In Search of Peace and Freedom

In Borneo, long, long ago, there lived a very heartless king. The
people were unfree. They were joyless. So ten Malay datus
decided to leave the place.

“Let us look for a land where we can live in peace and freedom,”
said Datu Puti, the leader.
“Yes, let’s do that for the sake of our children,” the others readily
agreed. Nobody disagreed.
At last they came upon a land known as Panay. They did not just
seize it but bought from the king of the island.
The malays lived fearless and undisturbed in the land they had
bought. They built houses of bamboo, nipa, and wood. They
planted food crops. They raised animals, too.

As time passed, communities grew. The Malays formed their

government. They called their unit of government barangay, after
the boat that had carried them through the seas—balangay.
At last, the Malays’ dream of living peacefully was fulfilled.

Source: Fun in English (Reading) pp. 3-4

The Life Cycle of Frogs

Amphibians are animals that spend their lives in two distinct

places. They begin their lives in the water, then move on to land
where they make their homes.

The frog is an amphibian. The female frog lays hundreds of eggs

in fresh shallow water. The eggs are covered and protected by a
gelatin-like coating. In a few days, the eggs hatch into larvae. The
larvae breathe by means of gills like the fish. They live on the yolk
of the egg from which they come from. Soon the larvae become
tadpoles.

The tadpole breathes through gills and lives in the water, and its
long tail gives it a fish-like appearance. As the tadpole grows, the
tail gradually disappears, and its hind legs appear. The gills are
replaced by lungs, and short front legs take shape.

With two pairs of legs and with lungs finally developed, the
tadpole becomes an adult frog. It moves into land. The frog may
live near the water but, will not and cannot make its home in the
water.