The Raven's Bright Button
Written by Studio AM.
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A raven found a silver button beside the road. It flashed when he tilted it toward the sun. He carried it to the tallest pine and announced that the sky had given him a piece of morning. The magpie admired the shine. The mole asked whether it could mend a coat. The raven tucked the button beneath one wing. “Its purpose is higher than coats,” he said.
Each day he polished it. Because one wing stayed pressed around the treasure, his flight became uneven. He stopped carrying twigs for the nest he shared with his sister. He avoided rain, fearing spots. When the flock searched a field, he watched from a dry branch and guarded his brightness.
Then winter ice sealed the berries beneath a hard crust. The raven's sister tried to lift it with her beak, but the layer would not break. The mole knew of grain inside an abandoned shed. Its door was fastened by a hooked wire. The hook was too stiff for the mole's paws. “A hard edge could lift it,” said the mole. The raven imagined his button scratched against the wire. He also saw his sister's empty beak. At last he slid the button's edge beneath the hook and lifted it free. The door opened, and the flock ate. The silver surface gained a deep mark.
In spring, the raven still kept the button, but he wore it on a cord where everyone could see the scratch. “Is that damage?” a nestling asked. “It is the first thing this treasure ever accomplished,” said the raven.
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Questions
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Question 1 of 4
What is the main idea of the fable?
The answer is A: The raven learns that a treasured object gains deeper value through useful sacrifice rather than untouched display.
The button’s mark becomes evidence of helping the flock, reversing the raven’s original idea of value.
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Question 2 of 4
Why does the raven later display the scratch?
The answer is B: He now sees it as a record of the button’s useful service to others.
His answer calls the mark an accomplishment rather than damage.
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Question 3 of 4
What does “fastened” mean in the third paragraph?
The answer is C: held closed or joined securely
The hooked wire keeps the shed door closed until the raven lifts it free.
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Question 4 of 4
What is stored inside the abandoned shed?
The answer is D: grain
The mole tells the hungry birds about grain inside the shed.
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