PENGUIN ACTIVE READING

Teacher Support Programme Activity worksheet LEVEL 1

Theseus and the Minotaur Photocopiable

While reading 4 Are these right (3) or wrong (7)?
Pages 1–5 a The Athenians can sleep because the
1 Match A and B. Minotaur is tired. c
A B b The men at the door of Theseus’s room
is Poseidon’s son. opened the door for Ariadne because she
is Ariadne’s father. had a knife. c
King Aegeus c Ariadne helps him because she doesn’t like
is King Aegeus’s son.
is young and strong. her father and she doesn’t like Crete. c
Theseus d Theseus is going to kill the Minotaur in the
is the Minotaur’s father.
is King Aegeus’s new wife. evening. c
Minos e He killed the men at the door with the
lives in Athens with Medea.
is Theseus’s father. string. c
Medea has two fathers. 5 What is Ariadne thinking? Put the letters in
the right place.
has one daughter.
I (IKLE) ………… Theseus very much. He’s got
2 Theseus and his father are talking. Write
a beautiful (AEFC) ………… and he is (LALT)
Theseus’s answers.
………… and (TNOGSR) ………… . He
Father: Oh, Theseus! I am happy you are here.
can help me. I am unhappy. I want to go to
Did you walk for many days to come to Athens?
(EHNATS) ………… . He can take me in his
Theseus: ………………………………………… (ABTO) ………… . I want to be his (IFWE)
Father: Was it difficult to get here? ………… . This evening I am going to visit him
Theseus: Yes, father, there were ……………… on in his room. I am going to give him a (ORWSD)
the road. ………… and some (IRGNST) ………… .
Father: Did you fight them? Then, he can (LILK) ………… the Minotaur
Theseus: ………………………… and killed and go away with me!
them.
Pages 14–19
Father: You found my sword and now it is yours.
6 Answer these questions.
How did you find it?
a Why was there no noise in the maze?
Theseus: …………………………………………
b What was always in Theseus’s hand?
Pages 8–11 c Did Theseus kill the Minotaur with a rock?
3 Write about the Minotaur. d Why didn’t the Athenians want Ariadne on the
boat?
e Why did Theseus cry for his father in Athens?
After reading
7 What did Theseus do? Tick the things he did.
In Troezen …
a he found a king’s sword. c
b he fought many bad men. c
In Athens …
c he made a promise to Ariadne. c
d he made a promise to his father. c
In Crete …
a ……… ………… is its father. e he found Minos’s ring with the help of two
b …… …… Ariadne’s ………… . black dolphins. c
c It’s tall and ………… . 8 Answer the following questions about the
story.
d It’s ……… ……… and ……… bull.
a Did you like the story? Why (not)?
e It ……… …… …… maze.
b Who in the story did you like? Why?
f It eats ……………… young ………… every
c Do you like old stories from Greece? Why (not)?
year.
c Pearson Education Limited 2007 Theseus and the Minotaur - Activity worksheet  of 
 PENGUIN ACTIVE READING
Teacher Support Programme Progress test LEVEL 1

Theseus and the Minotaur Photocopiable

Pages 1–5 Pages 14–19
1 Match A and B. 4 Look at the picture and answer the questions.
A B
1 ‘I am going to walk a Theseus to Aegeus
to my father’s home.’
2 ‘I am going to fight b Aegeus to Theseus and
ill the Minotaur.’
3 ‘You are my son. c Theseus to his mother
You are going to
be king after me.’
4 ‘I am going to sail to d Medea
the island of Crete.’
5 ‘You are going to be e Theseus to Aegeus
king after your father, a Who is on the island of Naxos?
not him.’ ……………………………………………………
2 Are these right (3) or wrong (7)? ……………………………………………………
a Theseus moved a rock and found Poseidon’s b Where is Theseus going?
sword. c ……………………………………………………
b Theseus went to Athens to meet his father. c ……………………………………………………
c In Athens Theseus met his father and his new c Who is on the boat with Theseus?
wife. She wanted to kill him. c ……………………………………………………
d On the road he fought and killed a lot of bad ……………………………………………………
animals. c d Where does Ariadne want to go?
e King Aegeus was crying: Minos’s son, the ……………………………………………………
Minotaur, was going to eat Theseus. c ……………………………………………………
e Why does she want to go there?
Pages 8–11
……………………………………………………
3 What happened first? Write the numbers, 1–10.
……………………………………………………
a c The first night Ariadne went to Theseus’ room
5 How are these people feeling? Why?
with a knife and some string.
a Theseus is happy because …………………………
b c In Crete he met King Minos and Ariadne.
……………………………………………………
c c Theseus wanted to go into the maze when the
……………………………………………………
Minotaur was sleeping
b Ariadne is unhappy because Theseus ………………
d c Theseus went to the maze and Ariadne took the
……………………………………………………
young Athenians to the boat.
……………………………………………………
e c King Aegeus was happy about Theseus, but was
c The Athenians on the boat are happy because
very unhappy because fourteen Athenians were
……………………………………………………
going to Crete.
……………………………………………………
f c Theseus wanted to go to Crete to kill it and
d Back in Athens, Theseus is unhappy because his
he promised he was going to come back home
father ………………………………………………
again.
……………………………………………………
g c Ariadne was helping Theseus because she
e The people in Athens are happy because …….……
wanted to go away with him.
……………………………………………………
h c Theseus did not want to wait for the morning.
……………………………………………………
i c He was going to have white sails on the boat.
This was his promise.
j c They were food for the Minotaur, Minos’s son.
It lived in a maze on the island of Crete.

c Pearson Education Limited 2007 Theseus and the Minotaur - Progress test  of