What happens next? A thank-you message
Good readers think about what happens next. There is no one right answer. Use clues and your own ideas: What will the cousins do next summer? What will the small boy tell his friends? Write your idea in two or three sentences with will or the past simple if you are making a story. A thank-you note is short and polite. It has: Dear + name, Thank you for + noun or -ing, a sentence about what you liked or learned, a polite ending and your first name. Do not write an address. The book asks you to write a thank-you message in the story’s world on page 101. Do not copy. Here is our own note from Nour to her uncle (45 words).
| Part | Our note |
|---|---|
| Start | Dear Uncle Adel, |
| Thanks | Thank you for helping us build the boat. |
| Details | We had a wonderful time, and we learned to use tools carefully. |
| Feelings | The boat floated on the canal, and we felt very proud. |
| End | Best wishes, Nour |
Dear Uncle Adel, Thank you for helping us build the boat. We had a wonderful time, and we learned to use tools carefully. The boat floated on the canal, and we felt very proud. Thank you also for the bread and cheese. Best wishes, Nour
What do you think will happen next summer, Nour?
Perhaps we will build a bigger boat.
I think Uncle Adel will teach us to use a saw.
Only with a grown-up, and with gloves!
Thank-you note. The child writes a note of 40 to 50 words to a person who helped them: Dear …, Thank you for …, one detail, a feeling, Best wishes and the child’s first name. Then the child writes two sentences about what could happen next in our story. A grown-up reads both.