井底之蛙
A frog’s small world
Read, find evidence, and explain in your own words.
Read
一只青蛙住在井里。它熟悉井壁上的青苔，也知道哪块石头最适合休息。每天抬头，它只能看见井口那么大的一片天空。住得久了，它以为自己看到的，就是整个世界。
A frog lived in a well. It knew the moss on the walls and the best stone for resting. Looking up each day, it could see only a patch of sky as wide as the opening. After a long time there, it believed that its view was the whole world.
一天，一位从海边来的客人经过。青蛙说自己的住处最好，还邀请客人看看。客人谈起大海：有看不到尽头的水，有远处的波浪。青蛙听了很惊讶：怎么可能有比这口井大那么多的地方？
One day a visitor from the sea passed by. The frog praised its home and invited the visitor to look. The visitor described water stretching beyond sight and waves in the distance. The frog was amazed that a place could be so much larger than its well.
青蛙原来把熟悉当成了全部。听到另一种经验，它才发现自己知道得很少。小小的井没有变，可是它开始愿意问：外面还有什么？要了解远处的世界，不能只靠眼前这一小块地方。
The frog had confused what was familiar with all that existed. Hearing another experience showed it how little it knew. The well had not changed, but the frog began to ask what lay beyond it. One small view could not explain the wider world.
Explore the text
井底之蛙语本《庄子·秋水》。本课把井与海的对比改写成对话情境，不是原文全译。我们用它提醒自己多听、多看、多提问，不用它给同学贴上笨的标签。
This expression comes from Autumn Floods in Zhuangzi. This lesson turns the contrast between well and sea into a teaching scene; it is not a full translation. Use it to remind yourself to listen, observe and ask questions, rather than to label classmates as foolish.
Words to practise
井蛙天海问