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Na m e : ___ Date: _
Directions: In this story you’ll meet Sam, and it won’t take long to figure out what kind of a
guy he is. Read about Sam and his family. Then answer the questions below.Reading Comprehension • Saddleback Educational Publishing ©2002 3 Watson, Irvine, CA 92618•Phone (888)SDL-BACK•www.sdlback.com
Before the boxes were even unpacked Sam went all over the house exploring. He found
little hidden closets, cubby holes, and to his delight, an attic! It was a bit dusty and nearly
empty, but over in the corner was a box. Sam went right to it and looked inside. At first
he frowned—a crummy old doll—but wait, under it was a pack of letters tied in red
ribbon. He looked at the envelopes. They were addressed to an Ellie Rivers at this house.
Later, he asked his parents if they could find out if an Ellie Rivers lived at this house
before they did, and he told them about the doll. Mrs. Larson said that perhaps the real
estate agent would know.
Sure enough, the Rivers family, who had lived in the house before, did have a young girl.
The agent gave Sam the new address and he immediately wrote to them asking if Ellie
would write him back.
About a week later a letter came for Sam. It was from Kathy Rivers. She wondered how
Sam had known her Grandma Ellie, who used to live with them, but was
now in a retirement community about five miles from the Larsons. “Ah
ha” thought Sam, and he showed Mom the letter and told her his plan.
On Saturday, the Larsons drove to the retirement community. Ellie
Rivers looked puzzled when they came into her room, but soon
her face lit up. “Oh my goodness!” she beamed, “It’s Molly!
I thought I had lost her years ago.”- Which of the following terms best describes Sam’s character:
thoughtful, self-absorbed, disinterested, solitary, or hesitant? ___ - Why didn’t Ellie Rivers write back to Sam? ____
- How did Sam’s parents react to his strange request? ___
- What action did Sam take that showed he was curious? ____
- Why do you think Sam went to all the trouble he did to find Ellie Rivers? ____
- At the end of the story, what do you think Ellie thought about Sam as a person? _____