Back to School: Dotty by Erica S. Perl
WHEN IDA STARTED SCHOOL SHE TOOK HER NEW LUNCH BOX... AND DOTTY.
AT MORNING MEETING MS. RAYMOND COUNTED NOSES, "TEN, ELEVEN, TWELVE." IDA FROWNED.
IDA PATTED DOTTY REASSURINGLY. "THIRTEEN," SHE ADDED SILENTLY.
When school starts in the fall, it seems that most of the students have brought along their invisible friends, each suited to his or her creator. Dotty, a large, polka-dotted and horned imaginary playmate, fits right in with the others--Pete and Repeat, Max, Benny, Spike, and tiny Keekoo, who clings to Katya's long braids.
But when Ida leads Dotty back by her long blue leash after the holidays, she finds that everyone else seems to have suddenly "outgrown" their imaginary friends.
"HEY, IDA!" YELLED KATYA. "LIKE MY NEW HAIRCUT?"
"WHERE'S KEEKOO?" IDA ASKED.
"IDA!" KATYA SCOLDED. "THAT'S FOR BABIES!"
Now Katya teases Ida and calls her unseen friend "Spotty." Hurt, Ida finally can't take the teasing any longer and shoves Katya down. Ms. Raymond sentences the two girls to write each other notes of apology for their squabble.
"DOTTY PUSHED YOU DOWN," IDA WRITES.
"I'M SORRY ABOUT WHAT DOTTY DID, BUT YOU DESERVED IT!"
It is time for a heart-to-heart talk with her teacher, who quietly asks Ida to tell her about Dotty. Although Ida is unable to describe what her friend Dotty means to her, Ms. Raymond silently lets her know that she is not alone in her closeness to her imaginary friend, and Ida takes heart in her teacher's empathetic understanding.
Erica S. Perl's newest, Dotty
Labels: Imagination--Fiction, School Stories (Grades Preschool-2)
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