Hopwell
SEND A SCOUT TO FIND OUT
Loading audio…
Press play to listen along. The line being read lights up as you go.
Show full transcript
Loading transcript…
Hopwell is a grey-and-white hare with very tall ears. His ears are so tall that he can hear the grass growing. Hopwell is always the first to say, "I'll go and look!"
In the hiding game, the other village's pieces are all turned face down. You cannot tell which one is a bear, which one is a bramble, and which one is the Moonstone. The only way to find out is for two pieces to meet.
But meeting a big piece means going home.
"Who will go first?" asked Lupa one evening, looking at a hidden piece by the pond.
"Not me," said Ursa. "If that's a bramble, I'll pop."
"Not me," said Burdock. "We need me for the brambles."
Hopwell's ears went straight up. "I'll go!" he said. "I'm small and quick. If I go home, it's not a big loss. And everybody will learn who is hiding there."
He felt a little wobbly in his tummy. Going first is brave. You might go home. But Hopwell also felt helpful, and that felt good.
He hopped over. Bump. Both pieces turned face up.
It was a wolf. Hopwell went home, with a happy little wave.
"Now we know!" said Ursa. "It's a wolf. And I can tag a wolf." She went over and tagged it home.
Back in his burrow, Hopwell grinned. He had gone home, but the Moss village knew more than before. Going first had been his gift.
That is Hopwell's job. A small, quick piece goes first to find out what a hidden piece is. Even when he goes home, his friends learn something they could not have learned any other way.
The HollowPals ensemble
Hopwell is one of the friends in HollowPals. Each friend shows you one idea by how they act; meet them all and you have the whole subject.
-
Ursa
A big bear - the strongest; she tags anyone home except Puck, if he reaches her first
-
Lupa
A wolf - next biggest; only Ursa is bigger, and a bramble pops her too
-
Puck
A tiny mouse - the smallest, but he tickles Ursa home when HE strikes first
-
Burdock
A badger - the only one who can clear a bramble
-
Skipwell
A hare - runs many squares in a straight line, so moving far gives him away
-
Briar
A bramble - never moves; anyone who bumps her goes home, except Burdock
