Hello, I’m Riley! Today, we’re going to enjoy a fun story called “Curious George in the Hot Air Balloon” by Margaret Rey. Let’s dive into the adventure!
This is George. George is a curious little monkey who loves to explore. He is on a trip with his friend, the Man with the Yellow Hat. They are having a vacation and want to visit two more places before going home.
George and his friend are in South Dakota, visiting a big mountain called Mount Rushmore. The mountain has the faces of four important presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. A tour guide tells them all about it.
While they are there, a girl notices something moving on George Washington’s face. The guide explains that workers are fixing the faces. George watches the workers and sees a helicopter flying by. He thinks it would be fun to ride in it, but they have to hurry to the hot air balloon race.
They drive to a field full of colorful hot air balloons. George is excited to see balloons with spots, stripes, and stars. His favorite has a picture of a bunny on it!
One balloon is still on the ground, and its owner is busy getting it ready. George is curious about the balloons in the sky and wonders why they don’t fly away. He sees ropes holding them down.
George’s curiosity gets the best of him, and he climbs a rope. But oh no! The rope comes loose, and the balloon starts to float up with George in it!
George goes higher and higher, and the people below look tiny. He feels a little scared because he doesn’t know how to fly the balloon. He wishes someone could help him.
Suddenly, the wind changes, and George sees someone he knows—a worker from Mount Rushmore! The worker is happy to see George and climbs up to help him. Together, they safely land in a tree.
Everyone is happy to see George safe. The Man with the Yellow Hat is relieved, and the newspaper reporter is excited to write about the adventure. The balloon owner isn’t angry anymore, and they all celebrate George as a hero.
As a thank you, George gets a special treat: a ride in a helicopter! He flies with the Man with the Yellow Hat past the presidents and back to their little blue car. They both agree it was an exciting vacation, but they’re glad to go home.
Thanks for joining Story Time! See you next time for more fun adventures!
Balloon Experiment: Let’s explore how hot air balloons work! With the help of an adult, fill a small plastic bag with warm air using a hairdryer. Watch how the warm air makes the bag rise. Discuss with your friends or family why you think the bag goes up. Can you think of other things that use air to move?
Presidential Faces Craft: Create your own Mount Rushmore at home! Use clay or playdough to sculpt the faces of the four presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. Talk about what you know about each president. Why do you think they were chosen to be on Mount Rushmore?
Curiosity Adventure: Just like George, let’s go on a curiosity adventure! Choose a safe place in your home or yard to explore. Make a list of three things you find interesting and draw pictures of them. Share your discoveries with your class or family. What did you learn from being curious like George?
Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript:
—
Hey, I’m Riley, and welcome to Story Time! Today’s story is “Curious George in the Hot Air Balloon” by Margaret Rey. Let’s get started!
This is George. George was a good little monkey and always very curious. He was on a trip with his friend, the Man with the Yellow Hat. It was the end of their vacation, and they wanted to make just two more stops. They were in South Dakota, so of course, they went to see Mount Rushmore. The tour guide explained that the faces on the mountain were of four great presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln.
While they were there, a girl pointed out that there was something crawling on George Washington. The tour guide explained that some workers were making repairs to the faces. George watched the workers, and then he saw a helicopter fly by, taking tourists for a closer look. George thought that would be fun, and maybe they could take a ride later. But the Man with the Yellow Hat said they needed to leave or they would be late for the hot air balloon race.
They got back into their little blue car, and before long, they arrived at a field full of hot air balloons. George was delighted to see such big balloons with their spots, stripes, and stars. His favorite had a picture of a bunny on it.
One balloon was not yet in the air, and its owner was hurrying to fill it while a newspaper reporter took pictures. The Man with the Yellow Hat watched the balloon on the ground, but George was curious about the balloons in the sky. He wondered why they didn’t fly away. Then he saw the ropes that kept the balloons grounded.
Curiosity got the better of George, and he decided to climb one of the ropes. But when he reached the top, he realized he couldn’t climb back down. The rope had come undone, and there was only one way to go—up!
Up went the balloon, and George went with it. He flew higher and higher, and the people below grew smaller. The Man with the Yellow Hat looked tiny, and so did the newspaper reporter. George felt bad; he didn’t mean to take the balloon, and he didn’t know how to fly it. As the wind whisked him away, he wished he had someone to help him, but he was all alone.
Suddenly, the wind changed, and George saw something familiar. He was excited because someone was sure to help him now. It was one of the workers! George was so happy to see the worker, and the worker was happy to see him too. The red balloon floated closer, and the worker grabbed onto the rope and climbed up. Soon, he was in the basket with George.
Hurrah! George was rescued! They sailed over George Washington’s head and landed safely in a tree. A crowd gathered to rescue them both. The Man with the Yellow Hat was happy to see George, and the reporter was glad to have such an exciting story to report. The owner of the balloon wasn’t angry anymore, and everyone celebrated George as a hero.
After the workers thanked him, George got a special treat: he got to ride in a helicopter! The helicopter flew George and the Man with the Yellow Hat past the presidents and then back to their little blue car. As they drove away, the Man said that it had been an exciting vacation, and George agreed, but they were both very glad to go home.
Thanks for watching Story Time! We’ll see you next time!
—
This version removes any inappropriate or confusing comments while maintaining the essence of the story.