illustrations by Donna Cataneseillustrations by Donna Catanese

Meadow

Suggested levels for Guided Reading, DRA,™ Lexile,® and Reading Recovery™ are provided in the Pearson Scott Foresman Leveling Guide.

ISBN 0-328-13354-X

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Green Places in New York City

First

Next

Then

Reader Response1. At the end of the story, Nicky’s

grandfather takes Nicky to the railroad track. Why does he take Nicky there? What happened when Nicky got there?

2. Make a list of the “green” places Nicky visits in New York, from first to last. Use a graphic organizer like the one below.

3. Look at the word artificial on page 14. What does artificial mean? What does Nicky’s use of the word tell you about how he feels about Central Park and its attractions?

4. How do Nicky’s feelings towards New York City change during the story? Give examples of places in the story that show Nicky’s feelings.

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by Juna Loch

Meadow

illustrations byillustrations byDonna CataneseDonna Catanese

Editorial Offices: Glenview, Illinois • Parsippany, New Jersey • New York, New YorkSales Offices: Needham, Massachusett • Duluth, Georgia • Glenview, Illinois

Coppell, Texas • Ontario, California • Mesa, Arizona

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Unless otherwise acknowledged, all photographs are the property of Scott Foresman, a division of Pearson Education.

24 ©Swim Ink 2, LLC/CORBIS

ISBN: 0-328-13354-X

Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc.

All Rights Reserved. Printed in the United States of America. This publication is protected by Copyright, and permission should be obtained from the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or likewise. For information regarding permission(s), write to: Permissions Department, Scott Foresman, 1900 East Lake Avenue, Glenview, Illinois 60025.

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3

Today was the day that Nicky Bauer was to leave his house forever. He stood for a long time in his garden in the backyard, looking at the peas and beans and tomatoes. They were big and healthy, but Nicky would not be there when they got ripe. Some other lucky boy would eat them.

Nicky walked down his block. All the houses were set on big green yards. He loved to look at all the flower and vegetable gardens. He waved at Mrs. Margolis, who was digging in her garden as usual. He always helped Mrs. Margolis with her garden each spring, but now someone else would be helping. Nicky was moving away.

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4

Good-bye to this beautiful, peaceful block, Nicky thought sadly. Good-bye to my home, and good-bye to Ohio. Good-bye to all my friends. Hello to a lousy, small apartment in New York City.

Nicky still couldn’t believe it. It had all happened so quickly. One day his parents sat Nicky down and told him. “Your father has a great new job in New York City! We know you’ll love it there! It’s the most exciting city in the world.”

Nicky wasn’t so sure. Tomorrow, he would be in New York City, but he didn’t want to go there without his friends. He didn’t want to go there without fresh air and the beauty of gardens.

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5

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Nicky headed for the place he called his meadow. No one else cared about the meadow as much as Nicky did.

Ah, here I am! he thought. The meadow was wide and grassy, turning yellow in late summer and a rich green in the spring. It was like a garden of surprises. There were sprouting blue cornflowers and orange black-eyed Susans and white daisies and Queen Anne’s Lace. Nicky particularly enjoyed lying on his back in the long grass, to doze and dream under a hot sun.

The meadow was full of animals too. Nicky had spotted wild turkeys and waddling woodchucks. “Good-bye,” Nicky said to the meadow. “Good-bye!” He sat down and picked a daisy. “I’ll never forget you!” he said.

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7

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8

Nicky took his time going home. His nose burned, there was a lump in his throat, and it hurt every time he swallowed.

When he got to his house, the cab was already there, waiting. His parents were loading suitcases into the trunk. “Time to go!” said Nicky’s mother. Nicky’s father saw the flower in Nicky’s hand and gave Nicky a quick hug. “I promise you it’s going to be great,” his father said.

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9

Nicky’s Uncle Jeff met them in New York City at the airport. He shook Nicky’s father’s hand, kissed Nicky’s mother, and rubbed Nicky’s head. He talked very fast. Nicky didn’t say anything during their long cab ride through congested streets into the city. He was too busy staring at the ugly, towering buildings. To him they appeared dirty.

“Nicky!“ said Uncle Jeff. “Why so glum? You’re coming to live in a great city!”

“He doesn’t want to live in any city,” explained Nicky’s mother. “Nicky’s worried he’ll never get to see green grass again.”

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10

“Not see green grass?” Nicky’s uncle repeated. “It’s not all concrete jungle here, Niccolo. I know just what to show you. Let’s get you settled into your new home, and then I’ll take you on a tour.”

Nicky didn’t answer. I don’t want to go anywhere, he thought, unless it’s back home.

“Here we are! Home sweet home!” said Nicky’s parents. It didn’t look like a home to Nicky, and it certainly didn’t look sweet. It was a big brick apartment building. They had to take an elevator to the third floor. “Your room is at the back,” said Nicky’s mom.

Nicky went and stood in his new closet. There was no floor space at all. He went over to the window and looked out. There were no trees that he could see—nothing, except another brick building.

“Come on,” said Uncle Jeff, poking his head in the door to Nicky’s room. “I’m taking you to Central Park! You’ve never seen a park like it!”

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12

Uncle Jeff and Nicky got into yet another cab. “You like gardens?” he asked Nicky. “Then you should know about the great Frederick Law Olmstead. He planned this huge public space called Central Park. Here we are!” Uncle Jeff said cheerfully.

Central Park didn’t look like the sort of garden Nicky was used to. There were no vegetables at all, but there was a statue of two children. “It’s the characters from The Secret Garden!” said Uncle Jeff. Hey! thought Nicky, that’s my favorite book.

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13

“There’s lots more in Central Park,” continued Uncle Jeff. He took Nicky to a rugged little hill covered with trees. Then he took him to the Great Lawn and Turtle Pond. “You can’t tell me there’s anything like this in Ohio!” Jeff said.

Nicky didn’t answer, but he did think about how it would be fun to play there. He could run up the hills and play by the stone bridge. And there was a little waterfall that went right into the lake!

His uncle was pointing to something high up on a hill. “That’s Belvedere Castle!” Uncle Jeff told him.

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14

“Who lives there?” asked Nicky.“No one!” said Uncle Jeff. “It’s for fun.”What’s so fun about an artificial castle?

thought Nicky. “Central Park’s a big fake,” Nicky said aloud.

“What do you mean?” asked Uncle Jeff, astonished. “There are miles of trees here. And birds.”

Nicky shook his head. “I wish we could go home,” Nicky said moodily. But he didn’t mean back to the new apartment. He meant Ohio.

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15

For dinner that night, they went to a Chinese restaurant with Uncle Jeff’s family. Nicky loved Chinese food, and he enjoyed trying to eat with chopsticks. Still, he felt homesick.

“I haven’t convinced Nicky yet to love New York,” sighed Uncle Jeff. “Not enough green for him.”

“Oh, Nicky, there’s plenty of green,” said Uncle Jeff’s wife, Caroline. “You just have to know where to look!” She smiled at Nicky. “And I’m just the person to show you!”

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16

The next day, Caroline took Nicky on another walk. He did have to admit that he liked the wide sidewalks. And stopping for a cold drink in a café was fun, but he still missed his meadow.

Caroline took Nicky all the way to the top of a small brick building. “My friend Max lives here,” she said. “He’s a bit of a farmer.”

Max answered the door carrying a green plant! “Max, this is my nephew Nicky,” said Caroline. “I want him to see that people grow plants in New York City!”

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17

“Come on up to the roof and see!” grinned Max.

The roof was really peaceful and quiet. It was filled with green plants and potted trees! Nicky could even see some tomato plants blooming! “I grew tomatoes at home,” said Nicky.

“What I really want to do is make a green roof,” Max said.

“What’s that?” Nicky asked.“A green roof is like a real garden, not

a potted garden like this one. A green roof is made out of grass planted in real dirt.”

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18

The idea of a green roof excited Nicky. “You mean like a meadow growing on the roof?” he asked, amazed.

“That’s right!” said Max. “Now, let me show you where I grow my food!”

This time they took a subway train, which traveled very fast. When they came back onto the street, they were in a neighborhood with small brick buildings. Nicky noticed there were lots of trees growing out of the sidewalks.

Then Nicky noticed a huge garden by one of the buildings, with lots of people working in it. “What’s this?” Nicky asked, recognizing their gardening tools.

“This is a community garden,” Max explained. “Everyone gets a little piece of land. My plot is over there. Let’s check out my eggplant!”

“Can I help?” asked Nicky.“Any time you want!” responded Max.

“Later this year, I want to plant lots of bulbs for spring flowers.”

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That night they had another takeout dinner. This time they ate with Nicky’s grandfather, Ray. Nicky observed that New Yorkers never seemed to cook.

“Oh, we cook,” Grandfather Ray said, his eyes gleaming with humor. “Tell you what. Tomorrow we’ll go to the farmer’s market. New York may not have big gardens, but the biggest gardens in the world come to New York.”

Nicky smiled politely, but he still missed his meadow.

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21

The farmer’s market was huge! Even Nicky had to admit that it was pretty amazing. There were tables filled with all sorts of potted plants. There were also tables and bins filled with all kinds of fresh fruits and vegetables. “Let’s buy some corn,” said Nicky’s grandfather. “Have you ever seen so many apples?”

“New York is fun,” Nicky said suddenly. “But I miss my meadow.”

“Your meadow?” his grandfather said.“It wasn’t mine,” Nicky explained. “But

I was the one who cared most about it. It was just a big place where things were growing.”

His grandfather smiled. “I know where we need to go now,” he said.

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22

Nicky and his grandfather took a bus, and then they walked. He couldn’t even guess where they were going. They were far from Central Park, far from the fancy skyscrapers, and far from the museums. Nicky’s grandfather hurried ahead. “I can’t wait to show you this!” he told Nicky.

Nicky had to trot to keep up. Finally they reached an old abandoned train track that was raised up high on trestles. Then, to Nicky’s amazement, his grandfather began climbing up the old metal staircase. Curiously, Nicky followed. When he came out on top, his mouth dropped open.

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There was a meadow growing there! There was grass and insects and cornflowers!

“What’s it doing here?” Nicky gasped.“It just grew by itself,” said Nicky’s

grandfather. “It used to be an elevated railroad track.” “But, you know—seeds get blown up here by the wind, and showers start them growing . . . .”

Nicky picked a blade of grass. He began chewing on it. Then he fell down and lay there, looking up at the enormous sky. He knew that sky—it was the same one he’d known in Ohio.

“I do like New York,” Nicky said. “But I’m still going to live in Ohio when I grow up.”

“That’s fine,” his grandfather smiled. “Just so long as you come back to visit!”

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Our Food Is Fighting!

24

In the 1940s, the United States was fighting World War II. The United States government needed lots of food to send to soldiers overseas, and so the government asked Americans to grow food gardens.

Why would the government do that? Most food was grown by farmers, but there wasn’t enough to send to the soldiers overseas. There would only be enough if Americans grew their own. The government published posters that encouraged Americans to plant gardens—to fight the war with food.

This is exactly what Americans did. They called these vegetable gardens “Victory Gardens.” People planted gardens everywhere—on lawns, on rooftops, or in public parks. Victory Gardens produced more than a quarter of the food Americans ate at that time.

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Green Places in New York City

First

Next

Then

Reader Response1. At the end of the story, Nicky’s

grandfather takes Nicky to the railroad track. Why does he take Nicky there? What happened when Nicky got there?

2. Make a list of the “green” places Nicky visits in New York, from first to last. Use a graphic organizer like the one below.

3. Look at the word artificial on page 14. What does artificial mean? What does Nicky’s use of the word tell you about how he feels about Central Park and its attractions?

4. How do Nicky’s feelings towards New York City change during the story? Give examples of places in the story that show Nicky’s feelings.

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