Preview
Copywork
About This Passage
Selected because Owl talks himself into a kindness that turns out to be a mistake. Lobel teaches dialogue punctuation here, and the copywork shows how a character can sound very wise and very wrong at the same time. Notice the soft word "perhaps" — Owl is guessing, not knowing.
"The poor old winter is knocking at my door," said Owl. "Perhaps it wants to sit by the fire. Well, I will be kind and let the winter come in."
Full copywork activity with handwriting lines available in the complete study guide.
Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
Tell someone what happened in this story in order. When you get to the most important part, slow down and tell it carefully — what happened, why it mattered, and what you think about it.
Discussion Questions
- Owl hears a loud sound at the door. Twice he opens the door and sees no one — only snow and wind. The third time he decides to invite the wind in like a guest. Why does Owl decide to invite Winter in instead of bolting the door against the cold? What in the story makes you think so?
- Owl says he wants to be kind to Winter, but Winter does not act like a polite guest. It blows out the fire, turns the soup to ice, and covers the house with snow. Was Owl wrong to be kind, or was he kind to the wrong thing? What in the story makes you think so?
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Critical Thinking
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