The Lantern Walk · The five-night book · ages 3-5
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Read by an AI-generated voice. The words on this page are the transcript.
The Lantern Waits
The hammer rang once. A spark jumped off the anvil and did not go out. It waited. They followed.
"Stop at the lane," said Bà Tư. "I'll watch from the door."
One lantern. One light.
Who walks with Tí tonight?
Ring, ring! The baker's bicycle came, slow and wobbly.
Tí wanted to run. Now!
"I do," said Mem. "I'll keep it in my head."
"Stop, look, go. Say it with me."
Stop, look, go. I keep it.
One lantern. One light.
Who walks with Tí tonight?
"I do," said Hopp. Hopp's feet wanted to go.
"Stop! Freeze!" said Hopp. Still as a stone.
Tí hung the lantern on the gate. His hands were free to wait.
The gate had a mended latch. A tiny hammer was scratched by it. A child mended it, long ago.
Wait. Wait. The bicycle went by.
"Now go!" said Hopp.
Stop, look, go. I keep it.
Stop. Wait. Now go!
One lantern. One light.
Who walks with Tí tonight?
"I do," said Stepp, at the ditch.
"First this stone. Then that one."
One stone. Two stones. Three. All in order.
Stop, look, go. I keep it.
Stop. Wait. Now go!
First this stone, then that.
One lantern. One light.
Three friends walk Tí home tonight.
Tí took the lantern off the gate.
"Stop, look, go," said Tí, all by himself. He looked both ways.
Then he stepped one, two, three. Home.
The spark dimmed to a warm dot and settled back on the anvil. The Green was just the Green again.
Back on the Green
At the shop door Tí wanted to run in. He stopped. He waited for Bà Tư's hand. Then go!
Cut out the last lantern panel. Fold all four into a lantern. Tell the story back. Who waited hardest?
Who you met
-
Bà Tư The grandmother who hands over the lantern from VầnTots -
Tí a child of the Green Notices small things; says "again" -
Hopp Stop on stop, go on go — waiting is the hardest job from ReadyRoos -
Mem Hold a little string of words in mind and bring it back from ReadyRoos -
Stepp Lay the steps in order before you cross from ReadyRoos
Every recurring character has a short tune, so you can tell who is on stage before a word is said. The tunes play only when you tap, and the Reading Access sound switch turns them off.
The Honest Page
Which parts of this story are true, stretched or made up?
True
Stretched
- Tí crosses the lane with friends, and Bà Tư watches from the door. What we simplified: Little children always cross a real road holding a grown-up's hand.
Made up
- Hopp, Mem and Stepp are made up. Kangaroos, elephants and beavers do not live on the Green.