Once upon a time, there was a little letter “i” who woke up to the sound of the alphabet song. It was the last day of alphabet school, and little “i” was excited to see his friends on the playground.
But when he got there, little “g,” little “p,” and little “s” noticed something was missing. “Little ‘i,’ where is your dot?” they asked. Little “i” looked everywhere, but his dot was gone!
All the letters gathered around to help. “Don’t worry,” they said, “we’ll find you a new dot!” They tried all sorts of things: an acorn, a balloon, a donut, and even a yo-yo, but nothing felt right.
At the end of the day, little “i” saw his dad, Capital “I.” “I lost my dot,” little “i” said sadly. Capital “I” smiled and said, “You left it on your pillow, but maybe you don’t need it anymore. You’ve grown up!” Little “i” stretched out and saw his shadow. “Look, Daddy! I’m just like you now!”
Blue was a quiet color who loved the sky and the sea. But sometimes, Red, a hothead, would tease Blue, saying, “Red is hot; Blue is not.” This made Blue feel sad.
One day, a new color named One came along. He was different and made everyone laugh. Red didn’t like this and tried to stop them, but One stood up and said, “No.”
Inspired by One, Yellow, Green, Purple, and Orange stood up too. Blue saw this and decided to stand tall, saying, “Red can be hot, but Blue is cool!” Together, they showed Red that everyone could be friends.
Where are you? Are you reading a book or knitting a sock? Maybe you’re riding a porpoise or eating spaghetti with a yeti!
Sometimes, we feel a little blue, but that’s okay. We can always find new adventures and friends to cheer us up. Remember, you can choose where you want to be and what makes you happy!
Welcome to the world of poop! It might sound yucky, but poop is important. Animals use it to mark their territory, and farmers use it to help plants grow.
Did you know that some people even use poop to build houses or make fires? It’s true! Poop is more useful than you might think.
Oh no! It’s a very cold day, and the numbers are freezing! Can you help warm them up by counting? One, two, three, four… Look, the ice is melting!
Keep counting, and soon the numbers will be warm and happy again. You did it! Thanks for saving the day!
Mikey was planning his birthday party and couldn’t decide what food to serve. Should it be pizza, tacos, or maybe fried rice?
His friend Sophia had a great idea: why not have both Chinese and Italian food? Mikey loved the idea and served fried rice with marinara sauce. It was a hit, and everyone loved it!
Sometimes, we’re opposites. I might be up while you’re down, or I’m fast while you’re slow. But that’s what makes us special!
Even though we’re different, we can still be friends and have fun together.
Our classroom is like a family. We spend lots of time together, learning and playing. We help each other and make sure everyone feels welcome.
Even if we have tough days, we stick together and support one another. We’re a classroom family, and that’s something special!
Remember, no matter what, you’ll always be loved. Whether you’re happy, sad, or anything in between, love is always there for you.
Find Your Dot Adventure: Just like little “i” lost his dot, let’s go on a treasure hunt! Hide small objects like buttons or stickers around the classroom or playground. Ask the children to find them and place them on a paper “i” they draw themselves. Discuss how it feels to find something that’s missing and how friends can help us when we lose something.
Color Friends Experiment: Using watercolors or colored pencils, let the children mix colors to see what new colors they can create. Encourage them to think about how different colors can work together, just like Blue and his friends. Ask them, “What happens when Blue and Yellow mix? How about Red and Blue?” This will help them understand the concept of teamwork and diversity.
Opposites Game: Play a game where you call out an action, and the children do the opposite. For example, if you say “up,” they should crouch down. If you say “fast,” they should move slowly. After the game, discuss how being different can be fun and how opposites can complement each other, just like in the story “You and Me, We’re Opposites.”
Sure! Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript, removing any unnecessary or inappropriate content while maintaining the essence of the story:
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[Applause] The little “i” who lost his dot. [Music] The alarm clock rang to the alphabet song. Little “i” sat up, stretched, and rubbed his eyes. Last day of alphabet school. [Music] He saw his letter friends on the playground and hurried to join them. [Music]
Little “g” gasped, little “p” pointed, and little “s” stared. “Little ‘i’,” they said, “where is your dot?” Little “i” looked up. [Music] He looked to the left, he looked to the right, but his dot was gone. “What will you do without your dot?” little “a” asked. [Music]
Little “w” whimpered, and little “h” handed her a hanky. All of the letters crowded around little “i.” “Don’t worry,” they said, “we’ll help you find a new dot.” The school bell rang; it was time to make words. [Music]
All the little letters scrambled into school, but little “i’s” friends didn’t forget their plan. [Music] When they got to the classroom, the letters looked around. [Music]
“Oh,” little “a” asked, “how about this acorn?” Little “b” burst forward with a balloon. “Oh,” little “c” cried, “try on this clock!” Little “d” dashed over with a donut. [Music] Little “e” exclaimed, “An egg is exactly what you need!” Little “f” followed with a flower. Little “g” giggled when he found a gumball. Little “h” handed over a hula hoop. Little “j” joked, “How about a jumping bean?” Little “k” knew the answer: “A kiwi!” [Music]
Little “l” lit the line with a light bulb. Little “m” made her way over with a marble. [Music] Little “n” nodded to a music note. [Applause] Little “o” opted for an oyster shell. [Music] Little “p” presented a pretzel. [Music] Little “q” questioned, “How about this quarter?” Oh! [Music] Little “r” raced over with a ring. [Music]
Whoa! Little “s” scared him with a spider. [Music] Little “t” thought a thumbtack would do. [Music] Little “u” urged him to carry an umbrella. [Music] Little “v” ventured forward with a valentine. [Music] Little “w” walked over with a wheel. [Music] Little “x’s” extra special idea was an xylophone mallet. [Music] Little “y” yelled, “Wear this yo-yo!” [Music] Little “z,” always last, zoomed over with a zebra.
Little “i” tried them all on, but nothing felt right. [Music] When school ended, all the little letters went out to where their parents were gathered. [Music] Little “i” saw his father and sniffed back tears. “I lost my dot.” Oh! [Music]
Capital “I” smiled. “No, little ‘i,’ you didn’t lose your dot. You left it on your pillow this morning. I brought it along, but since today is the last day of school and you’ve grown up, I’m not sure you need it anymore. What do you think? Do you really think I’m ready to be a big ‘I’?” [Music]
Capital “I” nodded. “Stretch out your arms and point out your feet.” [Music] Little “i” did, and when he saw his shadow on the ground, he smiled. [Music] “Daddy, look! Just like you! I can start a sentence now!” [Music]
[Music]
Blue was a quiet color. He enjoyed looking up at the sky, floating on the waves, and on days he felt daring, splashing in rain puddles. [Music] Every once in a while, he wished he could be more sunny like yellow, lovely to meet you, or bright like green, more regal like purple, or outgoing like orange. But overall, he liked being blue, except when he was with red.
Red was a hothead. He liked to pick on blue. “Red is great,” he’d say. “Red is hot; blue is not.” Then blue would feel bad about being blue. Sometimes yellow comforted blue. “Blue is a very nice color,” she’d say, but yellow never said that in front of red. She never said, “Stop picking on blue.” Green, purple, and orange thought blue was nice too, but they never told red to stop either.
Every time red said something mean and no one spoke up, he got bigger and bigger. [Music] So red grew so big that everyone was afraid of him. No one dared stop him. Red picked on all the colors, and then everyone felt a little blue. [Music]
Until one came. He had a different shape with bold strokes and squared corners. He was funny; he made the colors laugh. [Music] Red saw this and got very hot. “Stop laughing!” he told yellow. “Stop laughing!” he told green. “Stop laughing!” he told purple and orange, and they did. Red rolled up to one. “Stop laughing!” he told him. But one stood up straight like an arrow and said, “No.”
Red was mad, but one wouldn’t budge. So red rolled away. [Music] He turned to the colors and said, “If someone is mean and picks on me, if for one, stand up and say no.” Then yellow felt brave and said, “Me too!” [Music]
Green agreed and said, “Three!” Three! Oh! Then purple became four, and orange became five. [Music] Blue saw the colors change. He wanted to count. [Music] Red grew red hot. He felt left out. He grew hotter and hotter and hotter. [Music]
Red raced over to blue and said what he always did: “Red is hot; blue is not.” This time blue stood up tall and became six. “Red can be really hot,” he said, “but blue can be super cool.” [Music]
But everyone took a stand and said no. [Music] Seeing them standing tall made red feel very, very small. [Music] Then red turned even redder and began rolling away. Blue called out, “Can red be hot and blue be cool?” Red stopped in his tracks. “Can count two,” said one. Red rocked and rolled and turned into a…
Everyone counted! They shouted. [Music] Then red laughed and joined the sun. [Music]
[Music]
Where are you? By Jonathan Sundy. Where are you lounging in my nook, reading a good book? Where are you sitting on a cinder block, knitting me a winter sock? Where are you having a yummy plump plum with my lumpy stump chum? Where are you riding George the gorgeous porpoise past enormous surging orcas? Where are you getting ready to slurp spaghetti with Freddy Gazetti, the sweaty yeti?
Where are you riding on the back of a giraffe gone quackers while snacking on a pack of alpaca-shaped crackers? Where are you surfing on a blue spruce with old rusty meduse? But my trusty goose noose feels a wee bit blue. [Music]
Oh, a wee bit blue. Where are you, Goofy? I’m here in this box, safe from hard knocks. Do you want to come play? Not right now, I’m afraid. We could snack on the way. I think I’ll just stay.
If they hear where you are, isn’t the where that you want? Don’t sit where you are feeling glum on your bum. Get up and start working to change where you’re from. Because bruises and gooses and fears and excuses can’t stop you from living the life that you choose.
Where are you? Oh, sorry for skipping the end of your speech. I had to rescue an Eskimo lost on the beach. Then I wrote a hit song about butternut squashes. Now I’m testing some specks on my rocket galoshes. Thanks for the boost. [Music]
The end. [Music]
The inside scoop on every type and use of poop. Peek-a-boo! I’m Professor Pip Poop Deck. Welcome aboard! We’re exploring a substance that most have ignored. [Music]
An icky pool subject folks don’t care to visit. Quite putrid and shocking and horrid, is it? Poop is yucky. Poop is foul. Step in poop and you will howl. A fine specimen! [Music]
To read this book, you must be strong. Just hold your nose and come along. [Music]
Everyone poops, yes, it’s true. From odd box to the humped zebu. [Music]
And every creature in between, it’s simply part of life’s routine. [Music]
Boom boom! Poop, our baby’s words for number two. [Music]
Guano is an Incan word for poop of bat or ocean bird. [Music]
Poop from critters is called dung, and monkey dung is sometimes flung. [Music]
Look out! Oh dear, my helmet! Monkeys fling when under stress; it helps the monkey decompress. So if a monkey aims at you, duck behind a friend or two. [Music]
Your dog may bark to drop a clue. She needs to do her doggy doo. [Music]
Look how tiny! [Music]
Now poop pops up in many styles, from fly specks to great hippo piles. Beautiful rabbit pellets, raccoon tubes, owl whitewash, and wombat cubes. [Music]
See? Everywhere you look! Camel poop is desert dry; wet poop comes from birds on high. A thought to fill us all with dread: “Oh, will that bird poop on my head?” Look out! [Music]
Drum roll please! [Laughter] Let’s introduce the many ways dung is of use. [Music]
The termites found above the ground poop to make a mighty mound. [Music]
Down beetles roll it into balls to gobble up when hunger calls. Guess how critters who feast on fruits help these plants to put down roots? [Music]
Seeds inside a critter’s poop might go as far as Guadalupe. [Music]
Poop is helpful on the trail. Is it bad or is it quailsome? Use poop to mark their scent and let them know which way they went. Or poop deposits may convey, “This is my turf; stay away!”
Run! He means business! Poop enriches soil that’s poor; grow umpteen beans and greens galore. [Music]
If your crops are small and fewer, hey farmer, have you tried manure? [Music]
Around the world, some folks you’ll meet use dung for cooking and for heat. [Music]
More s’mores! [Music]
The Mongol yurt, a native shack, is often sealed with dung of yak. [Music]
A Maasai tribesman proudly struts before a row of cow dung huts. [Music]
Moose poop makes great souvenirs; wear it dangling from your ears. May I have two, please? Some county fairs have just the thing: a thrill-filled, skill-filled cow pie fling. [Music]
Look at that count! Now you have the inside scoop on every type and use of poop. Not merely gross, revolting, vile; yes, poop can surely be worthwhile.
Why should such wondrous stuff offend us? Poop is truly quite us. [Music]
Hip-hop hooray! [Music]
The very cold, freezing, no-number day. [Music]
Um… [Music] [Laughter] [Music] [Applause]
No one’s counting; we’ve been forgotten, left out in the cold. No birthdays, no growing, no clocks, unless we warm up time stops. [Music]
Quick! Help warm us up! Count every number on this page and see what happens next: one, two, three, four. Look at that! The ice has melted, and we’re a checkered mix of blue and green.
We’ve stopped shivering, and new grass is growing. Keep counting; it’s working! Five, six, seven, eight. We’re sunshine yellow, and all kinds of things are sprouting.
If you trace us gently and count us aloud, we’ll warm up even more. Give it a try! [Music]
You’ve done it! We’re tiger-striped orange this time. After you count us aloud, give us a gentle flow of warm air. [Music]
Just to see if it helps: thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen. [Music] [Applause]
Here’s an idea: try all three! Do you think you can count us out loud? Trace us with your finger and blow on us softly. Try it and see: thirteen, fourteen.
It’s working! Keep going! Fifteen! [Music]
You did it! You did it! We’re red hot! You saved us all from a very cold, freezing, no-number day. [Music]
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen. [Music]
Fried rice and marinara. Young Mikey M dances to his front door. “Mom, do you know I’m about to turn four? All of my friends will come over and play. Then piles of presents will fill our driveway. We’ll have a huge cake, and my buddies will say, ‘Your party was perfect! Hip hip hooray!’”
Mikey’s mom smiled as he finished his speech. “Your plan is fantastic, my sweet little peach, but no celebration is ever complete until you’ve decided what you want to eat.”
Her statement stopped him dead in his tracks. Food, of course! Every party needs snacks. Well, pizza is something that everyone loves, but tacos fit in your hand like a glove. Burgers and hot dogs are easy to eat, but pork and fried rice is such a nice treat.
He needed a guru, a trusted grub guide. Maybe my grannies can help me decide. “What food did you have for your birthday?”
“Babu in Hong Kong, Chinese food is all that we knew.”
“Huh? No! Do you know what food you would choose?”
“My roots are Italian, so pasta can’t lose.”
Chinese or Italian, both are delicious! He remembered his cousin’s birthday dishes. For the twins, rice and spice on their special day. [Music]
While Joe had lasagna, he ate a whole tray. [Music]
Mikey was stuck, not sure what to do. He couldn’t decide between the two. [Music]
“Um, ravioli or dumplings, linguine or lo mein? All of these options were hurting his brain. For kasha, burrata, caprese, risotto, dim sum or wontons or noodles and shrimp.” [Music]
His mind was a jumble of possible choices. He heard both sides of his family’s voices. He rushed to the park to get out of his head. His best friend Sophia found him and said, “Are you okay, Mikey? Why so much sorrow?”
“I can’t pick a dish, and my party’s tomorrow!”
“Your mom is Italian; your dad is Chinese. You’re free to choose food as unique as you please. Why not have both? Is that too outrageous? A Chinese-Italian mashup for the ages?”
“Yeah, Sophia, that’s it! I don’t have to choose one!”
He bolted straight home; there was a lot to get done. Mikey burst in the kitchen. “I’m ready to pick! I’ve made my decision; this isn’t a trick. I want fried rice and marinara sauce!”
“That’ll be different, but hey, you’re the boss!”
He awoke the next day in a jittery mood. Friends were arriving. Will they like the food?
Mikey’s mom fried up a wok full of rice and added veggies, two eggs, and some spice. His friends helped give the tomatoes a squish; they drizzled the sauce to complete the new dish.
Mikey tensed up as his friends took a taste, but the fusion of flavors lit up every face. Despite any doubts, the meal couldn’t be beat. The fried rice was savory; the marinara sweet. [Music]
It tasted more scrumptious than they thought it could. The whole party shouted out, “Different is good!” [Music]
[Music]
You and me, we’re opposites. I come, you go. I’m nice, you’re grouchy. I’m up, you’re down. I’m big, you’re little. Oh, I’m in, you’re out. I’m on, you’re off. I sit, you stand. You’re slow, I’m fast.
I’m tall, you’re short. I have a lot, you have none. I’m dry, you’re wet. I’m clean, you’re dirty. I’m black, you’re white.
Um… I’m awake, they’re asleep.
Our class is a family. When you think of a family, you might picture one in a house: a mom, a dad, a couple of kids, plus their dogs and a pet mouse.
Perhaps you think of grandma or a stepmom and stepdad. It could be those 14 cousins or that twin who makes you mad.
But family doesn’t have to be who you’re related to. It can be another special group who love and care for you.
Have you ever thought about where most of your time is spent? It’s at school with all of us; that’s where all those hours went.
So if our classroom is the place where we spend our days, why wouldn’t we want to make it like a home in many ways?
It’s a place where we can show respect and kindness to each other. A spot where we can be ourselves and make memories with one another.
We’ll have things in common; these are connections that we’ll seek. But we’ll still celebrate our differences and what makes us each unique.
Our classroom is a special haven where it’s okay to make mistakes. We learn from them and try again, no matter what it takes.
We’ll all have tough days sometimes, but your teacher is here for you. And as long as you’re a friend to others, your peers will be there too.
In this classroom of four walls, we will stick together. We’ll help each other learn and grow in any kind of weather.
So let’s always remember what a great team we can be. You have our back, and we have yours. We’re a classroom family.
The end. [Music]
I’ll love you for always
