🧒🌊 Tom Sawyer – Chapter 1: A Boy with a Wild Spirit

Meet Tom Sawyer—a clever, mischievous boy who hates school and loves adventure. From sneaking jam to fighting with new kids in town, Tom always finds a way to cause trouble and have fun.

But this time, Aunt Polly has a plan to teach him a lesson…

📘 This chapter is perfect for B1+/B2 English learners:

✔️ 600-word adapted version
✔️ Easy glossary
✔️ Comprehension questions + answers

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📖 Tom Sawyer – Chapter 2 (Adapted for English Learners)

Title: The Art of Work Without Working

It was Saturday morning. The sun was shining. Birds were singing. The whole town was ready for fun. But not Tom.

Tom stood in front of Aunt Polly’s house, holding a brush. A long, tall fence stretched before him. It was 30 yards long and 9 feet high. Aunt Polly told him he must whitewash it—every inch.

“This is terrible,” he said. “All the boys will laugh at me. They will be playing while I paint!”

Tom began slowly. He dipped the brush in the white paint and made one careful stroke.

Soon, his friend Ben Rogers came along, eating an apple and pretending to steer a boat.

“Ahoy, Tom! Working on a Saturday?”

Tom looked serious.

“Work? What do you mean? This isn’t work. This is... art.”

Ben laughed.

“You’re painting a fence!”

Tom replied calmly,

“You may think so, but not everyone can do it. Aunt Polly wants it done just right. She trusts only me.”

Ben became curious.

“Really?”

Tom didn’t stop brushing.

“Oh yes. Most boys never get this chance.”

Ben wanted to try.

“Tom, let me paint a little!”

Tom thought for a moment, then said,

“I don’t know, Ben. This is important work. Aunt Polly said—”

“Please! I’ll give you my apple!”

Tom smiled. He gave Ben the brush and sat down, happily eating the apple while Ben painted.

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Soon, more boys came by. Each of them laughed at first, but then Tom said the same thing:

“It’s not easy. You must do it perfectly. Aunt Polly chose me.”

They all wanted to try.

Billy Fisher gave him a kite. Johnny Miller gave him a dead rat and a string to swing it. One boy even gave him a piece of blue glass to make rainbows in the sun.

By the end of the afternoon, the fence had three coats of paint—and Tom didn’t do any of it. He sat happily with a pile of treasures in his pocket.

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📘 Glossary

Word	Meaning
Whitewash	A type of white paint for fences or walls
Stroke	A single movement of a brush or pen
Ahoy	A call used by sailors (used here playfully)
Inch	A small unit of length (2.54 cm)
Coat	A layer of paint
Rainbow	Colored light that appears when light passes through water or glass

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❓ Comprehension Questions

1. What job does Aunt Polly give Tom?

2. How does Tom feel about painting the fence?

3. What trick does Tom use to get Ben to paint?

4. What kinds of things do the boys give Tom?

5. How much of the fence does Tom paint by himself?

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✅ Answers

1. She tells him to whitewash the fence.

2. He feels unhappy and thinks the other boys will laugh at him.

3. He pretends that it’s a special job and only special boys can do it.

4. An apple, a kite, a dead rat, a piece of glass, and more.

5. Very little—most of the work is done by the other boys.

 

✦ IELTS Topic: Weather – Rain & Wind – 10 Useful Phrases

1. Heavy rain
   e.g., The football match was cancelled due to heavy rain.

2. Drizzle
   e.g., It was only a light drizzle, so we didn’t need umbrellas.

3. Gusts of wind
   e.g., Strong gusts of wind knocked over some signs in the street.

4. Thunderstorm
   e.g., A loud thunderstorm kept me awake most of the night.

5. Torrential rain
   e.g., The torrential rain caused local flooding in the village.

6. Blustery weather
   e.g., The blustery weather made it hard to walk without a coat.

7. Umbrella blew inside out
   e.g., My umbrella blew inside out in the wind — so annoying!

8. Soaked to the skin
   e.g., I forgot my jacket and got soaked to the skin walking home.

9. Howling wind
   e.g., We could hear the howling wind all night through the windows.

10. Rainy season
    e.g., In some countries, the rainy season lasts for months.

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✦ IELTS Speaking Practice – Rain & Wind

Part 1: Introduction & Interview

1. Does it rain often where you live?

2. Do you like rainy weather?

3. How do you prepare for a windy day?

4. Have you ever been caught in heavy rain?

5. Do you prefer calm weather or stormy weather?

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Part 2: Cue Card

Describe a time you experienced rainy or windy weather.
You should say:

• where you were

• what the weather was like

• what you did
  and explain how you felt about it.

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✦ Sample Answers Using the Phrases

Part 1 Answers

1. Yes, we get a lot of drizzle and occasional torrential rain.
2. I like listening to howling wind, but not walking in it!
3. I wear a raincoat and check for blustery weather before leaving.
4. Once, I got soaked to the skin during a sudden thunderstorm.
5. I definitely prefer calm days — gusts of wind are annoying.

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Part 2 Sample Answer

A few months ago, I was walking home from a friend’s house when the weather suddenly changed. It started as a light drizzle, but quickly turned into torrential rain.

I didn’t have an umbrella, so I got soaked to the skin within minutes. The gusts of wind were so strong that my hood kept blowing off, and I had to hold onto my bag tightly.

I even saw someone’s umbrella blow inside out! It was uncomfortable at the time, but now it’s a funny memory.

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✦ Comprehension Test: Rain & Wind Vocabulary

1. "The football match was cancelled due to heavy rain."
Q: Why didn’t the match happen?

2. "It was only a light drizzle, so we didn’t need umbrellas."
Q: What was the weather like?

3. "Strong gusts of wind knocked over some signs in the street."
Q: What caused damage?

4. "A loud thunderstorm kept me awake most of the night."
Q: What disturbed the speaker?

5. "The torrential rain caused local flooding in the village."
Q: What was the result of the rain?

6. "The blustery weather made it hard to walk without a coat."
Q: What made it difficult to walk?

7. "My umbrella blew inside out in the wind — so annoying!"
Q: What happened to the umbrella?

8. "I forgot my jacket and got soaked to the skin walking home."
Q: What happened to the speaker?

9. "We could hear the howling wind all night through the windows."
Q: What could be heard?

10. "In some countries, the rainy season lasts for months."
Q: What kind of weather is common in these places?

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✦ Answer Key

1. It was cancelled because of rain.

2. Light rain — not serious.

3. Strong wind.

4. The noise from the thunderstorm.

5. Flooding.

6. Windy conditions.

7. The wind damaged it.

8. Got very wet.

9. The sound of strong wind.

10. Frequent rain over a long time.

 

📖 Tom Sawyer – Chapter 1 (Adapted for English Learners)

Title: A Boy with a Wild Spirit

Tom Sawyer was a boy who loved freedom and fun. He didn’t enjoy school, and he didn’t like rules. He lived in a small town near the Mississippi River with his Aunt Polly.

One day, Aunt Polly looked around the house and shouted,

“Tom? TOM! Where is that boy?”

She walked quickly into the kitchen. She stopped and listened. She heard nothing. Suddenly, she saw something move behind the door. She smiled. She had an idea.

“Tom, what’s that on your hands?” she asked.

Tom came out slowly. His hands were dirty. His mouth was red.

“You’ve been eating jam again!” she said.

Tom smiled, trying to trick her.

“No, Aunt Polly. I didn’t touch the jam!”

But before she could say anything, Tom pointed behind her.

“Look, Aunt! A dog with a limp!”

Aunt Polly turned to look. In that moment, Tom ran away.

“That boy will be the death of me!” she shouted, but she laughed too.

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Later that afternoon, Tom skipped school and went swimming in the river. To make it seem like he had been at school, he sewed his shirt collar back together with a white thread.

When he returned home, Aunt Polly said,

“Tom, were you at school today?”

Tom replied,

“Of course!”

But Aunt Polly was clever. She looked at his shirt collar. Then she pulled a thread from her sewing box and showed him.

“I used black thread this morning. This is white. You’ve been swimming again!”

Tom had nothing to say. He was caught.

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That evening, Tom sat on the fence. He saw a new boy in town—clean, wearing a fancy hat and shoes. Tom didn’t like the look of him.

“Who are you?” Tom asked.

“I’m new here. Who are you?”

The boys started talking, but quickly began to argue.

“You think you’re better than me because of your shoes!” Tom said.

“Well, you don’t even have shoes!”

They started fighting. After rolling on the ground and getting dusty, the new boy ran away crying.

“You’re a coward!” Tom shouted after him.

Tom returned home with his clothes dirty and ripped. Aunt Polly was not pleased.

“Tomorrow is Saturday. And you, young man, will whitewash the fence!”

Tom groaned. It was the worst punishment he could imagine.

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📘 Glossary

Word	Meaning
Aunt	Your mother or father’s sister
Sewed	Fixed something with a needle and thread
Collar	The top part of a shirt around the neck
Limp	A way of walking when one leg is weak or hurt
Whitewash	A type of white paint used for fences and walls
Coward	Someone who is afraid and runs away

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❓ Comprehension Questions

1. Who is Tom Sawyer living with?

2. What trick does Tom use to escape Aunt Polly?

3. How does Aunt Polly know Tom has been swimming?

4. What happens when Tom meets the new boy?

5. What punishment does Tom receive?

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✅ Answers

1. His Aunt Polly.

2. He points and says there’s a dog with a limp behind her.

3. His shirt collar is sewn with white thread, not black.

4. They argue and fight; the new boy runs away.

5. He has to whitewash the fence on Saturday.