upon waking up, he was shocked and quickly ran out to look for it.
On his search, he met a boy. The farmer asked him:
'Boy, have you seen my donkey anywhere?'
'Is it the donkey with one blind eye on the left, lame on the right, and carrying some wheat?' the boy asked.
'Yes, that’s the one! Where did you see it?' the farmer asked.
'I didn’t see it anywhere,' the boy replied.
'You described my donkey so accurately, yet you didn’t see it? Where is my donkey? Bring it back to me!' the farmer demanded.
'But I’ve told you I didn’t see it. Why are you asking me?' the boy answered.
'There’s only you and me here, so if not you, who else should I ask?' the farmer retorted.
'I’ve already told you, I don’t know,' the boy replied again.
'You’re lying, you must have stolen it!' the farmer angrily accused. He insisted on accusing the boy of theft and took him to the court to press charges. In front of the judge, the farmer explained his case and arguments. The judge was a bit confused and asked the boy:
'Why did you steal this man’s donkey?'
'I didn’t steal it. In fact, I never even saw the donkey when I met him,' the boy explained.
'How could you describe it so clearly, then?' the judge asked.
'I saw the footprints of a donkey, but the left footprints are different from the right ones, so I know it was limping. I could also tell the donkey was blind in the left eye because the grass on the right side was eaten clean, while on the left side it wasn’t. The donkey was probably carrying wheat because there were wheat grains scattered along the road.'
Hearing the boy’s reasoning, the judge nodded in approval. Then, he ordered the soldiers to imprison the old farmer. However, since the farmer regretted his actions and begged for mercy, the judge eventually relented.
Summary of 'The Clever Boy' story
Once upon a time, a king wanted to find talented people, so he sent an official to travel the country asking tricky riddles. One day, the official encountered a father and son working on their farm and asked them a difficult question about how many furrows an ox could plow in a single day. The father could not answer, but the clever boy asked a counter-question, leaving the official defeated. Recognizing the boy's talent, the official reported back to the king. The king continued to test the boy by asking absurd riddles, and the boy used his quick thinking to expose the king's own mistakes.
Later, the neighboring king sent an envoy to test the country’s talent by asking them to thread a needle through a snail shell. No one could solve it, so the boy was called in. With his simple yet brilliant solution, he prevented a war and saved the country. The king was so impressed that he built a house for the boy near the palace and appointed him as the national genius.
Note: This is a folk tale about a clever character, a common figure in both Vietnamese and global folk tales. The story emphasizes the wisdom and common sense of ordinary people, often conveyed through solving riddles and overcoming challenges, creating moments of joy and laughter in everyday life.
Illustration image (Source: internet)
2. "The Clever Boy" Lesson 5
I. Genre
The text 'The Clever Boy' belongs to the genre of fairy tales. Fairy tales typically have the following characteristics:
Reflecting the daily life of the people
Common types of main characters include: the unfortunate (orphans, youngest children, stepchildren, those with unattractive appearances...), the clever, those with unusual talents, the foolish, and even animals...
Fairy tales often involve magical, surreal elements that play a balancing role in justice, representing the people's desire for fairness and their belief in the triumph of good over evil, and beauty over ugliness.
II. Summary
Once there was a king who wanted to find a talented person for his country, so he sent an official to travel across the land and test the people with difficult questions. One day, the official saw a father and son plowing a field and asked them a tricky question about the number of furrows a buffalo could plow in a day. The father could not answer, but the clever son quickly responded, turning the question back on the official, causing him to lose. The official reported this to the king, who realized the boy was talented but wanted to test him again. The king commanded the villagers to somehow make a male buffalo give birth. The clever boy made the king realize the absurdity of his request, saving the village from punishment. The boy continued to solve the king's riddles and was richly rewarded.
The king of a neighboring country wanted to invade, but first, he wanted to test whether the country had any clever people. He sent a messenger with a long, hollow seashell and challenged the people to thread a string through it. No one could answer, except for the clever boy, who solved the riddle and prevented the war. The king then built a mansion next to the royal palace for the boy to stay and appointed him as the royal scholar.
III. Lesson Guide
Question 1:
The use of riddles to test a character’s intelligence is common in folktales, especially in fairy tales. The purpose of this is:
To create situations that advance the plot
To provide challenges that allow the character to reveal their talents and qualities
To engage and excite the audience
Question 2:
The cleverness and intelligence of the boy were tested in four instances:
First: answering the official’s question of how many furrows a buffalo could plow in a day
Second: responding to the king’s challenge to make three male buffaloes produce nine calves within a year
Third: answering the king’s riddle involving a sparrow that needed to be made into three dishes
Fourth: solving the foreign messenger’s challenge of threading a string through a long seashell
Each subsequent challenge was harder than the previous one because the first riddle was posed by an official, the second by a king, and the final one by a foreign messenger. As such, the complexity of the riddles also increased.
Question 3:
In each challenge, the boy used very clever methods to solve the riddles:
First: he turned the question back on the official, leaving him speechless
Second: he made the king realize the absurdity of his own riddle
Third: he answered the king’s riddle by turning it back on him
Fourth: he used common folk knowledge to solve the foreign messenger’s riddle
In my opinion, these methods are interesting because:
They put the questioner in a difficult position, reversing the situation to their disadvantage
They made the questioner realize the absurdity of their own riddle
The solutions were not based on formal book knowledge, but on real-life experience
The simplicity and unexpectedness of the solutions astonished both the questioners and the audience
Question 4:
The meaning of 'The Clever Boy' is to highlight the intelligence and wisdom of the common people (through solving riddles and overcoming tricky challenges), which brings joy and innocence into everyday life.
Illustration image (Source: internet)
3. Lesson Plan "The Clever Boy" Number 6
Question 1:
The use of riddles to challenge a character is a popular technique in fairy tales. It not only adds intrigue and captivates the reader, but it also sets up a plot that moves from simplicity to complexity, while showcasing the extraordinary intellect and abilities of the protagonist.
Question 2:
The boy's intelligence is tested in four stages:
- Stage 1: The official asks about the buffalo’s plowing path.
- Stage 2: The challenge of making buffalo give birth.
- Stage 3: Turning a sparrow into three full meals.
- Stage 4: The riddle of threading a soft string through a long snail shell.
Each successive challenge becomes harder. The status of the questioner rises, the range of the challenge widens, and the difficulty increases, all highlighting the boy’s growing brilliance.
Question 3:
The charm of these riddles lies in their solutions: applying real-life knowledge to produce results that astonish and impress everyone.
- Stage 1: The boy turns the question back on the official.
- Stage 2: He uses the king’s own reasoning to expose the absurdity of the question.
- Stage 3: The boy poses a riddle in return to the king.
- Stage 4: The boy uses folk wisdom to solve the foreign messenger’s challenge.
Question 4:
The meaning of the story: It celebrates the intelligence and wit of the common people (as seen in the riddles and their solutions); it also brings about a sense of unexpected joy and laughter.
Exercise
Question 2*: Tell a story of "The Clever Boy" that you know.
Suggested stories: the prodigy Quoc Chan, Trạng Quỳnh, etc.
Illustration image (Source: internet)
4. Lesson Plan "The Clever Boy" Number 1
I. General Introduction
1. Definition
A fairy tale is a type of fictional story passed down orally through folklore.
It narrates imaginative tales involving various characters and events.
These stories often feature magical, fantastical elements, representing the people's hopes for the victory of good over evil, and justice over injustice.
2. Structure
Part 1: Introduction to the king's search for talented individuals.
Part 2: The challenges faced by the clever boy, who impresses with his wit and quick thinking in four tests.
Part 3: The boy becomes the highest-ranking scholar.
3. Summary of the Story 'The Clever Boy'
Once upon a time, a king sent a minister to search for talented individuals. One day, the minister came across a father and son working in a field. The minister asked a question about how many furrows a buffalo could plow in one day. While the father was confused, the son quickly responded with a counter-question. The king, impressed, tried another challenge: asking the villagers to make a male buffalo give birth to a calf. The boy cleverly saved the village from punishment again. His intelligence continued to shine through in subsequent challenges, and he was richly rewarded. Later, when the neighboring king wanted to invade, he tested the talent of the people by asking a riddle—how to thread a string through the intestines of a snail. The boy was the only one who solved the riddle, and thanks to him, the country avoided an invasion. Eventually, the boy was honored as the highest scholar and given a house near the palace for easier consultation with the king.
II. Understanding the Text
Question 1, page 74, Literature 6, Volume 1:
The use of riddles to test the character's abilities is a common feature in fairy tales.
Purpose:
Creates thrilling and captivating storylines.
Engages the reader with its charm and intrigue.
Allows the character to demonstrate their skills and qualities.
Question 2, page 74, Literature 6, Volume 1:
The boy's cleverness and intelligence are tested four times, with each test becoming progressively harder:
Test 1: Responding to the minister's question.
Test 2: Trapping the king into revealing the absurdity of his own statement.
Test 3: Answering with a counter-riddle to the king.
Test 4: Using traditional knowledge to solve the neighboring king's riddle.
Question 3, page 74, Literature 6, Volume 1:
The boy's solutions to the riddles:
Shifting the disadvantage to the person asking the riddle.
Making the questioner realize the absurdity of their challenge.
Using practical life experience and knowledge.
Question 4, page 74, Literature 6, Volume 1:
Meaning of the fairy tale 'The Clever Boy':
It praises the wisdom and practical knowledge of the common people.
It provides humor and wit, but with deep insight.
III. Practice
Question 1, page 74, Literature 6, Volume 1:
Recite the story with feeling.
Question 2, page 74, Literature 6, Volume 1: Tell another story about a clever boy you know.
The Story of the Talented Lương: Once, a group of Ming envoys visited our country, and the king sent Lương Thế Vinh to greet them. The envoys, knowing his reputation for both literary and scientific knowledge, challenged him: "Can you weigh that elephant?" Lương replied, "Of course," and took a scale down to the riverbank. He had the elephant brought onto a large boat, marking the water level where the boat sat. Then, he had the elephant brought back to shore and ordered his men to load stones into the boat until it sank to the marked level. He weighed the stones, thus determining the elephant's weight, and impressed the envoys with his wisdom.
Illustration (Source: Internet)
5. Second Essay on "The Clever Boy"
Structure:
- Section 1 (From the beginning... distinguished): The king orders the minister to find talented individuals.
- Section 2 (Continuing... neighboring country): The challenges that demonstrate the boy's intelligence.
- Section 3 (Remaining): The boy becomes the highest scholar.
Guidelines for Preparing the Lesson
Question 1 (Page 74, Literature 6, Volume 1)
The use of riddles to test the character's abilities is quite common in fairy tales. Its effects include:
- Creating exciting, thrilling situations that advance the plot.
- Adding charm and appeal to the narrative.
- Providing the opportunity for the character to showcase their intelligence and abilities.
Question 2 (Page 79, Literature 6, Volume 1)
The boy's cleverness is demonstrated across four instances:
- Instance 1: Responding to the minister's question with wit.
- Instance 2: Using the king's own reasoning to make him recognize his own contradiction.
- Instance 3: Answering the king's question with a counter-riddle.
- Instance 4: Solving the neighboring king's riddle using traditional knowledge.
⇒ The boy's responses are both amusing and clever because:
+ He makes the questioner realize the absurdity of their riddle.
+ He cleverly shifts the burden of the puzzle onto the questioner.
+ He uses practical knowledge to solve riddles, impressing both the witnesses and the audience with his extraordinary intellect.
Question 4 (Page 74, Literature 6, Volume 1)
The moral of the story 'The Clever Boy':
- The story emphasizes the value of intelligence, celebrating human wit and quick thinking.
- Intelligence must be derived from life experience and applied directly to real-world situations.
- The story creates intriguing, suspenseful situations.
Practice
Task 1 (Page 74, Literature 6, Volume 1)
Recite the story with expression.
Task 2 (Page 74, Literature 6, Volume 1)
Collect other stories of clever boys from the series 'The Genius of Vietnam'.
Illustration (Source: Internet)
6. Third Essay on "The Clever Boy"
Answer to Question 1 (page 74, Literature Textbook Grade 6, Volume 1):
Is using riddles to test a character's abilities a common element in fairy tales? What is the purpose of this approach?
Answer:
The use of riddles to test a character's skills is a widely found element in both folklore and fairy tales. This technique serves several purposes:
- It creates a challenge that helps the character reveal their talents and qualities.
- It generates scenarios that move the plot forward.
- It creates suspense and excitement for the audience.
Answer to Question 2 (page 74, Literature Textbook Grade 6, Volume 1):
How many times is the cleverness of the child tested in the story 'The Clever Child'? Was each challenge harder than the previous one? Why?
Answer:
* The child's cleverness was tested four times:
- First Test: Responding to the riddle posed by the official – 'How many furrows can a buffalo plow in one day?'
- Second Test: Meeting the king's challenge to the villagers to breed three male buffaloes and have them produce nine offspring within a year for the king.
- Third Test: Another challenge from the king – preparing three dishes from a single sparrow.
- Fourth Test: A riddle posed by a foreign envoy – threading a fine thread through the long, twisted shell of a snail.
* Each test was more difficult than the last because:
- Regarding the person posing the test: The first test was from an official, the next two came from the king, and the last one was from a foreign envoy.
- The absurdity and complexity of the riddles also increased.
Answer to Question 3 (page 74, Literature Textbook Grade 6, Volume 1):
What methods did the clever child use to solve the tricky riddles? What makes these methods interesting?
Answer:
* The clever child used inventive methods to solve each riddle:
- First Test: The child turned the riddle back on the official.
- Second Test: The child made the king realize the absurdity of his challenge.
- Third Test: Again, the child turned the riddle back on the king.
- Fourth Test: The child used practical, everyday knowledge.
* The methods the child used were interesting because:
- The child turned the tables on the person posing the riddle, effectively using their own methods against them.
- The child made the person posing the riddle realize how unreasonable their challenge was.
- The solutions were based on real-world knowledge, not academic learning.
- The simplicity, surprise, and innocence of the solutions delighted and amazed everyone.
Answer to Question 4 (page 74, Literature Textbook Grade 6, Volume 1):
What is the moral of the story 'The Clever Child'?
Answer:
The moral of 'The Clever Child' includes:
- It praises folk intelligence and wit.
- It carries a humorous and entertaining message.
The fairy tale celebrates the wisdom of ordinary people, especially those from poor backgrounds. It highlights intelligence that comes from life experience rather than formal education. Although many farmers of the past had no access to schooling, they learned from life's rich experiences, making life itself their greatest teacher.
Practice:
Tell a story you know about a clever child.
The Story of Trạng Quỳnh:
When Quỳnh was a poor student, he had to go to the Sòng Temple to ask for permission to plant crops. The Sòng Temple, dedicated to the revered Lady Liễu, was feared by all. Lady Liễu owned many fields and allowed people to plant crops for profit. On one occasion, Quỳnh went to the temple to request land and then asked for a fortune from Lady Liễu on whether he should harvest the roots or the tips of the plants for the upcoming season. The first time, Lady Liễu advised him to harvest the tips, so Quỳnh planted sweet potatoes. When it came time to harvest, he took all the potatoes home but left the vines at the temple as an offering.
The second time, Lady Liễu told him to harvest the roots, so Quỳnh planted rice. When it was time to harvest, he took all the rice stalks and returned only the roots to the temple.
After being tricked twice, Lady Liễu was furious but had already made a promise she couldn’t break. The third time Quỳnh came, Lady Liễu told him to take both the roots and the tips, leaving the middle part. Quỳnh pretended to complain, 'If I take everything, what will be left for me?' After many repeated requests, Lady Liễu refused to change her decision. Quỳnh went ahead and planted corn, keeping all the corn cobs for himself and leaving the roots and tips at the temple.
Lady Liễu was tricked three times, but Quỳnh had managed to make quite a profit in the process.
Summary:
A king, seeking wise individuals, sent an official to test people across the land with difficult riddles.
One day, the official encountered a father and son working on the farm and asked a tricky question about how many furrows a buffalo could plow in one day. The father couldn’t answer, but the clever son turned the question back on the official and won the challenge. The official, impressed, reported back to the king.
The king, curious to test further, challenged the villagers to breed buffaloes. The clever child made the king realize the absurdity of his request, saving the villagers.
The child continued to demonstrate his intelligence by solving other riddles and ultimately prevented an invasion when a foreign envoy challenged him with a complicated riddle involving a snail shell. The child’s practical wisdom saved the country from war.
Impressed by his intelligence, the king honored the child, building a residence next to the palace and appointing him to a prestigious position.
Main Message:
The story highlights the value of folk intelligence and wit through solving riddles and overcoming absurd challenges. It also brings humor and joy into everyday life through clever problem-solving.
Illustration (Source: Internet)
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