A boy finds a bird and nurses back to health.
He tries to teach it to fly.
Then he goes with his father, to some high ground, to set the bird free.
Will the bird fly?
Take a look at my full lesson plan based on the short story described above.
This comes complete with:
- introductory questions
- a short story
- a full list of reading comprehension questions
- a table of essential vocabulary
- another full list of discussion questions
- a writing exercise
Try it in your class today!
And let me know your thoughts in the comments…
Flight
“She can fly,” I said. “I’ve trained her.”
Dad didn’t even look at me.
“Rubbish. You got wings? Where are they?”
He pinched the skin between my shoulder blades and laughed. I shook his hand off and held onto the box. Inside, the bird flapped around and let out another cry.
She hated being inside that box. But I had to put her in the thing to get her here.
The wind blew harder. Icy-cold in my face.
“That’s a strong wind,” said Dad. “Sure that pigeon can fly in this?”
He knew she wasn’t a pigeon.
“She’s not a pigeon,” I said. “I told you before.”
“Oh yeah, that’s right. A seagull. One of those noisy damn things.”
I went to say something but clamped my lips together.
He didn’t have one good word for Elsie. That’s what I called her. After Mum’s grandmother. Elsie.
It just sounded right. An old-fashioned name for her. It suited her.
She flapped around inside the box and screeched. I held tightly onto the sides of it. She moved around so much I nearly dropped the box earlier.
Dad didn’t notice. He was busy telling our neighbour about going to the top of the hill at the end of Station Road.
“Got to let this bird out,” he said. “It’s been with us since he found it on the ground. Surprised it lasted this long, to be honest.”
The neighbour gave me a friendly nod, but I pretended to be busy securing the box. That’s when Elsie shook about inside and the box nearly fell out of my hands.
All the way to Station Road, Dad made comment after comment. Always the same thing.
That stupid bird won’t fly.
That stupid bird is lucky to be alive.
No reason she shouldn’t be alive. I fed her. I made sure she ate every day.
Just a little blob when I found her on the ground. She hardly had any feathers and her eyes were almost completely shut. But I touched her and she moved a little bit.
So I took her home.
Mum said I couldn’t keep her in the house.
“It’s dirty,” she said. “It might have fleas.”
“She’s a she, mum,” I said. “And she doesn’t have fleas. I washed her.”
I didn’t know what to give her. The pet shop man said that she would die in two days. He wasn’t interested, anyway.
I went to the library instead and found a book on birds. There was a picture of a man feeding a baby bird some milk.
I didn’t know birds could drink milk. I didn’t know what they drank.
All I knew was that I had to feed her something or she would die.
I didn’t want the pet shop man to be right. I wanted to make her live and then go down to his shop and tell him. Tell him to his face.
“So what you planning on doing,” said Dad. “Throwing it off the top here?”
He didn’t know anything.
“I’ll help her,” I said. “I’ve been helping her the last two weeks.”
Dad laughed again. The same laugh whenever he thought he was right.
A smug laugh, Mum called it. But she always smiled when he laughed like that. She liked it when he proved himself right and her wrong.
That’s what being married is all about. One person is always right and the other one is always wrong, and that’s how they live for the rest of their lives.
I wouldn’t do that.
“Come on then,” said Dad. “Get on with it. It’s freezing up here.”
I put the box on the grass and knelt down to open the lid. As I fumbled around opening the cardboard box, Elsie flapped around inside.
“Come on, girl,” I said in what I hoped was a soothing voice. “Come on now.”
“Saying your last goodbyes?” said Dad. “So sad.”
He couldn’t say any more as he went into one of his coughing fits. He bent over and hacked and hawed as he tried to clear his chest.
I got the flap open and Elsie let her wings spill outside and into the cold air. She stretched them above her head at awkward angles.
“Come on, girl,” I whispered. I put my hands down the insides of the box and slid my fingers under her tiny body. She pecked at my fingers in a rapid motion. I was used to her doing it. When she first did it, I pulled my fingers away.
“It’s okay,” I said. “I’ll help you.”
Elsie calmed down a little, and I got my fingers underneath her body. She appeared so strong with all her feathers now, but I could feel how skinny she was. She ate her own weight in food every day, but still like a little bag of bones.
I pulled her out of the box and held her close to my chest.
Dad had gone quiet. I didn’t look at him in case it made him start again.
The grass sloped in a decline in front of me and then went at a sharp angle down. I got as far as I could and stopped. She had done it so many times before with me. I had held her, and she flew right to the end of the garage. One time she flew into the door.
She was strong, I could feel it.
I held my hands up higher to give her a full view of what was in front of us.
“Come on, girl,” I said. “You got this.”
I closed my eyes and lifted my hands higher. She let out a cry; it sounded like she said Far.
Faaaar!
Then I felt her wings pound the air. I could feel her body lifting.
She left my hands and flew up a little. But the wind was strong. She was batting around like a butterfly.
Her wings flapped around awkwardly and with no grace at all.
But she persevered. She flew ahead, straight to the edge of the cliff.
I watched in horror as her small body dropped out of view.
The whole world went quiet. And I held my breath, unable to move.
Then I saw her rise up again and soaring into the air.
And she was gone.
Now take a look at the video below. Listen to the way I read the story. You can follow along with me and practice your English speaking and pronunciation. Good for listening too!
Reading Comprehension Questions
Who are the characters in the story?
Where does the story take place?
What does the boy want to do?
What does his father think of this?
Why does the boy put the bird in a box?
How does the bird react when it’s inside the box?
Where are they going?
Describe the weather.
What kind of bird is it?
What kind of bird does the boy’s father say it is?
What name did the boy give the bird? Why did he call it this?
Why does the boy plan to take the bird to the top of the hill? What is there?
How does the dad feel about the bird’s chances of flying?
Who did they pass along the way?
Why didn’t the boy’s mother want the bird in the house?
Who did the boy ask for advice? What did this person say?
Where did he do some research on birds?
How did the boy initially feed the bird?
How long has the boy looked after the bird?
Describe the boy’s feeling when he takes the bird out of the box.
How does the boy’s father react when the narrator opens the box?
Why does his father stop talking?
How does the boy encourage the bird to fly?
Describe the boy’s thoughts and feelings when the bird starts flying.
What happens to the bird when it reaches the edge of the cliff?
Does the bird take flight?
How does the story end?
Essential Vocabulary
trained | rubbish | pinched |
shoulder blades | shook | flapped |
icy-cold | pigeon | seagull |
damn | clamped | old-fashioned |
it suited her | screeched | neighbour |
nod | pretended | securing |
comment | blob | feathers |
fleas | pet shop | library |
throwing | smug | married |
freezing | knelt | lid |
fumbled | cardboard | soothing |
coughing fit | bent over | hacked |
hawed | to clear his chest | spill |
stretched | awkward angle | whispered |
tiny | pecked | rapid motion |
calmed down | skinny | bag of bones |
sloped | decline | sharp angle |
pound | batting | butterfly |
awkwardly | no grace | persevered |
in horror | dropped | soaring |
Exercise
Write down all the words and phrases in your vocabulary notebook. Look in your dictionary and find the meaning of each word. Write the definition next to each word.
Then make up your own sentences using each word or phrase.
For example:
Trained — having been taught a particular skill or type of behaviour through practice and instruction over a period of time.
Rubbish — something that is not true or unrealistic.
Then write a sentence of your own that uses the new word or phrase correctly.
The bodyguard walking next to the president was a trained fighter.
I stopped reading the news — I think it’s all rubbish!
Do this with all the vocabulary and, over time, this will help improve all your English skills — reading, writing, speaking and listening.
Discussion Questions
In your own words, tell the story.
How do you think the boy feels about the bird? Why does he care so much about it, do you think?
Why does the boy call the bird Elsie? What is so special about this name to the boy?
What significance does the bird’s name “Elsie” hold for the boy? How does it reflect his feelings towards her?
Describe the boy’s father. What kind of person is he?
What does the boy think of his father?
What kind of relationship does the boy have with his father? Are they close?
What about the boy’s relationship with his mother?
Do you think they are a close family?
The boy’s father doesn’t seem very positive about the bird flying? Why does he think this way?
What challenges did the narrator face when taking care of Elsie? How did they overcome these challenges?
Do you think a young man can nurse a very young bird to health and teach it to fly? Is this scenario realistic?
What would you do if you found a bird like this?
Would your family allow you to keep it?
Why do some people want to care for animals in this way?
Do you think the boy has many friends at school? Why/why not?
What emotions did the narrator experience when they released Elsie into the air? How do you think they felt when she flew away?
Do you think the narrator’s determination to help Elsie was justified? Why or why not?
What would the conversation be between the boy and his father as they walk home?
Compare and contrast the narrator’s perspective on Elsie with their dad’s perspective. How do their attitudes toward the bird differ?
What if the bird did not fly? What would happen after?
The story is called ‘Flight’. Is it about the bird taking flight? Or the boy? Explain your thoughts in class.
How does the story explore themes of perseverance and determination? Give examples from the text.
Why do you think the boy’s dad didn’t believe that Elsie could fly? How did the dad’s opinion affect the boy?
Is this good or bad behaviour by the boy’s father?
Do you agree with the boy’s decision to release Elsie into the wild? Why or why not?
Discuss the role of communication between humans and animals in the story. How does the narrator communicate with Elsie?
Describe a time when you had to care for someone or something. How did it make you feel? What challenges did you face?
Describe a moment from your own life where you witnessed an animal’s behaviour that surprised or amazed you.
If you were to continue the story, what would you predict happens to Elsie? How would the boy feel about her eventual fate?
Writing
This is a creative writing exercise.
You are going to write a short story. The name of the story is:
Flying
Imagine you are Elsie, the bird in the story.
Imagine that Elsie can think in English, and she wants to tell her story.
She has been found by a boy who takes her home and cares for her.
He feeds her, looks after her.
Then comes the day when he sets her free and she flies away.
Describe your thoughts and feelings as you learn to fly and navigate the challenges in the wind.
Describe your feelings or being up in the sky.
But also about leaving the boy behind. The boy who looked after you and helped you.
Write your story.
Then, when you are ready, read your story out loud in front of the class.
Or you can give it to your teacher for review.
You can download the full lesson plan by clicking the link below!
You can also join my mailing list by clicking the link below. I will send you new guides, articles and lesson plans when I publish them.
I loved this story. It really showed the rift between jaded adult thinking and the fresh hope and faith of a child. I would have been very disappointed if the bird had not flown. The reader does not want to see faith and hope destroyed. The bird flying renews the reader’s own faith.
Many thanks, Leona! I’m glad you liked this story.
How long has the boy looked after the bird?
The time could be long or short. What’s important is the boy’s faith. In these hard times we are going through now we need faith, trust, unity, empathy strength and ethics to keep believing in life.
Many thanks Leona.
IT WAS AN AMAZING AND NICE STORY!
Many thanks, Arshia!
In a subtle way, the author has highlighted the chauvinistic way a man thinks and acts, and the submissiveness of a wife, to maintain peace and harmony at home. However, things have changed today and women are empowered- i would like more stories that highlight women’s independence and empowerment.
Thanks for reading, Jason.