The Mighty, Mighty Daffodils by Brad Miller illustrated by Anni Matsick HOUGHTON MIFFLIN
The Mighty, Mighty Daffodils by Brad Miller illustrated by Anni Matsick Copyright by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner unless such copying is expressly permitted by federal copyright law. Requests for permission to make copies of any part of the work should be addressed to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt School Publishers, Attn: Permissions, 6277 Sea Harbor Drive, Orlando, Florida 32887-6777. Printed in China ISBN-13: 978-0-547-02513-1 ISBN-10: 0-547-02513-0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 0940 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 If you have received these materials as examination copies free of charge, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt School Publishers retains title to the materials and they may not be resold. Resale of examination copies is strictly prohibited. Possession of this publication in print format does not entitle users to convert this publication, or any portion of it, into electronic format.
At the Game The Springfield School Daffodils were playing basketball against the Reed School Lions. Amanda Contrerez, the team mascot, led a cheer. LET S GO, Daffodils! Mighty, mighty Daffodils! The Lions answered with a cheer of their own. MOW DOWN the Daffodils! DAFFY, daffy Daffodils! Amanda groaned. The Lions mascot was coming over. He roared and prodded her with a claw. Amanda stumbled. Then the lion pretended to lop off her big yellow flower head. It fell down over Amanda s eyes. Wimp! laughed the lion. Amanda leads a cheer for the Daffodils. 2
Amanda pulls off the lion s head. Amanda angrily yanked her flower head back into place. Daffodils never got any respect. But this was too much! Then she did something dumb. She snatched off the lion s head and threw it on the ground. In Trouble The next morning, Amanda was beckoned to the principal s office. She was not surprised. You can t go around ripping off lions heads. Principal Williams looked sternly at Amanda. Do you know why you re here? she asked. Yes, Amanda answered. I m really sorry about the lion. What I did was wrong. But I m tired of being a Daffodil. All the other teams laugh at us! 3
Amanda apologizes to Principal Williams. Principal Williams looked slightly less stern. I know, Amanda. I was at the game. The lion was wrong, but so were you. I need your word that you won t do anything like that again. I won t, I promise, said Amanda. But can t we get a new mascot? Anything would be better than a daffodil! That s really why I called you here, said Principal Williams. We do need a new mascot. I m putting you in charge of finding one. Great! said Amanda. I think I ll choose... the Tigers! 4
Principal Williams held up a hand. Not so fast, Amanda. You don t get to choose the mascot by yourself. Amanda was disappointed. Oh, she said. Principal Williams continued. I am making you the head of the Mascot Selection Committee, though. Matt Smith and Lily Choi will be on the committee, too. Amanda liked that idea. How will we choose a mascot? she asked. Why don t you make a suggestion box? Principal Williams said. Have students put their ideas into it. Then choose the best three, and have the school vote for the one they like best. That night, Amanda made a box and decorated it with pictures. Amanda makes a suggestion box. 5
Choosing a New Mascot The next morning, Amanda spoke on the school intercom. This is Amanda Contrerez, she announced. Springfield School is going to get a new mascot! We want your ideas! Please put them in the suggestion box in the cafeteria. In science class, everyone was talking about it. I m so glad we don t have to have a stupid plant for a mascot anymore! said Eliot. What s wrong with having a plant for a mascot? asked Mr. Novak, the science teacher. Plants aren t fierce enough! said Amanda. Not fierce enough? said Mr. Novak. Not FIERCE enough? Amanda and her friends talk about the new mascot. 6
When Mr. Novak got started, there was no stopping him. Let me tell you about a very fierce plant, he began. A bloodthirsty plant! A plant that craves flesh! He picked up a plant from the table. Behold, the perfect mascot the Venus flytrap! Amanda asked, Why is it the perfect mascot? Mr. Novak was triumphant. There are two reasons. First, it s carnivorous. Second, it s local! It only grows Mr. Novak praises the Venus flytrap. in the wild in North Carolina and South Carolina. He paused and added in a hushed tone, I think I feel a field trip coming on! 7
On Flytrap Trail Mr. Novak was as good as his word. The following Wednesday morning, Amanda s science class stepped off the bus at Carolina Beach State Park. First stop Flytrap Trail! said Mr. Novak. He led the students along a half-mile trail. They hiked through pine and oak trees and boggy wetlands. Observe! The vicious Venus flytrap! said Mr. Novak proudly. The students stared at the small plant he was pointing to. It didn t look vicious. It had a short stem and five leaves. The leaves were divided into halves. Each half had tall spikes all along the edge. Trigger hairs, said Mr. Novak. A Venus flytrap in the wild 8
Mr. Novak describes the vicious Venus flytrap. Trigger hairs? asked Amanda. What are they for? To trap prey, said Mr. Novak. When a bug touches the trigger hairs SNAP! The two halves of the leaves shut, trapping the bug inside. Then the trap tightens around the bug. The plant puts out juices that dissolve the soft, inner parts of the bug. Yum yum! Chow time for the Venus flytrap! Amanda was beginning to understand why Mr. Novak thought the flytrap would be a good mascot. The plant ate its prey alive! 9
Amanda, Lily, and Matt read the suggestions. Narrowing the Choices Back at school, the mascot suggestion box was full. The committee had a meeting to narrow the choices down to three. There were silly choices, like Sea Slugs and Killer Kittens. There were serious choices, like Tigers, Bears, Gators, and Wolves. At last, the committee chose three finalists Panthers, Eagles, and Venus Flytraps! Amanda, Matt, and Lily decided that each of them should pick a mascot to present at the school assembly. I ll take the Flytraps! said Amanda. 10
During the next week, the Mascot Selection Committee put up posters. They inflated balloons. They made up slogans. At home, Amanda worked on a new costume. She used the green shirt and pants from her Daffodil costume. On the morning of the assembly, students filled the multi-use room. The Mascot Selection Committee waited behind the curtains. Principal Williams welcomed everyone. Lily Choi will now tell you why the eagle would be a fitting mascot for our school, she said. Lily takes the stage. 11
I m a Flytrap Fan! Lily came onstage and spread her arms wide, like an eagle in flight. Eagles are the strongest, fiercest birds alive! she exclaimed. Matt came out next. He prowled around and talked about how fierce panthers are. At last it was Amanda s turn. She walked out onto the stage and scanned the crowd. After our last basketball game, I bet you re surprised to see me still dressed like a plant, she began. Everyone laughed. Amanda continued. Being a Daffodil was tough. But I m a Flytrap Fan now. The Venus flytrap grows around here, but it s endangered. People are destroying its habitat. We need to protect it. Making the flytrap our mascot would be a great way to get the word out! 12
Amanda campaigns for the Venus Flytraps. Amanda raised her arms above her head so that the two leaf halves almost joined. Do you know what else is great about the Venus flytrap? she asked. SNAP! She clapped her leaf arms together. We EAT our prey ALIVE! We may look like wimpy little plants, but watch out. When you least expect it, we will EAT YOU ALIVE! So, vote for the flytrap for the school mascot! With a wave of her spiky arm, Amanda left the stage. The crowd clapped and cheered. 13
A New Mascot The next day, Amanda was called to the principal s office. Do you know why you re here this time? Principal Williams asked. Amanda was puzzled. Had her Flytrap speech been too bloodthirsty? Principal Williams smiled. You re not in trouble, Amanda. As the chair of the selection committee, I want you to announce the new school mascot. We had a clear winner the vote wasn t even close! Which mascot won? asked Amanda eagerly. I ll give you a hint, said Principal Williams. She winked. It eats its prey ALIVE! Principle Williams reveals the new mascot to Amanda. 14
Responding TARGET SKILL Compare and Contrast How are daffodils and Venus flytraps alike? How are they different? Copy the Venn diagram below. List more ways the plants are alike and different. Venus Flytraps Both Daffodils endangered? plants? not endangered? Write About It Text to Self The students in The Mighty, Mighty Daffodils go on a field trip to explore a state park. Think of a park you have visited. Write a paragraph telling what you did and saw on that trip. 15
TARGET VOCABULARY beckoned debate decorated gradually hesitated inflated prodded scanned shaken stalled TARGET SKILL Compare and Contrast Examine how two or more details or ideas are alike and different. TARGET STRATEGY Infer/Predict Use text clues to figure out what the author means or what might happen in the future. GENRE Realistic Fiction is a present-day story with events that could take place in real life. 16
Level: Q DRA: 40 Genre: Realistic Fiction Strategy: Infer/Predict Skill: Compare and Contrast Word Count: 1,373 5.1.3 HOUGHTON MIFFLIN Online Leveled Books ISBN-13:978-0-547-02513-1 ISBN-10:0-547-02513-0 1032418