Celery and Blue Water: A Leaf Shows a Pinwheel - 適合中級的英文短篇故事，含中譯與發音
藍水裡的芹菜：葉片出現小風車 | 英文/中文 雙語朗讀
故事內容
English 原文
Every hour that morning, Nell climbed onto her stool by the kitchen window.
A fresh stalk of celery stood in a clear glass of blue water.
Its cut end rested on the bottom, and a wet towel ringed the base.
Harriet stayed beside her with one hand near the glass.
She held a warm mug in the other hand.
Cool glass dampened Nell's palm, and the clock ticked softly on the wall.
Outside, an immense sky sat over the roofs and poured pale light inside.
Nell watched for the color's departure from the glass into the stalk.
Two small bubbles glided along the side and popped at the surface.
She placed a paper pinwheel on the sill and gave its blades one flip.
Its quick spin made a round shimmer in the glass, then slowed to stillness.
By lunch, thin blue lines entered the lowest ridges and rested like quiet threads.
They were hard to see, so Nell bent until her eyes met counter level.
Harriet held the base steady while Nell slid the glass a finger-width toward light.
The lines showed more clearly, and a higher ridge suddenly carried a pale stripe.
The middle looked plain, yet a leaf near the top showed a tiny fan of blue.
It turned around a center like a small pinwheel, unexpected and bright.
Nell's shoulders lifted, and her breath sat still for a tick of the clock.
She kept watching, elbows on the counter, while the slow climb continued.
The towel left a cool mark on her sleeve, and the paper pinwheel lay quiet.
When the hour hand moved again, a fresh blue thread crossed the leaf and climbed.
繁體中文 翻譯
那天早上每隔一小時，Nell 就爬上廚房窗邊的椅凳。
一根新鮮的芹菜立在一個裝著藍色清水的透明玻璃杯裡。
切口貼著杯底，杯底周圍墊著一圈濕紙巾。
Harriet 待在她身旁，一隻手靠近玻璃杯。
另一隻手端著一個溫熱的杯子。
冰涼的玻璃弄濕了 Nell 的手心，牆上的時鐘輕輕作響。
窗外遼闊的天空在屋頂上方鋪開，把淡淡的光灑進來。
Nell 盯著看，等著顏色離開杯中的那一刻，進到莖裡。
兩個小氣泡沿著杯壁滑上去，到了水面就破了。
她把一支紙風車放到窗台上，輕輕一撥那幾片扇葉。
它飛快轉了一圈，玻璃裡出現圓圓的反光，然後慢慢停住。
到了中午，最底下的紋路出現了細細的藍線，像安靜的線頭躺著。
很難看清，所以 Nell 彎下身，讓眼睛和檯面在同一高度。
Harriet 按住杯底，Nell 把杯子朝著光滑動一個指寬。
那些線更清楚了，更高的一道紋路忽然帶著一條淡線。
中段還看不出變化，但靠上的一片葉子露出小小的藍色扇面。
它圍著一個中心轉開，像一個小小的紙風車，出乎意料又清亮。
Nell 的肩膀抬了一下，她的呼吸在時鐘滴答間停住片刻。
她繼續看著，手肘撐在檯面上，緩慢的上行沒有停。
紙巾在她袖子上留下涼涼的一片痕跡，旁邊的紙風車安靜地躺著。
當時針再移動一格時，一道新的藍線越過葉片，又往上爬。
情境單字卡
- departure
離開；出發；（此處）顏色從一處轉移到另一處的開始
“She waited, then saw the color's departure into the celery stalk.”
她等待著，然後看見顏色開始離開並進入芹菜莖裡。
- pinwheel
紙風車；（此處）像風車葉片展開的形狀
“Near the top, a leaf held a tiny blue pinwheel shape.”
靠近頂端，一片葉子呈現出一個小小的藍色風車形。
- glide
滑行；滑動；（動作）平穩無聲地移動
“Two tiny bubbles glided up the glass and popped at the surface.”
兩個小氣泡沿著玻璃向上滑動，並在表面破裂。
- immense
巨大的；廣闊無邊的
“An immense sky rested over the roofs and poured pale light inside.”
一片巨大的天空覆在屋頂上，把淡淡的光灑進屋內。
- flip
（名詞）輕彈；快速一轉或一撥
“Nell gave the pinwheel one flip, and its spin faded slowly.”
內爾輕輕一撥紙風車，它的轉動慢慢淡下來。
幫我想想
AI 生成教學線索，協助老師延伸故事使用
Story Discussion - Nell's Celery Observation
故事描述窗外的遼闊天空和杯中淡淡的光。這些光線如何幫助 Nell 看到芹菜裡慢慢出現的藍色細線？請用英文回答。
開放式參考答案
The pale sky light filled the room and made the glass and water glow. That glow highlighted the blue water and the tiny blue threads as they moved into the celery, so Nell could notice the color more clearly.
藍色的線條是因為有人在水裡加入染料（dye）造成的嗎？請用英文回答 yes 或 no 並簡短說明。
是非題參考答案
No. The story shows the water was blue, and the celery absorbed the color from the water as it traveled up the stalk.
請以英文補完下列句子，呈現一個簡短的多步因果關係（用 then 連接兩個短句）：'Nell slid the glass a finger-width toward light, so ____.'
填空題參考答案
the lines showed more clearly, then a higher ridge suddenly carried a pale stripe.
當一片葉子露出小小的藍色扇面，Nell 的肩膀抬起、呼吸停住。你推測她當下的感受或想法是什麼？請用英文回答。
開放式參考答案
She felt surprised and excited; she was focused and quietly hopeful, watching closely to see how the blue would continue to climb.
Role Play - When the leaf shows a tiny blue fan
情境
場景：廚房窗邊，Nell 蹬在椅凳上，窗台上有放著紙風車的玻璃杯，裡面是一根正從藍色水裡吸色的芹菜。重點時刻是：靠上的一片葉子忽然露出一個像小小紙風車一樣的藍色扇面，Nell 的肩膀微抬，呼吸在時鐘滴答間停住。Harriet 站在她旁邊，一手按住杯底，另一手握著溫熱的杯子。請學生兩人一組，分別扮演 Nell 和 Harriet，重演這一刻。練習用語氣和肢體表達驚訝、專注和小心（例如：請對方穩住玻璃杯、把杯子移一個指寬、仔細描述葉片上的藍線），並留意細節：玻璃的冰涼感、紙風車的微光、小氣泡沿杯壁上升。指導學生保持緩慢節奏，模仿故事中等待與觀察的耐心。
角色
開場白建議
- •“Look — the leaf near the top has a tiny fan of blue! Do you see it?”
- •“Hold the glass steady, please. I'll move it one finger-width toward the light.”
Creative Writing - Harriet's Small Moment
寫作提示
請以 Harriet 的視角，用英文寫一段大約 80 字的短文，描寫她在廚房窗邊扶著那個裝著藍色清水的 glass、端著溫熱的 mug、按著濕濕的 towel 時的一個小片刻——這是 Nell 沒注意到的側面瞬間。保留故事的感覺：窗外的 light、牆上的 clock、玻璃裡慢慢爬升的 blue thread、紙風車的安靜，以及 celery 和 leaf 的細節。聚焦一個微小的動作、短暫的念頭或突來的回憶，讓那道藍線或紙風車成為敘事的轉折。
詞彙庫
寫作輔助
- • Harriet held the mug and stared at the blue thread as if it were a small map.
- • Her finger smoothed the towel while she remembered a quieter summer afternoon.
- • Unseen by Nell, Harriet let the pinwheel rest on the sill and leaned closer to the glass.
- • The cool glass left a wet circle on her palm, and for a moment she simply listened to the clock.
Vocabulary & Grammar Focus
重點單字
celery
長而綠色的蔬菜，故事中放在藍色水杯裡的那根芹菜莖。
The celery stalk stood upright in a glass of blue water.
glass
透明的玻璃杯，裝著藍色的水，承載芹菜。
She slid the glass a finger-width toward the light.
bubbles
杯中小氣泡，沿杯壁上升並在水面破掉。
Two small bubbles glided along the side and popped.
pinwheel
紙風車，放在窗台上，輕撥會轉動並造成短暫反光。
She placed a paper pinwheel on the sill and flipped it.
ridge
莖上的紋路或脊線，故事中出現帶著藍線的那些紋路。
By lunch, thin blue lines entered the lowest ridges.
thread
像細線一樣的藍色線條，在葉片或紋路上蔓延或爬升。
When the hour hand moved again, a fresh blue thread climbed.
文法重點
說明 “kept + 動詞-ing” 的用法：這個結構用來表示過去一段時間內持續或反覆發生的動作或狀態。形式是 kept + 現在分詞（例如 kept watching）。在故事中，"She kept watching" 用來表達 Nell 持續注視葉片的動作，強調動作沒有立即結束。此結構常與表示同時發生或延續背景的片語連用（例如 while / as），用以描述一個持續進行的情況。
練習題
She placed a paper ___ on the sill and gave its blades one flip.
參考答案
pinwheel
配對以下單字與意思：
顯示答案
A-5B-2C-1D-6E-4F-3
She kept watching, elbows on the counter, while the slow climb continued.
參考答案
Nell kept watching the leaf as the blue thread climbed.
文化連結 - 窗台上的紙風車與觀察儀式
主題
窗台上的紙風車與觀察植物的日常儀式
討論要點
- •故事中 Nell 把紙風車放在窗台，輕撥讓扇葉轉動，然後透過玻璃看芹菜裡藍色慢慢上升。你有沒有用過小玩具或簡單的道具（像紙風車、放大鏡、透明杯）來幫助自己觀察自然變化？請描述一次你注意到的小變化。
- •Harriet 在一旁扶住杯子底部並端著溫熱的杯子，呈現一種安靜的陪伴和協助。你家裡會有人在做小實驗或照顧窗台植物時幫忙嗎？說說你家常見的互相幫助或等待的方式。
文化比較
在故事裡，觀察是一種緩慢且注重細節的日常儀式：Nell 每隔一小時回到窗台，用紙風車和靠近的光線來強化觀察，Harriet 則以穩定杯子和溫熱的飲杯提供陪伴。相較之下，在使用繁體中文的家庭中，窗台常被用來種香草或小盆栽，孩子們也會用小玩具或手作的物品（例如紙風車、風鈴）來增加觀察的趣味；家庭成員的陪伴常以泡杯熱茶、一起修剪或澆水來表現。兩邊都重視透過簡單物件和親密的陪伴來觀察變化，但具體的道具、飲食（溫熱的飲品）和日常安排會因生活習慣不同而呈現不同樣貌。
Comprehension Quiz
1. What did Nell climb onto every hour that morning?
2. What was standing in the clear glass of blue water?
3. What did Nell watch for the color to do?
4. Who stayed beside Nell with one hand near the glass?
5. What did Nell put on the sill and flip to make a round shimmer in the glass?
6. By lunch, what had appeared on the lowest ridges of the celery?
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