EXCALIBER COVER_EXCALIBER COVER 19/01/2012 6:23 ΜΜ Page 1

ñ Will Uther keep his promise and give his son

to Merlin?
ñ Who will be the one to pull Excalibur out of
the rock and become the ruler who will unite
England?
ñ Is love enough to beat hatred and save
Arthur and Lancelot’s friendship?
ñ Will Morgan Le Fay’s evil plans succeed?
ñ Will peace ever return to England?

COMPONENTS:
◆ Reader
◆ Activity Book Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Level 5

◆ Teacher’s Book
◆ Audio CD

ISBN 978-1-84216-850-9
EXCALIBUR R_EXCALIBUR R 19/01/2012 6:11 ΜΜ Page 14

Chapter 3

King
Arthur
For many years after Uther’s death, knights from all over
the country tried to pull Excalibur from the stone, but none
succeeded. They competed to see who was the strongest knight.
When these competitions ended, the winner would go to the
rock, with a crowd of people watching, to see if he would be
the next King of England.
On one such day a very large man, over six feet tall, with
broad shoulders and long dark hair, stepped up to Excalibur
to try to lift it from its resting place of eighteen years. The
country had suffered during these years as there had never
been one ruler to bring peace to the entire land. The crowd
waited quietly as the tall, dark-haired man grabbed the handle
of Excalibur. He pulled with all his strength, but the sword
would not move. The man walked away, disappointed, as a
new round of games began to see who would try the sword next.
“Arthur! Where is my sword? The games are about to begin.”
Arthur, the slave of a knight called Kay, was sent to bring
Kay’s sword for the next round of games. Arthur had misplaced
Kay’s sword, and in a panic, he ran trying to find another
sword for his master.
Arthur ran with fear to the rock where Excalibur stood. He
had never noticed the men trying to pull the sword from the
rock, as he was always busy serving Kay. Arthur pulled it from
the rock and ran to his master, happy to have found a sword.

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Chapter 3

Everyone knew Excalibur from its gold handle and its silver
blade. Arthur handed it to Kay, who stood admiring its magnificence.
“Arthur! Where did you get this?”
“From a rock, just behind the trees.”
The crowd around them held their breath.
“The boy. He’s pulled the sword from the rock.”
Arthur became uneasy, not knowing what he had done.
Merlin, in his long blue robe, appeared beside the boy and
placed a hand on his shoulder.
“This boy is the son of Uther, the last King of England. He
is the heir to the throne.”
There was much whispering among the crowd. No one believed
that this servant boy could be a king. Only Merlin knew, as he had
made Arthur a servant to teach him what it was like to be ruled by
other men. He believed that when the time came for Arthur to be
King, he would learn from his master’s mistakes and therefore be
wiser than his father, Uther. Merlin also knew that he had to
prove to the people that Arthur was truly the King’s son.
He told Arthur to put Excalibur back into the rock. Arthur
did. Merlin asked Kay, and any others who thought they were
worthy of the sword, to try to pull it out. No one could.
“If this boy, Arthur, pulls the sword from the rock, he is
the true King of England and you must do as he says.”
Arthur pulled Excalibur from the rock and held it up for
all the crowd to see. The people knelt with respect. As he held
Excalibur, Arthur felt the same power his father had once felt
run through his body.
“With this sword, I will unite England into a land of peace
and prosperity.”
With these words, Arthur began to fulfill his promise.

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EXCALIBER COVER_EXCALIBER COVER 19/01/2012 6:23 ΜΜ Page 1

ñ Will Uther keep his promise and give his son

to Merlin?
ñ Who will be the one to pull Excalibur out of
the rock and become the ruler who will unite
England?
ñ Is love enough to beat hatred and save
Arthur and Lancelot’s friendship?
ñ Will Morgan Le Fay’s evil plans succeed?
ñ Will peace ever return to England?

COMPONENTS:
◆ Reader
◆ Activity Book Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Level 5

◆ Teacher’s Book
◆ Audio CD

ISBN 978-1-84216-850-9
EXCAL_ActCover.qxp_EXCAL_ActCover 1/29/15 5:02 PM Page 1

Activity Book

ISBN 978-1-84216-851-6
EXCALIBUR Activity.qxp_EXCALIBUR activity 22/3/17 9:18 PM Page 37

Lesson 10
Chapter 10

Arthur Fights Mordred

I. Listening
Listen to the recording and fill in the gaps with the correct word.
Arthur dreamed that he 1) ...................... Lancelot
waiting for him. Sir Gawain was there watching them.
2) ...................... time Arthur approached Lancelot,
Lancelot moved away, warning the 3) ...................... that
they were being watched. Arthur also saw a 4) ......................
running. He ran after her, but before he could
5) ...................... her dress, she flew up into the air, leaving
him 6) ...................... at the empty sky. He saw Merlin’s
7) ......................, and he woke up terrified. The woman was
not Guinevere, he knew it, and he 8) ...................... to realise
that he had been cruelly deceived.

II. Comprehension questions

1 What separated Arthur and Mordred’s men?
2 What time of day was the fight arranged for?
3 Who did Arthur see in his dream?
4 What did Arthur understand from his dream?
5 Where did Morgan wake up?
6 Who spoke to her? What did he say?
7 Why had Mordred’s strength left him?
8 How was Arthur wounded?
9 What did he tell Lancelot to do?
10 What happened to Excalibur?

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Chapter 10
III. Topics for discussion
1 Have you ever had a strange dream? Do you believe that
dreams can tell us things?
2 Do you forgive people easily if they do something wrong?
3 “A friend in need is a friend indeed”. What does this mean? Do
you agree with this saying?

IV. Activity
Go through the entire story of Excalibur. Do you remember
who said what?

1 Arthur! Where is my 2 You must promise me

sword? The games something if I allow you to
are about to begin. take Excalibur from the lake.

4 You have saved my father,

3 I love you as my
queen and as the therefore, you have saved
king’s wife. me. It would be unwise of
me to refuse the hand of a
man who is surely a king.
5 Merlin! I have kept
my promise. I will
leave Excalibur in the 6 As deep as my love for you,
rock, but you must my king!
make my son a king.

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Chapter 10
7 It is time, Mordred. You 8 Are you such a fool?
shall be king. Climb onto You would give your
my back, and follow me own child for the
to your glory. price of a sword?

10 With this sword, I

9 I will die if I do not kill
will unite England
and become king!
into a land of peace
and prosperity.

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Activity Book

ISBN 978-1-84216-851-6