Grade: KS2 Subject: English Date: 20/01/2021

Chapter 6: Short Stories

Exercise 5: ‘Albert and the Lion’

1. Explain, using your own words, why Mr. and Mrs. Ramsbottom were
not impressed by the sea at Blackpool.?
Ans: Mr. and Mrs. Ramsbottom were not impressed by the sea at Blackpool
because the waves were small and there were no wrecks and nobody
drowned.

2. Explain what is meant by ‘he lay in a somnolent posture’.

Ans: ‘He lay in a somnolent posture’ means he lay in a drowsy posture.

3. Why did Albert poke the lion with his stick?

Ans: Albert had heard that lions were ferocious and wild but when he saw
Wallace in a somnolent posture, it seemed wrong to him. Albert then took
his stick and poked Wallace in the ear.

4. Explain, using your own words, the meaning of the last two verses
of the poem.
Ans: The magistrate said that there was no one to blame and he also
hoped that the Ramsbottom’s would have more sons to their name. Mrs.
Ramsbottom was regretting that raising children was just to feed ruddy
lions.

5. The poem uses several words and phrases which are not correct
standard English. Find some more of these expressions, explain them
and say how they add to your enjoyment of the poem.
Ans: a) summonsed
b) feller
c) ‘et
d) yon
e) ‘ole
These words are used to make the poem rhyme.
6. If the events in the poem really happened, we would consider them
to be very sad and upsetting. By referring closely to the poem,
explain how the poet makes the episode entertaining and funny. In
particular, consider the description of the eating of Albert and how
the parents and other people react to this.
Ans: The parents are not crying, instead they are blaming the zoo keeper
and the manager. Mrs. Ramsbottom demanded justice for her son. The zoo
keeper, magistrate and the zoo manager were all calm and did not panic.

Exercise 6: Considering both poems

1. Both poems are written in rhyming verse. Consider carefully how
the rhymes contribute to their overall effect.
Ans: a) Words from ‘Owl and the Pussycat’
• honey-money
• boat-note
• above-love
• married-tarried
• spoon-moon
b) Words from ‘Albert and the Lion’
• small-all
• roll-whole
• name-blame
• she-me
• do-too
These words make the poem funny, interesting and lyrical.

2. Compare the two poems by looking at their settings, the characters

they feature and the way the stories are structured. You should write
about both their similarities and differences.
Common Difference
Both the poems have animals as The second poem features humans
characters.
Both are nonsense poems. In the first poem the problem is
solved, but in the second poem the
problem was not solved.
Both are funny poems. In the first poem, they travel to
marry and in the second poem,
they travel for amusement.