Hello, friends! How are you today? Did you have a fun day? Did you play a lot? Now it’s time to sit down and enjoy a story together!
Today, we’re going to read about a little ghost named Roderick. Roderick is different from other ghosts. Let’s find out why!
Roderick is the smallest ghost in his big family. All the ghosts in his family wear white sheets. Roderick wears the smallest white sheet of all. Sometimes, he feels like no one can see him.
Roderick wants to be noticed, so he tries wearing different things. First, he tries on hats, but they all fly away! Then, he tries a scarf, but that doesn’t work either.
Roderick decides to wear a colorful poncho instead of his white sheet. He adds hats, scarves, and even a bow tie. He feels so fancy!
When Roderick shows his family his new look, they are surprised. They tell him ghosts don’t dress like that. Roderick feels sad and decides to visit the city.
In the city, no one notices Roderick’s fancy clothes. He feels even more invisible than before. But soon, his family finds him and gives him a big hug. They missed him!
Back home, Roderick tries on different things like a rug and a tablecloth, but nothing feels right. Then, something magical happens! A special sheet lands on his head, and it feels just perfect.
Roderick tells his family, “I like this sheet, and I want to be different!” Everyone loves his new look. Roderick shows them it’s okay to be different and special.
We hope you enjoyed Roderick’s story! Remember, it’s always okay to be yourself and try new things. Thanks for joining us today. See you next time for more fun stories!
Dress-Up Fun: Let’s play a dress-up game! Gather some colorful fabrics, hats, scarves, and other accessories. Encourage the children to dress up like Roderick and create their own unique ghost outfits. Ask them to think about how their outfit makes them feel. Do they feel special or different? Why do they like their outfit?
Spot the Differences: Take a walk around the classroom or outside and look for things that are different from each other. For example, find two trees and talk about how they are different. Encourage the children to notice and appreciate these differences. Ask them, “Why do you think it’s good to have different kinds of trees?” or “How would the world be if everything looked the same?”
Story Creation: Have the children create their own story about a character who is different and learns to love their uniqueness. Provide them with paper and crayons to draw their character and write a short story. Encourage them to share their stories with the class. Ask questions like, “What makes your character special?” and “How do they show others it’s okay to be different?”
Sure! Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript:
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[Music]
Hi everyone! Welcome to the Storytime Family. How was your day today? Did you have a good day? Did you do lots of things? Did you have a busy day? Well, at least now you’re sitting down reading a book.
Today we have “The Right One: Can a Small Ghost Dare to Be Different” by Violeta Noiall. All ghosts look the same; they all wear white sheets. Roderick is the smallest ghost in his family, and he wears the smallest white sheet of all. But he feels invisible, and he doesn’t want to be. So how does he stand out? Well, let’s find out!
Roderick was the smallest ghost in the largest family that ever lived through the centuries. You might wonder why all the ghosts in Roderick’s family look the same. It’s the white sheets—that’s what ghosts always wear. Roderick wore the smallest white sheet of all. He was also the last in a long line of Rodericks, which made him feel even smaller. Most of the time, Roderick felt like his family didn’t notice he was there, especially when his aunts floated right through him.
“Maybe they don’t find me interesting enough,” Roderick thought. But that could be fixed, right? If he couldn’t change his name and couldn’t change his family, perhaps he could change how he looked. He started small and tried on a hat. It didn’t seem like much, so he tried on another, and another, and another. Roderick thought he looked fantastic—distinguished even! But as soon as he started moving, the hats all flew away.
“Perhaps a scarf,” he thought next, but that didn’t work either. The next morning, he got bolder and put on a poncho instead of his usual white sheet. The colors were great, but his ectoplasm—that’s what’s under a ghost sheet—kept showing. So he added some hats and scarves again and a smart bow tie. Finally, Roderick was ready to show off his new look. He was so excited!
But when he appeared at breakfast, things didn’t go the way he planned. “Where’s your sheet? Young ghost, go and get changed right now! What is he wearing? Who wants more toast or coffee?”
“But I like it!”
“You can’t go out like this. Ghosts just don’t dress like that.”
His aunts didn’t like his outfit, and even his parents weren’t convinced. Maybe, Roderick thought, this wasn’t the place for him. So he drifted to the city, where he was sure everyone would have better fashion sense. When he got there, he waited for the city people to notice his elegant clothes. They didn’t even see him. Soon he felt even more lost and invisible than he had at home.
“We’ve been so worried! Your ectoplasm is showing. Where have you been? Where is your sheet? We looked everywhere for you!”
When his family finally found him, Roderick had lost his beautiful outfit. They hugged and kissed him, and it felt so good to be noticed again. When they got home, they told him they had the perfect thing for him to wear. It was another white sheet. Roderick was not happy. The sheet still felt wrong.
So he tried on some new things. First, he put on a rug—it was dusty and made him sneeze. Then a handbag—his mom got so mad! Then a tablecloth—it made him smell like mashed peas. And even a shower curtain just made him damp. It was a disaster!
“Bat grandma’s favorite skull sheet, bone boots, slime grandma’s second favorite skull.”
Nothing felt right. It was so frustrating! And when ghosts get emotional, things started to fly around. It was chaos—furniture fell over, cupboards flew open, and things that had been lost for a very long time appeared again.
I bet you that happens with your toys, right? Sometimes they reappear like magic! Just like the thing that landed on Roderick’s head. It smelled and swished like his old sheet. It was a sheet, but this one felt much, much better. As soon as Roderick looked in the mirror, he knew this was the right one!
He went to show his family, and this time he had something very important to say to them: “I like wearing this, and I want to, and I don’t care if you all wear white sheets. I’m going to be different!”
And you know what? Everybody loved it! Because while Roderick was the smallest ghost in the largest family that had ever lived through the centuries, that didn’t mean he couldn’t teach them a thing or two.
Well, sometimes you should dare to be different. It might be worth it! Well, oftentimes it is worth it.
Hope you enjoyed “The Right One.” Don’t forget to leave us a comment, give us a like, and subscribe! Thank you so much for joining us today. Come back and see us again for other stories like this. Take care now!
[Music]
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Feel free to let me know if you need any further modifications!
