little south of them both.
The sound-effects trio looked a little nervous.
"I'm Tennessee," Tricia announced proudly. "Home of Elvis Presley!" She nodded to the trio.
"YOU AIN'T NUTHIN' BUT A HOUND DOG!" Barry, Ben, and Beanie sang.
The audience repeated it. "YOU AIN'T NUTHIN' BUT A HOUND DOG!" Bruno opened his eyes, looked up sleepily, and then stood. He yawned, moved from Alaska across the Pacific Ocean, and lay down next to Hawaii.
"Me next?" asked Nicholas, and Gooney Bird nodded. "
Magic,
" she whispered, reminding him of his candy-heart name, because he looked a little nervous.
Nicholas moved to the map and turned to face the audience. "I got a whole bunch of states," he said. "Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey. New York, North Carolina, North Dakota"âhe examined the map carefully, then stepped onto an area beside Texasâ"but I chose New Mexico for a really scary reason!"
The children all waited, wondering what little-known fact could be so scary about New Mexico.
"There are a zillion rattlesnakes in New Mexico!" Nicholas announced.
"HISSSSSS," said the sound-effects trio.
"HISSSSSS," repeated the audience in delight.
Tyrone took his turn next. He pranced from the edge of the map over to Texas, near Nicholas in New Mexico. He wiggled his hips slightly and chanted, "
I got Texas as my place, Texas sends us into space!
" Then he stopped dancing and said, "Texas has the NASA Space Center!"
The three
B
s leaned toward the microphone and said, "BLAST OFF!"
"BLAST OFF!" came the reply.
Chelsea moved proudly to the map and found her spot in the middle of California. Bruno looked over briefly from the Pacific Ocean, then closed his eyes again.
"My state is California!" Chelsea announced. "I could have had Colorado or Connecticut, but I chose California because the state bird is the California quail, and it makes the sound of a city that isn't even in California. Listen hard!"
The trio had studied this very carefully. They had listened to recorded bird calls on the computer in the library. Now the three of them together, in squeaky, warbling voices, did the call: "CHICAAAHGO, CHICAAAHGO, CHICAAAHGO!"
The audience laughed and tried to do it themselves. "CHICAAAHGO, CHICAAAHGO, CHICAAAHGO!"
Malcolm, who had been wiggling in anticipation, went to the map next. "Me and Nicholas had more states than anybody! Eight! I had Maryland, Michigan, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, and Mississippi, but I chose Maine!"
He went to the farthest north spot on the Eastern Coast and stood there beside the Atlantic Ocean, on the border of Canada.
Usually Malcolm talked very fast when he was nervous or excited. But he had practiced and practiced his little-known fact, and now he said it loudly and clearly. "Maine's lowest recorded temperature is fifty below zero!"
"BRRRR!" was the response from the sound-effects trio.
"BRRRR!" the audience replied.
"Now me, now me!" Felicia Ann scurried over to the lower end of the East Coast. "I'm Florida!" she called. "Florida has more lightning strikes than anyplace else in the United States!"
"ZAP!" said the three Bs.
"ZAP!" said the audience.
Finally, Gooney Bird moved to the state just above Florida. "I'm last, and my state is Georgia," she explained to the audience. Then she told them, "Not many people know this, but Georgia is the headquarters for Coca-Cola!"
She nodded to the trio. "BURP!" they said into the microphone.
"BURP!" The audience, laughing, responded.
"We hope you've enjoyed our geography presentation," Gooney Bird said to the school. "And we hope you all have a great vacation. Anybody who wants to come to my house next Wednesday afternoon, I'm having a birthday party for President William Henry Harrison. His birthday was February ninth and I feel that he doesn't get enough attention, so I am making cookies with his initials in M&M's and you are all invited."
Gooney Bird bowed. The second-graders, and Mrs. Pidgeon, still standing on their
The sound-effects trio looked a little nervous.
"I'm Tennessee," Tricia announced proudly. "Home of Elvis Presley!" She nodded to the trio.
"YOU AIN'T NUTHIN' BUT A HOUND DOG!" Barry, Ben, and Beanie sang.
The audience repeated it. "YOU AIN'T NUTHIN' BUT A HOUND DOG!" Bruno opened his eyes, looked up sleepily, and then stood. He yawned, moved from Alaska across the Pacific Ocean, and lay down next to Hawaii.
"Me next?" asked Nicholas, and Gooney Bird nodded. "
Magic,
" she whispered, reminding him of his candy-heart name, because he looked a little nervous.
Nicholas moved to the map and turned to face the audience. "I got a whole bunch of states," he said. "Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey. New York, North Carolina, North Dakota"âhe examined the map carefully, then stepped onto an area beside Texasâ"but I chose New Mexico for a really scary reason!"
The children all waited, wondering what little-known fact could be so scary about New Mexico.
"There are a zillion rattlesnakes in New Mexico!" Nicholas announced.
"HISSSSSS," said the sound-effects trio.
"HISSSSSS," repeated the audience in delight.
Tyrone took his turn next. He pranced from the edge of the map over to Texas, near Nicholas in New Mexico. He wiggled his hips slightly and chanted, "
I got Texas as my place, Texas sends us into space!
" Then he stopped dancing and said, "Texas has the NASA Space Center!"
The three
B
s leaned toward the microphone and said, "BLAST OFF!"
"BLAST OFF!" came the reply.
Chelsea moved proudly to the map and found her spot in the middle of California. Bruno looked over briefly from the Pacific Ocean, then closed his eyes again.
"My state is California!" Chelsea announced. "I could have had Colorado or Connecticut, but I chose California because the state bird is the California quail, and it makes the sound of a city that isn't even in California. Listen hard!"
The trio had studied this very carefully. They had listened to recorded bird calls on the computer in the library. Now the three of them together, in squeaky, warbling voices, did the call: "CHICAAAHGO, CHICAAAHGO, CHICAAAHGO!"
The audience laughed and tried to do it themselves. "CHICAAAHGO, CHICAAAHGO, CHICAAAHGO!"
Malcolm, who had been wiggling in anticipation, went to the map next. "Me and Nicholas had more states than anybody! Eight! I had Maryland, Michigan, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, and Mississippi, but I chose Maine!"
He went to the farthest north spot on the Eastern Coast and stood there beside the Atlantic Ocean, on the border of Canada.
Usually Malcolm talked very fast when he was nervous or excited. But he had practiced and practiced his little-known fact, and now he said it loudly and clearly. "Maine's lowest recorded temperature is fifty below zero!"
"BRRRR!" was the response from the sound-effects trio.
"BRRRR!" the audience replied.
"Now me, now me!" Felicia Ann scurried over to the lower end of the East Coast. "I'm Florida!" she called. "Florida has more lightning strikes than anyplace else in the United States!"
"ZAP!" said the three Bs.
"ZAP!" said the audience.
Finally, Gooney Bird moved to the state just above Florida. "I'm last, and my state is Georgia," she explained to the audience. Then she told them, "Not many people know this, but Georgia is the headquarters for Coca-Cola!"
She nodded to the trio. "BURP!" they said into the microphone.
"BURP!" The audience, laughing, responded.
"We hope you've enjoyed our geography presentation," Gooney Bird said to the school. "And we hope you all have a great vacation. Anybody who wants to come to my house next Wednesday afternoon, I'm having a birthday party for President William Henry Harrison. His birthday was February ninth and I feel that he doesn't get enough attention, so I am making cookies with his initials in M&M's and you are all invited."
Gooney Bird bowed. The second-graders, and Mrs. Pidgeon, still standing on their
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