Maxwell Loses a Tooth
A children's short story with vocabulary and comprehension exercises for young learners of English. With audio. Written and read by Tara Benwell. Level: intermediate
Maxwell put up his hand and waited for his teacher, Mrs. Gilbert, to notice him.
"Do you have a question, Maxwell?" she asked.
"It's more like a problem," Maxwell said. "I lost my tooth."
Maxwell stood up and held out his hand to show his class his baby tooth.
"Congratulations," Mrs. Gilbert said. Then she asked the class if anyone had any advice for Maxwell. Keiko put up her hand first. Keiko was from Japan.
"Is it an upper or a lower tooth?" Keiko asked.
"A lower tooth," Maxwell said. He opened his mouth and showed the class the empty spot in the bottom of his mouth.
"You should throw your baby tooth over the roof of your house," Keiko said.
"Why should I do that?" Maxwell said.
"Because then your new adult tooth will grow properly. When you lose an upper tooth you should put it under the floor."
Mrs. Gilbert thought this was a good idea, but Frida disagreed. Frida was from Austria.
"You shouldn't throw your baby tooth away, Maxwell. You should keep it and give it to your mother," Frida said.
"Why should I do that?" asked Maxwell.
"She will make it into a necklace for you to wear."
Jorge shook his head and put up his hand. He had some different advice for Maxwell. Jorge was from Mexico.
"You should take your tooth home. Then you should put it under your pillow when you go to sleep," Jorge said.
"Why should I do that?" Maxwell said.
"Because then the tooth mouse will come. He will keep your tooth and pay you with good luck. Sometimes the tooth mouse even brings a small toy."
Maxwell liked Jorge's advice the best. Mrs. Gilbert gave him a box to keep his tooth in. She didn't want him to lose his tooth again.
"Whatever you decide, you should show your mother your tooth when you get home," Mrs. Gilbert said.
When Maxwell got home he showed his mother the empty spot in his mouth. Then he opened the box and showed her his tooth.
"Congratulations! What are you going to do with your tooth, Maxwell?" his mother asked.
"I'm going to put it under my pillow," he said. And he did.
When Maxwell woke up the next morning he looked under his pillow. The tooth was gone. In its place, Maxwell found a one dollar bill. He also found a letter. This is what the letter said:
Dear Maxwell,
Congratulations! You lost your first tooth. I will keep it forever. You should buy something nice for yourself with this money.
Love,
The Tooth Fairy
"I should tell my class about the tooth fairy," Maxwell thought. "Everyone should lose a tooth!"
