Beatrix Potter: She Wrote a Letter to a Sick Little Boy… Then Peter Rabbit Was Born
As a lonely girl in London, Beatrix Potter loved drawing her pets. In 1893 she sent a picture letter about a rabbit to a sick little boy — and it became The Tale of Peter Rabbit. Learn five A1 words with the true story of Beatrix Potter.
Transcript
Tap a time to jump to that moment. Highlighted words have a meaning: tap them. Words in bold show today's grammar.
A little boy was sick in bed.
A young woman sent him a letter about a .
Then the letter became a famous book.
This is the story of Beatrix Potter.
Welcome to brightlivesenglish.com, where we teach real English using real-life stories.
. A is an animal that lives with you at home.
She had many in her room.
. When you , you make a with a pencil.
The past is .
She her again and again.
. A is a small animal with long ears.
She had a called Peter.
. A is a place near a house with flowers and vegetables.
Peter ran into a .
. A is a place in the country with fields and animals.
Later, she bought a .
Now, one pattern: love and like.
After them, we can use a verb with -ing.
She loved animals.
She loved animals.
Ready? Let's begin.
Beatrix Potter was born in London in 1866.
Her family was rich.
She did not go to school.
A teacher came to her house.
She did not have many friends.
But she had many in her room!
Mice, frogs, bats, lizards and .
She loved animals.
She her again and again.
Later, as a young woman, she had a called Peter.
In 1893, a little boy, Noel, was sick in bed.
Beatrix wrote him a letter with .
It was a story about four little .
In the story, Peter ran into a .
A man ran after him!
Later, she wanted to make a book.
But many companies said no.
So she paid for it herself.
In 1901, she printed 250 little books.
Then a company said yes.
In 1902, thousands of people bought the book!
With her book money, she bought a in the District.
She loved working on the .
Later, she had a lot of , more than one thousand.
She died in 1943.
She gave her to the country, for everyone.
Children everywhere still love reading about Peter .
Let's review. She had many in her room.
She her again and again.
She had a called Peter.
Peter ran into a .
Later, she bought a .
And remember: she loved animals.
Beatrix Potter's story teaches us: a small, kind letter can make the whole world happy.
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Step 3
Words from the story
Say the word, guess its meaning, then flip the card. Keep the ones you know, and practise the rest again.
Great work, you know every word in this story. Now try the quiz below.
pet noun
an animal that lives with you at home
“She had many pets in her room.”
draw verb (drew)
to make a picture with a pencil
“She drew her pets again and again.”
rabbit noun
a small animal with long ears
“She had a rabbit called Peter.”
garden noun
a place near a house with flowers and vegetables
“Peter Rabbit ran into a garden.”
farm noun
a place in the country with fields and animals
“Later, she bought a farm.”
picture noun
a drawing or a painting
“She wrote a letter with pictures.”
sheep noun (plural: sheep)
a farm animal with thick wool
“Later, she had more than a thousand sheep.”
lake noun
a big area of water with land all around it
“Her farm was near a lake.”
Grammar in the story
love / like + verb-ing
We use it for: to talk about things we enjoy doing
- She loved drawing animals.
- She loved working on the farm.
- I like reading books.
From the story
- She loved drawing animals.
- Children everywhere still love reading about Peter Rabbit.
Find it in the story 6 times
Your turn
She loved her pets.
She loved on the farm.
Do you like books?
Step 4
Story Challenge
9 quick rounds: choose, fill the gap, build the sentence and match the words. Answer in a row to build a streak and earn bonus points.
Well done!
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Take it further
Before you watch: Do you have a pet? What is its name? Do you like drawing?
After you watch: Write three sentences with love or like + -ing. For example: I love reading. My brother likes playing football. My grandmother loves cooking.
Think about it: Beatrix wrote a letter to make a sick boy happy, and it became a famous book. Did a small, kind thing ever make you very happy? What was it?
