RAGGEDY ANN
STORIES

By Johnny Gruelle

RAGGEDY ANN STORIES

Author and Illustrator: Johnny Gruelle

Adapted and published by:
Office of English Language Programs
Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs
United States Department of State
Washington, D.C. 20037
americanenglish.state.gov

First Edition: 2011

ISBN (Print with Audio CD) 978–1–624–25037–8
ISBN (PDF) 978–1–624–25039–2
ISBN (ePub) 978–1–624–25040–8
ISBN (mobi) 978–1–624–25042–2

Glossary photographs: ©Shutterstock

Raggedy Ann Stories is a classic American children’s book; this version has been abridged and revised for English language learners. Written in 1918, Raggedy Ann Stories provides a snapshot of what life was like during that time period and contains ideas and details that may not reflect lifestyles and beliefs that are common in the United States today. However, this title reflects some American values that have lasted over time, such as self-discipline, adventure, friendship, forgiveness, and caring for others. To this day, the Raggedy Ann doll has remained popular in American culture.

This book uses vocabulary at the first 1,000-word level. Words above this level are in bold type and are explained in the Glossary at the back of the book. The Glossary lists words in the order in which they appear in the stories. Some words are illustrated by pictures.

Each story is accompanied by pre-reading and post-reading questions. The pre-reading questions are designed to stimulate and prepare the readers for each story. The post-reading questions check comprehension of the main ideas and specific details as well as relate each story to the readers’ experiences and beliefs.

We hope you will enjoy reading about Raggedy Ann’s adventures while building your confidence in reading English.

Raggedy Ann Character List

People:

Marcella

Boys and Girls (Marcella’s friends)

Marcella’s Baby Brother

Grandma

Mamma

Daddy

The Dog Catcher

The Young Painter

Jim the Painter

The Other Painters

The Young Painter’s Mother

Virginia and Doris

John

Dolls:

Tin Soldier

Helen

Jumping Jack

Lisa

Uncle Clement

Annabel-Lee

Thomas

Freddy

Raggedy Ann

Raggedy Ann’s Sisters

Penny Dolls

Animals and Other Characters:

Mamma Bird and Daddy Bird

Fido

Strange Puppy Dog

Old Ironsides

Hennypennies

Boots, the cat

Peterkins

A Little Bird

The Kittens

Fairies

Mamma Cat

Baby Chicks

The Mouse

CONTENTS

Cover

Raggedy Ann Character List

1. Introduction

2. Raggedy Ann Learns a Lesson

3. Raggedy Ann and the Washing

4. Raggedy Ann and the Kite

5. Raggedy Ann and the Painter

6. Raggedy Ann Saved Fido

7. Raggedy Ann’s Trip on the River

8. Raggedy Ann and the New Dolls

9. Raggedy Ann and The Cats

10. Raggedy Ann and the Gift

11. Raggedy Ann and the Chickens

12. Raggedy Ann and the Mouse

13. Raggedy Ann’s New Sisters

Vocabulary Glossary by Story

1. Introduction

Before Reading:

1. In this story, Marcella will find something special. Do you have something you found? What is it? Where did you find it?

2. Where is Marcella in the first picture? What can you see in the room?

3. What do you think Marcella will find in this room?

Marcella liked to visit her Grandma’s old house. When she was at her Grandma’s house, she played up in the attic. Marcella found many old toys and things there.

One day, Marcella was up in the attic as usual. She was tired because she was playing for a long time, so she sat down to rest.

She looked around and saw a box in the back of the room. “What could be in that box over there?” she thought. She stood up and climbed over some old chairs and tables. Finally, she got to the box.

She opened it, but it was too dark to see. Marcella brought the box over to the window where she could see better in the sunshine.

She found a little white hat and put it on her head. In an old bag, she found some dolls wearing old clothes. And there was a picture of a very pretty little girl with long hair. Then Marcella pulled out an old rag doll with only one button eye, a painted nose, and a smiling mouth. Her dress was made out of soft cloth. It was blue with pretty little flowers all over it.

Marcella was so happy. She picked up the rag doll and ran downstairs to show it to her Grandma.

“Well! Well! Where did you find her?” Grandma asked. “It’s old Raggedy Ann!” Grandma gave the doll a hug. “I forgot about her. She has been in the attic for fifty years! Well! Well! Dear old Raggedy Ann! She needs her other eye right away!”

Marcella watched Grandma sew the button on Raggedy Ann. Grandma told Marcella how she played with Raggedy Ann when she was a little girl.

“Now,” Grandma laughed, “Raggedy Ann, you have two new button eyes. Now you can see the changes in the world! And, Raggedy Ann, you have a new friend. I hope you and Marcella will have as much happiness together as you and I did!”

Then Grandma gave Raggedy Ann to Marcella. She said, “Marcella, this is my very good friend, Raggedy Ann. Raggedy, this is my grand-daughter, Marcella!” And Grandma helped Raggedy Ann shake Marcella’s hand.

“Oh, Grandma! Thank you so much!” Marcella said as she gave Grandma a hug and kiss. “Raggedy Ann and I will have so much fun.”

And that was how Raggedy Ann became part of the doll family at Marcella’s house. This book is about Raggedy Ann’s stories.

After Reading:

1. Who is Raggedy Ann? What does Raggedy Ann look like?

2. What was Raggedy Ann missing?

3. You are a grandparent. You want to share something from your childhood with your grandchild. What would you give him or her?

2. Raggedy Ann Learns a Lesson

Before Reading:

1. Raggedy Ann learns an important lesson in this story. What are three important lessons that children should learn?

2. Take a look at all of the pictures in this story. What do you think is going to happen?

3. Do you think the dolls will talk and do things on their own? Why do you think so?

Marcella’s dolls were always very good and did not move while she was in the room. One day Marcella put her dolls against the wall. She told them to be good little children while she was away. When Marcella left the room, the Tin Soldier smiled at Raggedy Ann.

When the dolls heard the front gate close, they knew that they were alone in the house. “Now let’s have some fun,” said the Tin Soldier. They all stood up. “Let’s find something to eat.”

“Yes, let’s find something to eat,” said all the other dolls.

“When Marcella took me to play outside today, we went to a door at the back of the house. I smelled something very good,” said Raggedy Ann.

“Then you must take us there,” said Lisa.

“I think it would be a good idea to make Raggedy Ann our leader for this trip,” Uncle Clem said.

All the other dolls smiled and shouted, “Yes, Raggedy Ann is our leader!”

Raggedy Ann felt happy and said she would be their leader.

“Follow me,” she said and started walking across the room.

The other dolls ran after her. They went through the house until they came to the kitchen door. “This is the door,” said Raggedy Ann. Now all the other dolls could smell something good. They knew it would be very nice to eat.

But none of the dolls were tall enough to open the door. They pulled. They pushed. But the door stayed closed.

The dolls were talking and pulling and pushing. At times one doll would fall down. Then other dolls would climb on her to open the door. But the door wouldn’t open. Finally, Raggedy Ann sat down on the floor.

When the other dolls saw Raggedy Ann sitting with her hands on her head, they knew she was thinking.

“Shh, Shh!” they said to each other. They sat quietly in front of her.

“There must be a way to get in the kitchen,” said Raggedy Ann.

“Raggedy says there must be a way to get inside,” said all the dolls.

“I can’t think clearly today,” said Raggedy Ann. “It feels like I have a hole in my head.”

Lisa ran to Raggedy Ann and took off her cap. “Yes, there is a hole in your head, Raggedy!” she said. Then she took a needle from her dress and used it to sew shut the hole in Raggedy’s head. “It does not look very good, but I think I closed it!” she said.

“I feel so much better!” said Raggedy Ann happily. “Now I can think clearly.”

“Now Raggedy can think clearly!” shouted all the dolls.

“My thoughts were running out of the hole before!” said Raggedy Ann.

“They were running out, Raggedy!” shouted all the other dolls.

“Now that I can think clearly,” said Raggedy Ann, “I think the door must be locked and to get in we must unlock it with the key. See, there is a key in the door!”

“But the lock is too high for us!” said Helen. “What can we do?”

“Yes, what can we do?” the Tin Soldier said.

No one had any idea.

After thinking for a minute more, Raggedy Ann said, “I know what we’ll do.” She asked Jumping Jack to try to open the door. Jack had a stick that was good for jumping. He jumped higher and higher on his stick. He jumped up to the key, turned it, and unlocked the door.

Then the dolls all pushed. The door opened.

The dolls ran into the kitchen. They all wanted to be the first to get to the food.

They quickly climbed up on the kitchen cupboard. They ran quickly and they pushed each other. One of the dolls pushed over a bottle of milk. The bottle fell on Lisa. The milk spilled out and made Lisa’s dress wet.

Uncle Clem found some bread. He sat down and started to eat it.

A jar of raspberry jam fell over, and the dolls began eating the jam. They ate so much jam that their faces became purple.

The Tin Soldier fell off the cupboard three times. But he climbed up again and again.

The dolls had so much fun. They ate as much as they could. Suddenly, they heard the front gate open.

They jumped to the floor and ran back to their room as fast as they could.

But they were too late. Just as Marcella came into the room, the dolls stopped moving.

“This is funny!” said Marcella. “They were all sitting in a line when I left! Why are they in different places now? Did my dog Fido move them?”

Then she saw Raggedy Ann’s face and picked her up. “Oh Raggedy Ann, you are covered with jam!” Marcella put Raggedy Ann’s hand in her mouth. “Yes! It’s jam! Oh, Raggedy Ann! You’ve been to the kitchen! The other dolls were with you, too!”

Then Marcella dropped Raggedy Ann on the floor and left the room.

When she came back, she picked up all the dolls and put them in a basket. Then she took them outside.

There, she washed all the dolls until they were clean. Then she hung them on the clothesline in the sunshine to dry. The dolls hung there all day.

“I think she washed my face so hard that my smile’s almost gone!” said Raggedy Ann, after an hour of silence.

“No, it’s still there,” said the Tin Soldier.

Just then the wind blew strongly and Helen fell to the grass below.

Late in the afternoon Marcella came out with a table and chairs. Then she took all the dolls from the clothesline and sat them on chairs around the table.

They all drank lemonade and ate small cookies with sugar on them.

When they finished eating, the dolls were taken into the house. Marcella combed their hair and dressed them in pajamas.

Marcella placed them in their beds and kissed each one good night. Then she walked quietly out of the room.

The dolls did not talk for a few minutes. Then Raggedy Ann said, “I’ve been thinking!”

“Listen!” said all the other dolls, “Raggedy’s been thinking.”

“Yes,” said Raggedy Ann, “I’ve been thinking. Marcella gave us nice things to eat under the trees to teach us something. I think she wanted to teach us that we must never take without asking. So let’s remember this. We’ll try never to do anything that makes the people who love us unhappy.”

“Yes, let us all remember,” cried all the other dolls.

And Raggedy Ann, with a happy look in her button eyes, lay back in her little bed. Her cotton head was filled with thoughts of love and happiness.

After Reading:

1. What did Raggedy Ann and her doll friends do?

2. What did Marcella do with the dolls?

3. What lesson did Raggedy Ann learn? Do you think it’s a good lesson? Do you know someone who took something without asking? What happened?

3. Raggedy Ann and the Washing

Before Reading:

1. Who does the work around your house (washing dishes, washing clothes, cleaning up, and so on)? Do you help around the house? What do you do?

2. What is something different about Raggedy Ann’s face in the first picture?

3. In this story, Raggedy Ann was washed. Guess what happened to her during and after the wash.

Dinah was the housekeeper for Marcella’s family.

One day, Marcella’s Mamma looked out of the window and saw Marcella run up to Dinah and take something out of Dinah’s hand.

“Oh, Dinah! I can’t believe you did that!” Mamma heard Marcella say to Dinah.

Then Marcella sat on the ground and put her head in her arm. She started crying.

So Mamma went outside and sat down next to Marcella. “What’s wrong, my love?” Mamma asked.

Marcella held up Raggedy Ann to show her mamma. Raggedy Ann looked so funny! Mamma had to smile when she looked at the doll.

Dinah could not understand why Marcella cried. She loved Marcella and did not want to make Marcella sad.

But Raggedy Ann was not sad at all. She knew that she looked funny, but she continued to smile. Her smile was wider than ever.

This is because Raggedy Ann knew what happened.

She remembered that morning when Marcella came to take off the pajamas from the dolls and dress them for the day. Marcella was already upset. She was not happy as she dressed each of the dolls.

Raggedy Ann thought at the time, “Perhaps she got up on the wrong side of the bed!”

And when it was Raggedy Ann’s time to be dressed, Marcella was not careful. She was upset because she had hurt her finger when dressing Lisa.

Then Marcella heard her friend calling her name from outside. She threw Raggedy Ann on the floor and she ran quickly out of the room.

She didn’t know that Raggedy had landed in the laundry basket.

A few minutes later, Dinah came into the room with some dirty clothes to be washed. She put them all on top of Raggedy Ann.

Then Dinah carried the basket out to the back of the house and washed them.

Dinah put all the clothes into a big pot and poured water on them.

Then she put the pot on the stove.

When the water began to get warm, Raggedy Ann climbed on top of the clothes and looked out of the pot. There was so much steam that she couldn’t see anything. Dinah could not see Raggedy Ann, either.

Dinah used a big stick to move the clothes around in the big pot. The clothes and Raggedy Ann moved around while the water boiled.

Then Dinah took the clothes out of the big pot one at a time and washed them. She finally got to Raggedy Ann.

Of course Dinah did not know that Marcella had thrown Raggedy into the laundry basket by mistake. She thought Marcella really wanted Raggedy Ann to be washed. So she put soap on Raggedy and washed her on the washboard.

Two buttons from the back of Raggedy’s dress and one of Raggedy Ann’s button eyes fell off. After washing Raggedy and all the clothes, Dinah tried to dry Raggedy Ann.

It was just then that Marcella came back and saw Raggedy.

“Oh, Dinah! I can’t believe you did that!” Marcella cried and quickly took the wet Raggedy Ann from Dinah’s hand.

That was when Mamma heard Marcella and saw her cry. Mamma held Marcella’s hand and talked to her softly. Soon, Marcella stopped crying.

Dinah told everyone that she didn’t know that Raggedy was in the wash until she took Raggedy from the big pot. When Marcella heard that, she began crying again.

“It was all my fault, Mamma!” she cried. “I remember now. I threw Raggedy Ann as I ran out the door. She fell in the laundry basket! Oh! Oh!” and she hugged Raggedy Ann tight.

Mamma was not angry with Marcella. Mamma knew Marcella already felt very sorry. So Mamma just put her arms around Marcella and said, “But just look at Raggedy Ann. She doesn’t seem to be unhappy!”

Marcella wiped her tears away and looked at Raggedy Ann. Raggedy was all wet, but she had a funny smile on her face. Marcella laughed. And Mamma and Dinah had to laugh, too, because Raggedy Ann’s smile was bigger than it had been before.

“Let me hang Raggedy Ann on the line in the bright sunshine for half an hour,” said Dinah, “and she’ll be fine again!”

So Raggedy Ann was put on the clothesline, out in the bright sunshine. There, she enjoyed the breeze and listened to the birds in a nearby tree.

Every once in a while, Dinah went out to turn and pat Raggedy. Finally, Raggedy became soft and dry.

Then Dinah took Raggedy Ann into the house. She showed Marcella and Mamma how clean and sweet she was.

Marcella took Raggedy Ann up to her room. She told all the dolls what had happened to Raggedy. She also said that she was very sorry about being upset in the morning when she dressed them. Of course the dolls couldn’t say anything, so they only looked at Marcella with love in their eyes. Marcella sat in her little red chair and hugged Raggedy Ann tightly in her arms.

Raggedy Ann looked up at Marcella sweetly with her one button eye. On her face was the same old smile of happiness and love.

After Reading:

1. Why was Raggedy Ann washed?

2. Did Raggedy Ann enjoy the washing? How do you know?

3. Do you think it was okay for Marcella to be mad at Dinah? Why do you think so?

4. Raggedy Ann and the Kite

Before Reading:

1. What activities do you enjoy doing outside with your friends?

2. In this story, Raggedy Ann flies high up in the air. What do you think might happen to her?

3. Look at the picture of Raggedy Ann and the birds. What do you think the birds are doing to Raggedy Ann?

One day Marcella was playing with her friends. Raggedy Ann was with her. The children were making a kite. They used sticks and cloth to make the kite.

They made a tail for the kite. Then they tied a large ball of string to the kite.

The kite was ready to fly now. One boy held the kite. A second boy held the string.

There was a nice wind, and the kite needed the wind to fly in the sky. The boy with the string said, “Let it go.” The other boy held the kite up in the air. Then he let the kite go. The boy with the string started to run.

The kite flew very high in the sky. Raggedy Ann was happy to see it fly so high. But then something happened to the kite. It began flying this way and that way. The kite made four or five circles in the air. Then it fell to the ground.

“It needs a longer tail!” one boy said.

The children asked each other where they could get more cloth to make a longer tail for the kite.

“Let’s tie Raggedy Ann to the tail,” said Marcella. “I know she’ll like to fly in the sky!”

The boys thought this was a good idea. So, they tied Raggedy Ann to the tail of the kite.

This time the kite flew straight up into the air. It flew very high. Raggedy Ann enjoyed being up in the sky. She could see very far. The children looked very small from the sky.

Suddenly, a strong wind came. She heard the wind singing as it pulled the kite faster and higher.

Then, Raggedy Ann felt something tear. It was the cloth that tied her to the kite. As the wind blew harder, the tear became bigger.

Marcella saw Raggedy Ann fly high above the ground. She thought that Raggedy Ann was having a lot of fun. She also wanted to fly in the sky with Raggedy Ann.

After some time, Marcella grew tired of looking at the kite. She wanted to go home.

“Can you please pull down the kite now?” she asked the boy with the string. “I want Raggedy Ann.”

“Let her fly some more,” the boy said. “We’ll bring her down later. We want to make the kite go higher!”

Marcella didn’t want to leave Raggedy Ann with the boys, so she sat down to wait.

From the ground, Marcella couldn’t see the wind tearing the cloth that held Raggedy Ann to the kite. Raggedy Ann could feel that she was not tied tightly any more. She was getting looser and looser.

Suddenly, the cloth tore all the way. Raggedy was not tied to the kite tail anymore! But she did not fall. The wind blew into Raggedy’s skirt. She went flying away from the kite.

Marcella jumped up when she saw Raggedy Ann flying away from the kite. Without Raggedy Ann, the kite couldn’t fly straight any longer. Finally, it fell to the ground.

“We’ll get Raggedy Ann for you!” the boys said to Marcella. All the children ran to where the kite had fallen. They ran and ran. At last, they found the kite on the ground. But they could not find Raggedy Ann.

“Maybe she fell in your garden!” a boy said to Marcella. “The kite was above your garden when she fell!”

All the children went to Marcella’s garden. But they did not find Raggedy Ann there.

Marcella was very sad. She went into her house and told Mamma what happened. Then Marcella went to her room and lay on her bed. Her Mamma went out to look for Raggedy Ann. But she couldn’t find Raggedy Ann either. When Daddy came home in the evening he also looked for Raggedy Ann. But he could not find her. Marcella didn’t want to do anything. She didn’t want to play with any of her other dolls. And she cried for a long time that night.

Finally, she fell asleep. She dreamed that Raggedy Ann came back to her. She woke up crying. Mamma heard her and came to her bed. She told Marcella that in the morning Daddy would look for Raggedy Ann again.

“I shouldn’t have given Raggedy Ann to the boys to tie to the kite!” Marcella cried, “I want her to come back to me.”

Mamma took Marcella in her arms and said sweet things to her. But Mama thought that Raggedy Ann was lost and would never be found again.

Now, where do you think Raggedy Ann was?

When Raggedy Ann fell from the kite, the wind took her a long way. It took her to Marcella’s garden. She fell into the top of a big tree in the garden. In the tree, two birds had a nest. They heard Raggedy Ann fall into the tree.

They were angry with Raggedy Ann for falling so close to their nest. Raggedy Ann did not move for a long time. The birds stopped being angry and became curious. They asked her who she was. But Raggedy Ann did not say anything to them. She did not move. She only smiled at them.

Soon Mamma Bird told Daddy Bird, “See her hair! We can use it in our nest.”

So the birds jumped closer to Raggedy Ann. They asked her if they could take some of her hair for their nest. Raggedy Ann did not say anything to them. She only smiled at them. So, the two birds pulled at Raggedy Ann’s hair until they had some for their nest.

Evening came and the birds sang their lullabies. Raggedy Ann saw the stars come out in the sky.

The next morning, the birds pulled more hair from Raggedy Ann’s head. They also moved her. Now, she could see the ground. She saw that she was in a tree in her own garden.

She saw Marcella looking for her again. Soon Marcella found Raggedy. And this is how she did it.

Mamma Bird had seen Marcella with Raggedy Ann in the garden many times. So she started singing, “Chirp! Chirp!”

Daddy Bird also started singing, “Chirp! Chirp! Chirp!”

Marcella looked up into the tree when she heard the birds singing. Then she saw Raggedy Ann in the tree.

She felt very happy. “Here is Raggedy Ann,” she shouted.

Mamma and Daddy came out and saw Raggedy Ann. Daddy climbed up the tree and brought Raggedy Ann down. He put her in Marcella’s arms.

“You’ll never fly on a kite again, Raggedy Ann!” said Marcella, “I’ll never let you leave me again.”

So Raggedy Ann went into the house and had breakfast with Marcella. Mamma and Daddy were very happy when they saw Marcella playing with Raggedy Ann.

After Reading:

1. What happened to Raggedy Ann after she was untied from the kite?

2. Who had the idea to put Raggedy Ann on the kite? Do you think it was a good idea?

3. Think of three things that are very special to you. What are some ways you can make sure you won’t lose them?

5. Raggedy Ann and the Painter

Before Reading:

1. Can you think of a time when a bad situation turned into a good one? What happened?

2. Look at the second picture. What is happening?

3. What do you think happens to Raggedy Ann in this story?

Marcella’s Mamma wanted Marcella’s room to be painted. The painters were coming early the next day. So, she put the dolls on a high shelf in the middle of the room.

The dolls had to sleep on the shelf that night. All the dolls lay on top of each other. Raggedy Ann had many dolls lying on top of her. She asked them to move. The dolls began moving to one side. Now Raggedy Ann was able to sit up.

“Thank you, that is so much better,” she said. “I’ll be happy when morning comes!” she said. “Marcella will take us to the garden and play with us.”

The dolls did not sleep that night. They sat and talked all night long. When it was morning, the painters came to work early. Marcella did not have time to move her dolls. She had to stay out of the way.

One of the painters was a young man. He saw the dolls and took Raggedy Ann down from the shelf.

“Look at this rag doll, Jim,” he said to another painter. “She’s nice.” He began to whistle a song. He took Raggedy Ann by the hands and danced with her. She enjoyed the dance a lot.

The other dolls sat on the shelf and did not move. They did not want the men to know that the dolls were really alive. “Put her back on the shelf,” said one of the other men. “The little girl will be angry with you.”

But the young painter danced and danced with Raggedy Ann. Finally, he started throwing her up in the air and catching her.

This was fun for Raggedy. As she flew up near the shelf the dolls smiled at her. They were happy for her.

But the next time the young painter threw Raggedy Ann up into the air, he couldn’t catch her. Raggedy Ann fell into a bucket of paint.

“I told you!” said the older painter, “and now you will be in trouble.”

“I didn’t mean to!” said the young painter, “What should I do?”

“Put her back on the shelf!” answered the other man.

So the young painter put Raggedy Ann back upon the shelf. The paint on her head fell down onto her dress.

After breakfast, Marcella came into her room. She saw Raggedy with paint all over her and she began to cry.

The young painter felt sorry and told her what had happened.

“If you will let me,” he said, “I’ll take her home and clean her up. I’ll bring her back in two days.”

Marcella wanted Raggedy Ann to be clean so she agreed. That evening, the young painter covered Raggedy Ann in paper so he wouldn’t get paint on himself, and he took her home.

All the dolls felt sad that night because Raggedy Ann was not with them.

“Poor Raggedy! I wanted to cry when I saw the paint all over her,” said Lisa.

“She didn’t look like our Raggedy Ann at all,” said the Tin Soldier. He was crying.

“The paint covered her smile and nose. You couldn’t even see her button eyes,” said Helen.

And so the dolls talked that night and the next night. But in the daytime when the painters were there, the dolls stayed very quiet.

On the second day, the young painter brought Raggedy home. She looked clean, and Marcella hugged her and thanked the painter.

After dinner, Marcella came in and put Raggedy on the shelf with the other dolls.

When the house was quiet for the night, the dolls said, “Tell us what happened, Raggedy Ann!”

“Oh I’m so happy I fell in the paint!” said Raggedy. “I had the happiest time. The painter took me home. He told his Mamma why I was covered with paint. She took a rag and cleaned my button eyes. Then I saw that she was a very pretty lady.”

“But the paint had gone inside my head,” said Raggedy Ann. It made the cotton inside wet. I couldn’t think clearly. And my hair had paint in it.”

“So the kind lady took off my hair. Then she opened my head and took out all the wet cotton. I felt so much better then.”

“The next day, she washed the paint off of me. Then she hung me on the clothesline to dry.

“And while I hung out on the clothesline, what do you think happened?”

“We don’t know!” all the dolls cried.

“Well, a little bird came and sat near me. She then picked cotton from my head to make her nest.”

“Wasn’t that sweet!” cried all the dolls.

“Yes, it was!” answered Raggedy Ann, “It made me very happy. When I was dry, the lady took me in the house again. Then she put new cotton inside me and sewed me up. She also put new hair on my head. Then she did something else, but it’s a secret!” said Raggedy Ann.

“Oh tell us the secret!” said all the dolls.

“I know you won’t tell anyone so I will tell you the secret. That is why my smile is bigger now,” said Raggedy Ann.

The dolls all looked at Raggedy Ann’s smile and saw that it was bigger than before.

“When the lady put the new white cotton in my body,” said Raggedy Ann “she also put a beautiful red candy heart inside me. So that is the secret. That is why I’m so happy! Feel here,” said Raggedy Ann.

All the dolls could feel Raggedy Ann’s beautiful new heart and they were very happy for her.

After a while the Tin Soldier asked, “Is something written on your new heart Raggedy Ann?”

“I’m so happy you asked! I forgot to tell you,” answered Raggedy Ann, “It says, ‘I LOVE YOU!’”

After Reading:

1. What happened to Raggedy Ann after she fell in the paint?

2. What is Raggedy Ann’s secret?

3. Raggedy Ann’s heart has a personal motto (a saying that helps remind her to do her best). What could be your personal motto?

6. Raggedy Ann Saved Fido

Before Reading:

1. Fido is a dog. Do you have a dog or a cat? What happens to pets that are lost?

2. Look at the second picture. What are the dolls doing? Why do you think they are doing this?

3. This story is about how Raggedy Ann saved Fido. Guess why Fido needed Raggedy Ann to save him.
It was the middle of the night. The dolls were all asleep in their beds. Only Raggedy Ann was not sleeping.

Raggedy lay in her bed. Her eyes were looking up at the ceiling. She put her hand up on her head several times. She was thinking.

After a long, long time, Raggedy Ann sat up and said, “I’ve thought it all out.”

When the other dolls heard this, they all woke up. They sat up and said, “Listen! Raggedy has thought it all out!”

“Tell us about it, Raggedy,” said the Tin Soldier. “We hope they were sweet thoughts.”

“Not very sweet thoughts!” said Raggedy. And she dried a tear from her button eyes.

“We haven’t seen Fido all day, have we?”

“Not since early this morning,” Lisa said.

“I’m worried,” said Raggedy, “and if my head didn’t have all this new cotton, I’m sure it would ache because of the worry! When Marcella took me into the living room this afternoon, she was crying. I also heard her mamma say, ‘We’ll find him! He will come home soon!’ I knew they were talking about Fido! He must be lost!”

The Tin Soldier jumped out of bed. He ran over to Fido’s basket.

“He’s not here,” he said.

“When I was sitting in the window at about noon,” Uncle Clem said, “I saw Fido and a yellow dog playing out on the lawn. Then they ran out through a hole in the fence!”

“That was Priscilla’s dog! His name is Peterkins!” said Lisa.

“I know poor Marcella is very sad about Fido,” said Helen, “I forgot all about it until now. I was in the dining room at dinnertime. Then I heard her daddy tell her to eat her dinner and he would go out and find Fido.”

“I think it would be great if we could show our love for Marcella. We can try and find Fido!” Raggedy said.

“It’s a great plan, Raggedy Ann!” said all the dolls. “Tell us how to start.”

“Well, first, let’s go out on the lawn and see if we can track the dogs!” said Raggedy.

“I can track them easily!” said Uncle Clem, “I’m good at tracking things!”

“Then let’s go right away!” said Raggedy Ann, as she jumped down from the bed. The other dolls followed her.

The window was open. The dolls helped each other to climb up to the window. Then they jumped onto the soft grass below. Of course because they were dolls, the fall did not hurt them at all.

At the hole in the fence, Uncle Clem saw the trail of the two dogs. The other dolls followed him until they came to Peterkins’s doghouse.

Peterkins was too big to sleep in the house, so he had a nice doghouse outside under a tree.

Peterkins was surprised to see the little dolls coming up to his doghouse.

Peterkins could see that they were Marcella’s dolls. “Come in,” Peterkins said. So all the dolls went into Peterkins’s doghouse. They sat down and Raggedy told him why they had come.

“I’m worried, too!” said Peterkins, “But I couldn’t tell Marcella where Fido was. She cannot understand dog language, you know! This is what happened. Fido and I were playing the greatest game in the park. Then a big man came. He had a stick with a funny thing on the end of it and he came running towards us. We barked at him. Then Fido thought the man was trying to play with us so Fido went up too close. Then a terrible thing happened. That bad man caught Fido with the stick and carried him to a car. He threw Fido in with a lot of other dogs!”

“The dog catcher!” cried Raggedy Ann.

“Yes!” said Peterkins. He dried his eyes with his paws. “It was the dog catcher! I followed his car. I saw him put all the dogs into a big pen, so that no dog could get out!”

“Then do you know the way there, Peterkins?” asked Raggedy Ann.

“Yes, I can find it easily,” Peterkins said.

“Then show us the way!” Raggedy Ann said, “We must try to get Fido back.”

So Peterkins led the way across streets. The dolls all ran along behind him. Once, a strange dog ran out at them, but Peterkins told him to mind his own business. The strange dog went back to his own doghouse.

At last, they came to the dog catcher’s place. Some of the dogs in the pen were barking at the moon and others were crying loudly.

There was Fido. He was all covered with mud. He was so glad to see the dolls and Peterkins! All the other dogs came to the side of the pen and looked at the strange dolls.

“We will try and let you out,” said Raggedy Ann.

When the dogs heard this, they barked happily.

Then Raggedy Ann, the other dolls, and Peterkins went to the gate.

The gate had a latch to keep it closed. Raggedy Ann knew that she needed to lift the latch to open the gate, but the latch was too high for her. So Peterkins held Raggedy Ann in his mouth and stood up on his back legs so that she could lift the latch.

When the latch was lifted, the dogs pushed and jumped against the gate. They pushed so hard that the gate flew open. It knocked Peterkins and Raggedy Ann into the mud. When the dogs ran out of the pen, they jumped on top of one another and barked loudly. The dog catcher woke up. The dogs ran away down the street.

Fido helped Raggedy Ann to her feet. Fido, Peterkins, and all the dolls ran after the other dogs as quickly as they could. The dogs turned the corner just as the dog catcher came out. He was still in his pajamas.

He stopped in surprise when he saw the dolls in white pajamas running down the street. He had no idea what they could be.

When they got to Peterkins’s house, the dolls thanked Peterkins for his help. Then the dolls and Fido ran home. They had to hurry because the sun was getting ready to come up.

When they got to their own home, they found an old chair out in the yard. After a lot of work, they finally got it to the window. They climbed up on the chair and entered the room from the window.

Fido was very thankful to Raggedy Ann and the other dolls. Before he went to his basket, he gave them each a lick on the cheek.

The dolls ran quickly into bed. They were very sleepy. Raggedy Ann said, “If my legs and arms were not filled with nice clean cotton, I’m sure they would ache. Since they’re filled with nice clean white cotton, they don’t ache at all. I know Marcella will be so happy in the morning when she finds Fido in his own little basket, safe at home. I’m so happy that I feel like my body is filled with sunshine.”

Since the dolls were now all asleep, Raggedy Ann lay down and smiled happily.

After Reading:

1. Who is Peterkins? Why did the dolls need to see him?

2. How did Raggedy Ann save Fido?

3. The dolls and Peterkins had to work together as a team. Can you describe a time when you worked in a team to get something difficult done?

7. Raggedy Ann’s Trip on the River

Before Reading:

1. Have you ever taken a trip on a river or by sea? How did you travel? Where were you going? What did you do on the trip?

2. What usually happens when things are dropped in the water? What do you think will happen to Raggedy Ann if she falls into a river?

When Marcella had a tea party in the garden, all of the dolls were invited. Raggedy Ann, the Tin Soldier, Lisa, and all the others were there.

After a lovely tea party with cookies and milk, Marcella thought that the dolls were very sleepy. She wanted to put them to bed. She told Raggedy Ann to stay in the garden and watch things.

So Raggedy Ann waited for Marcella to return. Earlier, Marcella had thrown little pieces of cookies to the dolls, and these pieces were now on the ground. Now little ants had come to eat them. Raggedy Ann watched the ants. Then she heard a puppy behind her. It was Fido.

Fido ran to Raggedy Ann. He turned his head this way and that and looked at her. Then he put his front feet out and barked in Raggedy Ann’s face. Raggedy Ann tried to look very serious, but she could not hide the big smile on her face.

“Raggedy Ann, do you want to play?” Fido barked. Then he jumped at Raggedy Ann and jumped back again.

The more Raggedy Ann smiled, the more Fido jumped. He then caught the end of her dress and pulled her around, tearing her dress.

This was great fun for a puppy dog like Fido, but Raggedy Ann did not enjoy it. She tried to pull away, but Fido thought Raggedy was playing.

He ran out the garden gate and down a path across the field. Sometimes, he stopped and shook Raggedy Ann very hard and her head hit the ground. Then he threw Raggedy Ann high in the air. She turned over two or three times before she hit the ground again.

By this time, Raggedy had lost a piece of her dress and some of her hair was coming loose.

As Fido came near a stream, another puppy dog came running across the small bridge to meet him. “What do you have there, Fido?” said the new puppy dog as he ran up to Raggedy Ann.

“This is Raggedy Ann,” answered Fido. “We are playing. We’re having a great time!”

Fido really thought that Raggedy enjoyed being thrown around and high up in the air. Of course she didn’t. However, the game changed. When Raggedy Ann hit the ground, the new puppy dog caught her dress and ran with her across the bridge. Fido ran and barked behind him.

In the middle of the bridge, Fido caught up with the new puppy dog. Each dog tried hard to get Raggedy Ann. As they played with her, she fell over the side of the bridge into the water.

The puppy dogs were surprised. And Fido was very sorry. He remembered how good Raggedy Ann had been to him. He remembered how she had saved him from the dog-catcher. The water carried Raggedy Ann away. All Fido could do was to run along the stream and bark.

Now, the good thing is, Raggedy Ann floated nicely. This is because she was filled with clean white cotton and the water didn’t soak through very quickly.

After a while, the strange puppy and Fido got tired of running. The strange puppy went home across the field. He acted like nothing was wrong. Fido walked home very sorry. His little heart was broken. He knew that he had made Raggedy Ann drown.

But Raggedy Ann didn’t drown—not at all. In fact, she floated and the water carried her along very gently. It felt like Marcella was holding her. She even went to sleep.

Raggedy Ann slept peacefully as she moved along with the water. Then she came to a pool with a big stone. She woke up when the water pushed her against the stone.

Raggedy Ann tried to climb on the stone. By this time the water had completely soaked through her nice clean white cotton. She was so heavy that she could not climb. So she had to stay there, half in and half out of the water. She watched the ants and frogs. The ants and frogs watched her.

Marcella and Daddy were looking for her. They found pieces of her clothes and hair all along the path and across the field. They followed the stream until they found her.

When Daddy got Raggedy Ann from the water, Marcella hugged her so tightly that the water ran from Raggedy Ann and made Marcella all wet. Marcella didn’t mind it at all. She was just so glad to find Raggedy Ann again.

They hurried home. Mamma was baking a cake so it was very warm by the oven. Marcella took off all of Raggedy Ann’s wet clothes and placed Raggedy on a little red chair. Then she brought all of the other dolls in and read a story to them while Raggedy Ann dried.

After about an hour, Raggedy Ann was completely dry. Mamma said the cake was done. She took a wonderful chocolate cake from the oven and gave Marcella a big piece. Marcella and the dolls had more tea with the cake.

That night when everybody in the house was asleep, Raggedy Ann sat up in bed and said to the dolls that were still awake, “I’m so happy that I don’t want to sleep. I think the water soaked me so much that my candy heart must have melted and filled my whole body! I’m not angry with Fido at all!”

Happiness is very easy to catch when we love one another and are sweet inside and out. All the other dolls were happy, too.

After Reading:

1. Do you think Raggedy Ann had a good trip on the river? What makes you think so?

2. Did Raggedy Ann get angry with Fido? Why did she or why didn’t she?

3. Describe a time when someone made a mistake and something bad happened, such as what Fido did in the story. What did you do in that situation? Did you get angry? What should happen to the person who caused the bad thing to happen?

8. Raggedy Ann and the New Dolls

Before Reading:

1. What happens when a new boy or girl comes to your school? Do you talk about them? Do you welcome them?

2. Look at the second picture and describe the new dolls.

3. Do you think the new dolls are happy to come and live with Raggedy Ann and her friends?

One day Raggedy Ann was lying on the floor just where Marcella had dropped her. Her rag arms and legs were in all directions going everywhere.

Her hair was messy, too. Some fell on her face, hiding one of her button eyes. She had a big smile on her face.

There were two new dolls in the room. But they were saying bad things about Raggedy Ann.

“What a sad-looking doll!”

“She has buttons for eyes!”

“And look at her hair! It is just made of yarn.”

“Look at those shoes! They are so old.”

Raggedy Ann did not show that she heard the new dolls. She just lay on the floor with a smile on her face.

Maybe Raggedy Ann thought that the new dolls were right. It hurt Raggedy Ann to hear such bad things about her. But she lay without moving.

Helen did not like the new dolls saying bad things about Raggedy Ann. She loved Raggedy Ann and her big smile. She rolled off her doll chair and said, “Oh no!” in her quiet voice.

Uncle Clem also did not like what the new dolls said about Raggedy Ann. He walked in front of the new dolls and looked at them. But he could not think of anything to say so he put his finger on his mustache.

Marcella’s aunt had sent the two new dolls to her this morning.

Marcella named them Annabel-Lee and Thomas, after her aunt and uncle.

Annabel-Lee and Thomas were beautiful dolls. They wore pretty clothes and had real hair. Annabel’s hair was red and Thomas’s hair was blonde.

Annabel was wearing a silk dress. She wore a hat with long silk ribbons. Thomas was dressed in a suit. Both he and Annabel wore nice black shoes.

They were sitting on two of the little red doll chairs where Marcella had put them. They could see the other dolls from the chairs.

When Uncle Clem walked in front of them and pulled his mustache, they looked at him and said, “He has holes in his knees!”

This was true. Uncle Clem was made of wool and the insects had eaten his knees and part of his clothes.

Uncle Clem was hurt when the new dolls said this about him. But he could not say anything.

He walked to Raggedy Ann and sat near her. He brushed her hair away from her button eyes.

The Tin Soldier also went and sat next to Raggedy Ann. “They do not know you like we do,” he said.

“We don’t want to be her friends!” said Annabel-Lee.

“And the soldier, too,” laughed Thomas.

“You should be ashamed of yourselves!” said Lisa to Annabel and Thomas. “We’ll be sorry that you have come here if you say bad things about us and laugh at us. We’re all happy here. We all like each other.”

Marcella came in to get the dolls ready for bed and kiss them good night. She did not have pajamas for the two new dolls. So, that night she could not change them. She let them sit up in the two little red doll chairs so they would not make their clothes dirty. “I will make pajamas for you tomorrow,” she said as she kissed them good night. Then she changed Raggedy Ann’s clothes, put her in bed and gave her a good night kiss. “Take good care of all my children, Raggedy!” she said as she went out.

Annabel and Thomas talked quietly to each together. “I think we’ve been too quick to talk so badly about Raggedy Ann,” said Annabel-Lee. “Marcella likes Raggedy Ann the most.”

“I’m sorry that we said bad things about her. Everyone is beautiful in different ways,” said Thomas.

By now Annabel-Lee and Thomas were very tired after their long trip and soon they fell asleep and forgot about the other dolls.

When they were asleep, Raggedy Ann went quietly from her bed and woke up the Tin Soldier and Uncle Clem. The three of them went to the two beautiful new dolls. They picked them up and took them to Raggedy Ann’s bed.

Raggedy Ann put them in her bed. She lay down upon the hard floor. The Tin Soldier and Uncle Clem tried to tell Raggedy Ann to take their bed. But Raggedy Ann would not do it. “I’m made out of soft cotton so I can sleep on the hard floor,” said Raggedy Ann.

The next morning Annabel and Thomas woke up in Raggedy Ann’s bed. They looked at each other and felt very ashamed because Raggedy Ann had given her bed to them.

They saw Raggedy Ann lying on the hard floor. “How good she looks!” said Annabel. “It must be her button eyes!”

“Her hair looks so beautiful!” said Thomas. “I didn’t see how nice her face looked last night!”

“The others love her so much!” said Annabel. “It must be because she’s so kind.”

Both new dolls became silent. They were thinking.

“How do you feel?” Thomas finally asked.

“Very ashamed of myself!” answered Annabel. “And you. Thomas?”

“As soon as Raggedy Ann wakes up, I’ll tell her I’m sorry,” Thomas said.

“The more I look at her, the more I like her!” said Annabel.

“I’m going to kiss her,” said Thomas.

“You’ll wake her up,” said Annabel.

But Thomas climbed out of bed and kissed Raggedy Ann on her cheek.

Annabel-Lee climbed out of bed, too, and kissed Raggedy Ann.

Then Thomas and Annabel-Lee picked up Raggedy Ann and put her in her bed. Raggedy Ann did not wake up. They went to sit in their two little red chairs.

After a while, Annabel said to Thomas, “I feel happier now.”

“So do I!” Thomas replied.

Raggedy Ann lay quietly in bed where Thomas and Annabel had put her. She smiled. Her candy heart, which had “I LOVE YOU” written on it, was very happy to hear Annabel and Thomas.

As you know, Raggedy Ann had not been asleep at all!

After Reading:

1. What did the new dolls think about Raggedy Ann and her friends?

2. How did Raggedy Ann become friends with the new dolls?

3. The new dolls talked about Raggedy Ann’s clothes. Do you think a person’s clothes can tell you about who they really are? Give some examples.

9. Raggedy Ann and the Cats

Before Reading:

1. Are dogs and cats usually friends? Do dogs and cats like you to play with their babies?

2. Look at the fourth picture. What do you think Fido and Raggedy Ann are doing?

3. Do you think Fido and the cat in this story will fight or will be friends?

Early one morning, Marcella came and dressed all the dolls. She put them all around her room.

She sat some of the dolls in the little red chairs around the doll table. There was a turkey, a fried egg, and an apple on the table. The food wasn’t real. They were toys that were painted to look like real food. The little teapot and other doll dishes were empty, but Marcella told the dolls sitting at the table to enjoy their dinner while she was away.

Lisa was given a seat on the doll sofa and Uncle Clem sat at the piano.

Marcella picked up Raggedy Ann. She carried Raggedy out of the room. She told the dolls, “Be real good children while Mamma is away!”

When the door closed, the Tin Soldier looked at Tom and gave the turkey to the penny dolls. “Would you like some nice turkey?” he asked.

“No thank you!” the penny dolls said in little penny-doll voices. “We’ve had all we can eat!”

“Should I play you some music?” Uncle Clem asked Lisa.

When they heard this, all the dolls laughed. They knew Uncle Clem could not play music. Raggedy Ann was the only doll who had ever taken music lessons. She could even play some songs with one hand.

In fact, Marcella almost wore out Raggedy Ann’s right hand when she was teaching the song to her.

“Play something fun!” said Lisa. She covered her face with her hands and laughed. Uncle Clem began hitting the keys on the toy piano very hard. Then they heard a noise on the stairs.

In the blink of an eye, all the dolls ran back to their places. They did not want real people to know what they were doing.

It was only Fido the dog. He put his nose in the door and looked around.

Fido could see the dolls sitting very still at the table. They were looking at the painted food. Uncle Clem was sitting still at the piano.

Then Fido pushed the door open and came into the room.

He walked over to the table and smelled the food. He hoped Marcella had given the dolls real food so that he could eat it.

“Where’s Raggedy Ann?” Fido asked when he found out that there was no food.

“Marcella took Raggedy Ann and went somewhere!” all the dolls answered together.

“I’ve found something I must tell Raggedy Ann about!” said Fido, as he touched his ear.

“Is it a secret?” asked the penny dolls.

“Not at all,” said Fido. “It’s about kittens!”

“How lovely!” said all the dolls. “Real kittens?”

“Real kittens!” said Fido. “Three tiny little ones, out in the barn!”

“Oh, I wish Raggedy Ann was here!” said Lisa. “She’d know what to do about it!”

“That’s why I wanted to see her,” said Fido. “Let me tell you how I found them. This morning, I went into the barn to hunt for mice. Suddenly, Mamma Cat jumped at me very angrily. So I quickly ran away!”

“How did you know there were any kittens, then?” asked Uncle Clem.

“I knew there must be something inside because she jumped at me that way! We are always very friendly, you know.” Fido said. “I waited around the barn until Mamma Cat went up to the house. Then I went into the barn again. And I was so surprised! I found three tiny little kittens in an old basket. They were hidden in a dark corner!”

“Go get them, Fido, and bring them up so we can see them!” said the Tin Soldier.

“Not me!” said Fido. “If I had tin clothes like you have, I might do it, but you know, cats can scratch if they want to!”

“We will tell Raggedy when she comes in!” said Lisa, and then Fido went out to play with a neighbor dog.

Raggedy Ann came back to the room at bedtime. The dolls could hardly wait until Marcella put on their pajamas and left them for the night.

Then they told Raggedy Ann all about the kittens.

Raggedy Ann jumped from her bed and ran over to Fido’s basket; he wasn’t there.

Then Raggedy said that all the dolls could go out to the barn and see the kittens. They did this easily because the window was open and it was only a short jump to the ground.

They found Fido outside, near the barn. He was watching a hole.

“I was afraid something might hurt the kittens,” he said. “Mamma Cat went away about an hour ago.”

Raggedy Ann went in first. All the dolls followed her and went through the hole. Then they all ran to the basket.

Raggedy Ann started to pick up one of the kittens. At that moment there was a lot of noise, and Fido came running through the hole. Mamma Cat was behind him. When Mamma Cat caught up with Fido, he cried in pain.

Fido and Mamma Cat ran around the barn two or three times. Finally, Fido was able to find the hole and ran outside. Then Mamma Cat came over to the basket and saw all the dolls.

“I’m surprised, Mamma Cat!” said Raggedy Ann. “Fido has been watching your kittens for an hour while you were away. He wouldn’t hurt them for anything!”

“I’m sorry,” said Mamma Cat.

“You should trust Fido, Mamma Cat!” said Raggedy Ann. “He loves you.”

“Thank you Fido!” said Mamma Cat.

“Have you told the people up at the house about your sweet little kittens?” Raggedy Ann asked.

“Oh, no, not at all!” cried Mamma Cat. “At the last place I lived, the people found out about my kittens. They took my kittens away. I never saw them again. I want to keep this a secret!”

“But all the people at this house are very kind. They would love your kittens!” said all the dolls.

“Let’s take them right up to the room!” said Raggedy Ann. “Marcella can find them there in the morning!”

“What a great idea!” said all the dolls together. “Please, Mamma Cat! Raggedy Ann knows because she is full of nice clean white cotton and is very smart!”

So after talking with the dolls, Mamma Cat finally agreed. Raggedy Ann took two of the kittens and carried them to the house. Mamma Cat carried the other kitten.

Raggedy Ann wanted to give the kittens her bed, but Fido wanted to prove his love to the kittens. He kept asking Mamma Cat and the kittens to sleep in his nice soft basket. Finally, they did. So Raggedy Ann shared her bed with Fido.

The dolls could hardly sleep that night. They just wanted to see what Marcella would say when she found the little kittens in the morning.

Raggedy Ann did not sleep at all. Fido moved around too much and kept her awake.

In the morning, when Marcella came to the room, the first thing she saw was the three little kittens.

She cried out in excitement and carried them all down to show to Mamma and Daddy. Mamma Cat went along. She rubbed against all the chairs and doors. She was very proud.

Mamma and Daddy said the kittens could stay in the house and Marcella could have them all. So Marcella took them back to Fido’s basket. Then she looked for names for them from a fairy tale book.

Marcella finally decided on three names that came from storybooks: Prince Charming for the white kitty, Cinderella for the gray kitty and Princess Golden for the kitty with the yellow stripes.

So that is how the three little kittens came to live in the room with the dolls.

And it all turned out just as Raggedy Ann said earlier, because her head was filled with clean white cotton, and she could think really smart thoughts.

And Mamma Cat found out that Fido was a very good friend, too. She grew to trust him a lot more. She even let him help wash the kittens’ faces.

After Reading:

1. Why did Mama Cat hide her kittens?

2. What happened to the kittens in the end?

3. How do you know you can trust someone? What are things people do that show you can trust them?

10. Raggedy Ann and the Gift

Before Reading:

1. What would be the most wonderful gift in the world for your family?

2. Look at the third picture. What do you think Fido and Raggedy Ann are looking at?

3. What do you think is the gift in this story?

It was night time. The house was quiet. All the dolls were sleeping in their beds.

Fido was also sleeping in his basket. Every few minutes, he would wake up. He would open one eye and lift one ear. He knew something was going to happen.

Fido opened both his eyes. Then he smelled the air and got out of his basket. He shook himself and ran to Raggedy Ann’s bed.

Fido put his cold nose on Raggedy Ann’s neck. She raised her head from the little pillow.

“Oh! It’s you, Fido!” said Raggedy Ann. “I dreamed the Tin Soldier put ice down my neck!”

“I can’t sleep,” Fido said to Raggedy Ann. “I feel that something is going to happen!”

“You have been eating too many bones, Fido. They keep you awake,” Raggedy replied.

“No, it isn’t that. I haven’t had any bones since last Sunday. It isn’t that. Listen, Raggedy!”

Raggedy Ann listened.

There was a sound like singing, from voices far away.

“What is it?” asked Fido.

“Shh!” said Raggedy Ann. “It’s music.”

It was the most beautiful music Raggedy Ann had ever heard.

It grew louder, but still came from far away.

Raggedy Ann and Fido could hear it well. It sounded like hundreds of tiny voices were singing together.

“Please don’t howl, Fido,” said Raggedy Ann. She put her arms around the dog’s mouth. Fido usually howled when he heard music.

But Fido did not howl this time. He felt happy listening to the song. He thought that something very nice was going to happen.

Raggedy Ann sat up in her bed. The room was full of a beautiful light. She thought that the music was coming from outside the window.

So she jumped out of her bed and ran to the window. Fido ran with her. They looked out of the window and into the garden.

Near the flowers, they saw many small fairies. Some were playing music and others were singing. Fido and Raggedy Ann listened to their song. The fairies started to dance closer and closer to Raggedy Ann and Fido. Raggedy knew that they shouldn’t let the fairies see them. Fairies don’t like to be watched.

Raggedy Ann said, “Hurry and go to your basket, Fido. They are coming here.” Then Raggedy Ann ran back to her bed.

Fido jumped into his basket. He tried to look like he was sleeping. But he opened one eye to look at the fairies.

Raggedy jumped into her bed. She pulled the blankets up to her face. She also opened one eye to see the fairies.

Soon, little fairies came into the room through the window. They were shining like silver. And they were singing. They had a little bundle. A beautiful light came from this bundle. Raggedy Ann and Fido thought that it was like sunshine.

The fairies went across the room and out of the door with their bundle. Raggedy Ann and Fido heard them singing as they went down the hall.

After some time, the fairies came back. They did not have the bundle now. They all flew out of the window.

Raggedy Ann and Fido ran to the window again. They saw the fairies dancing around the flowers in the garden.

A little later the fairies’ music stopped and they flew away. Then Raggedy Ann and Fido went back to Raggedy’s bed to think about the fairies.

The next morning, the other dolls woke up. They saw Raggedy Ann and Fido looking curious and interested in something.

“What is it, Raggedy Ann?” asked the Tin Soldier and Uncle Clem.

Before Raggedy Ann could answer, Marcella came running into the room. She picked up all the dolls and ran down the hall. Fido ran with her, barking loudly.

“Be quiet!” Marcella said to Fido. “It’s sleeping. You will wake it!” She took them to Mamma’s bedroom. Mamma was in bed. Next to her was a smaller bed.

Mamma helped Marcella put the dolls in a circle around the small bed. The dolls could now see that a bundle was in the bed.

Mamma pulled back the blanket from the bundle. The dolls saw a tiny little hand, a little face with a small nose, and a little head with no hair. It was a baby boy!

Then Marcella took the dolls back to their room. They all started to talk at once.

“A little baby brother for Marcella!” said Uncle Clem.

“A beautiful bundle of love and fairy sunshine for everybody in the house!” said Raggedy Ann. Then she sat at the piano and played a happy song.

After Reading:

1. What did Raggedy Ann and Fido see that night?

2. Who was the baby?

3. What special things do people do when a baby is born?

11. Raggedy Ann and the Chickens

Before Reading:

1. What does a mother chicken do to help her eggs become chickens?

2. In this story, Raggedy Ann fell into the place where the chickens lived. What do you think will happen to her?

3. Look at the last picture. What is Raggedy Ann doing? Why do you think she is doing it?

When Marcella had to run into the house, she left Raggedy sitting on the fence by the chickens. “Please sit quietly and do not move,” Marcella told Raggedy Ann. “If you move, you might fall and get hurt!”

So, Raggedy Ann sat quietly, just like Marcella told her. She smiled. She knew that she had fallen many times before and it had never hurt her. It was because she was filled with nice soft cotton!

Raggedy Ann sat there for a while. Then a little bird came. It flew to the flowers nearby. It came very close to Raggedy Ann’s head.

Raggedy Ann turned her head to see the bird and lost her balance. Plump! She fell down among the chickens.

The chickens ran away in all directions, but a rooster named Old Ironsides stayed.

He was not happy. He put his head down close to the ground and made a strange noise as he looked angrily at Raggedy Ann.

Raggedy Ann only smiled at Old Ironsides, the rooster. She touched her hair with her hand and did not look at him. She was not afraid of him.

Then something strange happened. The old rooster jumped up in the air and kicked out his feet. He knocked Raggedy Ann over and over.

Raggedy Ann shouted, “Shoo!” at the rooster to make him go away. Old Ironsides didn’t run away. He kicked her again.

Two old hens had been watching the rooster kick Raggedy. Now, they ran to help her. One old hen stood in front of the rooster. The other old hen held Raggedy’s dress and pulled her into the chicken coop.

It was dark inside. Raggedy felt the two friendly chickens pull her up over the nests.

Finally, when the old hens stopped pulling her, Raggedy could sit up. Her button eyes were very good, so she could see the old hen in front of her.

“Wow, that’s the hardest work I’ve done in a long time!” said the old hen. “I was afraid Mr. Rooster would tear your dress!”

“That was a strange game he was playing, Mrs. Hen,” said Raggedy Ann.

The old hen laughed, “He wasn’t playing a game, he was fighting you!”

“Fighting!” Raggedy Ann was surprised.

“Oh yes!” the old hen answered. “Old Ironsides, the rooster, thought you were going to hurt some of the young chickens. So, he was fighting you!”

“I am sorry that I fell inside, I wouldn’t hurt anyone,” Raggedy Ann said.

“If we tell you a secret, you must promise not to tell Marcella!” said the old hens.

“I promise! Cross my candy heart!” said Raggedy Ann.

Then the two old hens took Raggedy Ann to the farthest corner of the chicken coop. There, behind a box, they had built two nests. Each old hen had ten eggs in her nest.

“If the people in the house knew about the eggs, they would take them all!” said the hens. “And then we could not have our babies!”

Raggedy Ann felt the eggs. They were nice and warm. “Now we will have to sit on the eggs and warm them up again!”

The two old hens opened their wings and sat down on the nests.

“But how can the eggs grow if you sit on them?” asked Raggedy. “If Fido sits on any plants in the garden, the plants will not grow, Marcella says!”

“Eggs are different!” one of the old hens explained. “In order to make the eggs hatch, we must sit on them for three weeks so they don’t get cold!”

“And at the end of the three weeks do the eggs grow into a plant?” asked Raggedy Ann.

“You must be thinking of eggplant!” cried one old hen. “These are chicken eggs. They don’t grow into a plant. After they hatch, we will have a lovely family of soft, cute little chicks. We can hold them under our wings and love them dearly!”

“Have you been sitting on the eggs very long?” Raggedy asked.

“We don’t know!” said one hen. “You see, we leave the nests only once in a while to eat and drink.”

“We were going out to get a drink when you fell in the pen!” said one of the old hens.

“I’m happy to sit on the eggs to keep them warm while you get something to eat and drink!” said Raggedy.

So the two old hens walked out of the coop to finish their meal. While they were gone, Raggedy Ann sat quietly on the warm eggs.

Suddenly, underneath her she heard something, “Pick, pick!”

Then she felt something move. “I hope it isn’t a mouse!” Raggedy Ann said to herself. “I wish the old hens would come back.”

When they came back and saw Raggedy Ann’s face, they said, “What is it?”

Raggedy Ann stood up on her feet. She looked down. There were several little baby chicks, round and fluffy.

“Cheep! Cheep! Cheep!” they cried when Raggedy stepped out of the nest.

“Baby chicks!” Raggedy cried. She picked up one of the little fluffy balls up. “They want to be held!”

The two old hens’ eyes were bright with happiness. They got on the nests and opened their soft warm wings. “The other eggs will hatch soon!” they said.

So, for several days, Raggedy helped the two hens hatch the rest of the chicks. Just as they finished, Marcella came inside and looked around.

“How did you get in here, Raggedy Ann?” she cried. “I have been looking everywhere for you! Did the chickens pull you in here?”

Behind the box, both old hens talked softly to the chicks under their wings. Marcella heard them.

She lifted the box away and gave a little cry of surprise and happiness.

“Oh, dear old Hennypennies!” she cried, lifting both old hens from their nests. “You have hidden your nests! Now you have one, two, three, four—twenty chicks!” As she counted them, Marcella put them in her apron. Then she lifted Raggedy up and placed her over the new little chicks.

“Come on, Hennypennies!” she said, and went out of the coop. The two old hens followed right behind her.

Marcella called Daddy and told him about the new chicks. Daddy made two nice houses for the hens and their babies.

All the dolls were happy when they heard of Raggedy’s adventure. They did not have to wait long before Marcella took them out to see the new chicks.

After Reading:

1. What happened when Raggedy Ann fell into the chicken coop?

2. What was the hens’ secret?

3. Do you think Raggedy Ann was right to tell the hens’ secret? When is it important to keep a secret and when is it important not to keep a secret?

12. Raggedy Ann and the Mouse

Before Reading:

1. Do you ever find small animals in your house? What do you do with them?

2. Look at the second picture. What is Uncle Clem pointing at?

3. What do you think happens in this story?

Every day Raggedy Ann woke up happy. But today Raggedy Ann was very angry. She had a frown on her face.

Someone or something had been in the dolls’ room and left a trail of crumbs.

“It’s such a mess!” said Raggedy Ann.

“Something must be done about it!” said Lisa. She was also very angry.

“When I catch who did this, I don’t know what I will do with him!” said the Tin Soldier. He felt angry, too.

“It was a mouse! Here is the hole he came from,” said Uncle Clem. “Come, see!”

All the dolls ran to Uncle Clem. He was down on his hands and knees.

“This must be the place,” said Raggedy Ann. “We will cover the hole. He will not come out again!”

The dolls found old clothes and pieces of paper. They pushed them into the mouse’s hole.

“I thought I heard a mouse last night,” one of the penny dolls said.

Marcella came to the dolls’ room. When Marcella saw the crumbs, she ran downstairs. She told Daddy and Mamma about it. They came upstairs with her. Soon, they also found the mouse’s hole.

Later that day, Marcella came running into their room. She had a small kitten in her arms.

Marcella showed the kitten to all the dolls.

“Her name is Boots,” said Marcella. “See, she has four little white feet!”

Boots was a happy kitten. She played with the penny dolls. She jumped at them from behind the chairs. All of them had a lot of fun.

Soon, Marcella left the room. Then Raggedy Ann played with Boots. They rolled around on the floor. They liked each other and enjoyed themselves.

Boots slept on top of Raggedy Ann. The kitten was heavy but Raggedy Ann was very glad to have Boots sleep with her.

At night, Boots started to cry for her Mommy. She missed her Momma. It was the first time she had been away from home. Raggedy Ann talked to her and made her feel better. Soon, Boots went back to sleep.

Within a few days, Boots had become friends with all the dolls. She did not cry at night. The dolls told her about the mouse. She said that she would look for him at night.

One night, all the dolls were sleeping. Only Boots was awake. Then a small mouse came out of the hole. Boots jumped after the mouse. She hit the toy piano. The piano made a lot of noise and the dolls woke up.

They ran over to Boots. She was sitting with a little mouse in her mouth.

The mouse was squeaking loudly!

Raggedy Ann did not like to hear it squeak. But she did not want the mouse to leave a mess again either.

So, Raggedy Ann said to the tiny little mouse, “You should not come here. Why don’t you go out to live in the barn?”

“I am not hurting anyone!” squeaked the little mouse. “This is the first time I have ever been here!”

“Aren’t you the little mouse who left all the crumbs?” Raggedy Ann asked.

“No,” the little mouse answered. “I was visiting the mice inside the walls. I live in the barn and have three baby mice. I did not leave any crumbs.”

“Are you a Mamma mouse?” Uncle Clem asked.

“Yes!” the little mouse squeaked. “If the kitten will let me go, I will run home to my children. I will never come back here.”

“Let her go, Boots!” the dolls said. “She has three little baby mice at home! Please let her go!”

“No,” Boots told them. “This is the first mouse I have ever caught. I want to eat her!” The little Mamma mouse began squeaking even more loudly.

“If you do not let the Mamma mouse go, Boots, I will be very sad, and I will not want to play with you,” said Raggedy Ann.

“Raggedy will not play with Boots,” said all of the dolls. All of them liked to play with Raggedy Ann. They would be very sad if she did not play with them. So they thought Boots would feel sad too.

But Boots did not let the little Mamma mouse go.

The dolls talked together. While they talked, Boots played with the mouse. She let the little mouse go, and then when the mouse ran, she caught it again.

She did this again and again until the poor mouse grew very tired and could not run.

Raggedy Ann watched the little mouse try to run away. But Boots caught it every time. This made Raggedy Ann very sad. Tears came to her eyes.

Boots started to jump after the little mouse again. This time Raggedy Ann threw her arms around the kitten’s neck. “Run, Mamma mouse!” Raggedy Ann shouted as she held the kitten. The mouse was too tired to run.

Uncle Clem ran and pushed the Mamma mouse into the hole. Then the little mouse was gone.

When Raggedy Ann took her arms from around Boots, the kitten was very angry. She scratched Raggedy Ann with her claws.

But Raggedy Ann only smiled. It did not hurt her at all. Boots felt ashamed. She went over and lay down near the hole in the wall. She waited for the mouse to come back. But the mouse never returned. She was with her baby mice in the barn.

Raggedy Ann and the dolls went to bed. In the night, Raggedy Ann felt something jump up on her bed. It was Boots. Boots licked Raggedy’s face. Raggedy Ann smiled happily to herself. Once again Boots slept on top of Raggedy Ann.

Raggedy Ann knew that Boots was not angry with her for helping Mamma Mouse.

After Reading:

1. Why did the mouse come in the house and how did it leave?

2. What did Raggedy Ann do to save the mouse?

3. Raggedy Ann and Boots did not agree about what to do with the mouse. What can happen when people disagree?

13. Raggedy Ann’s New Sisters

Before Reading:

1. Imagine something you own is copied hundreds of times and given to children around the world. What would you want to have copied?

2. Look at the picture on page 61. Why do you think there are so many Raggedy Anns all together?

3. How many new sisters do you think Raggedy Ann will have? Where do you think they will come from?

Marcella was having a tea party up in her room when Daddy called her. She left the dolls around the little table and ran downstairs. She took Raggedy Ann with her.

Mamma, Daddy, and their friend John were talking in the living room. Marcella had never met John so Daddy introduced them to each other.

He was a big man with kind eyes and a nice smile. His smile was as pleasant as Raggedy Ann’s. Because Daddy, Mamma and Marcella liked him, Raggedy Ann liked him too.

“I have two little girls,” he told Marcella. “Their names are Virginia and Doris. Doris has a doll called Freddy. One time, we were at the beach. They were playing in the sand and they covered Freddy in the sand. After they covered Freddy, they went farther down the beach to play. They forgot all about Freddy.

“When it was time for us to go home, Virginia and Doris remembered Freddy. They ran back to get him, but the waves came and pulled Freddy out into the water. They saw Freddy go under the water and they could not find him again. Virginia and Doris were very sad and they talked about Freddy all the way home.”

“It was too bad they forgot Freddy,” said Marcella.

“Yes, it was!” John said as he took Raggedy Ann up and made her dance on Marcella’s knee. “But it was okay after all, because, do you know what happened to Freddy?”

“No, what happened to him?” Marcella asked.

“Well, first of all, when Freddy was covered with the sand, he enjoyed it very much. He didn’t mind when the waves came up over him. He thought Virginia and Doris would come back and get him.

“But then Freddy felt the sand above him move. It felt as if someone was getting him out. Soon his head was uncovered. Now he could look right up through the beautiful green water. What do you think was happening?

“The waves were washing away the sand and uncovering Freddy. When he was completely uncovered, the undertow pulled him out to sea. Then the waves threw him up into the air with the ocean spray. The wind and the waves helped carry him back to the beach.”

Marcella couldn’t wait to hear what happened next.

“The next day, Virginia and Doris found him on the beach, looking very happy after his wonderful adventure!”

“Freddy must have enjoyed it and your little girls must be very glad to have Freddy back again!” said Marcella. “Raggedy Ann went up in the air on the tail of a kite one day and fell and was lost. So now I am very careful with her!”

“Would you let me take Raggedy Ann for a few days?” asked John.

Marcella was quiet. She liked the man, but she did not want to lose Raggedy Ann.

“I promise to take very good care of her and I’ll give her back to you in a week. Will you let her go with me, Marcella?”

Marcella finally agreed and when John left, he put Raggedy Ann in his bag.

“It is lonely without Raggedy Ann!” said the dolls each night.

“We miss her happy, painted smile and her fun ways!” they said.

And so the week went by slowly....

When Raggedy Ann finally came back, all the dolls wanted to hug Raggedy Ann and ask her many questions. They could hardly wait until the time when Marcella left them alone.

They hugged Raggedy Ann almost out of shape! She had to straighten her hair and feel her button eyes to see if they were still there. Then she said, “Well, what have you been doing? Tell me all the news!”

“Oh we just had the usual tea parties and games!” said the Tin Soldier. “Tell us about yourself, Raggedy, we missed you so much!”

“Yes! Tell us where you have been and what you have done, Raggedy!” all the dolls said.

Just then, Raggedy Ann saw that one of the penny dolls was missing a hand.

“How did this happen?” she asked as she picked up the doll.

“I fell off the table and hit the Tin Soldier last night when we were playing. But don’t worry about a little thing like that, Raggedy Ann,” the penny doll said. “Tell us about yourself! Did you have a nice time?”

“I will not say anything until your hand is fixed!” Raggedy Ann said.

So Helen ran and found a bottle of glue. “Where’s the hand?” Raggedy asked.

“In my pocket,” the penny doll answered.

Raggedy Ann glued the penny doll’s hand in place and put a piece of cloth around it to hold it until the glue dried. Then she said, “When I tell you about this wonderful adventure, I know you will all feel very happy. It made me almost burst with joy.”

The dolls all sat on the floor around Raggedy Ann. The Tin Soldier sat with his arm over her shoulder.

“Well, first, when I left,” said Raggedy Ann, “I was put in John’s bag. It was stuffy in there, but I did not mind it. I think I fell asleep. When I woke up, I saw John’s hand. Then the hand took me out from the bag. John danced me on his knee. ‘What do you think of her?’ he asked three other people sitting nearby.

“I was so interested in looking out of the window that I did not listen to what they said. We were on a train and the scenery was just flying by! Then I was put back in the bag.

“The next time I was taken from the bag, I was in a large, clean, bright room and there were many, many workers all dressed in white aprons.

“John showed me to the people in aprons. Then they cut my seams and took out my cotton. And what do you think? They found my lovely candy heart! It had not melted at all as I thought. They put me on a clean white cloth on a table. Then they drew all around my body with a pencil. After that, they filled me with cotton again and dressed me.

“I stayed in that clean, big, and bright room for two or three days and nights. I watched my sisters grow from pieces of cloth into dolls just like myself!”

“Your SISTERS!” the dolls all shouted in astonishment. “What do you mean, Raggedy?”

“I mean,” said Raggedy Ann, “that John borrowed me from Marcella so that he could make dolls exactly like me. Before I left the big clean room, there were hundreds of dolls. They are so much like me you wouldn’t be able to say which one is me and which one is not.”

“We could tell it’s you by your happy smile!” said Lisa.

“But all of my sister dolls have smiles just like mine!” answered Raggedy Ann.

“And button eyes?” the dolls all asked.

“Yes, button eyes!” Raggedy Ann said.

“I would know that it’s you because of your dress, Raggedy Ann,” said Lisa. “Your dress is fifty years old!”

“But my new sister rag dolls have dresses just like mine. John used cloth for their dresses that was exactly like the cloth in my dress.”

“I know how we could tell you from the other dolls, even if you all look exactly alike!” Helen said. She had been thinking for a long time.

“How?” asked Raggedy Ann with a laugh.

“By feeling your candy heart! If the doll has a candy heart then it is you, Raggedy Ann!”

Raggedy Ann laughed, “I’m so glad you all love me so much, but I am sure you wouldn’t be able to tell me from my new sisters, except that I’m old and worn. Each new doll has a candy heart, too! On each heart are the words ‘I LOVE YOU’ just like my own candy heart.”

“And there are hundreds and hundreds of the new dolls like you?” asked the little penny dolls.

“Hundreds and hundreds of them, all named Raggedy Ann,” said Raggedy.

“Then,” said the penny dolls, “we are really happy and proud of you! The new Raggedy Ann dolls will bring the love and happiness that you give to others.”

After Reading:

1. How did Raggedy Ann get new sisters?

2. In what ways was Raggedy Ann the same as her sisters? How was she different?

3. Raggedy Ann’s friends were at first afraid that they wouldn’t be able to tell her from the other dolls, but in the end they were happy. Do you think special things should be copied? Why or why not?

Vocabulary Glossary by Story

1. Introduction

attic: n. a room in a house that is above all rooms and is right under the roof, often used as a place to keep things

climb: v. to go up something high (such as a wall or a tree) by using one’s hands and feet

rag doll: n. a soft doll made from pieces of cloth

button: n. a small, often round, piece of plastic on clothing, used to keep the clothing together

hug: n. an action in which a person puts his/her arms around somebody else to show love

sew: v. to repair clothes or attach something such as a button to them

2. Raggedy Ann Learns a Lesson

leader: n. a person who directs a group of people

kitchen: n. the room in a house where food is made

needle: n. a small thin tool for sewing

lock: v. to close a door with a key so others cannot open it

key: n. a small object used to lock and unlock a door

cupboard: n. a place to keep things, usually in the kitchen

spill: v. when a liquid spills, it flows out of its container by accident

raspberry jam: n. a sweet, thick, and sticky paste made from raspberries; a raspberry is a type of small red fruit

basket: n. something we use to carry things, hold things, or for a small pet to sleep in; it is often woven

clothesline: n. a piece of rope or string tied between two poles; wet clothes are hung on it to dry in the sun

grass: n. short little green plants that cover the ground in fields and gardens

lemonade: n. a drink made with lemon juice, water, and sugar

comb: v. to use a hair tool to make one’s hair smooth and straight

pajamas: n. soft clothes that are worn to bed

cotton: n. soft cloth made from a plant

3. Raggedy Ann and the Washing

housekeeper: n. a person who does housework for pay

upset: adj. unhappy, angry

to get up on the wrong side of the bed: idiom an expression to explain why some mornings someone wakes up and is upset for no clear reason

hurt: v. make something or someone feel pain

laundry basket: n. a basket that holds clothes that are dirty and need to be washed

pot: n. a container for cooking *(In the story, Dinah used a pot for washing clothes, but most people no longer wash their clothes this way. Nowadays, most people use a washing machine or wash their clothes by hand.)

stove: n. a thing in the kitchen that uses wood, coal, gas, or electricity to heat up food or water

steam: n. what water becomes when it is heated

boil: v. to cook in water

washboard: n. a board for washing clothes

fault: n. something one did that caused an accident to happen

tear: n. a drop of water that comes out of the eye when someone cries (the verb to tear has a different meaning)

breeze: n. light, pleasant wind

pat: v. to touch a person or animal quickly and gently with the flat of the hand to show kindness

4. Raggedy Ann and the Kite

kite: n. a toy made of paper and sticks that is made to fly in the sky with the help of a long piece of string

tail: n. a long thin rope tied to the back of the kite

string: n. a thin rope

tear: v. to break apart (usually cloth or paper)

nest: n. a bed that birds make with small sticks and anything soft; birds put their eggs in nests

curious: adj. interested in learning more

lullabies: n. gentle songs to put a baby to sleep

5. Raggedy Ann and the Painter

shelf: n. a long flat board on a wall or in a cupboard used to put things on

whistle: v. to make a sound by blowing wind through the lips

to be in trouble: idiom to make someone else angry about what you have done

rag: n. a piece of old cloth

secret: n. something very few people know

candy heart: n. a piece of candy in the shape of a heart

6. Raggedy Ann Saved Fido

ache: v. hurt

lawn: n. an area of grass in a yard or garden

fence: n. a thin wall around a house or area; it is often made of wood or wire

track: v. to follow an animal or a person by following the marks or signs that they leave behind

trail: n. the marks or signs that an animal or a person leaves behind as they go by

doghouse: n. a house for a dog

bark: n. the woofing sound that a dog makes

terrible: adj. very bad

dog catcher: n. a person who catches dogs, usually with a special stick

paw: n. an animal’s foot

pen: n. a small place to keep animals inside

mind his own business: idiom not pay attention to what others are doing

mud: n. soft, wet, sticky dirt

latch: n. a small object to keep a door, gate, or window closed

lift: v. to pick up

hurry: v. to go or do something quickly

lick: v. to touch with the tongue (in America, people often think that it is good when a dog licks someone’s face)

cheek: n. each side of the face below the eye

7. Raggedy Ann’s Trip on the River

ant: n. a very small bug

puppy: n. a young dog

hide: v. to make it so that no one can see (a person or thing)

path: n. an opening in a field or forest that is easy to follow

stream: n. a small river

catch up with: idiom to run after someone and get right next to them (caught is the past tense of catch)

float: v. to not fall to the bottom of the water but stay on top Example: Boats float in the water.

soak: v. to fill up and cover something completely with liquid; to make very wet

[someone’s] heart is broken: idiom feel very sad

drown: v. to fall to the bottom of the water and die

gently: adv. carefully, softly

oven: n. something used to bake food

chocolate cake: n. a sweet food that is baked in an oven

melt: v. (ice, chocolate, butter, etc.) to turn into liquid from heat Example: the candy melted: the candy became liquid like water

8. Raggedy Ann and the New Dolls

mustache: n. hair above the lip on a man’s face

blonde: adj. hair that is yellow in color

silk: n. an expensive type of cloth which is soft and shiny

ribbon: n. a long piece of cloth or paper used to tie things or put in a person’s hair

suit: n. a set of clothes made from the same material, usually pants and a coat

insects: n. a small creature that has six legs (examples: ant, bee, spider, fly)

ashamed: adj. to feel bad because the person has done something wrong

9. Raggedy Ann and the Cats

turkey: n. a large bird that is cooked to eat

teapot: n. a pot that heats and holds tea (a warm drink)

sofa: n. a soft seat for more than one person

piano: n. a musical instrument that has black and white keys and is played with the fingers

in the blink of an eye: idiom as fast as you open and shut your eyes; an expression meaning something is done very fast

kitten: n. a baby cat

barn: n. a building outside of the house used to keep animals or farm tools

mice: n. more than one mouse

hidden: adj. past participle of hide

scratch: v. to use one’s nails to rub or cut skin

trust: v. to believe that someone is telling the truth; to believe that someone is not dangerous

rub: v. to touch gently

fairy tale: n. a traditional children’s story

kitty: n. another word for young cat or kitten

stripe: n. a line that goes up and down; a yellow striped (adj.) cat describes a cat with yellow lines and other color lines

10. Raggedy Ann and the Gift

pillow: n. something you put your head on in bed

howl: v. to make a loud and long cry (a dog)

fairy: n. a very small magical person

blanket: n. cloth on the bed to keep you warm when you sleep

silver: adj. shiny, grayish color

bundle: n. a small package

hall: n. the space you can walk between rooms

11. Raggedy Ann and the Chickens

balance: v. to keep your body in control so you don’t fall over

rooster: n. a male chicken

hen: n. a female chicken that lays eggs

chicken coop: n. a small house on a farm where chickens can build their nests

promise: v. to tell someone you will definitely do something or that something will definitely happen

cross my candy heart: idiom “cross my heart” is an expression that children use when someone asks them to make a promise. It means, “Yes, I promise!” Raggedy Ann had a candy heart so she said “cross my candy heart.”

hatch: v. when baby chickens grow enough to come out of the egg, the egg breaks and the chicken leaves the egg

eggplant: n. a kind of vegetable that has purple or white fruit; an eggplant is either long or round

chick: n. a baby chicken

fluffy: adj. soft and light Example: The cat has fluffy hair.

apron: n. a piece of cloth used to protect your clothes when cooking or cleaning

12. Raggedy Ann and the Mouse

frown: n. the opposite of a smile; a sad face

crumb: n. a very small piece of dry food, usually bread

squeak: v. to make a loud, high noise

claw: n. a cat’s or bird’s sharp fingernail

13. Raggedy Ann’s New Sisters

introduce: v. to tell someone who a new person is

beach: n. the place right next to the water of an ocean or sea; there is usually sand on a beach

wave: n. movement of water that moves up and down and back and forth

undertow: n. the water under the sea that pulls away from the land

spray: n. tiny drops of water that fly in the air

missing: adj. gone, not there anymore

glue: n. liquid that makes things stay together

burst with joy: idiom to be very happy and excited

stuffy: adj. hard to breathe from being in a very small space

scenery: n. nature all around that you can see

astonishment: n. a big surprise