Hello, my amazing reading friends! Are you ready for a fun Halloween story? Let’s meet Percel P. Pumpkin. Halloween is his favorite time of the year, but this time, something feels different. Percel has lost his smile, and he doesn’t know why. Let’s find out what happens in the story “Grumpy Pumpkin.”
Halloween was almost here, and Percel was excited for the Pick a Pumpkin for Your Porch event. He cleaned himself up to look bright and shiny, just like a star. But when he woke up the next day, his smile was gone! Even though he felt happy inside, his face didn’t show it.
At the event, people noticed Percel’s frown and called him a “grumpy pumpkin.” Percel tried to smile, but it was hard. No one picked him to be their pumpkin, and he felt sad and frustrated.
Then, Percel met a little girl named Panie. She had a frown on her face but a smile in her eyes. Panie understood how Percel felt because people thought she was grumpy too. She called her smile a “crooked smile” and said they would make a great pair: pumpkin and princess.
Panie taught Percel how to show his feelings without yelling. She showed him how to take deep breaths and count backwards from 10 when he felt upset. With practice, Percel learned to express his feelings in a better way.
Percel found a friend in Panie who understood him. They both loved each other just the way they were, with their crooked and wonky smiles. Percel learned that it’s okay to feel different and that true friends love you for who you are inside.
I hope you enjoyed our story today. Remember, it’s okay to feel grumpy sometimes, but there are ways to feel better. Happy Halloween! See you next time!
Feelings Faces: Let’s explore different emotions just like Percel and Panie. Gather some paper plates and markers. Draw different faces showing various emotions like happy, sad, angry, and surprised. Hold up each plate and ask the children to mimic the emotion. Discuss how we can show our feelings in different ways, just like Percel learned to do.
Breathing Buddies: Practice the deep breathing technique Panie taught Percel. Give each child a small stuffed animal to place on their belly. Have them lie down and watch their “breathing buddy” rise and fall as they take deep breaths. This helps them learn how to calm down when feeling grumpy or upset.
Emotion Walk: Go on a walk around the classroom or playground. Ask the children to observe and describe things that make them feel happy, excited, or even grumpy. Encourage them to share their thoughts and relate them to how Percel felt in the story. This activity helps them connect their emotions to real-life experiences.
Sure! Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript:
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Hello, my amazing reading friends! It’s Anie. I’m so glad you came to read with me. Are you ready for a Halloween story? It’s almost Halloween, and Percel P. Pumpkin’s favorite time of the year is here. But this year doesn’t feel like the others; he’s lost his smile and doesn’t know why. Will people judge him for how he looks on the outside instead of who he is on the inside? Let’s find out as we read “Grumpy Pumpkin.” If you have a copy, go get it so you can read along with me!
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“Grumpy Pumpkin,” written by Michael Cipic and Lenin N. Ceric, illustrated by Izzy B.
Halloween was only days away, but tomorrow was the biggest day of all! “Yay!” shouted Percel P. Pumpkin. It was finally time for the Pick a Pumpkin for Your Porch event on October 24th. Percel put on the finishing touches; he scrubbed himself up to an orange glow and made sure his pumpkin stem was perfectly straight. He picked out his super stencil smile and thought he looked as shiny and bright as a star. He went to sleep early to be ready for his big day.
But when he woke up, his super stencil smile was gone. He didn’t know where it went because he still felt happy and excited; his face just wasn’t showing it. Percel tried everything he could to get his smile back, but it never came. He couldn’t wait any longer and had to go with the frown that made him feel down.
When Percel arrived at the Pick a Pumpkin event, it was packed. As he made his way to the patch with the other pumpkins, he heard, “Oh, look at the grumpy pumpkin! Is that his smile? Oh my, a grumpy pumpkin! What’s he doing here?” Percel tried to smile to show his true self, but he couldn’t. He waited anyway, like the other pumpkins, but nobody in the neighborhood picked him to be their pumpkin. He became frustrated and began to yell, “I’m not a grumpy pumpkin! I just lost my smile! I’m a happy pumpkin!” But everyone was gone.
Percel didn’t know what else to do. He realized he wasn’t picked because of how he looked on the outside, not how he felt on the inside. Then he noticed a child watching him that he hadn’t seen earlier. The little girl had a frown on her face but a smile in her eyes. She sat down next to him and said, “I can tell you’re not a grumpy pumpkin, but nobody really heard you; they just heard yelling. People think I’m grumpy too because sometimes it’s hard for me to smile, but I like to call it my crooked smile. My name’s Panie, and it means princess. I’m not actually a princess, but I feel like one sometimes. I just don’t show it, just like you. We’d make a great pair, pumpkin and princess.”
Panie continued, “I used to yell a lot, and like you, nobody really listened. Then I learned a different way to show my feelings. I can show you if you’d like, but you must practice. Practice makes improvement.”
Percel tried his hardest to smile, but he knew he missed it by a mile; his frown remained. However, Panie knew he could come home with her. “You’ll be my pumpkin, and I’ll be your princess.”
First, Percel learned to recognize the signs of feeling angry or sad. When he felt like that, he took deep breaths and expressed his feelings, or he counted backwards from 10. With Panie’s help and lots of practice, Percel learned how not to yell. Panie loved him for his crooked smile, and he loved her for her wonky one. They both loved themselves just as they were.
Percel found a friend who understood exactly how he felt. I hope you enjoyed our story today. Happy Halloween! See you next time!
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