Masha and the Bear
Scott Bahlmann
A Russian tale
The backgrounds for this were copied onto transparencies, and the figures were cardstock on bamboo skewers. We used our projector and screen to tell the story.
Masha lived in a little cottage with her grandfather. Once day she asked him
"May I go out into the woods to gather mushrooms?"
"Very well," he said "But stay close to the path so you won't get lost."
So Masha went into the forest, she passed an old tree stump, and a larger rock.
She was having such a good time that she forgot her grandfathers warning, and soon was far away from the path. Just ahead she saw a little hut.
"I'll go and see who lived there." she thought. Do you know who lived in the hut? It was the Bear! He was very excited to see a little girl in his hut.
"Aha", said he, "now I'll never let you go!. You will live here in my house as meek as a mouse, and you will cook my dinner and my breakfast too, and be my servant, faithful and true."
Masha was scared, but she was also brave. She told the bear, "All right, I'll stay here and clean and cook for you, but first you must let me take some pies to my grandfather. He is all alone and won't have anything to eat."
The bear thought it might be a trick, so he said. "You can place the pies in a basket or sack, but I will take them, you might never come back!"
So Masha thought and came up with a plan. "Very well, I'll put the pies in a basket. But they are for my grandfather, so to make sure you don't eat them on the way I'll climb the tallest pine tree and watch you the entire way!"
While the bear went to check the weather Masha found a big basket and climbed inside, then covered the top with a cloth. The bear came back and saw the basket.
"Masha must have already climbed the tree, and perched on a bow. I'll takes these pies to her grandfather now."
Tramp-tramp went the bear amid the spruce trees. Clumpity-clumphe went amid the birch trees, up hill and down dale went his long winding trail, and on and on he walked. At last he got tired and sat down to rest.
"If I don't rest my bones I think I will die, So I will sit on a stone And I'll eat a pie", said the Bear.
But was it really pies in the basket? No, it was Masha! She called out from the basket:
"I see you, I see you and don't eat my pie, but take it to my Grandfather, say I".
"Dear me what sharp eyes eyes Masha has", said the bear, "she sees everything".
He picked up the basket and went on. He stopped again and said:
"If I don't rest my bones, I think I will dies, so I'll sit on a stump and eat a pie".
But Masha called out again from the basket:
"I see you, I see you and don't eat my pie, but take it to my Grandfather, say I".
"What a clever little girls Masha is", said the bear. "She is sitting high up in a tree and she is far away, but she sees all I do and she hears all I say".
So the bear went all the way to Grandfathers house, but Masha had a dog who smelled the bear, and chased it far away and it never came back!
Grandfather heard the noise and came out of the house to see what was happening. Masha jumped out of the basket and told him everything that happened. He said she was a very clever girl, and she was, wasn't she?