Reading
Henry
and Mudge under the Yellow Moon
Rylant,
Cynthia
In
the fall, Henry and his big dog Mudge took long walks in the woods. Henry loved
looking at the tops of the trees. He liked the leaves: orange, yellow, brown,
and red. Mudge loved sniffing at the ground. And he liked the leaves, too. He
always ate a few. In the fall, Henry liked counting the birds flying south.
Mudge liked watching for busy chipmunks. Since one was a boy and the other was
a dog they never did things just the same way. Henry picked apples and Mudge
licked apples. Henry put on a coat and Mudge crew one. And when the fall wind
blew, Henry’s ears turned red and Mudge’s ears turned inside out. But one thing
about them was the same. In the fall Henry and Mudge liked being together, most
of all.
Henry
loved Halloween. He loved to make jack-o’- lanterns. He loved to make paper
bats. And most of all he loved to dress up. But there was one thing bout
Halloween Henry did not like: ghost stories. And Henry’s mother loved to tell
ghost stories. Every Halloween she put on her witch’s hat, lit candles, and
told ghost stories. She thought Henry liked them because he told her he liked
them. But really he hated them. They scared him. He was afraid to tell her
that. But this year Henry had Mudge. Mudge would be with him. Henry would not
be afraid of the ghost stories. So Halloween night Henry’s mother put on her
hat and lit her candles. She invited Henry and Mudge and some of Henry’s
friends to listen to ghost stories. It was dark outside. A big yellow moon was
in the sky. It was dark inside, except for the candles and one jack-o’-lantern.
Henry got close to Mudge on the floor. Henry’s mother began.
First
she told a story about a man who lot his head. Henry shook. His friends shook.
Then she told a story about a cat in a graveyard. The candles made shapes on
the walls. Henry shook harder. Then Henry’s mother began telling a story about
a pair of shoes that went looking for someone’s feet. The shoes, she said, came
out only at night. And they walked up and down the streets, looking. “You could
hear them,” she said softly. “They went CLICK…CLICK…CLICK…CLICK.” Henry’s
mother tapped her own shoed on the floor. “CLICK…CLICK…CLICK,” she whispered.
But when she stopped tapping, Henry still heard something. Something in the
room. Something in the room under the yellow moon. Henry held his breath.
Something went CLICK…CLICK …CLICK…CLICK. But faster. Henry’s whole body shook.
It was someone walking faster and faster. CLICK-CLICK-CLICK-CLICK-CLICK-CLICK.
What was it? Henry’s mother bent down. “Mudge?’ she said. Henry knew his mother
was scared, too, if she needed Mudge. “Mudge?” she said again. The clicking got
louder. The shoes are coming! thought Henry. He put his head in Mudge’s neck. Now
the clicking was louder than ever. “Mudge,” Henry’s mother said, “stop
chattering.” Chattering? Henry put his ear near Mudge’s mouth. And Mudge’s
teeth went CLICKCLICK-CLICK-CLICK-CLICK-CLICK. It wasn’t a pair of shoes! It
was Mudge! And he was more scared of the yellow moon and the dark room and the
witch’s stories than anybody else! Poor Mudge, thought Henry. Henry stopped
shaking and put his arms around Mudge’s big head and held Mudge tight. Then
they listened to the next story about a chair that rocked all by itself. But
Mudge clicked all the way to the end.
In
November, Henry’s Aunt Sally always came. She came one week before
Thanksgiving. She left one week after Thanksgiving. That is why Henry did not
like Thanksgiving. Because Henry did not like Aunt Sally. She talks too much,
Henry thought. She eats too much, Henry thought. She hogs the TV, Henry
thought. Henry wishes Aunt Sally would stay home. Aunt Sally had not yet seen
Henry’s dog Mudge. I bet she hates dogs, Henry thought. Oh, how he wished Aunt
Sally would stay home. But she didn’t.
She
came one week before Thanksgiving, right on time. Aunt Sally came into Henry’s
house. She was talking and talking and talking. She went right into the kitchen
with Henry’s father. Henry knew what Aunt Sally would be doing in the kitchen.
Henry went in the backyard to find Mudge. At last, Henry thought that Aunt
Sally must be finished talking and eating. So he went back inside with Mudge.
They walked into the kitchen. Aunt Sally was still eating. “Good grief!” she
yelled. Henry and Mudge stepped back. I knew she’d hate dogs, Henry thought.
Aunt Sally looked at Mudge. “Good grief!” she said again. But then she took a
cracker off her plate. She threw it to Mudge. SNAP! went Mudge’s mouth. And the
cracker was gone. Henry looked at Mudge. Henry looked at Aunt Sally. “Great
dog,” Aunt Sally said. She put a cracker in her own mouth. “Want one?” she
asked Henry. “Sure,” said Henry.
He
sat down with Aunt Sally. She still ate too much. She still talked too much.
But all of her talk this time was about Mudge. And that was different. Aunt
Sally talked about Mudge’s sweet eyes. She talked about Mudge’s strong chest.
She talked about Mudge’s soft fur. She talked about Mudge’s good manners. And
she fed Mudge lots of crackers. This year, Henry knew, he was going to like
Thanksgiving. This year, Henry knew, he really had something to be thankful
for!
Activity #1
Phonics activity:
After reading the story develop the following phonics activity.
Long Vowels /a/ /i/ write the words where they belong.
Word Bank
Grade
|
Time
|
Wide
|
Gaze
|
Mile
|
Crate
|
Slide
|
Blame
|
a _ e as in skate
|
i _ e as in pride
|
1. _________________
|
1. _______________
|
2. _________________
|
2. _______________
|
3. _________________
|
3. _______________
|
4. _________________
|
4. _______________
|
Activity #2
Grammar: Statements and Questions
Statements:
- A statement is a sentence that tells something
- A statement begins with a capital letter and ends with a period.
Write each statement correctly
1. josh and his family live near the wood.
2. They have a dog and two goldfish.
3. josh takes a bus to school.
4. dad drives to work.
5. the playground is crowded today.
This video is about the story "Henry and Mudge under the Yellow Moon." Rylant, Cynthia.
Authors of that class:
Gabriela Morales
Eva Pinto
Rubén Miranda
