Student Name:
2019-2020
4th Grade Language Arts
Writing Prompt
(Opinion)
Tennessee
October 2019
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CASE 4th Grade Language Arts
Do Not Reproduce
“Clues to the Perfect Gift”
by Lissa Rovetch
Arizona enjoys giving advice to others. Children write her letters describing problems they are facing.
Arizona writes back to them and gives advice on how to solve the problems.
Dear Arizona,
I want to give my dad something special for Father’s Day. Do you have any ideas?
—Looking in Littleton
1
Dear Looking,
2
Every Father’s Day goes the exact same way in my house. My sister, brother, mom, and I bring my
dad breakfast in bed. He always does a good job of acting surprised, even though I doubt he’s
surprised at all! So this year, just like you, I wanted to give him something special. Only I had zero
idea what that could be.
3
When I was hanging out at the pool after swim class, I asked my friends for ideas.
4
“We always get my dad a new baseball cap,” said Lana.
5
“That’d be perfect,” I said. “But my dad refuses to wear anything other than his ratty old ‘lucky’
hat.”
6
“When I was little, I used to check out this one book from the library over and over again,” said
Isabel.
7
“Hmm,” I said. “I’m not sure my dad would want a picture book.”
8
Isabel laughed. “I’m not saying you should give him a picture book. I wanted to tell you about what
happens in that book. A girl is trying to find the perfect present for her mom, and a giant rabbit
comes along and tells her to think about what her mom really likes. So because the girl’s mom
loves bright colors, the girl fills a basket with all different colors of fruit.”
9
“OK, I understand,” I said. “You’re saying I should think about my dad’s favorite things.”
10 I didn’t happen to know any giant rabbits. But I did know two cats who have a history of giving
good advice.
11 “You guys spend a lot of time with Dad,” I said to my cats when I got home. “What do you think he
likes most?”
12 In reply, my younger kitty, Charlie, hopped onto the table by the big chair in our living room. He
landed on a pile of my dad’s mystery novels.
13 “That’s it!” I said. “Dad loves to read. Especially mystery novels. But what if I get one he’s already
read? I can’t ask which one he’d like because then it wouldn’t be a surprise.”
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CASE 4th Grade Language Arts
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14 Just then, my older cat,
Cow, started batting
something around. It was a
marker from my marker
set.
15 “That’s where the green
marker went!” I said.
16 And suddenly, I knew just
what to do. I gave Cow an
extra-long ear scratch in
exchange for my marker,
and then I got to work
writing my very own
mystery.
17 “It might not be the best story ever written,” I told my cats. “But at least I’ll know Dad has never
read it before.”
18 Since one of my dad’s favorite mystery series is about a detective named Sherlock Holmes and his
assistant, Dr. Watson, and my cats had helped give me the idea, I made the main characters (or
should I say “CAT-racters”?) Furrlock Holmes and Dr. Catson. And since my dad owns a grocery
store and spends a lot of time at the checkout counter, I called it “The Case of the Missing Money.”
19 At the end, Furrlock Holmes figures out the reason all the money in the cash register keeps
disappearing. A family of mice who live in the wall have decided the paper bills would make good
stuffing for their beds and the shiny coins would make fancy plates for their dinner parties.
20 But I can’t tell you how this real-life story ends, because Father’s Day is still a couple of days away
and I haven’t given my dad his surprise yet. I’m crossing my fingers he’ll like it a lot!
21 So anyway, dear Looking, when it comes to figuring out an extra-great present, the advice from
that giant rabbit is actually pretty helpful. Try taking a few minutes to think about your dad. Figure
out his favorite things. Then make your own version of one of those things—a book, a game, a
batch of muffins, or new lyrics to a song he likes. If you make it yourself, it’s guaranteed to be one
of a kind!
22 Ciao for now,
23 Arizona
“Clues to the Perfect Gift” by Lissa Rovetch, illustrated by Amanda Morley, from Highlights, June 2018, copyright © 2018 by Highlights for
Children, Inc. Reprinted by permission of Highlights for Children, Inc.
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CASE 4th Grade Language Arts
Do Not Reproduce
“Summer with Papaji”
by Jyoti Singh Visvanath
A family visits India every summer to spend time with grandparents. A young girl tells about her
experiences with her grandfather, Papaji.
1
Papaji, my grandfather, was a stern man. He always stood
straight, his body lean and muscular from the physical work of
farming. When I was young, I thought he seemed awfully big.
His mustache curled at the ends, and his turban made him
appear larger than life. A glance from him was enough to keep
my sisters and me in line. Yet every summer I looked forward
to seeing Papaji. It was a family ritual to visit his farm in the
heart of Punjab in India.
2
The overnight train trip was always followed by a joyful ride
on a tonga, a horse-drawn carriage that would bring us to the
farm. Our arrival signaled the end of a school year and the
freedom to do what we liked with our time. After greeting our
grandparents and drinking lassi (buttermilk), we’d run to see
the animals.
3
There were cows and buffaloes, especially bhuri bhains (the
blond buffalo), sheep, chickens, and Billo, the beautiful horse.
Being city slickers, we enjoyed every moment of feeding and
washing the animals. We played with the newborn calves and
lambs; their soft skin felt wonderful against our cheeks.
4
When we got hungry, we’d crowd Bibiji, our grandmother, in the kitchen. She cooked over a wood
fire in a clay stove. We’d blow on the wood to make the fire rage, hoping that it would help the
food cook faster. Bibiji’s food was rich and full of delicious flavors. We ate hot rotis (flat breads)
straight from the stove, with a blob of white butter.
5
Everything was an adventure. The storeroom was a treasure trove. We’d rediscover old toys and
games, play hide-and-seek, and run our hands through the grain in the silos. Then in the summer
heat, we’d laze in our high-ceilinged room on old four-poster beds. There was a pile of magazines
we had already read several times but would read again and again.
6
Papaji tolerated us. We were like flies that
hovered around him all day. He was not a man
who showed emotion easily. There were times
he caught us red-handed touching some of his
possessions or exploring places we weren’t
supposed to, and his quiet scolding left us wellbehaved for the rest of our stay.
7
turban —a head covering made of a long
cloth wrapped around the head
silos —towers used to store food for farm
animals
But the summer I turned nine was different. We’d gotten into trouble early during our holiday. As a
result, we spent most days in our room or skulking around corners, out of Papaji’s sight. One
morning on my way to the animal sheds, I heard clickety-clack, clickety-clack, clickety-clack, ping.
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CASE 4th Grade Language Arts
8
9
It stopped me in my tracks. I hid behind a pillar and
peered at the source of the sound: Papaji in his study,
typing a letter. A plain sheet of paper was wrapped
around the cylinder. With two fingers, he tapped the keys
at a fair speed. I leaned farther to see better, then
tripped and fell through the door.
Do Not Reproduce
pillar —large post that holds up a
roof
glinted —flashed with a small
amount of emotion
For a while I lay in a heap on the floor of the study. I was
sorry, so sorry! I stood up, red in the face and trying to
make myself invisible.
10 Papaji’s eyes glinted. I looked at the floor and hoped the
scolding would be short. He called me over. I approached
him slowly. He asked what I was doing, and I told him
that I’d been fascinated by the sound of the typewriter.
I’d only wanted to get a better look; I wasn’t going to
touch anything, I promised.
typewriter —a machine that prints
letters when the keys are pushed
11 He didn’t say anything else.
12 Not sure what to do, I stood near his elbow watching him type. I longed to touch the beautiful
yellow keys with steel rims and the lovely black space bar. The keys hit the ribbon, and letters
appeared on the paper as if by magic.
13 The rest of the summer I’d hear the sounds of typewriter keys and wander toward them, fearfully
at first but more confidently when I realized Papaji didn’t seem to mind. I stood silently, admiring
the wonder of the words forming on the page.
14 After going home, I spent the year writing poems, letters, and stories in longhand…and thinking of
ways to convince Papaji to let me use the typewriter when I returned to his house. After all, I
planned to be a writer, and writers used typewriters.
15 But the next summer, my dream languished and faded away. I continued to stand at his elbow as
he typed, hoping he would offer me a chance to try it. But he never did.
16 On returning home that year, I received a letter from the post office telling me to come and collect
a parcel. The whole family made the trip to the post office.
17 When I opened the box, I found the typewriter! Papaji had
given me permission to use it at last. My big stern grandfather
wasn’t such an unaffectionate man after all.
unaffectionate —not showing
love
“Summer with Papaji” by Jyoti Singh Visvanath, illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright and Ying-Hwa Hu, copyright © 2008 by Highlights for
Children, Inc. Reprinted by permission of Highlights for Children, Inc.
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CASE 4th Grade Language Arts
Do Not Reproduce
Writing Prompt
You have read two passages about people either giving or receiving gifts. In your opinion,
is it more rewarding to give a meaningful gift to someone or receive a meaningful gift from
someone? Write an essay in which you give your opinion and explain your reasons.
Your essay must be based on ideas and information that can be found in both passages.
Support your ideas with evidence from the passage set. Follow the conventions of
standard written English.
Manage your time carefully so that you can
• plan your essay and do some prewriting
• write your essay
Be sure to
• use evidence from both passages
Your written response should be in the form of a multi-paragraph essay.
Write your essay in the space provided.
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