Nature’s rainbow

JAYDEN read the assignment and shook his head. “No way can we find all these colours in nature.” Miss Snyder smiled. “If you look hard enough, you will.” She motioned for Jayden to follow the tour guide down nature trail.

Jayden looked around. Some of the colours were easy to spot. The grass was green. The dirt was brown.

And since it was autumn, the leaves were all sorts of oranges, yellows, and reds. But where was he going to find purple and blue?

“How many colours did you find,” Allie asked him. “Five. How about you?”

“Six.”

“Did you find blue yet?” Jayden tried to peek at Allie’s paper.

“Hey, no copying.” Allie walked away.

Jayden sighed as the tour guide talked about the different kinds of trees. He wasn’t the least bit interested. He just wanted to finish the assignment.

“How are you doing, Jayden?” Miss Snyder asked. “Okay, I guess. But what in nature is blue or purple?” He shrugged. “My pen has blue ink. Does that count? I’m outside using it.”

“Sorry, Jayden. Keep looking.”

“I am. All I see are two blank spots on my paper because I can’t think of the answers.”

“You’d find more colours if you spent less time focusing on your paper and more time looking around you.” Miss Snyder walked away, leaving Jayden thinking this was one assignment he wasn’t going to get an A on.

The tour guide started talking about fish, and Jayden picked his eyes up from his paper.

He heard the tinkling of a small stream flowing next to him. “The water looks blue,” he said, not realising he was talking out loud.

“Yes, it reflects the colour of the sky,” the tour guide said.

The sky! Why didn’t he think of that sooner? The sky and the stream were blue. He wrote both answers on his paper, hoping he’d get extra credit for it since he still couldn’t find purple.

They continued their nature walk through a more dense part of the woods. Leaves littered the ground. Jayden saw Allie up ahead and rushed over to her. “I found six colours, but I still can’t find purple.” “You aren’t looking hard enough.”

“Yes, I am.”

“Really?” She lowered her eyes to the ground. Reddish leaves surrounded them.

Jayden picked one up. “These are red, not —” He stopped when he saw the back of the leaf. “The back is purple.”

“Yup.” Allie walked away.

“So, Jayden,” Miss Snyder said, “did you find all the colours?”

“Yeah. But I bet there are even more. I’m going to look.” He continued turning over leaves, trying to find even more colours in nature’s rainbow.

1. Where does this story take place? a. in the woods behind Jayden’s house b. behind the school c. on a class field trip to a local farm d. on a class field trip to the woods

2. When does this story take place? a. in the spring b. in autumn c. during winter d. during summer Tell why you chose the answer above.

3. Describe the assignment that Jayden was trying to complete.

4. Explain why Jason thought he could count his pen as an object in nature. a. because he was outside when he was using it b. because it was green, like the grass to tint red has that colour c) hurried d) thick b) mirrors else; something of image an shows f.) reflects 5. river small brook, creek, a) stream 4. to attention paying e.) focusing 3. quickly look to g.) peek 2. teacher a by given task h.) assignment 1. words Matching it reddish 8. rushed 7. dense 6.

5. What two blue items did Jayden have on his list? Match each vocabulary word on the left with the definition on the right.

1. assignment

2. peek

3. focusing

4. stream

5. reflects

6. dense

7. rushed 8. reddish

a. creek; brook; small river b. thick c. colour that has a red tint to it d. hurried e. paying attention to f. shows an image of

something else; mirrors g. to look quickly without

being noticed h. task given by a teacher sky the and water 5. nature in things from made was it because c.) grass the like green, was it because b.) 4. colour. each for nature in something find needed He colours. of list a given was He3. around. all leaves coloured are there and autumn it’s says story the of paragraph third The autumn in b.) 2. woods the to trip field class a on d.) 1. to c. because it was made from things in nature d. because he thought the teacher wouldn’t notice