Story & Picture by Jerri Lynn Spivey
It
was a hot summer day
in July. All the kids who lived in Shannon
Subdivision
planned a trip to go down to the park for the day.
Shelby lived in the middle of the
subdivision so the kids decided that her house would be the
place to
meet.
One
by one the kids arrived on
their bicycles. Everyone was there and
ready to go except for John. John was
always late. Anytime the kids planned a
day out, they would have to wait on John.
Everyone was really tired of doing this so they decided to leave
without
him.
The
park was only a couple of
blocks away so the kids were safe riding down by themselves as long as
they all
stayed together. Not really thinking
about John having to ride by himself, the kids jumped on their bikes
and
started on their way. They arrived at
the park, hopped off their bikes, and ran to the playground. All the kids were busy playing on the swings,
sliding down the slides, and some were playing on the merry-go-round. John had not crossed anyone’s mind.
Everyone
was getting
hungry so they decided to unpack their
lunches and eat. As they were
finishing
up Shelby thought about John. They all
began to wonder why he never made it to the park. After
a lot of discussion and complaining,
they decided they better cut their play time short and go home to check
on
him.
Much
to their surprise, when they
got back to Shelby’s house, John was waiting on the front porch.
He told them he had tried to go to the park
by himself but he got lost. He rode
around, not knowing where he was going, and ended up downtown. A
kind police officer spotted him and asked
if he needed help. John begged him to
help him find his way home. The police
officer called his mother and she went to the police station and picked
him
up.
John
told all the kids that he was
very sorry and that he would be sure to be on time from now on.
The kids were so glad that John was home
safe. They all hugged him and promised
not to leave him alone again.
Activity for Lesson Using
Critical Thinking
1. How would you change the main character? (Introduction)
2. Where would your story takes place? (Setting)
3. What would happen to the main character in your story? (Plot)
4. How would your story end? (Ending)
 Jerri Lynn's Home Page |
 jspivey@valdosta.edu |