The Sick Young Dragon by John Foster

The Sick Young Dragon poem, written by John Foster, is about a young dragon who has lost his fire because of cold. This is a humorous poem (one that we find funny) and is included in the syllabus for Class 4 students.

The Sick Young Dragon Poem Summary

Here’s a brief summary of this poem.

A little dragon is very sad because he has fallen sick because of which he has lost his ability to breathe fire. The mother and the doctor however console the little dragon saying that he has lost his fire because of the cold and that he would soon be fine after a few days of rest.

After a couple of day’s of bed rest, the young dragon finds himself feeling better. A few minutes later, the young dragon sneezed and he saw some sparks coming out of his own mouth again. Then he coughed and set the bed sheets to fire.

The young dragon was finally happy that he had got the fire back in his breathing.

Word Meanings

1. Scale – small flat piece of hard material that cover the body of fire and some animals.
2. Chill – a cold.
3. Right as rain – perfectly all right.
4. Alight – on fire, burning.

The sick young dragon poem: Questions and Answers

Reference to context:

“Open your mouth’,his mother said. ‘It’s no wonder!Your throat’s red. Your scales are cold. You must be ill. I think you must have caught a chill.”

Question. Name the poem.
Answer: The Sick Young Dragon.

Question. Name the poet.
Answer: John Foster

Question. Who is sick?
Answer: The young dragon is sick.

Question. What happens to young dragon?
Answer: The young dragon is sick and is unable to breathe fire as he usually does.

Question. Why did the dragon’s mother ask him to open his mouth ?
Answer: The dragon’s mother asked him to open his mouth so that she could see his throat and understand why he could not get his fire to go.

Question. What are the two symptoms of illness that the mother noticed in the young dragon ?
Answer: The dragon’s mother noticed that his throat was red and his scales were cold.

Question. What did the mother do next ?
Answer: The mother called the doctor

“The young dragon did as he was told. And soon his scales stopped feeling cold. He sneezed some sparks. His face glowed bright. He coughed and set the sheets alight.”

Question. Who told the young dragon what to do ?
Answer: The doctor told the dragon what to do.

Question. What did the young dragon have to do ?
Answer: The young dragon had to drink petrol and chew nails.

Question. Which signs showed that he had begun to feel better ?
Answer: The dragon sneezed some sparks and his face glowed bright. He coughed and set the sheets alight. These signs showed that he felt better.