Use the news: Holiday surprise
Lesson for grades K-4
The holidays are full of surprises, but none was bigger than what happened with the giant Christmas tree delivered to Rockefeller Center in New York City. Or rather, none was smaller.
Whenworkerswere setting up the 75-foot tree delivered from upstate New York, they discovered a tiny owl was clinging to its branches.
It had been there for days as the tree made itsway to the city, trappedwhen the tree’s branches had been tied up. At firstworkers thought it was a baby, but a call to a wildlife center put that idea to rest, since most owls hatch in the spring.
When Ellen Kalish of the RavensbeardWildlife Center saw the bird, she immediately knew it was a northern saw-whet, a type of owl that only grows to about 5 inches tall as an adult. “I thought itwas such a heartwarming Christmas story, that there was this secret in the Christmas tree,” Kalish told the New York Post newspaper.
The saw-whetwas taken to the wildlife center and released after it was checked out. Surprises often are in the news. Some are unfortunate surprises, but many are good.
Activity: In the newspaper or online, find and closely read a story about a good surprise that affected someone. Usewhat you read to write a paragraph or personal column telling howthe person reacted to the surprise and how you might have reacted if you had experienced it. Finish by writing a paragraph telling how you reacted to a good surprise that happened to you.