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The animals treated badly by the vet decide to get rid of him. Mainly CVC, with some th words (this, them that…) By Betsy Sewell-474 words -
Jess hops on the bus, looking for a person to live with. More th words. By Betsy Sewell-543 words -
Mud runs are supposed to be fun, but the winner gets $200. By Betsy Sewell-1096 words -
How to build a house for next to nothing using the traditional materials, cob and sod. CVC words, double final consonants (toss, add), plus th, ch and sh. By Betsy Sewell-1169 words -
Some of the family like pepper in their batter, some do not. Trying to get it right for everyone can go terribly wrong. ed and er suffixes By Jan Farr-716 words -
The kids are all too busy to help mum get dinner, until there is no dinner… By Betsy Sewell-775 words -
Who is bigger, who can shift more dirt, the digger or the tipper? ing, ed and er suffixes By Betsy Sewell-744 words -
Betty is struggling to teach the parrot new words and phrases, but after a bizarre interaction with the gas man, Polly suddenly has several new comments to repeat at unlikely times. By Betsy Sewell-1019 words -
Foxes are smart and cute, but do they make good pets? The pros and the considerable cons! By Betsy Sewell-739 words -
Who will win the race? The cheat, of course, unless he is found out. By Betsy Sewell-719 words -
Dad is annoyingly mad on soccer, and claims he was once a star. No-one believes him, until the evidence comes to light. By Betsy Sewell-905 words -
Josh takes a short cut, and gets his bus stuck in the mud. Who can pull him out? Many sh words, er and y endings. By Betsy Sewell 413 words -
Sam must wear a hat and top to go and feed the pigs, so that he does not get sunburn. But the pig’s mud looks like fun, and the piglet thinks Sam’s hat and top are so much better than mud. By Betsy Sewell 602 words -
What is involved in long distance haulage in a big rig, over ill-maintained roads and in threatening weather. By Betsy Sewell 823 words -
The two pigs were the best of pals, mostly, more or less, but when one became ill the other went to extraordinary lengths to care for her pal. A true story. By Betsy Sewell 893 words -
Why do female mosquitoes attack us? What happens when she lays her eggs? The life cycle explained. By Betsy Sewell 908 words -
The young people may be untidy, and noisy, but they are dedicated to hip-hop and rap. They and the old man next door have little tolerance for each other, until they find a common bond in music and dance. By Betsy Sewell 905 words -
The old Tom cat just wants to rest, but is pestered by a playful rabbit.
ay words.
By Betsy Sewell - 282 words -
As the children build a man from tins and boxes, he comes alive, and tells them what to do. Many ay words, er, y, ed and ing suffixes. Some ck words. By Betsy Sewell - 713 words -
A bug goes up to the deck to finish off the dog’s dinner, but gets stuck lying on her back. What can she do to free herself? Many ck words, le suffix. By Betsy Sewell - 604 words -
Cop and Robber Includes some initial blends. A foolish robber and a not very bright cop, but everyone is happy in the end. By Betsy Sewell - 657 words -
The characters try deception to get a rugby hat for nothing, only to realise that the red hat may be free, but an embarrassment at an All Blacks game. Comprehension suitable for older children.
ck, and ay and y words.
By Betsy Sewell - 642 words -
Three men sit in the hot sun, cutting rocks. So why does one think this is an utterly boring job, another think it is an honour to do this work, with the third thinking something else again? By Betsy Sewell - 828 words -
The strategies and antics hermit crabs employ to get a better shell. By Betsy Sewell - 1375 words -
A gloriously funny poem about various animals acquired to get rid of the rats. By Jan Farr - 571 words -
The story of young Nick who at 11 ran away to sea with Captain Cook, and who first sighted Young Nick’s Head on the East Coast. His duties on board, and the fear of falling off the end of a flat earth. Suitable for older children. Many ck words, and le and en suffixes. By Betsy Sewell - 1001 words -
How is Mr. Ducket to stop the pick-pocketers on his way to the bank? He goes to the pet shop to buy a big dog, but the owner suggests a ferret in his pocket…Suitable for older children. Many ck words. et and en suffixes. By Betsy Sewell - 1147 words -
By a process akin to Chinese whispers, the little kitten becomes a big black ox. By Betsy Sewell - 874 words -
A seagull chick must learn to survive, to avoid becoming a snack for the cats and ferrets that roam the colony. But what do the cats and ferrets live on once the chicks learn to fly? This chick wants to find out and becomes a spy. ck,and le,et,ly suffixes By Betsy Sewell - 1689 words -
The villagers are struggling to survive and pay the land tax, when a ship loaded with valuable metal sinks close to the village. When the owners come to salvage the goods, no-one in the village knows where the ship lies, no-one saw a thing… Suitable for older children. By Betsy Sewell - 1297 words -
Cod, once hugely abundant in the North Atlantic, are now facing possible extinction. How did that happen? The story is told through several generations of one family of fishermen. By Betsy Sewell - 1403 words -
It is embarrassing going on the bus with Gran. Every time she sees something that she does not like, she stops the bus and interferes. cInitial blends, er, y and le endings, some ck words. By Betsy Sewell - 714 words -
The challenge is to build the very best sled for the sand hills. Who will be the winner? cMany initial blends, ccvc words. By Betsy Sewell - 997 words -
Any excuse will do to get out of the maths test, but one lie leads to a complicated tangle… By Betsy Sewell - 752 words -
A duckling brought up by a child can be very demanding. But when she becomes a mother herself, she is more demanding still. A true story, more or less. By Betsy Sewell - 1549 words -
Little Red the fox cub is learning to hunt. He has much to learn, but in the end… By Betsy Sewell - 940 words -
The fish and chip shop is shut, so to get fish and chips, you must first make a fishing rod… By Betsy Sewell - 749 words -
There are many versions of this fable – this version will be new to most children.
By Betsy Sewell - 484 words -
The legend of how rugby was invented from a flat soccer ball at Rugby School. By Betsy Sewell - 456 words -
The old moth teaches a rebellious young butterfly how to dry her wings and fly. By Betsy Sewell- 663 words -
Going to the rugby, but the car will not start. By Betsy Sewell - 195 words -
The best parties do not involve spending lots of money. By Betsy Sewell - 662 words -
Why does a Daddy Long Legs live in your house, and is it a friend or a foe? By Betsy Sewell - 1169 words -
You may want an unusual pet, but keeping a frog has its pitfalls. By Betsy Sewell - 1109 words -
The fascinating life of the starfish. By Betsy Sewell - 1014 words -
How does a little fox survive the winter in the Arctic, facing the challenges of hunting for food on the one hand, and avoiding capture by trappers after his pure white fur on the other? By cunning, extraordinary cunning… By Betsy Sewell - 1351 words -
It is hard to imagine a more innocuous little fish, until it is under threat. Then the extraordinary defence tactics begin. By Betsy Sewell - 1225 words -
The fable of the little chick who knows so much better than the grown-ups. By Betsy Sewell - 567 words -
All summer long, the lazy cricket mocks the ant hard at work storing food for the winter, but when winter comes, he wants to be friends. By Betsy Sewell - 916 words -
A version of an Aesop Fable. How Mr. Frog tricks Mr. Rat to always win the race. By Betsy Sewell - 790 words -
How does a trained Search and Rescue tracker find a missing person? What signs do they see that the rest of us may miss? Told through the eyes of a tracker at work, as he reminisces about his own experience of being lost in this very forest as a seven-year- By Betsy Sewell - 2178 words -
As a cricket match progresses, the ball deteriorates. How do the best international bowlers exploit this to get a batsman out By Betsy Sewell - 2448 words -
A giant Pacific octopus finds itself stuck in the gullet of a blue whale. He muses on the strategies he has to avoid the real enemy, the sperm whale, but none of these help with this predicament. This is a level 4 book. The words octopus and whale are not mentioned, but there are enough clues to figure it out. By Betsy Sewell - 1816 words -
Children reluctantly go camping with Dad, but discover its joys and do not want to go home.
By Betsy Sewell - 413 words -
What sort of creature am I? The clues come, and the child must put the clues together to identify the creature. By Betsy Sewell - 1265 words -
Agnes the spider and Mrs. Smith live in the same house. When both have mothers coming to stay, the conflict begins. By Betsy Sewell - 623 words -
Gran comes to look after a child in bed with mumps, and explains about being sick in her childhood. By Betsy Sewell - 485 words -
A girl makes friends with a ghost trapped under her bed. By Betsy Sewell - 1006 words -
Boys build and furnish a hut in the plum tree, only to have it taken over by a possum. By Betsy Sewell - 804 words -
The story of the godwits’ incredible flight to the tundra in Alaska, and back to New Zealand. By Betsy Sewell - 938 words -
How the shag fishes, how it brings up its young, and how traditional fishermen in Japan trained shags to bring in their catch. By Betsy Sewell - 762 words -
A chest is found in the river. The children try many ways to retrieve it, expecting riches and treasure. In the end, they find something unexpected. By Betsy Sewell - 1005 words -
The story of a salmon, and her challenge to get past the (hydro) dam in the river to get to the spot where she must lay her eggs. By Betsy Sewell - 981 words -
Mum wants a new garden, and begins by taking the rubbish to the dump. But the kids have plans of their own for the garden, and find what they need at the dump. By Betsy Sewell - 830 words -
The story of the incredible little New Zealand robin. By Betsy Sewell - 1476 words -
The true story of Jack Simpson, who used a donkey to bring injured men off the field of battle at Gallipoli to the Red Cross tents on the beach. By Betsy Sewell - 1596 words -
Logging in mid-19th century Canada, its dangers, and using the ice on the tracks to bring the logs down. By Betsy Sewell - 1277 words -
Sequel to My Days in the Skidder Gang. The logs are stacked on a frozen river, and when the ice melts, the river pigs must ride the logs down the river to prevent tangles and log jams. By Betsy Sewell - 1645 words -
Ndotto is a tiny, premature baby elephant orphaned at birth. How the staff at the elephant orphanage care for him, and give him the skills to live as an adult in the wild. By Betsy Sewell - 1670 words -
Otters that have taken to living in the sea must live and raise their young quite differently to their cousins living on the land. By Betsy Sewell - 2611 words -
When Jin the Otter escaped from the (Auckland) zoo, the public, the police, the army were called in to help track her down. Her ability to evade them all gripped the nation. By Betsy Sewell - 1576 words -
Mum loses the jar of jam she has just bought, and it is found by one person in need of sustenance after another, until Mum finds it just where she left it, containing nothing but a fat slug with a single red foot. What does Mum think has happened? By Betsy Sewell - 1137 words -
The story reads as if a man is making his way to the summit of a mountain, negotiating the obstacles. But by the end, the reader realises that interpretation is quite wrong. By Betsy Sewell - 1395 words -
Who is this terrifying bearded stranger, and is he really as terrifying as he looks? Why does he choose to live like this, carrying his swag from farm to farm? What do his songs tell us about his life? A glimpse into social history through the story of one man. By Betsy Sewell - 2508 words -
Nessie the Loch Ness monster corresponds with Angus who lives by the lake. How can he possibly doubt her existence? Nessie spells her name Nessy, and calls her home a lake. By Betsy Sewell - 1328 words -
After the earthquake, the landscape is altered, and the map the trampers have bought in good faith is quite wrong. By Betsy Sewell - 731 words -
Mandy must tidy her room, and comes up with some very quick quick-fixes. By Betsy Sewell - 374 words -
How actually do you capture a snake basking on your deck? By Betsy Sewell - 1058 words -
What an absolutely fascinating little creature the limpet is! What ingenious ways it has of protecting itself against its enemies! By Betsy Sewell - 1018 words -
An underwater film maker befriends a huge manta ray, and follows her life. Many words with o_e and i_e By Betsy Sewell - 2337 words -
Based on a true event. A particularly difficult whale stranding, and what must be done to save them. By Betsy Sewell - 1390 words -
The incredibly complex social and farming systems of these ants. By Betsy Sewell - 759 words -
Jane and David become separated by war, and then spend most of a lifetime trying to find each other. When they finally do meet, will they recognise each other? And will the emerald pendant Dave gave Jane help track her down? silent e pattern,ee,ea,or By Betsy Sewell - 1847 words -
Libby was the first woman to win the grueling dog sled race across Alaska, and she did it by taking a risk, and putting the needs of the dogs ahead of her own. By Betsy Sewell - 1717 words -
The Aswan Dam has changed Egypt, but there have been some downsides. The story of the changes the dam has brought to Egypt, told from the point of view of those who live along the riverbanks. silent e pattern,ee,ea,or By Betsy Sewell - 1868 words -
How Adolf Hitler and Ferdinand Porsche collaborated to design the biggest selling car of all time. By Betsy Sewell - 1408 words -
The true story of a puppy rescued from the brink of starvation from a German army camp, who went on to become the most famous film star of his day. By Betsy Sewell - 1425 words -
From the gold fields of Central Otago. Finding gold is not quite as easy as the rumours suggest, and then when you do, that is when your problems really begin. By Betsy Sewell - 1404 words -
How do you escape from a heavily guarded World War 2 prison camp? When all else fails, build a glider and fly out! By Betsy Sewell - 2362 words -
A runaway slave makes his precarious way to freedom, not knowing who he can trust. And then he comes back to rescue his little family… By Betsy Sewell - 2521 words -
Who gets the biggest fright when you encounter a stingray – you or the stingray? By Betsy Sewell - 561 words -
The relationship between a man alone on a life raft, and the shark that arrives every evening to travel with him as he paddles to land. By Betsy Sewell - 2939 words -
Digging for coal in the days when dark tunnels were lit by candles attached to the miner’s helmet; and how to get the better of a mean and selfish boss. By Betsy Sewell - 2041 words -
Going on holiday with Dad to Mars. Mum says eat properly, sleep properly, clean your teeth and brush your hair nicely, but how actually do you do that in zero gravity? By Betsy Sewell - 2158 words -
Catching flying fish the traditional way, with flares and nets on moonless nights. By Betsy Sewell - 728 words -
Beaver dams and lodges are engineering feats. How the beaver creates its own habitat, for winter and summer. By Betsy Sewell - 1455 words
Structured literacy and decodable books
for older students