1.I know that many boys and girls like to eat eggs for their breakfast and for their tea.They like puddings，too，that are made with eggs.Where do these eggs come from？
2.They are laid by a bird called the hen.If the hen is allowed to sit on her eggs and keep them warm for three weeks，out of each egg there will come a little bird called a chick or chicken.
3.The father bird is called the cock.He is larger than his mate，the hen，and has very pretty feathers.Look at the feathers of his tail，how they bend over in an arch.On his head he has a red comb，and under his bill he has folds of soft skin called “wattles.”
4.Hens，and cocks，and chickens are all called poultry or fowls.They are kept by farmers in the country.
A COCK（公鸡）
5.The body of the common fowl is round and heavy.When fowls are well fed，their flesh is tender and very good to eat.Their wings are rather small for their heavy bodies，and so they cannot fly well.
6.On each foot they have three toes in front and one toe behind；and there is a strong nail on each toe.Fowls get much of their food by scratching up insects andseeds out of the ground with their toes.
7.The fowl has a very strong bill to crack seeds with，but it has no teeth for chewing its food.When the food is swallowed，it goes into a kind of little mill called the “gizzard.”
8.The gizzard is a strong bag.It is nearly full of stones and gravel which the fowl has swallowed.The food is squeezed and crushed among these stones，and made fine and soft.
9.At night fowls go to roost.They do not lie down，but perch on a board or a branch.They get up as soon as the sun rises，and then the cock begins to crow.When he crows，he makes a funny noise like “cock-a-doodle-doo！”
10.The hen cackles when she has laid an egg.When she finds any food，she makes a clucking sound to call her chicks to comeand eat it.When the chicks hear a noise，they run to the hen，and she covers them with her wings.
SUMMARY
Cocks and hens and chickens are birds called poultry or fowls.The hen is the female，the cock is the male，and the chickens are the young ones.The hen lays the eggs out of which the chickens are hatched.Fowls get much of their food by scratching up insects and seeds out of the ground with their toes.They have strong bills，but no teeth.Their food goes into the gizzard，where it is squeezed and crushed by the stones and gravel the fowls have swallowed.Fowls roost at night on a perch or branch，and get up at sunrise.Eggs and fowls are very good for food.
【中文阅读】
1．我知道，很多小朋友在吃早饭，喝下午茶的时候，都喜欢吃鸡蛋。小朋友们也喜欢吃布丁，布丁也是鸡蛋做的。那鸡蛋是从哪儿来的呢？①2．鸡蛋是一种叫母鸡的鸟下的。要是母鸡能在蛋上，坐上三个星期，让蛋保持温暖，每只蛋里就会钻出一只小鸡（chick或chicken）。②3．公鸡，个头比它的伴侣，也就是母鸡要大，羽毛很漂亮。看看公鸡尾巴上的羽毛，弯成了一个圆弧形。头上有一个红色的鸡冠（comb）；公鸡的嘴下面也有几片柔软的皮肤，叫做垂肉（wattles）。③4．公鸡、母鸡、小鸡统称鸡，（poultry或fowls），是让农民养在乡村的。④5．一般的鸡，身体是圆滚滚的，分量很沉。如果鸡喂养得很好，肉就很软，很好吃。鸡翅膀对沉重的身体来说太小了，所以鸡的飞翔能力不强。
6．鸡的每只脚上都长着三个向前的脚趾，一个向后的脚趾，每个脚趾上都有一个坚硬的爪子。鸡用脚趾从土里刨出虫子和谷粒来吃，它的大部分食物都是这么来的。⑤7．鸡有一个特别坚硬的嘴，学名叫“喙”（bill）⑥；鸡就是用喙来啄开谷粒的，但鸡并没有牙，不能嚼食物。食物咽下去之后，会进入一个小小的加工厂，名叫“砂囊”（gizzard）。
8．砂囊是一个强壮的肌肉构成的袋子，里面几乎盛满了鸡吞下去的石头和沙砾。食物就在这些石头中间挤压、磨碎，变得又细又软。
9．晚上，鸡就回到鸡窝（roost）里去了，鸡睡觉的时候并不躺下，而是栖息在板子或者树枝上。太阳一出来，鸡也就起来了，公鸡开始打鸣儿（crow），打鸣儿的声音很好玩：“喔--喔喔--喔！”10．母鸡下完了蛋以后，会“咯咯”（cackle）地叫，母鸡在找到食物的时候，也会发出另一种咯咯的声音，让别的母鸡过来吃食。小鸡听见什么响动，就会朝母鸡跑过来，母鸡会把它们盖在自己的翅膀下面。⑦译注①英国人有喝下午茶的习惯，小朋友也有。这个习惯一直保留到现在。狭义的“布丁”，基本原料是鸡蛋、牛奶、面粉和水，但是布丁也可能不用鸡蛋，而是用水果、玉米粉、奶酪等制作。市面上大规模生产的布丁，原料是事先做好的“布丁粉”。
②鸡属于“脊索动物门”“鸟纲”“鸡形目”“雉科”“原鸡属”“原鸡种”的“家鸡亚种”，在几千年前被人类驯化。关于那个“先有鸡还是先有蛋”的问题，从严格的生物学上说，是先有蛋--有一只差一点就变成鸡的古代鸟类下了第一只鸡蛋，然后孵出了第一只鸡。因为从鸡到鸡蛋有遗传物质的变异，而从鸡蛋到鸡却没有。但是，鸡的生物学定义，是人类为了生产和生活方便而自己创造的，而自然界的现象非常复杂，到底变异到什么程度才算“鸡”这种动物。难以用人类的概念准确定义，所以这个变化发生的具体时间无法确定。
③原文中，公鸡的英语cock属于旧式的英式英语，已经很少用了。现在的美式英语叫rooster。
④这两个英语词可以指所有的家禽，但在课文里单指鸡。现在的鸡大多数养在现代化的养鸡场里面，也有少数放养，叫做“柴鸡”或“土鸡”，有些地方还叫“笨鸡”。
⑤现在家养的鸡，一般都是人喂给它饲料。放养的“柴鸡”，虽然自己寻找食物，但也让人给它补充饲料。
⑥第2课我们学过，鸟的“喙”叫peak，bill是另外一个英语名字。
⑦我们小时候玩的“老鹰捉小鸡”游戏，的确是有生物学基础的！
A PIECE OF SLATE
