Text Leveling System

Heckedy Peg

RDQ:	420	Max Word/Sent	52	Total Words	1015		Diff Words	299
Lex	610	Ave Word/.Sent	8	Hi Freq occurs	654	64.4%	Hi freq	125	41.8%
AR	2.5	Long Sentences	7.3	Low Freq occurs	6	0.6%	Low freq	6	2%

Down the dusty roads and far
away a poor mother once lived 
with her seven children named
Monday Tuesday Wednesday
Thursday Friday Saturday
and Sunday.
Every day before the mother 
went to market her children
helped with all the chores.
One Morning when they were
finished the mother said "Because 
you are such good children you
may ask for anything you want
and I will bring it home from the
market."]]
The children were overjoyed
and new exactly what they wanted.
Monday asked for a tub of butter.
Thursday asked for a pot of honey.
Friday asked for a tin of salt.]]
Tuesday asked for a pocket knife
Wednesday asked for a china pitcher.
Saturday asked for crackers.
And Sunday asked for a bowl
of egg pudding.]]
The mother kissed her children
good-bye and said "Now be
careful and remember - don't
let a stranger in and don't touch
fire."
The children locked the door
behind her and began to play.]]
Before long a witch hobbled up the road pulling a heavy cart. She 
rapped at the window and called out:
"I'm Heckedy Peg. 
I've lost my leg. 
Let me in!"
"We can't" Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 
and Sunday called. "Mother told us not to let a stranger in."
Heckedy Peg took a pipe from her cape and stuck it in her mouth. 
"Come now sweet chickens" she called. "All I need is a light for 
my pipe. Bring me a burning straw."]]
"We can't" Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 
and Sunday called. "Mother told us not to touch fire."
Heckedy Peg reached in her cart and pulled out a sack.
"I'm sure your mother won't mind" she said. "Look! If you let me 
in and light my pipe I'll give you this."
Leaning out the window the children looked into the sack. They couldn't 
believe their eyes.
"Gold!" they cried. "For a sack of gold we'll let you in and light 
your pipe."]]
The children unlocked the door and let the witch in. They ran to the]]
hearth and brought back sticks of straw to light her pipe.]]
But when it was lit 
Heckedy Peg threw the pipe 
to the floor and shouted 
"Now I've got you!"
And with that the witch 
turned the children into food. 
Monday became bread. 
Tuesday became pie. 
Wednesday became milk. 
Thursday became porridge. 
Friday became fish. 
Saturday became cheese. 
And Sunday became
roast rib.]]
Heckedy Peg gathered up the food and loaded it in her cart.
Without looking back she pulled her cart down the road]]
over the bridge through the town across the field and deep
into the woods to her hut.]]
Soon the mother returned home carrying 
a large basket. In it were all the things
her children wanted
a tub of butter for Monday 
a pocket knife for Tuesday
a china pitcher for Wednesday 
a pot of honey for Thursday 
a tin of salt for Friday 
crackers for Saturday
and a bowl of egg pudding for Sunday. 
"Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday 
Friday Saturday and Sunday!" she called 
but no one answered.
The mother found the witch's broken pipe 
and burnt pieces of straw on the floor. Tears 
flowed from her eyes.
"Who has taken my children?" she cried. 
A blackbird who had seen everything took 
pity on the mother and hopped down to the 
windowsill.
"Follow me!" the bird chirped. 
"It's Heckedy Peg.
She's lost her leg. 
They let her in."
Grabbing her basket the mother followed 
the blackbird down the road over the bridge 
through the town across the field and deep 
into the woods to the witch's hut.]]
Heckedy Peg had just sat down to supper a was about to]]
take her first bite when she heard a loud knock on the door.]]
"Let me in!" the mother called. "I want 
my children back!"
"You can't come in!" said Heckedy Peg. 
"Your shoes are dirty."
"Then I'll take them off" the mother 
said and so she did.
"Let me in!" the mother called. "I want 
my children back!"
"You can't come in!" said Heckedy Peg 
"Your socks are dirty."
"Then I'll take them off" the mother 
said and so she did.
"Let me in!" the mother called. "I want 
my children back!"
"You still can't come in!" said Heckedy 
Peg. "Your feet are dirty."]]
"Then I'll cut them off" the mother said and she went away as if 
to do so. But instead the mother hid her legs behind her and crawled 
back to the witch's door.
"Let me in!" the mother called. "I want my children back!" 
When Heckedy Peg looked down she thought the mother had no 
feet so she let her in.]]
The witch pointed to the table.
"Here are your children" she said. "If you can't guess the
right the first time I'll eat them for my supper."
Keeping her feet tucked beneath her the mother crawled to
the table. How would she ever guess which food was which child?]]
In despair the mother looked in her basket. Here are the things
my children wanted she thought and now they will never have them.
"Hurry!" said the witch "I'm hungry."
The mother looked at the food on the table.
"Speak up!" said the witch. "My supper grows cold."]]
Suddenly the mother knew what to do. Taking
the things from her basket she said "I know my 
children by what they want.."
"Bread wants butter. That's Monday.
Pie wants knife. That's Tuesday.
Milk wants pitcher. That's Wednesday.
Porridge wants honey. That's Thursday.
Fish wants salt. That's Friday.
Cheese wants crackers. That's Saturday.
And roast rib wants egg pudding. That's 
Sunday."]]
Quick as a wink the children turned back into themselves.]]
They hugged and kissed their mother then hugged and kissed each other.]]
Jumping to her feet the mother cried "I've got my children back
Heckedy Peg. Now you'll be sorry you ever took them!"]]
She chased the witch around the hut out of the woods across the
field through the town and onto the bridge.]]
And Heckedy Peg jumped off the bridge and was never seen again.]]

Subjective Criteria

Illustrations: Some support

Dialog: Two speakers

Vocabulary: More decoding/definition issues

Language: Many descriptive words

Sentences: Some Long/Complex

Text structure: Story/Poem

Inferences: Some implications

Concept: Fanciful

Features

Topic

Witches

Children

Magic

Tricking

Love

*Fictional Ideas/Charac

Low Frequency Words

burnt	despair	hearth	hobbled	overjoyed
windowsill