The Chalk Dragon: Planning an Opinion About a Story

The Chalk Dragon

1Every June, Cedar Street closed to cars for the Chalk Art Festival. Each team got one square of sidewalk and three hours to fill it. This year, Priya and her neighbor Leo signed up together. Priya had a huge idea. "Let's draw a dragon with a tail that curls all the way around the square," she said. Leo frowned at the small square. "That will take a lot of scales," he said, "but okay."

2At ten o'clock, a whistle blew, and the festival began. Priya sketched the dragon's head in bold purple lines. Leo started on the scales, coloring each one green and adding a tiny yellow dot. By noon, the head looked amazing, but the tail was only a faint outline. Leo looked up at the clock above the hardware store. "We have only one hour left," he said. "We can't finish every scale."

3Priya's shoulders drooped as she stared at the long, empty tail. Then Leo had an idea. "What if we fill the tail with swirls instead of scales?" he asked. "Swirls are much faster." Priya was quiet for a moment. Then her eyes lit up. "Let's make them rainbow swirls, so the tail looks like it's on fire!" she said. They grabbed fistfuls of chalk and got to work, laughing as their hands turned every color.

4When the last whistle blew, the dragon was done. Its purple head seemed to glow, and its fiery tail wrapped around the square like a ribbon. The judges gave the prize for most creative drawing to another team. Still, a little boy stopped and pointed. "That dragon looks like it's flying!" he shouted. Priya bumped fists with Leo. "Next year," she said with a grin, "we start with a plan."