Week 08 · Wednesday: Word Detectives (Story Trail Grades 2-3)

Wednesday: Sayings that mean something else

Rosie the Rabbit bounces up to the Story Stump.

"It is raining cats and dogs!" she shouts.

Lucy the Ladybug peeks at the sky. "Where are the cats?"

Hazel the Hedgehog smiles gently. "That is a saying, Lucy."

"It means the rain is very hard. Let me show you more."

Learn it: idioms

Literal words mean just what they say.

Nonliteral words mean something else.

A nonliteral saying is called an idiom.

"Raining cats and dogs" is an idiom. It means raining very hard.

No cats or dogs fall from the sky!

Read it

A Day Full of Sayings
It was raining cats and dogs, so everyone stayed in Hazel's den.
Bennie the Bear felt under the weather, so he rested.
Hazel made him a cup of warm tea.
"Who wants a story?" asked Chris the Coyote.
"I am all ears!" said Rosie, and she sat very still.
Then Chris asked Lucy to tell a story.
Lucy had butterflies in her tummy.
It was her first time telling a story.
"I will lend you a hand," said Hazel.
Hazel helped Lucy remember each part of her story.
Lucy told it well, and everyone clapped.
By then, the rain had stopped and the sun was out.

CHECK IT: WHAT DOES IT REALLY MEAN?

Read the question.
Tap your answer.

What does "raining cats and dogs" mean?

Bennie felt under the weather. What does that mean?

Rosie said, "I am all ears!" What did she mean?

Lucy had butterflies in her tummy. How did she feel?

LITERAL OR NONLITERAL?

Read the question.
Tap your answer.

"The sun was out." Literal or nonliteral?

"I will lend you a hand." Literal or nonliteral?

"Bennie rested." Literal or nonliteral?

"I am all ears." Literal or nonliteral?

Sentence	True or false?
Lend a hand means help.	?
Real cats fell from the sky.	?
Rosie listened to the story.	?
Hazel gave Lucy her real hand.	?

WHY THIS EXERCISEHazel helped Lucy. No cats fell from the sky.

PUT THE STORY IN ORDER

What happened first?
Tap the cards in order.

1First

2Next

3Then

4Last

Draw a silly picture of raining cats and dogs.

Try it

Ask a grown-up for a saying they know.
Talk about what the words say.
Then talk about what it really means.

Word Spot: miles, night, walked

Here are new sight words.

Look at each word. Say it. Spell it.

Miles: M-I-L-E-S.

Night: N-I-G-H-T.

Walked: W-A-L-K-E-D.

FIND THE WORD

Listen to the word.
Tap it.

Find the word you hear.

FILL THE GAP

Listen to the sentence.
Tap the missing word.

The trail is two ___ long.

Many owls hunt at ___.

We ___ to the park.

You cracked the idiom code! Tomorrow we find word clues in a guide.