The Song and Dance Man

This is a story by Karen Acherman about a man who is an old-time entertainer. He can sing, dance and do funny things. How do you like the joke he tells?

THE SONG AND DANCE MAN begins to dance. His feet move slowly at first, while his tap shoes make soft, slippery sounds like rain on a tin roof.

We forget that it's Grandpa dancing, and all we can hear is the slippery tap of two feet, and all we can see is a song and dance man gliding across a stage.

He says, "Watch this!" and does a new step that sounds like a woodpecker tapping on a tree. Suddenly, his shoes move faster, and he begins to sing. His voice is as round and strong as a canyon echo, and his cheeks get rosy as he sings "Yankee Doodle Boy," a song he knows from the good old days.

There are too many dance steps and too many words in the song for us to remember, but the show is better than any show on TV. The song and dance man stops and leans forward with a wink.

"What's that in your ear?" he asks, and pulls a silver dollar out of somebody's hair.

He rolls his hat down his arm, catches it in his hand, and flips it back up onto his head.

"Know how to make an elephant float?" he asks. "One scoop of ice cream, two squirts of soda, and three scoops of elephant!" We've heard that joke before, but the song and dance man slaps his knee and laughs until his eyes water.

1. The person telling this story says "all we can see is a song and dance man gliding across a stage." At this moment the man

is dancing smoothly.
is clumsy.
is moving too quickly to be seen very well.
seems sad.

2. The author writes that the song and dance man's voice is "round and strong as a canyon echo." This means that

the man is singing about nature.
his song is very sad.
his voice is old and broken.
the man has a loud, sure voice.

3. What is special about the red hanky that the song and dance man pulls from his pocket?

It is made of silk.
There is a rabbit under it.
It gets longer as he pulls on it.
No one can see it.

4. Which of these words best describes the song and dance man?

Happy
Tired
Sad
Confused

5. This story is mainly about the Song and Dance man. This means he could be called

the plot of the story.
the main character of the story.
the story teller
the setting of the story.

An Amazing Meat Loaf

Not everyone is a great cook. At least, that's what you'd think if you read this poem by Jack Prelutsky.

My mother made a meat loaf
that provided much distress,
she tried her best to serve it,
but she met with no success,
her sharpest knife was powerless
to cut a single slice,
and her efforts with a cleaver
failed completely to suffice.
She whacked it with a hammer,
and she smacked it with a brick,
but she couldn't faze that meat loaf,
it remained without a nick.
I decided I would help her
and assailed it with a drill,
but the drill made no impression,
though I worked with all my skill.
We chipped at it with chisels,
but we didn't make a dent,
it appeared my mother's meat loaf
was much harder than cement,
then we set upon that meat loaf
with a hatchet and an ax,
but that meat loaf stayed unblemished
and withstood our fierce attacks.
We borrowed bows and arrows,
and we fired at close range,
it didn't make a difference,
for that meat loaf didn't change,
we beset it with a blowtorch,
but we couldn't find a flaw,
and we both were flabbergasted
when it broke the power saw.
We hired a hippopotamus
to trample it around,
but that meat loaf was so mighty
that it simply stood its ground,
now we manufacture meat loaves
by the millions, all year long,
they are famous in construction,
building houses tall and strong.

6. What do you think a cleaver is used for?

Chopping meat
Hammering nails
Mixing cookie dough
Cutting paper

7. Which of these things FIRST dented the meat loaf?

The ax
The arrows
The power saw
None of these made a dent in the meat loaf.

8. What is one way you can tell this is a poem?

It doesn't tell the characters' names
It has people and animals in it.
It is funny.
It rhymes.

9. Why did they try to use a hippopotamus to dent the meat loaf?

Hippopotamuses like meat.
Hippopotamuses have sharp teeth.
Hippopotamuses are friendly.
Hippopotamuses weigh a lot.

10. Why did the author PROBABLY write this poem?

To make readers laugh
To keep people from serving meat loaf
To show that some people just can't cook well
To tell about a new way to build houses

11. Which sentence BEST describes the way the poet felt about the meat loaf?

He thought it tasted delicious.
He was afraid the meat loaf would poison him.
He was surprised it was so strong.
He did not want to think about the meat loaf.

Cheesy Biscuits

If you like to cook, you might want to try this recipe from Susan Wohe's book called BUTTER.

Cheesy Biscuits (makes about 12 biscuits)

You will need:
2 cups flour
1/3 cup butter
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup cheddar cheese, grated

1. Put flour in bowl. Cut in butter.
2. Add baking powder, salt, milk, and grated cheese.
3. Stir the mixture just enough for the ingredients to be combined.
4. Use a rolling pin to roll out the dough so it's 1/2 inch thick.
5. Use a cookie cutter to cut circles into the dough.
6. Put the circles on a lightly greased baking sheet. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F and bake for 10 minutes or until brown.

12. How will you know when the cheesy biscuits are done?

They will be brown.
There will be about twelve of them.
They won't stick to the baking sheet.
The salt will dissolve.

13. Which of these do you put in the mixing bowl first?

Flour
Butter
Milk
Cheddar cheese

Which of these do you use LAST when making the biscuits?

Mixing bowl
Cookie cutter
Rolling pin
Teaspoon

Paper Cranes

Read this story, part of a larger book by Eleanor Coerr, called SADAKO AND THE THOUSAND PAPER CRANES. You will learn why Sadako began making many birds out of colorful paper.

THE NEXT MORNING Sadako woke up slowly. She listened for the familiar sound of her mother making breakfast, but there were only the new and different sounds of a hospital. Sadako sighed. She had hoped that yesterday was just a bad dream. It was even more real when Nurse Yasunaga came in to give her a shot.

"Getting shots is part of being in the hospital," the plump nurse said briskly. "You'll get used to it."

"I just want the sickness to be over with," Sadako said unhappily, "so I can go home."

That afternoon Chizuko was Sadako's first visitor. She smiled mysteriously as she held something behind her back. "Shut your eyes," she said. While Sadako squinted her eyes tightly shut, Chizuko put some pieces of paper and scissors on the bed. "Now you can look," she said.

"What is it?" Sadako asked, staring at the paper. Chizuko was pleased with herself. "I've figured out a way for you to get well," she said proudly. "Watch!" She cut a piece of gold paper into a large square. In a short time she had folded it over and over into a beautiful crane.

Sadako was puzzled. "But how can that paper bird make me well?" "Don't you remember the old story about the crane?" Chizuko asked. "It's supposed to live for a thousand years. If a sick person folds one thousand paper cranes, the gods will grant her wish and make her healthy again." She handed the crane to Sadako. "Here's your first one." Sadako's eyes filled up with tears. How kind of Chizuko to bring a good luck charm! Especially when her friend didn't really believe in such things. Sadako took the golden crane and made a wish. The funniest feeling came over her when she touched the bird. It must be a good omen.

"Thank you, Chizuko Chan," she whispered. "I'll never part with it."

When she began to work with the paper, Sadako discovered that folding a crane wasn't as easy as it looked. With Chizuko's help she learned how to do the difficult parts. After making ten birds, Sadako lined them up on the table beside the golden crane. Some were a bit lopsided, but it was a beginning.

"Now I have only nine hundred and ninety to make," Sadako said. With the golden crane nearby she felt safe and lucky. Why, in a few weeks she would be able to finish the thousand. Then she would be strong enough to go home.

15. Sadako's first gold crane

cost a lot of money.
showed that the nurse was wrong.
was folded by Chizuko.
meant that Sadako could go home soon.

16. Why does Sadako begin to make her own paper cranes?

To show what an artistic person she is
So that the nurse will leave her alone
So that Chizuko will still be her friend after she is well
Because she wants to believe that they will help her get well

17. Which sentence below is true about the characters in this story?

Nurse Yasunaga is the main character.
Sadako and Chizuko are the main characters.
Sadako's mother is the main character.
This story doesn't have any main characters.

18. This story takes place in a hospital. In this story, the hospital is the

talent.
setting.
stage.
cue.

19. Why do you think Chizuko shows Sadako how to make the paper cranes?

To make fun of Sadako
To give Sadako hope
So they can sell the cranes to pay the doctor
Because Chizuko believes the cranes have magic powers

Apples-a Fruit with Appeal

There is an old saying that "an apple a day keeps the doctor away." Besides being a fruit that is good for you, apples taste great, too! Learn some more about this fruit by reading part of the book APPLES by Rhoda Nottridge.

THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF DIFFERENT VARIETIES of apples in the world, and most people have their favorites. In the United States, just three varieties: Delicious (also called Red Delicious), Golden Delicious, and Macintosh make up more than half of all apples grown and marketed. Granny Smiths are favored by Australians and Argentinians. Cox's Orange Pippin has long been popular in England.

Apples can be divided into four groups. First there are small, sour-tasting apples called crab apples. Crab apples are not good to eat fresh, although jelly and jam can be made from some of them. There are apples used to make juice and cider and others used for baking and cooking. The best baking apples are often tart or bitter when raw but taste good when they have been cooked. The last type of apple is the dessert apple. Dessert apples vary in size, shape, and color, but all are good to eat right off the tree. Fruit growers combine the best apples in hybrid varieties. The orange-colored hybrid named Jonagold is a cross between a Jonathan and a Golden Delicious apple.

The Golden Delicious apple grew by chance from a seedling. In 1914, this sweet, yellow-colored apple was entered in a contest. It was so delicious that one of the judges tracked the tree down and bought it from the surprised West Virginia farmer for $5000. To protect his investment, the new owner had a burglar-proof steel cage fitted around the tree!

20. According to the story, apples can be divided into groups. How many groups does this story say we can divide apples into?

Two
Three
Four
More than five

21. The story doesn't say so, but the author probably thinks that

the United States grows the most apples.
apples are useful and interesting.
there are too many kinds of apples.
Australians should try a McIntosh apple.

22. What will probably happen to kids who read this story?

They will grow up to become apple farmers.
They will understand more about apples.
They won't ever have to go to the doctor.
They will travel to England to eat apples.

23. Which sentence below is true about the plot in this story?

This story doesn't really have a plot because the author wrote it to teach about apples.
The plot makes readers want to know what will happen next.
The plot is very frightening to children.
The plot is about the bad judge who got the golden tree.

24. What other kind of writing is this story about apples most like?

It is most like a play.
It is most like a poem.
It is most like a recipe.
It is most like a magazine article.

Your score is out of 24