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B Burlington Books

Doctor Dolittle
Hugh Lofting

T E A C H E R ’ S M AT E R I A L

CONTENTS

To the Teacher 2

Before Reading 3

After Reading 4

Final Test 5

Answers to Final Test 6

Answers to Activities in the Reader 6

Answers to Cross-Curricular Focus 7

Before using the following teacher’s material, we recommend that you visit the Teacher’s Zone
at www.burlingtonbooks.es and consult the Burlington Activity Reader Series general
information leaflet. The Final Test in this teacher’s material is also available in editable
Word format from the website. The Student’s Zone on the site offers additional activities.
 Doctor Dolittle
to the teacher
List of Main Characters

John Dolittle: he’s a doctor and later, a great vet. Lap: Dolittle’s pet dog.
Sarah: Dolittle’s sister. Chee-Chee: Dolittle’s pet monkey.
Fred: Dolittle’s friend, a dog trainer. Pushmi-Pullyu: a two-headed African animal.

Plot Summary
John Dolittle is an intelligent but strange doctor in the English town of Puddleby. Dr Dolittle loves animals
and he has got many pets in his house – including a monkey called Chee-Chee. Sarah wants to get rid of the
animals because Dr Dolittle’s patients don’t like the animals. Dr Dolittle refuses and he loses all his patients and
becomes poor.
One day, Dr Dolittle falls in his garden, hits his head and becomes unconscious. When he wakes up, he can
understand everything the animals are saying. Dr Dolittle finds a wounded bird and because he can understand
it, he can cure it. His friend Fred, discovers Dr Dolittle’s new talent and convinces Dr Dolittle to become a vet.
Soon, many animals are standing outside Dr Dolittle’s office waiting for help.
Dr Dolittle becomes very successful and rich. Then, the doctor invites some of the animals including a crocodile
to stay in his house. People are frightened of the crocodile and stop bringing their animals. Without patients,
Dr Dolittle becomes poor again and soon the bank wants to take his house.
Then, Dr Dolittle gets news of a war in Africa and decides to travel there to help the animals. When he arrives,
he finds animals fighting and many are wounded. He tries to help them, but soon the animal hospital is full and
he doesn’t have time to help them all. He learns about the leader of the animals. The Pushmi-Pullyu, a creature
with two heads. Pushmi has got stripes on his head and Pullyu has got spots on his head. Pushmi and Pullyu are
always fighting and telling the striped and spotted animals to fight each other.
Dr Dolittle wants to stop the war, so he waits until night and then, he and Chee-Chee paint some animals with
stripes and others with spots. In the morning, when the animals wake up, they are not sure who to fight and who
to be friends with. Even the Pushmi-Pullyu doesn’t know who is who. The Pushmi-Pullyu organises a meeting
to stop the fighting. The animals have a party and are happy because they’ve got peace in Africa.
Dr Dolittle receives a letter from Sarah. People in England know about his success in Africa and they want
his help. He can come home and be rich and famous. Dr Dolittle prepares to sail home, but sees a giraffe with
a cold, and decides the animals in Africa need him, as there are no other vets there. He decides to stay and
although he isn’t rich, he is very happy.

about the author

Hugh Lofting (1886-1947) was a British children’s writer. As a child, he was very creative and always loved
animals. When he was 18, he went to the United States to study civil engineering in Massachusetts. Later,
he travelled to different places such as Cuba and Africa. In 1912, he settled in New York to pursue a writing
career. He was married three times, and had three children.
During World War I, Lofting joined the British Army and fought for his country. While at war, he witnessed
the senseless brutality of war, including the abuse of animals. Lofting wrote letters to his children back home,
but he did not want to tell them about the terrible things he was witnessing, so he wrote imaginary stories. In
his stories, animals were treated with respect and understanding.
Lofting was badly injured later in the war, and returned home to the United States. From 1920 to 1927, he
developed the stories in the letters he had written to his children into a series of books about Dr Dolittle. His
first book, The Story of Doctor Dolittle, was an instant success, as were the rest of the books in the series.
The series has been adapted for film and television, and they are still popular stories and well loved by
children all around the world.
After Lofting’s death, Jane Goodall, who is famous for her work with chimpanzees in Tanzania, wrote
about him: “Any child who is not given the opportunity to make the acquaintance of this rotund, kindly,
and enthusiastic doctor/naturalist and all his animal friends will miss out on something important.”
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 Doctor Dolittle
Before reading
These activities are designed to help the students’ reading comprehension. They help to activate the students’
background knowledge and ability to predict. At this level, these activities will usually be conducted in the
students’ mother tongue. Students with a strong vocabulary can do some of these activities in English.
Ask the questions and elicit the answers from the whole class. Some possible answers are provided in italics.
If you prefer, students can work in pairs or small groups.

Suggestions for Lead-in Activities

1. Imagine you can talk to animals. Explain your feelings. (Excited, happy because then I know what they
are really thinking and feeling. / Sad because I know when they are in pain.)
2. Do you like going to the doctor? Why / Why not? (Yes, because the doctor helps me feel better and get
healthy. / No, because I’m afraid I’ll get an injection.)
3. What skills do you think a person needs to be a good vet? (be gentle and kind; know about animal
illnesses and different medicines; be good with animals)
4. How many different kinds of doctors can you think of? (children’s doctor, ophtalmologist, ear, nose and
throat doctor, surgeon, orthopedic doctor, skin doctor, neurologist, dentist)
5. Which profession do you think is harder – a doctor or a vet? Give your reasons. (Being a vet is harder
because animals can’t tell you what the problem is. / Being a doctor is harder because people can be
very difficult.)
6. In the story, Dr Dolittle has got many unusual pets. What kinds of pets do you like to have, and why?
(I like dogs because they are man’s best friend. I like snakes because they are scary. I like iguanas
because they are unusual. I like guinea pigs because they are sweet.)
7. Describe how you imagine Africa – the landscape and the different types of animals. (Jungles with lots
of wild animals such as lions, antelopes, zebras, elephants, hyenas, giraffes.)

Before Reading Activities

1. Read the first four lines of the story on page 8. List three things you learned about Dr Dolittle. (He’s a
doctor. All the people in Puddleby know him. He is very intelligent. He’s strange.)
2. Look at the picture on page 8. What is strange about Dr Dolittle’s clothes? (He isn’t wearing any shoes.
His clothes are very colourful. He’s got a parrot on his hat.)
3. Look at the picture on page 9 and describe Dr Dolittle’s living room. (There are rabbits and mice on the
furniture and piano. There is a hedgehog on the sofa.)
4. Read the title of Chapter 2 and then look at the pictures on page 10. What kind of problems have the
patients got? (A lady can’t sit on the chair because a hedgehog is sitting there. A cow’s eating a flower
from a lady’s hat.)
5. Look at the picture on page 14 and read the speech bubble. Which animal is Dr Dolittle helping? What is
the matter with the animal? (It’s a bird. It can’t fly.)
6. Look through the book and make a list of all the animals you can see. (cats, dogs, rabbits, mice,
hedgehog, bird, monkey, cow, crocodile, giraffe, elephant, zebra, buffalo, rhinoceros)

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 Doctor Dolittle
After reading
drama acTivities
Work with a partner or a group. Learn one of the dialogues below and act it out in front of the class.

1. Chee-Chee and Lap are talking.
Chee-Chee: He’s waking up. Can you see?
The water on his face was a good
idea.
Lap:  Yes, but I said his face, not his
body! Now, he’s all wet and he
looks sick!
Chee-Chee: He isn’t sick – he’s a doctor!
Lap: That’s ridiculous! Of course
doctors can be sick, they’re just
ordinary people.
Chee-Chee: Really? And then what do they
do? Do they help themselves?
Or do they go to another doctor?
Dr Dolittle is helping a little bird.
2. 
Bird: I feel terrible. I’m hungry, but
I can’t eat. I’ve got something in
my throat.
Dr Dolittle: Open your mouth, I want to
see. There! It’s out now!
Bird: Oh, thank you very much, doctor.
Can I ask for one more thing? I
need some food. I’m very hungry!
Fred: Why are you talking to a bird?
Dr Dolittle: Because the bird is talking to me.
Can’t you hear?
Fred: No. I can only hear ‘tweet tweet’.
3. Fred and Dr Dolittle are talking.
Dr Dolittle: Fred, there are many vets in Puddleby.
They don’t need another one.
Fred: Yes, but the other vets can’t talk to
the animals, John! You can! You can
understand their problems and help
them. Don’t you want to help the
animals?
Dr Dolittle: Yes, of course I want to help them.
I love them.
Fred: Excellent. I can tell all the pet owners
in Puddleby about you. They can bring
their sick pets to you for treatment.
Dr Dolittle: Maybe you’re right, Fred, I can be a
very good vet!
A colourful bird flies into Dr Dolittle’s garden.
4. 
Bird:  Dr Dolittle! Help us! You must come to
Africa! Please!
Dr Dolittle: Africa? What’s the problem in Africa?
Bird:  There’s a war there, and terrible battles
are happening. Many animals are hurt.
Dr Dolittle: Oh, no! That’s terrible. We must leave
immediately!
Sarah: Where are you going?
Dr Dolittle: I’m going to Africa. The animals need
me there.
Sarah: But it costs a lot of money to travel to
Africa.

Project Suggestions
You may want to present some of these activities in the students’ own language.
1. Make a different cover for the book. Include a picture and a title on the front cover. Write a few
sentences about the story on the back cover.
2. Imagine you are planning a trip to Africa. Make a list of all the things you want to take.
3. Choose an important scene from the story. Draw the scene and write a few sentences about it.
4. Imagine you are Dr Dolittle. Write a letter to Fred, telling him about your adventures in Africa.
5. Write a new ending to the story. Begin like this: “Dr Dolittle and Chee-Chee sailed back to
England … .”
6. Make a page for a travel brochure about an African safari. Include pictures of the animals people can
see and write a sentence about each one.
7. Work in pairs. A is Dr Dolittle and B is Sarah. Sarah tries to persuade Dr Dolittle to send his animals
away. Write the conversation you have and then act it out.
8. Search the Internet for information about the history of animal medicine. Write a paragraph and read it
to the class.

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FINAL TEST
A Number the sentences below in the correct order according to the story.
a. The animals stop fighting and make peace.
b. Dr Dolittle decides to stay in Africa.
c. Dr Dolittle decides to be a vet.
d. A bird tells Dr Dolittle about the war.
e. People are afraid of Corky and stop coming.
f. Corky decides to stay with Dr Dolittle.
Doctor Dolittle
g. Dr Dolittle paints spots and stripes on
the animals.
h. Dr Dolittle can understand animals.
i. Dr Dolittle falls and hits his head.
j. Dr Dolittle tries to help the animals
injured in the war.
10 points (1 point each)

B Who is speaking? Write the correct character next to each sentence.

Dr Dolittle the bird Chee-Chee Fred Sarah
1. “The animals make your house messy and dirty.”
2. “The bank wants to take my house from me.”
3. “You can come and live with me.”
4. “… I’m here – up in the tree!”
5. “… jumping from tree to tree makes me very tired.”
10 points (2 points each)

C Choose the correct answer.

1. Dr Dolittle has got pets, so his patients leave / stay.
2. Dr Dolittle climbs a tree to help a monkey / bird.
3. Dr Dolittle can hear animals talking / knocking.
4. The mice / cats tell Doctor, Doctor jokes.
5. Dr Dolittle says to Chee-Chee, “Stop eating / drinking all the time.”
6. The squirrel tells other animals about the new vet / medicine.
7. Corky is a donkey / crocodile.
8. Dr Dolittle travels to Africa by car / boat.
9. Dr Dolittle tells the rhino and the buffalo to stop fighting / sleeping.
10. Dr Dolittle stays because he sees a sick giraffe / buffalo.
20 points (2 points each)

D M
 atch A to B to make true sentences about the story.
A B
1. The bird is sick because
2. Dr Dolittle doesn’t want to get rid of the
animals in his home because
3. Pushmi-Pullyu tells the animals to fight because
4. The African animals love Dr Dolittle because
5. Dr Dolittle decides to stay in Africa because
a. he loves having many pets.
b. some have got spots and some have
got stripes.
c. the animals in Africa haven’t got a vet.
d. he stopped the war in Africa.
e. there’s a fishbone in its throat.
10 points (2 points each)

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 Doctor Dolittle
answers to final test

A 1. i 3. c 5. e 7. j 9. a C 1. leave 6. vet
2.
h 4.
f 6. d 8. g 10. b 2.
bird 7. crocodile
B 1. Sarah 3. talking 8. boat
2. Dr Dolittle 4. mice 9. fighting
3. Fred 5. eating 10. giraffe
4. the bird D 1. e 2. a 3. b 4. d 5. c
5. Chee-Chee

answers to activities in the reader

Pre-reading activities (page 7) Chapters 5-6 ActIvities (pages 24-25)

1 1. b 2. e 3. a 4. d 5. c 1 1. hungry 3.
surprised
2 1. vet 4.
fruit 2.
tired 4.
wonderful
2.
money 5.
pet 2 1. fishbone 4.
bread
3.
shoes 2.
mouth 5.
exercise
3 Accept all logical answers. 3.
drink
3 1. b 2. c 3. a 4. d
Chapters 1-2 activities (pages 12-13)
4 1. b 2. c 3. e 4. a 5. d
1 Animals Adjectives Places
hedgehog strange town Chapters 7-8 ActivitieS (pages 30-31)
monkey poor living room
sellcheckbuytravelstand
mice young
2 1. follow 3.
eating
1 1. check 4.
buy
2.
leaves 4.
drives
2.
travel 5.
stand
3 1. T 2. F 3. T 4. F 5. F 6. T 3.
sell
4 1. b 2. c 3. e 4. d 5. a 6. c 2
1
s
p
Chapters 3-4 activities (pages 18-19) i 2
n o
s e i 3

1 1. biscuits 4.
body d q
4
n e 
i g h b o u r
2.
dream 5.
voice 5
r i b
3.
face 6
f a r m e r
2 1. e 2. f 3. d 4. b 5. a 6. c 7. g o r o
3 1. b 2. c 3. e 4. f 5. d 6. a r e k
7
4 1. Chee-Chee 4. Mice m e a l e
s n
2. Fred 5. Lap
t
3. Dr Dolittle 6. Dr Dolittle
3 1. b 2. c 3. a 4. c
4 1. d 2. b 3. a 4. c

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 Doctor Dolittle
Answers to Activities in the Reader continued

Chapters 9-10 activities (pages 36-37) Chapters 11-12 activities (pages 42-43)
1 1. suitcase 5.
blood 1 1. letter 6.
singing
2.
boat 6.
paint 2.
return 7. dancing
3.
tail 7.
butterfly 3.
rich 8. shoulders
4.
heart 4.
sad 9. waving
2 1. dark 4.
long 5.
rain
2.
unusual 5.
hard 2 1. b 2. a 3. c 4. b 5. c 6. a
3.
full 3 1. c 2. c 3. b 4. a 5. a
3 1. e 2. d 3. b 4. a 5. c
4 1. b 2. d 3. c 4. a

answers to cross-curricular focus

THE RSPCA (page 49) Illegal Pets (page 51)

1 1. Britain 4.
pets 3 1. c 2. e 3. d 4. a 5. f 6. b

2. charity 5. treatment 4 1. illegal 4. wild animals

3. cruelty 6. abandoned 2. different 5.
in open areas

2 1. c 2. b 3. b 4. a 3. laws 6. a lot of misery