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20
Terrific Mini-Plays
Terrific Mini-Plays
That Build
Reading Skills
20 Engaging, Read-Aloud Plays to Kick Off and Enrich the Key Social Studies,
Science, and Language Arts Topics You Teach—and Build Reading Fluency
EDITED BY TRACEY WEST
New York • Toronto • London • Auckland • Sydney • Mexico City

New Delhi • Hong K ong • Buenos Aires
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20 Terrific Mini-Plays That Build Reading Skills © Tracey West, Scholastic Teaching Resources
What’s So Great
About the 50 States?
A Rhyming Play
by Sheila Sweeny
The Pilg
and Jane Manners
rim
Characters
The 50 States First Year s’
by Tracey
West
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by Alexan
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Scholastic
Skills
Scholastic Inc. grants teachers permission to copy the plays from this book for classroom use. No other part of this
publication may be reproduced in whole or in part, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the publisher.
For information regarding permission, write to Scholastic Inc., 555 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.
The activities in this book have been reviewed for safety and are meant to be done by children with adult supervision.
The author does not assume responsibility for any injuries or accidents that might result
from performing the activities without proper supervision.
Edited by Tracey West

Cover design by Josué Castilleja
Interior design by Holly Grundon
Cover and Interior illustrations by Michelle Dorenkamp
ISBN: 0-439-20104-7
Copyright © 2001 by Tracey West
All rights reserved.
Printed in the U.S.A.
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Contents
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Science and Health
THE HEALTHY HUMAN HELPER CONTEST
(Human Body) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Great Americans
THE RAILROAD TO FREEDOM SPLASHDOWN WITH DOT AND TOD
(Harriet Tubman, The Civil War) . . . . . . 6 (Water Cycle, Weather) . . . . . . . . . . . 79
NELLIE BLY: READ ALL ABOUT IT! THE SPIDER SHOWDOWN

(Women’s History Month) . . . . . . . . . 12 (Spiders, Insects) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
THE WORLD’S FIRST PHONE CALL TORNADO CHASERS!

(Alexander Graham Bell, Inventions) . . 18 (Weather) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
SACAGAWEA THE GREAT DESERT SCAVENGER HUNT

(Native Americans, (Animals, Ecosystems) . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Women’s History Month) . . . . . . . . . . 24
MISSION TO THE MOON
SPEAKING OUT FOR JUSTICE: (Space) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING
(African-American History Month) . . . . 30 THE GREAT QUAKE
(Earthquakes) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
A WORLD-FAMOUS TOMBOY: THE STORY
OF BABE ZAHARIAS
(Sports, Women’s History Month) . . . . 35 Language Arts
THE CASE OF THE
DISAPPEARING DIAMONDS
Social Studies (Mystery) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
WHAT’S SO GREAT ABOUT
THE 50 STATES? JOHN HENRY: AN AMERICAN TALL TALE
(The 50 States) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 (Folktale) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
VINCE VOTES FOR MAYOR

(Government, Election Day) . . . . . . . . 48 The Great Desert
Scavenger Hunt
THE PILGRIMS’ FIRST YEAR by Katherine Noll
John
(Thanksgiving) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 An America Henry:
n Tall Tale by Rebe
cca Góme
z
CHRISTOPHER’S DREAM
(Columbus Day, Explorers) . . . . . . . . . 60
Characters
Announcer
Referee
SCRIBE SCHOOL Lucy, Blue Team Leader

Kevin, Green Team Leader
Dana
(Ancient Egypt) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Bob

Pilar
Raji Characters
Jack Narrator
Alexa John Hen
ry
John Hen
ry’s Mothe
98 20 Terrific Mini-Plays That Build John Hen r
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Reading Skills
Worker 1
Worker 2
Railroad
ry’s Father
Foreman
c Professio
20 Terrific
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That Bui
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Scholasti
g Skills
Introduction
ooking to boost your favorite curriculum materials? Eager to
L breathe some life into the tried-and-true topics you’ ve been

teaching for years? The fast and fun read-aloud plays in this book
offer the perfect solution for adding ne w information and excitement to
the topics you teach again and again.
By including read-aloud plays in your classroom, you can
● build oral literacy.
● foster reading skills.
● encourage listening skills.
● freshen familiar and popular themes.
● draw out quiet or at-risk students.
ABOUT THIS BOOK

This collection of 20 plays w as designed to support themes popular with
schoolteachers in grades 2–4. We have divided these plays into categories:
Great Americans, Social Studies, Science and Health, and Language Arts.
However, you will find that most plays lend themselv es to a variety of
themes. For example, the play “The Railroad to Freedom” could be used
with a theme about inspiring people, a unit on the Ci vil War or slavery, or
to celebrate Women’s History Month. Look for theme connections for
each play in the table of contents.
Following each play is one page of material designed to help

TEACHER’S
GUIDE you share the play with your class. In each guide you’ ll find:
ROUN D prim ary sources—
BACKGtells ie Bly using from news-
by Jane Manners
BACKGROUND: a collection of facts to introduce or follow

the story of Nell lines, quotes
This play spaper head , you may
Nellie Bly, new s. Before reading the play
Characters
a letter from
Narrator
ry from
and song lyric
Nellie Bly (Elizabeth
ing vocabula
Cochran)
paper articles, some of the more challeng , and Paree (Paris).

Newsboy
Editor of The Dispatch
Newsman 1
wish to go over rds such as procure, mire story of the

Newsman 2
Editor of The World
-wo the
up the play experience

these sources- tell only a small part of
Reader 1
g the use of
Reader 2
Reader 3
These sources Nellie Bly. After pioneerin married a

Reader 4
Reader 5
of rm, Bly
remarkable life way to create social refo and died
a When her husb es and
12 20 Terrific Mini-Plays That Build Reading Skills
journalism as an, in 1895. pani

, Robert Seam his manufacturing com
businessman prac-
, she took over nesses. Nellie WRITING
WRITING PROMPT: a quick, fun suggestion to spur

ten years later multimillion-dollar busi workers in the plants were T
turned them
into
preached--sh
e made sure
the
set up libraries
so employees PROMP
that you are
ticed what she with respect. She even Imagine
you
treated fairly and Nellie Bly and
learn how to read. a
want a job at the
coul d
students to write something based on what the y’ve read

newspaper, but k
TY: Around
The World trip around the
world.
editor doesn’t
thin
ACTIVIsaw things on her trip around the world ld be
some amazing a women shou a
Nellie Bly they could plan they see? reporters. Wri
te
ents to imagine that visit? What things would
Ask stud the World.” con-
letter that will that
es would they Trip Around
DISCUSSION QUESTION: a simple question to get a

too. What plac write a story titled “My and see, using r
gs they do vince the edito
Have students add details about the thin if they choose. Students you can do the job
to ces
Encourage them , and other research sour r illustrated or cut from just as well as
a
rnet
books, the Inte covers with pictures--eithe trip. man.
rt their
can create repo things they may see on
classroom discussion going when the play is o ver

f the
magazines--o
DISCUSSION
Words ION
y in His Own QUESThad
BOOK sLMon
INKS
key: His Rem
arkable Stor to
Nellie Bly
Nellie Bly’ 1996).
row, job as
(William Mor fight to get a
BOOK LINKSAND INTERNETLINKS: a bibliography

by Joan W. Blos
World a news reporter a
orter for the 1994). because she
was
Nellie Bly: Rep dall (Millbrook Press, editor
Mar tha E. Ken woman. Her k a
by
didn’t even thin a
take
woman could
NET L
of books and Web sites to enhance the excitement generated
INKS
INTERKids trip around the .
Amazing g-kids.org/ read or listen
to. world in days
75
http://w ww.amazin Nellie Bly story you can Wer e you surp rised
to find a women
by the play
Search this site ld in 72 Day
s to learn that
und the Wor ed to
Experien ce--Aro weren’t allow same
The American .org/w gbh/amex/
world
nd-the-world
trip. do some of the How
?
http://w ww.pbs of Nellie’s arouof her trip, and things as men
documentary rent
A site for the journal, a map are things diffe
rpts from her
ACTIVITY: a fun, cross-curricular idea to help broaden

Contains exce today?
guid e.
teacher’s
ls 17
Reading Skil
That Build
Mini-Plays
20 Terrific
the play experience
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4
USING THE PLAYS
A list of characters is pro vided at the beginning of each play to mak e it
easy for you to assign speaking parts. While we have made sure that there
are plenty of parts for both bo ys and girls, feel free to cast girls in bo ys’
parts and vice versa. You can also increase the number of speaking parts
available by assigning new students to read the parts for each dif ferent act
of the play.
After assigning parts, you may wish to ha ve a brief discussion with

students about the topic you are about to introduce. Consider creating
a K-W-L chart with students for each play. Before the play
starts, ask:
● What do we know about the topic?
What do we want to know about the topic?
The Case of
●
Disappearing Diathe
After the play, ask:
monds by Jane Mann
ers
● What did we learn?
Provide students with the books or Web site addresses

listed after each play so the y can explore topics that
interest them.
HAVE FUN!
Read-aloud plays will provide your class
Books
with many learning opportunities, but sional
Scholastic Profes
don’t forget that they are also something 116 20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
Reading Skill
s
students look forward to and enjoy.

en
by LauraAll
However you decide to use these plays,

remember to have fun!
by Tracey We
st
Charac
ters
In the present:
Ms. Clark, a
teacher
Cassie
sional Books
Jason
Sam
Scholastic Profes
In 1906:
s 85
Reading SkillPatric
That Build k
Mini-Plays
20 Terrific Bridget
Mrs. Sullivan
Neighbor
ional Books
Scholastic Profess
110 20 Terrific Mini-

Plays That Build
Reading Skills
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5
The Railroad
to Freedom
by Tonya Leslie
Characters
Narrator 1
Narrator 2
Harriet Tubman
Brother 1
Brother 2
Mother
Father
Friend
Man
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6
Act I
SETTING: A slave cabin on a plantation in Maryland
Narrator 1 . . . . . Have you heard about the Under ground Railroad?
Narrator 2 . . . . . It wasn’t a real railroad at all. It w as a safe network

that led slaves to freedom.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Harriet Tubman was a slave. She ran away in 1849.

She used the Underground Railroad to get herself
and other slaves to freedom.
Harriet Tubman . . Brothers! I just heard some bad ne ws. They are
going to sell me down South!
Brother 1 . . . . . . Oh, Harriet! What are we going to do?
Harriet . . . . . . . . Let’s run away! We can leave tonight.
Brother 2 . . . . . . But, Harriet, they will kill us if the y find us.
Harriet . . . . . . . . I’d rather die fighting for freedom than live in

slavery forever. I will leave tonight, but I will come
back for you.
Brother 1 . . . . . . Just make it safely. Don’t worry about us. We will

be fine. Now leave quickly, before it is too late.
Harriet . . . . . . . . Good-bye. I will see you again. I promise.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Harriet ran for many days. When she finally made
it to the North, she w as tired and hungry. She settled
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. There she made
some friends called abolitionists. They believed
slavery was wrong.
Narrator 2 . . . . . The abolitionists helped Harriet get settled in her

new life. But Harriet couldn’t rest knowing her
family and friends were still sla ves.
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Narrator 1 . . . . . . Harriet Tubman became a conductor for the
Underground Railroad. The “railroad” was not a train
at all but a system of boats, wagons, trains, and safe
houses that took slaves from the South to the North.
Narrator 2 . . . . . . Harriet risked her life to return home and help her
family and many others escape from slavery.
Act 2
SCENE 1
SETTING: The cabin of Harriet’s mother and father
Mother . . . . . . . . I do miss Harriet. I miss my sons too. It seems that

every time I turn around another child is missing.
They just seem to disappear.
Father . . . . . . . . They are all with Harriet. They are safe in the North.
Mother . . . . . . . . But we don’t know that for sure.
Father . . . . . . . . It is safer that way, for them and for us. Shhhh.
What’s that sound?
Harriet . . . . . . . . I’m bound for the Promised Land! Who will go

with me?
Mother . . . . . . . . Oh, Harriet. It’s you! You really came back for us.
Harriet . . . . . . . . I came to get you. Now my family will be together at

last—together and free! Quickly, gather some food
and your belongings. We have no time to waste.
Mother . . . . . . . . But where will we go? It will be morning soon.
Harriet . . . . . . . . Don’t worry, Mother. We will travel on the

railroad—the Underground Railroad.
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Narrator 1 . . . . . Stories of Harriet Tubman
spread. She helped many
slaves escape. Soon slave
hunters began to look for her.
SCENE 2
SETTING: A town in the South
Friend . . . . . . . . Harriet, I really don’t think

it is safe for you to w alk
around. There are posters all
over with your picture on
them.
Harriet . . . . . . . . I am not worried. I am

dressed as a man. No one
will recognize me in this
disguise.
Friend . . . . . . . . Please be careful. Hey,

Harriet, watch out for that
man!
Harriet . . . . . . . . (Harriet bumps into a man.)

Excuse me sir. I didn’t mean
to bump into you.
Man . . . . . . . . . . You’d better watch where

you are going, young
man. What did your friend
call you?
Harriet . . . . . . . . (whispers to herself) Oh no! It’s my old owner!

(to the man) Oh, she called me Harry, sir. That is
my name.
Man . . . . . . . . . . Harry, huh? You look very familiar to me.
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Harriet . . . . . . . . I don’t think I have ever met you before, sir.
Man . . . . . . . . . . Well, maybe you can help me. Here, put up

these signs.
Harriet . . . . . . . . What do they say?
Man . . . . . . . . . . They say that we are looking for Harriet Tubman.
Harriet . . . . . . . . Who is that?

Man . . . . . . . . . . She is an escaped slave who has been taking other
slaves away from their homes.
Harriet . . . . . . . . What does she look like?
Man . . . . . . . . . . (He pauses and looks right at Harriet.) She looks

like . . . this picture. Look closely. We will reward
well any person who brings her in.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Harriet didn’t get caught that time, or an y other

time! She made 19 trips to the South and brought
more than 300 people out of sla very.
Narrator 2 . . . . . Harriet didn’t work alone. Many people helped on

the Underground Railroad.
Narrator 1 . . . . . They took a lot of chances. Some people got

caught, but Harriet never lost a passenger.
Narrator 2 . . . . . People still remember the words she would sing to

alert slaves that she was nearby: “I’m bound for the
Promised Land!”
The End
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10
TEACHER’S GUIDE The R ailroad
BACKGROUND to Freedom
Harriet Tubman was born in Maryland in 1820. Her sla ve by Tonya Leslie
master hired her out as a w orker when she was only 5 years old.
In 1844, Harriet married a free black man named John Tubman. Characters
Still, Harriet was a slave. In 1849, when Harriet heard rumors

Narrator 1
Narrator 2
Harriet Tubm
that her master was going to sell her f arther south, she engi-
an
Brother 1
Brother 2
neered her escape.

Mother
Father
Friend
Harriet’s journeys back to the South to free others, and her Man
close calls in avoiding capture, are legendary. When Harriet

rescued her parents, they were in their 70s. The tale of Harriet
encountering her old master has been recounted in se veral
ssional Books
different ways; the incident here is one v ersion of that story.
Scholastic Profe
During the Civil War, Harriet worked for the Union army as
6 20 Terrific Min
i-Plays That
Build Reading
Skills
a cook, a nurse, and a sp y. She died in 1913.

WRITING
ACTIVITY The Road North PROMPT
Make copies of a map of the United States, with the states and Harriet Tubman is
their boundaries clearly defined. Break up the class into teams of four considered a hero
children. Give each team a different starting point from the South by many for her
(south of the northern borders of Maryland, Virginia, and West bravery and her
Virginia), and a different destination in the North. Have them plot dedication to
their course on the map, imagining that the y have to travel on foot or helping others.
on horseback. Ask them to use the scale of miles to try to f ind the What qualities do
shortest, most direct routes. How would they get across rivers or over you think a hero
mountains? Ask them to write out a step-by-step description of their should have?
journeys and report their findings to the class. Write a paragraph
describing them.
BOOK LINKS
Aunt Harriet’s Underground Railroad in the Sky DISCUSSION
by Faith Ringgold (Crown, 1995) QUESTION
After Harriet
Minty: A Story of Young Harriet Tubman escaped to the
by Alan Schroeder (Penguin Putnam, 1996) North, she could
have stayed there
and lived out the
INTERNET LINK rest of her life in
Harriet Tubman
safety. Why do you
http://www .incwell.com/Bio graphies/T ubman.html
think she chose to
A short biography and picture of Harriet Tubman
risk her life instead
and return to the
South? What would
you have done if
you were in her
place?
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11
by Jane Manners
Characters
Narrator
Nellie Bly (Elizabeth
Cochran)
Newsboy
Editor of The Dispatch
Newsman 1
Newsman 2
Editor of The World
Reader 1
Reader 2
Reader 3
Reader 4
Reader 5
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Act 1
Narrator . . . . . . . Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1885. Twenty-year-old
Elizabeth Cochran wanted to be a writer more than
anything else. But she couldn’t find any work. Her
only job offer was doing laundry. To make matters
worse, she read a column in the Pittsburg Dispatch.
The article made fun of w omen who looked for
meaningful work. The article made Elizabeth angry.
Elizabeth . . . . . . The author says women are unfit for men’s work.
He is wrong, and I will write to the editor and tell
him so!
Narrator . . . . . . . The editor read Elizabeth’s letter.
Editor of
The Dispatch . . . . (reading letter) “What shall we do with our girls?
Take some girls that have the ability, procure for
them situations. Pull them out of the mire and gi ve
them a shove up the ladder of life.” This girl has
spirit! We must find out who she is!
Newsboy . . . . . . Paper! Get your paper here! Dispatch hires Elizabeth

Cochran and changes her name to Nellie Bly.
Act 2
Narrator . . . . . . New York, 1887. At 23, Nellie Bly left her job as
reporter for the Pittsburg Dispatch and headed for
the big city, with an eye on getting a job at the
city’s popular daily, The New York World.
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Newsman 1 . . . . Excuse me, Mr. Editor. There’s a woman here to
see you.
Newsman 2 . . . . She insists on seeing you, sir.
Editor of
The World . . . . . . I’m running a busy newspaper here. I have no time
to see anyone.
Newsman 1 . . . . She said she would wait until you had time.
Editor . . . . . . . . . How did she get past the guards at the door? Who is
this woman?
Newsman 1 . . . . Her name is Nellie Bly, sir. She’s a reporter looking

for work.
Editor . . . . . . . . . A lady reporter? Well, we don’t need any more

articles for the society page. This is a paper with
a social conscience.
Newsman 2 . . . . Actually, sir, she’s written about factories in

Pittsburgh where women work in dangerous
conditions for long hours and little pay.
Newsman 1 . . . . She’s fought for better marriage la ws.
Newsman 2 . . . . She spent six months in Me xico and wrote that the
poor were “worse off by thousands of times than
the slaves of the United States.”
Editor . . . . . . . . . Impressive, but tell her we have enough reporters

working here.
Newsman 2 . . . . I told her that, sir, and she said . . .
Nellie Bly . . . . . . I have an important subject to propose, and if the

editor-in-chief will not see me, I will go to some
other paper.
Editor . . . . . . . . . Wait! Where are you going? Come in. Let’s talk.
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Act 3
Narrator . . . . . . . Nellie landed a trial assignment at The World. It was
no ordinary assignment. She would have to
pretend to be mentally ill in order to f ind out how
patients were treated at Blackwell’s Island, a
women’s asylum. Nellie Bly got her story. She
exposed the cruel treatment of inmates and
encouraged the city to enact important reforms.
It was by all accounts an amazing achie vement!
But her most celebrated feat w as yet to come.
Editor . . . . . . . . . A world tour?
Nellie Bly . . . . . . I could travel around the world, just like the
character in Jules Verne’s novel, Around the World
in Eighty Days, except I would do it in 75 days.
Editor . . . . . . . . . Seventy-five days?
Nellie Bly . . . . . . Or less!
Editor . . . . . . . . . Traveling by ship, train, and stagecoach tak es a

long, long time!
Nellie Bly . . . . . . It’s never been done before. It’s a great idea.
Editor . . . . . . . . . It’s a terrific idea. We’ll send a man!

Nellie Bly . . . . . . What?!
Editor . . . . . . . . . A man does not need a chaperone or a lot of luggage.
Nellie Bly . . . . . . Very well. Start the man and I’ ll start the same day
for some other newspaper and beat him.
Editor . . . . . . . . . Wait! Let’s talk. When can you be ready?
Nellie Bly . . . . . . I’m ready right now.
Newsboy . . . . . . “Nellie Bly to Go Around the World!” Read all

about it!
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Reader 1 . . . . . . I’ll take a paper. Look, it says, “Nellie Bly sets out
alone to go around the w orld in record time.”
Reader 2 . . . . . . Look here. The World is sponsoring a guessing match.
Reader 3 . . . . . . Let me see. (reading) The person who first makes

the nearest guess as to the e xact time of Nellie Bly’s
tour wins a free trip to Europe!
Reader 4 . . . . . . I’ll take a guess.

“Nellie Bly is flying high
On the China Sea;
With her goes the hope of one
Who wants to see Paree;
She’ll get here in 74,
Sure as she’s alive,
Hours 12, minutes 10, and seconds 25.”
Newsboy . . . . . . Get your paper here! Nellie Bly has gone around the
world—read all about it!
1 reader . . . . . . . I’ll buy a paper.
Newsboy . . . . . . “Father Time Outdone!”
3 readers . . . . . . (speaking together) I’ll buy a paper.
Newsboy . . . . . . “She’s Broken Every Record!”
5 readers . . . . . . (speaking together) I’ll buy a paper.
Reader 5 . . . . . . Listen to this! Nellie Bly’s time was 72 days,

6 hours, 11 minutes, and 14 seconds.
Everyone . . . . . . Hooray! Hooray for Nellie Bly!
Narrator . . . . . . . Nellie Bly’s trip around the world showed girls could
be smart and independent. She w as a pioneer in
investigative journalism. She was not afraid to write
the truth and blow the whistle on social injustice.
What would Nellie Bly write about today?
The End
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TEACHER’S GUIDE
BACKGROUND
This play tells the story of Nellie Bly using primary sources—
a letter from Nellie Bly, newspaper headlines, quotes from news- by Jane Mann
paper articles, and song lyrics. Before reading the play , you may
ers
wish to go over some of the more challenging v ocabulary from Characters
these sources—words such as procure, mire, and Paree (Paris).

Narrator
Nellie Bly (Eliza
beth
Cochran)
These sources tell only a small part of the story of the

Newsboy
Editor of The
Dispatch
Newsman 1
remarkable life of Nellie Bly. After pioneering the use of

Newsman 2
Editor of The
World
Reader 1
journalism as a way to create social reform, Bly married a Reader 2
Books
Reader 3
businessman, Robert Seaman, in 1895. When her husband died

Reader 4
sional
Reader 5
Scholastic Profes
ten years later, she took over his manufacturing companies and
12 20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
Reading Skill
s
turned them into multimillion-dollar businesses. Nellie practiced what

she preached—she made sure the w orkers in the plants were treated WRITING
fairly and with respect. She even set up libraries so emplo yees could
learn how to read. PROMPT
Imagine that you are
Nellie Bly and you
ACTIVITY Around the World want a job at a
Nellie Bly saw some amazing things on her trip around the w orld. newspaper, but the
Ask students to imagine that they could plan a trip around the w orld editor doesn’t think
too. What places would they visit? What things would they see? women should be
Have students write a story titled “My Trip Around the World.” reporters. Write a
Encourage them to add details about the things the y do and see, using letter that will con-
books, the Internet, and other research sources if the y choose. Students vince the editor that
can create report covers with pictures—either illustrated or cut from you can do the job
magazines—of the things they may see on their trip. just as well as a
man.
BOOK LINKS
Nellie Bly’s Monkey: His Remarkable Story in His Own Words DISCUSSION
by Joan W. Blos (William Morrow, 1996)
QUESTION
Nellie Bly had to
Nellie Bly: Reporter for the World
fight to get a job as
by Martha E. Kendall (Millbrook Press, 1994)
a news reporter
because she was a
INTERNET LINKS woman. Her editor
The Write Site didn’t even think a
http://www .writesite.org woman could take a
Kids can learn about the history of journalism and get pointers on trip around the
writing their own news stories. world in 75 days.
Were you surprised
The American Experience—Around the World in 72 Days to learn that women
http://www .pbs.org/wgbh/ame x/world weren’t allowed to
A site for the documentary of Nellie’s around-the-world trip. do some of the same
Contains excerpts from her journal, a map of her trip, and things as men? How
teacher’s guide. are things different
today?
englishtips.org
17
The World’s
First Phone Call
by Jennifer Johnson
Characters
Narrator 1
Narrator 2
TV announcer
Mr. Anderson
Mrs. Anderson
Jake Anderson
Emily Anderson
Alexander Graham Bell
Thomas Watson
Rutherford B. Hayes
Operator
englishtips.org
18
Act 1
SETTING: The early twenty-first century.
A mother and father watch television in their living room.
Narrator 1 . . . . . It was a dark and stormy night in Chippe wa County.

Luckily, the Anderson family was safe at home.
TV announcer . . . We interrupt your regular programming to bring

you this emergency weather broadcast. Tonight’s
severe thunderstorm has knocked down telephone
lines, causing a phone service outage in parts of
Chippewa and Barron counties. Service should
resume within two hours.
Mr. Anderson . . . Hey, that might be us!
Mrs. Anderson . . Better check the phone and see whether it’ s
working.
Jake . . . . . . . . . (enters the room) Hey, something’s wrong. I was

trying to call Max and there’s no dial tone. Nothing
happens when I dial, either.
Emily . . . . . . . . . (enters the room) Does anyone know what’s going

on? I was doing some research online on my
computer. All of a sudden, my modem disconnected
and now it won’t reconnect.
Mrs. Anderson . . Calm down, kids. We just heard on TV that the

storm knocked down some phone lines. That’s why
our phone is dead—and why you can’ t connect to
the Internet, Emily.
Mr. Anderson . . . But don’t worry. The TV announcer said phones

will be working again within two hours.
Emily . . . . . . . . . Two hours? But I need to f inish my research now!
Jake . . . . . . . . . And I really wanted to talk to Max!
englishtips.org
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Act 2
SETTING: The late nineteenth century.
Alexander Graham Bell’s laboratory in Boston
Narrator 1 . . . . . Today, it’s hard to imagine doing without telephone

service—even for two hours. But until 1876, people
lived without phone service for thousands of years.
Then, on March 10, 1876, a major historical e vent
took place. That was the day that Alexander
Graham Bell made the first phone call.
Narrator 2 . . . . . Alexander Graham Bell was a teacher. At first, he

taught music and public speaking. Later, he taught
deaf students to speak. Bell’s teaching experiences
got him interested in the sounds of human speech.
Narrator 1 . . . . . One day, Bell read a paper that w as written in

German. Bell’s German was not very good. He
thought the paper said that human speech could be
sent over a wire. That’s not what the paper really
said. But it was a lucky mistake for Bell—and for
humankind.
Narrator 2 . . . . . Alexander Graham Bell began working on a

machine that could transmit the sounds of human
voices over a wire. After awhile, he hired a
machine-shop worker named Thomas Watson to
work with him.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Watson and Bell worked on their invention for a long

time. On June 2, 1875, something e xciting happened.
Watson . . . . . . . (to himself) Hmmm . . . this wire’s wrapped too

tightly. Think I’d better unwrap it and start o ver.
(Fiddles with wire some more. Wire suddenly makes
a loud twang.)
Bell . . . . . . . . . . (hears twang through the receiver) Watson! (runs

into other room) Watson! Did you just make that
wire twang?
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20
Watson . . . . . . . Why, yes, Bell. How did you know?
Bell . . . . . . . . . . I heard it, Watson! I heard it through the recei ver.

The sound was carried over the wire!
Watson . . . . . . . It really works, then. It really is possible to send

sound over a wire.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Bell and Watson had successfully sent sound

over a wire. But it w ould be several more months
before they figured out how to send human speech.
Eventually, they figured out that liquid might help
conduct sound.
Narrator 2 . . . . . They began to experiment by partly covering

the wire with various liquids. Then one day, on
March 10, 1876, an accident happened.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Watson was working in another room. Bell

poured battery acid over the wire that connected
the transmitter and receiver. A strange sound came
from the transmitter. Bell jumped back.
Bell . . . . . . . . . . Mr. Watson! Come here! I want you!
Watson . . . . . . . Bell! You’ve done it!
Bell . . . . . . . . . . Watson, I just heard a funn y sound come from the

wire. Do you know what’s going on?
Watson . . . . . . . Yes, Bell. Just now, when you called me for help—
I heard your voice loud and clear over the wire!
Act 3
Narrator 1 . . . . . And that’s the story of the f irst phone call. Within
one year, Bell and Watson had achieved the first
two-way call. They began presenting the telephone
at exhibits. People were amazed. Soon, Bell’s
invention was the talk of the w orld.
englishtips.org
21
Narrator 2 . . . . . Of course, calling someone on the other side of the
world wasn’t possible quite yet. In f act, it would
be several years before long-distance calls were
possible and longer than that before calls could be
made overseas. But that didn’t mean that people
didn’t want phones—they definitely did.
Narrator 1 . . . . . In 1878, Rutherford B. Hayes became the f irst

president to have a phone installed in the White
House.
Narrator 2 . . . . . Guess who was the first person he called?
Hayes . . . . . . . . (lifts receiver) Operator, get me Alexander Graham

Bell, please.
Operator . . . . . . . (She punches some buttons. Bell’s phone rings. He

picks it up.) Mr. Bell, the President of the United
States is on the line for you.
Bell . . . . . . . . . . (speaking quickly, with excitement) Hello, Mr.

President, it’s an honor to talk to you. I’m so pleased
that my invention has been installed in the White
House, and I’m glad to hear that your telephone is
working . . .
Hayes . . . . . . . . Please speak more slowly, Mr. Bell.
Narrator 1 . . . . . I’m not too sure what Bell really said to President
Hayes. But as legend has it, “Please speak more
slowly” really were the President’s first words to Bell.
Narrator 2 . . . . . As you can imagine, it took people a while to get

used to speaking and listening o ver a telephone. But
once they got the hang of it, the y never wanted to
give it up. Today, telephones allow us to reach out
and touch people in every corner of the planet!
The End
englishtips.org
22
TEACHER’S GUIDE The World
First Phone C’sa
BACKGROUND ll by Jennifer Joh
nson
Born in 1847 in Scotland, Alexander Graham Bell made his

first invention at age 11—a machine for cleaning wheat (some Characters
Narrator 1
sources say corn). His interest in human speech be gan in

Narrator 2
TV announce
r
Mr. Anderson
childhood as well. His father, Alexander Melville Bell, was a

Mrs. Anderson
Jake Anderson
Emily Anderson
speech teacher who researched the problems of the deaf. His Alexander Grah
Thomas Wats
on
am Bell
mother, Eliza, was deaf. Bell became a teacher of speech and

Rutherford B.
Hayes
Operator
in 1873 was appointed Professor of Vocal Physiology at

Boston University. When Bell first came up with the idea of
a telephone, he discussed it at length with his f ather.
Books
Bell did not stop working after he invented the telephone.
sional
Scholastic Profes
He went on to earn 18 patents in his name, and 12 others with
18 20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
Reading Skill
s
collaborators. He invented techniques for teaching speech to

the deaf. And in 1888, he founded the National Geographic Society .
He died in 1922, but his contributions to the world of communications
WRITING
will never be forgotten. PROMPT
Imagine that you
could pick up a
ACTIVITY Imagine an Invention phone right now
Telephones make life easier in so many ways. Ask students to think and call anyone in
about a typical day in their li ves. What could they use that would make the world—your
life easier—a machine that makes the bed? a robot that w alks and best friend, favorite
feeds the dog? singer or actor, or
Challenge students to come up with an in vention that would make even the president.
daily life easier. It can be as simple or f antastic as they want. Students What questions
can draw a picture of the invention and write a paragraph describing would you ask?
what it does. Students can then present their in ventions to the class and Write down your
vote on which invention would be most useful in daily life. You can questions and the
also sort and group their invention ideas by category—Inventions That answers you think
Clean Things, Inventions That Make Things Happen Faster, etc. you might get, until
your imaginary
BOOK LINKS phone conversation
Alexander Graham Bell: An Inventive Life is complete.
by Elizabeth McLeod (General Distribution Services, 1999)
DISCUSSION
Always Inventing: A Photobiography of Alexander Graham Bell
by Tom L. Mathews (National Geographic Society, 1999)
QUESTION
It’s difficult to
imagine life without
INTERNET LINKS telephones. Can
Brain Spin—Alexander Graham Bell you think of any
http://www .att.com/technolo
gy/forstudents/brainspin/ale xbell other inventions you
A fun site from AT&T Labs that includes interactive games can’t live without?
How would life be
Alexander Graham Bell—The Inventor different if those
http://www .fitzgeraldstudio .com/html/bell/in ventor.html things hadn’t been
A detailed site devoted to Bell’s many inventions invented?
englishtips.org
23
by AlexandraHanson-Har
ding
Characters
Narrator 1
Narrator 2
Sacagawea (sa-KAG-a-way-a), a Shoshone (She-SHOW-nee) girl
Cameahwait (KOM-e-a-wait), her brother
Meriwether Lewis, an explorer
William Clark, an explorer
englishtips.org
24
ACT 1
Scene 1
Narrator 1 . . . . . It is 1800. A Shoshone Indian tribe camps near the
Rocky Mountains, in what is now Idaho.
Cameahwait . . . . Look, sister. The scouts are returning.
Sacagawea . . . . . But I don’t recognize them. Uh-oh. They must be—
Cameahwait . . . . It’s our enemies, the Hidatsa! Run, sister! But if the y
catch you, just stay alive until we find each other again.
Narrator 2 . . . . . She runs, but the Hidatsa drag her a way. She is
marched east to Fort Mandan, in what is now
North Dakota.
Scene 2
Narrator 1 . . . . . Sacagawea is a slave to the Hidatsa for four years.
Then, she is married off to a fur trapper. Soon after,
she learns she is expecting a child.
Sacagawea . . . . . Someday, somehow, my baby and I will get back

home to my people.
Narrator 2 . . . . . One day, two white men appear. They are the explorers
Lewis and Clark. President Thomas Jefferson has sent
them to find a way to reach the Pacific Ocean by water.
Clark . . . . . . . . . Hello, Sacagawea. We have traveled far on the

Missouri River. We will have to cross mountains as
we travel west. We believe the Shoshone people live
in those mountains.
Lewis . . . . . . . . . We do not speak Shoshone. We want you and your

husband to come with us and translate for us. Would
you help us buy horses from your people, so we can
cross the mountains?
englishtips.org
25
Sacagawea . . . . . I don’t know if my people are still ali ve. But I will
help you.
Narrator 1 . . . . . On February 11, 1805, Sacagawea gives birth to a

boy the explorers nickname “Pompey.”
ACT 2
Narrator 2 . . . . . Several months later, the explorers start traveling
up the Missouri River with Sacagawea and her
husband. Sacagawea helps paddle one of the team’s
boats upstream. Her baby is on her back.
Narrator 1 . . . . . As they travel west, sometimes they find no game to

hunt.
Lewis . . . . . . . . . If things go on like this, we’ll run out of food.
Clark . . . . . . . . . What’s Sacagawea doing?
Narrator 2 . . . . . Sacagawea digs under a tree and pulls out a wild

artichoke. She cooks it in the ashes of the f ire and
hands it to Lewis. He takes a bite.
Lewis . . . . . . . . . Mmm! That’s good! What would we do without

you, Sacagawea?
ACT 3
Narrator 1 . . . . . The group continues west.
Sacagawea . . . . . Look at the mountains, Pomp. We’re getting close

to home.
Clark . . . . . . . . . Are you sure we’re going the right way?
englishtips.org
26
Sacagawea . . . . . Yes. I was kidnapped here when I w as young.
Narrator 2 . . . . . Soon, a group of Shoshone w omen appear. They

lead Lewis and Clark to their chief.
Lewis . . . . . . . . . I want to bargain for horses. Let’s get Sacagawea to

translate.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Later, Sacagawea walks into the tent and sits do wn.
Sacagawea . . . . . These white men want to know if they can buy

some horses from—
Narrator 2 . . . . . The chief stares at her. She stares back at him. At

the same moment . . .
Sacagawea . . . . . Brother, is that—
Cameahwait . . . . Sister!
Narrator 1 . . . . . She throws her blanket over his head and they hug,
crying.
Cameahwait . . . . I thought I would never see you again.
Narrator 2 . . . . . They let go of each other.
Cameahwait . . . . Are these your friends?
Sacagawea . . . . . Yes. Can you help them?
Cameahwait . . . . For you, I will.
Narrator 1 . . . . . The Shoshone sell horses to Lewis and Clark.

They promise to guide the e xplorers through the
mountains to the west.
Narrator 2 . . . . . But the next day, Sacagawea overhears that

Cameahwait has changed his mind. She goes
to find her brother.
Sacagawea . . . . . Didn’t the white man speak to you about guiding

him over the mountains?
englishtips.org
27
Cameahwait . . . . Yes, but if we help them, we will miss part of
buffalo season.
Sacagawea . . . . . But you promised. And if you don’t help us, we’ll
be stuck.
Cameahwait . . . . We? You mean you aren’t staying? I thought you

wanted to be with your people.
Sacagawea . . . . . I wish I had never been kidnapped. But now that

I’m here . . .
Cameahwait . . . . What?
Sacagawea . . . . . I’m not a little girl an ymore. Now I want to see the
great waters to the west. I feel restless. I’m an
explorer too. Besides, you promised.
Cameahwait . . . . You drive a hard bargain, little sister. But I will do

it for you. Even though it will break my heart to
let you go.
Sacagawea . . . . . And how I will miss you!
Narrator 1 . . . . . The Shoshone guide them west, then lea ve them

while the explorers travel all the way to the Pacific
Ocean.
Narrator 2 . . . . . Sacagawea kept on helping Lewis and Clark right

up to the end. She w as a symbol of peace to Nati ve
American groups they met along the way. And she
even helped find a mountain pass that shortened the
trip back.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Lewis and Clark lost track of Sacaga wea after the
trip. But her courage is still remembered today . In
the year 2000, she was chosen to appear on the ne w
golden dollar coin.
The End
englishtips.org
28
TEACHER’S GUIDE
BACKGROUND
Meriwether Lewis (1774–1809) and William Clark (1770–1838)
met on the American frontier. President Thomas Jefferson asked
Lewis to take charge of the “Corps of Discovery,” an expedition to
explore the Western Territories. Lewis quickly asked Clark to join
him as co-leader, and he accepted.
The journey began in 1803. By October of 1804, the y had
reached the Mandan villages in present-day North Dak ota, where by Alexandra
Hanson-Hard
ing
they decided to spend the winter. It was there that they met Characters
Touissant Charbonneau, Sacagawea’s husband. Sacagawea (sa-K
Narrator 1
Narrator 2
AG-a-way-a),
As the play states, Sacagawea did reach the Pacific Ocean

a Shoshone (She
Books
Cameahwait -SHOW-knee)
(KOM-e-a-wait), girl
her brother
Meriwether Lewi
sional
s, an explorer
with the explorers. What happened to Sacagawea after that is

William Clark,
Scholastic Profes
an explorer
24 20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
uncertain. Sacagawea did have a daughter, Lisette, six years after

Reading Skill
s
the expedition ended. The most accepted story is that Sacaga wea died in
1812, and that William Clark adopted her two children. Others believe WRITING
that she returned to the Shoshone and li ved with them until 1884. PROMPT
Sacagawea helped
ACTIVITY Tribes on the Trail Lewis and Clark
The Lewis and Clark expedition encountered almost 50 different in several ways.
Native American tribes on their travels. These include the Arikara, Write a short story
Assiniboin, Blackfoot, Clatsup, Mandan, Teton Sioux, Oto, Missouri, imagining what
Nez Perce, Shoshone, Tillamook, Walla Walla, Wishram, and Yankton the trip may have
Sioux. been like if
Have students choose one tribe from the list and try to f ind the Sacagawea had
answers to these questions: Where did they live? What kinds of food not accompanied
did they eat? What kinds of shelter did they live in? Which tribes were Lewis and Clark.
they friendy with? Does the tribe still e xist today?
Students can use the information they gather to create simple DISCUSSION
mini-books or posters about the tribe the y’ve chosen. The finished
products can be displayed in the classroom for others to e xplore. QUESTION
When Sacagawea
met her brother
BOOK LINKS again, she could
How We Crossed the West: The Adventures of Lewis and Clark have rejoined her
by Rosalyn Schanzer (National Geographic Society, 1997) people. Instead, she
chose to continue
A Picture Book of Sacagawea with the expedition.
by David A. Adler, illustrated by Dan Brown (Holiday House, 2000) What would you
have done if you
had to make that
INTERNET LINKS choice?
Lewis and Clark
http://www .pbs.org/lewisandclark/
Based on Ken Burns’s PBS film. Students can read a biography of
Sacagawea, and teachers can find classroom resources.
Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation

http://www .lewisandclark.org/ englishtips.org
Learn more about the 3,700-mile Lewis and Clark historic trail. 29
Speaking Out for Justice
Dr. Martin
Dr. Martin
Luther King
by Sheila Sweeny
Characters
Narrator Mom 1
Rose Dad 1
Jack Mom 2
May Reverend
Martin Luther
Billy
King, Jr.
englishtips.org
30
Act 1
Narrator . . . It is the summer of 1963. In some places in the country ,
African-Americans do not have equal rights. They cannot
drink from the same water fountains, go to the same
schools, or eat in the same restaurants as white Americans.
In some places, they are not allowed to vote. Many people
feel this is not fair. Many people are working to make a
change.
Dad 1 . . . . . Come on, Rose. Come on, Jack. It’s time to go.
Rose . . . . . Where are we going again?
Mom 1 . . . . We’re going to Washington, D.C.
Jack . . . . . . Do we have to go? It’s so far!
Dad . . . . . . . Yes, Jack, we have to go. We have to let everyone know

that we think what is happening in this country is not right.
Rose . . . . . . Do you think there will be a lot of people there?
Mom 1 . . . . I think so, Rose. There are many people who feel the w ay
we do. There will be some very important people there,
too. Reverend King will be there.
Jack . . . . . . If Reverend King will be there, then I am def initely
going to Washington, D.C.!
Dad 1 . . . . . All right, then. Let’s go!
Act 2
Narrator . . . . On August 28, 1963, more than 250,000 people marched
in Washington, D.C.
Mom 2 . . . . May, Billy, stay close. We have to stay together.

englishtips.org
31
May & Billy . . (shouting) Equal rights! Equal rights!
Mom 2 . . . . Do you see that man up ahead?
May . . . . . . Yes, Mama.
Mom 2 . . . . That’s Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. He has been

speaking out for equal rights for a long time.
May . . . . . . He’s the one who talked about how important it is for all
of us to vote.
Mom 2 . . . . Yes, May. And he’s traveled all over, all the way to India, to
find ways that we can get our rights without using violence.
Billy . . . . . . I heard that he even met with President Kennedy to ask

him to support equal rights.
Mom 2 . . . . That’s right, Billy. Now let’s listen to what Reverend

King has to say.
Act 3
Narrator . . . At the Lincoln Memorial, the crowd stopped to listen to
the words of Reverend King.
Jack . . . . . . Look! It’s Reverend King.
Rose . . . . . And all these people are listening to him.
Reverend
King . . . . . . I have a dream that my four children will one day li ve in
a nation where they will not be judged by the color of
their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today.
I have a dream that one day the state of Alabama . . .
will be transformed into a situation where little black
boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little
white boys and white girls and w alk together as sisters
and brothers.
englishtips.org
32
Mom 1 . . . . (to Rose and Jack) Your dad and I have that
dream too.
Reverend
King . . . . . . When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from e very
village and every hamlet, from every state and every city,
we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’ s
children, black men and white men, Je ws and Gentiles,
Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and
sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, “Free at last!
Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!”
Jack . . . . . . Dad, when I listen to Reverend King, I just know that

he’s right. I know that things are going to change.
Dad 1 . . . . . I think you’re right, Jack.
Act 4
Narrator . . . It is now the spring of 1968. Since the speech, Re verend
King has continued to lead people and speak out. He has
been arrested and put in jail. He has met with another
president, Lyndon B. Johnson. And he has seen changes
sweep across the country.
Mom 2 . . . . May, Billy, please come here. I ha ve some news.

May . . . . . . What is it, Mom?
Mom 2 . . . . Reverend King is dead. He w as shot in Memphis,

Tennessee.
Billy . . . . . . No, Mom! That’s not fair! He was helping all of us.
Mom 2 . . . . I agree, Billy. It isn’t fair. But remember, Reverend King

lives on in us. Every time we remember his w ords, every
time we speak out against things that are unf air, we are
keeping the memory of Reverend King alive.
The End
englishtips.org
33
TEACHER’S GUIDE Speaking Ou
t for Justice
BACKGROUND Dr. Martin

Many years of struggle preceded Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream Luther King
Speech” at the March on Washington.
by Sheila Sw
eeny
Characters
King’s life as an activist began in 1955, when he w as pastor at Narrator
Rose
Mom 1
Dad 1
Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. In that

Jack
Mom 2
May
Reverend
Billy Martin Luther
year, King led a boycott to protest bus segregation. King devel-

King, Jr.
oped his leadership abilities during the long bo ycott and went on
to form the Southern Christian Leadership Conference with other
African-American ministers. He traveled to India to study non-
violent protest with Mohandas Gandhi. In 1962, he met with
President John F. Kennedy to discuss civil rights. By the day of
Books sional
the march on August 28, 1963, King’s efforts had resulted in an
Scholastic Profes
30 20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
outpouring of support from people of all races.

Reading Skill
s
The quotes from Dr. King’s speech are exactly as he said them.
Please note that he uses the w ord Negro, an acceptable term for black WRITING
Americans in the 1960s, but is no longer used today. You may wish to PROMPT
discuss this with students before reading the play. Dr. King dreamed
of a better world
ACTIVITY Dr. Martin Luther King Time Line in which all people
Divide the class into 13 groups. Gi ve each group a card with one of the are treated equally.
dates below. Have each group research the event that took place in that What is your dream
year and create a poster that tells about the e vent. Display the finished for the people of the
posters, in order, around the classroom or in a hall way. world?
1929 Dr. King is born.
1948 Dr. King graduates from Morehouse College. DISCUSSION
1953 Dr. King marries Coretta Scott.
1954 Dr. King begins to preach at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. QUESTION
1956 Dr. King’s house is bombed. How has life
1957 Dr. King becomes president of the Southern Christian changed for African
Leadership Conference. Americans and
1959 Dr. King visits Mohandas Gandhi in India. other minorities
1962 Dr. King meets with President Kennedy. since Dr. King’s
1963 Dr. King leads the March on Washington. famous speech?
1964 Dr. King wins the Nobel Peace Prize.
1965 Dr. King leads a march from Selma to Montgomery.
1968 Dr. King is assassinated by James Earl Ray.
1986 Dr. King’s birthday, January 20, is first celebrated as a national holida y.
BOOK LINKS INTERNET LINK

Happy Birthday, Martin Luther King Martin Luther King Jr. Directory
by Jean Marzollo (Scholastic, 1993) http://www .stanford.edu/group/King
This continually updated site has a v ariety of
Martin Luther King resources about Dr. King’s life, including two
by Rosemary L. Bray letters written by him when he w as eleven.
(William Morrow & Co., 1996)
englishtips.org
34
A World-Famous Tomboy:
The Story of
Babe Zaharias
by Eric James Charles
worth
Characters
Mildred “Babe” Didrikson
Narrator 1
Narrator 2
Boy 1
Boy 2
Kackler 1
Kackler 2
Reporter
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Act 1
SETTING: 1918 in Beaumont, Texas. Mildred Didrikson
approaches a group of young bo ys playing baseball in a sandlot.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Mildred Ella Didrikson was born and raised

in Texas during the early part of the twentieth
century. During this era, few girls and women
played sports. There weren’t many opportunities
for women to compete. But almost from the day
she was born, Mildred set out to o vercome these
obstacles. From a very early age, she dedicated her
life to becoming a fantastic athlete at any sport she
chose, even if it meant competing against bo ys.
Mildred . . . . . . . Hey, guys. Mind if I join your game? I lo ve

playing ball.
Boy 1 . . . . . . . . You can’t play with us, missy. Go on home and

play with your dollies.
Mildred . . . . . . . But I don’t like playing with dolls.
Boy 2 . . . . . . . . Well, too bad. This is no game for girls. You might
get a boo-boo or something and start crying. You’re
nothing but a tomboy!
Mildred . . . . . . . You don’t know what you’re talking about. Girls

can play sports, too. I’ll bet I’m better than you are,
anyway. Come on! Just give me one chance to
swing the bat, and I’ll show you what I’m made of.
Boy 1 . . . . . . . . Okay. But don’t break a nail.
Narrator 2 . . . . . The boys laugh at the joke. One of the boys gives
Mildred a bat, and she steps up to the plate. The
pitcher motions for the outfielders to move in,
because he does not expect Mildred to hit the ball
out of the infield. But she surprises him by blasting
his first pitch over everyone’s heads.
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Boy 2 . . . . . . . . Wow! That’s the farthest anyone has hit all day.
We’ll take her on our team!
Boy 1 . . . . . . . . I don’t believe my eyes! She may be a girl, b ut she

swings the bat just like Babe Ruth. I’m going to
call her “Babe”!
Narrator 1 . . . . . From then on, Mildred was usually referred to by

her nickname, “Babe.” But although she gained
some respect that day, her challenges were just
beginning.
Act 2
SETTING: In the hallway of Beaumont High School.
Mildred is talking with some of her classmates.
Narrator 1 . . . . . In the year 1920, women received the right to vote.

For the very first time, the United States sent
female athletes to compete in the Olympic Games.
However, Babe was still finding that most people
didn’t agree with her decision to become an athlete.
Narrator 2 . . . . . At Babe’s school, there was a group of popular

girls called the Kacklers Club. They prided
themselves on supporting the boys’ athletic teams,
but did not think it w as proper for girls to compete
in sports.
Kackler 1 . . . . . Hey, Babe. Don’t you want to join our club? We

think you would make an excellent member.
Kackler 2 . . . . . Except first you have to let your hair grow longer
and give up playing all those sports. Sports are for
boys to play and for girls to w atch!
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Kackler 1 . . . . . Yes. And maybe you should think about wearing
pretty clothes. That’s what boys like. You want boys
to like you, don’t you?
Babe . . . . . . . . . Some boys will like me. And some boys won’t.
That’s okay by me. The important thing is for me
to be the best person that I kno w I can be.
Kackler 2 . . . . . All right, Babe. Then tell us. What is it you want
to be?
Babe . . . . . . . . . I want to be the greatest athlete who e ver lived.
Kackler 1 . . . . . (laughing hysterically) You must be dreaming,

honey! That’s funny. Feel free to let us kno w if you
ever come to your senses.
Act 3
SETTING: Many years later.
A news reporter is interviewing Babe.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Babe never stopped dreaming. After leaving school,

while working as a secretary, she began playing
women’s basketball. Soon after that, she chose to
concentrate on track-and-field events. She won two
gold medals and a silver medal in the 1932
Olympics at Los Angeles. During the mid-1930s,
she turned her attention to golf. She w ould often get
up at 5 a.m. and practice for 16 hours a day in
hopes of mastering the sport. Her hard w ork would
pay off.
Narrator 2 . . . . . In the 1940s, after Babe married professional

wrestler George Zaharias, she began to emerge
as one of the greatest female golfers of all time.
During one stretch, Babe won 17 straight
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tournaments, and took home six Woman Athlete of
the Year honors in a row. Her achievements helped
pave the way for some of today’s great athletes like
Martina Hingis, Cynthia Cooper, and Mia Hamm.
Reporter . . . . . . Babe, many say you are the best female athlete
of the first half of the twentieth century. It seems
as though you’ve done everything—baseball,
basketball, track, diving, and of course, golf. Is
there anything you haven’t played?
Babe . . . . . . . . . Yes, there is one thing I ne ver was good at.
Reporter . . . . . . I find that hard to believe. What is it?
Babe . . . . . . . . . Dolls. I was never all that great at playing dolls.
Reporter . . . . . . (laughing) Well, Babe, you certainly found a fe w

things you were good at. Congratulations on all
your accomplishments. You are an inspiration to
all of us.
The End
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39
TEACHER’S GUIDE A World-Famo
us Tomboy
The Story o:
BACKGROUND Babe Zahar f
Mildred Ella Didrikson was born on June 26, 1911, in Port ias
by Eric James
Charlesworth
Arthur, Texas. Her parents, Hannah and Ole, were Norwe gian
immigrants. A tomboy from the start, Mildred k ept her hair short
and often wore boys’ clothing. She may not have been popular
with other students, but she earned respect by leading her high-
school basketball team to victory again and again.
“Babe,” as she came to be called, earned w orldwide respect Characters
with her 1932 gold medals in track and f ield. Today she is still Mildred “Bab
Narrator 1
e” Didrikson
remembered as a world-class athlete and an inspiration to

Narrator 2
Books
Boy 1
sional
Boy 2
female athletes everywhere. Each year, the Babe Zaharias

Kackler 1
Scholastic Profes
Kackler 2
Female Athlete of the Year Award is bestowed on an athlete in

Reporter
recognition of “her zest for life, for sport, for competition, and
20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
Reading Skill
s 35
for the pure, glorious joy of simply being the best.”

WRITING
ACTIVITY Great Athletes Posters PROMPT
Students will enjoy creating these sports-themed posters using Babe Zaharias
11- by 17-inch sheets of paper. Ask each student to choose an athlete loved sports and
they admire from the past or present (you may wish to encourage or worked all her life
require them to choose a female athlete). Each poster should include to achieve her
the following: dream of being an
● a drawing or pasted-on picture of the athlete athlete. Write about
● the athlete’s name something that you
● the athlete’s birthdate and hometown care deeply about.
● any teams the athlete played on
● any major achievements or awards won by the athlete DISCUSSION
Display the finished posters on a “Sports Hall of F ame” wall or
bulletin board. QUESTION
Years ago, it wasn’t
considered proper
BOOK LINKS for girls to compete
Babe Didrikson Zaharias in sports. How have
by Russell Freedman (Clarion Books, 1999) attitudes about
women in sports
Babe Didrikson Zaharias All-Around Athlete (On My Own Biography) changed since then?
by Jane Sutcliffe (Carolrhoda Books, 2000) Women compete in
professional
leagues, but male
INTERNET LINKS athletes are paid
Sports Illustrated for Kids
much more. How
http://www .sikids.com/
do you feel about
A fun site for fans of all sports, and info on top female athletes.
that?
The Women of the Hall
http://www .greatwomen.org/zhrias.htm
Read a short bio of Zaharias (with pictures).
40 englishtips.org
What’s So Great
About the 50 States?
A Rhyming Play
by Sheila Sweeny
and Jane Manners
Characters
The 50 States
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41
50 States . . . . . . The fifty states are great, we say!
We’ll tell you about the U.S.A.
Alabama . . . . . . . Alabama is a southern state, ha ven’t you heard?
The little yellowhammer is our state bird.
Alaska . . . . . . . . Alaska’s the most northern state, a cold and sno wy
place.
We’re home to the Iditarod, a f amous dogsled race.
Arizona . . . . . . . In the Arizona desert, coyotes come out at night.
Our spectacular Grand Canyon is an awe-inspiring
sight.
Arkansas . . . . . . In Arkansas’s Ozark Mountains you may hear an
echo ring.
And in the national park you can f ind a real hot
spring.
California . . . . . . California has mountains and beaches by the sea.
We have the largest population—it’s where people
want to be.
Colorado . . . . . . In the winter Colorado can get a lot of sno w.
The Rocky Mountains are a place where skiers lo ve
to go.
Connecticut . . . . Hartford is Connecticut’s capital city.
Autumn in this state is really v ery pretty.
Delaware . . . . . . Delaware is often called the First State of the Union,
because we were the first to sign the U.S.
Constitution.
Florida . . . . . . . . Florida has the Everglades, where animals love

to roam.
Alligators, manatees, and flamingos call it
home.
Georgia . . . . . . . Farmers in Georgia grow peanuts, peppers, and
peaches.
Along the Atlantic Coast, you’ll find some nice
beaches.
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Hawaii . . . . . . . . Hawaii is a string of islands out in the P acific
Ocean,
where vacationers line the beaches wearing lots
of suntan lotion.
Idaho . . . . . . . . . Idaho is known for potatoes, but it’s the Gem of the
Mountains too.
We have rivers, forests, canyons, and waterfalls
sparkling blue.
Illinois . . . . . . . . The prairies of Illinois are really v ery pretty.
This state also has Chicago, the country’s third-
largest city.
Indiana . . . . . . . . Thousands who love fast cars know Indiana is the
place.
Its capital, Indianapolis, is where speedw ay
drivers race.
Iowa . . . . . . . . . Iowa is mostly farms as far as the eye can see.

That is why this state is kno wn for feeding you
and me.
Kansas . . . . . . . . Kansas is right in the middle of our great land.
In this prairie state, sunflowers and wheat stalks
stand.
Kentucky . . . . . . Dusty blue-tinted pastures give Kentucky the
Bluegrass State name.
But beautiful racing horses are this state’s real
claim to fame.
Louisiana . . . . . . Take a tour of Louisiana’s swamps if you have
the means,
or listen to great jazz music in the city of Ne w
Orleans.
Maine . . . . . . . . Maine is the first state to see the light of day ,
with its many lighthouses showing ships the way.
Maryland . . . . . . Maryland is a state on the Chesapeak e Bay.
Come see a Baltimore oriole fly—or the baseball
team play.
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Massachusetts . . Pilgrims landed in Massachusetts, at a place named
Plymouth Rock.
Today Boston has a seaport where man y ships can
dock.
Michigan . . . . . . On four of Michigan’s borders you will find a
Great Lake.
Cars and trucks are the biggest product that the
people here make.
Minnesota . . . . . Minnesota is a midwest state where we gro w lots of
wheat.
With our thousands of lakes, there are always fish
to eat.
Mississippi . . . . . Do you know where to find one of the longest

rivers anywhere?
Go to Mississippi, the Mississippi River runs there.
Missouri . . . . . . . In St. Louis, the Gateway Arch stands taller than
the rest.
It shows that Missouri is the gateway to the West.
Montana . . . . . . Silver and gold mines make this state the Treasure
State.
The Great Plains and Rocky Mountains really make
Montana great.
Nebraska . . . . . . Here in Nebraska, herds of beef cattle graze.

And endless rows of corn are grown through long
summer days.
Nevada . . . . . . . In the Silver State, Nevada, water is hard to

come by.
With the least rainfall in the country, Nevada
is very dry.
New Hampshire . . If you’re ever in New Hampshire, it won’t be hard

to find a tree.
The state is covered with forests as far as the eye
can see.
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New Jersey . . . . . New Jersey has miles of beaches by the sea.
It also has a state b ug: the yellow honeybee.
New Mexico . . . . New Mexico has Native American reservations

across the land.
Its state bird is the roadrunner, which zips across
the sand.
New York . . . . . . In New York state, apples grow and waterfalls fall.
And then there’s New York City, the biggest apple
of them all.
North Carolina . . North Carolina was the site of the Wright Brothers’
flight.
This state’s flag is blue, red, and white.
North Dakota . . . There’s a place in North Dak ota called Badlands—

do you know why?
Pioneers found them hard to get by.
Ohio . . . . . . . . . . The White House must think that Ohio’s first-rate.

Seven of our presidents were born in this state.
Oklahoma . . . . . . Dinosaurs once stomped on Oklahoma’s ground.

Now across the prairies, oil wells can be found.
Oregon . . . . . . . . In Oregon’s many forests, the spotted owl flies.

To the west of Oregon, the Pacific Ocean lies.
Pennsylvania . . . Pennsylvania has a history that’s dear.

The Declaration of Independence and Constitution
were written here.
Rhode Island . . . Rhode Island may be tiny—it’s the smallest state,

you know.
But it’s one of the first states that helped this
country grow.
South Carolina . . South Carolina has beaches all along the coast.
But beautiful gardens are what it’s known for most.
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South Dakota . . . In South Dakota you can find elk and deer in man y
places.
And you’ll see Mount Rushmore—a sculpture of
four presidents’ faces.
Tennessee . . . . . Nashville is the capital of the state of Tennessee.

If you like country music, this is the place to be.
Texas . . . . . . . . . Things are big in Texas; even the river is grand.

And in the Lone Star State, cattle roam the land.
Utah . . . . . . . . . Look in Utah’s Goblin Valley, and you’ll see some

strange shapes there.
The water in Great Salt Lake is the saltiest
anywhere.
Vermont . . . . . . . Vermont is a state that gives us a tasty treat.

Maple syrup is made there—isn’t that sweet?
Virginia . . . . . . . We had the first English settlement that the country

ever knew.
Washington and Jefferson came from Virginia too.
Washington . . . . Washington’s leafy forests make this state so green.

Mount Rainier adds a snowy peak to the scene.
West Virginia . . . West Virginia is a small state b ut it has a big role.

It’s the country’s leading producer of a fuel called
soft coal.
Wisconsin . . . . . Dairy farmers in Wisconsin know just what to do.

With two million cows in the state, that’s a lot
of moo!
Wyoming . . . . . . At Wyoming’s Devil’s Tower, lava is piled up high.

And in Yellowstone National Park, you may see a
moose walk by.
50 states . . . . . . Now you know about the states in the U.S.A.

What else can you say about these states today?
The End
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TEACHER’S GUIDE What’s So
BACKGROUND About the 50 GSreat
tates?
The fifty “characters” in this play guarantee that your students A Rhyming Pl
ay
will all have a chance to participate. Assign students one or more by Sheila Sw
een
and Jane Mann y
ers
states before you begin reading the play, and explain that the
states are listed alphabetically. Characters
The 50 States
The rhymes in this play are a fun w ay to introduce students

to some of the major features of each of the 50 states. Major
geographical formations, principal products, famous people,
important dates in history, and state birds, flowers, and bugs
are all found in the rhymes.
Books sional
Use the last rhyming couplet as an in vitation to find out what
Scholastic Profes
your students know about the states. What else can you say
about these states today? Find out if students ha ve visited other
20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
Reading Skill
s 41
states, or if they have family or friends in other states. What do they

know about these states that’s not mentioned in the rhyming play? WRITING
PROMPT
ACTIVITY Geography Graph Read the rhyme for
Divide a large piece of posterboard into four horizontal ro ws. At the your state. What
beginning of each row, write one of the following: Forests, Deserts, other things about
Mountains, and Beaches. your state do you
Give a large self-stick note to each student, and ha ve students write think people should
their names on the note. Then ask students this question: If you could know? See if you
visit a forest, desert, mountain, or beach on v acation, where would you can write a rhyme
go? Invite students to place the note with their name on it in the ro w about them.
next to the place they’d most like to go.
Take a minute to study your f inished graph. Which place is most DISCUSSION
popular? Then revisit the play. Have students find at least two states
that they might visit based on their choice. QUESTION
Based on the infor-
mation in the poem,
BOOK LINKS which of the states
Celebrate the 50 States! sounds like an inter-
by Loreen Leedy (Holiday House, 1999) esting place to go?
What state would
Wish You Were Here: Emily Emerson’s Guide to the 50 States you visit if you had
by Kathleen Krull (Doubleday & Company, 1997) the chance?
INTERNET LINKS
Explore the States
http://www .americaslibrar y.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi/es
Facts, trivia, and a clickable map from the Library of Congress
Postcards From America 50 State Travel Adventure

http://www .postcardsfrom.com
Take a trip across the U.S. and learn about the states.
A top-rated geography site.
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47
by Tracey West
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48
Characters
Vince, an 18-year-old
Maria, Vince’s younger sister
Mom, Vince’s mother
Dad, Vince’s father
Martin Green, a candidate for mayor
Jane Washington, a candidate for mayor
Act 1
Mom . . . . . . . . . Happy Birthday, Vince! I can’t believe my little boy

has turned 18.
Dad . . . . . . . . . . You know what that means, son.
Vince . . . . . . . . . I can stay up past midnight?
Mom . . . . . . . . . What Dad means is now that you’re 18, you can
vote! There’s a big election for mayor coming up
in November.
Vince . . . . . . . . . What’s the big deal about v oting?
Maria . . . . . . . . Are you kidding? You’re lucky. You get to help

decide who runs the town. I won’t be able to do
that for years.
Vince . . . . . . . . I don’t care much about what goes on in this to wn.
Maria . . . . . . . . That’s not true. Just the other day you said you
wished the skateboard park could be open for
longer hours.
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49
Vince . . . . . . . . You’re right about that. But what can my v ote do
to change that?
Mom . . . . . . . . . Well, you can find out how the candidates for
mayor feel about the skateboard park.
Vince . . . . . . . . Okay, you’ve all convinced me. Where do I start?
Dad . . . . . . . . . First, you need to register to vote. Let’s go down

to the county clerk’s office.
Act 2
A few weeks later
Maria . . . . . . . . Your voter registration card looks pretty cool,

Vince. Now you can vote for mayor.
Vince . . . . . . . . I don’t even know who to vote for.
Maria . . . . . . . . We learned about the candidates in school. Martin

Green is running against Jane Washington.
Vince . . . . . . . . That’s nice, but how do I find out how they feel
about the skateboard park?
Maria . . . . . . . . Maybe we could check the newspaper.
Vince . . . . . . . . There’s an article here. It says the candidates

are going to debate at the ci vic center tomorrow
afternoon.
Maria . . . . . . . . Let’s go and see what the y have to say!
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50
Act 3
The mayoral debate at the civic center
Vince . . . . . . . . This debate is more interesting than I thought it

would be. But they still haven’t talked about the
skateboard park.
Maria . . . . . . . . You can ask them yourself. They’re accepting

questions from the audience.
Vince . . . . . . . . Maybe I will. (He walks up to the microphone.)

I was wondering how you both felt about k eeping
the skateboard park open for longer hours during
the summer.
Martin Green . . . I’m not sure if that’s such a good idea. We’ve been
getting some complaints from the neighbors there
that the skaters are too loud. In my opinion, the
park should be closed down.
Jane Washington I disagree. I like the skateboard park because it

gives the kids in this town someplace to go and
have fun. In my budget plan, I’ve included funds
to build a noise barrier so skaters can stay longer
without bothering the neighbors.
Vince . . . . . . . . Thank you both. (He returns to his seat.)
Maria . . . . . . . . I bet I know who you’re going to vote for.
Vince . . . . . . . . We’ll see.
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Act 4
Scene 1
The morning of election day
Maria . . . . . . . . Vince, wake up! It’s election day.
Vince . . . . . . . . All right, all right. What are you so excited about?
Maria . . . . . . . . Just because I can’t vote doesn’t mean I don’t care

who becomes mayor. I have a voice, too. Yesterday
I helped pass out flyers for Jane Washington.
Vince . . . . . . . . I don’t even know where to go.
Dad . . . . . . . . . (enters room) There’s a different polling place for

each neighborhood in town. I’ll take you on my
way to work.
Scene 2
Later that night
Maria . . . . . . . . The polls are all closed. Do we ha ve a mayor yet?
Mom . . . . . . . . . It may take a few hours before we know. Each

neighborhood has to report the v oting results to a
central location. Sometimes news reporters will
predict a winner before all the v otes are turned in.
But if it’s a close vote, they will wait.
Dad . . . . . . . . . I’ll tell you what. In honor of Vince’s first election,

I’ll let you both stay up until the results are in.
Maria . . . . . . . . It looks like you get to stay up past midnight after

all, big brother.
Vince . . . . . . . . Who cares about that. I can’ t wait to find out who
wins the election!
The End
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TEACHER’S GUIDE
BACKGROUND by Tracey We
There are three requirements for voting in the United States: st
you must be 18 years of age, you must be a U.S. citizen, and

you must be a resident of the city or to wn in which you apply
to register to vote.
It wasn’t always this way. African-Americans and women
had to fight for their right to vote for many years. Today, it is
sometimes easy to forget how precious our voting rights are.
In the play, Vince’s younger sister Maria is excited about her
participation in democracy. Even though she is not old enough
to vote, she gets involved in the election process. This character
sional Books
was created to show your students that their voices count too.
Scholastic Profes
48 20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
Reading Skill
s
ACTIVITY Class Mayor for a Day WRITING

Hold a class election to elect a class “Mayor for a Day”:
1. The Nominations: Allow students to nominate classmates to run for PROMPT
mayor. Set an election day approximately one week from this date. Imagine that you
2. The Campaign: Encourage other students to rally behind a candidate are running for
they believe in. Give each group classroom time to plan their mayor of your town
campaign strategy. Will they make posters? hand out flyers? or city. What would
3. The Debate: The day before the elections, require candidates to you do to make
give a one-minute speech stating what the y plan to do as class your town a better
mayor. Then give students time to question the candidates. place? Write a short
4. The Election: On election day, have students vote using a secret campaign speech
ballot. (If you start out with four or f ive candidates and end up in a outlining what you
tie between two, have a run-off election to end up with one winner .) would do if you
Then choose a day for the winner to serv e as “mayor” for the class. were elected mayor.
BOOK LINKS DISCUSSION

Pee Wee Scouts #39: Molly for Mayor QUESTION
by Judy Delton (Bantam Books, 1991) What is the last
election that you
The Vote: Making Your Voice Heard remember? Did you
by Linda Scher (Raintree-Steck-Vaughn, 1996) watch to see what
happened on televi-
sion? Did you have
INTERNET LINKS an opinion about
Brain Pop Presents: U.S. Presidential Elections
the candidates?
www.brainpop.com/specials/election
See a fun short film that explains how a president is elected,
including the electoral college.
Copernicus Election: Watch How and Why People Vote

www.edgate.com/elections/inactiv e/histor y-of-the-v ote
Clear explanations and definitions for your students, and
lesson plans for you.
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53
The Pilgrims’
First Year
by Tracey West
englishtips.org
54
Characters
Narrator
Francis, a Pilgrim boy
Elizabeth, a Pilgrim girl
Mother
John Carver, a leader in the colony
Samoset, a Wampanoag Indian
Squanto, a member of the Pautuxet tribe
Act 1
Narrator . . . . . . . After a long, hard winter, the Pilgrims continue to
build their new colony in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
Francis . . . . . . . . It feels so good to be on land again. I don’ t think I

could stand another day on the Mayflower.
Elizabeth . . . . . . It’s true, brother. The Mayflower was cramped and

filthy. But I am still v ery cold and very hungry. I
hope father finishes our house soon. I miss our old
home in England.
Francis . . . . . . . . Staying in the Common House with the other

families isn’t so bad. I think it’s fun.
Elizabeth . . . . . . You call it fun, but I call it trouble. You must learn
to behave, brother.
Francis . . . . . . . . I can’t help it. I’m bored. Nothing e xciting happens

around here.
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Mother . . . . . . . . I couldn’t help overhearing you, Francis. If it’s
excitement you’re looking for, then you can go help
your father with our house.
Francis . . . . . . . . Yes, Mother.
John Carver . . . . (shouts) Men, come quickly! An Indian approaches

our village.
Mother . . . . . . . . Francis, Elizabeth, you stay with me.
Francis . . . . . . . . I can see him, Mother! He’s carrying a bow and

arrows.
Narrator . . . . . . . The Pilgrims gather together as Samoset w alks into

their settlement.
Samoset . . . . . . Welcome, Englishmen!
Mother . . . . . . . . My goodness. He can speak English!
Act 2
Francis . . . . . . . . What is he saying?
Narrator . . . . . . . Francis sneaks closer to Samoset.
Samoset . . . . . . I learned English from the men who came to f ish in

these waters.
John Carver . . . . Are we trespassing on your land?
Samoset . . . . . . The Pautuxet people used to live here. The English

men brought a sickness. They all died. This land
belongs to no one.
John Carver . . . . Then we will stay. We will plant crops in the spring.
Samoset . . . . . . My friend Squanto can help you.
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Act 3
Narrator . . . . . . . A few days later, Samoset brought Squanto, the last
living member of the Pautuxet tribe. Squanto had
spent time on an English ship, and then li ved for
years in England as a sla ve. Now he was free. He
offered to help the Pilgrims.
Squanto . . . . . . . I can show you how to build temporary houses.

They will keep you safe from snow and rain until
you can build strong homes.
John Carver . . . . We will accept your help. Man y of our company

died over the winter. We are sick and hungry.
Squanto . . . . . . . I can teach you how to plant crops for a good

harvest. I can show you how to find food in the
waters and the forest.
Narrator . . . . . . . Squanto stayed on at Plymouth colon y. He

impressed the Pilgrims right away by catching
several fat, sweet eels with his bare hands.
Francis . . . . . . . . Something exciting is finally happening around

here!
Elizabeth . . . . . . With Squanto’s help, we may be able to turn this

place into a home.
Act 4
Narrator . . . . . . . Over the next few months, Squanto showed the
Pilgrims how to plant corn. He took the men
into the forest and showed them
how to hunt wild turkeys and
deer. Even the children
learned from Squanto.
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Squanto . . . . . . . The crops in the fields are still growing, but we can
find good food in the meadows.
Elizabeth . . . . . . Strawberries are delicious. Will we really find fruit?
Squanto . . . . . . . The last time we checked the plants, they bore

white flowers. By now the plants should have fruit.
Francis . . . . . . . . I found some!
Squanto . . . . . . . Pick the fruit

carefully.
Francis . . . . . . . . Mmm, they’re

good.
Elizabeth . . . . . . Francis! Those

are for our
families.
Francis . . . . . . . . Sorry, Elizabeth.

I couldn’t help it.
This is much
more fun than
anything we’ve
done so far.
Elizabeth . . . . . . I know what you mean. I don’ t miss our home so

much anymore.
Squanto . . . . . . . This is your home now. You must always remember

to take good care of it.
Francis
and Elizabeth . . . We will!
The End
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TEACHER’S GUIDE The Pilgrims’
BACKGROUND First Year
In 1621, the Pilgrims and their Nati ve American neighbors
celebrated the first harvest in the colony with a great feast. by Tracey We
st
Together we celebrate this event as Thanksgiving. But the year

leading up to this celebration w as a long and difficult one. If not
for the help of Squanto and the Wampanoag Indians, it is doubtful
that the Pilgrim colony would have survived.
It was December 1620, and already very cold, when the
Pilgrims decided to anchor in Plymouth Harbor. The men began
building the colony right away, but it was a slow process. Many
of the Pilgrims stayed aboard the cramped, unheated Mayflower
Books sional
that winter, which at least provided some shelter from the ele-
Scholastic Profes
54 20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
ments. More than half of the ship’s crew and passengers died
Reading Skill
s
during that period. On March 22, 1621, Squanto entered the pilgrims’
lives, and with his help, they learned how to survive—and eventually WRITING
thrive—in their new home. PROMPT
Imagine that you
ACTIVITY Living With the Land are Francis or
Squanto showed the Pilgrims how to find food in the land and w ater Elizabeth. Write a
around them. Ask students to think about the community that you li ve diary entry about
in, and what food and resources the Pilgrims might ha ve found if they your first spring in
had settled there. Is there a source for freshw ater? materials to build the new colony.
homes? a place to shelter from harsh weather? animals or f ish to be What do you miss
caught for food? edible wild plants? about your home?
If possible, take a nature walk with students somewhere in your What do you like
community. A volunteer from your parks commission or local about your new
Audubon Society may be willing to guide you. As a class, make a home?
list of all the natural resources your community has to of fer. You may
be surprised with the results! DISCUSSION
QUESTION
BOOK LINKS What do you think
The First Thanksgiving would have hap-
by Jean Craighead George (Philomel Books, 1993) pened if Samoset,
Squanto, and the
Pilgrim Voices: Our First Year in the New World other Wampanoag
by Connie and Peter Roop (Walker and Company, 1995) had not helped the
Pilgrims? Would
they have died,
INTERNET LINKS returned to England,
The First Thanksgiving
or figured out how
http://teacher .scholastic.com/thanksgiving/inde x.htm
to survive on their
Features a picture time line, trivia challenge, and teaching guide.
own?
Thanksgiving on the Net
http://www .holidays.net/thanksgiving
A fun Web site with history, music, movies, e-greeting cards, and more.
englishtips.org
59
Christopher’s
Dream
by Tracey West
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60
Characters
Narrator Sailor 1
Christopher Columbus Sailor 2
Bartholomew Columbus (brother) Lookout
Domenico Columbus (father) Queen Isabella
Susanna Columbus (mother) Messenger
Act 1
Scene 1
Setting: 1463. The boyhood home of 12-year-old
Christopher Columbus in Genoa, Italy
Narrator . . . . . . . Christopher Columbus grew up in Genoa, Italy. Genoa

was a port city. Many ships passed through the port on
their way to far-off lands.
Susanna . . . . . . . Christopher, are you reading that book again?
Christopher . . . . Yes, Mother. It’s a wonderful book. It’s about the

adventures of Marco Polo. He tra veled to the Indies.
He saw diamonds there and fields of spices . . .
Bartholomew . . . We know, Christopher. You’ve told us again and again.
Domenico . . . . . . Well, there will be no time for reading tomorro w.
Christopher . . . . (sadly) Yes, Father.
Domenico . . . . . . (smiling) There will be no time for reading, because

I need you to bring our cloth to Naples to sell.
Christopher . . . . Oh, Father, thank you! I get to sail on a ship

tomorrow. Hurrah!
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Scene 2
Setting: The next day. A small ship sailing across the Ligurian Sea
Sailor 1 . . . . . . . You seem at home on a ship, bo y.
Christopher . . . . I love the sea. One day I hope to sail on the great
Western Ocean.
Sailor 1 . . . . . . . (shudders) They call it the Sea of Darkness. I’ ve

heard tales of terrible monsters in those w aters.
They say the waters there bubble and boil. I’d rather
stay here, where the sea is calm and blue.
Christopher . . . . (to himself) I don’t believe those stories. I will sail

the Western Ocean one day. I will become a great
explorer like Marco Polo.
Act 2
Setting: 1476. On board the Bechalla, a trading ship
Narrator . . . . . . . When Christopher was 25 years old, he f inally got

a chance to see the Western Ocean. He signed on
board a fleet of trade ships bound for England and
Portugal.
Christopher . . . . I can’t believe this is the Western Ocean. It looks

green and beautiful, not scary at all.
Sailor 2 . . . . . . . Have you been listening to the tales of the old

timers, then? There are no monsters in these w aters.
The only thing to be afraid of out here is pirates.
Christopher . . . . Pirates?
Sailor 2 . . . . . . . They’re heartless, they are. They’ll kill everyone
on board a trade ship just to steal the goods it is
carrying.
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Lookout . . . . . . . Pirates ahead! They have a fleet of seven ships.
Christopher . . . . What do we do now?
Sailor 2 . . . . . . . We fight! Let’s man the cannons.
Narrator . . . . . . . Many of Christopher’s shipmates were killed in the

battle. The Bechalla sank. Christopher was injured,
but he escaped by hanging on to an oar . He landed
in Portugal and decided to stay there. His brother
Bartholomew later joined him.
Act 3
Scene 1
Setting: 1484. Christopher and Bartholomew’s map shop in Lisbon, Portugal
Bartholomew . . . Are you still reading that Marco Polo book?
Christopher . . . . I can’t help it. Marco Polo had such e xciting

adventures in the Indies.
Bartholomew . . . But you’ve traveled, too. You’ve been north to Iceland,

and south to the shores of Africa.
Christopher . . . . I want to go to the Indies, too. If I could f ind a

route by ship to the Indies, then we could b uy spices
directly. It would be much cheaper than b uying them
from the Arabs who sell them to us.
Bartholomew . . . How will you do that? The Arabs will not let you
cross their territory. The only other route is co vered
by mountains and deserts.
Christopher . . . . I think there is another way. I could cross the Western

Ocean on a ship.
Bartholomew . . . You’ll need a lot of men and mone y to do that.
Christopher . . . . I know. But I’ll find a way.

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Scene 2
Setting: 1492. Outside the royal court of Spain
Narrator . . . . . . . Christopher spent the next eight years asking kings

and queens of different countries to sponsor his trip.
Queen Isabella of Spain seemed interested, b ut she
would never give him an answer.
Christopher . . . . Thank you for considering my plan. If I can f ind

this ocean route to the Indies, I could bring back
many riches for Spain.
Queen Isabella . . King Ferdinand and I have given it much thought.

Your plan seems too risky, Christopher. I’m sorry.
Christopher . . . . I understand, your majesty.
Narrator . . . . . . . But Christopher did not really understand the

decision. He felt confident that he would find a
world of riches across the ocean.
Christopher . . . . I will not give up on my dream. I will f ind someone

else to sponsor my journey.
Messenger . . . . . Christopher Columbus! Halt in the name of Queen

Isabella.
Christopher . . . . What is it?
Messenger . . . . . The Queen has changed her mind. She will gi ve you
ships and men for your journe y. You must return to
the court right away.
Christopher . . . . Thank you! (to himself) Soon the world will see. I
will become as famous as Marco Polo!
The End
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TEACHER’S GUIDE Christopher’s
BACKGROUND Dream
Many people are familiar with the story of Christopher Columb us by Tracey We
and his three ships, the Nin~a, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria.
st
This play describes the factors that motivated Columbus to make

his historic journey.
Columbus was born into a family of weavers in Genoa, Italy,
but the ships in the port city—as well as the story of Marco
Polo—captured his imagination and his heart. His lo ve of the
sea and desire to reach the Indies led him to de velop a plan to
sail west across the Atlantic Ocean (the Western Ocean). He
Books sional
was not the first to come up with this plan, b ut he was the first
Scholastic Profes
60 20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
to petition the King of Portugal to sponsor the journe y. When

Reading Skill
s
King John II refused, Columbus tried Queen Isabella, and his brother
Bartholomew petitioned the rulers of England and France. It w as
Queen Isabella who finally agreed, making their journey possible.
WRITING
PROMPT
Christopher
ACTIVITY Rules for Explorers Columbus was
While we might admire Columbus for his dedication to his dream, this inspired by Marco
play only tells part of the story. Discuss with students what happened Polo. Have you ever
after Columbus reached the Americas. He claimed the lands he found been inspired by
in the name of Spain. He pa ved the way for other Europeans, who another person?
brought diseases that were deadly to nati ve people. They captured Write a paragraph
many native people and kept them as slaves. They took away their land describing a person
and their rights. who inspires you.
Ask: How do you feel about what the e xplorers did? How might
Columbus have explored the Americas without harming the people he
met there? Divide the class into groups. Ask them to imagine that they DISCUSSION
work for Queen Isabella’s court. Challenge each group to come up QUESTION
with a list of rules that Columb us and other explorers must follow Columbus grew up
when finding new lands and new people. Have each group read its list in Genoa, Italy.
aloud and explain its choices. Ask students:
What ocean do you
think he was talking
BOOK LINKS about when he
Christopher Columbus: Great Explorer
referred to the
by David A. Adler (Holiday House, 1991)
“Western Ocean”?
Explain that he was
Follow the Dream
trying to get to the
by Peter Sis (Random House, 1996)
Indies, islands near
the country of India.
INTERNET LINK Look at a map or
Columbus Day globe. Could he
http://www .geocities.com/Athens/Acr opolis/1465/columbus.html have reached the
This site, from “There’s No Page Like Home for the Holidays,” is very Indies by sailing
kid-friendly, with a biography, time line, pictures, maps, and more. west? What did he
bump into instead?
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65
by Katherine Noll
Characters
Narrator 1
Narrator 2
Teacher
Horemheb
Fisherman
Farmer
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66
Act 1
Narrator 1 . . . . . Let’s take a trip back in time, about 3,000 years
ago, to ancient Egypt.
Narrator 2 . . . . . You may know about the ancient Egyptians from

the famous pyramids that are still standing in Egypt
today.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Or you may have heard about King Tut, a famous

pharaoh, or king, whose tomb w as found to contain
amazing treasures.
Narrator 2 . . . . . But what was it like to live in ancient Egypt? Did

children go to school? What kind of jobs did people
have back then?
Narrator 1 . . . . . Today we are going to learn about Horemheb, a

young boy who goes to scribe school.
Narrator 2 . . . . . Scribe school was a school that taught the reading

and writing of hieroglyphs, the picture-writing
alphabet the ancient Egyptians used. We have 26
letters in our alphabet, but the Egyptians had more
than 700 different signs that stood for w ords. The
scribe had to learn all these, and he had to learn
how to draw them all too.
Narrator 1 . . . . . It was very difficult to learn how to become a

scribe. Only boys could go to scribe school, and
not all boys could go.
Narrator 2 . . . . . Let’s listen to what happens as Horemheb starts

another day of scribe school. Uh-oh, it looks lik e
he’s late today. The teacher won’t be too happy
about that.
Teacher . . . . . . . Horemheb, why aren’t you on time?
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67
Horemheb . . . . . . Teacher, it’s such a nice day out. Some of my
friends from the village were playing in the f ields,
and I stopped for a quick game of ball.
Teacher . . . . . . . Idle boy! You will never learn anything playing in

the fields. You are very lucky to be here at scribe
school. If you do well at school, you can be a doctor
or a priest. If you try your best, you can become a
state official and work for the pharaoh himself.
Horemheb . . . . . . Sometimes I don’t know if I want to be a scribe.
Teacher . . . . . . . Don’t want to be a scribe! What would you want

to do then? Your friends playing in the f ields will
probably grow up to be workmen, doing hard labor
in the hot sun as the y build tombs and temples for
the pharaoh. You can live a life of ease, designing
those temples, or collecting taxes, or even becoming
a teacher. Now get your writing equipment and sit
on the floor with the other bo ys.
Horemheb . . . . . . Yes, teacher.
Teacher . . . . . . . Take your potsherd and begin. You are not ready to
have a wooden writing board yet. You still make too
many mistakes.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Horemheb picks up his reed brush and dips it into

his ink. He then begins to try and write what the
teacher is dictating to the class.
Narrator 2 . . . . . Horemheb is making a lot of mistak es. He starts

to get discouraged, and he k eeps looking out the
window at the children playing in the f ields.
Teacher . . . . . . . Class is over. Please hand me your potsherds and

boards so I can correct them. Horemheb, you must
stay after school today.
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Teacher . . . . . . . I can tell you are a smart bo y who should be doing
very well at school. But you are al ways daydreaming.
Tomorrow I want you to stay home from school.
Horemheb . . . . . . Thanks!
Teacher . . . . . . . Don’t thank me yet. I want you to visit the people who
work hard every day, and then I want you to write all
about it. Here is a papyrus scroll for you to use.
Horemheb . . . . . . A papyrus scroll? I don’t think I’m ready for it.
Teacher . . . . . . . I think you might be, Horemheb. Now I’ll see you
the day after tomorrow. Good-bye.
Act 2
Narrator 1 . . . . . The next morning Horemheb was so excited when
he woke up. He wasn’t sure where he wanted to
go first.
Narrator 2 . . . . . He decided to leave his village and walk to the Nile

River, where all the fishing boats came and went.
Horemheb . . . . . . Hey, fishermen! Can I come aboard?

Fisherman . . . . . Sure, kid. We could always use an extra pair of
hands.
Horemheb . . . . . . These two boats are tied together!
Fisherman . . . . . What’s holding the boats together is our f ishing

net. As we row down the Nile, the fish get caught
in our net.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Horemheb loved being on the fishing boat. It was a

beautiful day, and the fishermen told lots of jokes.
He even liked rowing the boat with the lar ge oars.
When all of a sudden . . .
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Horemheb . . . . . . Hey! What was that? Something knocked into
our fishing boat.
Fisherman . . . . . Better hold on, kid. That was a hippo!
Narrator 2 . . . . . The boat was tossed around as the angry

hippopotamus slammed into it. The hippo
thrashed angrily as the fishermen tried to row
the boat away as fast as they could.
Horemheb . . . . . . We did it! We got away.
Fisherman . . . . . Yes, that was close. But look at our f ishing net.
Horemheb . . . . . . Oh, no! It’s torn and all the f ish are gone.
Fisherman . . . . . Yes, we are going to ha ve to repair that net. We had

better hurry, because if we don’t catch more fish
today, our families will have nothing to eat tonight.
We’ll let you off here, kid.
Horemheb . . . . . . Thank you and good luck!
Narrator 1 . . . . . Horemheb began walking back toward his village.

He passed a large farm with a farmer working in
the field.
Horemheb . . . . . . Hello, farmer! Need some help?
Farmer . . . . . . . . Sure, boy. I can always use help.
Narrator 2 . . . . . The farmer had two large oxen that were pulling a
large wooden plow. The plow was making the dirt
ready for the seeds.
Farmer . . . . . . . . Here, boy, walk behind me with these wheat seeds.

I need to get this entire f ield planted by tomorrow.
Horemheb . . . . . . The entire field? Why, that’s twice as big as our

village!
Farmer . . . . . . . . It is, but luckily I have most of it done.
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Narrator 1 . . . . . Horemheb helped the farmer for many hours. His
feet hurt and he was very dirty and tired.
Farmer . . . . . . . . Okay, we can take a break now.
Horemheb . . . . . . I’m so tired. It must be hard to do this e very day.

But look how big this field is! You must be rich!
Farmer . . . . . . . . Not really. This field belongs to the pharaoh.

Everything I grow here belongs to him.
Horemheb . . . . . . That’s not fair! You do all the work.
Farmer . . . . . . . . It’s fair enough. I get to k eep some of it for myself

and my family.
Horemheb . . . . . I have to go now! I almost forgot I have homework

to do.
Farmer . . . . . . . . Thanks for your help.
Narrator 2 . . . . . As Horemheb hurried home, he thought about his

busy day. He was tired, and he smelled lik e fish!
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Act 3
Narrator 1 . . . . . When Horemheb got home, he w orked on his
papyrus scroll for a long time, trying not to mak e
any mistakes.
Narrator 2 . . . . . The next day, Horemheb made sure he w as early for

school.
Teacher . . . . . . . So, Horemheb, how was your day off from school?
Horemheb . . . . . . I learned a lot, teacher. I’ve thought about it, and I

want to be the best student at scribe school.
Teacher . . . . . . . What made you change your mind?
Horemheb . . . . . . Although I like to be outside and play, I found out

yesterday that the people who w ork outside do
everything but play. They work very hard, and they
don’t get a lot in return.
Teacher . . . . . . . Let me see your papyrus scroll. Hmmm, very good

work, Horemheb. I think you’ll make a good scribe yet.
Horemheb . . . . . . Thank you, teacher.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Horemheb learned a lot from his day of f from school.

He kept his promise to his teacher and became the
best pupil at scribe school.
Narrator 2 . . . . . Horemheb eventually worked as a scribe in the

pharaoh’s royal palace.
Narrator 1 . . . . . He married the pharaoh’s daughter, and he became

pharaoh himself.
Narrator 2 . . . . . His teacher must have been very proud of him!
The End
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72
TEACHER’S GUIDE
BACKGROUND by Katherin
eN
oll
Ancient Egypt was the birthplace of one of the w orld’s first and Characters
Narrator 1
longest-lasting civilizations. In addition to the p yramids, another

Narrator 2
Teacher
Horemheb
major achievement of the Egyptians was a form of picture

Fisherman
Farmer
writing called hieroglyphics. Hieroglyphics were usually taught

only to upper-class boys at schools for scribes.
Scribe school was essential to any child who wanted to learn
a profession. Before a boy could study for the priesthood or
medicine, he needed to learn how to read and write. The work
was very hard and the teachers were strict, often beating
children who misbehaved. Many boys, like Horemheb, found it
Books sional
difficult to concentrate. But a scribe did enjo y privileges that a
Scholastic Profes
66 20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
fisherman and farmer did not.

Reading Skill
s
As mentioned in the play, the character Horemheb was based on

a real pharaoh. WRITING
Note: Before reading the play, you may want to review the words PROMPT
potsherd and papyrus with students. A potsherd is a fragment of Have you ever tried
pottery; papyrus is a tall plant that gro ws in the Nile valley which to learn something
was cut and pressed to mak e a writing material. that was very diffi-
cult? Did you ever
ACTIVITY The Egyptian Alphabet feel like giving up?
While hieroglyphic symbols were used to represent whole w ords, they If so, what made
were also used to represent alphabet letters. Enlar ge this hieroglyphic you keep going?
chart on a photocopier to mak e a poster or handout. Have students Write about it.
write out their first and last names using hieroglyphs. You may also
challenge students to find examples of ancient Egyptian costumes and
draw a picture of themselves in this garb. Then they can write their
DISCUSSION
hieroglyphic name underneath. QUESTION
Do you think the
ancient Egyptian
a b c d e f g h i j k l m society was fair to
a b c d e f g h i j k l m all of the people?
Why weren’t girls
allowed in scribe
n o p q r s t u v w x y z school? Why did
n o p q r s t u v w x y z the pharaoh take
most of the farmer’s
crop? If you
BOOK LINK became pharaoh,
Growing up in Ancient Egypt like Horemheb, how
by Rosalie David (Troll Communications, 1993) would you change
things?
INTERNET LINK
Tour Egypt
http://tour egypt.net
This site is packed with information about Egypt, past and present.
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73
by Nicole Dyer
Characters
Host Bob Body
Herman Heart
Lester Liver
Stacy Stomach
Skippy Skin
Kidney Twins (2)
Buster Brain
Judges (the class)
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74
Act 1
Host Bob Body . . . . Welcome to the annual Healthy Human Helper
Contest! I’m your host, Bob Body. Joining us
today are six very talented parts of the human
body. They’re competing to see which one does
the best job of helping to k eep the human body
healthy. Which one will it be? Let’s find out!
Okay, let’s start with Herman Heart. Herman,

tell us about yourself.
Herman Heart . . . . Hi, Bob! I’m the hardest-working muscle in the

body! I never rest, not even for one second. It’s
work, work, work. Did you know that in a life-
time, I beat more than tw o billion times?
Bob Body . . . . . . . . I didn’t know that, Herman! Thank you. Now

let’s hear from Lester Liver.
Lester Liver . . . . . . Well, Bob, I’m the largest gland in the body.
What’s so special about that? As a gland, one of
my jobs is to make chemicals that the body
needs to survive. I also help clean poisons from
the blood. In total, I hold do wn more than 500
different jobs!
Bob Body . . . . . . . . That certainly sounds important! Okay, let’s talk
to Stacy Stomach.
Stacy Stomach . . . . For starters, I’m a very stretchy organ. I’m made
of three layers of strong muscles that stretch
when I get full. I also mak e a powerful acid that
helps break down food. Without it, food would
never get digested! It w ould just sit there and
rot. Gross!
Bob Body . . . . . . . . Hmm. After that description, I think we need to

take a break. We’ll be right back!
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Act 2
Bob Body . . . . . . . . Welcome back to the Healthy Human Helper
Contest! Are you ready to hear from our ne xt
three contestants?
Judges . . . . . . . . . . (applause and cheers)
Bob Body . . . . . . . . Tell us why you think you’re the best body part,
Skippy Skin.
Skippy Skin . . . . . . I’m the largest and heaviest organ in the body.
When I’m covering the average adult, I weigh
almost six pounds! I also shield the body from
gross invaders that cause infections.
Bob Body . . . . . . . . Six pounds!? That’s heavier than most book

bags! Okay, up next are the Kidney Twins.
Kidney Twins . . . . . (together) Hi, Bob. There are two of us, so

already we’re better than the other body parts.
Our job is to get rid of w aste in the blood. We
flush out the bad stuff and send the good stuff
back to the blood. In just one hour , we can
remove up to 1.5 gallons of liquid from the
blood.
Bob Body . . . . . . . . Thank you.
Kidney Twins . . . . . Oh, and we’re also shaped like kidney beans.
Bob Body . . . . . . . . And for our last competitor we ha ve

Buster Brain.
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Buster Brain . . . . . Clearly, I’m the best because I’m the control
center of the body! I tell e veryone what to do!
And I have billions of cells to help me. My job
is so hard I have to use about twenty percent of
the body’s oxygen to get it done. I’m also one of
the largest organs in the body. I weigh in at a f it
and trim three pounds.
Bob Body . . . . . . . . How about that! What a talented bunch we have

here today! Now it’s time to let our judges
choose a winner! So judges, which body part is
the best?
(Acting as judges, the class discusses the strengths of eac h body part.
Then they vote on whom they think should be v oted Best Body Part.)
The End
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TEACHER’S GUIDE
BACKGROUND
This play is a fun w ay for students to learn about dif ferent parts
by Nicole Dy
er
of the human body. Here are some more f acts:

brain: The brain is made up of se veral parts that control
different activities, such as thinking (cerebrum), Characters
memory (hippocampus), and controlling muscles
Host Bob Body
Herman Hear
t
Lester Liver
(cerebellum, brain stem). Stacy Stomach

Skippy Skin
heart: The heart is like a pump. The left side of the heart
Kidney Twins
(2)
Buster Brain
Judges (the clas
sends fresh blood to your body. The right side

s)
Books
takes stale blood and sends it to the lungs for a
sional
Scholastic Profes
good cleaning. Then it’s back to the left side for 74 20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
Reading Skill
s
redistribution!
liver: Nutrients we eat are taken in first by the liver, which
cleans them and then decides how many nutrients to send
out and how many to store for future use.
WRITING
stomach: The stomach’s strong muscles mash up the food we send PROMPT
down; gastric juices help to break down the food. What are some
skin: Skin is made up of layers, including epidermis, the top ways you know to
protective layer, and the dermis, which contains nerve keep all of your
endings, blood vessels, oil glands, and sweat glands. body parts healthy?
kidneys: The kidneys are part of the urinary system. They work Make a list.
together with the bladder and tubes called the ureters and
urethra to clean waste from the blood and expel it in urine.
DISCUSSION
ACTIVITY QUESTION
Hold Your Own “Healthy Human Helper Contest” Which of the body
Assign each student a different body part to research. Have each student parts should win the
write a paragraph summarizing that body part’s function. Students can contest? Explore the
also draw or paste a picture of the body part onto a piece of paper or question posed to
card stock, punch two holes in the top, and attach a long piece of yarn the “judges” at the
to the picture so it can be w orn around the neck. Then hold a contest in end of the play.
class. Introduce students one at a time and ha ve them come to the front Review the different
of the room and read their paragraphs aloud. You may want to create an body parts in the
award for each student, such as “Best P art for Seeing Things” (eyes). play and ask stu-
dents to describe
what their function
BOOK LINK is. Then point out
Eyewitness Explorers: Human Body that the different
by Steve Parker and Deni Brown (Dorling Kindersley, 1998) body parts need to
work together to
INTERNET LINK keep the human
body running. What
Your Gross and Cool Body
http://www .yucky.com/body/ might happen to the
A great way to lure reluctant learners to the subject. This rest of the parts if
award-winning site includes a teacher center. one part isn’t work-
ing properly?
78 englishtips.org
by Tracey West
Characters
Narrator
Lindsay
Pete
Dot, a water droplet
Tod, another water droplet
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79
Act 1
Scene 1:
Evaporation
Narrator . . . . . . After a night of rain, Lindsay and Pete went out
to play.
Lindsay . . . . . . . Look, Pete! It’s a rain puddle. Are you thinking

what I’m thinking?
Pete . . . . . . . . . You bet. Let’s splash!
Dot . . . . . . . . . . Hey, be careful up there!
Tod . . . . . . . . . . Yeah, quit it!
Lindsay . . . . . . . Who said that?
Pete . . . . . . . . . I don’t know. It sounds like it’s coming from the

puddle.
Dot . . . . . . . . . . I think you kids need to learn a lesson about w ater.
Narrator . . . . . . Suddenly, Lindsay and Pete felt strange. Their

bodies began to change. Somehow, they had
become very, very small. Lindsay and Pete look ed
at each other. They had turned into drops of w ater!
Dot . . . . . . . . . . That’s more like it.
Tod . . . . . . . . . . Maybe now you’ll have some respect for water.
Lindsay . . . . . . . What did you water drops do to us?
Pete . . . . . . . . . All we did was splash around in a puddle.
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Dot . . . . . . . . . . That’s our puddle, kid. Tod and I are waiting for
the next phase of the water cycle. We don’t want
anyone to interrupt us.
Pete . . . . . . . . . Can you change us back now? I’m starting to feel

warm.
Tod . . . . . . . . . . That’s because we’re about to enter the ne xt phase

of the water cycle—evaporation. As the sun warms
us up, we’ll turn from droplets of w ater into a gas
called water vapor.
Lindsay . . . . . . . A gas? I thought water was always wet.
Dot . . . . . . . . . . The water that you drink is in liquid form, b ut when

water is heated, it becomes w ater vapor.
Tod . . . . . . . . . . Did you ever see water boil in a teakettle? That

steam that comes out of the spout is w ater vapor.
Pete . . . . . . . . . Hey, guys, I feel light. I’m rising into the air!
Tod . . . . . . . . . . Looks like it’s time to evaporate.
Scene 2:
Condensation
Narrator . . . . . . Lindsay and Pete became water vapor along with
the other water drops. They rose up into the sk y.
Lindsay . . . . . . . This is fun!
Pete . . . . . . . . I don’t know, Lindsay. I feel a little light-headed,

and it’s making me woozy.
Dot . . . . . . . . . . Don’t worry, kid. We’ll be back to our liquid form

soon. We’re about to enter the ne xt phase of the
process—condensation.
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Tod . . . . . . . . . . That’s right. Now that we’re in Earth’s atmosphere,
we’ll start to cool down again. When water vapor
cools, it turns back into liquid.
Pete . . . . . . . . . Hey, you’re right. I’m a water droplet again!
Dot . . . . . . . . . . Now that we’re back in our liquid form, we’ ll group
together with other water droplets around super tiny
particles of dust or smoke.
Lindsay . . . . . . . Hey, quit shoving. There sure are a lot of w ater

droplets up here.
Tod . . . . . . . . . . It takes millions of water droplets in a cloud to

make one raindrop.
Pete . . . . . . . . . Raindrops? But that means we’re going to . . .
Lindsay . . . . . . . We’re falling!
Act 2
Scene 1:
Precipitation
Pete . . . . . . . . . Why are we falling as rain? Why didn’t we just stay
up in the cloud?
Dot . . . . . . . . . . When we were in the cloud, air currents were

holding us up. But as more and more droplets
grouped together . . .
Lindsay . . . . . . . I think I know. When the droplets grouped together,

we became too heavy for the air currents to hold
up, right? So we fell to the ground as rain.
Tod . . . . . . . . . . That’s right. When water falls from clouds it’s

called precipitation.
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Pete . . . . . . . . . Oh, no! We’re going to hit the ground!
Scene 2:
Collection
Pete . . . . . . . . . (dazed) Where are we?
Lindsay . . . . . . . It looks like we’re back where we started—in a

puddle.
Dot . . . . . . . . . . We sure are. But we don’ t always land in puddles.

Sometimes we end up in a lak e or a stream or a
reservoir . . .
Tod . . . . . . . . . . And if it’s really cold, we can f all as snow, sleet,

or hail.
Lindsay . . . . . . . It sounds like being a water droplet is always

interesting, but do you think you could change us
back now?
Pete . . . . . . . . . I don’t think I could evaporate again.
Dot . . . . . . . . . . Sure thing, kid. You know, when we first met you,
we thought you were a couple of drips. But you’ re
all right.
Tod . . . . . . . . . Just don’t forget what you learned about w ater

today.
Narrator . . . . . . So Dot and Tod turned Lindsay and Pete back into
humans.
Pete . . . . . . . . . Don’t worry. I’ll never forget this!
Lindsay . . . . . . . Take care, guys. See you ne xt time there’s

precipitation!
The End
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TEACHER’S GUIDE
BACKGROUND
This play introduces students to the four stages of the w ater cycle: by Tracey We
st
1. Evaporation:Water on Earth’s surface is heated and turns into a

gas called water vapor.
2. Condensation:As water rises, it cools, and the w ater mole-
cules form liquid droplets. If it’s cold enough, the gas becomes
solid, and the water turns into ice crystals. Millions of droplets
group together around a nuclei—a small particle of dust,
smoke, or another substance. This creates clouds. Characters
Books
3. Precipitation:The water droplets or ice crystals in clouds are
Narr
sional
ator
Lindsay
Scholastic Profes
Pete
held up by air currents. When the droplets become too heavy,

Dot, a water
droplet
Tod, another
water droplet
they fall to the ground as precipitation rain, sno w, sleet, or hail. 20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
Reading Skill
s 79
4. Collection:Back on Earth’s surface, the water collects in

puddles, lakes, oceans, rivers, etc., and the water cycle begins
once more.
WRITING
PROMPT
Imagine that you
ACTIVITY Evaporation Race are a water droplet.
Divide the class into four or f ive groups. Give each group a small, Think about where
clear cup and an eyedropper. Challenge each group to pick a spot in the you might “live”—
classroom where they think a water drop is most likely to evaporate the an ocean? a roaring
fastest. river? a reservoir?
When each group has picked a spot, ask them to estimate ho w long Write an adventure
it will take for the drop to evaporate and record their answers. At a describing one day
designated time, instruct students to place one drop of w ater in the cup. in your life as a
Students can time the evaporation process to see which drop v aporizes water droplet.
first. When the race is over, discuss the location of the winning drop.
What factors may have caused it to evaporate the quickest?
DISCUSSION
BOOK LINKS QUESTION
The Magic School Bus at the Waterworks
Based on what you
by Joanna Cole (Scholastic, 1986)
read or heard in the
play, what are the
Water Dance
four stages of the
by Thomas Locker (Harcourt Brace, 1997)
water cycle? What
happens in each
INTERNET LINKS stage? (Write the
Brain Pop Presents . . . The Water Cycle stages on the board
www.brainpop.com/science/ecolo gy/watercycle as students name
Watch a fun movie about the water cycle and take a pop quiz while and describe them.)
the movie’s loading.
EPA Office of Water Kids’ Stuff

www.epa.gov/saf ewater/kids
Water facts, a water-cycle diagram, and classroom activity ideas
84 englishtips.org
by LauraAllen
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85
Characters
Narrator Brown Recluse Spider
House Spider Harvestman Bug
Wolf Spider Human
Jumping Spider Various spiders as
meeting members
Black Widow Spider
Act 1
Narrator . . . . . . . . . Our story begins in a grassy field. There are
spiders everywhere! Some cling to blades of
grass. Others have spun webs and hang there.
Still others rest on the ground, w aiting.
House Spider . . . . . Welcome, everyone! As you know, all kinds

of spiders from across the United States are
gathered here today. We are holding this meeting
to discuss a very important problem.
Wolf Spider . . . . . . . Yes. Many humans think that spiders are

dangerous and harmful. Then they get scared
and harm us!
Jumping Spider . . . . You poisonous spiders are ruining our li ves!
Narrator . . . . . . . . . All eyes turn to the two poisonous spiders in the

room—the black widow and the brown recluse.
Black Widow . . . . . . But . . .
Brown Recluse . . . . We don’t mean any trouble. We are just trying

to survive.
Black Widow . . . . . . Yes. I actually try to stay a way from humans.

I’m mostly awake at night, guarding my web
and eggs. If a human frightens me, I may bite.
But 99 percent of the people I bite survi ve.
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Brown Recluse . . . . It’s true. I also have a nasty bite. But nearly all
spiders use poison to kill their pre y.
Wolf Spider . . . . . . . He has a point, everyone. We prey on insects.

When we bite them, poison flows through our
tiny fangs and kills them.
Jumping Spider . . . . But most of our fangs are too small to pierce
human skin.
House Spider . . . . . And the poison isn’t strong enough to hurt

a human.
Harvestman . . . . . . (clears his throat) Ahem.
Meeting Members . . Hey! Who invited him?!
Harvestman . . . . . . Just the other day, I was nearly squashed by

a shoe!
Jumping Spider . . . . But you’re not even a spider!
Brown Recluse . . . . You’re a bug that just looks like a spider. Like a
daddy longlegs with extra-long legs.
Harvestman . . . . . . I know, and that just makes it worse! I don’t

have any poison in me. I eat plant juice and
dead bugs.
House Spider . . . . . Okay, everyone. Should the harvestman stay at

this meeting? He does have the same problem
we do.
Meeting Members . . Sure. Why not?
House Spider . . . . . It’s settled then. Now, back to the issue.
Narrator . . . . . . . . . Just then, a scream is heard! It’s a human.
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Act 2
Narrator . . . . . . . . . The human is scared stiff!
Human . . . . . . . . . . I am scared stiff! (starts to panic) I have never

seen so many spiders gathered together. I’m being
ambushed!
Black Widow . . . . . . (gulps and bravely steps forward) Now, look here.
Human . . . . . . . . . . AHH! A black widow! I can tell by the tw o red

triangles on her underside!
Narrator . . . . . . . . . The human raises his shoe, ready to squash

everyone.
Black Widow . . . . . . Wait! Don’t you know that most of the spiders
here can’t hurt you at all?
Human . . . . . . . . . . Really?
Brown Recluse . . . . We actually help humans by eating insects and

other pests in your house and yard.
Black Widow . . . . . . Please don’t step on us or try to brush us a way

with a broom. We are fragile, and could die.
Human . . . . . . . . . . So I should just walk away, and everything will
be fine.
Meeting Members . . Just walk away.
Wolf Spider . . . . . . . But if you want to learn more about us, we don’ t
mind if you observe us.
House Spider . . . . . You could draw us, or take notes. Just don’t touch
us or get too close.
Jumping Spider . . . . I mean, we are the coolest things on eight le gs.
Human . . . . . . . . . . Wow. You are pretty interesting. Okay, I guess I’ll

sit here on this rock and observ e you for awhile.
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Meeting Members . . Welcome!
Act 3
Narrator . . . . . . . . . As the spiders recover from their close call, the
nonpoisonous spiders realize something.
Wolf Spider . . . . . . . Black widow, brown recluse spider—you just saved
us from a brush with death!
Harvestman . . . . . . You set the record straight. You were brave. And
you protected everyone, even me.
Brown Recluse . . . . It was nothing.
Black Widow . . . . . . Thanks.
Jumping Spider . . . . It seems that we can learn from each other—and

teach humans how to respect nature.
Wolf Spider . . . . . . . Yes, and we will respect humans back.
House Spider . . . . . I declare this meeting a success! Please join us for the
next meeting. We will be comparing web designs.
Jumping Spider
and Wolf Spider . . . . But not all spiders spin webs. We don’t.
Jumping Spider . . . . We wait on the ground, hiding.
Wolf Spider . . . . . . . Then we pounce on our pre y when it least

expects it!
House Spider . . . . . That’s pretty sneaky. Well, jump on over to the

meeting anyway. We will all have a lot to learn.
Meeting Members . . Good-bye, everyone!
The End
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TEACHER’S GUIDE
BACKGROUND
All spiders belong to the arachnid group. They have eight legs, by LauraAllen
while insects have six. All spiders have spinnerets, organs that
dispense silk created in the spider’s silk glands. While all spiders
use their spinnerets to spin cocoons for their young, not all
spiders use them to spin webs.
And while most spiders poison the insects the y eat as prey,
not all spiders are poisonous to humans. The belief that all
spiders are poisonous or dangerous has caused man y harmless
spiders to be killed out of fear, when these creatures play an
Books sional
important role in the environment.
Scholastic Profes
(The Harvestman bug in the play is an arachnid, b ut not a
spider. It has eight legs, but no spinnerets or venom.)
20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
Reading Skill
s 85
While this play gives some tips for safely observing spiders, please
note that you or your students should ne ver get too close to a spider, or WRITING
touch one. PROMPT
Have you ever seen
ACTIVITY Spider Fact Webs a spider in your
Ask students to choose one of the spiders from the play that the y house or outdoors?
would be interested in researching. Then have students make spider Describe where you
“fact webs” to organize their research: were and what it
1. Write the spider’s name in the center of a piece of paper . looked like.
2. Draw lines extending from the spider’s name.
3. Write a short fact about the spider at the end of each line.
For example, facts about a wolf spider could include: nocturnal; DISCUSSION
usually lives outdoors; about 1/2 inch long; doesn’ t spin webs;
not poisonous to humans. QUESTION
How did you feel
about spiders before
BOOK LINKS reading the play?
Charlotte’s Web Did your opinion
by E.B. White (HarperTrophy, 1999) change after you
read it?
Do All Spiders Spin Webs? Questions and Answers about Spiders
by Melvin Berger and Gilda Berger (Scholastic, 2000)
INTERNET LINKS
Spiders In and Around the House
http://www .ag.ohio-state.edu/~ohioline/h yg-fact/2000/2060.html
It’s a long URL, but worth it for all the great f acts here. Click the
search button to look for more spider info.
Spider Webs
http://www .beakman.com/spider/spider .html
Find out why spiders don’t stick to their own webs.
90 englishtips.org
by Rebecca Gómez
John (Storm chaser)

Characters Karen (Storm chaser)
Narrator
Noriko (Storm chaser)
Spokesperson for the National
Severe Storms Forecast Center Homeowner 1
(NSSFC) Homeowner 2
Pablo (Storm chaser) Child
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Act I
John . . . . . . . . . Hi guys. Nice to meet you. I’m John, the ne w
photographer.
Karen . . . . . . . . You’re just in time. It sounds lik e we may be busy

this afternoon.
John . . . . . . . . . Why? What’s happening?
Noriko . . . . . . . . It looks like conditions are right for a tornado in

our area.
John . . . . . . . . . Already? I thought I’d have a chance to learn

something about storm chasing before my f irst
tornado.
Pablo . . . . . . . . . Don’t worry. We’ll take you through it.
Karen . . . . . . . . It’s a pretty thrilling job. I always get excited when

the weather conditions are just right to form a
tornado.
Noriko . . . . . . . . Of course, we never want anyone to get hurt. But

that’s partly why we chase storms.
Pablo . . . . . . . . . Right. Each storm that we chase gi ves us information

that can help the scientists at the National Se vere
Storms Forecast Center.
Noriko . . . . . . . . With our help, the scientists can be better prepared

for each tornado. The information we give them can
help them to predict the tornado’s force and path
better, and warn people earlier.
John . . . . . . . . . So how do you know a tornado is expected today?
Karen . . . . . . . . We get reports from the National Se vere Storms

Forecast Center and from local meteorologists. Those
are scientists who study the weather. Pablo here is
our meteorology expert.
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Pablo . . . . . . . . . Weather conditions are perfect today for a tornado.
There is cold, dry air high in the sk y. There is warm,
wet air sitting low to the ground. The warm air can’t
rise the way it normally does, and the cold air can’ t
drop the way it normally does. The two masses of air
will push up against each other and swirl around and
make lots of clouds and strong winds. Finally, the
warm air pushes through and mak es a hole in the
cold air blanket. That cloud of warm air spins around
and makes a funnel.
Noriko . . . . . . . . And, when that funnel cloud touches the ground . . .
Karen . . . . . . . . We’ve got ourselves a tornado!
Noriko . . . . . . . . And we’ve also got a job to do. We’ll take pictures of
the tornado—that’s where you come in, John. I get
the action on film.
Pablo . . . . . . . . . Let’s turn on the radio and hear what the forecasters
are saying.
NSSFC . . . . . . . Careful folks. There’s a tornado warning in effect for

most of the day. We’ll keep you updated, but please
plan accordingly. Try to stay indoors. Make sure
you have emergency supplies such as bottled w ater,
batteries, flashlights, radios, and food.
Pablo . . . . . . . . . A tornado warning means that conditions are perfect

for a tornado to occur. If an actual tornado is spotted,
that warning will be upgraded to a tornado w atch.
Noriko . . . . . . . . Let’s get in our van and drive around looking for
funnel clouds. It sounds as though things may get
interesting very soon.
Act 2
Karen . . . . . . . . I’ll drive the van; you guys keep a lookout for funnel
clouds.
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Noriko . . . . . . . . Let’s see if there’s another radio update.
NSSFC . . . . . . . Warning! Funnel clouds have been spotted. Nothing

has touched down yet, but please get inside and move
to the bottom floor of your house—a basement is
best, if you have one. If not, stay in the bathroom or a
closet that is in the middle of your house. K eep
listening for more updates.
John . . . . . . . . . Wow! Funnel clouds have been spotted. Let’s try to

find one.
Pablo . . . . . . . . . Look! Over to our right! I think I see something.
Noriko . . . . . . . . Yes, I see something, too. It’s definitely a funnel

cloud. I’m going to roll down the window and start
filming. We don’t want to miss the tornado when and
if it forms.
Karen . . . . . . . . It’s starting to rain really hard. I’ ll have to be careful

driving. Is that hail falling?
Pablo . . . . . . . . . I think I just saw the funnel cloud touch ground and
a tornado form! Do you see it?
Noriko . . . . . . . . Yes! I see it. I’ve got the video camera on it.
John . . . . . . . . . That’s a big tornado! I’m going to tak e some still

shots.
Karen . . . . . . . . I’ll try to get closer. Someone get on the phone and
let the weather center know that we’ve spotted this
one.
Pablo . . . . . . . . . I’m calling right now.
Narrator . . . . . . Pablo reports their position and lets the weather

center know the tornado’s approximate size and the
direction it appears to be taking.
Noriko . . . . . . . . Wait! I see a house over there. It looks like someone

is home. There are no other buildings around here. If
the tornado keeps going on its current path, it may
smash right into that house!
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Karen . . . . . . . . Oh, no! We have to try to help! I’ ll drive as fast as I
can; maybe we can warn the people in that house—
before the tornado reaches it.
John . . . . . . . . . Good idea! Go as fast as you can. We don’t have

much time!
(They arrive at the house.)
Pablo . . . . . . . . . All right, Karen. We made it. But the tornado is

heading right toward us and this house. I’ ll run in
and warn the people inside.
Noriko . . . . . . . . Make it quick, Pablo. We’re in real danger here!
Pablo . . . . . . . . . (pushes open the front door and sees Homeowner 1

and 2 inside, with child) Hey, folks, there’s a tornado
bearing down on your house! Do you w ant to jump
in our van or weather the storm here?
Homeowner 1 . . I think we’ll stay here.
Homeowner 2 . . Yes, we’ve had some scares in the past, b ut I think

we’ll be okay. We know what to do.
Child . . . . . . . . . We’ll head right to the basement!
Pablo . . . . . . . . . If you’re going to stay, I’m going to go back to my

van and get out of here! I just w anted to warn you.
Homeowner 1 . . Thanks for the warning. We’ll get downstairs right

away.
Pablo . . . . . . . . . (back in van) They decided to stay. Let’s get out

of here!
Karen . . . . . . . . Here we go!
Noriko . . . . . . . . I’m watching that tornado. It’s moving very quickly.
Pablo . . . . . . . . . Do you notice that it’s mostly red, just like the color
of the soil around here?
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John . . . . . . . . . Yes. If it wasn’t so destructive, I’d think it was really
beautiful.
Noriko . . . . . . . . Now it looks as if it’s heading right for us!
John . . . . . . . . . You’re right, Noriko. We’re directly in the path of the

tornado! It’s moving very quickly!
Karen . . . . . . . . There’s a highway overpass just in front of us.

There’s no way that we can outrun this tornado.
But if I pull over under the overpass, it will give
us some protection.
Noriko . . . . . . . . Hurry, Karen!
John . . . . . . . . . You did it, Karen! But the v an is rocking and

shaking.
Karen . . . . . . . . It’s okay. We’ll be safe here. See? The tornado’s

passed us. It’s much calmer.
Pablo . . . . . . . . That was a little too close for comfort!
Noriko . . . . . . . . Phew! Good driving, Karen. Let’s head home and

unload our cameras. I think we got some great
footage of the tornado for the Weather Center.
Karen . . . . . . . . I’m just glad we were able to help that f amily.
Noriko . . . . . . . . So, John, what do you think of your f irst day as a

storm chaser? Do you want to stay on the team?
John . . . . . . . . . Hmmm, let’s see. Storm chasers get to help

meteorologists predict the weather. We get to warn
people when dangerous storms are coming their w ay.
We get to film and photograph tornadoes . . .
Noriko, Karen,
and Pablo . . . . . . Well?
John . . . . . . . . . When’s the next tornado due? I’m ready to go!
The End
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TEACHER’S GUIDE
BACKGROUND
The job of a tornado chaser is one of e xtremes—it’s exciting,
dangerous, and important. That’s because a tornado is the most by Rebecca
Gómez
violent kind of storm on earth. Its winds can reach speeds of 300
miles an hour. Winds that fast can uproot trees, destroy houses,
and send cars flying through the air. The work of tornado chasers
helps scientists better understand these destructive storms.
Tornadoes begin with thunderstorms. Unstable air and winds
swirl around giant thunderhead clouds, causing the clouds to Characters
spin horizontally. This is called a vortex. Strong updrafts inside
John (Stormch
sional Books
aser)
Narrator Karen (Stormch
aser)
Spokesperson
the clouds turn the funnel-shaped vortex on its end, causing it

Noriko (Stormch
Severe Storms for the National aser)
Scholastic Profes
Forecast Cent
(NSSFC) er Homeowner 1
Pablo (Stormch Hom eowner 2
aser)
to spin vertically. Then the funnel speeds up and drops out of

Child
the cloud, becoming a tornado.

20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
Reading Skill
s 91
Most tornadoes in the United States occur in “Tornado Alley,” which

runs from Iowa to Texas. About 700 tornadoes hit the United States each WRITING
year—which means that tornado chasers have no problem keeping busy!
PROMPT
Have you ever
ACTIVITY Tornado in the Classroom experienced a
Students can understand how an air vortex is formed by performing a tornado? What
simple activity that shows how a spinning vortex can be created in water. about a thunder-
storm, hurricane,
YOU’LL NEED: two empty 1- or 2-liter bottles,
or blizzard? Think
duct tape, water, and food coloring
about what the
First, fill one of the bottles tw o-thirds of the way with water and add a storm looked like
few drops of food coloring. Turn over the empty bottle and place it on and sounded like.
top of the first bottle so that the openings meet. Then duct tape the Did you have to
bottles securely together. weather the storm
Carefully invert the bottles so that the bottle containing w ater is on in a safe place? Did
top. Hold the bottom bottle firmly in one hand. With the other hand, the storm damage
gently turn the top bottle in a circle. As the water spins, you should be the land around
able to see a vortex form. you? Write about
your experience,
describing the storm
BOOK LINKS as best as you can.
Storm Chasers
by Gail Herman (Putnam Publishing Group, 1997)
DISCUSSION
Tornado Alert QUESTION
by Franklyn Mansfield Branley (HarperCollins, 1990) If you had the
chance to ride with
INTERNET LINK a tornado-chasing
The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Site for Kids About team, would you do
Tornado, Hurricane and Winter Storm Safety it? Why or why not?
http://www .fema.gov/kids Which job on the
More fun than it sounds, with lots of fun games and quizzes team do you think
you would like?
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The Great Desert
Scavenger Hunt
by Katherine Noll
Characters
Announcer
Referee
Lucy, Blue Team Leader
Kevin, Green Team Leader
Dana
Bob
Pilar
Raji
Jack
Alexa
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Act 1
Announcer . . . . Good afternoon, teams, and welcome to Death Valley
National Park, one of the hottest places on Earth.
Let’s get down to the rules of our sca venger hunt.
Referee . . . . . . The rules are simple: Each team must tak e a picture
of each of the following desert animals: a kit fox, a
sidewinder, and a roadrunner. Each team will have a
jeep and a driver. The first team to return here with
a picture of each of these animals wins.
Lucy . . . . . . . . I’m the Blue Team Leader. Dana, Bob, and Pilar,
you’re with me. Let’s go!
Kevin . . . . . . . . I’m the Green Team Leader. Raji, Jack, and Alexa,
you’re with me. Let’s win!
Lucy . . . . . . . . Let’s hop in the jeep. Hmmm, a kit fox, a side winder,
and a roadrunner. Which first?
Dana . . . . . . . . Maybe we should look for a kit fox f irst.
Pilar . . . . . . . . But kit foxes come out only at night.
Bob . . . . . . . . . At night! What are we going to do no w?
Lucy . . . . . . . . They must go someplace during the daytime.
Pilar . . . . . . . . They do. A kit fox makes its home during the day in
a burrow dug deep into the cool soil under the desert
floor.
Dana . . . . . . . . Let’s look!
Pilar . . . . . . . . It’s not that easy. Kit foxes have very good hearing.
Their large ears can detect the smallest sound. That’s
what makes the kit fox such a good hunter .
Bob . . . . . . . . . A hunter? I think I’ll wait in the jeep.
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Pilar . . . . . . . . Don’t worry, Bob. The kit fox is about the size of
a cat.
Lucy . . . . . . . . Driver, stop the jeep! See where the sand is slightly
mounded? I think that’s a kit fox burrow.
Pilar . . . . . . . . I think you’re right! Everybody be very quiet.
Bob . . . . . . . . Look, there’s a hole over here.
Lucy . . . . . . . . I’m going to look in. (pause) I took the picture. We

got the kit fox! It w as fast asleep.
Act 2
Announcer . . . . The Blue Team has taken one picture. Good work, Blue
Team! Let’s see what the Green Team has been up to.
Kevin . . . . . . . Okay, teammates. I’ve been watching the sky with

these binoculars, and there’s still no sign of a
roadrunner.
Jack . . . . . . . . You’ll never find a roadrunner that way.
Raji . . . . . . . . Why not?
Jack . . . . . . . . Because roadrunners are not very good at flying. These

birds are fast runners—as fast as 15 miles per hour.
Alexa . . . . . . . Wow! That is fast. It says here in this guidebook that

roadrunners like to sunbathe in the morning.
Kevin . . . . . . . Sunbathing! In a desert? I hope the y have sunscreen!
Raji . . . . . . . . Good joke, Kevin. But you know they don’t need it.
Their feathers protect them from the sun’s rays.
Alexa . . . . . . . The guidebook says that after the y sunbathe,

roadrunners eat. Their favorite snacks are snakes
and lizards.
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Kevin . . . . . . . Yuck! I’ll stick to pizza.
Raji . . . . . . . . Wow! I just saw a blur run into that cactus o ver there.
Jack . . . . . . . . Look, it’s a roadrunner!
Kevin . . . . . . . Great! I got its picture!
Act 3
Announcer . . . . The score is now tied one-to-one. Let’s see what the
Blue Team is up to.
Lucy . . . . . . . . Okay, team. It’s getting late, and we still ha ve two

pictures to go. The sidewinder and the roadrunner.
Bob . . . . . . . . What exactly is a sidewinder?
Dana . . . . . . . It’s a type of rattlesnake.
Bob . . . . . . . . A rattlesnake? Are you guys crazy? I am def initely

going to wait in the jeep for this one.
Lucy . . . . . . . . You’re right to be afraid. We won’t get too close.
Bob . . . . . . . . Why do they call it a sidewinder?
Pilar . . . . . . . . Because the sidewinder has found a smart w ay to

move over loose sand. It throws its body in a sideways
motion that leaves J-shaped tracks in the sand.
Dana . . . . . . . It’s starting to get dark. The sidewinder can’t stand

the daytime heat of the desert. It will come out only
during the much cooler night. Then it hunts for small
animals.
Lucy . . . . . . . . Look! Over there!
Bob . . . . . . . . What is it? A sidewinder? Help me!
Lucy . . . . . . . . No, it’s a roadrunner. I got it!
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Announcer . . . . The Blue Team has photographed a kit fox and a
roadrunner. Just in—the Green Team has just captured
a kit fox, and with their roadrunner that mak es two.
Now each team needs a picture of a side winder.
Kevin . . . . . . . . Lucky thing we saw that kit fox as it w as leaving its

burrow to hunt.
Raji . . . . . . . . . I’ll look for sidewinder tracks.

Alexa . . . . . . . . Look! I think the Blue Team sees something.
Lucy . . . . . . . . I’ve found sidewinder tracks.
Jack . . . . . . . . Look! There’s the sidewinder! It’s only a few feet

away!
Everybody . . . . AAUUUUUGHHHH!!!!
Lucy . . . . . . . . I got the picture! Quick! In the jeep!
Kevin . . . . . . . . I’ve got it too! Hurry, let’s go!
Announcer . . . . Both of the teams have collected all three pictures.
Referee . . . . . . I’ve just been handed pictures by the Blue Team and the
Green Team at the exact same time. The Blue Team has
given me a picture of a kit fox, a roadrunner , and a
sidewinder. The Green Team has given me a picture of
a roadrunner, a kit fox, and a sneak er. A sneaker?
Kevin . . . . . . . . Ooops! I guess in all the e xcitement I didn’t aim very

well with my camera.
Referee . . . . . . The Blue Team is the winner! And the Green Team, for
doing so well, also gets the grand prize.
Raji . . . . . . . . . What is it? What’s the prize?
Referee . . . . . . A trip to the beach!
Bob . . . . . . . . . Oh, no. More sand!
The End
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TEACHER’S GUIDE The Great Deser
t
BACKGROUND Scavenger Hunt
Many different animals live in the world’s deserts. This fact may
seem somewhat surprising, considering that boiling heat and lack
by Katherin
eN
oll
of water are harsh conditions desert animals must f ace.

How do desert animals adapt to the hostile en vironment? To
escape the heat, many desert animals are nocturnal—they spend
the hot days underground and come out at night to search for
food. And some desert animals don’t need freshwater to survive. Characters
They get water from the seeds of desert plants.

Announcer
Referee
Lucy, Blue Team
Leader
In this play, your students will read about three animals that
Kevin, Green
Team Leader
Dana
Bob
live in Death Valley. This California desert is about 140 miles
Books
Pilar
Raji
sional
long and anywhere from 4 to 16 miles wide. Mountain peaks
Jack
Scholastic Profes
Alexa
98 20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
enclose the valley on the east and west. The sidewinder, road-
Reading Skill
s
runner, and kit fox all mak e their home in this desert. WRITING
PROMPT
ACTIVITY What would you
Hold Your Own Desert Scavenger Hunt do if you were
Divide the class into teams of tw o or more and assign a dif ferent desert traveling through
animal to each team. Challenge students to f ind a picture of and f acts Death Valley and a
about their animals using the library and the Internet. (Desert USA is a sidewinder crossed
wonderful source for this activity. See the URL below.) When each your path? Write a
team is finished, have the teams present the results to the class. paragraph describ-
You may wish to create a simple reproducible for this acti vity. Draw ing what you would
a square on top of the paper for students to dra w or paste their pictures, do and how you
and several lines for students to write f acts about each animal. When would feel.
the scavenger hunt is done, use the pages to create a “Desert Animals”
book or bulletin board. DISCUSSION
QUESTION
BOOK LINKS What are some
America’s Deserts Guide to Plants and Animals ways that desert
by Marianne D. Wallace (Fulcrum Publishing, 1996) animals survive
or are adapted to
Death Valley National Park living in the desert?
by David A. Peterson (Children’s Press, 1997) Find examples in
the play.
INTERNET LINKS
Desert Animal Printouts
http://www .allaboutnatur e.com/biomes/deser t/deser t.shtml
On this kid-friendly site you can print out a f act-filled coloring book
page for a variety of desert animals.
Desert USA
http://www .desertusa.com
Take a virtual tour through North American deserts.
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103
Mission
to the Moon
by Jennifer Eardly
Mary Meteor Stacey Spacey

Characters Steve Shuttle Mission Control
Guy Galaxy Commander Neil Armstrong
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104
Act 1
Mary Meteor . . . Good morning, early risers! We are glad you have
joined us on this very exciting day.
Steve Shuttle . . . Yes, it is exciting. Here we are on July 16, 1969,

preparing for what we hope will be a successful
mission for the shuttle and crew of Apollo 11.
Guy Galaxy . . . . . The crew has been up since before da wn, preparing
for their voyage. Reporters are all over Florida,
trying to catch a glimpse of the three astronauts.
Let’s see if our roving reporter, Stacey Spacey, has
spotted them.
Stacey Spacey . . I am standing at the launch site in Cape K ennedy.

There are thousands of people gathered together , all
having the same hopes for a safe mission. I am
reminded of the late President John F. Kennedy’s
words, “Space is open to us no w.”
Mary Meteor . . . Yes, Stacey, President Kennedy must be proud of

Americans today, for meeting his challenge to put a
person on the moon by 1970. Here we are, in 1969,
trying to do just that.
Steve Shuttle . . . We have just received word that the astronauts have
finished putting on their space suits and are on their
way to the spacecraft. Let’s go back to Stacey.
(pause) Stacey, are you there?
Stacey Spacey . . Steve, there is so much noise here, it is hard to

hear. You can feel the excitement among the crowd.
Commander Neil Armstrong and Pilots Edwin
“Buzz” Aldrin, Jr. and Michael Collins have arrived
at the launch site. They are being taken to the
elevator where they will be lifted to the spacecraft.
As they make their way up to the craft, let’s go
back to the studio.
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105
Guy Galaxy . . . . . Thanks, Stacey. Excitement is building here at the
studio and across the nation. Millions of vie wers are
tuned in to this historic event. We can only imagine
what is going on in the minds of these three men
and their families.
Mary Meteor . . . Let’s go back to Cape Kennedy, where the men
have entered Apollo 11 and NASA has signaled for
the countdown to begin.
Mission Control . . Ten . . . nine . . . eight . . . se ven . . . six . . .

five . . . four . . . three . . . tw o . . . one . . . zero!
Neil Armstrong . . Lift off! We have lift off!
Act 2
Steve Shuttle . . . Welcome back to our continued broadcast of Day
Four of the Apollo 11 mission. The Apollo 11 is
made up of two major sections: Columbia, the
command module, and Eagle, the landing module.
Right now, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin are in
the Eagle, which has separated from the Columbia
and is headed for the moon’s surface. Let’s go to
Stacey Spacey, who is at NASA headquarters. Stacey,
what’s the feeling there?
Stacey Spacey . . Well, Steve, there is some concern about the Eagle.
It looks like the Eagle is low on fuel. Mission control
is waiting to hear word from the astronauts. We have
just been told that it could be an y second now, so
let’s take a moment to listen.
Neil Armstrong . . (pause) The Eagle has landed!
Mission Control . . (cheers) Hooray! Yea!
Neil Armstrong . . Mission control, this is Eagle. Requesting

permission to skip nap and be gin exploring. (pause)
Thank you. Over and out.
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Guy Galaxy . . . . . As the world sits and watches the door to the craft
open, Neil Armstrong climbs out and steps down on
the ladder, preparing to become the f irst person ever
to walk on the moon.
Neil Armstrong . . That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for
mankind.
Steve Shuttle . . . Neil Armstrong has just become the f irst person
to walk on the moon. His w ords will be a part of
history forever.
Mary Meteor . . . Buzz Aldrin is scheduled to come out and the tw o

will begin to collect rocks and soil to bring back to
Earth for experiments. They will also be taking
pictures so scientists will have a better idea what
the moon is like. Right now, the two astronauts are
putting an American flag on the moon’s surface. That
flag will be a reminder to all that Americans were the
first ever to walk on the moon.
Guy Galaxy . . . . . We also see that Armstrong and Aldrin are bouncing
around, instead of walking. This is because the
moon’s gravity is only about one-sixth that of
Earth’s gravity, which means there is less do wnward
pull on the astronauts as the y walk.
Steve Shuttle . . . Right, Guy. Before this mission, the astronauts had
to practice what it would be like to walk on the
moon, so they would know what to expect. By the
way, Stacey, what is Pilot Michael Collins doing
while Armstrong and Aldrin are on the moon?
Stacey Spacey . . Collins did not land on the moon. His job is to stay
with the command module, the Columbia, and orbit
the moon until the rest of the cre w returns, and he
flies them home.
Mary Meteor . . . The journey home for the astronauts will tak e
four days. Then they will land in the P acific
Ocean, where rescuers will be w aiting for them.
A helicopter will take them to a battleship w aiting
nearby.
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Stacey Spacey . . NASA has received word that Armstrong and Aldrin
have finished their mission and have gone back on the
Eagle. They will rest for the night and tomorro w
morning they will make their way back to Columbia.
Guy Galaxy . . . . . This concludes our broadcast for today. Good night.
Act 3
Mary Meteor . . . We’re back on this 24th day of July , the eighth day
of travel for the crew of Apollo 11.
Steve Shuttle . . . President Nixon is aboard the U.S.S. Hornet,

anxiously awaiting the arrival of the three
brave men. The craft is making its f inal orbit in
preparation for its splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.
Guy Galaxy . . . . . We have just received word that the craft has
entered Earth’s atmosphere. It should be an y minute
now. (pause) There it is! They’ve landed! This is a
proud moment for all.
Stacey Spacey . . The rescuers have just opened the door to the
craft. The crew is being helped onto the rafts.
The helicopters will be moving in to take the
heroes of Apollo 11 to the U.S.S. Hornet, where
the President will greet them.
Steve Shuttle . . . As we are watching now, the crew looks weak, but
good, as they are waving to their fellow Americans.
It will be about two weeks before the celebrations
and parades take place. The crew must first go
through a series of tests as all astronauts do when
they return from a mission.
Guy Galaxy . . . . . We will be following the details over the next

several days. Stay tuned!
The End
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TEACHER’S GUIDE Mission
BACKGROUND to the Moon
In 1962, the United States began a race into space. Both the United
States and the Soviet Union had sent humans into space, b ut it
by Jennifer Ear
dly
looked like the Soviets might beat the U.S. and land a human on
the moon first.
The Apollo 11 was ready to blast off on July 20, 1969. The com-
mand module, Columbia, carried with it the lightweight lunar mod-
ule, Eagle. A Saturn V rocket launched the Apollo 11 to the moon.
During the three-day journey, the Apollo 11 slowed as it reached
the moon’s gravitational field, only to speed up again as the lunar Characters
atmosphere pulled it toward the moon. Neil Armstrong and Buzz
Mary Meteor
Books
Stacey Spacey
Steve Shuttle
Mission Cont
sional
Guy Galaxy rol
Aldrin boarded the Eagle and took off. Armstrong had to maneu-
Commander Neil
Scholastic Profes
Armstrong
104 20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
ver his way to a safe landing site on the moon’ s rocky surface.
Reading Skill
s
After 21 hours on the moon, Armstrong and Aldrin took the Eagle
back to the Columbia. The Eagle was then set free, so the e xtra weight
wouldn’t burden the Columbia on its way home. WRITING
By the time the astronauts returned home, the y were heroes, their PROMPT
mission having been watched by more than six hundred million people Imagine you are
around the world. an astronaut on a
mission to a strange
new planet. What
ACTIVITY Missions to the Moon does the planet
Apollo 11 was only the beginning of U.S. moon exploration. Between
look like? Who—
1969 and 1972, the U.S. sent six more Apollo missions into space, and
or what—lives
five of them landed successfully on the moon.
there? Write a
Divide the class into seven groups—one for each Apollo mission
story about your
from Apollo 11 to Apollo 17. Challenge each group to find out what
space adventure.
happened on the mission. Use questions such as these to guide them:
● Which astronauts were on the mission?
● Did the astronauts land on the moon? DISCUSSION
● Where did they land on the moon? QUESTION
● What did they do when they got there? Some scientists
● What did they bring back to Earth? predict that before
Ask each group to present its f indings in the form of a ne ws report. the end of this cen-
tury, people will be
BOOK LINKS living on the moon.
What would a moon
Countdown to the Moon
by Susan Dudley Gold (Silver Burdett Press, 1992) settlement need to
support human life?
First on the Moon: What It Was Like When Man Landed on the Moon
by Barbara Hehner (Hyperion, 1999)
INTERNET LINK
Moonwalk—Earthlings’ Finest Hour
http://www .discovery.com/news/features/moonwalk/challeng e.html
This site recalls the first moonwalk with movies and pictures.
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by Tracey West
Characters
In the present:
Ms. Clark, a teacher
Cassie
Jason
Sam
In 1906:
Patrick
Bridget
Mrs. Sullivan
Neighbor
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Act 1
Scene 1
SETTING: San Francisco, the present
Ms. Clark . . . . . . Today is April 18. Who can tell me why this day is
important to San Francisco?
Jason . . . . . . . . . Because it’s my birthday?
Cassie . . . . . . . . I know, Ms. Clark. It’s the anniversary of the 1906

earthquake.
Ms. Clark . . . . . . That’s right. More than a hundred years ago, one of
the most significant earthquakes of our time struck
this city.
Sam . . . . . . . . . . I was in an earthquake before.
Ms. Clark . . . . . . I think most of us who li ve here have experienced

an earthquake. San Francisco lies on the San
Andreas fault line. Can anyone tell me what that
means?
Jason . . . . . . . . . I know this one. A fault is like a crack in the earth’s

surface. When the earth’s crust moves along the
fault line, we get earthquakes.
Cassie . . . . . . . . Ms. Clark, is it safe to li ve along a fault line?
Ms. Clark . . . . . . We’re much safer than we were years ago. Today,
homes and buildings are built to be earthquake-safe.
But back in 1906, it w as a much different story.
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Scene 2
SETTING: San Francisco, 1906. The kitchen of the Sullivan home
Patrick . . . . . . . . Sparky, stop barking! It’s five o’clock in the

morning.
Mrs. Sullivan . . . Patrick Sullivan, what is wrong with that dog

of yours? He’s going to wake up the whole
neighborhood.
Patrick . . . . . . . . I don’t know, ma. It’s not like him.
Mrs. Sullivan . . . Patrick, do you feel that?
Patrick . . . . . . . . The house. It’s

shaking!
Mrs. Sullivan . . . It’s an earthquake!

Get under the table,
quickly now!
Patrick . . . . . . . . (after a few seconds)

Ma, are you all right?
Mrs. Sullivan . . . I’m fine, son. Now

let’s go find your
sister. She’s upstairs
asleep.
Patrick . . . . . . . . Mom, the house is

shaking again. It’s
another tremor!
Act 2
SETTING: San Francisco, 1906. The Sullivan home

Mrs. Sullivan . . . Bridget, Bridget, where are you?
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Bridget . . . . . . . I’m here, ma. The earthquake knocked me into a
wall. I think I hurt my arm.
Patrick . . . . . . . . Don’t worry, sis. We’ll get you somewhere safe.
Mrs. Sullivan . . . Patrick, help your sister down the stairs. I don’t like
the way this house is creaking.
Patrick (outside) Look at this, ma. Every house on the street has
gone crooked.
Bridget . . . . . . . That’s not the only thing. Is that a f ire down there?
Neighbor . . . . . . There are broken gas lines all over the city. Soon
the whole town will be burning. I’m heading down
to the waterfront.
Mrs. Sullivan . . . Then that’s where we’ll go. The fire won’t harm us
there.
Patrick . . . . . . . . I can’t leave without Sparky.
Mrs. Sullivan . . . Fine, but hurry!
Act 3
Scene 1
SETTING: San Francisco, 1906. Three days after the earthquak e
Bridget . . . . . . . Ma, will we ever get to go home?
Mrs. Sullivan . . . We should be grateful for the shelter we ha ve here.

So many people were turned out of their homes
because of the fires.
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Patrick . . . . . . . . I heard some of the men talking. They say they
don’t know how they’ll get the fires under control.
Most of the water pipes are shattered, so the y can’t
use the fire hydrants. They tried dynamiting a
firebreak through some of the neighborhoods, b ut
it didn’t work.
Mrs. Sullivan . . . San Francisco is a grand city. It’s going to take much
more than an earthquake and flames to destroy it.
Bridget . . . . . . . Ma, Patrick, look! It’s raining!
Scene 2
SETTING: Ms. Clark’s classroom in the present
Ms. Clark . . . . . . After 74 hours, the fires finally went out, thanks
to the rain and the tireless w ork of the city’s
firefighters. The people of San Francisco went
back to their homes and be gan rebuilding.
Cassie . . . . . . . . That’s so sad!
Ms. Clark . . . . . . It was, but the people of our city reco vered quickly.
Within three years, almost 20,000 new buildings
were erected. These were made of brick and steel
to withstand any future earthquakes.
Sam . . . . . . . . . . That’s pretty smart.
Ms. Clark . . . . . Not only that, but we also study earthquake safety
every year so we know what to do when disaster
strikes. That’s what we’ll do today, in honor of all
the people who experienced the 1906 quake.
Jason . . . . . . . . I didn’t know my birthday was so interesting! I

don’t think I’ll ever forget about that quake now.
Ms. Clark . . . . . Neither will the rest of the w orld!
The End
englishtips.org
114
TEACHER’S GUIDE
BACKGROUND
Most people were asleep when the great San Francisco by Tracey We
st
earthquake of 1906 struck at 5:12 a.m. on April 18. The earth-

quake collapsed buildings, shattered gas and water lines, and
downed power lines, and the resulting four-day fire it caused was Charac
ters
In the present:
responsible for countless damage. The earthquake is estimated to

Ms. Clark, a
teacher
Cassie
Jason
have caused 3,000 deaths and $500 million in damage (in 1906 Sam
In 1906:
dollars). Patrick
Bridget
Since that time, steps have been taken to minimize the

Mrs. Sullivan
Neighbor
devastating effects of earthquakes. In 1994, the earthquake that

struck Northridge, California, caused an estimated $20 billion in
Books sional
damage, but no lives were lost. This may in part be due to ne w
Scholastic Profes
-Plays That Build
construction practices and an awareness of earthquake safety in

Reading Skill
s
the area.
Most injuries are caused by collapsing w alls, flying glass, and
falling objects. Homes in earthquake-prone areas can be anchored to WRITING
their foundations to keep from collapsing; bookcases can be anchored PROMPT
to the wall to prevent them from falling; and flexible pipe fittings are What must it feel
used on gas lines to avoid gas leaks and resulting fires. These practices like to experience
and others help keep residents of earthquake zones safe. an earthquake?
Make a list of five
adjectives that best
ACTIVITY Safety Poster describe how you
Have students make a colorful poster that outlines safety tips for sur-
might feel in that
viving an earthquake or another natural disaster. (A great place to
situation.
research safety tips for a variety of situations is to visit the American
Red Cross Web site at http://www.redcross.org.) Direct students to
make posters that are bold, direct, and easy to remember . Display the DISCUSSION
finished posters in a hallway or your classroom. QUESTION
Have you or some-
BOOK LINKS one you know ever
Francis, the Earthquake Dog experienced an
by Judith A. Enderle (Chronicle Books, 1996) earthquake or other
natural disaster?
San Francisco, 1906 What was it like?
by Kathleen Duey (Simon & Schuster, 1998)
INTERNET LINKS
Earthquakes for Kids and Grown-Ups
http://ear thquake.usgs.gov/4kids/
Facts, diagrams, and lots of other basic earthquak e info from the
U.S. government
The Great 1906 Earthquake and Fire

http://www .sfmuseum.org/1906/06.html
Newspaper reports, photos, personal narratives, and more from the
Museum of the City of San Francisco englishtips.org
115
The Case of the
Disappearing Diamonds
by Jane Manners
englishtips.org
116
Characters Narrator 1
Narrator 2
Carla
Rocky
Ruthie
Joe
Lisa
Act 1
Narrator 1 . . . . . Carla loved to pretend she was a detective. She
liked to look for clues and solv e mysteries.
Narrator 2 . . . . . But today was too hot to do an y detecting. Carla

sat on the front steps, trying to stay cool, when
Rocky Willis walked by. The 5-year-old boy
was dragging his red wagon behind him.
Rocky . . . . . . . . Hi, Carla.
Carla . . . . . . . . . Hi, Rocky. What’s in the wagon?
Rocky . . . . . . . . My most favorite things in the world. Do you want

to see them?
Carla . . . . . . . . . Sure.
Rocky . . . . . . . . This is my sword.
Narrator 1 . . . . . Rocky held up a long stick.
Rocky . . . . . . . . And this is my pet snak e, Otto.
Narrator 2 . . . . Rocky showed Carla a dirty old shoelace.
englishtips.org
117
Carla . . . . . . . . Rocky, I think you have a good imagination.
Rocky . . . . . . . . And here’s my most favorite thing of all! Inside this

little black bag is where I k eep my diamonds!
Carla . . . . . . . . Diamonds!?
Rocky . . . . . . . . Diamonds! Do you want to see them?
Carla . . . . . . . . I sure do.

Rocky . . . . . . . . (upset) Oh, no! My diamonds!
Carla . . . . . . . . What’s wrong, Rocky?
Rocky . . . . . . . . They’re gone! I had four diamonds inside this bag

and now they’re gone. Can you help me f ind them?
Carla . . . . . . . . Rocky, you’ve come to the right place.
Act 2
Narrator 1 . . . . Carla had one clue. Rocky liked to pretend. He
liked to pretend a stick w as a sword and a shoelace
was a snake. If Rocky would tell her what he w as
pretending were diamonds, the case w ould be easy.
Narrator 2 . . . . But Rocky wasn’t talking. So, Carla went to see
Rocky’s sister Ruthie to find out if she had seen
these pretend diamonds. And Ruthie said . . .
Ruthie . . . . . . . . I was playing in the basement when Rock y came

down to show them to me. He said he found them
in the kitchen.
Narrator 1 . . . . Carla suspected that was a clue. She wrote the w ord
“kitchen” in her notebook.
Ruthie . . . . . . . . I do remember he had them inside a leather bag and

he kept saying how big and shiny they were. But I
didn’t look inside the bag. Sorry, Carla.
englishtips.org
118
Carla . . . . . . . . . Big. Shiny.
Narrator 2 . . . . . Carla wrote the words “big” and “shiny” in her

notebook. She needed more information, so she
headed one house over to see Rocky’s friends, Joe
and Lisa. Carla asked them if they saw the diamonds.
Joe . . . . . . . . . . Oh, yes. I saw the diamonds.
Carla . . . . . . . . . Really, Joe? You SAW the diamonds?
Narrator . . . . . . . Carla grabbed her pencil from her back pock et.
Carla . . . . . . . . . Tell me! What were they?
Joe . . . . . . . . . . Well, I looked inside the leather bag and sa w four

small, shiny things.
Carla . . . . . . . . . The diamonds were small?
Joe . . . . . . . . . . They were tiny.
Carla . . . . . . . . . They were tiny and shiny?
Narrator . . . . . . . Carla wrote the words “tiny” and “shiny” in her

notebook, right next to the words big and shiny.
Carla . . . . . . . . . The diamonds that Rocky found in the kitchen

started out big and ended up tin y. Hmmmm . . .
did you see the diamonds, Lisa?
Lisa . . . . . . . . . . I remember Joe was looking at the diamonds, b ut I
went inside to get some lemonade. I w as hot.
Narrator . . . . . . . Carla was beginning to put the picture together.

When she asked Rocky if she could see the little
bag, Rocky seemed puzzled.
Rocky . . . . . . . . But Carla, the diamonds are not in the bag an ymore.
They’re gone!
Carla . . . . . . . . . I believe you, Rocky. But I’d still like to see the
bag.
englishtips.org
119
Rocky . . . . . . . . Okay.
Carla . . . . . . . . . Just as I suspected! There is nothing but some water

in this bag. Rocky, I know what happened to your
diamonds!
Act 3
Narrator 1 . . . . . Now, Carla could tell you what happened to
Rocky’s pretend diamonds, but what do YOU
think happened? Let’s listen to Carla’s clues.
Carla . . . . . . . . . Rocky was pretending he had four diamonds. He

found these “diamonds” in the kitchen and k ept
them in a leather bag. These diamonds started out
big, then they were tiny, and now the only thing
left in the bag is w ater. What do you think the
diamonds were?
Narrator 2 . . . . . Can you make a guess now? Give it a try.
Carla . . . . . . . . . If you guessed the diamonds were ice cubes, you

are right! You see, Rocky was pretending he had
diamonds, but they were just ice cubes. He took
four ice cubes from the kitchen and put them in his
little black bag. They may have started out big, but
soon they started to melt. In the end, he w as left
with a bag of water.
Narrator 1 . . . . . And with that, Carla closed her notebook.
Narrator 2 . . . . . She had solved the case of the disappearing

diamonds. She was feeling good. It was time for
a nice tall glass of lemonade—hold the diamonds.
The End
englishtips.org
120
TEACHER’S GUIDE The Case of
BACKGROUND Disappearing Diathe
monds
In grades 2–4, students are just being introduced to the mystery by Jane Manne
rs
genre. Fictional detectives such as Cam Jansen and Enc yclopedia

Brown will capture their imagination. This play can serve as a
fun introduction or supplement to a mystery theme.
Before reading the play, encourage students to follow along
and try to solve the mystery with Carla. When the narrator asks
the students to make a guess, pause and allow students to guess
out loud. When you are finished reading the play, review the
steps that Carla took that allowed her to solve the mystery:
1. She knew that Rocky’s diamonds were pretend.
Books sional
2. She interviewed people to find out more information.
Scholastic Profes
-Plays That Build
3. She wrote down her thoughts in a notebook.

Reading Skill
s
4. She put together the clues.

WRITING
ACTIVITY Mystery Day PROMPT
Take a day to celebrate the mystery genre and your class’ s favorite Every good mystery
mystery books. Here are just some fun things you can do: story has a good
● Invite children to come dressed as their f avorite detective in it.
fictional detective. Imagine that you
● Make a graph of the class’s favorite mystery books. are a mystery
● Set up a mystery board game, such as Clue Jr . writer. What kind
● Play a mystery game. Cut out a small square of paper for each of detective would
student in the class. On each piece, write the name of a f amous you create? What
person, literary character, cartoon character—the topic is up to qualities would
you. Tape one paper to each student’s back. Challenge students your character have
to find out who they are by asking yes or no questions to the to make him or her
other students in the class until the y guess correctly. a good detective?
Write a paragraph
describing your
BOOK LINKS detective.
Bunnicula: A Rabbit Tale of Mystery
by Deborah and James Howe (Aladdin, 1996)
DISCUSSION
Jigsaw Jones #1: The Case of Hermie the Missing Hamster QUESTION
by James Preller (Scholastic, 1998) A mystery is one
kind of book. What
INTERNET LINK other kinds of
books can you think
MysteryNet’s Kids’ Mysteries
http://www .TheCase.com/kids of? Which kinds of
Your students can solve mini-mysteries and enter a mystery- books do you like
writing contest. to read? Action?
Fantasy? Humor?
Nonfiction? Why?
englishtips.org
121
John Henry:
An American Tall Tale
by Rebecca Gómez
Characters
Narrator
John Henry
John Henry’s Mother
John Henry’s Father
Worker 1
Worker 2
Railroad Foreman
englishtips.org
122
Act 1
Narrator . . . . . . . . John Henry was born on a hot summer’s day.
When he’d been cleaned up and wrapped in a
cloth, his father brought him out to the porch.
Father . . . . . . . . . World, I present my newborn son, John Henry.
Narrator . . . . . . . . He was a cute little baby, for a few minutes. Then

he started to grow and grow and grow!
Father . . . . . . . . . Mother, take a look at this. Our baby is becoming
a boy!
Mother . . . . . . . . . Land sakes! He’s busting through the porch roof!
John Henry . . . . . . Hello, Mama. Hello, Daddy!
Mother . . . . . . . . . John Henry! What are you doing?
John Henry . . . . . . Oops! Sorry, mama. I didn’t mean to break the

roof!
Father . . . . . . . . . John Henry, now you come inside and rest a bit.
Tomorrow is another day.
Narrator . . . . . . . . So John Henry went to sleep. But all the while, he

kept growing bigger and stronger. In the morning,
his parents couldn’t believe their eyes.
Mother . . . . . . . . . Father, will you look at our bo y? He’s as big as

two grown men, stacked one on top of the other!
Father . . . . . . . . . That he is, Mother.
John Henry . . . . . . Daddy, I’d like to get a bit of e xercise. Do you

have any land that needs clearing?
Father . . . . . . . . . As a matter of fact, I do, son. I’ve been wanting

to hire a team to clear four acres of f ield. I could
then plant a whole bunch of corn back there.
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123
John Henry . . . . . . Why, Daddy, you don’t need to hire a team of
men. You’ve got me!
Narrator . . . . . . . . John Henry picked up his father’s ax and headed

out. For the next two hours, his parents heard
nothing but the ringing of his ax and the crash of
falling trees. Then John Henry, wiping his face
with his bandana, came back to the house.
John Henry . . . . . . Okay, Daddy, you’re all set to plant that corn no w.
Mother . . . . . . . . . My goodness, John Henry, you’re too much! You

come on inside and get yourself some lunch no w.
Narrator . . . . . . . . The only problem was, John Henry had grown so

big that he didn’t fit into his parents’ snug little
house anymore. So his Daddy opened up his big
barn doors, and John Henry b unked down in the
hayloft. People from miles around came to see
John Henry, and he performed any feat they asked
of him. His parents were a wfully proud of their
sweet and humble, but very, very strong boy.
Act 2
John Henry . . . . . . Mama and Daddy, I’ve been very happy here with
you, but I think it’s time for me to mak e my own
way in the world.
Mother . . . . . . . . . You’re probably right, John Henry. We don’t want

to see you go, but our town is just too small for
you. It’s a great big world out there, and you
should go explore.
Father . . . . . . . . . Just remember the things we’ve taught you, John

Henry. Always do an honest day’s work, and
remember to treat others the w ay you’d like to be
treated. You may take my two sledgehammers
with you, for whatever work you may find.
englishtips.org
124
John Henry . . . . . Yes, sir. Yes, ma’am. Thank you. I’ll be back this
way to check in on you v ery soon!
Narrator . . . . . . . And so, John Henry set off on his adventure. His
first day, he came across a w ork crew trying to build
a road. They were stopped because there w as a huge
boulder blocking their way.
Worker 1 . . . . . . . We’ve tried to dynamite that boulder, but nothing

makes it budge!
John Henry . . . . . . Well, I think I can help you.
Worker 2 . . . . . . . What are you going to do that we ha ven’t already

tried? Besides, you’re just one man.
John Henry . . . . . . If you give me a chance, I’ll show you.
Worker 1 . . . . . . . Suit yourself, then.
Narrator . . . . . . . . John Henry gave it a try. He swung his sledge-

hammers so fast that they looked like a blur. He
kicked up so much dust and dirt that soon the
workers couldn’t even see him. When the ringing
of his sledgehammers stopped, it took an hour just
for the dust to settle.
Worker 1 . . . . . . . Look at that! John Henry got rid of that boulder!
Worker 2 . . . . . . . Not only did he get rid of the boulder; he f inished

paving the road for us!
Narrator . . . . . . . . It was true, the boulder was gone. In its place w as

a neatly paved section of road. At the end of the
road, John Henry stood wiping his forehead with
his bandana and waving at the workers.
Both Workers . . . . Good-bye, John Henry! Thank you.
Narrator . . . . . . . . After walking for a few days, John Henry came

across a railroad crew. They’d been laying down
track, but they’d come to a mountain so tall and
so wide that they couldn’t build tracks over it or
around it.
englishtips.org
125
John Henry . . . . . What seems to be the problem here?
Railroad Foreman . . We need to drill through this mountain.
John Henry . . . . . What are you waiting for?
Railroad Foreman . . This rock is too hard for men to cut through
with pickaxes. We have a steam drill, but
the steam-drill operator won’t be here until
tomorrow morning.
Narrator . . . . . . . Now this sounded like an interesting challenge

to John Henry.
John Henry . . . . . How about if I were to w ork on the tunnel?
Railroad Foreman . . What do you mean?
John Henry . . . . . I think I could cut through that rock with my

sledgehammers.
Railroad Foreman . . You’re crazy.
John Henry . . . . . No, sir. I really think I could help you.
Railroad Foreman . . How about a contest, then? We’ll begin tomorrow

at daybreak. You will start on one side of the
mountain, with your sledgehammers, and the
steam drill will start on the other. Whoever makes
it more than halfway through the mountain will
win. If you win, I’ll pay you a month’s wages.
If you lose, you’ll work for me for one month
for no wages.
John Henry . . . . . . I’ll do it! No steam drill’s going to beat

John Henry.
englishtips.org
126
Act 3
Narrator . . . . . . . And so the next day, as the sun was just beginning
to peek over the mountain, the contest be gan. John
Henry tore into the rock with his sledgehammers.
Soon the air was clouded with dust and dirt and
bits of rock. On the other side, the steam-drill
operator started his machine.
John Henry . . . . . An honest day’s work is what my parents taught

me to do. I’ll work here until the sun sets, and
we’ll see who wins this contest.
Railroad Foreman . . No man can beat the speed of a steam drill. That
John Henry is crazy!
Narrator . . . . . . . Throughout the day, John Henry dug and the

steam drill drilled. Neither stopped for a break.
Just as the sun was setting, John Henry broke
through the other side of the mountain.
Railroad Foreman . . How can this be? Let’s measure how far each man
has gone.
Narrator . . . . . . . When the measurements came back, everyone was

astounded. John Henry had tunneled for one and
three-quarter miles, while the steam-drill operator
had only managed to clear one-quarter of a mile!
John Henry . . . . . I guess my work here is done.
Narrator . . . . . . . With that, John Henry fell to the ground. He’ d

worked so hard and so long that his mighty heart
had given out. He was given a grand funeral. No
mightier man had ever lived, and no parents were
ever prouder.
The End
englishtips.org
127
TEACHER’S GUIDE John Henry:
BACKGROUND An American Tall
Tale
Most scholars agree that the tall tale of John Henry is based on by Rebecca
Gómez
the life of a real man. Born as a sla ve in the 1840s or 1850s, John
Henry was a strong, tall man (although not the giant that the
legend makes him out to be). He later went to w ork for the
Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad, and it is belie ved that his story
may have been based on an actual contest with a steam drill.
Railroad workers made John Henry a legend, and his tale soon
Characters
Narrator
John Henr y
became a popular ballad all over the United States: John Henr y’s
John Henr y’s
Mother
Father
When John Henry was a little baby,

Worker 1
Worker 2
Railroad Fore
man
Sitting on his papa’s knee,
Books
Well, he picked up a hammer and a little piece of steel, said,
sional
Scholastic Profes
122
‘Hammer’s gonna be the death of me , Lord, Lord.
20 Terrific Mini
-Plays That Build
Reading Skill
s
Hammer’s gonna be the death of me .’

WRITING
PROMPT
ACTIVITY Tall Tale Skits What amazing
The story of John Henry is just one e xample of an American tall tale. things did John
Pecos Bill, Slue-Foot Sue, Johnny Appleseed, Mike Fink, and Sal Fink Henry accomplish
are all popular tall-tale characters with stories of their o wn. in the play?
If you read the John Henry play as part of a tall-tales unit, your Write a paragraph
students may already be familiar with these characters. Why not have summarizing his
them try writing skits about these characters as well? larger-than-life
Suggest these guidelines for skit writing: achievements.
● Decide who the characters in your skit will be.
● Decide if you will use a narrator to help the story along.
● Choose one event from the tall-tale character’s life for your skit.
DISCUSSION
QUESTION
Keep it simple. When skits are finished, make photocopies so that Accepting the
the skits can be used for read-aloud acti vities. Divide the class into challenge against
small groups and have students choose parts and tak e turns reading the steam drill was
each other’s skits aloud. risky, and John
Henry ultimately
lost his life. Why
BOOK LINKS do you think John
America’s First Railroads Henry agreed to
by Tim McNeese (Macmillan, 1993) the contest?
John Henry
by Julius Lester (Dial, 1994)
INTERNET LINK
Writing With Writers: Alma Flor Ada
http://teacher.scholastic.com/write wit/folk/bio.htm
Learn how to write a folktale in this online w orkshop.
englishtips.org
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englishtips.

EDITED BY TRACEY WEST

New York • Toronto • London • Auckland • Sydney • Mexico City

Edited by Tracey West

NELLIE BLY: READ ALL ABOUT IT! THE SPIDER SHOWDOWN

THE WORLD’S FIRST PHONE CALL TORNADO CHASERS!

SACAGAWEA THE GREAT DESERT SCAVENGER HUNT

VINCE VOTES FOR MAYOR

SCRIBE SCHOOL Lucy, Blue Team Leader

(Ancient Egypt) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Bob

L breathe some life into the tried-and-true topics you’ ve been

ABOUT THIS BOOK

Following each play is one page of material designed to help

BACKGROUND: a collection of facts to introduce or follow

paper articles, some of the more challeng , and Paree (Paris).

wish to go over rds such as procure, mire story of the

up the play experience

These sources Nellie Bly. After pioneerin married a

journalism as an, in 1895. pani

WRITING PROMPT: a quick, fun suggestion to spur

students to write something based on what the y’ve read

DISCUSSION QUESTION: a simple question to get a

classroom discussion going when the play is o ver

BOOK LINKSAND INTERNETLINKS: a bibliography

ACTIVITY: a fun, cross-curricular idea to help broaden

the play experience

After assigning parts, you may wish to ha ve a brief discussion with

● What did we learn?

Provide students with the books or Web site addresses

students look forward to and enjoy.

However you decide to use these plays,

110 20 Terrific Mini-

Narrator 1 . . . . . Have you heard about the Under ground Railroad?

Narrator 2 . . . . . It wasn’t a real railroad at all. It w as a safe network

Narrator 1 . . . . . Harriet Tubman was a slave. She ran away in 1849.

Brother 1 . . . . . . Oh, Harriet! What are we going to do?

Harriet . . . . . . . . Let’s run away! We can leave tonight.

Brother 2 . . . . . . But, Harriet, they will kill us if the y find us.

Harriet . . . . . . . . I’d rather die fighting for freedom than live in

Brother 1 . . . . . . Just make it safely. Don’t worry about us. We will

Harriet . . . . . . . . Good-bye. I will see you again. I promise.

Narrator 2 . . . . . The abolitionists helped Harriet get settled in her

Mother . . . . . . . . I do miss Harriet. I miss my sons too. It seems that

Mother . . . . . . . . But we don’t know that for sure.

Harriet . . . . . . . . I’m bound for the Promised Land! Who will go

Harriet . . . . . . . . I came to get you. Now my family will be together at

Mother . . . . . . . . But where will we go? It will be morning soon.

Harriet . . . . . . . . Don’t worry, Mother. We will travel on the

Friend . . . . . . . . Harriet, I really don’t think

Harriet . . . . . . . . I am not worried. I am

Friend . . . . . . . . Please be careful. Hey,

Harriet . . . . . . . . (Harriet bumps into a man.)

Man . . . . . . . . . . You’d better watch where

Harriet . . . . . . . . (whispers to herself) Oh no! It’s my old owner!

Man . . . . . . . . . . Harry, huh? You look very familiar to me.

Man . . . . . . . . . . Well, maybe you can help me. Here, put up

Harriet . . . . . . . . What do they say?

Man . . . . . . . . . . They say that we are looking for Harriet Tubman.

Harriet . . . . . . . . Who is that?

Harriet . . . . . . . . What does she look like?

Man . . . . . . . . . . (He pauses and looks right at Harriet.) She looks

Narrator 1 . . . . . Harriet didn’t get caught that time, or an y other

Narrator 2 . . . . . Harriet didn’t work alone. Many people helped on