WARM UP
Supply your own adjectives to complete the sentences. Write
the whole sentence.
1. Sunlight gives a __________ gleam to the clock on the mantle.
2. Tom and Lily take one look at the ________ spare room and decide to stay.
3. The young couple revel in the _______ days and _______ nights.
4. Despite their age and physical problems, Mrs. Hatching and
William are _______ people.
Now let me tell you a
story.
At 2 a.m. on June 3, 1980, some poor Air Force staffer deep within the
North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) was working
the late night shift when he noticed that the screen readout that
usually read "0 Incoming Missiles" suddenly read "2 Incoming
Missiles." This was bad enough, but then, it announced "220 Incoming
Missiles.”
Alarms sounded everywhere as the Air Force collectively freaked out
all across America. Bombers carrying nuclear bombs began taking off
throughout the country.
Luckily, before anyone could actually fire a missile, someone realized
that the hundreds of warheads weren't showing up on the radar
screens.
How about another one?
On November 9, 1979, a low-level Air Force officer sat down at a
computer and booted up a training program that would simulate what
would happen if the Soviets fired 1,000 nuclear missiles at America at
the same time.
Unfortunately, what he didn't know was that his computer was hooked
up to the mainframe in the main NORAD control room. When he began
the simulation, computers from NORAD to the Pentagon started
reporting that every nuke in Russia was on a collision course with the
USA.
Warnings went out to every missile silo in the United States
informing the crews that the country was under nuclear attack
and to prepare to launch. Fighter planes started taking off to
shoot down the Soviet bombers that were probably headed
their way. The president's airborne command center was
readied for takeoff, but no one could find Jimmy Carter to put
him on board. So his plane took off without him.
Thankfully, the commander of NORAD decided it would be a
good idea to double check that the crisis was real before they
went ahead and destroyed the world.
But that was all in the
past, right?
Watch this.
Vocabulary
Indomitable
Omen
Unavailing
Voluble
Withered
On a blank piece of paper answer
1-5 on the bottom of p. 40 by
matching the idiom to the
vocabulary word.
Then either write each word in a
sentence OR draw a picture that
represents that word. You may
also do both! High five!
1. What words or phrases would you use to
describe the setting of the story?
2. Why do you think the sun shines only over the
Hatchling’s cottage?
3. Do you think Tom and Lily do the right thing in not
going back to the cottage?
4. Compare Lily and Tom’s motives for finding a bit
of sunlight with those of Mr. Noakes.
One last thing!
Read the poem THE SUN by Mary Oliver on p. 38
Finished?
How does Mary Oliver’s Depiction of the sun differ from the sun as
described in Joan Aiken’s story? How is it similar?