Kate had butterflies in her stomach. Tonight was the nativity play; everything they'd rehearsed for the last month. Kate knew her lines and her song. She was fine with that. The problem was, they ... [+]
Kate had butterflies in her stomach. Tonight was the nativity play; everything they'd rehearsed for the last month. Kate knew her lines and her song. She was fine with that. The problem was, they ... [+]
It was a wonderfully quiet day at the art gallery. Paintings that were hundreds of years old lined the walls for all to enjoy. It was a wonderfully quiet day until . . . Honk! Everyone in the art ... [+]
I find Jackie in the garden, digging holes with a stick in a section of the flowerbed that's gone to weeds. "Whatcha doing, kiddo?""Planting dinosaur seeds," she says, beaming up at me. She uncurls ... [+]
My name is Zach, and I don't have a treehouse.
My new neighbor, Oliver, has an amazing treehouse built just for him. He's so lucky.
What I have is a stack of unread library books and a LOUD
... [+]
Elephants use their ears as fans;they're so much bigger than a man's.They scatter pesky flies with ease,and really stir up quite a breeze.This dog is called a Basset Hound.His tummy almost skims the ... [+]
Jai placed the newspapers he'd rolled and wrapped in plastic into a trailer attached to his bike. He put more papers in a canvas shoulder bag. It was early morning as he set off on his paper run. Most ... [+]
Ice cream at bedtime,
Aunt Betty's the best!
She knows in the summer
it's hard to find rest
when faced with hot sheets,
hot pillows, hot bed,
no place cool enough
to lay a hot
... [+]
Kitsy Boo hated his name.
"Kitsyyyyyyyyyyy," his owner, Marguerite, would call. "Boooooooooooooo!"
Every time the shaky old voice called for him, the other neighborhood animals would laugh.
... [+]
Phineas wished, for the two-thousand-three-hundred-and-twenty-third time, that he had a different name. His father was in the army, and the family moved fairly often. No, unfairly often. There was ... [+]
Bronagh's mother watched her toying with her food.
"Sit up straight, Bronnie," she chided, "and finish your dinner. Your father's ready to read you a story."
"I don't want to."
"Well, if you'd
... [+]
Vicky was a Viking,
one as brave as brave could be.
On land she was a legend,
but she didn't like the sea.
Boats made Vicky queasy
and the waves made her feel yuck.
She'd rather not go
... [+]
Sarah bounced as the SUV hit another rough patch on the dirt road into Silver City.
"Just look at this place!" her dad exclaimed, taking photos of one rundown building after another.
"You wanted
... [+]
Theofina's class had won a contest. The contest was for a special trip. They were going to go back to the time of the dinosaurs!
Theo was happy, excited, and worried. She wanted to be brave, but
... [+]
There are mountains hidden downstairs
in my grandpa's country house
with craggy granite boulders
no bigger than a mouse.
Little trees of twigs and moss
hug miniature ravines,
where
... [+]
SNORRRRR!
Jason sat up in his space bunk. What was that noise? It wasn't the wind. He'd heard and felt lots of Planet Purple Plum wind in the front yard that afternoon while Mia and he were
... [+]
Abby heard the car pull up. A flush of triumph rose in her chest. Bella was home from school! Now the gloating could begin!
Being twins, the sisters spent most of their time trying to out-do each
... [+]
Bobby didn't talk much in class. When he did speak, the other children often made fun of him because he stammered. His words just wouldn't come out right. They twisted around his tongue like slimy ... [+]
Nelson Packrat was a pack rat who lived in a small cave. One day his mother looked around the tunnels of their nest and thought it was time for a spring cleaning.
"Nelson, I can barely get into
... [+]