Animals Love to Play

Story 12. Animals love to play.

故事12 小动物们爱玩耍

One afternoon, Mrs. Smith wanted to take a nap, but her cats were making noises. One was rolling a pencil, another was chasing a ping pong ball, and a third was pulling a newspaper. Why do cats love to play so much?

一天下午，史密斯太太想小睡一会儿，可她养的猫咪们吵个不停。 一只在滚铅笔，另一只在追乒乓球，第三只在扯报纸。 为什么猫咪这么爱玩耍呢？

Playing is really fun. It's not only cats. Most animals love to play. But animals do not play just for fun. They are practicing their skills.

玩耍可太有意思啦。不光是猫咪，大多数动物都爱玩耍。 不过动物们玩耍可不只是为了好玩，它们是在练习本领哦。

Different animals play in different ways. Animals like lions, bears or tigers always play by chasing and biting. They are practicing hunting for food. I'll catch you! I'll catch you!

不同的动物玩耍的方式各不相同。像狮子、熊、老虎这类动物 总是通过追逐、撕咬的方式玩耍，它们是在练习捕猎觅食的技能。 我要抓到你啦！我要抓到你啦！

Now you know! Mrs Smith's cats are practicing catching a mouse. Animals like deer, antelope or goats always play by jumping and turning. They are practicing escaping from their enemies.

现在你明白啦！史密斯太太的猫咪是在练习抓老鼠哦。 像鹿、羚羊、山羊这类动物，总是通过蹦跳、转身的方式玩耍。 它们是在练习逃离天敌的本领哦。

What about possums? They can't jump high or turn fast. They play dead. Don't laugh! I'm a bear! Good job! In a word, animals play to survive.

那负鼠呢？它们跳不高，也转不快，它们会玩装死的游戏哦。 别笑！我是一只大熊！ 做得真棒！ 总而言之，动物玩耍是为了生存哦。