Elmer and the Dragon · Garden Heights Academy

Part 5

for Elmer and the Dragon · Part 5 · Chapters 6

a novel by Ruth Stiles Gannett

30 min5 Parts

This workbook is built on a solid pedagogical foundation, effectively integrating content and language learning based on the CLIL framework (Content and Language Integrated Learning), elevated by our unique 5th C — Connection — and an integrated Standardized Test section that weaves every SAT & TOEFL question type right into the novel, so learners build real test skills easily, naturally, and with fun.

What Happens in Part 5

Flute leads Elmer to the canaries’ ruler, King Can XI, who lives in a grand tree. The king is just as troubled by curiosity as his subjects, and at first he is too proud and too worried to explain. After Elmer kindly promises to help, the king reluctantly agrees to reveal the great secret — but only at sunset, when all the canaries can gather together to hear it at last.

What We Will Learn

Focus	What It Means
Social Studies	Kings, rulers, and royal names with numbers
Character	King Can XI’s pride and worry
Plot	A promise, and a secret to be revealed at sunset

Chapter Summary

Chapter	Key Events
Ch.6	Elmer is taken to meet King Can XI, who is also full of curiosity; the king reluctantly agrees to reveal his secret at sunset

💭 Before You Read · Warm-Up (not scored)

There are no wrong answers here — just think, guess, and talk:

The proud king finds it hard to admit he needs help. Why is asking for help sometimes so difficult — and what makes it easier?
The king will only reveal his secret at sunset, with everyone gathered. Why do big announcements feel more powerful with a crowd and the right moment?
Predict: what kind of secret would a king guard so carefully, yet be desperate to solve?

Copyright Notice

This is an independent study guide created by Garden Heights Academy to support reading comprehension and literary analysis. It contains original analysis questions and does not reproduce any text from the novel. Elmer and the Dragon is a work by Ruth Stiles Gannett. This guide is not affiliated with, authorized by, or endorsed by the author or any associated rights holders. Students should read the original book, available from libraries and booksellers.

Part 1

Vocabulary

Study 10 key words from Chapters 6, then answer each question.

🧠Knowledge Bank · Why Kings Have Numbers

History · Counting KingsThe canaries have a king, and real kings are often marked with numbers. When several rulers share one name, we count them to tell them apart: the First, the Second, and so on. These numbers are often written as Roman numerals, an old way of counting where I means one, V means five, and X means ten. So a king written as the Eleventh had ten rulers of that name before him. Counting like this keeps history tidy and clear. It also shows a long line of rulers stretching back through time. Behind a single royal name, a small number quietly records a whole line of kings.

A tall gold crown with pointed decorated bands standing alone on a dark plinth inside a lit glass museum case — Photograph of the gold crown of Ottokar II in a museum case. The *Knowledge Bank* explains that real kings are often marked with numbers, because when several rulers share one name we count them — the First, the Second, and so on — and that these numbers are usually written as Roman numerals. The name on this crown works exactly that way: the second is part of what the ruler is called, not a decoration. This is a museum piece from central Europe and has nothing to do with the canaries.
Crown of Ottokar II; museum photograph. Source: Wikimedia Commons, public domain.

royaladj.Ch.6

Belonging to a king or queen

“The royal tree stood taller than the rest.”

reluctantadj.Ch.6

Unwilling; slow to agree

“The king was reluctant to share his secret.”

thronen.Ch.6

The special seat of a king or queen

“King Can perched proudly on his throne.”

proudadj.Ch.6

Feeling pleased with one’s own worth

“The proud king did not like to ask for help.”

subjectn.Ch.6

A person ruled by a king or queen

“His canary subjects waited below.”

revealv.Ch.6

To make something known

“He promised to reveal the secret at sunset.”

promisen.Ch.6

A pledge to do something

“Elmer made a promise to help.”

dignifiedadj.Ch.6

Calm and worthy of respect

“The king tried to stay dignified.”

commandv.Ch.6

To give an order

“The king could command all the canaries.”

assemblev.Ch.6

To gather together in one place

“The birds would assemble at sunset.”

ⓘ The vocabulary words in this list are selected to help you understand and complete this workbook. Some may not appear verbatim in the original novel.

🧠Knowledge Bank question

1According to the Knowledge Bank, rulers who share one name are told apart by ___.Ch.6

2True or False: Someone “reluctant” is eager and quick to agree.Ch.6

3The special seat of a king or queen is a ___.Ch.6

4True or False: A “subject” is a person ruled by a king or queen.Ch.6

5Fill in each blank with the correct word.Ch.6

Word choices:reluctantrevealcommandthrone- some words will not be used

The king finally agreed to his secret at sunset.

6True or False: To “assemble” means to gather together in one place.Ch.6

7To “command” means to ___.Ch.6

8True or False: A “dignified” person is calm and worthy of respect.Ch.6

9Fill in the blanks with the correct words.Ch.6

Word choices:proudpromisesubjectassemble- some words will not be used

The king did not like to ask for help, but Elmer’s put him at ease.

10To make something known is to ___.Ch.6

Part 2

Comprehension

How well do you understand Chapters 6?

🧠Knowledge Bank · Reading Ahead in Your Mind

Narrative Logic · Reading Ahead in Your MindBy now you have learned how Elmer thinks, and you can use that to predict what he will do. Predicting means making a smart guess about what comes next, using clues from the story and what you already know. As Elmer meets the worried king, ask yourself: what will Elmer try? Will he search, ask questions, or find some clever trick? Then read on to see if your guess was close. When a prediction misses, you learn something new and make a better one. This back-and-forth keeps your brain awake and busy. Reading with a guess ready in your mind turns every page into a small prediction.

🧠Knowledge Bank question

1The Knowledge Bank says you can now predict what Elmer will do because you ___.Ch.6

2What does the ‘XI’ in King Can XI mean?Ch.6

3How does the king feel about sharing his secret at first?Ch.6

4True or False: The king is troubled by curiosity, just like his subjects.Ch.6

5Write the numbers 1–5 in the boxes to show the correct order of events in Part 5.Ch.6

Elmer kindly promises to help solve the problem.
The proud king is at first reluctant to explain.
The king agrees to reveal the secret at sunset.
Elmer is brought before King Can XI in his grand tree.
Flute leads Elmer to meet the canaries’ ruler.

6True or False: The king agrees to reveal the secret at sunset.Ch.6

7Why does the king finally agree to explain?Ch.6

8When will the secret be revealed?Ch.6

9True or False: The king happily explains everything the moment Elmer arrives.Ch.6

10Fill in the blanks to complete the sentence.Ch.6

Word choices:sunsethelpsunrisegold- some words will not be used

After Elmer promised to , the king agreed to share his secret at .

Part 3

Literary Elements

Understanding HOW and WHY Ruth Stiles Gannett creates certain feelings across Chapters 6.

🧠Knowledge Bank · Building to the Big Moment

Literary Craft · ClimaxEvery exciting story builds toward its biggest moment, called the climax. Think of a story like climbing a hill: the trouble grows step by step, the suspense tightens, and then you reach the very top, where everything comes to a head. Here the tension rises as the canaries’ long mystery pulls closer to its answer. Writers build to a climax on purpose, adding one worry at a time so you cannot stop reading. Notice how the pressure keeps growing. After the climax, the story can finally start to calm down. That peak of excitement, where the biggest question is faced, is the climax.

Visual AidThe story climbs to its biggest moment

Diagram for the Knowledge Bank on climax. The numbered points follow the hill the Knowledge Bank describes: trouble begins, it grows, suspense tightens, and point 4 is the very top where everything comes together, after which the line eases. The shape is the Knowledge Bank’s image, not a measurement of the chapters. Notice that the climb takes three points and the easing only one.

Climbing to the climax, as described in the Knowledge Bank. Drawn for Garden Heights Academy.

📚 Literary Devices in This Part · definitions & examples

Suspense grows as the king delays his secret until sunset.

The climax is a story’s biggest, most exciting turning point, which is now drawing near.

Characterization shows us who the king is — proud, worried, and royal.

The questions below are mixed — not grouped by device. Decide which device each one is about.

🧠Knowledge Bank question

1According to the Knowledge Bank, the climax of a story is like ___.Ch.6

2Suspense is the tense feeling of not knowing what will happen.Ch.6

3Fill in each blank with the correct word.Ch.6

Word choices:suspenseclimaxcharacterizationsetting- some words will not be used

The tense wait to learn the secret builds

The proud, reluctant king is revealed through his manner — that is .

4The proud, reluctant way the king acts reveals his —Ch.6

5Characterization is how an author reveals what a character is like.Ch.6

6Fill in each blank with the correct word.Ch.6

Word choices:climaxsuspensecharacterizationmood- some words will not be used

The big moment the secret is revealed will be the

The tense wait for the reveal builds .

7The moment the secret is finally revealed will be the story’s —Ch.6

8Showing the king as proud through his manner is —Ch.6

9Fill in each blank with the correct word.Ch.6

Word choices:suspenseclimaxcharacterizationplot- some words will not be used

The tense not-knowing builds

The peak reveal of the secret is the .

10The delay before the secret is told mainly makes readers feel —Ch.6

Part 4

Think Deeper

Four deeper challenges — no single-word recall. Read, weigh the evidence, and reason it through.

🧠Knowledge Bank · Too Proud to Ask?

Social-Emotional · Asking for HelpThe king is proud, and pride can make it hard to ask for help. For a long time the canaries struggled alone, too embarrassed to admit they were stuck. Then Elmer, an outsider, offers fresh eyes. This part teaches a gentle truth: asking for help is not weakness; it is wise and brave. Everyone gets stuck sometimes — on a puzzle, a chore, a worry — and no one can know everything alone. A good thinker knows when to say, I don’t know; can you help me? Letting someone lend a hand is often the smartest first step toward real help.

1Claim: “The king shares his trouble only because Elmer offers to help.” — choose the two details that best prove it.Claim & Evidence

2Shows why the king finally opens up, or just a detail of the scene? Tap each item to sort it — tap again to switch sides. You can keep tapping to change your answer.Sort into two

◄ Why he opens upJust a detail ►

3Match each cause to its result. For each cause, pick its result.Cause & Effect

Flute leads Elmer to the king→

The king is proud and worried→

Elmer kindly offers to help→

The king reluctantly agrees→

🧠Knowledge Bank question

4Fill both blanks to complete the reasoning.Build the Argument

The Knowledge Bank says the canaries struggled alone for so long because , and says what finally helps is .

Part 5

Standardized Test

Author’s Purpose & Passage Structure — SAT & TOEFL-style practice

Why Sunset Feels So Significant

For thousands of years, people have chosen sunset for their most important gatherings, and it is easy to see why. As the sun sinks, its light must travel through more of the Earth’s atmosphere, and the thick air scatters away the blue, leaving the sky glowing with red, orange, and gold. The effect is dramatic, and it lasts only a short while, so everyone who has come to assemble feels they are sharing a rare, passing moment. Sunset also marks a natural boundary: the day is ending and the night beginning, a turning point that feels weighty even to a child. Many cultures hold ceremonies and dignified announcements at this hour precisely because the sky itself seems to signal that something is changing. A clever storyteller borrows the same power. When a character saves an important secret and waits until sunset to reveal it, the fading light does half the work. The sky, in a sense, becomes part of the stage.

Original passage written for Garden Heights — not a quotation from the novel.

1Why does the sky turn red and gold at sunset?TOEFL · Factual Information

2In the passage, to assemble is to ___.SAT · Words in Context

3In the passage, a dignified announcement is ___.SAT · Words in Context

4According to the passage, a sunset marks the boundary between —TOEFL · Factual Information

5Why does the author explain the science before the ceremonies?TOEFL · Passage Structure

6The passage suggests a sunset gives a natural — that day is ending.SAT · Inference

7How does a storyteller use sunset, according to the passage?TOEFL · Factual Information

8In the passage, to reveal a secret is to ___.SAT · Words in Context

9Which sentence best states the main idea of the passage?SAT · Central Ideas

10The author writes that the sky “becomes part of the stage” mainly to —TOEFL · Rhetorical Purpose

Part 6 · Optional

Creative Writing

A bonus challenge to practice your English. Take your time and have fun with it.

About This Section

This writing task is optional and is not part of your auto-graded score. The feedback below checks only the basics — length, spelling, and grammar — not whether your ideas are right or wrong. It is meant for classroom discussion and creative practice, so feel free to use your imagination!

Writing Task — Part 5 “The Secret at Sunset”

King Can XI makes everyone wait until sunset to hear his secret. Write about a time you had to wait for something exciting, or invent a secret a king might keep. How did the waiting feel, and what was finally revealed? Write at least 40 words.

You can start with: “I could hardly wait until the moment finally came, because…”

0 / 40 words minimum

🗣 Teach It · Just for Fun (optional)

No right or wrong — close the screen and tell someone nearby what happened in this part. Can’t find anyone? Tell yourself out loud. The moment you teach it, you truly understand it.

Part 5 Complete!

You finished Chapters 6 of Elmer and the Dragon.

Here are your auto-graded results:

-

points out of 100

Teach it to someone

The best last step is to teach it. In your own words, explain what happened — retell a favorite scene, teach a character’s big choice, or sum up the main idea for a parent, friend, or classmate. When you can teach it clearly, you truly own it.

Move on to Part 6 →

Independent study guide by Garden Heights Academy. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the author or any rights holders. Contains original analysis only; no text from the novel is reproduced.