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A New Friend

One day Randy was in his apartment when he heard a strange sound
"Meow"

He opened his door and he saw an orange cat sitting in the hallway.
"Meow," said the cat.
"Excuse me," said Randy, because raccoons don't make any sound, "Are you ok?"
"No, I'm not," said the cat, "I had some diamonds but now I don't know where my diamonds are. Do you have any diamonds?"
"Sorry," said Randy. "I don't have any diamonds. But I have some shiny things."
"Oh," said the cat, "Can you show me your shiny things? They could be mine too."
"OK. Come in and I'll you show you my shiny things," Randy said because he was very polite.

The cat came in to Randy's apartment and Randy showed her his Shiny Pizza. "This is my best shiny thing."
"Hmm," said the cat, "Is it expensive?"
"No," Randy said. "But it is very shiny!"
"Yes, I think that is yours," said the cat, "What else do you have?"
"Well, there are some pieces of glass which are shiny and colorful and also some tin foil balls," Randy answered.
"Oh," said the cat, "No those aren't mine. Don't you have anything expensive?"
"I don't think so," said Randy. "I shop at the garbage cans. And I don't have any money."
"Hmm," said the cat. "I think I should look for my diamonds in a jewelry store or some place nicer."
Randy said, "I don't think your diamonds are in a jewelry store. Those diamonds belong to the store. They are theirs. I think if you ask the salesperson at the diamond store, he or she will say, 'Those are our diamonds.'"
The cat said, "Look, I don't have any diamonds. I want some because I love them so much. That's why I ask people if they have my diamonds. So they will give me some.
"Oh," said Randy. "That's not very nice. Maybe you could look for diamonds in the garbage. That's where I get everything!"
"Cats don't like garbage," the cat said.
"Wow!" said Randy, "I don't understand. Raccoons love garbage very much. It's our favorite thing. What is your favorite thing?"
"Diamonds," said the cat. "Maybe gold too"
You can have my glass. They look like diamonds. A little bit."
"No, those are yours. I need diamonds."
"Well, if I ever find any diamonds, I can give them to you." said Randy.
"You are very nice. My own diamonds. That would be very nice. My name is Katie. What's yours?"
"My name is Randy," Randy said.
"Good to meet you. I live next door so you can give me diamonds anytime you want. Or gold."
"OK, I will. It was nice to meet you," said the cat and went back to her apartment.
The cat left and Randy closed the door. He looked at his shiny pizza and his other favorite shiny things. He looked at the biggest piece of glass he owned. It was very shiny and bright and clear.
"Hmmm," said Randy. "That doesn't look like glass. I wonder what it is." Then he thought about his new friend and thought, "I wonder what diamonds look like?"

Vocabulary

diamond: Diamonds are stones that are clear, like glass. People mostly use them on necklaces, rings or earrings. They are very valuable.
expensive means to cost a lot of money, to be very valueable.
tin foil is something we use to wrap food in. It is flat like paper but it is made of metal and very shiny. Sometimes it is called aluminum foil. Tin and aluminum are two kinds of cheap and light metal so sometimes foil is made from tin and sometimes alumninum.
jewelry is a word that means rings, earrings, necklaces, bracelets, and other decorations. Often they are made of gold or silver.
next door means in the house or apartment next to yours. So Katie lives right near Randy.
wonder: To wonder means to
look like

Grammar Spot: Possessives

Look at these sentences from the reading:

He opened his door and he saw an orange cat sitting in the hallway.
I don't know where my diamonds are

The words in purple are possessives. They tell us who owns something: "his door" means that the door belongs to Randy. When Katie says, "my diamonds", she is talking about the diamonds that belong to her.

Now look at this sentence:
The cat came in to Randy's apartment.

Here we say "Randy's" because we mean the apartment belonging to Randy. It's the same as saying his. When we want to say exactly who owns something we add "'s" to the end of the name or word:
Bob's store. David's car. The dog's bone.
But if the word ends in "s", we just add ''": Chris' book. The cars' doors.

Try to fill in the following table with the correct word or possessive word. Type in your answers where a word is missing. When you've finished, click and hold down on the C button to see the right answers.<



Now, look over the words in purple in the text and think about who owns the thing they are talking about.

Comprehension

Let's see if you understood everything in the story. Type in your answers to the following questions. When you've finished, click and hold down on the C button to see the right answers.

Speaking

  1. Why do you think Katie likes diamonds?
  2. Why do people like expensive things?
  3. What is your favorite thing?
  4. what is something you do not have but want to have?
  5. Is there something you like that no one else likes or understands why you like?
  6. Do you know your neighbors? Are any of your neighbors your friend?
  7. How do you usually make friends?
  8. Do you like to have a lot of friends or just a few very good friends?