Nancy wants to live to be 100 years old like her father. She is currently 5 years old and wants to live for 95 more years so they can grow old together. Mary is confused why strawberries are called strawberries and not redberries, like blueberries are called blueberries and blackberries are called blackberries. Her little brother explains that a red berry is actually a cherry. Brenda likes to sing the song "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" as she walks to school each day. Sometimes she sings it with her best friend, who walks with her.

1. A LONG LIFE
Nancywants to live alongtime.She wantstolive forone hundredyears.She isfive yearsoldnow.
She wantsto live 95 more years.Thenshe will be 100. Her fatheris30 yearsold.He wants to live a
longtime,too.He wants to live forone hundredyears.He wantstolive for70 more years."Daddy,
we will growoldtogether,okay?"Nancysaidtoher father."Yes,honey,we willgrow oldtogether,"
he saidto Nancy. ThenNancysmiled.She gave herdaddyabig hug.
RED BERRY
Mary ate a blueberry. She loved blueberries. Then she ate a blackberry. She loved
blackberries. Then she ate a strawberry. She loved strawberries. Mary was confused. A
blueberry is blue, so you call it a blueberry. A blackberry is black, so you call it a blackberry.
A strawberry is red. So, why don't you call it a redberry? Mary asked her mom. Her mom
didn't know. She asked her dad. Her dad didn't know. She asked her little brother. "Because a
red berry is a cherry!" her brother said.
ROW ROW ROW YOUR BOAT
Brendasang a song.She sang the song while she walkedtoschool.The name of the songwas "Row,
Row,Row Your Boat."Brendalikedtosingthissong.It was herfavorite songto sing.She sangit
everydaywhile she walkedtoschool.Sometimesshe sangitwithherbestfriend.Sometimesher
bestfriendwalkedtoschool withBrenda.Thentheybothsangthe songtogether.Brendalikedthe
songbecause itwas easyto rememberthe words."Row,row,row yourboat" are easy wordsto
remember
CLEAN HANDS
Elizabethwashesherhandseveryday.She likestowashherhands.She washesherhandswithsoap
and water.She usessoapand waterto washher hands.She useswarmwaterand soap.She washes
herhands for30 seconds.After30 secondsshe stopswashingherhands.She turnsoff the water.
She driesherhandson a cleantowel.Everyfew hoursshe turnson the waterand washesherhands.
Elizabethhasverycleanhands.She doesnothave manygermson her hands.Germscannot live on
hercleanhands
LITTLE GIRL
Margaret was a small girl.She wasa little girl.Allherfriendswere tallerthanher.She wasshorter
than all herfriends.She wantedtobe tall.Hermom toldhernot to worry.One day Margaret would
be tall.One day she wouldbe tallerthanherfriends.One dayall herfriendswouldbe shorterthan
her.She was happyto hearthat. She onlyhad one questionforhermom.Whenwouldshe be taller

2. than herfriends?Woulditbe nextyear?She hopeditwouldbe nextyear.She wastiredof beingthe
shortestgirl.
SWIMMING POOL
Sharon jumped into the water at the swimming pool. She held her nose. She went under
the water. Then she came back up. She swam to the ladder in the pool. She climbed out of the
pool. She stood at the edge of the pool. She held her nose. She jumped in again. Sharon liked
to jump into the pool. The water felt good. It was a hot day. The water was cool. The water
felt so good. Sharon's mother had brought her to the pool. Her mother was sitting in a chair.
She was watching Sharon. She wanted Sharon to have fun.
A NEW CAR
Mark bought a new car last week. He is happy with his new car. He got a good deal on
his new car. It was on sale. His new car is green. The four tires are black. His new car has
four doors. It has one trunk. The spare tire is in the trunk. All new cars have a spare tire. His
new car has one hood. The engine is under the hood. All new cars have an engine. His new
car has two big seats. One seat is in the front. One seat is in the back. Mark sits in the front
seat when he drives his new car. He always buckles his seat belt.
THE MOON
He looked at the rising moon. It was rising above the houses. It was big and orange. It
looked bigger than the rising sun. How could it be so big? How could it be so orange?
Several hours later, he looked at the moon again. Now it was high in the sky. Now it was
smaller. It wasn't orange anymore. Now it was white. What happened? It changed size. It
changed color. Before, it was big and orange. It was like a big pumpkin. Now, it was smaller
and white. It was like a light bulb. But it was still pretty. It was still bright. It was the
brightest light in the sky.

3. USE SOAP
Kathyfinishedhersandwich.She hada chickensandwichforlunch.She gotupfrom herchair. She
tookher plate tothe kitchensink.She putthe plate inthe sink.She turnedonthe coldwaterfaucet.
She rinsedthe plate.She pickedupapaper towel.She wipedthe plate dry.She putthe plate onthe
counter.Her motherwalkedintothe room."Didyouwashthat plate withsoap?"she askedKathy.
Kathysaid no. "I couldn'tfindthe soap,"she said.Hermom said,"What's thisrightnextto the cold
waterfaucet?"Kathysaid,"Soap."Her momtoldher to washthe plate again.
PIANOPLAYER
He playedthe piano.He playeditverywell.He startedplayingthe pianowhenhe wassix yearsold.
That was sevenyearsago.Nowhe was13 yearsold.He was verygood.He wonone pianocontest
afteranother.A famouspianoteacherheardhimplaythe piano.The teachersaid,"Iwant to bring
youto NewYork. I will teachyou howto be evenbetter.Iwill teachyouhow to be the bestpiano
playerinthe whole world."He didn'tlike thatidea.He wantedtostayat home.He wantedtostay
withhisparentsand hisfriends.Hisparentswantedhimtogo.Theysaidtheywouldvisit himinNew
York everyweekend
MY BEST FRIEND
Laura is mybestfriend.We are inthe thirdgrade.We do everythingtogether.We walktoschool
together.We eatlunchtogetherat school.Laura's mothergiveshertunasandwichesforlunch.My
mothergives me peanutbuttersandwichesforlunch.We share our sandwicheswitheachother.
SometimesLauragetsapplesforlunch.SometimesIgetpeaches.We share ourfruitwitheach
other.We helpeachother withourhomework.She helpsme withhistory.Ihelpher witharithmetic.
We spendthe weekendstogether.Herparentsinviteme totheirhouse,ormyparentsinvite herto
our house.We sleepover.Ispendthe nightather house,orshe spendsthe nightat myhouse.We
talkabout everything.We talkaboutour brothers.Theyare so silly.We talkaboutourteachersand
our parents.We love them.We talkabout the boysinclass.We don't like them.Theyare sosilly.
Why inthe worlddo some girlslike boys?Boysnevergrow up.We will neverlikeboys
FARMANIMALS
The chicken and the duck were friends. They lived on a farm. They walked around
together. They swam in the pond together. They talked about many things. They talked about
the cat. They thought the cat was tricky. They thought the cat was dangerous. The cat looked
at them a lot. They didn't trust the cat. "We must always keep our eyes open when the cat is
around," they both agreed. They talked about the dog. The dog was very friendly. The dog
wanted to play. The dog had lots of energy. It barked a lot. It ran around a lot. They both
liked the dog. They talked about the farmer. The farmer brought them food. The farmer took
care of them. The farmer took care of all the animals. He fed the cow. He fed the pig. He fed
the goat. He fed the sheep. He fed the rabbit. They liked the farmer. He took good care of

4. everyone. He was a nice man. "Farmers are good," said the chicken. "We need farmers," said
the duck.
A BIRTHDAY BIKE
January 7 is Benny's birthday. He will be eight years old. He is in the third grade. He
goes to Park Elementary School. An elementary school is for kids. It is only one mile away.
He walks to school. It only takes 20 minutes. When it rains, he wears a raincoat. He used to
take an umbrella. But he lost the umbrella. His mother gave him another umbrella. He broke
that one. His mom said, "You and umbrellas don't get along." For his eighth birthday, Benny
wants a bicycle. He can ride the bike to school. After school he can ride with his friends. He
can ride the bike to the swimming pool. He can ride the bike to the library. His mom and dad
took him to the bike store. They asked him to look at the bikes. He looked at all the bikes. He
chose a red bike. He showed his parents. Dad said it cost too much. He told Benny to choose
another bike. Benny chose a blue bike. Dad said the blue bike was the right price.
A SCHOOL DAY
School starts at 8:00 in the morning. His mom woke him up at 6:30. He yawned and got
out of bed. He got dressed. He ate breakfast. He ate a bowl of cereal for breakfast. His
favorite cereal was Cheerios. He also ate a banana. Bananas are yellow outside and white
inside. He drank a glass of orange juice. Oranges are orange outside and orange inside. He ate
a piece of toast with butter on it. Brown toast, yellow butter. He drank a glass of milk. Then
he brushed his teeth. He kissed his mom goodbye. He walked outside to the school bus stop.
It was two blocks away. He met his friend Bobby. They talked while they waited for the bus.
The bus arrived. He said hello to the bus driver. He and Bobby sat together on the bus. They
talked about baseball. The bus ride took 20 minutes. They got to school at 7:30. The bus
driver said, "Have fun in school." They always did.
A BIRTHDAY DRESS
It was Ellen's 12th birthday. Ellen was 12 years old. Her mom took her shopping. They
went shopping at the mall. "You can pick out a dress. You can pick out a pretty dress," Mom
said. "I will pick out a pretty, blue dress," Ellen said. They went into JC Penney. JC Penney

5. sells lots of dresses. Ellen saw a blue dress that she liked. "I like that dress, Mom," she said.
She took the dress into the dressing room. She put on the dress. It fit her well. She walked out
of the dressing room. "The dress fits you well," said Mom. "Can I have it?" Ellen asked. "Of
course you can have it, dear. It's your birthday present," said Mom. "But it's not on sale," said
Ellen. "We always buy everything on sale." "It's your birthday, dear. On your birthday, we
can pay full price," said Mom.
A CAT AND A DOG
The black cat jumped up onto the chair. It looked down at the white dog. The dog was
chewing on a bone. The cat jumped onto the dog. The dog kept chewing the bone. The cat
played with the dog's tail. The dog kept chewing the bone. The cat jumped back onto the
chair. It started licking its paws. The dog stood up. It looked at the cat. It licked the cat's fur.
The cat licked the dog's nose. The dog went back to its bone. A boy ran through the room. He
was wearing a yellow shirt. He almost ran into the chair. The cat jumped off the chair. The
cat jumped onto the sofa. The chair fell onto the floor next to the dog. The dog stopped
chewing the bone. The dog chased the boy. The boy ran out to the street. He threw a stick.
The dog chased the stick. The dog lay down. It chewed on the stick.
IN THE GARDEN
Mama wasin the garden."What are you doing?"Johnnyasked.She saidshe wasplanting
roses.Rosesare flowers.Theyare verypretty.Theyare usuallyred.Roseshave thorns.Hismama
said,"Thornswill stickyou.Be careful aroundthorns."Johnnywenttothe frontyard. His dogRex
was waitingforhim.Johnnypickedupastickand threw it.Rex chasedthe stick.He broughtthe stick
back. Johnnyranaround the house.Rex chasedhim.Johnnyranthroughthe garden.Rex ran
throughthe garden.Mom yelledatJohnnyandRex.She toldthemto playsomewhere else.She told
themto stay outof the garden.Johnnyapologizedtohismom.He wentto the garage and got his
bike.He wentfora bike ride.Rex rannexttothe bike.
VISITTHE OCEAN
Dad took Beth to the ocean. This was her first visit to the ocean. This was her first visit
to the beach. This was the first time she saw the sandy beach. She loved the sand. She dug

6. holes in the sand. She filled up the holes. She held the sand in her hands. She dropped the
sand out of her hands. She picked up the sand. She threw the sand. Her dad picked her up.
She held onto him. He carried her to the edge of the water. He held both her hands. He let her
stand in the water. Her feet got wet. She stood in the water. She watched the water cover her
feet. She bent down. She picked up some wet sand. She threw the wet sand. She sat down in
the water. She dug holes in the wet sand. Dad sat down next to her.
A GOOD MEAL
The children were hungry. They looked out the window. Where was their mother? She
walked into the house. The children ran over to her. "Mama, we're so hungry," they both said.
She said lunch was coming. She walked into the kitchen. She opened a can of chicken soup.
She poured the soup into a pot. She added water. She put the pot on the stove. She made two
peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. She sliced an apple. The soup was hot. She poured it into
two bowls. She put the sandwiches on two plates. She put apple slices on each plate. She put
the bowls and plates on the table. The children ran to the table. "Thank you, mommy!" they
said. Then they started eating. The cat and the dog watched them eat.
MAKE A SANDWICH
The boy opened a jar of peanut butter. He spread the peanut butter onto a slice of bread.
Then he opened the refrigerator and took out a jar of grape jelly. He spread the jelly on top of
the peanut butter. He put the jar back into the refrigerator. He put another slice of bread on
top of the peanut butter and grape jelly. Now he had a sandwich. He opened the refrigerator
again. He poured himself a big glass of milk, and put the milk back into the refrigerator. He
put the sandwich on a plate. He carried the plate and the glass of milk over to the dining room
table. He sat down. He turned on the TV and took a big bite out of his sandwich.
A CAT AND A SQUIRREL
Evelyn had a cat. Her cat's name was Red. Red was a red cat. Red liked to chase things.
He chased balls. He chased butterflies. He chased squirrels. Evelyn had a yard. A tree was in
the middle of her yard. A squirrel lived in the tree. Red climbed the tree. He saw the squirrel.
The squirrel saw Red. The squirrel raised its tail. It chattered at Red. It said, "Click, click,
click." It told Red to go away. "This is my tree," the squirrel said. "Get out of my tree." Red

7. didn't understand the squirrel. Red didn't speak "squirrel." Red was a cat. He spoke "cat." Red
said, "Meow, meow, meow." He said, "Let's play. I will chase you. Then you will chase me."
The squirrel chattered some more. "Leave me alone, you crazy cat. Go play with the other
cats," it said.
Bug In A Bottle
Charlesfoundaglass bottle.He foundthe glassbottle inhisbackyard.It was a prettyglass
bottle.Itwasdark green.He lookedinside the darkgreenbottle.He couldn'tsee anything.He shook
the bottle.Somethingcame outof the bottle.Itlandedonthe ground.It wasa bug. Charlespicked
up the bug.He lookedatit.The bug lookedatCharles.Charlesputthe bottle backonthe ground.He
put the bug onthe ground,nexttothe bottle.The bugcrawledback intothe bottle.