Using Stories

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1)1)1)1) I'm Hungary I'm Hungary I'm Hungary I'm Hungary """"StoryStoryStoryStory 1111 2222 2) 2) 2) 2) The activities of story 1The activities of story 1The activities of story 1The activities of story 1"""" 4 4 4 4 3) The Marching Ants "Story 23) The Marching Ants "Story 23) The Marching Ants "Story 23) The Marching Ants "Story 2"""" 6666 4) The activities of story 24) The activities of story 24) The activities of story 24) The activities of story 2"""" 8888 5) Anna Goes to the Zoo "Story 5) Anna Goes to the Zoo "Story 5) Anna Goes to the Zoo "Story 5) Anna Goes to the Zoo "Story 3"3"3"3" 10101010 6) Hide and Seek "Story 6) Hide and Seek "Story 6) Hide and Seek "Story 6) Hide and Seek "Story 4"4"4"4" 12121212 7) Hetty and the Lion "Story 7) Hetty and the Lion "Story 7) Hetty and the Lion "Story 7) Hetty and the Lion "Story 5"5"5"5" 13131313 8) The Ant and the Grasshoppe8) The Ant and the Grasshoppe8) The Ant and the Grasshoppe8) The Ant and the Grasshopper "Story 6" r "Story 6" r "Story 6" r "Story 6" 14141414 9) The Fox and the Crow "Story 7" 9) The Fox and the Crow "Story 7" 9) The Fox and the Crow "Story 7" 9) The Fox and the Crow "Story 7" 15151515 10) The Boy Who Cried Wolf "Story 8"10) The Boy Who Cried Wolf "Story 8"10) The Boy Who Cried Wolf "Story 8"10) The Boy Who Cried Wolf "Story 8" 17171717

11) The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing11) The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing11) The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing11) The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing """"Story 9"Story 9"Story 9"Story 9" 18181818 12) The Tortoise and the Hare12) The Tortoise and the Hare12) The Tortoise and the Hare12) The Tortoise and the Hare "Story 10""Story 10""Story 10""Story 10" 19191919 13) The Three Fishes13) The Three Fishes13) The Three Fishes13) The Three Fishes "Story 11""Story 11""Story 11""Story 11" 20202020 14) Excuse Me14) Excuse Me14) Excuse Me14) Excuse Me "Story 12""Story 12""Story 12""Story 12" 21212121 15) Say Hi15) Say Hi15) Say Hi15) Say Hi "Story 13""Story 13""Story 13""Story 13" 22222222 16) Brushing My Teeth16) Brushing My Teeth16) Brushing My Teeth16) Brushing My Teeth "Story 14""Story 14""Story 14""Story 14" 23232323 17) Eat Your Vegetables17) Eat Your Vegetables17) Eat Your Vegetables17) Eat Your Vegetables "Story 15""Story 15""Story 15""Story 15" 24242424 18) 18) 18) 18) The Soup FamilyThe Soup FamilyThe Soup FamilyThe Soup Family "Story 16""Story 16""Story 16""Story 16" 25252525 19) The Pink Balloon "S19) The Pink Balloon "S19) The Pink Balloon "S19) The Pink Balloon "Story 17"tory 17"tory 17"tory 17" 26262626 20) Stay Close to Mother "Story 18" 20) Stay Close to Mother "Story 18" 20) Stay Close to Mother "Story 18" 20) Stay Close to Mother "Story 18" 27 27 27 27

2 Stories

I'm Hungry Picture 1

Here comes an ant.

Up, two three four keep it

Up! two three four.

This is the sound effect for the marching ants. To get the

rhythm right clap on 'Up' and

'three' for both lines but when you read it to the children do

not clap - just use the

clapping to practise beforehand. The 'keep it' is said very fast

just before the down beat

on Up. I got that idea from the music for The Jungle Book.

"Hello ant, how are you?

Hi there, I'm fine thanks."

Picture 2

Here comes a spider. Itsy bitsy ditsy witsy. Sound effects

and gestures.

"Hello ant," said the spider.

"Hello spider," said the ant, "how are you?"

"I'm fine thanks," said the spider, "but I'm hungry. I am

going to eat you. Yum yum yum!"

Picture 3

Here comes a snake. Ssssssssssssssssss

"Hello spider," said the snake.

"Hello snake," said the spider, "how are you?"

"I'm fine thanks," said the snake, "but I'm hungry. I am

going to eat you. Yum yum yum!"

3 Stories

Picture 4

Here comes a bird. Whooooooooosh (or some kind of noise

resembling a bird in

flight!)

"Hello snake," said the bird.

"Hello bird," said the snake, "how are you?"

"I'm fine thanks," said the bird, "but I'm hungry. I am going to

eat you. Yum yum

yum!"

Picture 5

Here comes a cat. meouw - sound effects and gestures

"Hello bird," said the cat.

"Hello cat," said the bird, "how are you?"

"I'm fine thanks," said the cat, "but I'm hungry. I am going to

eat you. Yum yum yum!"

Picture 6

Here comes a fox. Silent and stealthy gestures

"Hello cat," said the fox.

"Hello fox," said the cat, "how are you?"

"I'm fine thanks," said the fox, "but I'm hungry. I am

going to eat you. Yum yum yum!"

Picture 7

Here comes a lion. Roar

"Hello fox," said the lion.

"Hello lion", said the fox, "how are you?"

"I'm fine thanks," said the lion, "but I'm hungry. I am

going to eat you. Yum yum yum!"

4 Stories

Activities Pictures Flashcards Provided

Ant, spider, snake, bird, cat, fox and lion.Ant, spider, snake, bird, cat, fox and lion.Ant, spider, snake, bird, cat, fox and lion.Ant, spider, snake, bird, cat, fox and lion.

Print the pictures off and cut them out. Each predator is larger than the one before so

as the larger animal eats the smaller one place the larger picture over the smaller one

covering it completely. At the end you will have a pile of pictures with the largest on

top.

You could also to lean each picture up against a wall or solid object, such as an A4 file,

with the picture facing your group of children. As the larger animal eats the smaller one

place the larger picture over the smaller one so that it too leans against your solid

object, completely covering the smaller picture.

Key vocabulary Animals:Animals:Animals:Animals: Ant, spider, snake, bird, cat, fox and lion.

Greeting:Greeting:Greeting:Greeting: Hello how are you? I'm fine thanks.

Verbs:Verbs:Verbs:Verbs: eat

Phrases:Phrases:Phrases:Phrases: I'm hungry, I am going to eat you.

Pre-story activities 1. Listening games for the first three animals

Introduce the first three animals and play Run and Touch.

2. Greetings

Now you have given the children some practise understanding the first three animals,

introduce the greetings. Seat the children in a circle and take a ball. Ask the whole

group, "Hello, how are you?" and have the group answer back with, "I'm fine thanks."

Have the children repeat this back to you three or four times in unison. Now roll the ball to one child and say,

"Hello, how are you?" Help the child reply to you with, "I'm fine, thanks". The child rolls the ball back to you and you

repeat with each child. You can only do this with a group of 8 or it gets boring.

3. More listening games and the rest of the animals

Now introduce the remaining four animals and play some more listening games. For

example, tell the children to mime being the different animals. Then play All Change,

either with the four new animals, or with all seven animals together if your children can manage it.

As soon as the children understand the different animals you can read the story.

However you can of course play speaking games where the children practise naming the animals before you read the

story if you prefer.

Ideas to use during the story

As each animal arrives on the scene make the appropriate noises for that animal and

have your children gradually take over. Use hand gestures where appropriate such as

moving your fingers and hand to imitate a spider.

When your children are ready remember to pause and allow them to name the animal

instead of you. For example you say, "Here comes a …" and pause to give the children

a chance to name the animal. After a few weeks and after you have told the story a fewtimes, pause after

"Here", and encourage the children to join in with you saying the

whole sentence, "Here comes an ant".

5 Stories

Use this technique in all the stories but not throughout the whole story – just for certain key elements, so

that the story telling process remains relatively fluent and so that you do not get bogged down into making a

meal of it.

Post-story activities 1. Colouring

For a quiet activity, give out black and white pictures and let the children cut out the animals and colour

them in for 5 minutes.

2. Listening games

Play Musical Statues but tell the children to mime the different animals you name as

they move about the room.

3. Bingo

Alternate with a quiet game such as animal bingo which is provided in the bonus

materials.

Play Hop Bunny Hop but use the animals from the story.

4. Speaking games

Using the animal vocabulary from the story play Stepping Stones, or The Crossing.

Let a child pick out an animal picture, secretly look at it and then mime that animal.

The other children have to guess which animal it is. Copyright © 2007 by Teaching English Games. All Rights Reserved.

6 Stories

The Marching Ants

Picture 1

Ten little ants are marching down a path.

Up, two three four, keep it

Up! two three four.

Use the sound effects above as in the I'm Hungry story, or make up

your own.

Pictures 2 and 3

Use the background of the path and cut out the

individual ants. Place all ten ants on the background and

remove one ant each time as the story goes along. Use

blutack to temporarily stick the ants on the picture and if

possible laminate the individual ants or they will not last

long.

Picture 4

The purple ant feels tired, and falls asleep under a white flower.

And now there

are only...Nine little ants are marching down a path.

Picture 5

The pink ant feels tired, and falls asleep in the yellow grass.

And now there are

only...Eight little ants are marching down a path.

Picture 6

The orange ant feels tired and falls asleep under a red flower.

And now there

are only...Seven little ants are marching down a path.

7 Stories

Picture 7

The white ant feels tired and falls asleep under a brown bush. And now

there are only...Six little ants are marching down a path.

Picture 8

The red ant feels tired and falls asleep under some

orange flowers. And now

there are only...Five little ants are marching down a path.

Picture 9

The brown ant feels tired and falls asleep in a green field. And now

there are only...Four little ants are marching down a path.

Picture 10

The yellow ant feels tired and falls asleep in a blue pond. And now

there are only...Three little ants are marching down a path.

Picture 11

The green ant feels tired and falls asleep in a green garden. And now there

are only...Two little ants are marching down a path.

Picture 12

The blue ant feels tired and falls asleep in some pink flowers. And

now there is only...One little ant is marching down a path.

Picture 13

The black ant feels tired and falls asleep in a purple bed, with his teddy

bear.

Good night. Copyright © 2007 by Teaching English Games. All Rights Reserved

8 Stories

Activities Picture Flashcards Provided

Ant, path, flower, grass, bush, field, pond, garden, bed, teddy bear

Key vocabulary

Numbers: 1-10

Colours: white, yellow, red, brown, orange, green, blue, pink, purplewhite, yellow, red, brown, orange, green, blue, pink, purplewhite, yellow, red, brown, orange, green, blue, pink, purplewhite, yellow, red, brown, orange, green, blue, pink, purple

Nouns: garden, field, bed, teddy garden, field, bed, teddy garden, field, bed, teddy garden, field, bed, teddy bearbearbearbear,,,, ant, path, bush, pond, grass, flowerant, path, bush, pond, grass, flowerant, path, bush, pond, grass, flowerant, path, bush, pond, grass, flower

Verbs: marcmarcmarcmarchhhh

Phrases: feels tired, falls asleepfeels tired, falls asleepfeels tired, falls asleepfeels tired, falls asleep

Other: littlelittlelittlelittle

Pre-story activities 1. Introduce the new words.

Ask your children to bring in their favourite bears and play the Teddy Bear game.

2. Revise colours.

3. Miming

Marching and feeling tired, with revision of animals: Play some music and give the

children actions to copy such as, "march like ants", or "march like giraffes". Yawn and

say, "the ants feel tired, or the giraffes feel tired". When the children hear this they

must pretend to go to sleep.

Ideas to use during the story Once you have told the story once or twice, have the children point at the pictures of

the places where the ants go to sleep using the flashcards in addition to the story

illustrations.

Give each child a colour at the start of the story. When the pink ant goes off to sleep the child with the

colour pink yawns and pretends to fall asleep, or you can ask the child to touch the right picture flashcard

of the place the ant goes to sleep.

Post-story activities 1. More marching ants and colours

Give each child a colour and tell them to be marching ants. Tell all the pink ants to go to the flower, and

then all the green ants to go to the grass. Red ants go to the pond, etc.

As soon as the children have reacted correctly give out the next instruction straight

away to keep the game moving.

If the children find this easy then you can give each child two or more colours.& After

everyone has had a go either have the children swap colours and play again or move on to another game.

2. Marching ants and counting

Give each child a picture of an ant and pin it on them or let them draw their own. If you have a recording

of the song The Ants go Marching then play that, otherwise you can sing it. You all march round with you

singing the song and the children must at least join in on the numbers and the hoorahs. After a few goes

with this song the children may well be able to join in with the first, second and fourth lines of each verse

as they are the same except for the increasing number.

You can add a twist to this. When you sing verse one the ants march round individually.

9 Stories

When you sing verse two the ants form pairs, etc.

Here are four verses:

The ants go marching one by one hoorah hoorah

The ants go marching one by one hoorah, hoorah

The ants go marching one by one, the little one stops to suck his thumb,

and they all go marching in to get out of the rain.

The ants go marching two by two hoorah hoorah

The ants go marching two by two hoorah, hoorah

The ants go marching& two by two, the little one stops to tie his shoe,

and they all go marching in to get out of the rain.

The ants go marching three by three hoorah hoorah

The ants go marching& three by three hoorah, hoorah

The ants go marching three by three, the little one stops to climb a tree (or scratch his

knee),

and they all go marching in to get out of the rain.

The ants go marching four by four hoorah hoorah

The ants go marching four by four hoorah, hoorah

The ants go marching four by four, the little one stops to open a door, (or sit on the

floor)

and they all go marching in to get out of the rain.

etc! Copyright © 2007 by Teaching English Games. All Rights Reserved.

10 Stories

Anna goes to the Zoo

Picture 1

Anna and her daddy are at the zoo.

Picture 2

At the zoo Anna sees one snake. There he is. One snake.

With each picture let the children count up the different animals with you

so you practice

counting from 1-10.

Picture 3

At the zoo Anna sees two elephants. There they are, two

elephants. One, two.

Picture 4

At the zoo Anna sees three ponies. There they are, three ponies. One,

two, three.

Picture 5

At the zoo Anna sees four giraffes. There they are, four giraffes.

One, two, three, four.

Picture 6

At the zoo Anna sees five bears. There they are, five bears. One, two, three

,four, five.

Picture 7

At the zoo Anna sees six ducks. There they are, six ducks. One, two,

three, four, five, six.

Picture 8

At the zoo Anna sees seven lions. There they are, seven lions. One,

two, three, four, five, six, seven.

11 Stories

Picture 9

At the zoo Anna sees eight monkeys. There they are, eight

monkeys. One,monkeys. One,monkeys. One,monkeys. One, two, etc.two, etc.two, etc.two, etc.

Picture 10

At the zoo Anna sees nine birds. There they are, nine birds. One,

two, etc.

Picture 11

At the zoo Anna sees ten fish. There they are, ten fish.

One two, etc.

Picture 12

Then Anna and her Dad have an icecream and go home. Copyright © 2007 by Teaching English Games. All Rights Reserved.

12 Stories

Hide and Seek Use the flashcards of the bird (story one) and the giraffe for the first scene.

"Hello Bird, how are you?"

"Hello Giraffe, I'm fine thanks, how are you?"

"I'm fine thanks. Let's play hide and seek."

"Yes let's."

"Bird, you hide first", said the giraffe.

"OK, Giraffe, count to ten", said the bird, and it flew off to hide.

Picture 1

Giraffe counts to ten while bird hides.

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten!

The children cover their eyes and count with you)

"OK Bird, is that you on the yellow path?"

"No, it's me the spider."

Picture 2

"OK Bird, is that you behind the green bush?"

"No, it's me the monkey."

Picture 3

"OK Bird, is that you in the blue pond?

"No, it's me the snake."

Picture 4

"OK Bird, is that you in the green grass?"

"No it's me the lion

Picture 5

"OK Bird, is that you in the red flowers?"

"No it's me the fly."

Picture 6

"Where are you?

Where are you?

Where are you?!!?

OK Bird, is that you…"

Picture 7

"…on my head! There you are!"

"Well done Bird", said giraffe, "now I'm going to hide." Copyright © 2007 by Teaching English Games. All Rights Reserved

13 Stories

Hetty and the Lion

Picture 1

"Hello lion, how are you?"

"I'm fine thanks Hetty, how are you?"

"I'm fine thanks, would you like some milk?"

Picture 2

"Oh yes please", said the lion, and the lion drank all the milk, and Hetty had none.

"Lion, would you like some oranges?"

Picture 3

"Oh yes please", said the lion, and the lion ate all the oranges, and Hetty had none.

"Lion, would you like some apples?"

Picture 4

"Oh yes please", said the lion, and the lion ate all the apples, and Hetty had none.

"Lion, would you like some bananas?"

Picture 5

"Oh yes please", said the lion, and the lion ate all the bananas and Hetty had none.

"Lion, would you like some pears?"

Picture 6

"Oh yes please", said the lion, and the lion ate all the pears and Hetty had none.

"Lion, would you like some ice cream?"

Picture 7

"Oh yes please", said the lion, so Hetty gave lion just a little icecream.

Picture 8

And Hetty ate all the rest! Copyright © 2007 by Teaching English Games. All Rights Reserved.

14 Stories

The Ant and the Grasshopper

In a field one summer's day a Grasshopper was hopping about, chirping and singing to its heart's content. An

Ant passed by, bearing along with great toil an ear of corn he was taking to the nest.

"Why not come and chat with me," said the Grasshopper, "instead of toiling and moiling in that way?"

"I am helping to lay up food for the winter," said the Ant, "and recommend you to do the same."

"Why bother about winter?" said the Grasshopper; we have got plenty of food at present." But the Ant

went on its way and continued its toil.

When the winter came the Grasshopper had no food and found itself dying of hunger - while it saw the

ants distributing every day corn and grain from the stores they had collected in the summer. Then the

Grasshopper knew: It is best to prepare for days of need.

15 Stories

The Fox and The Crow

A Fox once saw a Crow fly off with a piece of cheese in its beak and settle on a branch of a tree.

"That's for me, as I am a Fox," said Master Reynard, and he walked up to the foot of the tree.

"Good day, Mistress Crow," he cried. "How well you are looking today: how glossy your feathers; how

bright your eye. I feel sure your voice must surpass that of other birds, just as your figure does; let me hear

but one song from you that I may greet you as the Queen of Birds."

The Crow lifted up her head and began to caw her best, but the moment she opened her mouth the piece

of cheese fell to the ground, only to be snapped up by Master Fox.

"That will do," said he. "That was all I wanted. In exchange for your cheese I will give you a piece of advice

for the future: "Do not trust flatterers."

16 Stories

The Boy Who Cried Wolf

A shepherd-boy, who watched a flock of sheep near a village, brought out the villagers three or four times by

crying out, "Wolf! Wolf!" and when his neighbors came to help him, laughed at them for their pains.

The Wolf, however, did truly come at last. The Shepherd-boy, now really alarmed, shouted in an agony

of terror: "Pray, do come and help me; the Wolf is killing the sheep"; but no one paid any heed to his cries,

nor rendered any assistance. The Wolf, having no cause of fear, at his leisure lacerated or destroyed the

whole flock.

There is no believing a liar, even when he speaks the truth.

17 Stories

The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

A Wolf found great difficulty in getting at the sheep owing to the vigilance of the shepherd and his dogs. But

one day it found the skin of a sheep that had been flayed and thrown aside, so it put it on over its own pelt

and strolled down among the sheep.

The Lamb that belonged to the sheep whose skin the Wolf was wearing began to follow the Wolf in the

Sheep's clothing. So, leading the Lamb a little apart, he soon made a meal off her - and for some time he

succeeded in deceiving the sheep, and enjoying hearty meals.

Appearances are deceptive.

18 Stories

The Tortoise and the Hare The Hare was once boasting of his speed before the other animals. "I have never yet been beaten," said he,

"when I put forth my full speed. I challenge any one here to race with me."

The Tortoise said quietly, "I accept your challenge."

"That is a good joke," said the Hare; "I could dance round you all the way."

"Keep your boasting till you've won," answered the Tortoise. "Shall we race?"

So a course was fixed and a start was made. The Hare darted almost out of sight at once, but soon

stopped and, to show his contempt for the Tortoise, lay down to have a nap. The Tortoise plodded on and

plodded on, and when the Hare awoke from his nap, he saw the Tortoise just near the winning-post and

could not run up in time to save the race.

Then the Tortoise said: "Slow but steady progress wins the race."

19 Stories

The three fishes

Once, three fishes lived in a pond. One evening, some fishermen passed by the pond and saw the fishes.

'This pond is full of fish', they told each other excitedly. 'We have never fished here before. We must come

back tomorrow morning with our nets and catch these fish!' So saying, the fishermen left.

When the eldest of the three fishes heard this, he was troubled. He called the other fishes together and

said, 'Did you hear what the fishermen said? We must leave this pond at once. The fishermen will return

tomorrow and kill us all!'

The second of the three fishes agreed. 'You are right', he said. 'We must leave the pond.'

But the youngest fish laughed. 'You are worrying without reason', he said. 'We have lived in this pond all

our lives, and no fisherman has ever come here. Why should these men return? I am not going anywhere -

my luck will keep me safe.'

The eldest of the fishes left the pond that very evening with his entire family. The second fish saw the

fishermen coming in the distance early next morning and left the pond at once with all his family. The third

fish refused to leave even then.

The fishermen arrived and caught all the fish left in the pond. The third fish's luck did not help him - he

too was caught and killed.

The fish who saw trouble ahead and acted before it arrived as well as the fish who acted as soon as it came

both survived. But the fish who relied only on luck and did nothing at all died. So also in life.

20 Stories

Excuse me

Mommy talks to a lot of people.

Mommy likes talking to other people.

Sometimes when Mommy is talking to other people I want to talk too.

I can say “Excuse me!” to see if Mommy can talk to me.

Sometimes Mommy will answer me right away.

Other times Mommy is talking about something very important. When she is talking about something

important she cannot answer me right away.

If I say “Excuse me” and Mommy doesn’t answer, I can wait until she is done talking.

This will make Mommy very happy.

_______ graders are polite and wait until people are finished talking.

I am going to try to be very polite.

21 Stories

Say Hi

People like it when I say "hi" to them.

There are many times during the day when I can say "hi" to people.

I can say "hi" to my family when I get up in the morning.

I can say "hi" to my bus driver.

I can say "hi" to my friends and teachers when I get to school.

I can even say "hi" to people I see in the hallway.

I can say "hi" to new people that I meet.

I makes people happy when you say "hi" to them.

I will try to say "hi" to the people I see during the day.

22 Stories

Brushing my teeth

At night I need to brush my teeth so they are clean.

I put the toothbrush in my mouth.

First I brush in the back on the bottom.

Next I brush in the back on the top.

Then I brush in the front on the bottom.

Last I brush in the front on the top.

When I am done brushing my teeth I can spit out the toothpaste.

I can rinse off my tooth brush after I spit.

When I am ALL DONE I can have something special.

23 Stories

Eat Your vegetables Miss Crawford's school class learned about eating

foods that were healthy and good for you.

Instead of eating sweets, cakes, pies and

chocolate biscuits, she taught them to eat fruits

and vegetables.

“Miss Crawford, what is the best fruit to eat?”

Jack raised his hand to ask.

“We all like different fruit. My favorite fruit is

strawberries. What is yours, Jack?” Miss

Crawford smiled.

“I like bananas,” Jack said.

“I like apples, Miss Crawford,” Angela said.

“Miss Crawford, I like grapes, oranges, pears and

tomatoes,” Jill said.

“A tomato isn't a fruit. Jill doesn't know anything,

Miss Crawford.” Percy stuck his tongue about at

Jill.

“Percy, stop that. It happens that Jill is correct. A

tomato is a fruit. What is your favorite fruit,

Percy?”

“I guess I like lemons,” Percy said.

“Percy likes lemons. That means he's a sour

puss,” Jilly taunted.

“Class, all fruits are good for you. Now, what

about your vegetables? Who likes to eat

vegetables?” Miss Crawford looked at each student. None of them raised their hands. “You mean not one

of you likes any vegetables?”

“I guess I like carrots,” Megan said, “but only if they are raw.”

“I like broccoli, Miss Crawford,” Andrea said. “My mom says its good for me.”

“It is. I think we're going to have a parade. I want each of you to draw your favorite vegetable. When you're

finished we'll make them into flags and walk around the school. Everyone will see our favorite vegetables.”

Miss Crawford instructed the students to get out their crayons and paper.

When they'd finished, She stapled each drawing to a wooden dowel. “There now, you've all got your flag.

Let's start our parade.”

The children marched around the school waving their flags back and forth. The other classes stopped to

look. When they got back to class, Miss Crawford said, “There now! You just taught the whole school

about how good vegetables are for them. Take your flags home and ask your mother's to fix you your

favorite vegetable for supper tonight.”

And they did.

24 Stories

The Soup Family

The Soup Family home was in the shape of a boot. It had a lot of rooms with windows and anyone who

wanted to could live there. Cats, dogs,

bears, rabbits, mice and birds all lived

together in harmony.

Mrs. Cottontail took care of the animals.

She cooked their meals, bathed them,

bought them balls, balloons and toy horses.

Some days one of them needed a hug or

wanted to be pushed on the swing. Mrs.

Cottontail was always there for them.

One day Mrs. Cottontail had to go to town

to take care of her aunt. She sent Miss

Hare over to stay with the animals while she

was gone. When two of the bunnies argued

over who the carrot belonged to, Miss

Hared took the carrot away from them and

ate it herself. When one of the bears

pushed another down, Miss Hare sent him

to his room without supper. Instead of

being a happy home, the Soup Family

home was not a very fun place to live.

The next day Mrs. Cottontail came home.

Miss Hare left after telling Mrs. Cottontail

what horrible animals lived there.

Mrs. Cottontail gathered all the animals

around. She gave each of them a hug and told them she was glad to be home and would never leave them

again. Once again the Soup Family home was the happiest home in the valley.

25 Stories

The Pink Balloon

Every spring Panda Park held a fair. Ice cream vendors scooped

strawberry, chocolate and vanilla into cones. Cotton candy

machines whirled sugar into spun strands of sweetness. A balloon

man made shapes of animals out of colorful balloons and every

bear in Grizzlyville came to eat juicy watermelon, buttered corn

on the cobs and pots of sticky honey.

Terry, a brown bear, walked through the park, listening to the

bands play and watched the cubs swinging at the playground.

The balloon man had dozens of blown up balloons tied to a

wooden bench. Terry paid him money to buy a big pink one.

“I think you'd be better off with a blue balloon. That pink one is

bigger than you are,” the balloon man warned.

Terry didn't want the blue balloon. He wanted to pink one and

took hold of the string. Up, up, up he went.

The balloon man shouted. “I told you not to take the pink one.”

Terry floated above the park and saw birds flying around him. Suddenly his balloon popped and Terry fell

to the ground, landing with a plop in the lake in the middle of Panda Park. He dripped water as he climbed

out onto the grass.

The balloon man walked past and whispered, “I told you so,” and handed Terry a blue balloon.

The rest of the day Terry walked around the park enjoying all that he saw, smelled and heard. When he

went home at night, he tied to blue balloon to his bed and dreamed of his adventure into the sky.

26 Stories

Stay Close to Mother

QUACK! QUACK! QUACK! Mother Duck and her two babies floated across the pond. "Honey, you

need to stay closer to me. Why are you so far away?" she asked the duckling.

Honey quacked, "I like to swim over here. I like being by myself."

"Oh dear," Mother Duck sighed. "Look at Blossom. She’s staying near me. She’ll be much safer. I can help

her if something goes wrong, but I won’t be able to help you unless you move closer to me."

"I’ll be all right. I’m not that far from you," Honey said.

Mother Duck swam all over the pond, always keeping an eye on Honey. Blossom stayed near her mother.

Two butterflies fluttered by. Mother Duck looked at them. She knew Honey was safe. Butterflies can’t

harm ducks. A big bumblebee flew by. Mother Duck watched as it buzzed around Honey’s feathered head.

She didn’t worry. She knew the bumblebee wouldn’t harm her duckling. A big fish jumped out of the water

and splashed all over the ducks. Blossom started to cough. Honey gasped for breath and choked. The fish

jumped again. Honey started to sink under the water. Mother Duck swam over and grabbed her by the tail

feathers. The fish swam away to the other side of the pond. "That was a big fish! I nearly drowned. I think I

should swim near you," Honey said to her mother. "If the fish comes back, I’ll be much safer if I’m close to

you."

Mother Duck quacked happily as she swam around the pond with Honey and Blossom nearby.