Introduction
The story of Joseph’s remarkable rise to power in Egypt began very unpromisingly, when his brothers tired of listening to his dreams of future glory.
JOSEPH was the favourite among the twelve sons of Jacob, and the others resented it.
They resented the coat of many colours which Jacob had given him, and above all they resented Joseph’s recurrent dreams in which they bowed low before him.
Some of his brothers wanted to murder Joseph, and tell Jacob that his favourite had been savaged by wild animals, but Reuben, hoping to smuggle Joseph safely home later, persuaded them to be content with stripping Joseph of his coat of many colours, and bundling him into a dry pit. However, when Reuben crept back to the pit to rescue his brother, he found him gone. Judah and the rest had sold him to a passing camel-train of merchants bound for Egypt, for a handful of silver.
The brothers now fell back on their original plan, smearing goat’s blood on that wretched coat, and telling the heartbroken Jacob that they rather thought Joseph had been killed by some wild animal.
Précis
Joseph’s brothers planned to kill him, as they envied his special place in their father’s affections and his repeated dreams of superiority over them. Reuben managed to prevent outright murder, but before he could get Joseph safely away, the others had sold him into slavery in Egypt. (47 / 60 words)
Joseph’s brothers planned to kill him, as they envied his special place in their father’s affections and his repeated dreams of superiority over them. Reuben managed to prevent outright murder, but before he could get Joseph safely away, the others had sold him into slavery in Egypt.
Variations: 1.increase the length of this precis to exactly 50 words. 2.reduce the length of this precis to exactly 40 words. 3.introduce one of the following words into the precis: about, because, may, not, since, unless, whether, who.
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Word Games
Sevens Based on this passage
Suggest answers to this question. See if you can limit one answer to exactly seven words.
Variations: 1.expand your answer to exactly fourteen words. 2.expand your answer further, to exactly twenty-one words. 3.include one of the following words in your answer: if, but, despite, because, (al)though, unless.
Jigsaws Based on this passage
Express the ideas below in a single sentence. Do not be satisfied with the first answer you think of; think of several, and choose the best.
Spinners Find in Think and Speak
For each group of words, compose a sentence that uses all three. You can use any form of the word: for example, cat → cats, go → went, or quick → quickly, though neigh → neighbour is stretching it a bit.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1 Before. Now. Rest.
2 Above. Creep. However.
3 All. But. Sell.
Variations: 1. include direct and indirect speech 2. include one or more of these words: although, because, despite, either/or, if, unless, until, when, whether, which, who 3. use negatives (not, isn’t, neither/nor, never, nobody etc.)
Add Vowels Find in Think and Speak
Make words by adding vowels to each group of consonants below. You may add as many vowels as you like before, between or after the consonants, but you may not add any consonants or change the order of those you have been given. See if you can beat our target of common words.
stts (6+5)
estates. settees. states. statues. status. stouts.
satiates. setts. situates. stats. stoats.
