Once upon a time, Little I woke up to the sound of his alarm clock. It was the last day of alphabet school, and he was excited to see his friends on the playground. But oh no! Little I realized his dot was missing!
“Where is your dot?” asked Little A. Little I looked everywhere, but it was gone. “Don’t worry,” said his friends. “We’ll help you find a new dot!”
At school, they tried all sorts of things to replace the dot. Little A suggested an acorn, Little C offered a clock, and Little D thought a donut would work. They tried an egg, a flower, a gumball, and even a hula hoop!
But nothing felt right. After school, Little I saw his dad and told him about the missing dot. His dad smiled and said, “You left it on your pillow this morning. But since you’re growing up, maybe you don’t need it anymore. What do you think?”
Little I stretched out his arms and pointed his feet. “Dad, I look just like you! I can start a sentence now!” he said happily.
One day, a new family moved to Alphabet City. They were the Punctuation Family! Exclamation Point was super excited to start school. “Let’s hurry!” he exclaimed.
Question Mark was curious. “Do you think everyone will be nice?” she asked. Period was calm and said, “Let’s go! I’ll tell you when to stop.” Comma kept pausing, “Wait for me, please!”
At school, the letters were surprised to meet them. “We’re not letters,” explained Exclamation Point. “We’re the punctuation family!”
They joined the class, and each had a special job. Exclamation Point added excitement, Question Mark asked questions, and Period ended sentences neatly. Comma felt a bit left out, but soon realized how important he was to keep things in order.
With Comma’s help, the letters learned that punctuation and words work together to make everything clear and fun!
Little E was a quiet letter, but he knew he was important. He loved wearing his blue cape and dreamed of being a hero. One day, Little E didn’t come to school, and the other letters had trouble making words.
Little C, A, and K couldn’t make “cake,” and R, O, and S couldn’t make “rose.” Everyone was confused until Little E returned. “Sorry I’m late,” he whispered.
With Little E’s help, the words became complete. C A became “cake,” R A became “rose,” and K became “kite.” Little E didn’t make a sound, but he changed sounds around, saving the day without even needing his cape!
Our class is like a family. We spend a lot of time together, just like a family at home. We show respect and kindness, and we celebrate what makes each of us unique.
In our classroom, it’s okay to make mistakes because we learn from them. We help each other and stick together, no matter what. Remember, we’re a team, and we’re here for each other. We’re a classroom family!
The end.
Find Your Dot: Just like Little I was looking for his dot, let’s go on a dot hunt! Look around your home or classroom and find objects that are round like a dot. Can you find a button, a coin, or a sticker? Draw a picture of all the dot-like objects you find and share it with your friends. Discuss why these objects remind you of Little I’s dot.
Punctuation Parade: Create a punctuation parade with your classmates. Each of you can choose to be a different punctuation mark from the Punctuation Family. Make a small sign with your punctuation mark on it and think about what your punctuation mark does. Walk around the classroom and show how your punctuation mark helps make sentences clear and fun. Can you make a sentence together using all the punctuation marks?
Silent E Magic: Let’s explore the magic of Silent E! Take a few simple words like “cap,” “kit,” and “hop.” Now, add a Silent E to each word to see how it changes the sound and meaning. Write down the new words and draw a picture of each one. Discuss with your friends how Silent E helps make new words and why it’s important.
Sure! Here’s a sanitized version of the provided transcript, removing any unnecessary filler words, repetitions, and maintaining clarity:
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**[Music]**
Little I, who lost his dot, sat up as the alarm clock rang. It was the last day of alphabet school. He saw his letter friends on the playground and hurried to join them.
“Where is your dot?” asked Little A. Little I looked around, but his dot was gone.
“What will you do without your dot?” asked Little W. Little H handed her a handkerchief. All the letters crowded around Little I. “Don’t worry,” they said. “We’ll help you find a new dot!”
The school bell rang, and it was time to make words. The little letters scrambled into school, but Little I’s friends didn’t forget their plan. When they got to the classroom, they looked around.
“How about this acorn?” asked Little A.
“Try on this clock!” cried Little C.
“How about a donut?” suggested Little D.
“An egg is exactly what you need!” exclaimed Little E.
Little F brought a flower, and Little G giggled when he found a gumball. Little H handed over a hula hoop, and Little J joked, “How about a jumping bean?”
Little K knew the answer, and Little L lit the line with a lightbulb. Little M made her way over with a marble, and Little N nodded to a music note.
Little O opted for an oyster shell, and Little P presented a pretzel. Little Q questioned, “How about this quarter?” Little R raced over with a ring, while Little S scared him with a spider.
Little T thought a thumbtack would do. Little U urged him to carry an umbrella. Little V ventured forward with a valentine, and Little W walked over with a wheel. Little X’s extra special idea was a xylophone mallet. Little Y yelled, “Where’s this yo-yo?” Little Z zoomed over with a zero.
Little I tried them all on, but nothing felt right. When school ended, all the little letters went out to where their parents were gathered. Little I saw his father and sniffed back tears.
“I lost my dot,” he said.
“No, Little I,” his dad smiled. “You didn’t lose your dot. You left it on your pillow this morning.”
“Yay! 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?”
Capital I nodded. “Stretch out your arms and point your feet.”
Little I did, and when he saw his shadow on the ground, he smiled. “Dad, I look just like you! I can start a sentence now!”
**[Music]**
The day punctuation came to town, a new family moved to Alphabet City. Exclamation Point led the way to their first day at a new school.
“Let’s hurry!” he exclaimed. “I can’t wait to get there! We are going to have so much fun!”
Exclamation Point was always excited about something.
Question Mark wondered what it would be like. “Do you think everyone will be nice? Are we going the right way? Should we ask for directions?”
Period followed, bringing the line to a close. “Let’s go! I’ll tell you when to stop.”
Comma kept pausing. “Wait for me, please!”
When they walked into school, Exclamation Point burst forward. “Hi everyone!”
The little letters stared. “Who are you?” they asked.
“We’re not letters,” Exclamation Point explained. “We’re the punctuation family.”
The letters were confused. “The punctuation?”
“I’m Exclamation Point, and this is Question Mark, Comma, and Period. We’re different from letters, but we love being around words.”
The punctuations joined the class, and the letters worked to make words. Exclamation Point, Question Mark, and Period joined in the fun. Exclamation Point added excitement to words, Question Mark asked a lot of questions, and Period brought each sentence to a tidy end.
As the day wore on, Comma began to feel smaller and smaller. The letters loved making words, but Comma felt like he just got in the way.
When no one was looking, Comma snuck out the door. Inside the classroom, Exclamation Point was creating a great deal of excitement.
The letters were cheering and hurrying to make words. “Shouldn’t we quiet down?” Question Mark asked, but no one heard her over the noise.
The letters kept making words faster and faster until they all became jumbled. Period hurried to stop them, but the letters tripped over her and collided with a thunderous crash.
The letters fell one after another until they tumbled through the door, spilling into the hallway. Comma stared in shock at the pile of letters and words.
“What are you doing out here?” Question Mark asked.
“I didn’t think anyone wanted me around,” Comma said. “I just slow everything down.”
“Without you, things become a disaster,” Exclamation Point said, pointing to the pile of letters and words.
“Slowing things down is your job, and words need you,” Period said.
“We’re the punctuation family, and we all work together to help letters and the words they make.”
The punctuations helped the letters back into the classroom. When the letters began making words again, Comma stood right in the middle.
The letters looked confused. “What are you doing?”
“It’s my job,” Comma said. “From now on, I’ll help keep things in order.”
The letters asked how. Comma explained, “We all work together. Words need punctuation, and punctuation needs words.”
**[Music]**
The Mighty Silent E by Kimberly Guard, illustrations by Sandy Soni.
Little E knew he was important after all. He came from a long line of E’s. At home, he loved to wear his blue cape and dream of the day he would come to the rescue. He knew he had the power to be a hero; he just needed a chance to prove it.
At school, Little E’s belief in himself didn’t count for much. The other little letters rarely paid him any attention, probably because he didn’t have much to say. But Little E liked being quiet. He worked hard, quietly studying words and sounds until one day, Little E didn’t show up to class.
The little letters didn’t even notice he was gone. After all, Little E was so quiet he was easy to overlook. But when Miss Capital T had the little letters join into groups and make words, things didn’t go so well.
Little C, Little A, and Little K joined together to make a word for a type of dessert, but no matter how they arranged themselves, they couldn’t make the word work.
Little R, Little O, and Little S were having the same problem. “We’re trying to make the word for a type of flower,” they said, “but it just doesn’t sound right.”
“Tell me about it,” said Little K.
Little I and Little T were trying to become a word that could fly. Little G, Little A, and Little M all started to cry. “No one will ever play with this word!”
Little T, Little A, Little B, and Little L scrambled around until they gave up.
Little S, Little K, Little A, and Little T cried out, “It’s just not working!”
Little Z, Little O, and Little N looked confused. “What is going on? Why can’t we make the right words today?”
Miss Capital T joined the little letters. “Oh, we are missing someone important.”
The little letters looked around and suddenly noticed their friend Little E was gone. “What will we do?” they asked. “We can’t make these words without him!”
Then Little E walked into the classroom. “Sorry I’m late,” he whispered. “I had a sore throat, so my mom took me to see the throat doctor.”
The little letters cheered. “Little E, you’re here at last! We’ve tried, but we can’t make these words without you!”
Little E smiled. He dreamed about this moment and knew what to do. This was a job for the Mighty Silent E.
He ran to the end of each row of letters. Suddenly, C A became cake, R A became rose, K became kite, G A M became game, and T A B became table.
“Wow!” the little letters exclaimed.
“How did you do that?” they asked.
“You make no sound, but you change sounds around,” they said.
But as usual, Little E was silent. He just smiled with his friends all around him. Little E felt happier than he ever had. He had saved the day, and he hadn’t even needed his cape.
**[Music]**
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 dog and a pet mouse. Perhaps you think of grandma or a stepmom and stepdad.
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.
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, where we can be ourselves and make memories together.
We’ll have things in common; these are connections that we’ll seek, but we’ll still celebrate our differences and what makes each of us 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.
**[Music]**
The end.
**[Music]**
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This version maintains the essence of the original transcript while ensuring clarity and coherence.
