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The Dolphin Prince and the Storm's Secret

Preview

High Intermediate (B1 High) CEFR B1

The Dolphin Prince and the Storm's Secret

Duration

5 min read

Length

300 words

Story

5 paragraphs

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Story Excerpt

Sample preview reading passage

Paragraphs 1–2 of 5

Prince Kaelen of the Coral Castle had always loved the sea. His best friend was a young dolphin named Lira, who had a blowhole on top of her head for breathing air. One day, Lira told him about a pod of whales that was passing by. "They are mammals like me," she said, "and they are starting their long migration to warmer waters." Kaelen was fascinated and wanted to follow them.

However, as they swam farther from the castle, the sky grew dark and the wind began to howl. A terrible storm was coming. "We must find shelter!" Lira shouted over the waves. Kaelen saw a huge rock and they hid behind it. The storm raged for hours, and Kaelen was very scared. He had never been so far from home before.

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Educational Objectives

Story Details

Grammar focus and learning objectives covered in this story.

Grammar Level

B1 · Past Simple, Past Perfect, Reported Speech, Modal Verbs

Learning Outcomes

Recognise and use past perfect to describe earlier events in a story.
Identify and understand reported speech in context.
Describe how marine mammals breathe, communicate, and migrate.
Discuss threats to marine mammals and ways to help them.

Grammar Focus

Past Perfect: had + past participle

We use the past perfect to talk about an action that happened before another action in the past. It helps show which event came first.

“ He had never been so far from home before.

Tip: Use 'had' for all subjects (I, you, he, she, it, we, they) and add the past participle of the main verb.

Reported Speech: said + (that) + clause

We use reported speech to tell someone what another person said. The tense often changes to the past.

“ "I was scared, but Lira's echolocation saved us."

Tip: When reporting speech, change pronouns and tenses if needed, and use 'that' to introduce the reported clause.

Modal Verbs for Ability: can + base verb

We use 'can' to talk about ability or possibility in the present. The negative form is 'can't'.

“ I can use my echolocation to find the whales.

Tip: Remember that 'can' is followed by the base form of the verb without 'to'.

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